Does winning make Team USA any less arrogant?

I was interested to read this entry on You Been Blinded, which quotes Glen Saville, Australian Boomer, as saying that all of Team USA, except for Kobe Bryant, "carried on like pork chops."

To translate that from the Aussie vernacular, what 'Sav' is trying to say is, that Kobe was the only player on Team USA not to make a tool of himself in terms of his attitude towards his opponents.

The easy approach to take in this instance, by American supporters, is to say something along the lines of, "you lost, you're just bitter! USA! USA! USA!" All you need to do is check the comments section in almost any Olympics-related article to find these sorts of attitudes springing forth.

It's sometimes hard to look from the outside looking in and realise how people look from the perspective of others, but perhaps the perceived aura of arrogance that surrounds USA squads is not totally unfounded.

Now of course the media has driven us to death with the moniker "Redeem Team." This name had a two-fold meaning. The first part was obviously for USA to reclaim their place as the top basketball nation in the world. The second, less emphasised part, was to regain dignity after gaining some poor press based on their apparent arrogance and disrespect for both their nation and their opponents.

Kobe, LeBron and Co certainly fulfilled the first part of the redemption, but did they achieve the second part? That is the question we pose here today.

Now, back to Saville's claim that the USA (less Bryant) acted like pork chops in their match up. Australians are known as some of the best competitors sports-wise in the world; a country of only 20 million people that competes like one 10 times that size. Australians are used to a fairly large level of success and do not need to bring whining or complaining into it in order to please their nation with their performance. This is why it seems unlikely that Saville (along with some of his teammates) was complaining unnecessarily that USA were not being totally sporting about the affair.

The debate on this topic is pretty pointless amongst sports fans, as none of us were on the court to witness the reality of it all, however I will point you to look at the final handshakes after USA had disposed of Australia quite cleanly. From my viewing of that sequence, Bryant was indeed the only player to make an effort to talk to each player he shook hands with and in particular LeBron James did not appear to even look the players in the eye as he shook hands with them all.

You may say, "big deal." However it must be remembered that many of these players are to an extent role models of their opponents and are looked up to. James is one of the most marketed sports personalities on the planet. The least he could do after knocking over an opponent is to shake hands, look them in the eye and commend them on their performance, just the same as any good sportsman does even in their local rec league.

The 2008 Olympics are history now. The Americans won the Gold. Did they redeem themselves?

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No way José : the Spanish perspective

Well, well. There certainly has been some conjecture over our article yesterday on José Calderón's opinion that there were some inaccuracies in the way the Gold Medal match between USA and Spain was officiated.

A Spanish reader has commented that the main problem that Spanish fans had, was with perceived travelling violations on the Americans which were committed where steps were taken before putting the ball down on the floor. Our friend then provided some examples of where this was an issue.

The first example (below), shows LeBron James take a couple of steps in the backcourt before putting the ball down:

Next up, we have a Kobe breakway dunk. I have to admit, I have trouble seeing the point where Mamba actually received the ball on this one:



And finally, a Juan Carlos Navarro parody of the USA, with a "mock travel" in the game's dying seconds:

Now, I can certainly see that there may have been examples of this happening. It's also worth noting for our American readers, that many players from the USA who take on roles as imports in foreign leagues often have trouble in the early going getting used to the fact that they have to put the ball on the floor before taking off, as there is a difference in the way that rule is treated in the USA and in the rest of the world.

However, as many gracious Spanish fans have admitted, this difference didn't cost Spain the game. At least, it's unlikely that it did.

As some American fans have pointed out, there was also a questionable elbow that sent Chris Bosh to the floor late in the game, in a case of one Gasol brotha' hookin' anotha' brotha' up. If someone has youtubage of that hit, then by all means, link it in the comments.

For those that want to continue the debate on this, there has been plenty of talk between fans from all walks of life on HoopsHype, Slam, ClubLakers Forum and Ballhype amongst many others.

However, let's leave the last word on what some have described as one of the greatest international games of basketball ever, to José Calderón himself, "Thank you all for your support and your confidence."

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José Calderon : Spain would have won under FIBA rules

Spain pushed Team USA to their limits in the Men's Olympic Basketball Gold Medal Game. José Calderon, who was injured and could not take part in the game, in fact believes that Spain should have won the match.

On Calderon's personal blog, he was a little coy about the topic, going only so far as to say, "Now is not the time to discuss the referees, injuries, absences..." However, on news site El Mundo, he aired his opinion a little more clearly in the Olympic blog he maintained for the site.

(Please note that this translation is a combination of my rudimentary Spanish knowledge and that of google's translator service)

"This is not the time to speak of officiating, but I think with the FIBA rules we would have won. That is why we are a little annoyed, because we were right there at the finish line and we have just missed out."

He makes a point on both blogs of pointing out that Spain is a team and plays as such and that this is their strength. There is no doubt that this is what took the Spaniards to such a high level in the Games, despite missing out at the end.

Calderon's point regarding the rules does require some consideration though. Did the rule changes and different interpretation of those existing rules by FIBA (to come more in line with NBA rules) give an advantage to the Americans? If you were a conspiracy theorist, would you then take that one step further to ask the question as to whether the rules were changed/interpreted differently by FIBA in order to keep USA Basketball interested in international basketball and continue to send top players to compete?

