FIBA World Championship 2006

[spurschick]

I'm getting quite the chuckle out of the Argentine players having a Topper patch on their shorts that says BEEF.

[diego]

Ahh but if you'd try argentine beef you'll never go back...


;)

[angel_luv]

End of game

Argentina 88 - Lithuania 87

Lithuania was leading most of the game but with 20 seconds left, Manu scored the game-winning layup!


Thanks for the update. I was wondering how Gino and company were doing. :)

[angel_luv]

I'm getting quite the chuckle out of the Argentine players having a Topper patch on their shorts that says BEEF.


:lol That is funny. :)

Thanks M for the Slovenia article. :)

[spurschick]

TUR - Turkish delight as French lose third on the bounce

BERLIN, August 5 (Supercup) - Serkan Erdogan poured in 22 points to lead Turkey past France 89-76 in the third-place game of the Supercup in Berlin.

Les Bleus, who are supposed to be among the gold medal contenders at the FIBA World Championship which tips off in just two weeks, have now lost three games in a row.

France coach Claude Bergeaud believes tiredness was a factor with his players having had hard workouts in a month-long training camp as part of their preparation for Japan.

“Mentally and physically, it is difficult after four weeks but tonight we were very motivated to play a good game,” Bergeaud said.

“It was the same during our last three losses: a good first half but still we lost.

“It was a tough situation because we are going down from the beginning of the preparation.

We are going down and we don’t know why.”

France led by 37-27 with just three minutes left in the first half but Turkey shaved five points off the deficit and trailed 43-38 at the break.

Bergeaud’s men still led 60-58 after the third quarter when a spectacular four-point play sparked the Turks into life.

Erdogan, whose knee problems made him a doubt for Turkey this summer, buried a three-pointer from the top of the key and was hit on the arm.

He converted the free throw to give his troops the lead for good at 64-62.

“Today it was my duty to pull the team but tomorrow it will be someone else,” Erdogan told PA Sport.

“I am very happy we won. Today we played good offence but not good defence but still we beat a good team and now we are hopeful.”

Erdogan isn’t the only Turkish player who can hit from long range.

Leading 72-70, Ibrahim Kutluay and Ender Arslan hit back-to-back three-pointers.

A three-point play from Ermal Kurtoglu then made it 84-74 to assure Turkey a third-place finish.

Tony Parker was yet again France’s leading scorer with 16 points, while fellow starters Joseph Gomis and Cyril Julian added 10 apiece.

Boris Diaw, the French captain, had five points and eight rebounds.

Bergeaud will announce his 12-man roster on Sunday morning.

“We will decide it tomorrow morning, the 12 players we choose for Japan,” he said.

“But we will go to China with 13 players. We will decide it between three guys on the pivot - between Cyril Julian, Ronny Turiaf and Johnny Petro.”

[gus]

Argentina played like shit today and still won. Those Lituanians are the hell to play, they are big, they close the rim with a very close zone and shoot the lights of the 3.-

Argentina won because Manu, Nocioni and Delfino didn't want to loose. Nothing else.

[Martin R]

here you are Manu play, closing the game. You can hear people's "OOHHHHHHH" !!!!. Quality is not good but enough.

http://rapidshare.de/files/28351980/20060805-ARG-LIT-2nd-manu_play.avi.html

M

[Mavs_man_41]

Anyone have any ideas why manu is a star in the NBA, but a superstar in international basketball? What is so different about it that makes him succeed. Hes a great player playing against normal NBA teams, but when he plays an All-Star team like team usa he does even better than he would against, say a poor team like the magic. Anybody have any ideas?

[Martin R]

because he plays better under pression.

[Mavs_man_41]

^its almost like hes the Michael Jordan of international basketball. Leading a less talented Argentina team to a victory against the stacked team usa 89-81 and going on to win the tournament.

[Solid D]

Anyone have any ideas why manu is a star in the NBA, but a superstar in international basketball? What is so different about it that makes him succeed. Hes a great player playing against normal NBA teams, but when he plays an All-Star team like team usa he does even better than he would against, say a poor team like the magic. Anybody have any ideas?


Different roles - Spurs vs. Argentina NT. With the Spurs, Tim is the go-to guy with a heavy dose of hub and spoke offense. On the Argentina NT, the passing, the back-doors, it's all enhanced by the relationship and chemistry the Argentine players have with each other since they were teens. Manu is the leader and the go-to guy in big moments.

[Martin R]

^its almost like hes the Michael Jordan of international basketball. Leading a less talented Argentina team to a victory against the stacked team usa 89-81 and going on to win the tournament.

he's the MJ of international basket? maybe yes. He was once called the euro Kobe.

[Mavs_man_41]

Different roles - Spurs vs. Argentina NT. With the Spurs, Tim is the go-to guy with a heavy dose of hub and spoke offense. On the Argentina NT, the passing, the back-doors, it's all enhanced by the relationship and chemistry the Argentine players have with each other since they were teens. Manu is the leader and the go-to guy in big moments.

So if he was the go-to guy on the spurs, then they would be able to beat the all-star team? Team usa almost entirely consists of all-stars. I think thats part of the reason but not all. Basically you are saying he would be the best player in the league if he was the go to guy. I think it has alot to do with the Euro style of play. Less power and more finess maybe?

[Nikos]

Anyone have any ideas why manu is a star in the NBA, but a superstar in international basketball? What is so different about it that makes him succeed. Hes a great player playing against normal NBA teams, but when he plays an All-Star team like team usa he does even better than he would against, say a poor team like the magic. Anybody have any ideas?

Well he did play real well vs USA in one game. Mediocre in two others. He just happens to be one of the best International players period. So of course he is going to seem like a superstar in that competetion. It is because he is simply one of the best players on that stage. Coincidentally he more often then not steps up his game in the playoffs (except against Sacto).

[orhe]

Manu's body and play isn't geared for the NBA season... its too long and hard but once the playoffs begins i really think Pop must slightly change the playcalling to adopt more to manu...

[orhe]

btw thanks for the Vid :) that was a sick crossover

[Solid D]

So if he was the go-to guy on the spurs, then they would be able to beat the all-star team? Team usa almost entirely consists of all-stars. I think thats part of the reason but not all.
No, that's not what I'm saying, but it is a possibility. It has more to do with familiarity and an unrestricted style of play.


Basically you are saying he would be the best player in the league if he was the go to guy. I think it has alot to do with the Euro style of play. Less power and more finess maybe?
No, that's not what I'm saying. Manu is not a Euro. He is Argentine and so are his teammates. Many of them grew up playing together and are used to playing together in the Flex and other motion offenses. They play fearlessly.

[rasho8]

I love the handgrab-heartthump-salute they do after they jam the orange off the ball.

[angel_luv]

TUR - Turkish delight as French lose third on the bounce

BERLIN, August 5 (Supercup) - Serkan Erdogan poured in 22 points to lead Turkey past France 89-76 in the third-place game of the Supercup in Berlin.

Les Bleus, who are supposed to be among the gold medal contenders at the FIBA World Championship which tips off in just two weeks, have now lost three games in a row.

France coach Claude Bergeaud believes tiredness was a factor with his players having had hard workouts in a month-long training camp as part of their preparation for Japan.

“Mentally and physically, it is difficult after four weeks but tonight we were very motivated to play a good game,” Bergeaud said.

“It was the same during our last three losses: a good first half but still we lost.

“It was a tough situation because we are going down from the beginning of the preparation.

We are going down and we don’t know why.”

France led by 37-27 with just three minutes left in the first half but Turkey shaved five points off the deficit and trailed 43-38 at the break.

Bergeaud’s men still led 60-58 after the third quarter when a spectacular four-point play sparked the Turks into life.

Erdogan, whose knee problems made him a doubt for Turkey this summer, buried a three-pointer from the top of the key and was hit on the arm.

He converted the free throw to give his troops the lead for good at 64-62.

“Today it was my duty to pull the team but tomorrow it will be someone else,” Erdogan told PA Sport.

“I am very happy we won. Today we played good offence but not good defence but still we beat a good team and now we are hopeful.”

Erdogan isn’t the only Turkish player who can hit from long range.

Leading 72-70, Ibrahim Kutluay and Ender Arslan hit back-to-back three-pointers.

A three-point play from Ermal Kurtoglu then made it 84-74 to assure Turkey a third-place finish.

Tony Parker was yet again France’s leading scorer with 16 points, while fellow starters Joseph Gomis and Cyril Julian added 10 apiece.

Boris Diaw, the French captain, had five points and eight rebounds.

Bergeaud will announce his 12-man roster on Sunday morning.

“We will decide it tomorrow morning, the 12 players we choose for Japan,” he said.

“But we will go to China with 13 players. We will decide it between three guys on the pivot - between Cyril Julian, Ronny Turiaf and Johnny Petro.”


Is Hedo playing or is he still hurt?

[Pero]

I think Turkoglu won`t play at all. Because he˙s "hurt".

[angel_luv]

I think Turkoglu won`t play at all. Because heÿs "hurt".


Aw, that is too bad.
hvala for letting me know. :)

[kolko]

First loss for Argentina

End of game: Argentina 67 Spain 79

Oberto 16 pts 13 rebs
Nocioni 15 pts 8 rebs
Ginobili 1 pt :oops
Scola 5 pts 5 rebs

[Cherry]

First loss for Argentina

End of game: Argentina 67 Spain 79

Oberto 16 pts 13 rebs
Nocioni 15 pts 8 rebs
Ginobili 1 pt :oops
Scola 5 pts 5 rebs


:(




...Oh...well, they will play again in Singapur :drunk :angel :eyebrows



.

[velik_m]

Spain is one of my favourites, they have a really good team.
USA, Argentina, France and Spain (and maybe Greece) will fight for medals.

[Martin R]

Spain without Gasol, has kick Arg asses badly. Congrats for Spain !!!

[diego]

how bout Oberto though!

[furry_spurry]

Aw, that is too bad.
hvala for letting me know. :)
I think the only thing that is "hurt" is the relationship between Hedo and that particular coach. Unfortunately.

[ChumpDumper]

I thought Hedo actually was hurt and wanted to skip some early practices/games and the coach told him to get bent.

[Solid D]

As for Argentina, it remains to be seen if Sergio Hernandez can direct the team with the same rate of success as Magnano.

[Pero]

I think the only thing that is "hurt" is the relationship between Hedo and that particular coach. Unfortunately.

That`s why I keep putting hurt into " ".

[FreshPrince22]

First loss for Argentina

End of game: Argentina 67 Spain 79

Oberto 16 pts 13 rebs
Nocioni 15 pts 8 rebs
Ginobili 1 pt :oops
Scola 5 pts 5 rebs

Delfino?

[danyel]

Delfino had 7 pts. He played ok though

[spurschick]

Eh, Spain beat Argentina in the preliminary round in Athens. I'd say that turned out well in the end.

[angel_luv]

First loss for Argentina

End of game: Argentina 67 Spain 79

Oberto 16 pts 13 rebs
Nocioni 15 pts 8 rebs
Ginobili 1 pt :oops
Scola 5 pts 5 rebs


:( Sorry guys!

Whoa! Gino must be tired to have had that kind of scoring night.

[hendrix]

Eh, Spain beat Argentina in the preliminary round in Athens. I'd say that turned out well in the end.

Not only then. Spain beat Argentina also in some friendly match previous to Athens.
So it's ok. We can say Spain has Argentina's number.
I'll take that and finish as champions.

BUT... not by the way they are playing now.

[hendrix]

As for Argentina, it remains to be seen if Sergio Hernandez can direct the team with the same rate of success as Magnano.

It's the problem of taking over a winning team and trying to introduce some of his own's ideas.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

First loss for Argentina

End of game: Argentina 67 Spain 79

Oberto 16 pts 13 rebs
Nocioni 15 pts 8 rebs
Ginobili 1 pt :oops
Scola 5 pts 5 rebs
Hellz yeah! Even though they lost, props to Oberto! I'm tellin y'all he will surprise the Spurs this season and will be the starting center. Although we just signed him I think Elson will be packaged in a future trade with Barry. Oberto and Butler can handle it.

[Spurologist]

First loss for Argentina

End of game: Argentina 67 Spain 79

Oberto 16 pts 13 rebs
Nocioni 15 pts 8 rebs
Ginobili 1 pt
Scola 5 pts 5 rebs

wtf? Did Manu and Oberto get their DNA switched for this game.

[diego]

apparently manu didnt try much and went 0 for 4 from 3. In fact, Ole newspaper has awards for players according to performance, and the best award is the "manu ginobili" award, that was given to Spaniard Navarro, while the "invisible man award" went to Manu. ha.

Oberto had 10 of his 16 in the first period when argentina really struggled and scored only 14 pts.

[spurschick]

ARG - Manu confident he will be on song for Japan
What the heck does "on song" mean? :lol

MADRID (FIBA World Championship) - Manu Ginobili has shrugged off his “weak” performance in Argentina`s 79-67 defeat to Spain in the final of the Madrid Tournament.

The talismanic guard contributed just a solitary point to his side`s total on Sunday but insists his displays in friendly competitions are of no concern as long as he is at the top of his game in Japan when the FIBA World Championship tips off in less than two weeks` time.

