SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Fittingly, the Tournament of the Americas pre-Olympic qualifying tournament began Wednesday with a day off for the United States and its NBA stars.
There should be a lot of days off, competitively speaking, as the American players embark on this mid-July vacation, otherwise known as qualifications for the 2000 Olympics.The United States opens Thursday against Uruguay, one of the lesser-known and lowest-regarded teams in the 10-nation field.
"I know it starts with a 'U' and ends with a 'Y'," said Allan Houston of the New York Knicks.
The international style of play, with its premium on outside shooting and its aversion to physical play, does not exactly inject fear into the hearts of the fourth U.S. national team made up of professional players.
This is only the second time the United States has had to qualify for the Olympics in men's basketball. The other time was 1992, when the original Dream Team won the Tournament of the Americas in Portland, Ore.
Qualifying became necessary last summer when the U.S. failed to win the world championships in Athens, Greece, after a league lockout forced NBA players from the roster.
Grouped with the United States in the opening round are Cuba, Argentina, Canada and Uruguay. Group 'B' consists of Puerto Rico, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Panama and Brazil.
In first round games Wednesday, Uruguay defeated Cuba 87-84 in overtime and Canada beat Argentina 77-70. In late games, it was Puerto Rico 81, Venezuela 56, and Brazil 70, Dominican Republic 64.
The U.S. players insist they are not overlooking the competition.
"I don't put anything past anybody in the game of basketball," Vin Baker of the Seattle SuperSonics said.
The U.S. team is relatively young, with only three players -- Steve Smith of Atlanta, Tim Hardaway of Miami and Gary Payton of Seattle -- older than 30.
The nine NBA veterans -- Houston, Baker, Smith, Hardaway, Payton, Jason Kidd, Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Tom Gugliotta -- will also have spots on the Olympic roster next summer. The other three roster spots on the qualifying team are held by three rookies -- Wally Szczerbiak of Minnesota, Richard Hamilton of Washington and Elton Brand of Chicago.