I've talked to more than a dozen execs in the last few months and they all wish their players could stay home. But no one dare say so for fear of alienating the league or sounding unpatriotic.

So they bite their tongues and hold their breath.

Milwaukee did when Andrew Bogut was hurt and said he thought it was serious. They had just signed him to a $60 million deal before the Olympics, though he seems fine.

Ginobili may not be, and in many ways he's the key to the Spurs' ultimate success.

There's questions about Calderon as well, and what does Toronto do for a point guard after trading T.J. Ford?

The Raptors allowed Jorge Garbajosa to play in the European championships in 2007, and he suffered a broken leg and effectively ended his career in Toronto in the subsequent dispute, and the Raptors clearly took a step back last season without that valuable player.

The U.S. team of NBA players was the best team in the tournament and deserved to win. But they did get a bit of a break, and it goes back to the concern of all the teams. Ginobili went out and Nocioni wasn't himself. And what if Calderon had played in that final game against the U.S.?

He's more of a slower paced guard and could have controlled the tempo and taken care of the ball better for Spain, which shot unusually well and rebounded well. That was the key to beating the U.S. team, and Spain came close.

The U.S. players, particularly Bryant and Dwyane Wade, came through in the end and it was enough. But that supposedly great defense that was to be the difference receded when Bryant could no longer smother his man on defense. Team USA fell into the Mike Krzyzewski college trick of really playing in something of a zone and getting into the lanes to try to make steals and get fast breaks. It didn't work often enough and the U.S. team began getting beat to the basket. So in the end, they had to outscore Spain, and they had more talent and did so.

They made the effort and put in the time and made big plays when they had to, and so they won. It was nice to see and a terrific final game to conclude a wonderful tournament. But it's not worth the potential risk and price to NBA teams.

So let's leave the Dream Team to Redeem Team as the NBA's contribution to the Olympics and put together a touring national team to play together for four years. They could be paid well through exhibitions around the world and perhaps corporate sponsorship, and USA Basketball could benefit financially as well.

And what's wrong with rooting for a potential underdog at the Olympics?

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Standard NBA contracts stipulate against organized summer play and have all kinds of clauses prohibiting activities that everyone else engages in, like motorcycle riding.

The U.S. was lucky. None of its great stars was hurt, though what would be the effect on the Lakers to lose Bryant, or the Cavs to lose LeBron, or the Magic to lose Dwight Howard, and so on with Chris Bosh, Deron Williams, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony?

And did Yao rush back too soon from last season's injury to play for his homeland? The Rockets will soon find out.

Though the loss would be to the fans of the NBA. Does it matter in New Orleans that Paul has a gold medal? Or whether he can play at a high level all season?

The Dream Team started it. Perhaps it's fitting if this team finished it, and the focus of the NBA players remains the NBA season and not any international exhibition tournament.