“My performance in this game has been very weak, but I am not panicking too much,” the 29-year-old said after the game.

“A dangerous situation would be if I were to have these negative statistics in Japan at the World Championship."

The Olympic champions were well beaten by the tournament hosts but the vastly experienced Ginobili insists the side was well below its best and is capable of much more in the Far East.

“Without taking anything away from Spain, we haven’t played at our best level and still have a lot to improve on,” he said.

“From my point of view, I know I have time to improve and I hope not to disappoint. We only started our preparations recently and we still have a lot to improve on.”

[NZHayden]

yeehaa go new zealand!

[ALVAREZ6]

“Without taking anything away from Spain, we haven’t played at our best level and still have a lot to improve on,” he said.

“From my point of view, I know I have time to improve and I hope not to disappoint. We only started our preparations recently and we still have a lot to improve on.”
You guys obviously have to improve, the tournament starts pretty damn soon.

[Spurs#20]

They're not showing the games live?????????????????????

Date Day Air Time (EST) Game Network
8/4/06 Friday 4:00 PM USA vs. Puerto Rico (Exhibition Game) NBATV
8/8/06 Tuesday 8:00 AM USA vs. Brazil (Exhibition Game) NBATV
8/9/06 Wednesday 4:00 PM USA vs. China (Exhibition Game) NBATV
8/14/06 Monday 1:00 AM USA vs. Lithuania (Exhibition Game) NBATV
8/16/06 Wednesday 4:00 PM USA vs. Korea (Exhibition Game) NBATV
8/19/06 Saturday 1:00 AM USA vs. Puerto Rico ESPN
8/19/06 Saturday 4:00 PM Argentina vs. France NBATV/FOX
8/19/06 Saturday 6:00 PM Turkey vs. Lithuania NBATV
8/20/06 Sunday 6:30 AM USA vs. China ESPN
8/20/06 Sunday 4:00 PM USA vs. Puerto Rico NBATV
8/20/06 Sunday 6:00 PM France vs. Serbia & Montenegro NBATV
8/20/06 Sunday 8:00 PM Argentina vs. Lebanon NBATV/FOX
8/21/06 Monday 4:00 PM USA vs. China NBATV
8/21/06 Monday 6:00 PM Germany vs. Spain NBATV/FOX
8/22/06 Tuesday 6:30 AM USA vs. Slovenia ESPN
8/22/06 Tuesday 4:00 PM China vs. Puerto Rico NBATV
8/22/06 Tuesday 6:00 PM Italy vs. Senegal NBATV/FOX
8/23/06 Wednesday 6:30 AM USA vs. Italy ESPN
8/23/06 Wednesday 4:00 PM USA vs. Slovenia NBATV
8/23/06 Wednesday 6:00 PM Venezuela vs. Serbia & Montenegro NBATV
8/23/06 Wednesday 8:00 PM Nigeria vs. Argentina NBATV/FOX
8/24/06 Thursday 6:30 AM USA vs. Senegal ESPN
8/24/06 Thursday 2:00 PM USA vs. Italy NBATV
8/24/06 Thursday 4:00 PM Slovenia vs. China NBATV/FOX
8/25/06 Friday 4:00 PM Senegal vs. USA NBATV
8/25/06 Friday 6:00 PM Lithuania vs. Brazil NBATV
8/26/06 Saturday 12:00 AM Eighth Final ESPN
8/26/06 Saturday 7:00 AM Eighth Final ESPN
8/26/06 Saturday 4:00 PM Turkey vs. Greece NBATV
8/26/06 Saturday 6:00 PM Italy vs. Puerto Rico NBATV
8/27/06 Sunday 4:00 AM Eighth Final ESPN
8/27/06 Sunday 9:00 PM Eighth Final ESPN
8/29/06 Tuesday 3:30 AM Quarterfinal ESPN
8/29/06 Tuesday 6:30 AM Quarterfinal ESPN
8/29/06 Tuesday TBD Quarterfinal NBATV
8/29/06 Tuesday TBD Quarterfinal NBATV
8/30/06 Wednesday 3:30 AM Quarterfinal ESPN
8/30/06 Wednesday 6:30 AM Quarterfinal ESPN
8/30/06 Wednesday TBD Quarterfinal NBATV
8/30/06 Wednesday TBD Quarterfinal NBATV
9/1/06 Friday 3:30 AM Semifinal ESPN
9/1/06 Friday 6:30 AM Semifinal ESPN
9/2/06 Saturday 6:30 AM Bronze ESPN
9/2/06 Saturday 4:00 PM Semifinal NBATV
9/2/06 Saturday 6:00 PM Semifinal NBATV
9/3/06 Sunday 6:30 AM Finals ESPN
9/4/06 Monday 4:00 PM Finals NBATV

[furry_spurry]

US games are live with replays.

[Spurs#20]

What about the Argentina games?

[boutons_]

August 8, 2006

China Coach Pines for Bench - Warming Yao

By REUTERS

Filed at 2:36 a.m. ET

BEIJING (Reuters) - China coach Jonas Kazlauskas bemoaned Yao Ming's absence from the national team after the U.S. thrashed China by 46 points in a world championship warm-up match in Guangzhou, a the China Daily newspaper reported on Tuesday.

``Yao is definitely what we need right now. We had some really tough games in Europe and back home. Without Yao, the team lost its confidence and leadership,'' Kazlauskas was quoted as saying.

The 7ft-5in NBA All Star broke his left foot playing for the Houston Rockets in April, an injury that has clouded Team China's preparations for the world championships starting in Japan on August 19.

Yao was a late withdrawal for the Guangzhou clash -- a game in which China's lack of depth was badly exposed by a resurgent U.S. eager to atone for poor displays in recent international meetings.

Minus Yao, China has performed abysmally in the lead-up to the worlds, losing six of seven matches in a European warm-up tour last month. An injury to former NBA player Wang Zhizhi, another fellow 7-footer touted to spearhead China's Japan campaign alongside Yao, has placed further pressure on Kazlauskas.

``Right now, this is the hardest time for the national team... the constant injuries are pushing us to the limit,'' the Latvian coach said.

``I need six or seven more games to adjust the team but there are only three left in my schedule, so I hope Yao can join the team and make a difference,'' Kaslauskas said.

After a long layoff, Yao joined national team training last week. While expected to be fit for the worlds, he has few remaining chances to gain match fitness.

Yao has been named in the national team for the Stankovic Cup on August 11 in Jiangsu province. The six-nation tournament with Greece, France, Germany, Brazil and Australia would be Yao's last run-out before the worlds.

[angel_luv]

I think the only thing that is "hurt" is the relationship between Hedo and that particular coach. Unfortunately.


That`s why I keep putting hurt into " ".

:( That is a disappointment. Poor Hedo.

[spurschick]

ARG - Oberto cautions Argentina public on high expectations

MADRID (FIBA World Championship) - Argentina are feeling the pressure from the public ahead of the FIBA World Championship.

The Olympic champions’ 79-67 defeat by Spain in their latest friendly in Madrid, part of the Villa de Madrid quadrangular competition, has led to center Fabricio Oberto to sound a warning to the country’s expectant fans ahead of the tournament in Japan.

Oberto told the Clarin newspaper: “The pressure is there. People have to understand that winning a World Championship is not easy at all.

“There are a lot of good teams. The United States always secure 70 or 80% of gold medals. In past tournaments, I think they underestimated us, but now they want revenge.

“The United States are also the favourites in this World Championship. They are very competitive.

“We know recently we have been surrounded by the words ‘champion’ and ‘first place’, but it is not easy. I’m not opening the umbrella early, I’m just realistic.”

However, Oberto would be not satisfied with second place.

He said: “Before the World Championship in Indianapolis (in 2002), I would have taken that position.

“But now I wouldn’t. We won’t be satisfied with second place.

“We have to make the semi-finals without a doubt. To finish sixth or eighth would be a failure.”

Oberto blamed a “lack of intensity” for Sunday’s defeat against Spain, who have managed to beat the Olympic champions in their last five games.

But he said: “They are all warm-up games and now we’re 60% ready for Japan.

“We and Spain are two very equal teams, but I know there are still a lot of things to do to get to the World Championship in good form. We were passive, not aggressive.

“We know that everybody will want to beat Argentina in Japan. And the team who beats us will go down in history for having beaten the Olympic champions.”

Argentina are flying to Singapore, where they will get another chance to beat Spain in a quadrangular friendly tournament in which Serbia & Montenegro and Slovenia are also involved.

[Cherry]

http://www.lanacion.com.ar/anexos/imagen/06/554455.JPG

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20060810/i/r2873815210.jpg

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20060810/i/r3934078825.jpg

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20060810/i/r931170630.jpg

Sorry, I´m miss Manu :oops

[milkyway21]

8/19/06 Saturday 4:00 PM Argentina vs. France NBATV/FOX
whoa, August 19 ,1st day of the tournament and they will play against each other?

okay i will cheer for ............:cheer :cheer :cheer

[spurschick]

I know this article was posted in it's own thread, but I thought I would repost here to keep all the info in one place.

USA - Team USA holds no fear for Ginobili

SINGAPORE (FIBA World Championship) - Manu Ginobili rates the United States as one of the favourites to win this year's FIBA World Championship, but the Argentina guard insists the days of Team USA dominance are "part of the past".

Speaking in Singapore, where Olympic champions Argentina will be competing in the Philips Singapore Cup this weekend against Spain, Slovenia and defending world champions Serbia & Montenegro, Ginobili believes the gap in the talent level between US basketball and the rest of the world is gradually diminishing.

"I don't think you're ever going to see again a US team that beats everyone else by a big margin. That was 15 years ago or whenever it was," said the San Antonio Spurs guard.

"Now basketball has changed and many of us are playing with them [in the NBA] every single day so we're getting closer.

"So you're not going to see a US team, even though they are very good, beating everyone else by 30 points. That's part of the past."

However, given the talent at the Americans' disposal, Ginobili is not about to write off their chances of regaining their FIBA World Championship crown although he believes that much will depend on their team chemistry in Japan.

"We know that they have a lot of young talent but we don't know how they will play together. We'll only know that when the World Championship starts," he added.

"Of course the United States will always be among the favourites because of the talent that they have like LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Carmelo Anthony.

"However, basketball is about the team, it's not only about the players. As long as they play together, they play good defence and they play as a team, then they're going to have a big chance of winning it."

As for his own team, Ginobili is confident that Argentina are hitting form at just the right time as they seek to win their first World Championship since their triumph at the inaugural tournament in 1950.

"Of course the first couple of weeks [of training] were hard because everybody was rusty and trying to get back into shape and getting used to playing with each other again," said Ginobili.

"We're now playing in the same way that we want to be at the World Championship.

"We're looking forward to starting already, and playing this weekend against Serbia, Slovenia and Spain, who are going to be three of the most important teams at the World Championship, is very important to us.

"Every time we play, we want to win, that's for sure. It may be the World Championship, the Olympics, the NBA Championship or the South American Championship, but we always want to win."

[angel_luv]

http://www.lanacion.com.ar/anexos/imagen/06/554455.JPG

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20060810/i/r2873815210.jpg

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20060810/i/r3934078825.jpg

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20060810/i/r931170630.jpg

Sorry, I´m miss Manu :oops


I miss him too. Muchas gracias for the pics. They're awesome! :)

[spurschick]

There is a lot more info on nba.com now, including team previews of Argentina and France.

http://www.nba.com/wbc06/index.html

[TMTTRIO]

It already looks like Manu has a busted lip from practice

http://www.clarin.com/diario/2006/08/10/fotos/t055dh01.jpg

[angel_luv]

owie!
Still a nice pic. :)

[milkyway21]

Help!

if U.S.A. is ranked by FIBA as #1 and Argentina as #3 who is ranked as #2?

i missed that.:angel


anyway, thanks for this spurschick.


There is a lot more info on nba.com now, including team previews of Argentina and France.


http://www.nba.com/wbc06/index.html
:tu
I'll check this out later.

:gpower

[carina_gino20]

who wants to send a message to manu, beno, and rasho? i'll be going to their games later today. of course, i still don't know how to approach them. :lol

[angel_luv]

who wants to send a message to manu, beno, and rasho? i'll be going to their games later today. of course, i still don't know how to approach them. :lol


Quickly before all their other fans beat you to the best viewing spot. :lol Remember to smile and breathe. :)

Have a fantastic time! Remember everything!

[Cherry]

The Philips Cup poster :spin


http://www.bas.org.sg/media/images/posters/SingCup_2006_big.jpg

[angel_luv]

It is missing Sho. Boosh! But otherwise it is fantastic! :elephant

Gino and Beno look great!

[milkyway21]

who wants to send a message to manu, beno, and rasho? i'll be going to their games later today. of course, i still don't know how to approach them. :lolhey kababayan, how is security out there? esp around the venue? Phils. is under tight security right now...

Questions? hmmnn, let me think...
how about telling them to stop by the Phils. on their way home? :lmao

enjoy the games!

note: wear a Spurs hat they might want to answer your questions ahead of the paparazzi opps media first, being a Spurs fan! :D

[carina_gino20]

i plan to tell me to go to the philippines.:lol

i don't have a spurs cap. i do have a spurs shirt and i plan to wear it today.

i'm not sure about the security. the thing about singapore is, you don't see many huards around but the security is still "tight."

