The documentary I just saw has the same name, the same year, the same subject and is directed by Jerome Cazadieu. It's broadcasted as Jordan turns fifty (not points, but years) and indeed his NBA titles, Olympics game medal (as well as the European Championship of my hometown) are twenty years behind. What have we become since? A lot of my dreams turns into nightmare (democracy, job, society) and it was premonition to call this team, a Dream, because watching it brought me tears...
As my hometown is the ultimate French team for basketball (not Pau, the other!), i grew up watching basketball, playing basketball. The NBA came in my life in 1991 with Canal + and two new magazines, "Mondial Basket" and "5 majeur", whose first cover was already the Dream team! My first impression was to stick with Jordan, Pippen and Jackson and what a ride they gave me up to 2010!
Summer 1992 was maybe the best ever: having graduated from high-school with honors, it was just a basketball extravaganza all summer before starting university. I remember the Portland tournament and the Barcelona games that I taped on VHS. My favorite game was USA-Germany with an outstanding game from Larry!
Regarding the documentary, it's a good work: the frenzy about the team and its inner dynamics are there. It's due to the fact that it's footage but also interviews with all the teamers and beyond (the commissioner, Kukoc). The coaches are a bit left and the most astounding fact is forgotten: Coach Daly never calls a single time-out in any games, even when the team was losing against Croatia in the finale. But it's an honest account as nothing is kept under the carpet (the card games, the logo controversy)...
What's is amazing is to see that all the team-up are true competitors, hard workers, courageous, polite and joyful people. It's such a change from our whining, insulting, fast tired French soccer proclaimed champions! So, they are the dream team because they have class, no more no less. The later teams aren't dream anymore (they even lose) but Coach K's tenure writes an incredible chapter (actually, 52v –1l!).
Writing all this, i can just cry because basketball moments like this were indeed unique: they have come and now they are gone, except in our memories!
