John Stockton, Chris Mullin, and Charles Barkley revel in the moment after clinching the gold medal for the United States at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Twenty years ago, when NBA players were allowed to participate in the Summer Olympics it changed the entire landscape of the sport of basketball.

The global impact of the 1992 U.S. men’s basketball team — also known as the Dream Team — was enormous. They opened the door for international players such as Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker to become NBA stars and heightened the popularity of the sport around the world.

A documentary presented by NBA TV sheds light on how the Dream Team came together and the untold stories behind the greatest team ever assembled.

The first call went to Michael Jordan as then NBA executive Rod Thorn called the reigning league MVP and explained to the Bulls’ megastar that “this is bigger than the NBA Finals . . . and we need you.”

Jordan was hesitant at first because he had already gone through the whole Olympic experience. He needed to be convinced and told who else was joining the historic squad. So Thorn made his next move. He called Magic Johnson.

“It was a no-brainer for me,” Johnson said. “I was in from Day 1. I figured if I jumped in first and said I wanted to play then I would get guys to want to participate as well.”

“I think if Magic wasn’t on that team it wouldn’t have been as spectacular as it was. To finish out our careers was important for both of us,” said Larry Bird, who was named team captain along with Magic.

“Once you get guys like Magic and Larry committing on the team then all of a sudden it becomes something very, very special. Representing the USA is already a tremendous honor. To know that you’re gonna be on a dream team is a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” said center David Robinson, who was a member of the U.S. Olympic squad that finished a disappointing third  in the 1988 Summer Games in South Korea. It was the watershed moment that sparked the whole NBA-led Olympic movement.

“They called in the big guns,” Patrick Ewing said.

One by one the Dream Team started to take shape. After Jordan, Magic and Bird eight other Hall-of-Famers accepted the invitation: Robinson, Ewing, Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, Scottie Pippen, Chris Mullin, John Stockton, and Clyde Drexler. The last spot was filled in by Duke University standout Christian Laettner — whom many referred to as “the college guy.”

“It didn’t matter if you called me last. I got the call,” Malone said.

There was one major omission from the squad and that was Detroit All-Star Isiah Thomas. Jordan and Pippen both admitted they didn’t want Thomas — the ring leader of the Motor City bad boys, who tormented the Chicago Bulls for years — on the roster and the bad blood between the Bulls and the Pistons spilled over into the selection process of the Dream Team.

“I don’t think [Jordan] wanted [Isiah] on the team,” Pippen said.

The first official win for the Dream Team was the 77-point blowout against Cuba in the Tournament of Americas in Portland. The starting five who took the floor that day was Magic, Jordan, Barkley, Bird and Robinson. It was the first time Magic, Bird and Jordan — arguably the three greatest players in basketball history — shared a court together as teammates.

Magic made it a point to compete against Jordan in anything, anywhere, and anytime from HORSE games to free-throw shooting contests in practice to card games.

In Monte Carlo the scrimmages were intense as Daly split the practice squads and held live four-quarter games. On one side it was Jordan, Pippen, Mullin, Barkley and Ewing. Magic’s team had Drexler, Malone, Bird, and Robinson.

“Michael never liked to lose,” Pippen said. “He always got that look. When you see that look then give him the damn ball and get out of the way.”

Jordan said as much as it was five-on-five games it gravitating toward a Michael vs. Magic showdown.

By the time practice was over even Magic, who won five championships in the 1980s with the L.A. Lakers, had to acknowledge that basketball’s landscape had changed forever. “Larry and I were talking and Michael walks in and he says ‘There’s a new Sheriff in town.’ And we both hit each other like ‘Well, he’s not lying.’ ”

Monte Carlo definitely had its perks and Barkley, easily the most quotable star on the team, wasn’t shy about sharing one of those private moments. “Everyday after we got back from practice we made a beeline to the swimming pool with all those girls laying out topless,” Barkley said.

Barkley also admitted that you didn’t want to get in a beer-drinking contest with Bird because “Larry Bird drank Budweiser and Budweiser is the strongest beer in the world. And my head hurt for like two days.”

Robinson and Drexler also marveled at how Jordan could play round after round of golf yet still have enough energy to practice basketball. “I remember thinking ‘Does this guy ever sleep?’ ” Drexler joked.

The Dream Team officially didn’t lose a game, but there was that one dubious “loss” to the U.S. Select squad — which included then college studs Bobby Hurley, Grant Hill, Penny Hardaway, Rodney Rogers, Eric Montross, and Chris Webber — at the start of training camp.