[milkyway21]

i plan to tell me to go to the philippines.:lol

i don't have a spurs cap. i do have a spurs shirt and i plan to wear it today.

i'm not sure about the security. the thing about singapore is, you don't see many huards around but the security is still "tight."then wear them quick :madrun and talk to those guys.

BTW, could you ask Manu what's his game plan during his possible match-up with Bowen-take the 3 from beyond the arc or he'll take it to the rim for a lay-up? :rolleyes

[angel_luv]

BTW, could you ask Manu what's his game plan during his possible match-up with Bowen-take the 3 from beyond the arc or he'll take it to the rim for a lay-up? :rolleyes

Now, now. A magician NEVER reveals his secrets. :)

[TMTTRIO]

http://www.lanacion.com.ar/anexos/imagen/06/554766.jpg
:)

[angel_luv]

That is the best pic! Such good looking guys. :)

It is so great to see the boys together and happy. :D

[boutons_]

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2006/08/11/sports/11Araton.1.600.jpg

August 11, 2006

Sports of The Times

A Journeyman Coach’s Most Harrowing Trip

By HARVEY ARATON

THE bus was old, hot, cramped and slow as a herniated snail. A ride that should have taken 3 to 4 hours took a harrowing 13.

An international journey embarked on more than a quarter century ago, ignited by a young boy’s fascination with round objects, mainly a basketball and the globe, took an unscheduled detour last month through a Middle East war zone.

“Only the most optimistic person alive would have called it intimate,” that boy, now 57, said earlier this week during a telephone interview from a hastily arranged sanctuary in Amman, Jordan. Meet Paul Coughter, coach of the Lebanese national basketball team and citizen of the world, by way of Flatbush, Brooklyn.

Meet the American who engineered his players’ escape from the mountains outside besieged Beirut, through a convoluted and imperiled passage north, to Syria, then south, to Amman, on the way to the World Championship of Basketball beginning next week in Japan.

“The crisis began five days after we started our training camp,” Coughter said. “After two days, we sent the players home to be with their families. Then we realized if we didn’t get out, we never would.

“I think we got the last bus in Lebanon. We were in our own mini-world, trying to block out everything, barely anything to eat, stopping at gas stations, places where people would say, ‘Ten minutes ago, a bomb landed over there.’ They’d say, ‘Look at that, it’s still smoldering,’ and then we’re back on the bus, trying to convince ourselves that because one had already landed, it couldn’t happen again.”

Do you think Larry Brown has had a peripatetic career? Over 27 years, Coughter has coached on six continents, has stalked professional sidelines from Australia to Saudi Arabia to Taiwan, has also run the national teams of South Africa, Pakistan and Wales.

Do you believe Brown faced prohibitive odds with last season’s Knicks? Coughter’s manager and trainer both stayed behind last month to tend to their families, and his American-born center, Paul Khoury, was marooned in Idaho, unable to renew his Lebanese visa, when the Beirut airport was bombed. His best player, Fadi El Khatib, wouldn’t leave the country unless there was room on the bus — which was made — for his wife and young child.

Want to hear the N.B.A. soldiers of fortune whine about the wider lane and mysterious refs when the Lebanese are dealing with the rules of war? For a team with aspirations normally no more grandiose than winning a game or two at the gathering of the world’s basketball powers, there have been scant practices and serious sleep deprivation and incalculable stress.

Even Coughter, the globetrotting bachelor, the avowed adventurer who promises to retire soon and sail the world for the rest of his years on a custom-built yacht, called this latest chapter of A Coach’s Life “beyond bizarre.”

Lucky for him, he has never evaluated his career by the number of championships won, by the size of his paycheck. Ask for personal highlights and he tells of exploring an exotic island in New Zealand, of bunking with a Chinese family in Zimbabwe, of sipping coffee while gazing at the Mediterranean from the balcony of his most current address, the Zouk Hotel, 20 minutes from Beirut.

Coughter was born into a large Irish Catholic, basketball-loving Brooklyn family, his father having played at Erasmus Hall High School and his older brother for Joe Mullaney at Providence College. He remembers launching his first shot from his father’s shoulders in Prospect Park, learning the game and using it to facilitate the ultimate road trip.

“It’s like Larry Bird once said: ‘Don’t tell anyone, but I’d do this for free,’ ” Coughter said. “For me, the whole thing is experiential.”

How else to describe the itinerary, from Lebanon to Syria to Jordan to Turkey to Slovenia, back to Jordan, on the way to the Philippines this week and then Japan to, as Coughter put it, “carry the Lebanese flag at a time the country needs to be seen”?

When the United States is perceived in the Middle East to be the power behind the invading Israelis, here is an American at a helm, with an Iraqi assistant, Koussay Hatem, who is married to a Lebanese woman and said in a telephone interview that he “must call home three, four, five times a day to see if everyone is O.K.”

In every direction is a political tinderbox that a wise and wandering Yankee, dependent on the kindness and employment of strangers, knows enough to leave alone. As Coughter said, “One of my best friends in Beirut is from a family that is Hezbollah. We talk about basketball and women.”

On the road, the Lebanese players and even Joseph Vogel, an American who has played professionally in the country long enough to become nationalized, discuss the war, but mostly as it relates to the future beyond Japan.

“The way it’s going right now, who knows if Lebanon will even be open when the world championships are over?” said Vogel, a former player at Colorado State. “For me, it’s a career at stake. For most of these guys, it’s a country.”

The coach recommends focus on the task at hand, on the journey, always the journey.

Coughter, in fact, will leave Japan the day after the last game to meet the country’s junior team, which he also coaches, for the Asian championships. He will take three flights to reach a Chinese city near the Mongolian border. The way things are going in Lebanon, he may not get paid, but don’t tell anyone, he’d do it for free.

E-mail: [email protected]

Home
Copyright 2006 The New York Times Company

[furry_spurry]

Thanks for the article.

[milkyway21]

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2006/08/11/sports/11Araton.1.600.jpg

August 11, 2006

Sports of The Times

A Journeyman Coach’s Most Harrowing Trip

By HARVEY ARATON

THE bus was old, hot, cramped and slow as a herniated snail. A ride that should have taken 3 to 4 hours took a harrowing 13.

An international journey embarked on more than a quarter century ago, ignited by a young boy’s fascination with round objects, mainly a basketball and the globe, took an unscheduled detour last month through a Middle East war zone.

“Only the most optimistic person alive would have called it intimate,” that boy, now 57, said earlier this week during a telephone interview from a hastily arranged sanctuary in Amman, Jordan. Meet Paul Coughter, coach of the Lebanese national basketball team and citizen of the world, by way of Flatbush, Brooklyn.

Meet the American who engineered his players’ escape from the mountains outside besieged Beirut, through a convoluted and imperiled passage north, to Syria, then south, to Amman, on the way to the World Championship of Basketball beginning next week in Japan.

“The crisis began five days after we started our training camp,” Coughter said. “After two days, we sent the players home to be with their families. Then we realized if we didn’t get out, we never would.

“I think we got the last bus in Lebanon. We were in our own mini-world, trying to block out everything, barely anything to eat, stopping at gas stations, places where people would say, ‘Ten minutes ago, a bomb landed over there.’ They’d say, ‘Look at that, it’s still smoldering,’ and then we’re back on the bus, trying to convince ourselves that because one had already landed, it couldn’t happen again.”

Do you think Larry Brown has had a peripatetic career? Over 27 years, Coughter has coached on six continents, has stalked professional sidelines from Australia to Saudi Arabia to Taiwan, has also run the national teams of South Africa, Pakistan and Wales.

Do you believe Brown faced prohibitive odds with last season’s Knicks? Coughter’s manager and trainer both stayed behind last month to tend to their families, and his American-born center, Paul Khoury, was marooned in Idaho, unable to renew his Lebanese visa, when the Beirut airport was bombed. His best player, Fadi El Khatib, wouldn’t leave the country unless there was room on the bus — which was made — for his wife and young child.

Want to hear the N.B.A. soldiers of fortune whine about the wider lane and mysterious refs when the Lebanese are dealing with the rules of war? For a team with aspirations normally no more grandiose than winning a game or two at the gathering of the world’s basketball powers, there have been scant practices and serious sleep deprivation and incalculable stress.

Even Coughter, the globetrotting bachelor, the avowed adventurer who promises to retire soon and sail the world for the rest of his years on a custom-built yacht, called this latest chapter of A Coach’s Life “beyond bizarre.”

Lucky for him, he has never evaluated his career by the number of championships won, by the size of his paycheck. Ask for personal highlights and he tells of exploring an exotic island in New Zealand, of bunking with a Chinese family in Zimbabwe, of sipping coffee while gazing at the Mediterranean from the balcony of his most current address, the Zouk Hotel, 20 minutes from Beirut.

Coughter was born into a large Irish Catholic, basketball-loving Brooklyn family, his father having played at Erasmus Hall High School and his older brother for Joe Mullaney at Providence College. He remembers launching his first shot from his father’s shoulders in Prospect Park, learning the game and using it to facilitate the ultimate road trip.

“It’s like Larry Bird once said: ‘Don’t tell anyone, but I’d do this for free,’ ” Coughter said. “For me, the whole thing is experiential.”

How else to describe the itinerary, from Lebanon to Syria to Jordan to Turkey to Slovenia, back to Jordan, on the way to the Philippines this week and then Japan to, as Coughter put it, “carry the Lebanese flag at a time the country needs to be seen”?

When the United States is perceived in the Middle East to be the power behind the invading Israelis, here is an American at a helm, with an Iraqi assistant, Koussay Hatem, who is married to a Lebanese woman and said in a telephone interview that he “must call home three, four, five times a day to see if everyone is O.K.”

In every direction is a political tinderbox that a wise and wandering Yankee, dependent on the kindness and employment of strangers, knows enough to leave alone. As Coughter said, “One of my best friends in Beirut is from a family that is Hezbollah. We talk about basketball and women.”

On the road, the Lebanese players and even Joseph Vogel, an American who has played professionally in the country long enough to become nationalized, discuss the war, but mostly as it relates to the future beyond Japan.

“The way it’s going right now, who knows if Lebanon will even be open when the world championships are over?” said Vogel, a former player at Colorado State. “For me, it’s a career at stake. For most of these guys, it’s a country.”

The coach recommends focus on the task at hand, on the journey, always the journey.

Coughter, in fact, will leave Japan the day after the last game to meet the country’s junior team, which he also coaches, for the Asian championships. He will take three flights to reach a Chinese city near the Mongolian border. The way things are going in Lebanon, he may not get paid, but don’t tell anyone, he’d do it for free.

they just arrived in the Phils...

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/MAIN/20060812/images/Front.jpg
BASKETBOLA, NOT HEZBOLLAH
Members of the Lebanese basketball team present their travel documents on their arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport yesterday for a series of tune-up matches with local teams before the world championships in Japan next week.:D

[carina_gino20]

Serbia and Montenegro defeated Argentina yesterday 83-64.

I haven't talked to Manu yet. He walks too fast. :madrun and then he sat on the opposite bench and exited at the opposit side of the court. :madrun

i did talk to beno, and he has gorgeous eyes. :lol and he played very good last night although they still lost to Spain.

[carina_gino20]

11/08/2006

ARG - Ginobili looks ahead to Japan

SINGAPORE (FIBA World Championship) - Manu Ginobili and Argentina are looking to complete an Olympic and FIBA World Championship double when they travel to Japan.

Close to capturing the world title four years ago in Indianapolis, an injured Ginobili watched as Yugoslavia beat his national side in a final that went to overtime.

The South Americans set the record straight two years later in Greece by winning the gold medal at the Athens Games.

Ginobili was in the mood to talk before the Argentinians took the court at the Philips Singapore Cup, where they will take on Serbia & Montenegro (formerly Yugoslavia), Slovenia and Spain - all teams that will be at the FIBA World Championship which tips off on August 19.

How do you compare this Argentina team with the one that won the Olympic gold two years ago?

Ginobili: "Of course, the first couple of weeks were hard because everybody was rusty and trying to get back into shape and getting used to playing with each other again. We’re now playing in the same way that we want to be at the World Championship which is now just 10 days ahead of us. In the meantime, this tournament [the Philips Singapore Cup] is going to be very important for us. We’re looking forward to starting already, playing against Serbia, Slovenia and Spain, who are going to be three of the most important teams at the World Championship.

Argentina took on Spain in the final of last week's Madrid Tournament. It was a comprehensive victory for your opponents. What are your thoughts looking back at that?

Ginobili: "We played two very important games during the tournament in Madrid. Lithuania is one of the favourites, too, and we beat them even though we travelled the day before and we couldn’t play that well because of the jet lag. Then, the following day we just didn’t have enough legs and we played a team [Spain] that played great. Spain is probably one of the best teams at the World Championship along with the United States and they really beat us well all over the court. We just couldn’t go by them.

Manu, you play in the United States with the San Antonio Spurs and compete against most of the players in this year's Team USA. You beat them in semi-finals at the Olympics in Greece. How do you feel about this US Team?

