I always thought that if USA just sent the most recent NBA champions to represent team USA that they would perform much better than just sending the absolute best players because the NBA champions are cohesive unit where every player knows their exact role and Team USA typically have to figure out how to play with each other.
I always thought there was a huge diminishing return on a ton of individually skillful players since in the end, there is only 1 ball.
Listen to KD. He explained it recently. Today’s game is more focused on individual skills and creativity. When you have players this talented they don’t need to have tons of chemistry. These players have so much experience and skill they pretty much already know what to do without having played together.