In my opinion, it's pretty simple. The international game has evolved tremendously in the last decade and it's largely team-oriented. The NBA has a lot of strengths - showcasing a selfless brand of hoops is not one of them. Top to bottom, our current Olympic roster boasts superstars whose egos are padded by the Sportscenter highlight, the $100 million shoe contract, and the American media. Point blank - that stuff just doesn't figure into the global basketball equation. Is there a solution? Well, what if we were to go back to the way it was before the Dream Team's inception and started re-using NCAA players in Olympic competition? Would it work?

Since basketball became a regularly-held event at the Summer Olympic Games in 1936, America finished as top dog all but twice when using college athletes. Yes, the rest of the world has caught up. Regardless, the type of "team" ball taught at the collegiate level translates well to the international game. Just look at '08 champs Kansas - four guys averaged double-digits but no one took more than 11 shots per game. Now take a peek at Carmelo's Nuggets. ‘Melo and PG Allen Iverson averaged nearly half of their team's total points (52 PPG) jacking up nearly half of the team's total shots (38 FGA). While that might cut it for a playoff-caliber team in the NBA, that style of offense falls way short of the medal podium overseas.

And let's not forget, Head Coach Mike Krzyzewski and Assistant Coach Jim Boeheim racked up over 1500 wins and 4 national titles coaching Division I basketball. There's a reason they haven't made the jump to the pros. As untouchable ambassadors of their respective universities, whatever Coach K and Jimmy B say goes. You don't see contract disputes, clashing egos, or public flair-ups at that level. When it comes to managing NBA personalities like Kobe, LeBron, and DWade, they're basically babysitting prima donnas and hoping to avoid confrontation.

What do you guys think? Would college players be the answer? Is there even a problem? Would you be all that interested in watching guys like Tyler Hansborough, Stephen Curry, and A.J. Price play in the Olympics? I think this conversation will definitely take on a life of its own if the men's team doesn't win gold next month. Until then, I guess I'm just trying to stir up the pot...