Ginobili: "We know that they have a lot of young talent but we don’t know how they will play together. We’ll only know that when the World Championship starts.Of course, the United States will always be among the favourites because of the talent that they have like LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony. However, basketball is about the team, it’s not only about the players. As long as they play together, they play good defense and they play as a team, then they’re going to have a big chance of winning it. (However) I don’t think you’re ever going to see again a US team that beats everyone else by 30 or 40 points. That was 15 years ago, or whenever it was. Now basketball has changed and many of us are playing with them [in the NBA] every single day so we’re getting closer. You’re not going to see a US Team, even though they are very good, beating everyone by 30. That’s part of the past."

How important is winning the World Championship?

Ginobili: Every time we play, we want to win, that’s for sure. It may be the World Championship, the Olympics, the NBA Championship or the South American Championship, but we always want to win."

What about losing it four years ago?

Ginobili: "For us, winning the World Championship is not about revenge. It’s just one more championship, so we’re going to do our best and try to enjoy it as much as we did two years ago (in Greece).

Colin Pereira
PA Sport, Singapore

http://www.fiba2006.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/06_wcm/news/inte/FE_news_inteArti.asp?newsID=15147

[milkyway21]

Serbia and Montenegro defeated Argentina yesterday 83-64.

I haven't talked to Manu yet. He walks too fast. :madrun and then he sat on the opposite bench and exited at the opposit side of the court. :madrun

i did talk to beno, and he has gorgeous eyes. :lol and he played very good last night although they still lost to Spain.it's hard to believe Argentina lost to Serbia.
But, I don't really think they will lose to Serbia in the World this time.

well, Manu's Argentina & Slovenia I believe are on the same group with team Lebanon who are in town right now.

PBA aces suit up for RP-Lebanon series
By Nelson Beltran
The Philippine Star 08/12/2006

The Philippine-Lebanon goodwill series is pushing through as scheduled after PBA ballclubs decided to field their top players for the dual meet slated tomorrow and Wednesday in two separate venues here.

Released by their respective clubs for the series are Jimmy Alapag, Don Allado, Renren Ritualo and Asi Taulava of Talk n Text, Mick Pennisi and Larry Fonacier of Red Bull, Willie Miller and Mike Cortez of Alaska Milk, Rafi Reavis and Billy Mamaril of Ginebra, Dennis Miranda of Coca-Cola and Ranidel de Ocampo of Air21.

The squad takes on the World Championship-bound Lebanon team at 6 p.m. tomorrow at the Astrodome and at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum. The Lebanese arrived yesterday.

Ateneo coach Norman Black will call the shots in place of national mentor Chot Reyes who left for Taiwan yesterday together with the San Miguel team seeing action in the Asian Professional Tourney. The Beermen will go up against top commercial teams from China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan among others.

"Looks like a solid team. It’s a commitment to the RP team that the ball clubs came forth and offered their players," said PBA commissioner Noli Eala.

The Nationals expect to go through a tough grind against Lebanese who are here for the final stage of their buildup for the World Championship in Saitama, Japan.

The Lebanese moved out of their war-torn country and pitched camp in Syria to prepare for the World event. They later played a series of games against Jordan, Slovenia, Canada and Germany before flying here yesterday.

The Lebanese, runners-up to China in the last two FIBA-Asia championships, are playing in the World Championship. for the second straight time.

[carina_gino20]

they didn't look very sharp yesterday. anyway, it's just a warm-up game so it doesn't really tell you much about how they actually play next week.

[spurschick]

ARG - Argentina back to winning ways

SINGAPORE (FIBA World Championship) – Argentina shook off the disappointment of a heavy defeat to Serbia & Montenegro by trouncing Slovenia 94-72 on Saturday in their second match at the Philips Singapore Cup.

The Olympic champions broke open a close match by outscoring the Slovenians 29-7 in the third quarter - 24 hours after an 83-64 loss to the two-time defending world champion Serbo-Montenegrins.

Argentina trailed by seven points early in the second quarter but with Carlos Delfino coming off the bench to score 12 points in the period, the South Americans went on a 17-5 run that turned the match in their favour.

Sergio Hernandez, the Argentina coach, said: "We played better today. We ran our offense well and made easy baskets."

Forward Luis Scola was the leading Argentinian scorer with 21 points, while Andres Nocioni had 17 points and Delfino 14. Guard Manu Ginobili finished with nine points on four of nine shooting and also had six assists.

For Slovenia, guard Beno Udrih top-scored with 18 points while center Radoslav Nesterovic had 18 points and seven rebounds.

Nesterovic, the Slovenia captain, scored eight and grabbed four boards in the opening quarter as the European side jumped out to a 22-20 lead and they built a 28-21 early in the second quarter before Delfino found his range.

The shooting guard nailed a three-pointer for his first points as the South Americans outscored their opponents 27 to 14 for the rest of the half to take a 48-42 lead at the break.

Nesterovic began the scoring in the second half with a lay-up but Slovenia’s shooting then went cold and Argentina took full advantage, reeling off 11 straight points to lead 59-44.

With Slovenia making only three of their 15 shots in the quarter, Argentina took full advantage to open up a 77-49 lead with 10 minutes to play.

Argentina were in front by as many as 30 points early in the fourth quarter.

Slovenia cut the deficit to 22 points by the end of the game but they walked off the court knowing they had been well beaten.

Hernandez revealed after Saturday's game that the team had not practiced earlier in the day.

Instead, the coach gathered with his players to discuss tactics, the need to have better shot selection and the importance of maintaining intensity on the defensive end.

"We didn't practice today," he said. "We had two meetings. In the first one, we talked about us and about the problems we had yesterday.

"In the afternoon, we talked about Slovenia, watched a DVD and talked about how we were going to play against them. We played very well on defense."

[spurschick]

GRE - Greece suffer Stankovic Cup setback against France

NANJING (FIBA World Championship) - France brought Greece back down to earth on Saturday with a 72-68 triumph over the European champions in the Stankovic Cup.

The Greeks, whose play this summer has led to many of the experts placing them among the favourites to win the FIBA World Championship, started the Stankovic Cup with a 68-60 win over Australia but France proved tougher opponent.

Panagiotis Yannakis’ Greeks started well enough and boasted a 23-18 lead after the first period and they also still led by one point at the interval, but France dominated after the break to claim the four-point victory.

There was relief on the face of France coach Claude Bergeaud after the game.

"At last we played a complete game," he said. "We managed to correct what was missing in the last games, that's to say rigour and constancy for an entire match.

"After the three consecutive defeats of last week with the one against Greece this victory is a positive point even if the Greeks maybe were a bit relaxed. We still lost lots of balls this evening (19 turnovers) and we must correct that in the future.

"We finally played as a unit of five with the same intensity on the court and not as four or four and a half.

"This evening the bench was at the right level and we must continue in this direction."

Greece came from behind in the final minute to beat France in last year's EuroBasket semi-final and then won the title in Belgrade, overcoming Germany in the championship game.

The Greeks also defeated France in the final of the Acropolis Tournament earlier this month.

Benetton Treviso guard Nikos Zisis led all scorers with 12 points for Greece while his team-mate Lazaros Papadopoulos added 11.

For victorious France, the points were shared around with Mickael Gelabale the only player to reach double-figures in scoring after netting 10 points.

Captain Boris Diaw had nine points and six rebounds.

Bergeaud decided to play Johan Petro instead of Cyril Julian, with the pair battling it out for the final place in the 12-man squad for the FIBA World Championship.

[furry_spurry]

center Radoslav Nesterovic had 18 points and seven rebounds.

Rasho had 17 points and 10 rebounds.

[spurschick]

And now a wonderful diva moment.... :lol

MANU THE SUPER... SHOPPER
NBA superstar cuts short media conference to shop at Sim Lim Square
August 12, 2006

ARGENTINE cager Emanuel David Ginobili has the distinction of having won two NBA titles (with San Antonio Spurs in 2003 and 2005), an Olympic gold medal (Athens 2004), and the Euroleague winners' medal (with Virtus Bologna in 2001).

Otherwise known as Manu, he is obviously a special player - a hero in his country and in many places around the world - who can rub shoulders anytime with the president of his own country.

Ginobili, 29, and his national team are currently in Singapore to play in a pre-FIBA World Championship quadrangular friendly tournament known as the Philips Singapore Cup 2006.

World champions Serbia & Montenegro, Spain and Slovenia are also involved.

Their matches are tune-ups in preparation for the World Championships in Japan starting next week.

Naturally, the media want a piece of him.

They need to bring what inspiration he can give to the basketball-mad yet basketball-starved young people from this part of the world.

But Ginobili gave only 10 minutes of his time in a press conference yesterday afternoon, including precious translation time.

That amounted to just five questions from the floor, including two from the Argentine and Spanish-speaking media.

Then there were 10 minutes exclusively with a TV station in an adjacent room.

And when the print media came along, Ginobili said: 'Enough. I've gotta run. This is taking too long.'

His body language and his tone were of utter impatience. He was nervous, and looked anxious. It was clear he didn't want to be there.

He probably didn't realise that Singapore is a media hub - home to more than 100 news organisations from all corners of the world.

And pleading with the huddled journalists, he said: 'Sorry guys, I need to go shopping, or there won't be time the next few days.'

And off he raced to the waiting lift. The scribes groaned in dismay when the lift door closed.

But The New Paper managed to catch him and his team-mates at M Hotel's taxi-stand just moments before they boarded a taxi. This time he looked more relaxed.

'Where are you off to, Manu,' I asked.

It was delegation head Federico Esteban Hausberger who answered the question.

'Sim Lim Square,' he said. 'Electronic and audio.'

And off they went in two taxis.

Ginobili did say in the press conference the team needs to bond well to perform well in the world meet against the likes of Team USA, Serbia and Montenegro, and Spain - particularly Spain, which had just beaten them in a recent friendly in Madrid.

The pressure on the team is perhaps the reason why Ginobili wanted to run away from the media.

http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/sports/story/0,4136,111563,00.html

[MaNuMaNiAc]

or he just wanted to do some shopping during the only free time he gets these days, whats so wrong with that?

[smeagol]

Manu, that was rude!

(you need to be polite 100% of your time)

[spurschick]

or he just wanted to do some shopping during the only free time he gets these days, whats so wrong with that?

I'm kidding. You have to admit that the article is a bit skewed to make him seem diva-esque. When he said "this is taking too long", it could have been taking too long for all we know, but they made it sound like he was being too impatient. And if I were in a place where electronics were super cheap, I'd be shopping too.

[ManuTim_best of Fwiendz]

I think that's Manu being a normal person on travel. And yeah it's probably the way the article was written. It makes a world of difference.

[spurschick]

France loses to Australia

In the earlier game, 22 points from San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker could not prevent France going down 77-71 to an inexperienced Australia team.

Milwaukee Bucks center Andrew Bogut scored 20 points as the Boomers came from behind to take the lead late in the third quarter, holding on to claim an upset victory.

[carina_gino20]

damn...if i knew they were going to sim lim, i would have stalked him there :lol

[angel_luv]

Gino is tired and/or stressed/ preoccupied I think. That article didn't sound like him to me.

[sendman]

We can smack talk all we want, but anything other than easy win for team USA would be big big surprise. At the moment, it looks like only Spain can cause some trouble for basketball inventing nation, but they always fail when it counts.

[angel_luv]

We can smack talk all we want, but anything other than easy win for team USA would be big big surprise. At the moment, it looks like only Spain can cause some trouble for basketball inventing nation, but they always fail when it counts.


I know what you mean but wasn't James Naismith Canadian? I was trying to remember the other day.

[sendman]

I know what you mean but wasn't James Naismith Canadian? I was trying to remember the other day.
Yes he was. And J. Robert Oppenheimer, who invented an atomic bomb was German, but still your nation gets all the credit for inventing such nice device.

[SLOVENIAN 8]

Greece 84:47 Germany :lol :lol :lol :lol

Lol Dirk was first scorer with 9 points :lol :lol

[angel_luv]

Ouch. What happened?

[SLOVENIAN 8]

Ouch. What happened?
I dont know , becouse i did not watch the game i just saw the score...
Greece destroyed them, that is what i can see from that score

:lol :lol

[Cherry]

Greece 84:47 Germany :lol :lol :lol :lol

Lol Dirk was first scorer with 9 points :lol :lol


Oh my God! :wow

and i think Argentina was terrible losing by 20...we are not alone!!! :lol
But, of course, the WC is another history.

[spurschick]

For those who want to watch the entire thing:

Watch FIBA World Championship 2006 LIVE and On Demand!

http://www.mediazone.com/channel/fiba/jsp/index.jsp#

You've been waiting for the basketball World Championship to arrive and now they're almost here! Who will take home the James Naismith Trophy at the FIBA World Championship 2006 competition? Tune in here from August 19 - September 3, 2006 when FIBA and MediaZone offer live* and On Demand coverage of all 80 games of this year's competition. Watch international stars like LeBron James, Dirk Nowitzki, Yao Ming, Dwayne Wade, Elton Brand, Gilbert Arenas, Emanuel Ginobili, Tony Parker, and many other basketball super-stars.

Save now with an All Access Pass! Special pre-order price is $15.99 so Buy Now and Save!