So, to what rule changes exactly is Calderon referring? There have been no specific rule changes that came into effect prior to the Olympics per se, however there has been a perceived difference in the way the rules have been interpreted by referees, in the eyes of many observers. These differences mainly centre around travelling violations, charge/block calls, carrying violations and continuation on shooting fouls.

There have however been legislative changes made to the rules by FIBA, that will come into effect at later dates. At FIBA's 25-26 April, 2008 meeting the Board agreed on a series of rule changes which would come into play after the Olympics, ie from 1 October, 2008 and then a greater set of rule changes that would be effective after the 2010 World Championships (post 1 October, 2010).

The October 2008 rule changes are fairly insignificant and mainly involve backcourt violations and unsportsmanlike/technical fouls. The 2010 rule changes is where FIBA really sends their daughter into bed with David Stern.

As of 2010, the three point line will come out to 6.75m to move toward the NBA's line. The key will no longer be a trapezoid, but will become an NBA-styled rectangle. No-charge semi-circles will be marked under the basket. In short, FIBA basketball will become the NBA -- they just need to adjust the zone defence rules to marry up fully.

So why has FIBA made these rule changes? "The recommendations by the FIBA Technical Commission and the decisions taken by the Central Board were strived by the attempt to further unify all existing game rules and to have, in the future, only one set of rules for the game of basketball worldwide."

The emphasis above is mine. The obvious thing to be noted here however, is that most of the changes in the relationship have come from FIBA's side. The marriage counsellor surely isn't doing their job properly.

Howard Beck of the New York Times: "Winning Olympic gold in Beijing depended partly on Team USA’s ability to cope with the unfamiliar geometry of the international game: a trapezoidal lane, a shallow 3-point arc and a contorted array of driving lanes.
But in two years, the trapezoid will be dead, the arc will be a little deeper and the international game will be a bit closer in style to the N.B.A.’s."

The view from the outside is that of course the NBA has always been very resistant to rule changes that would affect the product they are promoting. David Stern wants to maintain a league which demostrates excitement, with one-on-one matchups, slashing to the basket and serious athletic dunking on display. So FIBA no doubt felt forced to comprimise in the NBA's direction if the two were ever to meet up. Are the changes good for the game worldwide? That's questionable and to a large extent a matter of taste. Is strawberry or chocolate ice cream tastier?

The angle coming from FIBA on this is that they like the NBA rules and saw a need for these changes:

Basketball officials in the United States welcomed the changes, although they did not specifically push for them.

“It’s also probably an endorsement of our game and our rules,” said Jerry Colangelo, the managing director of the senior national team for USA Basketball.

Although it appears that the international game is moving toward the American model, “that is not the way the FIBA board who made the decision actually felt about it,” said Patrick Baumann, the secretary general for FIBA. The goals of the association’s board, he said, were much broader than merely standardizing the game.

In FIBA’s view, the 3-point shot has become too common. In 1984, when the arc was added in international play, only 14 percent of all field-goal attempts were 3-pointers, Baumann said. Now, he added, that number is 40 percent and players routinely make 38 to 40 percent of them.

“The board felt that’s no longer now an exceptional shot,” Baumann said. “It felt something needed to be done.”

What do you think? Are the changes for the good of the game internationally? Does Calderon have a point in relation to these past Olympics and how they were officiated?

Update: with video analysis







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Redeem Team Crushes Aussie Dream -- But Not Mills

116-85.

No surprises.

That was the score. The expected outcome was reached. Australian basketball fans dreamt of the Cinderella story, the Rocky-like miracle victory. Then the Redeem Team, aka the USA Men's Basketball team, smashed the glass slipper on the ground before midnight even came around and the pumpkin carriage could arrive.

The Aussies kept it tight for the first quarter and the USA players certainly looked flustered and somewhat surprised. Most of that came from a very poor three-point shooting performance by the red white'n'blues early on and Australia stopping baskets underneath with some solid fouls which were not converted upon.

Ultimately, everyone in Australia knew that a "miracle" was needed to pull out victory, against a squad that has dominated all comers. The 11 point game prior to the Olympic tournament (sans Andrew Bogut) was just a smokescreen and Team USA had turned on all cylinders by the time this match came around.

USA goes on to deal with Argentina and likely Spain as they try to take the Gold Medal unhindered. Australia battles for the fifth place, the best consolation available at this stage.

However a lot can be taken from this campaign for the Aussies. The team is very young and one star in particular has jumped to the forefront of the public consciousness: Patrick Mills. The 5'11" 19-year old has proven on more than one occasion in this tournament that he is not at all intimidated by players at the highest level. NBA scouts will no doubt be watching him, as many fans are.

Guarded by Chris Paul, the player he most resembles on Team USA, he showed no signs of struggle as he danced to the basket on more than one drive; even taking and and-one from Paul himself at one point when the game was still in contention.

Even Coach K was impressed with Mills and said what everyone else was thinking:

"I'm glad my Duke team doesn't play St. Mary's," U.S. Coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "He'll be an NBA guard."

An accolade from a coach is one thing, a nicety if you will. But getting an NBA superstar to admit that he got beaten, that's another thing.

"He's quick, he can move," said U.S. point guard Chris Paul. "I read something that said that he's faster than me. They're probably right."

