The U.S. men's national basketball team is a dream team since the best NBA players form it. However, it seems like a perfect basketball team also loses.  

(Photo : Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 10: Caleb Agada #3 of Nigeria fouls Kevin Durant #7 of the United States during an exhibition game at Michelob ULTRA Arena ahead of the Tokyo Olympic Games on July 10, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Nigeria defeated the United States 90-87.

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Nigeria beat the U.S. men's basketball team during the first exhibition game of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. The United States was shocked by the upsetting loss of its dream team, especially since the score is very tight, with a 90-87 final score in favor of Nigeria. 

According to Team USA's latest report, the dream team had a 31-1 standing in exhibition games ever since 2005. The team is also managed by Men's National Team Director Jerry Colangelo, who plans to retire after the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.

The final score also shows how Nigeria's men's national basketball team has improved for the past few years. U.S.'s competitor suffered from a losing score of 156-73 at the 2012 London Games during Nigeria's Olympic debut. 

U.S. Men's Basketball Team Loses Against Nigeria

NBA News provided the list of NBA names playing for the U.S. men's national basketball team. To give you an idea of how powerful the current dream team is, here is the full list of its roster:

(Photo : Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 10: Precious Achiuwa #55 of Nigeria grabs a loose ball as he is fouled by Draymond Green #14 of the United States as Jayson Tatum #10 of the United States defends during an exhibition game at Michelob ULTRA Arena ahead of the Tokyo Olympic Games on July 10, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Nigeria defeated the United States 90-87.
  • Jrue Holiday (Milwaukee Bucks)
  • Zach LaVine (Chicago Bulls)
  • Bam Adebayo (Miami Heat)
  • Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors)
  • Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers)
  • Kevin Love (Cleveland Cavaliers)
  • Khris Middleton (Milwaukee Bucks)
  • Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics)
  • Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards)
  • Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns)
  • Kevin Durant (Brooklyn Nets)
  • Jerami Grant (Detroit Pistons)

According to AP News' latest report, the dream team of the United States has only lost 11 games before its practice match against Nigeria on Saturday, July 10. 

"I thought that the Nigerian team played very physically, did a great job in that regard, and knocked down a lot of 3s. Give them credit," said Gregg Popovich, the U.S. coach of the U.S. men's national basketball team. 

"We just wanted to compete. We know what USA Basketball means around the world and what they've stood for so long," added one of the Nigerian players, Gabe Nnamdi.  

U.S. Men's Basketball Team Tried Its Best 

Since the final score is really close, you can see that the U.S. Men's Basketball Team played the match like it's a real game. However, Nigeria also did its best to control the game. 

In the last quarter, Ike Iroegbu's two free throws were able to bring Nigeria's largest lead of the game, which is 80-74. After that, Micheal Gbinjie also made a shocking 3-pointer, allowing the team to have a leading score of 85-77. 

The U.S. men's national basketball team tried to score a 3-pointer. However, their opponents were able to stop them.  

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This article is published on Latin Post