Purchase an All Access Pass to the FIBA World Championships 2006 and receive the following:

* Live or On Demand access to all 80 games of the competition including all 60 of the Preliminary Group games and the 20 games of the Final Round
* Access to the Classic Game archive and the 52-minute video, "The Road to Japan"
* Access to all content for 90 days from first use
* Listen to English commentary on approximately 45 games including all 20 games in the Final Round
*All games will not be available live in all territories.

[angel_luv]

Yes! Thank you! :elephant

[angel_luv]

For those who want to watch the entire thing:

Watch FIBA World Championship 2006 LIVE and On Demand!

http://www.mediazone.com/channel/fiba/jsp/index.jsp#

You've been waiting for the basketball World Championship to arrive and now they're almost here! Who will take home the James Naismith Trophy at the FIBA World Championship 2006 competition? Tune in here from August 19 - September 3, 2006 when FIBA and MediaZone offer live* and On Demand coverage of all 80 games of this year's competition. Watch international stars like LeBron James, Dirk Nowitzki, Yao Ming, Dwayne Wade, Elton Brand, Gilbert Arenas, Emanuel Ginobili, Tony Parker, and many other basketball super-stars.

Save now with an All Access Pass! Special pre-order price is $15.99 so Buy Now and Save!

Purchase an All Access Pass to the FIBA World Championships 2006 and receive the following:

* Live or On Demand access to all 80 games of the competition including all 60 of the Preliminary Group games and the 20 games of the Final Round
* Access to the Classic Game archive and the 52-minute video, "The Road to Japan"
* Access to all content for 90 days from first use
* Listen to English commentary on approximately 45 games including all 20 games in the Final Round
*All games will not be available live in all territories.


Done!
Whoosh! :elephant

[Spurologist]

Thoughts about the Greece vs. Germany game.

1. Germany played like school girls and got romped 84:47
2. Damn Greece can shoot the rock. If the US plays them, they will get burned time and time again if they get into 'Open threes galore' mode. Zone might not be the best option. Greece passes well too. Very unselfish.
3. Dirk tried to be manly by guarding Greece's center (mini Shaq). His ass then got posted up for an AND 1 play. Next trip down for Greece, the German coach said something to the effect of, "Dirk get the fuck off him and guard someone else" :lol
Oh yeah Dirk had 9 pts by taking contested fadeaways the whole game
4. The Greece point guard needs to hook up with an NBA team immediately. He has great handles, a good feel for the game, and is a terrific long range shooter. He was arguable the best player on the floor. The Greek power forward played well too. He could attract nba scouts if he keeps it up.
6. Joe Herber from WVU is a deadly shooter for ze Germans. Too slow to make it to the league though.
7. It's safe to say Dirk hasn't fully recovered from his NBA Finals Choke act. For the sake of the mav's fan's sanity, I hope it's not permanent.

[angel_luv]

Pictures

Team picture links are on the right. :)

[spurschick]

Yes! Thank you! :elephant

Enjoy - unfortunately for me...

• Live streaming on Windows Media Player Version 9 or above. (Macintosh and Linux not supported)

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

Germany got smoked like turkey bacon. :lol :)

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

Undefeated USA U20 National Team Cruises Past Winless Bahamas In 114-23 Rout

The 2006 USA Basketball U20 Women's National Team (4-0), bigger, stronger and faster, overpowered the Bahamas (0-4) Friday with an easy 114-23 win at the FIBA Americas U20 Championship for Women in Mexico City, Mexico. The game, 35-0 with just 1:51 remaining in the first period, was never in question.

Knowing the winless Bahamas would not present much of a challenge, Michigan State University and USA U20 National Team head coach Joanne P. McCallie, along with assistants Joanne Boyle of the University of California and Sam Dixon of Furman University (S.C.), devised a system to keep her U.S. squad motivated.

"This is a very talented team that is going to really dominate some other teams ," McCallie said. "The idea was stopping scores in the paint or shots in the paint and making each of those worth 10 points for Bahamas. We focused our effort in the quarter-court and only played quarter-court defense. We did not press in any way. We also rewarded for taking charges and proper footwork.

"The point system was to get them to think about other things than the actual score. The game was determined quite early, and they have to understand that they need to be motivated by other things"

While the scoreboard read 60-9 at the half, according to the U.S. bench, the score was 60-59.

"The score might have said they had 9 at half-time, but in our book, they had 59 points because they had five shots from the paint," Erica White (Louisiana State / Jacksonville, Fla.) said. "That's how we kept focused. In most blow outs, you can really get bored, but we didn't get bored because we all really wanted to win the game within the game."

With 15 points, Kia Vaughn (Rutgers / Bronx, N.Y.) led six other U.S. players in double figures, and, with four blocks, set a USA U20 record for blocked shots.
Renee Montgomery (Connecticut / St. Albans, W.Va.) scored 13 points, and Jolene Anderson (Wisconsin / Port Wing, Wis.), Victoria Lucas-Perry (Michigan State / Flint, Mich.), Marscilla Packer (Ohio State / Pickerington, Ohio) and Courtney Paris (Oklahoma / Piedmont, Calif.) contributed 12 points each. Erlana Larkins (North Carolina / Riviera Beach, Fla.) added 10 points.

In another impressive statistical outing, eight USA team members shot 70.0 percent or better, and as a team, the USA shot a tournament-high 69.7 percent from the field.

The USA, mostly untested in its four wins, meets also undefeated Brazil (3-0) Saturday at 4:00 p.m. With Brazil expected to dominate host Mexico in Friday's 6:00 p.m. game, the contest will likely decide the gold medal winners.

"Brazil is a big team," Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton (Purdue / Naperville, Ill.) said. "Finally we will play a team with some big, athletic posts, and their guards are big too. It's going to be a really good game. All week long I think it has been the game everyone is looking forward to. We're ready for it. I know we are. Each game we're getting better and better. Even though we have been blowing out these teams, we have found a way to improve with each game."

The USA will be down to just 10 active players Saturday. Essence Carson (Rutgers / Paterson, N.J.) was added to the inactive list after Friday's game with a minor knee sprain, and Devanei Hampton (California / Oakland, Calif.), also with a knee injury, was never able to participate in the tournament..

"We're very disappointed about losing Essence," McCallie said. "She will not be able to play against Brazil, and that's very disappointing, especially considering all the momentum we have built with this group. Losing Devanei way back when was awful, and it's awful to lose Essence against Brazil.

"They have many strengths. One of them is their continuity. When they get into a flow, they are able to put together significant runs. Our job is to disrupt the flow. They are not as effective when they have to play more blue-collar or more physical. I definitely expect them to be outstanding. I expect us to be outstanding. It will be just a great game all-around."

Also on Friday, Canada (2-2) beat Puerto Rico (1-3) 85-52 and Brazil (3-0) meets host Mexico (1-2) in the evening's final game.

Saturday's other matches include Bahamas versus Puerto Rico at 2:00 p.m. and Canada against Mexico at 6:00 p.m.

[angel_luv]

Enjoy - unfortunately for me...

• Live streaming on Windows Media Player Version 9 or above. (Macintosh and Linux not supported)


Wow. that's not cool of them. :(

[boutons_]

August 16, 2006

Attitude Not Talent Key to Gold for U.S

By REUTERS

Filed at 5:31 a.m. ET

TOKYO (Reuters) - Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James believes a change in attitude not talent will hold the key to a gold medal for the U.S. men's basketball team when the world championship tips off on Saturday.

Without a gold medal in major international competition since the 2000 Sydney Olympics, a new generation of young, eager American talent will attempt to return the U.S. to the top of the podium in Japan.

``In 2004, we didn't understand the significance of how big the Olympics were for the U.S.,'' James told reporters on Wednesday.

``I think everybody felt like it wasn't as big as the NBA, which is not true. I think every guy didn't have the right mindset and as a team, we didn't come together.

``But, it's a new day, it's a new age and I feel this team has the right ingredients, has the right nucleus and guys are really prepared and know what's at stake, to win the world championship.''

James, Denver's Carmelo Anthony and Miami's NBA finals MVP Dwyane Wade are the new standard bearers for a U.S. team that dismisses the ``Dream Team'' label, anxious to establish their own identity in a basketball world that has grown more competitive.

CHEMISTRY IMPORTANT

Placing an emphasis on teamwork over individual performance, the U.S. has learned from the success of Olympic gold medallists Argentina and twice world champion Serbia and Montenegro that chemistry is as important as talent.

``The chemistry is unbelievable,'' Washington Wizards forward Antawn Jamison said.

``I think that was the biggest adjustment or the biggest thing we need to have as far as going into the world championship is great team chemistry.

``Right now, guys are still playing unselfishly and the most important thing is to win basketball games.''

Since the Olympics swung open the doors to NBA players at the 1992 Barcelona Summer Games, Americans have expected their basketball teams to return home from the major championships with nothing less than gold medals.

But the days of the U.S. simply turning up to the collect the gold medal have faded, along with their aura of invincibility.

``We understood we can't show up and win,'' Wade added.

[zeleni]

August 16, 2006

Attitude Not Talent Key to Gold for U.S

By REUTERS

Filed at 5:31 a.m. ET

TOKYO (Reuters) - Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James believes a change in attitude not talent will hold the key to a gold medal for the U.S. men's basketball team when the world championship tips off on Saturday.

Without a gold medal in major international competition since the 2000 Sydney Olympics, a new generation of young, eager American talent will attempt to return the U.S. to the top of the podium in Japan.

``In 2004, we didn't understand the significance of how big the Olympics were for the U.S.,'' James told reporters on Wednesday.

``I think everybody felt like it wasn't as big as the NBA, which is not true. I think every guy didn't have the right mindset and as a team, we didn't come together.

``But, it's a new day, it's a new age and I feel this team has the right ingredients, has the right nucleus and guys are really prepared and know what's at stake, to win the world championship.''

James, Denver's Carmelo Anthony and Miami's NBA finals MVP Dwyane Wade are the new standard bearers for a U.S. team that dismisses the ``Dream Team'' label, anxious to establish their own identity in a basketball world that has grown more competitive.

CHEMISTRY IMPORTANT

Placing an emphasis on teamwork over individual performance, the U.S. has learned from the success of Olympic gold medallists Argentina and twice world champion Serbia and Montenegro that chemistry is as important as talent.

``The chemistry is unbelievable,'' Washington Wizards forward Antawn Jamison said.

``I think that was the biggest adjustment or the biggest thing we need to have as far as going into the world championship is great team chemistry.

``Right now, guys are still playing unselfishly and the most important thing is to win basketball games.''

Since the Olympics swung open the doors to NBA players at the 1992 Barcelona Summer Games, Americans have expected their basketball teams to return home from the major championships with nothing less than gold medals.

But the days of the U.S. simply turning up to the collect the gold medal have faded, along with their aura of invincibility.

``We understood we can't show up and win,'' Wade added.

The Jamison statement about chemistry is so out of date. How can a man judge chemistry after blowout victories and a hard-earned win against Brazil? USA is just waiting to be hammered.

That is just the lesson of Slovenia and Croatia, that have similar players in character. Players are hungry, and coach can do just about anything as long as they are winning. When they start to lose... then the chemistry breaks.

Jamison would the the first one to say, if no one wants the ball, I want it bad! Wade is saying they can't show up and win... And he is admitting this after 4-year-long crisis of USA Basketball... That are some arrogant fellas!

[Kibic]

The Jamison statement about chemistry is so out of date. How can a man judge chemistry after blowout victories and a hard-earned win against Brazil? USA is just waiting to be hammered.

That is just the lesson of Slovenia and Croatia, that have similar players in character. Players are hungry, and coach can do just about anything as long as they are winning. When they start to lose... then the chemistry breaks.

Jamison would the the first one to say, if no one wants the ball, I want it bad! Wade is saying they can't show up and win... And he is admitting this after 4-year-long crisis of USA Basketball... That are some arrogant fellas!

Well, you know... They do not care much about WC. In basketball NBA rules. Last two DREAM teams faild, but who cares. Even the rules are diferent. Would it not be nice to see TP cry about NBA rules when he came to play in NBA.

[zeleni]

NBA doesn't rule anything. Soon European players will get out just couse they cannot win their playoffs just couse of some incompetent managment or a passive owner. Gasol would leave Grizzlies, since they dream only of playoffs?!
What kind of leadership is just hoping that the biggest contract means a better player? No one wants responsibility, neither GM or the Coach, owner on the other hand does his job like he is a owner of low-budget movie filled with enthusiasts.ž

No one cares, Kibic, you are so right.

[spurschick]

Japan 2006 - Fans rush to buy tickets

GENEVA, Switzerland -- If the FIFA World Cup has witnessed an unparalleled fan frenzy, basketball fans in Japan and around the world have discovered the FIBA World Championship is not much different.

The news will come as no surprise with the world's best players like Argentina's Emanuel Ginobili, Team USA's Dwayne Wade, Germany's Dirk Nowitzki, Austrlia's Andrew Bogut, France's Tony Parker and Spain's Pau Gasol among the dozens of superstars headed for the tournament.

