Revisiting the 2002 World Basketball Championships

Is this bad memory finally fading away? View full size photo uploaded September 15, 2009 In the context of what has happened since (and in the absence of any current action to pick the bones from) I thought it might be interesting to revisit Paul Pierce's role in the failure of the 2002 incarnation of Team USA at the World Basketball Championships in Indiana.I'm afraid this will raise more questions than answers, although your comments will certainly help in that regard.  Before I recap exactly what went down, let's dive into some of those questions:Has Pierce leading Boston to a title caused you to forget this or is it something that was soon forgotten anyway?  Would it have factored into his legacy as a great player?  Did the subsequent failure of the next few USA teams to win get him off the hook at all?  Did you feel the need to defend Pierce at the time?  How accurate is your recollection of e...