As always however, Mills is self-effacing and humble. He sees the benefit of this exposure, not to himself, but to his school.

"Hopefully this does a lot for St. Mary's program," Mills said. "And we can progress in the NCAA tournament."

This is the type of player Australia has leading them into the next decade of international basketball. The future looks bright.



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Olympic Basketball : Australia Boomers v Team USA (1pm GMT)

Well, it's game time soon. One team has to accept that they will not be walking home with medals around their necks and the other goes on to battle it out with the likes of Spain (who beat Croatia 72-59 this morning).

Many people are searching for the game time on this one, so let's make it clear:

Men's Olympic Basketball: Australia v USA

1pm GMT

8am US ET

10pm AUS ET

I'm sure you can work out your obscure timezone with reference to those above!

Key Links

Ball Don't Lie will once again be live-blogging this match.

BrewHoop has their allegiances crossed -- Redd or Bogut?? They have a load of links the size of Chris Kaman's conscience.

...a stern warning : our preview from yesterday of keys to victory.

Oh, and if you're looking for a place to watch the game online, I may know a guy who knows a guy that found a place, so email me.

Go Boomers!

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Next up: Team USA v Australian Boomers

The Australian Boomers shocked a lot of people, perhaps even themselves, with their thrashing of the previously undefeated Lithuania, 106-75. As Lithuanian star Linas Kleiza said after the match, "I hope they continue to do that against the United States. If they play like they did today, maybe they have a chance."

That is where Australia find themselves -- matching up against might of the Redeem Team. Both of these teams have been reviewed and analysed to death. Scroll down to the bottom of this article for some links to reviews. What we're going to discuss here is, what factors could get the Aussie Boomers a win here and what factors could see Team USA run away with an expected win; a knockout punch on their way to the Gold Medal match.

How will AUSTRALIA surprise Team USA?

1. Composure -- the Americans rely on their athleticism to run teams off the court. Even in their biggest of blowout matches, USA has started out with fairly close first quarters, with their opponents relying on early addrenalin to allow them to keep up with the more physically dominant NBA greyhounds. However after one quarter of pressure, teams tend to tire and forget what their coaching staff have drilled into them. They fall to the full court press that Team USA throws out there and start to give away steals at mid-court to Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant. Before you know it, USA has turned a single figure game into a 15-20 point game and their opponents put their heads down in submission.

Australia's point guard combo of CJ Bruton and Patrick Mills have to play the games of their life to ensure they keep a steady ship for the Boomers. Bruton will be relied upon in the early going to set the tempo, show his veteran savvy and hopefully knock down a couple of threes. Mills will be brought on for a change of pace and has already shown that he can blow by the best of them in this tournament. He did the same against Chris Paul in the pre-Olympic warmup between these two. Steady point guard play equals steady offence, which in turn leads to less USA fast breaks.

2. Defence -- Perhaps the most deflating thing that Team USA does to it's opponents, more than the chest-bumping, more than the strips and fast-break dunks, is the way they come back at you after you've just scored and convert on a touchdown pass within 2 seconds of you sinking a basket you worked so hard for. Brian Goorjian is renowned for his defensive strategies. He might not be the most gifted offensive coach in the world, but he certainly knows how to motivate a team to play hard-nosed D. He will be preaching to the Boomers that they need to have at least two men back immediately on every play to prevent the American fast break.

3. Bigs -- Australia (like most countries) clearly has a bigger stable of low-post players than USA does. In general this hasn't caused a problem for the Redeemers in most games, as they spend most of their time in the open court, without their interior weakness being exploited. However, if the Boomers can get some early fouls on Dwight Howard and if Andrew Bogut can continue his scorching recent form, the boys in green and gold may be able to gain a solid advantage inside. Bogut, along with David Andersen, Matt Nielsen and Chris Anstey have the ability to do some damage inside on offence. At the other end, they all stand 7-feet or thereabouts and will intimidate many shots in the paint.

4. Perimeter shooting -- the type of shooting display that Australia put on against Lithuania would come in handy again, however those types of performances (16/25 from deep) don't come along often. What the Boomers do need is for one player to spark up from the outside. If that player can be David Barlow, all the better, as he will draw LeBron James (his likely defender) out of the key where he has been a menace defensively against many teams (credit to John Rillie for this thought). Barlow and Brad Newley have both had solid Olympics campaigns so far -- coming out parties if you will. If they can pull that out of the bag against USA, the Boomers might not be going home just yet.

How will TEAM USA keep their undefeated run alive?

1. Full-court defence -- taking other teams out of their gameplan is what has kept every team at arm's distance so far for the Americans in this tournament. Even the might of Spain eventually fell prey to the USA full-court press. If they can continue to generate offence from their defence, it will be very hard for Australia to score enough points at the other end to keep up. This will also keep the interior weakness of Team USA under wraps.

2. Use matchups -- USA may have some weaknesses in overall height, but as Henry Abbott at Truehoop pointed out, they certainly have a huge advantage over most teams at the swingmen positions. In height. In weight. In terrifying atheltic power. Whilst Carmelo Anthony's well-documented alergy to defence may give Nielsen some opportunities for isolations at one end, LBJ, Kobe and DWade will have field day in many cases against the swingmen put up against them. This is the way the NBA works, it's a man-on-man game designed for athletic superstars. If any of these guys can get some room, whilst being guarded by Newley, Barlow or Mark Worthington, the like their chances of getting to the basket or at least drawing a foul from the help D of the Aussie bigs.

