No one expected Tunisia to give the USA any trouble and in the second half that turned out to be true.

The last time we heard of Angola in basketball it was 1992 and Charles Barkley was throwing elbows and talking trash.

Sounds like business as usual for USA Basketball.

But is it?

USA sleepwalks through prelims

A 92-57 win against Tunisia gave the USA a 5-0 record in preliminary play at the FIBA World Championship. The No. 1 seed in Group B, the U.S. now plays Angola, the No. 4 seed from Group A.

World Championship schedule

The USA is loaded with talent including Kevin Durant, Chauncey Billups, Kevin Love, Eric Gordon, Russell Westbrook and Stephen Curry. But this is not the Dream Team and it is not 1992. Heck, it isn’t even 2008 when Kobe, Carmelo, Dwyane and LeBron were out on the floor.

The margin between the U.S. and some of the other international powers is slim and getting slimmer.

“…on Monday night, we need to be ready for that and remember it’s one and done,” said coach Mike Krzyzewski. “If you don’t win, you can’t win it. It’s kind of like the NCAA tournament.”

Billups thinks the team is “right we thought we were going to be or hoped we would be after pool play,” and that the team is in “we’re in a good spot, a great spot actually.”

On Monday, it all starts for real. So is the USA in a “great spot” and will it win its first World title since 1994?

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