Well, except in the Olympic qualifier.

Two berths to the 2008 Olympics are available in the FIBA Americas tournament, and the Americans getting one of them might be the closest there is to a sure thing in Vegas.

Unbeaten and practically untested in three previous appearances, the Americans play their tournament opener tomorrow night against Venezuela.

"I know our confidence is sky high right now," Anthony said. "We feel that we can't be beat, but we just have to go out there and prove it."

The Americans are no longer automatic in the Olympics, where they lost three times in 2004. And they never really have been in the world championships, where they haven't won the title since 1994.

But while the rest of the world may have caught up to the United States, the rest of the Americas hasn't. The Americans are 26-0 in this event, with only one game being decided by single digits. Jason Kidd built most of his perfect international record as a pro while playing for the 1999 and 2003 teams that both went 10-0.

But having already lost four times in a USA jersey, James certainly won't be caught looking past anybody.

"You can't be too confident," the Cleveland star said. "I think every team is good and basketball's a worldwide game now. We understand that, so we're going to start from the bottom of the world all the way to the top just like everybody else."

The United States has been beaten by teams from its own region in other events. Argentina knocked off the Americans in both the 2002 world championships and 2004 Olympics, and Puerto Rico stunned the U.S. in the opener in Athens.

Argentina is the only team to even scare the United States in the Olympic qualifier, losing 94-86 in a 2003 game in Puerto Rico. The teams met again for the tournament championship, with the Americans crushing the eventual Olympic gold medalists 106-73.

The Argentineans would normally be the biggest threat to the Americans, but came to Las Vegas without many of the players who made the country an international power. Manu Ginobili and Fabricio Oberto, starters for the NBA champion San Antonio Spurs, are sitting out the tournament along with Chicago's Andres Nocioni and Walter Herrmann from Charlotte.

That might leave Brazil as the toughest test here. The Brazilians nearly beat the Americans in an exhibition game last year before the world championships, and have good NBA talent in the Phoenix Suns' Leandro Barbosa and Denver forward Nene. But they're without James' Cavaliers teammate, Anderson Varejao, who doesn't have an NBA contract and couldn't risk playing.

The United States and Brazil are in Pool B along with Canada, Venezuela and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Argentina heads Group A, joined by Mexico, Puerto Rico, Panama and Uruguay.

After round-robin play, the top four teams in each pool advance to the second round and play the teams from the other side. The semifinals are Sept. 1 and the championship game is the next day.

The United States doesn't have to win the title to qualify for Beijing. Both teams reaching the finals automatically advance, and the teams finishing third, fourth and fifth earn spots in a separate qualifying tournament next summer.

History says the Americans won't need to make plans for that, even if the players are downplaying it.