3. Role players -- whilst the USA superstars are the bread-and-butter for this team, their memories are not short enough to forget that to win International tournaments you have to rely on guys that do the other things as well. Michael Redd and Tayshaun Prince in particular will have to be used to knock down threes and play tight D respectively, where needed.

4. Respect -- this team has been remarkably humble to date, though they are coming from a low base given the performances of some previous USA ensembles in the past 8 years. It is important that USA continues to not lose sight of the bigger picture in this tournament and not lose respect for their opponents, even a team like Australia. For too long the benchmark in American culture has centred around how many NBA players a team has in identifying a winner. The NBA-less Greek team soon proved that wrong in recent times and Team USA better not forget that a team that plays well together needn't be a team of individual superstars. In short, don't lose sight of the chance that Australia CAN win this game -- and from here, it's like the NCAA tournament.

Further Resources

[...a stern warning] Australian Boomers Preview

[JR, On Fire] Australia v USA match preview

[Green Bandwagon] Australian Boomers Preview

[Brewhoop] Following Bogut's Progress

Great interview with Patrick Mills where he talks about his NBA ambitions and the Boomers:

Such a great, humble guy with so much talent.

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Spain 45 - 61 USA : at the half

If you haven't been keeping up with the Ball Don't Lie live blog of the match, or watching it on TV, well you should be... but regardless, here's how the first half has panned out so far.

1st Quarter

USA seemed to be going right against their strengths by using the tried and true "get the ball to the big guy" offence, aka the Bill Cartwright offence. They kept on pounding the ball into Dwight Howard with varying success.

On the other end, Rudy Fernandez was not shy in putting up a few outside shots, whilst the ball was not yet going into Pau Gasol very much.

Spain certainly are not shy in running with USA -- taking the ball in quickly off the inbounds on more than one occasion.

Plenty of physicality early, on both sides, but in particular LeBron and Melo are dishing a bit of a beat-down out to the Spanish bigs, apparently in an attempt to disguise their lack of height.

Tight early on, with USA up 9-7 with 6:29 to go.

Dwight Howard goal-tended a shot into the stands. A shot which was well and truly short of the mark, as more of an intimidatory move. Stupid if you ask me.

Kobe shows that there is no love between NBA teammates when it comes to the Olympics, as he levels Pau Gasol!

Much of the Spanish offence is going through Rudy Fernandez and Rayez.

Jose Calderon is handling the USA pressure well. A nice fading baseline jumper over Jason Kidd. When will he be subbed for CP3/Deron?

And here we go at the 4:30 mark, CP3 and Chris Bosh come into the game. Spain replies with Juan Carlos Navarro and Marc Gasol.

USA is double-teaming Calderon A LOT. It's not doing much so far.

17-year old Ricky Rubio gets a run with 3:41 to go in the 1st. And he certainly does not look flustered against his higher profile opponents. You go boy.

3:20 to go and Wade gets a signature steal at half-court for a dunk. He follows that up with another steal in traffic in the paint.

USA is pressuring Rubio. Twice he draws fouls at halfcourt, from CP3 and then Deron.

At quarter time, it's USA 31-22.

2nd Quarter

Rubio v Kidd -- young v old. Rubio still doesn't looked fazed.

Prince comes in and hits a trey straight away.

Juan Carlos Navarro makes a foray into the paint and hits the floater.

The physicality continues as Howard gets called for a charge.

LeBron is looking very pumped in this game -- he has that look in his eyes.

As the 2nd quarter goes on, USA starts to draw this game out a bit. They are leading in three point shooting and are still killing with their patented fast breaks.

Spain ends the quarter with some full-court defence of their own, which seems surprisingly successful and pressures USA out of some shots.

54-36 USA at the half.

Team USA v Spain : Olympic Pool Match

Today we have the Men's matchup in these Olympic Games that everyone has been waiting for. USA v Greece was merely a taster -- a chance for the Redeem Team to get some form of redemption. However, everyone knows that the real redemption will not come until Team USA silences all doubters and gets on that private jet back to the land of the free with Gold Medals around their necks.

Spain represents the strongest challenge to USA standing on that middle podium at the end of these Games. This game is not important in terms of getting to the next round -- both teams will do that regardless. However, these are the likely combatants come the Gold Medal game and a huge mental edge will be attained by which ever team can come away with the W.

What can be said about these teams that hasn't already been said? Both have been covered in so much detail, both on and off the court... from unflattering team photos to battles for point guard minutes. The blogosphere and mainstream media have been all over it like a horizontally challenged child on M&Ms.

One thing to note is that Spain is very adept at handling that daunted USA press. They have one of the lowest turnover guards in NBA history in Jose Calderon manning the point and teenage phenom Ricky Rubio backing him up, along with savvy play from Juan Carlos Navarro and Rudy Fernandez. Spain will use that pick-and-roll like crazy, with the Gasol brothers rolling to the basket and giving Dwight Howard fits -- trying to get him in foul trouble.

This Spanish team should handle Team USA's strengths better than anyone else has to date. Whether they can handle them to the extent that they are winners is another story.

