Foul trouble or another injury for Howard could cause a real problem, leaving the USA vulnerable against the better, more physically imposing teams. Team USA lost to Greece during the 2006 World Championships because it couldn't handle a more physical team.
Although international basketball usually allows more physical play than the NBA does -- which should help Howard -- it also allows more acting.
European players are well versed in flopping, saddling an opponent with unwarranted foul trouble. Center Tim Duncan spent much of the 2004 Olympic Games in foul trouble, a big reason the U.S. squad failed to win the gold medal in Athens.
"I watched the Olympics on TV when we lost (in 2004)," Howard said. "I felt like I was part of it, because I played against those guys during the season. It was painful to see. I don't want that to ever happen again. My goal is to put a flag on my back, a gold medal around my neck and sing the national anthem on the victory stand."
Howard joined Team USA prior to the 2006 World Championships in Japan. At the time, he was picked more on the potential he had shown in his first two NBA seasons than for what he could actually contribute. He was a part-time starter when the U.S. squad finished a disappointing third in Japan.
Today, he is expected to be the anchor, the foundation from which this team will revolve. Players such as Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade will provide the points and pizzazz. They will swirl around the perimeter like bees on defense. They will dazzle opponents with fast breaks so fast that heads will spin.
Yet if it all goes right, it will be Howard, mostly alone in the middle, who will make it all possible, enabling the USA to reclaim its rightful spot atop the basketball world. Howard still has the original USA Dream Team Wheaties box that his father gave him after the 1992 Olympics. Howard was 6 years old then.
"I have a chance to do something incredible with a great team," Howard said. "When you win a gold medal at the Olympics, it's not for you, or the team you play on, or the city you play in, like it would be to win a championship in the NBA. It's for our country, and everyone in it. That's why it would be so special."
Tim Povtak covers the NBA for theOrlando Sentinel.
