Kobe Bryant averaged 15 points per game in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

The world may have gained ground on the United States in terms of basketball skill and talent, but the U.S. still has the perfect weapon against international competition: Kobe Bryant.

When the 2012 Summer Games kick off in London, the Americans will be favored to win the men’s basketball competition but they’ll get tested by international powers such as Spain (ranked No. 2 by FIBA), Russia (3), Argentina (4), Lithuania (6), Brazil (7),  and France (8).

Spain is led by the Gasol brothers (Pau and Marc), Russia has Andre Kirilenko and Tim Mozgov, Brazil boasts Leandro Barbosa, Nene and Anderson Varejao, and France is powered by Spurs star Tony Parker. Manu Ginobili and Luis Scola are the top guns for Argentina, the 2004 Olympic gold medalists, while Lithuania features Raptors rookie Jonas Valanciunas and Linas Kleiza.

“It’s a big challenge for us. The rest of the world kinda feels like the gap is continuing to shorten and they feel like they can beat us,” Bryant said. “We’re a fun bunch, joking around and laughing. But we know what’s at stake and we know what we’re representing. Come Olympic time we’re going to be ready to go and going to bring back the medal to the U.S.”

Because the U.S. is not familiar with a lot of the teams they’ll face in London, Bryant believes paying extra attention to detail is very critical to the team’s approach each and every game.

“In the NBA we do a great amount of preparation,” Bryant said. “Against these teams we have to do that even more because we don’t know most of their guys.

“We really have to do our homework and get to know their tendencies.”

Bryant’s supreme confidence was so contagious around the U.S. Olympic team in Beijing he almost single-handedly made everyone forget about the catastrophic loss to Greece in the 2006 World Championship (now renamed the World Cup of Basketball).

When the 2008 Olympic team — which included LeBron James, Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Chris Bosh, Deron Williams, and Dwyane Wade — got pushed to the limit by Spain in the gold medal game it was Bryant who pushed right back and carried the U.S. to the finish line.

“He’s the ultimate competitor,” USA Basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski said of Bryant, who averaged 15 points in the Beijing Olympics. “He’ll do anything to help the team win. And in pressure moments there’s no one any better. He wants the ball or he wants to guard the ball. He was born to be in those moments, and he’s prepared himself for those moments.”

Kobe is one of the few NBA players whose game adapts seamlessly to the FIBA level. Having grown up in Italy, there’s a lot of European influence in Bryant’s game and he can play any style: inside, outside, 3-point shots, dribble drives. He also doesn’t shy away from physical play, which is a big adjustment for NBA players because of the inconsistency in officiating and the amount of contact that is allowed in FIBA tournaments.

At 33, this is most likely Bryant’s last Olympic experience. He would love to add another gold medal to go along with his five NBA championship rings. Like he previously stated, the U.S. will be challenged in London, but as long as the Black Mamba is on his game Team USA is in good hands.

Jason Kidd, Chris Paul, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony celebrate a gold-medal winning performance in Beijing.

In the greatest gold-medal game in the history of men’s basketball in the Olympic Games, Kobe Bryant proved beyond any reasonable doubt that he is the best player in the world.

When Spain got within two points at 91-89 with about eight minutes left in the fourth quarter, the United States, a team loaded with a number of all-stars, called on No. 10 to close the game and all Kobe Bryant did was score 13 of his 20 points in the final quarter, including a dramatic four-point play that not only gave the United States an eight-point lead but it also resulted in Spanish stud Rudy Fernandez fouling out.

It seemed every time the Americans got in a tight spot, Kobe was there to pull them out of harm’s way. He made a fall-away shot in the paint. He hit a runner over Lakers teammate Pau Gasol. Buried a 3-pointer from the corner. And he converted all his free throws.

When it was all said and done, Team USA won its first gold medal in eight years as it defeated Spain, 118-107, in without question the most competitive gold-medal game in the Olympics.

Think about it.

In 1972, the U.S. lost to the Soviet Union but the game was marred with controversy. Besides, the U.S. did not send its best to compete in Munich. In 1988, the Russians won the gold but it came against college all-stars. Once NBA players started getting involved, none of the games were ever competitive until 2000 when Lithuania came within a 3-point shot of stunning the U.S. in the semifinals. In 2004, the U.S. sent a makeshift lineup and got crushed by Puerto Rico, Lithuania and Argentina.

Which brings us to 2008 in Beijing.

Spain scored 107 points! That would have been good enough to win gold in any Olympics. Team Espana matched the U.S. shot for shot and, had it not been for Kobe’s late heroics and Dwyane Wade’s game-high 27 points, the United States might be looking at another program-altering setback.

USA Basketball, under the leadership of manager Jerry Colangelo, sent its best (as long as they wore Nike gear) to Beijing. In the gold-medal game, Spain showed why it is a world power in hoops and the U.S. senior men’s national team needed to be at its best to defeat the talented Spaniards, which boasts NBA-caliber players. We all know about Gasol, Juan Carlos Navarro and Jose Calderon but the Olympics introduced us to the future of Spanish basketball in 23-year-old Rudy Fernandez and 17-year-old Ricky Rubio, who looks a little bit like Pete Maravich.