No doubt Kobe and LeBron will be very fired up to prove a point here. Presumably we will also get a taste from Coach K and co as to what his rotations in crunch time will be. Will we see a reduction in talisman Jason Kidd's minutes in favour of the in-form CP3 and Deron combo? Will we continue to see DWade burn up the court with his unbelievable penetration?

We all wait in anticipation. If you want to get into the spirit of the game to its full extent, regardless of whether you have vision of the game or not, I highly recommend you surf over to Ball Don't Lie blog where Skeets, KD and the gang will be live-blogging, as they have to critical acclaim for previous matches. Matching comedy with basketball -- there's nothing better is there?

Today's warnings : 10 August, 2008

In a full day for Men's Olympic Basketball, let's Czech out some of the links around the interweb:

• Ball Don't Lie liveblogged the USA v China game, so if you want to feel like you were there watching the game along with various other internet denizons, knock yourself out!
• FIBA YouTube interview with Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian.
• Brandon Roy has his eye on Rudy (Rudolfo) Fernandez at the Olympics, with thoughts of next season with the Blazers. I imagine he would have enjoyed what he saw today vs Greece where Rudy led his Spanish team to a solid win over a key rival.
• Carolyn at And One talks about the death of Grandpa Munster, basketball fan.
• A Spurs fan hating on their team's outlook (via Truehoop).
• Yao started out sooo well against Kobe; shame China couldn't keep it up.
  
  

Highlights: Australia v USA (Pre-Olympic match)

Highlights, courtesy of msfbasketball of the Australian Boomers v Team USA pre-Olympic warmup match, including the great performance from 19 year old point guard Patrick Mills.

Croatia 97 - 82 Australia : match autopsy

The first games of Olympics mens pool basketball games are almost all over, with just USA v China to come.

Today saw a couple of surprise results, along with the predictable ones.

JR, On Fire has a round-up of results for today, including a somewhat surprising Lithuanian defeat of star-studded Argentina (on a Linas Kleiza three on the buzzer following Carlos Delfino coughing up the ball), Russia's easy disposal of Iran, Germany not falling prey to potential-laden Angola (behind new recruit Chris Kaman), powerhouse Spain proving their mettle against former champs Greece and Australia sadly falling to a white-hot shooting Croatia.

Australia and the Croats both went into this match knowing that it would be a key pool game, as both are vying for a tight berth into the medal rounds. Croatia came out all guns blazing and blew the Boomers out of the water, 97-82.

Australia started the game in traditional fashion of late, with a CJ Bruton three-pointer, but from there it was all downhill.

The Croatian victory can be put down to one word: treys.

The boys in red, white and blue seemingly could not miss from deep and unfortunately for the Aussies, Brian Goorjian's trademark pressing defence played right into this strength. Australia was pressing the ball, with some success, all the way up the court. Of course though, when you press and don't succeed in stopping the ball, it leads to wide open shots.

Croatia did a great job of spreading the floor and beat the press in most cases with crisp passing that led to a series of threes raining from the sky. The Croatians just could not miss in this game. It is near impossible to stop a barrage like that.

The Croatians shot an unbelievable 12 of 16 (75%) from long range and the Aussies could not respond, with 6 of 19.

Once a team starts shooting like that, the same confidence transfers to all aspects of the game and the Croatians made a number of unbelievable and-ones under the basket and had the Aussies running in all directions, trying to cover all of their shooters.

The stars for the Croats from deep were Marko Tomas (4/4 for 12 points), former NBAer Zoran Planinic (2/2) and Davor Kus (2/3), whilst Marco Banic (16 points) and Nicola Prkkacin (16 points) did a great job inside.

It was not all doom and gloom for the Aussies, with a very strong captain's performance from Matty Nielsen (13 points, 5 rebounds) and a spirited, inspiring offensive display from David Barlow who proved himself beyond his years with 12 points including a stretch where he seemed to be the Boomers' only offensive threat.

Australia will just hope not to encounter another team with that sort of luck/skill/fortune from the land of deep if they are to progress into the next round. Their full-court defence certainly posed the Croats some problems at times and made the final scoreline more respectable than it could have been.

Now onto USA v China, which is in front of me on the TV screen now...starting with a Yao Ming three!

USA 87-76 Australia -- No Bogut, No Cry

Team USA, as expected by all but a few Australian players' parents, took out a victory over the Australian Boomers in Shanghai today. The 11 point victory probably did not please the American camp all that much, as many were predicting a whitewash, particularly with Aussie NBA big man Andrew Bogut out with a faulty ankle.

Dwyane Wade has silenced all of the naysayers in the pre-Olympic going with some 2006-like performances of late, including 22 points today. He was happy with the team's performance:

"It was a great game for us, the last game before going into the (Olympic) tournament, we are happy that we played them and I'm sure they feel they got better from this," Wade said.

"But at the end of the day, we won the ball game and found a way to win."

Despite Bogut being out, Australia had the advantage of not having to go to small ball, with Chris Anstey, Matt Nielsen and David Andersen all fit to go. Anstey had a game befitting of his vast international experience, stepping up with 13 points and 6 rebounds and at one point getting into a firey situation with his opponents in a short-lived scuffle.