The college players defeated the Dream Team, 62-54, during a scrimmage in UC San Diego, but assistant coach Mike Krzyzewski saw it differently.

“Chuck [Daly] threw the game,” Krzyzewski said of the Dream Team coach’s master plan.

“If you looked on how much Jordan played and how much he subbed guys in, not picking up, not making any adjustments. He knew what he was doing,” Krzyzewski said. “I hate to burst their bubble, but it was a game thrown. Not many people would have done it, and he did it.”

Krzyzewski added: “It was brilliant on Chuck’s part to be able to orchestrate that and play along like he did.”

So why didn’t he tell his staff? “We probably would have screwed it up,” Coach K explained.

The next day the Dream Teamers flexed their muscles and showed why they were basketball legends. Barkley boasted his side won by more than 100 points and Coach K remembered the Select Team had all kinds of problems putting the ball in the basket. And, oh by the way, Jordan played a lot more in the rematch.

“It was gratifying to Chuck to have our butts beat like that because now we had to listen to him,” Jordan said.

Malone recalled Daly’s one and only speech to the players, and the message was crystal clear. “His speech was anybody can get beat,” The Mailman said.

From that point on the team never lost and none of the games were even close. The ’92 U.S. Olympic team ripped through the competition in Barcelona en route to the gold medal. They showcased total domination, execution, and basketball genius that left a lasting legacy that still resonates 20 years later.

“We made the game a worldwide game,” Barkley said. “I talked to Tony Parker, I talked to Ginobili, I talked to Dirk Nowitzki. Those guys said their first love of basketball started with the Dream Team. And I’m really proud of that.”

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

With the retirement of Shaquille O'Neal (left), Orlando's Dwight Howard now stand alone as the NBA's most dominant big center. (GETTY IMAGES)

Shaquille O’Neal playfully boasts that he is the last true dominant center in the NBA. He would even gloss himself with nicknames such as MDE (Most Dominant Ever) or Wilt Chamberneezy, an ode to the late great Wilt Chamberlain. But is Shaq right? Is he the last of the prolific big men who commanded double teams on a nightly basis, averaging 25 points per game and walking the path paved by all-time greats like Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing and David Robinson?

Last season, only three centers were in the top 20 in the league in scoring: Dwight Howard, Andrea Bargnani and Brook Lopez. And Bargnani is more of a forward than a classic back-to-the-basket big man who does most of his work in the paint. Howard had the highest scoring average among true NBA centers in 2010-11, but his 22.9 average fell short of the very high bar set by the Hall-of-Famers who came before him.

In the last 10 years, only two centers have been ranked in the top 10 in scoring. One of them, Tim Duncan, prefers to play power forward. Who was the last center to lead the NBA in scoring? It’s the man with more nicknames than Apollo Creed . . . Shaquille O’Neal. Shaq’s 29.7 scoring average in the 1999-2000 season earned The Big Diesel his second NBA scoring title. It was also the same season Shaq won the trifecta: regular season MVP, All-Star game MVP, and NBA Finals MVP.

So what has happened to the dominant big men?

“The game has evolved,” TNT analyst and former Indiana Pacer Reggie Miller recently said on NBA TV. “The notion that you had to have a dominant center to win championships is not the case anymore.”

Miller added, “Personally to me, the change really started in 1992 with the Dream Team and in ’96 with Dream Team 2 because if you look at the European big men they are not as dominant as a Shaq or a David Robinson or a Hakeem Olajuwon. They are more pick-and-pop players. Now that they’re in the NBA, that’s where the game has started to evolve.”

The center position, once thought of as the marquee position in basketball, has become an afterthought. If you scour current NBA rosters and find each team’s starting center, some of the names won’t strike fear in anyone: Marcin Gortat, Kwame Brown, Jason Collins, Roy Hibbert, Anderson Varejao, Samuel Dalembert, and Darko Milicic. Last season’s NBA finalist, the Miami Heat, reached the championship series with Joel Anthony as its starting center.

Successful NBA teams such as the Dallas Mavericks, Heat, Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics and New York Knicks have built their post-up strategies using hybrid big men such as Dirk Nowitzki, Chris Bosh, Pau Gasol, Kevin Garnett and Amare Stoudemire. They all could play center and play with their back to the basket, but all five would rather face the basket and shoot jumpers.

Former Atlanta Hawks player and current NBA TV analyst Steve Smith believes the zone defense has eliminated the value of a classic low-post player, and added that coaches at the youth level don’t teach post moves to young players.