Should USA Basketball relax one bit in 2012 in London, Spain could take over as the No. 1 team in the world. So, I suggest to send this squad to London: Chris Bosh, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Kobe Bryant, Deron Williams, Greg Oden, Amare Stoudemire, Michael Redd, Dwyane Wade, Rodney Stuckey, Brandon Roy, Mike Miller.

Sorry, Chris Paul. I prefer point guards who can hit a wide-open 20-footer. Sorry, Carmelo Anthony. I’d rather have Amare. Dwight Howard needs to learn how to box out and stop relying solely on his hops before I’d invite him back. For now, Oden takes his spot.

Should LeBron, Kobe and Wade pass on the next Olympics, I would give Kevin Martin, Andre Iguodala and Michael Beasley a call. Let’s call this one: The Repeat Team.

China's Yao Ming battles Spain's Pau Gasol at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Pau Gasol and his Spanish teammates was put in an embarassing position of having to explain why they agreed to pose for an advertisement that reflected a racist tone.

The ad showed members of the Spanish team using their index fingers to stretch their eyes to make “slant eyes” as part of media day in preparation for the Beijing Olympics. Gasol and his teammates thought the gesture was innocent and was not meant to be demeaning. But after a London paper recently published the controversial photo, Spain’s men’s basketball team was thrusted into the spotlight and needed to defend its actions.

What adds fuel to this fiery issue is that Spain has been in this position before. The Associated Press reported that Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton was subjected to abuse at a Barcelona circuit in February, while former Spain coach Luis Aragones also used a racist remark about France striker Thierry Henry to motivate one of his players. Monkey chants rained down on England’s black players during an international friendly against Spain in a match played in Madrid in 2004, soon after Aragones’ outburst.

So, enter Pau Gasol. The Los Angeles Lakers center and one of the most revered and beloved athletes in Europe and around the world.

Gasol told Yahoo! Sports: “Some of us didn’t feel comfortable doing it just because to me it was a little clownish for our part to be doing that. But the sponsors insisted and insisted. I think it is just a bad idea I guess to do that, but it was never intended to be offensive or racist against anybody.

“I didn’t find it very funny. I didn’t find it offensive, either. I guess some guys didn’t mind. To me I don’t want to be that way, I guess, to be doing that stuff. If anybody feels offended by it we totally apologize for it. We never meant anything offensive by it.”

Good for Pau Gasol.

Whether his apology was by his own admission or Spain’s way of backpedaling, Gasol was a big enough man to step forward and state the obvious that the ad was done in poor taste and should have been pulled. Since he’s always front and center when it comes to Spanish basketball, Gasol wasted no time in diffusing the issue.

If this incident put a black eye on Team Espana, at least Gasol is doing his best in icing the injury and being the bigger man and admitting fault.

The 12 members of the U.S. men's Olympic basketball team from left to right: Dwight Howard, Chris Bosh, Tayshaun Prince, Carlos Boozer, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Kobe Bryant, Michael Redd, Jason Kidd, Dwyane Wade, Deron Williams and Chris Paul. CREDIT/NIKE

Jerry Colangelo and USA Basketball is painting this wonderful picture of how the 12-man U.S. men’s national team was constructed but take a closer because the picture is revealing something else.

In a team photo, Dwight Howard – the Orlando Magic center who wears the adidas brand – is placed at the far left craddling a ball with his left hand conveniently covering the Nike logo on his shorts. Coach Mike Krzyzewski, the only one seated, has his left foot covering Howard’s sneakers, which probably does not say Brand Jordan or Air Zoom.

It’s not the first time an NBA player tried to hide a sponsor’s logo in the Olympics.

Remember the 1992 Dream Team. To avoid being seen wearing anything but his beloved Nike gear, Michael Jordan draped himself with the American flag. Charles Barkley did the same thing.

Colangelo, USA Basketball’s managing director who called the selection process for the 2008 Olympic team extremely difficult, said the team has good chemistry and balance.

Really?

Must be just coincidence that 11 of the 12 players on the squad are affiliated with Nike, which just happens to be the main sponsor for Team USA. Also, must be coincidence that the team has one pure shooter (Michael Redd), one true center (Howard) and a truck-load of one-on-one players.

Where’s the balance?

Chauncey Billups and Mike Miller, two of the NBA’s best snipers, should have earned spots on the Olympic team. One problem though. They both wear adidas.

Miller is easily a better fit for international ball than Carmelo Anthony or Dwyane Wade.

Anthony is the Dustin Diamond of USA Basketball. He gets a lot of air time despite having very little credential. Sure he puts up nice numbers on offense but he also brings a ton of heavy baggage. He’s an erratic shooter, can’t play defense and is not a good enough rebounder to play in the post where he’ll end up most of the time since Team USA has one power forward on the roster (Carlos Boozer).

Reports say Wade, who is coming off shoulder and knee surgeries and looked overweight during the NBA season, is healthy enough to play. That’s the good news. The bad news is where do you play Wade? Chris Paul needs the ball to be effective. Kobe Bryant and LeBron James need to ball to create offense. Jason Kidd needs the ball to run the break. So, where does that leave D-Wade, who also needs the ball to be effective.

When you don’t have long-range shooters in the game, guys like Paul, Kobe and LeBron will have a difficult time probing the middle of the defense because teams will pack the paint.

Good luck to Coach Mike Krzyzewski in figuring out how to fit all his square pegs into the round slots.

At least Phil Knight gave his stamp of approval on Team USA…or should we say Team Nike.

Swoosh!