As always, Team USA came out of the game not feeling too unsettled and walking with the swagger that only they can muster. However, the reality is that should Bogut have been in action and had replaced the minutes that David Andersen played the result may have been infinitely closer. Andersen (4 points, 4 rebounds and 5 fouls) appeared uncomfortable at times in this match, perhaps as he was forced to play down low more than usual in Bogut's absence. Once the Games begin and the Milwaukee Buck is back in action, Andersen will be able to go back to his bread-and-butter mid-range jumper.

Bogut will indeed be back in time for the Olympics, with the team saying that he is 70 percent fit. "If this was the Olympics today, he would play, but it's not _ it's just a warm-up game, and we are going to be cautious and make sure it is right," the spokesman said.

The opening of the match was not unlike the 2004 Olympic encounter between these teams, where a very tight first three quarters culminated with a fourth quarter run-away by Team USA. Team USA played full-court defence today right from the get-go, with Jason Kidd closely manning CJ Bruton. With the athletes at their disposal, this is clearly the best move. However Australia did not get too flustered by this and Bruton's experience allowed him to navigate the press well.

Eventually coach Brian Goorjian made the decision to bring in 19 year old Patrick Mills for a change of pace at the point and he did not disappoint. Mills' speed certainly took away from one of Team USA's strengths and he did surprise them en route to the basket on more than one occasion. He finished the game with 13 points and no doubt gained some new NBA scouting admirers who will be closely following his exploits at St Mary's next season in anticipation of coming Drafts. His lack of size is easily made up for in the speed, shooting and decision-making departments. Australia certainly does not lose a great deal when he subs onto the court.

In the second quarter Australia slumped somewhat, as USA used their full-court press to their advantage and the Boomers' offence suffered somewhat, giving up 22 points to 10 in the period.

The third saw Australia rally back and get within spitting distance, but the Americans never really were forced to get into top gear, as they kept the lead in double figures toward the end of the final quarter. Carmelo Anthony proved he can man the power forward position quite adequately with 12 points and 10 rebounds, whilst fellow classmen Wade and LeBron James (16 points, 4 assists, 5 steals and 3 blocks) stood out from the rest. Dwight Howard in no way dominated inside and often appeared to need some help against the bigger Australians. He may also need some free-throw practice before the USA meets with some tougher opponents after going zero for six from the stripe.

After all the talk of the imporance of Australia's bigs, they did their job as expected in this match and in addition the punch was received on the perimeter by Mills, Brad Newley and David Barlow. Australia will be relying on that input in the Games to have a chance against the heavyweights.

A FEW WARNINGS

Skeets and co at Yahoo's Ball Don't Lie hosted a fun little live blog on the match, allowing us all to do a bit of hello sweet worlding about the relative merits of Luc Longley's surfing skills, the fact that Fosters is bottled in oil cans and whether we'd "like to go to a hip-hop club with [Andrea] Bargnani".

Boxscore for the match is here, courtesy of NBA.com.

Review of the match from a site I've not visited before called Soul Assassins (including a couple of great closeup pictures of Kobe v Nielsen).

SLAM giving some love to Patty Mills and Joe Ingles as potential future NBA stars, along with Ricky Rubio as players to watch in the Olympics.

The Melbourne Age's review of the match.

This Australian squad is Goorjian's best yet, as per the Melbourne Sun (which has been said ad nauseum in the leadup to these Games -- let's hope it's for real).

Kelly Dwyer's thoughts on where Team USA needs to smarten up.

2008 Olympic Warmup Preview : Australian Boomers vs Team USA

The last time these two teams met in an Olympic setting, a very close game ensued for three quarters, with Team USA walking away with an 89-79 victory at the end of it all. It is fair to say that the Australian Boomers put up a very strong fight against a USA team which did not have as easy a ride in Athens as it often hopes to, going out of the tournament with only a bronze medal to show for it (behind Argentina and Italy).

This time around appears that it may be a little different. Already the USA men have shown they are in strong form and the disappointments of the last eight years have hit home with the stars of the team. The blasé attitude has departed to some extent and the USA is doing all it can to waltz home with a gold medal in Beijing.

The Australians play a phyical game and have a significant amount of size in their lineup, which may bristle a few feathers, as it did in September 2000 during the pre-Olympic match held in Melbourne (see photo, right). Vince Carter walked away with a chant from the crowd he possibly had not heard before after not only injuring referee Bill Mildenhall, but also clashing with and standing over Aussie basketball legend Andrew Gaze.

Whilst firey personality Shane Heal is not with the team this time around, the Australians will no doubt still try to make a statement against USA this time around. Only this time it may all be through their play on the court.

Team USA has perhaps its strongest lineup in many years and definitely its most focussed. The athelticism of the team is unprecedented with players such as Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade headlining that area. The key area of weakness from the outside looking in, is the lack of depth in the big man department. Carlos Boozer, Dwight Howard and Chris Bosh certainly have an uphill struggle should any of their number have to miss time due to injury or foul trouble and will rely on players such as James to help out down low.