“No one is teaching the big guys the fundamentals,” Smith said, “and we don’t glorify a guy rebounding, playing defense and playing down in the post. I think it’s a lost art.”

Shaq said while he was growing up he had guys like Ewing and Olajuwon to emulate, centers who played the position like it was supposed to be played. But these days, high school big men never develop an inside game because they don’t have a template to follow.

Will we ever see another Shaquille O’Neal? “With all due respect to Dwight Howard, we will never see [another Shaq] a guy who dominated from block to block,” Miller said. “It’s all about highlights now. It’s not about dominating. It’s about looking good.”

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

Hakeem Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing.

Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon were always considered two of the best centers in the game and their induction into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008 officially cemented their place in history. But where does Ewing and Olajuwon rank among the greats? Who is the best center of all time? Wilt? Russell? Shaq? With apologies to SI.com’s Marty Burns, here’s the real top 10 list according to ONEMANFASTBREAK:

10. GEORGE MIKAN: A big salute to the man who started it all. The NBA owes a great deal of thanks to Big George because he carried the league through its early stages. The 6-foot-10 Mikan was ahead of his time. He dominated the sport and was a larger-than-life figure; the first true superstar of the NBA.

9. ARVYDAS SABONIS: By the time Sabonis entered the NBA, he was 31 years old and had chronic knee problems. But at the height of his basketball career, the big Lithuanian could score inside, shoot outside, and was a tremendous passer. “Arvydas was Dirk Nowitzki, only 7-foot-4. Passed the ball like Larry [Bird] or Magic [Johnson],” said Donnie Nelson.

8. PATRICK EWING: A friend of mine once told me that Ewing is the greatest Knick player of all time. Initially, I scoffed at the statement. Then the more I thought about it, he was right. Ewing was everything and then some to the Knicks and only a championship ring separated him and the next guy on this list.

7. DAVID ROBINSON: The Admiral won two NBA championships (with an big assist from Tim Duncan), a scoring title and voted regular season MVP in 1995. He played all 14 of his seasons for the San Antonio Spurs, and that alone is quite an achievement.

6. MOSES MALONE: Arguably the most dominant post player in the NBA from 1979-84. Three things come to mind: rebounds, rebounds, rebounds. His credentials include three regular-season MVPs, two trips to the NBA Finals and won a championship ring in 1983 with the Philadelphia 76ers.

5. HAKEEM OLAJUWON: For two years, Olajuwon was the best player on the planet. Of course, those two years were the ones Michael Jordan missed during the 1990s. Nonetheless, The Dream was a force on both ends. In 1994, he was the regular-season MVP, defensive player of the year and NBA Finals MVP.

4. SHAQUILLE O’NEAL: Despite all the weight issues and Kobe bashing, The Diesel is the biggest and strongest man to ever play the game. No player in NBA history attacked the rim like O’Neal. His dunks were so ferocious because he used every ounce of his 330-pound frame into every slam. Sure, he should have won more than four NBA titles or should have more than one regular-season MVP award, but Shaq’s dominance is measured by the amount of respect his peers have for him. He’s the modern-day Wilt!

3. WILT CHAMBERLAIN: The original MDE! Wilton Norman Chamberlain’s name is all over the record book. The man averaged 30.1 points and 22.9 rebounds for his career. He was one half of the greatest center rivalry in history and the only reason why he’s not rated higher is because he won just two NBA titles. Wilt was always concerned about numbers ~ 100 points, 23,000 rebounds, 20,000 women, etc. His greatest strength was also his greatest weakness. He was such a dominant individual scorer it affected team play.

2. BILL RUSSELL: William Felton Russell is the other half of the greatest center rivalry in the history of the game. The anchor of the Boston Celtics Dynasty has more championship rings than fingers. Russell is responsible for 13 ~ two as coach and 11 as a player ~ of the Celtics’ 17 championship banners. Defense may have been Russell’s calling card, but his legacy was all about winning. He won in college, he won a gold medal in the Olympics and is the gold standard when it comes to championship rings in the Association.

1. KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR: Speaking of winning…probably the greatest winner in the history of basketball when you consider high school, college and pro. He never lost a game in high school and was 88-2 while at UCLA.

In 20 years in the NBA, The Big Fella won six NBA championships (five with the Lakers and one with Milwaukee), a record six most valuable player awards and still holds the career scoring mark of 38,387. His best weapon on offense might be the greatest shot in league history: The Sky Hook.