Order is restored in international ball! (Sort of.) Here's a little more of what they're saying out in the ether about the United States 118-107 win over Spain in the gold-medal game on Sunday ...

Dan Shanoff, The Sporting Blog: "Was USA Hoops really redeemed? Well, they lose the derisive nickname "USA Oops," and that’s a start. They vanquished the best in the world and reclaimed gold — but not without a bit of tension in the final game. Too much tension, really. As predicted four years ago when the "Redeem Team" concept was born in the failure of Athens, the presence of Kobe was the winning difference. And yet despite the well-publicized 3-year commitments, the team was still based on stars, not an international-friendly system. Sure, this team, so talented at the top, was able to overcome its shortcomings in strategy and personnel — but what happens in 4 years? Almost assuredly, there will be no Kobe. There will be no LeBron or Wade. Give up another 3 summers? Ha."

Sports On My Mind: "I am really happy the US won ... but before we get overconfident, let’s remember we played Australia without Bogut, Argentina without Ginobili, and Spain without Calderon for much of all three games. The world has caught up — it’s no longer up for debate."

Hardwood Paroxysm: "I never thought I'd care about an Olympic basketball team. The Dream Team wasn't compelling to me. You can't completely dominate to that degree before it gets boring. In basketball at least. But I got to love this team. Maybe because everyone dogged them for not beating everyone by 40 and for not shooting 60% from the arc. But I really got to love them, and somewhere in there I really started to identify with them as representing my country. It was in the interviews. It was different from the usual halftime interviews on TNT on a Thursday. There was a genuine pride and love you could see in their eyes. When Sager interviewed Kobe and Wade after the game, and after the interview they hugged and yelled at each other, it was genuine. The best in the world, celebrating a common goal achieved. And I was proud of them. For this moment, this one, brief moment in time, they're not monstrously paid superstars, they're not marketing tools, they're not images. They're real people, playing for the pride of their country. And tonight, they redeemed us in the eyes of the world."

Trail Blazers Center Court: "Personally, I've very proud of the way Nate McMillan represented the United States and the Portland Trail Blazers. I couldn't be happier for Coach. But Rudy Fernandez was the story. Just ridiculous. His performance throughout the Olympics, capped off by last night's stellar game against Team USA, is going to make the wait for his arrival all the more difficult. The dead-eye shooting from long range. The visionary alley-oops and assists. Dunking on Dwight Howard's dome. The constant motion on offense. The straight fearlessness against Kobe Bryant. His play was nearly flawless, save fouling out while giving up a four-point play to the Mamba."

Lang Whitaker, SLAM Online: "Much has been made of Jerry Colangelo requiring the current Team USA to commit to a three-year hitch in order to play on the team. It’s been trumpeted so much that it’s almost become overlooked, and I think it was key to this team’s success. Not only did it give Coach K a chance to install his systems, but it gave the players time to understand what the hell was going on. Also, it gave Coach K a chance to build some relationships with the players. Kobe told me that Coach K stayed in touch with the guys throughout the period, sending emails and leaving voicemails. I don’t like Duke and I don’t enjoy Coach K’s two million endorsements and commercials, but I love that Coach K was so dedicated to the gig. I also love that he didn’t put himself above the team — he figured out how to get the most of his players and coached to their strengths, instead of trying to force them into roles they didn’t understand or embrace. And that’s how Team USA won tonight. Nobody was asked to do anything they couldn’t do."

Lakers Blog: "It was a particularly fun day for patriotic Lakers fans, who saw the gold secured in large part due to a fourth quarter absolutely owned by Kobe. His 13 points/2 dime final frame highlights included a skying block of Juan Carlos Navarro's layup, being directly involved in six American points via setup or shot during a 69 second stretch (helping bump a four point lead back to nine), and a pair of triples, the latter a four point play after some contact by Rudy Fernandez, whose strong play and dunk on Dwight Howard likely had Blazers fans all giddy. That sequence also allowed Kobe a moment of entertaining showmanship; a finger pressed to his lips, reminding the rowdy Spaniard crowd that a duller roar might be in order. It was also cool to see the excitement plastered all over Kobe's face, having accomplished a goal that clearly meant tons to him and his mates."

Fourth Place Medal: "How much did Nike give Craig Sager to show off LeBron James' shoe before the gold medal game? That's the only thing I kept thinking as I watched Sager's "report" before the U.S.-Spain contest. In case you missed it, just before tip-off, NBC announcers Mike Breen and Doug Collins kicked it over to Sager for a sideline update. Instead of telling viewers about something worthwhile, Sager held up James' shoe explaining that it was it was a new Nike model and that LeBron was wearing it for the first time because it gave him some extra support. Out of all the things he could have told fans about before the Olympic Championship game, he decided to discuss King James' shoe selection. What?"

Tom Ziller, The Sporting Blog: "Team USA hasn't changed one bit from the 2004 disaster. The players are just better. The starting lineup in 2004: angry Tim Duncan, Lamar Odom, Shawn Marion, Allen Iverson and Stephon Marbury. The starting lineup in 2008: Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Jason Kidd. I mean, Duncan aside — Timmy hated FIBA rules/refs — that's a terrible lineup compared to today's team. The style didn't change: Team USA still gambled for steals instead of playing cogent, consistent team defense, isolation offense ruled the day. But this set of players was so good it couldn't be beat. If the Athens players were better, the 2004 team would have won."

Brew Hoop: "If Dwyane Wade was the perfect sixth man (and he most certainly was) then Tayshaun Prince was also the ideal tenth man, something missing from previous versions of Team USA. You just felt at ease whenever Prince was on the court throughout the tournament. And his 3-3 effort in eight minutes against Spain sure didn't hurt in the 11-point win, right? Let's just say I wouldn't mind seeing him, at 32, in London in 2012."

Related: The Internets are alive, USA Basketball