Here's a breakdown of how some of the matchups may play out, based upon the rotations that seem to be getting the most burn to date in the warmup games:

C: ANDREW BOGUT v DWIGHT HOWARD

Whilst Bogut has the height advantage on Howard, Superman from Orlando is a physical specimen that should not be messed with. Australia's front line may have one of the better chances of challenging Howard inside and at least stifling his dominance on the boards. It is worth noting that Bogut's performances against Howard's Magic during his NBA career have been less than flattering. He has performed well below his season averages in points and rebounds against Orlando, whilst Howard has had no such problems with the Bucks. Look to Howard to frollick untethered on the glass. In the background: Chris Anstey (AUS) v Chris Bosh (USA) -- Anstey likes to play on the perimeter a lot, whilst Bosh can mix it up inside or midrange.

PF: MATTHEW NIELSEN v LeBRON JAMES

Once again, Nielsen's height advantage on James may be negated by King James' superior athleticism and raw strength. James is undoubtably only rivalled by teammate Bryant for status as the most talented player in the world and this is an area where Australia will really struggle to contain Team USA. The defensive assignment on James may well fall to someone like David Barlow who has superior lateral quickness and athleticism, leaving Nielsen with a smaller player to guard. Nielsen has proven on the world stage in many stratas that he can perform at a high level and as captain this time around, will be looking to serve his country proudly. He will do his job on the boards and scoring from mid-range, but playing at LBJ's level is a duty beyond the call for the star from Penrith. In the background: David Andersen (AUS) v Carlos Boozer (USA) -- these guys have quite similar games, both can bang inside or hit the jump shot and will provide significant support off the bench.

SF: DAVID BARLOW v KOBE BRYANT

Barlow is a solid and consistent threat from the perimeter, particularly when he has his feet set. See John Rillie's insight on Barlow's game here. The "Prototype" will try his best to keep up with either Bryant or James on the defensive end, but whatever the assignment will be, he will struggle to keep up, as will almost anyone in the world. Bryant has designated himself the "Doberman" of the squad, so it is likely that he will be a harrowing force on the defensive end for Team USA and will look to cool down whichever Aussie gets hot from the perimeter early (whether it be Barlow or Brad Newley). In the background: Mark Worthington (AUS) v Carmelo Anthony -- once again, these guys have similar games. They both can score in a variety of ways, play big for their position and have strong on-court personalities. Worthington likes to play defence though, something Melo is not renowned for.

SG: BRAD NEWLEY v DERON WILLIAMS

Newley has shown some glimpses of brilliance so far in the Olympic leadup. His ability to slash to the basket and hit shots from the perimeter may cause some problems for USA should they decide to stick with the Deron-CP3 backcourt that they have been using for extensive stretches in previous matches. On the other end, Williams will continue to razzle and dazzle in his ball-handling tandem with Chris Paul and will give the Aussies fits at containing his solid decision-making. In the background: Glen Saville (AUS) v Dwyane Wade (USA) -- Sav is a veteran with great poise and versatility, but Wade is in a whole different stratosphere. Look to Wade to play a significant role, whilst Sav provides support in spurts.

PG: CJ BRUTON v CHRIS PAUL

As one of the team's veterans, Bruton will be looking to steady the ship for Australia and not let them get too overawed against their more famous opposition. CJ is a scrappy player that is not afraid to fall on the floor and take a charge (almost too willing some would say) and will do his best to stay in front of Paul, one of the quickest players in the tournament. Much of the time however, it may prove useful for the Boomers to bring out Patrick Mills' blinding pace to have a shot at matching CP3, who will no doubt continue his brilliant domination from the backcourt. In the background: Patrick Mills (AUS) v Jason Kidd (USA) -- the master and the apprentice. Mills at 19 years of age, will see his minutes to give the Boomers a change of pace when things aren't going to plan, meanwhile Kidd will be brought into steady the ship in much the same way, but rather he will be on court due to his experience and heady decision-making.

Australian coach Brian Goorjian will be happy with this result if Australia does not embarass themselves in a blowout. To date the Boomers have acquitted themselves well in all of their matches (wins and losses) and will be looking to keep the confidence levels up going into the Olympic tournament. Noone likes to lose, regardless of there being nothing at stake, so look to Team USA to try their best to make a statement with a big victory here, punctuated by some late game fast-break dunks.

Also see: Australian Boomers Olympic Preview

Today's warnings : 1 August, 2008

Olympic preparations are in full swing as the most famous basketball referee in the world is going behind bars. Here are today's warnings:

• Tim Donaghy doesn't want to talk to the NBA any more.
• John Rillie has a recap of Australia's last second victory over Angola in the Diamond Ball, along with his usual array of news. On watching the game, it looks like both teams may well surprise some nations come Olympics time.
• In Portland, OR newspaper news, there was a little he-said-she-said going on between John Canzano (the Oregonian) and Dwight Jaynes (Portland Tribune) this past week. It all stemmed back to Jaynes putting the heat on Portland GM Kevin Pritchard's negative comments regarding the potential for comeback of Darius Miles, after his career-ending knee injury. Jaynes claimed that Pritchard's comments may have breached a Federal law regarding medical rights of employees. Canzano claimed that Jaynes' comments were baseless are far too emotional. Jaynes felt it necessary to write a blog post in response and overall, readers were left with some fairly unprofessional, petty journalism between the two of them. Well, now Jaynes has lost his job as Editor of the Portland Tribune. Coincidence? Who cares really...?
• Are Greg Oden, LaMarcus Aldridge and Brandon Roy one of the top Big Threes in the league? This analysis says they are.
• Watching USA v Turkey in the Diamond Ball today, ESPN's Fran Fraschilla gave us his projected 2012 Team USA mens' basketball team. I had to check online to verify that I read on screen what I thought I read and SLAM's Lang Whitaker came to my rescue in his game notes. Most of Fran's predictions seemed pretty safe, sensible even. LeBron, CP3, Deron, Wade, Roy, Durant, Horford, Oden, Dwight Howard, Al Jefferson. I can even buy Kevin Martin. Then he got to Rodney Stuckey... that is one BIG call. I note no mention of Chris Bosh or Carmelo Anthony. Am I the only one who sees Melo's career dropping off a little or at least stagnating a bit? He just never seems like he'll keep up with the Jameses of this league. And it seems that his whole obsession with being 'gangsta' is part of it.
• OKC got themselves a D-League team: the Tulsa 66ers.
• Synergy Sports Technology, the team behind the newest NBA Live updates, continues to enhance the NBA and its teams.
• Louis Williams has signed on for five years with the Sixers.
  
