I think this needs a bit more context. Before “the dream team” the US only sent NCAA basketball players. The same goes with all sports, including hockey. The US’s complaint was that other countries were sending their professional players. Cuba’s baseball team, the USSR’s hockey team, etc. were solely comprised of essentially professional players that did they sport for a living. It was successfully argued that this was an unfair advantage for countries with programs like this.
PS: This is why “The Miracle on Ice”, when the US beat the USSR in hockey was such a big deal. The US team was essentially a bunch college kids while the USSR was playing with arguably the best hockey players in the world at the time. It was the equivalent to Puerto Rico beating the original Dream Team in basketball.