The Local Organising Committee in Tokyo announced that the Group Games in Hiroshima and Sapporo are sold out whilst Hamamatsu, and Sendai only have small quantities remaining. Only Japanese fans will have a chance in a last sales wave to buy the last tickets. For the first round, a ticket is valid for the complete session of all three games per day. The prices range from 4.000 to 9.000 Yen per ticket.

The Final Round in the Saitama Super arena, which can hold 22.000 spectators, has also witnessed a run for tickets. Some Game days such as the Semi Finals and Finals are almost sold out, whereas for the Eighth Finals and Quarter Finals limited contingents are still available. For the final round in Saitama a ticket is valid for two games and the prices range is from 5.000 to 20.000 Yen per ticket. For reference: the exchange rate is about 119Yen/US$.

[spurschick]

For those who haven't checked it out yet, the official site has some pretty cool stuff, including blogs, wallpapers, brackets and games.

http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/06_wcm/index.asp

[hendrix]

Good Stuff there :lol


"3. Tony Parker, of course. The small guard surprises me every time I see him. It's always like: Man, my coach should have told me that basketball is that easy for a point guard, who cannot shoot. Just drive to the basket and go for a lay-up every time, get a million dollar contract, become famous and get a super model girlfriend. Life is so easy sometimes!
Back to the point: how is it possible, that Parker can drive and finish almost every time he wants? He is not a great shooter, has no range, but sported the best field goal percentage last season in the NBA behind Shaq and Eddy Curry! Impossible! Okay, he is quick, but I still don't get it. Does anybody have an explanation?"

[TPMG2007]

Good Stuff there :lol

That is some bullshit.

[spurschick]

ARG - Fatigue to blame for Argentinian slump

SENDAI (FIBA World Championship) - Argentina center Ruben Wolkowyski admits tiredness has been a significant factor in his team`s disappointing recent performances in the lead-up to the FIBA World Championship.

The reigning Olympic champions lost three of their last four warm-up games before arriving in Japan, including two convincing defeats to Spain in the space of a week as well as an 83-64 reverse at the hands of Serbia & Montenegro in the recent Singapore Cup.

Wolkowyski puts much of Argentina`s poor form down to fatigue but still backs them to make an impression at the World Championship.

"Tiredness has been a big influence," the BC Khimki player said. "People don't know that after the game, we haven't slept and have gone straight on to train.

"We used to get up at 3am and were very tired. That has accumulated and the team are feeling it.

"However, our goal was not to play well in these warm-up tournaments, but to prepare the team to get to the World Championship in the best shape.

"We still have several things to correct, but in training, we will try to improve on them."

Wolkowyski, the former Seattle SuperSonic, added the team`s focus was now completely on France, Argentina`s opening opponents in France.

"I think (Tony) Parker is the main weapon of France, so we'll have to be careful with him," he said on www.ole.com.ar. Obviously now not so much of an issue at the moment.

"We will have to put on a good defensive showing that we know we are able to do. That is more important than worrying about our rivals.

"We know the team we have and the things we can achieve.

"We've already demonstrated it so the only thing we have left is to wait for Saturday to arrive."

Wolkowyski will play in his fourth World Championship, having already featured in Toronto in 1994, Greece in 1998 and Indianapolis in 2002.

"When I played in my first World Championship, I was very nervous before the games but now I'm calmer," he added.

"Having been in three World Championships, and having lost the 2002 final and won the 2004 Olympics, that has given me a lot of experience which makes me feel calm."

[spurschick]

ARG - Oberto fears Parker loss could galvanise French

SENDAI (FIBA World Championship) – Argentina center Fabricio Oberto fears the absence of Tony Parker could in fact have a positive effect on France when the two teams meet in the FIBA World Championship on Saturday.

The San Antonio Spurs guard was forced to pull out of the tournament with a broken finger he sustained in Les Bleus` warm-up game against Brazil on Tuesday.

The news came as a huge blow to Claude Bergeaud`s men just one day before their World Championship opener against Argentina tips-off in Sendai.

But Oberto, who is Parker`s team-mate at San Antonio, believes the French will be able to cope with the absence of their star player.

“Tony Parker is an important loss, but it could make them better in adversity,” Oberto said.

“France know how to play without Parker. They are a powerful team with or without him.

“However, we can only think about us: defending hard and showing our power in attack. Starting the tournament on the right foot will be important,” he added.

The 2004 Olympic champions have had a mixed build-up to Japan with six wins and three defeats in their warm-up matches.

But point guard Juan Ignacio Sanchez is confident the Argentinians have learnt from their mistakes in time for the game with France.

“We did a lot of self-criticism and we said that we are not going to repeat our mistakes,” Sanchez said.

“We are going to rediscover our team spirit. We improved a lot in training and we want to play now.

“France are a fantastic team. They have an NBA style. It would be great starting with a victory.”

[spurschick]

FRA - Parker bitterly disappointed to miss out FIBA World Championship

SENDAI (FIBA World Championship) - Tony Parker expressed his huge disappointment on Friday night after being forced to pull out of the FIBA World Championship because of a broken finger.

The playmaker, who sustained the injury in France's last friendly against Brazil, revealed to fiba.com in his first interview since withdrawing from the team that he had acted after being advised by the the San Antonio Spurs.

"It really is very disappointing and tough to swallow because I felt in great shape before I got hurt against Brazil," said Parker.

"I had been looking forward to playing for France and I felt we had a great team which had the potential to do great things here.

"I want to play, but I can't play. It's that simple really. If it were up to me I would play. But it's not that easy.

"Obviously I have to consider how my team-mates and my coaches on the national team would feel about it. If I play hurt, I may not be helping my team so I can't be selfish and decide I want to play just for myself.

"And of course, I also have to consider what the San Antonio Spurs staff would say about it if I decided to go ahead and play. If I aggravated the injury I could be out for up to three months. I don't think that would be a good idea."

The 24-year-old explained how the freak accident happened.

"I got my finger caught in the jersey of one of the Brazilian players and I thought I heard a pop sound. So immediately I thought I had broken something in my finger. But the doctor looked at it and said it was still straight so it was probably just a sprain."

"But overnight it really started hurting pretty badly so on Thursday I told the doctors we should get an X-ray done just to check. The X-ray showed there was a broken bone and we tried to build a cast that would allow me to play but it was just too painful."

"I can't hold the ball. It's my index finger on my shooting hand so obviously that's the one finger you can't really hurt and still hope to be able to shoot.

"Obviously it is a big blow to me and to the French team. But these things happen and I must get past it.

"There is more at stake here than just the World Championship. The goal is the Olympics in 2008. So the best thing I can do is to recover and support the team throughout this competition."

Parker was in contact with his agents and with the Spurs' staff in San Antonio.

"At the end of the day, the Spurs make the decision. They're the bosses. So I will go back to San Antonio, get checked by the medical staff and go from there."

Parker does expect to be fit for the Spurs' trip to France in early October when they will hold part of their training camp in Paris.

"I have been told that I need to give it a month to heal. So I should be ready by then. I would like to come back to Japan around the time of the quarter-finals to support my team-mates.

"Nothing is definite yet, but we'll see how it goes. I may not come back but I will still support them throughout the competition."

[spurschick]

Here are 10 reasons why Team USA won't win the gold
(excerpt from ESPN article)


1. The experience factor. Most of the better teams in this tournament have been playing together for years and years, not just a few weeks. The players from Argentina have been together since they were on their national junior squad, giving them almost a decade of tournament experience together. The international game is more of a team game than the NBA game, and nothing builds a team quite like growing up together as a unit. Team USA can't compete in this category.

2. The 3-point factor. The international 3-point line is nearly three feet closer to the basket than the NBA line, putting a huge premium on the outside shot. This U.S. team has more shooters than the 2004 Athens team, but there's still no Ray Allen or Michael Redd. And if Joe Johnson pulls a Richard Jefferson and suddenly can't hit the broad side of a barn, trouble lurks.

3. The officiating factor. Squirreled away in a tiny hotel room somewhere here is a referee who can't wait to see LeBron James alone on a breakaway -- not to see him dunk, mind you, but to whistle him for traveling. FIBA referees seem to take a perverse pleasure in seeing the U.S. lose, and if you don't believe me, go ask Tim "FIBA Sucks" Duncan.

4. The familiarity factor. Everyone around the world watches NBA basketball, but try to find a single U.S. player who watches Euroleague games. The opponents know the Americans' tendencies inside and out, but most of the international players are mysteries to Team USA.

5. The physicality factor. FIBA referees will call hand-checking fouls like they're going out of style, but they'll let players get away with armed combat underneath the basket without calling a foul. That doesn't bode well for skinny Chris Bosh, and it'll be an eye-opener for young Dwight Howard.

6. The overconfidence factor. The U.S. will cruise through the opening round, but the quality of the opponents it will see in the single-elimination medal round will be a whole different matter. If Team USA's confidence gets artificially high after the first week, it won't enter the medal round with the healthy respect for its opponents that it needs.

7. The rock-hard, slippery ball factor. The U.S. team been practicing since day one with the slightly smaller Molten ball used in FIBA tournaments, but those balls are broken in. It'll be a different story down the road when some tournament lackey breaks out a brand-new ball for a U.S. game. Happens every time.

8. The food factor. If you don't like Japanese food, you can subsist over here on American fast food. But try eating that stuff for three weeks, and watch your energy level plummet in inverse proportion to your climbing cholesterol count.

9. The smell factor. This is a little disgusting, but it's true: Some of these teams stink, literally. Players on international teams travel to and from the arenas in their uniforms, and many players forsake showers as a result. I got a really close look at Argentina during the Worlds in Indianapolis, and I do not believe Fabricio Oberto, Luis Scola or Andres Nocioni bathed during the entire tournament. :lmao BO may be repulsive, but it also keeps defenders a few extra inches away.

10. The fear factor. International teams are no longer afraid of U.S. teams, and since they always go into games against Team USA as underdogs, they play with a looseness that often works in their favor.

[carina_gino20]

ARG - Oberto fears Parker loss could galvanise French

SENDAI (FIBA World Championship) – Argentina center Fabricio Oberto fears the absence of Tony Parker could in fact have a positive effect on France when the two teams meet in the FIBA World Championship on Saturday.

The San Antonio Spurs guard was forced to pull out of the tournament with a broken finger he sustained in Les Bleus` warm-up game against Brazil on Tuesday.

The news came as a huge blow to Claude Bergeaud`s men just one day before their World Championship opener against Argentina tips-off in Sendai.

But Oberto, who is Parker`s team-mate at San Antonio, believes the French will be able to cope with the absence of their star player.

“Tony Parker is an important loss, but it could make them better in adversity,” Oberto said.

“France know how to play without Parker. They are a powerful team with or without him.

“However, we can only think about us: defending hard and showing our power in attack. Starting the tournament on the right foot will be important,” he added.

The 2004 Olympic champions have had a mixed build-up to Japan with six wins and three defeats in their warm-up matches.

But point guard Juan Ignacio Sanchez is confident the Argentinians have learnt from their mistakes in time for the game with France.

“We did a lot of self-criticism and we said that we are not going to repeat our mistakes,” Sanchez said.

“We are going to rediscover our team spirit. We improved a lot in training and we want to play now.

“France are a fantastic team. They have an NBA style. It would be great starting with a victory.”

for a while there, i thought who's Juan Ignacio Sanchez? Then...oh...pepe :lol

[spurschick]

Germany beat Japan 81-70
Dirk had 27 pts

[orhe]

damn it mate :(( it really sucks that the philippines has been suspended from Fiba Play due to administration issues....

last asian games we beat Japan... we should have won against korea but our PG decided to choke on two free throws and we just massacred Lebanon on an exhibition last week...

[carina_gino20]

that's what happens when you taint basketball with politics...

[NuGGeTs-FaN]

Australia Beats Brazil!!! Woooooooot

[velik_m]

Nigeria leads versus S&M after 1st qtr.

[FreshPrince22]

Fiba's website blows. Year after year, they can never handle the traffic they get.

[xamila rey]

Nigeria leads versus S&M after 1st qtr.
how do u know ??
are u able to watch it online?
so far what i found is this,
http://live-sports.atspace.com/index.html
in case u know a link, can u please tell me where i can watch Arg Vs France (live)??
thanks

[carina_gino20]

how do u know ??
are u able to watch it online?
so far what i found is this,
http://live-sports.atspace.com/index.html
in case u know a link, can u please tell me where i can watch Arg Vs France (live)??
thanks

that page also has a link to the arg-france game...

[velik_m]

how do u know ??
are u able to watch it online?
so far what i found is this,
http://live-sports.atspace.com/index.html
in case u know a link, can u please tell me where i can watch Arg Vs France (live)??
thanks

i get serbian national tv.

[velik_m]

2:30 to the end of 3rd Nigeria up by 4

[xamila rey]

i get serbian national tv.

thanx for ur respond,
i am trying to get into that link but it
doesnt work,
i think the game that u r watching should be on by now
i donno i am kind of lost.

[velik_m]

thanx for ur respond,
i am trying to get into that link but it
doesnt work,
i think the game that u r watching should be on by now
i donno i am kind of lost.

ehm... i get serbian national tv on cable (and croatian and bosnian and macedonian and austrian and italian and german... you get the picture :))

[xamila rey]

ehm... i get serbian national tv on cable (and croatian and bosnian and macedonian and austrian and italian and german... you get the picture :))

lucky U.
anyways cool updates..