  
  
  

Oklahoma City : where the team has no name

In Oklahoma City, the wait continues. What will be the name of the team plucked from the grips of the Seattle Sonics fans by Clay Bennett?

From the Canadian Press:

The sports apparel shop where Colby Ousley works was one of the first places to get new NBA T-shirts featuring Oklahoma City on the front.

There's still a big question on the minds of Ousley and others who are eager for the NBA to make its official arrival in the city, though.

"I'm anxious to know what they're finally going to be. The colours, nobody knows anything about that," said Ousley, a 19-year-old who's studying athletic training at the University of Central Oklahoma.

The NBA expects that parts of Oklahoma City's new identity might be announced next month, but the final deadline will be late September - shortly before the start of pre-season games.

The actual names under consideration aren't being revealed, but Bennett has said there are several names being cleared through the league and that the team took in recommendations through letters, naming competitions at schools and a contest run by the local newspaper.

"We've got lots and lots of names, so we feel like we have absorbed much of the flavour of what the citizens have considered and have certainly put that into the equation," Bennett said.

From NewsOK.com:

When it comes to Oklahoma City's yet-to-be-named NBA franchise, a for-sure, can't-miss nickname is difficult to come by. Marketing experts say the easy choices are already taken, long ago gobbled up by the hundreds of professional franchises.

But options remain.

"Now you kind of get down to a name that fits who you are and where you are,” said Vince Orza, dean of the Meinders School of Business at Oklahoma City University.

Good names, Orza said, are terms that are positive, short, easy to spell and easy to pronounce. The best ones also reflect strength and characterize the team's region.

"You kind of want a fun term also,” Orza said. "Four letter names are always the best if you can get them. If you think about it, Ford, Oreo, Coke, the reason those names are so successful is they're easy to say, easy to remember and easy to spell.

"Simple means bigger, and the bigger you can get it on a uniform and cap the easier it is to see the image and the impression of the name.”

Everyone is obsessed with naming the new team:

Nickname fever is sweeping the state, and no one is immune. With the impending arrival of Oklahoma's first major-league sports franchise — one that's leaving its name, colors and history behind — folks from Guymon to Gotebo are talking about what the team should be called.

Who among us hasn't thought about it, talked about it, debated about it?

This has become fodder for the casual observer every bit as much as the hard-core fan. The debate is just as likely to rage in a Sunday school class as at the local watering hole.

Heck, the obsession extends to The Oklahoman. Our fair newspaper conducted a 64-name bracket competition within hours of the relocation vote, and even though we've told all of you that we have no sway in the naming, you still keep calling and writing with your suggestions.

Meanwhile, OKC's (newly) own Kevin Durant will highlight the USA Select roster as one of 10 young players to give Team USA a run for their money in the lead up to the Olympics.

Durant's co-draftee of 2007, Greg Oden is excited about coming back after missing his first NBA season through injury and thinks that the Blazers might have some new fans:

Having Seattle lose its NBA franchise to Oklahoma City, Oden expects to see "a lot more people in Seattle coming down to Portland."

Navarro heading back to Spain -- leaves the Grizzlies

Is this a sign of things to come for the future of international basketball?

Juan Carlos Navarro has left the Memphis Grizzlies behind and returned to the comforts of home in Spain. After making $538k last year in the NBA, he'll sign for a deal worth more than $20m over 4 years with FC Barcelona.

The standard of Spanish basketball is remarkable and is arguably the top league outside of the NBA. With such a strong Spanish contingent in the NBA over the last few years and the addition of Rudy Fernandez to those ranks this season, it is no wonder that the USA is having bigger problems in international competition.

Team USA is having to take their Beijing Olympic preparations seriously, with players such as Kobe Bryant delaying surgery, to ensure that they are available for the tournament where the USA tries to reassert its dominance over world basketball.

Players such as Navarro question the need to play in the NBA, when they can often command more money in Europe, whilst enjoying a lifestyle that they prefer and being closer to their families. As the standard of leagues outside of the USA continues to improve, it will be no surprise to see this type of situation continuing to occur.

No wonder David Stern is so zealously pursuing the NBA's expansion to Europe, with potential plans to set up permanent teams in the continent, following on from the successful NBA Live Europe tour, which continues this year.