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Smallwood: Some Sixers pose future threat to Team USA

THE INTERNATIONAL Basketball Federation got what it wanted after it changed its rules to allow professionals, i.e. NBA players, to participate in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics: a worldwide growth in the quality and popularity of basketball played in 214 of its 215 member delegations.

THE INTERNATIONAL Basketball Federation got what it wanted after it changed its rules to allow professionals, i.e. NBA players, to participate in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics: a worldwide growth in the quality and popularity of basketball played in 214 of its 215 member delegations.

Even though it reluctantly agreed to send the Dream Team to the 1992 Games, the NBA gained more than it anticipated - unprecedented global exposure that opened an international marketing gold mine.

The only entity that has not reaped huge benefits from the NBA'ing of the Olympics has been USA Basketball.

To the surprise of many, it took only three Olympic cycles for Argentina to snatch a gold medal from a U.S. team composed completely of NBA players at the 2004 Games in Athens.

As a countermeasure, USA Basketball director and Sixers adviser Jerry Colangelo changed the philosophy from putting together an all-star team into a team composed of NBA All-Stars. The United States easily won gold in 2008 and 2012.

Still, the continued development of talent worldwide again meant it would only be a matter of time before events such as the Olympics and FIBA World Cup became more wide-open tournaments.

In Rio, several tough encounters for Team USA have again shown that American basketball is vulnerable.

International basketball play is different from NBA play, and the United States has 10 first-time Olympians, including six who had never played in a major international tournament.

Experience plays a role. The gold medal is not guaranteed.

It's a numbers game for talent that keeps getting more even.

Last season marked the second consecutive season that at least 100 international players were on NBA rosters when the season opened.

When the Sixers drafted Australia's Ben Simmons in June, it marked the fourth straight draft in which a player who qualifies to play for a country other than the United States was selected first overall, following the selections of Karl-Anthony Towns (Dominican Republic), Andrew Wiggins (Canada) and Anthony Bennett (Canada).

In the past two drafts, 13 of the combined 28 lottery picks have been international players.

The world is rapidly catching up, and the team whose players could pose the biggest threat to Team USA's future Olympic success is your Philadelphia 76ers.

The Sixers' 2016-17 roster is nurturing several intriguing international prospects. If they reach their potential, they could help their nations chase gold at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

Simmons and center Joel Embiid (Cameroon) are projected as potential "generational-level" players.

Like Embiid, Nik Stauskas (Canada) and Dario Saric (Croatia) were lottery picks in the 2014 draft.

Along with Simmons, the Sixers drafted Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot (France) and Furkan Korkmaz (Turkey) in the first round in June.

Saric and free-agent guard Sergio Rodriguez (Spain) are competing in the 2016 Games.

Those Sixers, combined with other high-level NBA prospects, give several nations legitimate paths to the gold medal.

Because Simmons has such transformational potential, Australia has to top the list of potential threats to the United States.

The Aussies are playing like medal contenders in Rio. and NBA players Andrew Bogut (31), Aron Baynes (29), Joe Ingles (28), Patty Mills (28) and Matthew Dellavedova (25) might have another Olympics in them.

The new wave, however, is the story.

For Tokyo, the Boomers could have a team led by Simmons, Utah guard Dante Exum, the 2014 No. 5 overall pick, and Milwaukee rookie center Thon Maker (10th overall).

The projections say that, in four years, Simmons could be a top-five NBA star, while Exum and Maker could be All-Star-level players.

Canada has not won an Olympic basketball medal since getting silver in 1936, and has not qualified since 2000.

The Canucks, however, seem about ready to cash in on a generation of players such as Stauskas, who picked up basketballs instead of hockey sticks at the turn of the century.

Wiggins (21), Stauskas (22), Bennett (23), Trey Lyles (20), Kelly Olynyk (25), Tristan Thompson (25) and Jamal Murray (19) are all recent lottery picks, while Tyler Ennis (21) and Cory Joseph (24) also were first-round choices.

The 2020 Games could feature Canada's first "Golden Generation."

Croatia was the opponent for the Dream Team in the 1992 gold-medal game. The silver is thus far its only men's team's Olympic medal.

Croatia will have a nice nucleus for Tokyo in 2020 Olympians Saric (22), New Jersey Nets guard Bojan Bogdanovic (27) and Orlando Magic swingman Mario Hezonja (21). It also should have 18-year-old forward Dragan Bender, who was drafted fourth overall by the Phoenix Suns in June.

Center Ante Zizic (19) was picked 24th overall by Boston and 19-year-old center Ivica Zubac was picked 32nd by the Lakers.

Luwawu-Cabarrot (21) could be part of the French team receiving the torch from NBA veterans Tony Parker, Boris Diaw and Nicolas Batum, who won the 2013 European Championships.

A French team in 2020 could also feature Orlando Magic swingman Evan Fournier (23), Utah center Rudy Gobert (24), Denver forward Joffrey Lauvergne (24) and this year's 16th pick in the first round, Guerschon Yabusele (20).

Cameroon has few NBA players, but if Embiid turns into a generational center, possibilities open up. Africa is becoming a hotbed for NBA talent. Cameroonian forward Pascal Siakam was picked 27th in June by Toronto.

The Sixers have a number of players who could develop into great players before the 2020 Olympics. Most would not represent the United States.

@SmallTerp