[velik_m]

nigeria wins

[Pero]

nigeria wins

WHAT? REALLY?

[andsoon]

Serbia & Montenegro 75 : 82 Nigeria

[velik_m]

WHAT? REALLY?

yup, they had a lot of offensive rebounds - 2nd chance points.

[themvp]

nigeria wins


OMG :lol

[boutons_]

wow, both PR and USA shots over 50%

http://www.fiba2006.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/06_wcm/scheResu/fe_scheStat_boxScor.asp?roundID=4742&groupName=D&gameName=1&eventID=3507&lid_6591_openNodeIDs=&langID=1&zone=&lid_6597_cp=&competitionCode=&langLC=en&season=&playerNumber=&teamNumber=

[velik_m]

wow, both PR and USA shots over 50%

http://www.fiba2006.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/06_wcm/scheResu/fe_scheStat_boxScor.asp?roundID=4742&groupName=D&gameName=1&eventID=3507&lid_6591_openNodeIDs=&langID=1&zone=&lid_6597_cp=&competitionCode=&langLC=en&season=&playerNumber=&teamNumber=

can you say no D?

[carina_gino20]

has the arg-france game started yet?

[ALVAREZ6]

has the arg-france game started yet?
I think it started 50 minutes ago, but I can't find any live stats.



I did a bunch of searches too. Anyone know where to get them???

[carina_gino20]

damn...nothing's showing in that link someone gave

[ALVAREZ6]

Can anyone find live stats or at least a score to Argentina vs. France??


:wtf

[Bruno]

Argentina 44 - France 33 at the half
Manu 14, Nocioni 12

[ALVAREZ6]

Link?

[carina_gino20]

anyone has a link to the game or to live stats? fiba has too much traffic

[WalterBenitez]

I think it started 50 minutes ago, but I can't find any live stats.
I did a bunch of searches too. Anyone know where to get them???

FIBA.com is down (at least for me), you can follow at www.lanacion.com.ar ... very basic stats, if you find any place, please post it

[Bruno]

Link?

I watch the game on french TV if you want I can do a blog on the other thread you started.

[ALVAREZ6]

That's fine. I have to leave in 10 minutes, I just wanted to see a box score. But Fiba.com is down right now, at least at my house.

[boutons_]

Dammit, how can FIBA's site be so fucked up and overloaded? They can't be so poor that they can't put on some extra WWW capacity if only for a couple weeks during the WCs. fuckers!

[velik_m]

http://www.lequipe.fr/

[velik_m]

Italians killing China with 3pters.

Javtokas with a great dunk versus Turkey.

[spurschick]

Game Report, Argentina v France 78-70, GROUP A

SENDAI (FIBA World Championship) - Argentina needed the best out of Manu Ginobili and Andres Nocioni to get by a French side missing its best player, Tony Parker.

The Olympic champions prevailed on a score 78-70 but followed a very good first half display with a barely average performance after the break.

Ginobili scored 22 points - most of them coming in the first three quarters - and Nocioni took the scoring load upon himself in the second half to chip in with 21.

The game started well, with both teams looking sharp and seemingly well matched up.

Fabricio Oberto provided a spark early on for the South American side while France spread their scoring evenly enough and looked to be doing well in Parker's absence.

But Nocioni and Ginobili took over midway through the first quarter, combining for an 8-0 burst that swung the game in Argentina's favour, 18-9.

France came back at the start of the second quarter, behind the strong play of the Pietrus brothers - especially Florent - and captain Boris Diaw to take a 25-24 lead.

Once again though, Ginobili and Nocioni responded with clutch baskets to push their team's lead in double digits by half-time, 44-33.

Les Bleus were more aggressive in the second half and benefited from replacing Aymerick Jeanneau - Parker's replacement in the starting five - with Yannick Bokolo who proved efficient at both ends of the court.

In fact France was the better side in the last 24 minutes but having to make up for an 11-point deficit against a team of Argentina's calibre was never going to be an easy task.

Reuben Wolkowwyski and Nocioni kept Claude Bergeaud's side at bay, despite the best efforts of Bokolo, Diaw and Pietrus and it seemed Argentina always had an answer for every clutch run or basket their opponents made.

The final blow to France's morale was Ginobili's step back three pointer over the extended arm of Turiaf in the last minute of the game to restore an eight-point lead, 76-68 to all but end France's hopes of a come from behind victory.

Florent Pietrus led the way for France with 15 points.

Les Bleus looked like they could compensate for Parker's absence by using Yannick Bokolo and Joseph Gomis who both did well during his time on the court.

Jeanneau, looked out of his depth most times, playing very hesitantly and even passing up open shots and did not feature much in the second half.

"This was a very tough game against one of the most athletic teams in the competition but we were able to hold them off by making some timely stops defensively and some tough shots," Argentina point guard Pepe Sanchez said afterwards.

"You have to give France credit for playing so well without one of their best players. I would have liked for Tony to be in the game so that we could see how we would measure up against a full strenght France side."

Argentina head coach Sergio Hernandez explained that in a game like this one, his players' familiarity with one another was crucial to avoid a late collapse.

"These players have been together since 2002 and played successfully in two major tournaments together. So they have learned when they really need to step up their games and concentrate at the right times. They did that tonight."

[spurschick]

Game Report, Slovenia vs Senegal 96 - 79, GROUP D

SAPPORO (FIBA World Championship) - Slovenia marked their FIBA World Championship debut with an emphatic victory over Senegal in their Group D encounter in Sapporo on Saturday.

Ales Pipan's team built a big lead early on and never looked back as they thrashed the African nation 96-79.

Senegal were overmatched and struggled defensively, giving their opponents easy shots and Slovenia made them pay, making 33 of 67 from the field, 12 of 22 from the arc.

"We were very sloppy on defense today," said Senegal's Sitapha Savane, who finished with 11 points while team-mate Richard AW Jules had a game-high 18 points on defeat.

"We gave away too many spaces but we have to congratulate our rivals, they have great shooters."

Slovenia, who qualified for the tournament for the first time in the country's history with their sixth-placed finish at last year's EuroBasket, proved too strong for Moustapha Gaye's men.

Bostjan Nachbar and Sani Becirovic provided much of their team's inspiration in the early offensive play as the Slovenians went on a 14-4 run at the start of the first quarter.

Both players continued to terrorise Senegal's defense to give their team a comfortable 32-15 lead going into the second quarter.

Beno Udrih's three pointer early in the second period gave his team a 37-17 lead as Slovenia maintained their domination.

Senegal managed to reduce that deficit to 46-37 a Malick Badiane lay-up but big man Rasho Nesterovic made sure with an easy two-pointer that his team went into the break with a 48-37 advantage.

With Slovenia facing a more difficult battle on Sunday when they take on Olympic silver medalists Italy, Pipan opted to rest his starting five in the second half but Senegal failed to take advantaged as they went into the final quarter trailing 79-56.
Nachbar finished with 17 points while Sani Becirovic had 16 points, all of them scored in the first half.
"We were able to get the lead early in the game and this gave us a lot of confidence," said Nachbar.

"We shot good, they let us wide open a couple of times, had we missed those shots the game would have been completely different but we made them."

[boutons_]

Poor Jeanneau, thrown in the deep end of the pool.

[spurschick]

http://www.photo.fiba.com/G_Storia_Fiba/Picture/SmallPicture/WC_2006/Qualif_Grp_A_Argentina_France_71/ginobili%20emanuel.jpg

[spurschick]

Game Report, USA vs Puerto Rico 111 - 100, GROUP D

SAPPORO (FIBA World Championship) - Carmelo Anthony stole the limelight as United States got their FIBA World Championship off to a winning start by beating Group D rivals Puerto Rico on Saturday with dominating display in the second half.

The Americans, who were looking to revenge their humiliating defeat at the hands of Julio Toro's team at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, finished with six players in double figures in their 111-100 triumph in Sapporo.

Anthony, who gave the Americans the lead for good midway through the second quarter with a lay-up, finished with 21 points, and was eight of 11 from two-point range.

Puerto Rico point guard Carlos Arroyo was the engine but his game-high 23 points proved to no avail as his team were unable to break Mike Krzyzewski's side.
"Overall, my guys had the game in control and we had energy, we went on a couple of runs," said Coach K.
"We've given a lot of open shots today. We knew that in this first round games we had to get better and we had to get adjusted to the style of play now let's get on to China."

The Islanders, who were given a wild card to compete in Japan, kept their cool early on and despite conceding seven turnovers they went into the second quarter with a 24-23 lead thanks to a Peter Ramos lay-up.

Both teams took their turn in taking the lead and it wasn't until Anthony's two pointer midway through the second quarter that propelled the Americans to pull away.

Jose Marcus Johnson caught fire from the arc with two three-pointers giving the Americans a 57-49 lead before Arroyo's jump shot reduced the deficit to 57-51 at the break.

The Americans went on a 12-2 run at the start of the third period with Anthony and LeBron James delighting the crowd before Elias Ayuso stopped the rot with a three pointer to keep his team in the game, 71-56.

Toro's men reacted with seven consecutive points five minutes into the quarter to reduce the deficit 71-63 but they still went into the final quarter trailing 87-74.

Puerto Rico's failure to score in the first two minutes of the final quarter allowed the Americans to increase their lead to a whopping 96-74 but it was still not over.

Carmelo Lee's three pointer saw Puerto Rico cut down their deficit to -9 with two minutes left on clock but Filiberto Riera's turnover with 1minute 20seconds and the score at 107-96 brought to an end any hopes of a comeback.

Toro was satisfied with his team's performance but admits there is still room for improvement.

"We know that we have to improve and we know in which areas we have to do so," he said.
"My team had many moments of lucidity during this game and we were able to keep dancing with the Americans for a long time. In the end, their talent,strength and speed made the difference."

[kolko]

Game Report, Argentina v France 78-70, GROUP A

SENDAI (FIBA World Championship) - Argentina needed the best out of Manu Ginobili and Andres Nocioni to get by a French side missing its best player, Tony Parker.

The Olympic champions prevailed on a score 78-70 but followed a very good first half display with a barely average performance after the break.

Ginobili scored 22 points - most of them coming in the first three quarters - and Nocioni took the scoring load upon himself in the second half to chip in with 21.
The final score was 80-70. Ginobili scored 25 points and Nocioni 18.

[spurschick]

The final score was 80-70. Ginobili scored 25 points and Nocioni 18.

I'm noticing that FIBA's scores are off a lot. I think they even have the wrong score for the Germany-Japan game.

[orhe]

how much for servers?? christ!!! i'm sure someone would've sponsored them or something...
they can't handle traffic!!!

[spurschick]

I believe that Argentina plays Lebanon at 2:00AM CST and Slovenia plays Italy at 2:30AM CST.

[spurschick]

http://www.spurschick.com/wc06/arg_fra.jpg

[spurschick]

http://www.spurschick.com/wc06/slo_sen.jpg

[ALVAREZ6]

Wolkowisky can hit threes????

[TMTTRIO]

the Arg vs France game is on right now on Fox

[angel_luv]

Thanks! :) I can catch a little before I leave for work. :D

[angel_luv]

Fabri got a nice trim/ hair cut. :tu :)

[angel_luv]

Nice playing by Oberto.

[boutons_]

What's a Makris? is that like a Macaca? :lol

[ChumpDumper]

I think that's the name he used to be able to play on a Greek team.

[danyel]

Wolkowisky can hit threes????

You didn't know that? you haven't been watching closely the last 10 years...

And its Wolkowyski by way, the box score got it wrong.

[ChumpDumper]

BTW which Ndiaye owned the Slovenian centers -- Mamadou or Makhtar?

[cheguevara]

Anyone have any ideas why manu is a star in the NBA, but a superstar in international basketball? What is so different about it that makes him succeed. Hes a great player playing against normal NBA teams, but when he plays an All-Star team like team usa he does even better than he would against, say a poor team like the magic. Anybody have any ideas?

easy. Spurs are Tim Duncan's team. Argentina is Manu's team.

[T Park]

4 points 4 boards.

Typical stiff ass Nesterovic.


Thank you Toronto.

[ChumpDumper]

Ah, it was Mamadou.

Sad.

[withcheese]

http://www.spurschick.com/wc06/arg_fra.jpg

Damn, Manu had 6 steals? wtf?

i think maybe playing in the world championships will help manu mentally recover from that stupid foul against dirk at the end of game 7. as retard bill simmons said in that column about nba trade values, there are two things that can happen with manu after that shit: either he crumbles psychologically and loses his aggressiveness and fearless clutchness, or he focuses and comes back strong. if he can prove it to HIMSELF that he can still kick ass here in the world championships, he'll come back this season with a ton of confidence. if he didn't have this outlet he might come back softer than the 3 ply toilet paper he uses to wipe his butt with.

i didnt see this game, but reading in hte recap about his clutch step back three near the end makes me think that nothing has changed in his mind...he's still the shit, still willing to take the big shot, still willing to make an amazing play.

i guess the same applies to dirk...if he can make some big plays here in international competition, he might be able to be get past choking away a ring. problem with dirk is that (other than the spurs series), he has a history and a pattern of being soft when it matters most, but manu doesnt have that. i guess we'll see come octrober.

