Krzyzewski preaches team play

SEOUL, South Korea – LeBron James is a force and so is Dwyane Wade. Coach Mike Krzyzewski, however, said the United States has a bigger threat for the world championships.

“Our go-to guy is our team,” he said.

The Americans must adjust to the wider lanes of international play and will tune up against Lithuania and South Korea before heading to Sapporo, Japan, for their world championships opener Saturday.

At past world championships, the Americans were criticized for failing to play as a unit. The Duke coach wants to set a different tone.

“All of our players can step up,” he said Saturday. “The go-to guy is not just someone who makes the shot but someone who makes the play, and all of our guys can make the play.”

Carmelo Anthony leads the team in scoring after three exhibition games and will suit up today against Lithuania. He hyperextended his knee Tuesday in an 90-86 win against Brazil but returned to practice before heading to Seoul.

“The games in China allowed us to get accustomed to international play,” Krzyzewski said. “It’s a different game. We had some adversity with foul trouble and injury against Brazil, but the players responded well down the stretch and we were able to win.”

The U.S. finished sixth at the worlds in 2002 and third in 1998. The last time the Americans won the tournament was 1994.

Anthony, James and Wade all played on the U.S. team that won the bronze medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Now the only satisfactory result will be gold.

“There will be a lot of pressure,” James said. “But with myself, Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade leading the team, we feel we can control the pressure. If we don’t win the whole thing it will be disappointing for us. But if we go out and play our game, we feel we can win it all.”