Written by: Beck

I think you could make a strong argument that the Olympic sport which the United States has raised to levels of proficiency unmatched by any other nation in any other Olympic sport is basketball.

I'm watching the US play their first basketball game of the Olympics right now against Puerto Rico. You know, the small island which is a protectorate of the US. The island well in the lead for running for 51st state of the United States. An island with a population just over 1% of the United States'. And, as the game approaches half time, the US is getting their asses whooped.

I don't even want to think about the average salary of the US team members. I'd feel pretty comfortable guessing that it's well in excess of $5 million per year. That's money they're paid to do nothing else in life but play basketball and play it well. And right now, they're getting beaten by a team that isn't even considered a medal contender.

The United States has never lost an Olympic basketball game since professional players first began playing in the Olympics (1992) with the fabled Dream Team. I'm starting to think we're about to see an Olympic first of the most ignoble sort.

At half time, now, the US team is down by 22 points. It's embarrassing and humiliating. Kudos to Puerto Rico, they're kicking our butts.

Update: Final score Puerto Rico 92 United States 73

Update: The official coverage from NBC.

For the first time since NBA players were allowed to compete in the Olympics in 1992 -- and for just the third time in Olympic history -- the American men were defeated on the hardwood as the tiny U.S. commonwealth shocked its superpower neighbor by a 92-73 score.

The key for Puerto Rico was the second period, in which they outscored the Americans 28-7 and turned a one-point lead into the largest deficit for a U.S. team since that summer in Barcelona. During the second, the Americans managed just three field goals and were outscored 14-3 in the final four minutes.

Once behind, the perimeter shooting weakness that many predicted for this team became evident. With Puerto Rico backed up into a zone defense, the Americans could not get the ball in to their best player, center Tim Duncan.

Forced to the perimeter, the Americans hit just 3 of their 25 attempts from 3-point range. [ed: The Olympic 3 point line is three feet closer than the NBA regulation 3 point line, making this pathetic performance even more astonishing]