[Spurologist]

where can I get boxscores for all the games?

Thanks in advance.

[ChumpDumper]

Wolkowisky can hit threes????I'm more surprised he got a block.

[ALVAREZ6]

Was the USA game on FOX and NBATV or just NBATV???

Because now I think those fuckers aren't going to put Argentina - France on FOX, I think at 4 PM (EST) MLB is on....fucking worthless baseball. I'm not gonna be home, so I'm going to record whatever the fuck's on FOX at 4, and I better not come home to lame ass mother fucking baseball.

[Spurologist]

Was the USA game on FOX and NBATV or just NBATV???

Because now I think those fuckers aren't going to put Argentina - France on FOX, I think at 4 PM (EST) MLB is on....fucking worthless baseball. I'm not gonna be home, so I'm going to record whatever the fuck's on FOX at 4, and I better not come home to lame ass mother fucking baseball.

It was on ESPN2 and it will be replayed on NBATV tomorrow @ 4 pm

[hendrix]

1. Alvarez: you really dont know much about Argentine Basketball. Wolkowisky has a sweet 3-pt shoot. Actually, there is one Big better than him. That's the other Center: Fernandez. He won TWICE the 3-point shooting contest in Argentina League All Star weekends. Bigs that can hit 3-poiters are very important an USUAL in FIBA.

2. How can Sanchez had 6 PF when the limit is 5. Those sheets are all screwed up.

[velik_m]

4 points 4 boards.

Typical stiff ass Nesterovic.


Thank you Toronto.

and a largest win in the group. Rasho played very good today. When will you learn it doesn't matter who scores the points, it's whose team lifts the trophy?

[Slo spurs fan]

4 points 4 boards.

Typical stiff ass Nesterovic.


Thank you Toronto.
Idiot! Watch the games or shut the fuck up!
And the same goes for Chump.
Just looking at the box score (wich is completley wrong anyway) is stupid and ignorant. Rasho was A BEAST defensevly and he played only 16 minutes becouse we were so dominant and this 16 minutes were enough.
He played in first qtr (32-15 Slo) and in 3rd (31-19).
When he was on the bench we lose qtrs, 2nd with 16-22 and 4th 17-23.
So just :stfu

[ChumpDumper]

Unclench, dude.

It's Mamadou.

Mamadou owned somebody out there.

You tell me whom.

[Slo spurs fan]

Unclench, dude.

It's Mamadou.

Mamadou owned somebody out there.

You tell me whom.
Jurak-Zagorac duo.

[Slo spurs fan]

http://www.spurschick.com/wc06/slo_sen.jpg
What a mess! Completley fucked up! Only points scored and mins played are correct.

[spurschick]

What a mess! Completley fucked up! Only points scored and mins played are correct.

Sorry. I'm just posting what is there.

[Slo spurs fan]

Sorry. I'm just posting what is there.
:lol I did´t say it is your fault, you silly girl.

[spurschick]

:lol I did´t say it is your fault, you silly girl.

I didn't think you were blaming me. :spin I know that a lot of people couldn't get on the FIBA site, so I figured I'd post what is there. It seems like some of the stats and game reports are being filed/posted before the games are actually over, hence some of the wrong final scores.

[Martin R]

2. How can Sanchez had 6 PF when the limit is 5. Those sheets are all screwed up.

:rollin :rollin most defenetly !!!

[spurschick]

What is currently on the WC2006 home page:

Welcome to fiba.com

Due to an extremely high amount of user, our website is currently unavailable.

We apologize for any inconvenience.

The good news is that international basketball has seemingly become a lot more popular. The bad news is that they clearly weren't prepared for that.

[Cherry]

What is currently on the WC2006 home page:

Welcome to fiba.com

Due to an extremely high amount of user, our website is currently unavailable.

We apologize for any inconvenience.

The good news is that international basketball has seemingly become a lot more popular. The bad news is that they clearly weren't prepared for that.

the WORLD rules!:princess

...oh wait...

...that server is death :oops

:rolleyes

[velik_m]

What is currently on the WC2006 home page:

Welcome to fiba.com

Due to an extremely high amount of user, our website is currently unavailable.

We apologize for any inconvenience.

The good news is that international basketball has seemingly become a lot more popular. The bad news is that they clearly weren't prepared for that.

The Yao Ming factor.

It really is an embarrassing, especially for such a tech country like Japan

[angel_luv]

I got that message about 30 minutes ago when I got home.

I can access as normal now though.

[velik_m]

You have to love the kiwis and their haka dance.

[danyel]

You have to love the kiwis and their haka dance.

Whats not to love about NZ? the Tall Blacks name, the haka, Pero Cameron akwardness factor and the fact that they are actually quite good.

[velik_m]

Whats not to love about NZ? the Tall Blacks name, the haka, Pero Cameron awarkness factor and the fact that they are actually quite good.

well i don't know about the good part, but at least they fight hard.

[danyel]

well i don't know about the good part, but at least they fight hard.

They finished 4th in 2002, and they lost Marks in the first games. They are a pretty decent team.

[WalterBenitez]

ARG 67 x LEB 35 5:24 3q ...

[WalterBenitez]

I think I am the only one watching this game :D

[fred33]

pic of eva in japan http://www.fiba2006.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/06_wcm/fanZone/photZone/photDay/fe_fanZone_photDaySing.asp?lid_7273_firstPic=1&playerNumber=&eventID=3507&roundID=&zone=&teamNumber=&catID=538&gender=&picSize=450&sizeDim=H&sizePath=_original/&lid_7273_langID=1&lid_7262_openNodeIDs=&backUrl=http://www.fiba2006.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/06_wcm/fanZone/photZone/photDay/fe_fanZone_photDayGall.asp

[velik_m]

They finished 4th in 2002, and they lost Marks in the first games. They are a pretty decent team.

they are down by 20 against germany in 3rd quarter. They did finish 4th at the last championship but that was 4 years ago.

[velik_m]

The germans are pathetic, they're up by twenty in the 4th and they still play Nowitzki

[velik_m]

photo of the day on official site:
http://www.fiba.com/images/web/Events/2006_wcm/fanZone/photZone/photoDay/_original/evaLong.jpg

[spurschick]

Game Report, Argentina v Lebanon 107-72, GROUP A

SENDAI (FIBA World Championship) - Argentina became the first team to maintain a perfect record (2-0) so far in the group stages of the FIBA World Championship when they easily defeated Lebanon 107-72.

The Olympic champions, much like they did in the first game, came out and played flawless basketball in the first quarter, using a 10-0 run to turn a 7-7 tie into a 17-7 advantage.

However, unlike last night, they were able to maintain a high level of play going the rest of the way even though none of their starters played more than 20 minutes.

Walter Herrmann came off the bench to score a team-high 23 points, including six out of eight from three-point range.

Luis Scola added 18 points in 17 minutes of play and Carlos Defilno chipped in with 14.

Lebanon did not play particularly badly but were always going to have a very tough task in trying to contain Sergio Hernandez's men.

The score was tied at 7-7 early on but Argentina then went on a 10-0 run and Lebanon never recovered.

Sergio Hernandez's men played their usual unselfish brand of basketball and after just six minutes all five starters had scored. By the end of the game, all 12 players were on the score sheet.

Scola and Manu Ginobili were the main protagonists early on. The former capped the 10-0 run with a hook shot while the latter thrilled the crowds with a fast break dunk and a coast to coast lay up.

The fans got more to cheer on when Ginobili's replacement, Delfino, went in for a reverse dunk early in the second quarter.

Lebanon improved in the second quarter behind the play of Rony Fahed and Fadi El Khatib, but the South American nation did not let their guard down and kept a considerable double-digit lead, 50-32, at the break.

Argentina used a 12-0 run midway through the third quarter to take a 67-35 lead. With the game now almost certainly out of Lebanon's reach, Hernandez was able to rest his star players Ginobili, Scola, Nocioni and Oberto.

And in their absence the substitutes showed they could maintain the lead and even extend it considerably as they went up by 40, 96-56 on Herrmann's sixth and final three-pointer of the day.

The forward had made three three-pointers in the space of two minutes earlier in the fourth quarter.

After the game, Hernandez said he was very pleased with the events of the last two days.

"I'm proud of my guys because they did very well yesterday against a very big European power like France and they didn't let their guard down today against what looks like a lesser opponent."

"We played at 100 per cent for the full 40 minutes today and I can't ask for better than that. But credit to Lebanon, despite being down by 20 or 30 points, they never stopped playing hard."

Lebanon's head coach Paul Coughter could not make any excuses for his team's display but was the first to concede the great quality Argentina has.

"The beautiful thing about how Argentina play is that they really are 100 per cent unselfish. That's the biggest compliment I can pay them."

[spurschick]

Game Report, Italy vs Slovenia 80-76, GROUP D

SAPPORO (FIBA World Championship) - A determined Italy beat Slovenia for the first time since 1997 to secure their second straight victory at the FIBA World Championship.

Slovenia scored the first 10 points of the game but Italy fought back for an 80-76 victory as the Azzurri, one of the four teams to receive wild cards to play in Japan, remained undefeated in Japan.

Slovenia started strong but slowly lost power as Italy kept their head while Ales Pipan's men looked rattled in the second half.

Italian promising youngster Marco Bellinelli had a game-high 26 points, 10 of which came in the third quarter to inspire his team to make a comeback.

Rasho Nesterovic was his team's top scorer with 17 points and eight rebounds.

The win was all the more special for Italy coach Carlo Recalcati as it was the first time he beat Slovenia since taking over the reins of the team back in 2001.

"Finally," said a delighted Recalcati.

"I am delighted with this win but I think even if we had lost I would have been satisfied with my team's performance.

"We have proved to be a competitive side against a very talented side."

Slovenia ruled the tempo in the opening stages and went on a 10-0 run before Denis Marconato added his team's first four points three minutes into the game.

Italy went into the second period trailing 22-14, with Bostjan Nachbar having made eight points in the first period.

With Gianluca Basile, who was Italy's top scorer against China, unable to find his shot with Nesterovic keeping a close eye on him, it was down to Belinelli to take centre stage.

Belinelli's nine points allowed Italy to reduce their deficit to 28-25 before Primoz Brezec's three pointer allowed Slovenia to go into the break with a 43-36 lead.

Italy came out strong and went ahead for the first time in the game four minutes into the third period with Belinelli's three pointer giving them a 47-45 advantage.

Jaka Lakovic soon leveled the score with a perimeter shot while Denis Marconato replied with the same token to allow Italy to go into the final quarter with a 59-56 advantage.

Nesterovic came to his team's rescue with his two straight dunks allowing Slovenia to regain the lead 68-66 with five minutes left to play.

With less than two minutes remaining, Luca Garri tied the game 71-71 before Matteo Soragna made a big three pointer to give Italy a 74-71 advantage with 1min 9seconds left to play.

Nesterovic missed a three pointer and an offensive foul by Sani Becirovic put Belinelli on the line, who made both his free-throws to give his team a 76-71 lead.
Lakovic reduced the deficit with a three pointer while Soragna replied with a lay-up for a thrilling finale.

With 15 seconds left on the clock, Lakovic made a two and was fouled in the process by Mordente but he failed to take advantage and the score remained 78-76 for the Italians with 15seconds left on the clock.

Lakovic fouled Soragna to stop the clock but the experienced Italian player made both free throws to keep Italy 80-76 up. Lakovic then missed a lay-up and Nesterovic was forced to foul Belinelli, who missed both shots but Slovenia failed to take advantage.

"We have to congratulate Italy," said Lakovic.

"In the end it was defence that killed us. We let the Italians take the lead but the game is played for 40 minutes not 38.


"We have to learn from the mistakes."

[spurschick]

http://www.spurschick.com/wc06/arg_lib.jpg

[spurschick]

http://www.spurschick.com/wc06/slo_ita.jpg

[Bruno]

9 PFs for Prigioni :lol
My guess is that assists are in the PF column and PFs are in the assist colum.

[spurschick]

9 PFs for Prigioni :lol
My guess is that assists are in the PF column and PFs are in the assist colum.


:lol Yeah, I view these stats from FIBA now as the "keystone cops" version.

[spurschick]

France beat Serbia & Montenegro. Looks like the defending WC05 champs have some problems.

http://www.spurschick.com/wc06/fra_sm.jpg

[V-2]

The Rockets must be very happy with their selection of Spanoulis, this kid will revive their backcourt. No big surprises yet, Slovenia/Lithuania/Puerto Rico seem like the only 3 or 4 seated teams that are capable to produce an upset in the next round.

[velik_m]

France beat Serbia & Montenegro. Looks like the defending WC05 champs have some problems.


they're rebuilding the team.

[tp time]

Without Parker, without fun...France will have problems very soon...

[V-2]

Anyone knows what's the format of the tournament for the 2nd round?
A-B, C-D or A-D, B-C?

[spurschick]

A-1 v B-4

C-2 v D-3

B-1 v A-4

D-2 v C-3

C-1 v D-4

A-2 v B-3

D-1 v C-4

B-2 v A-3

[ata]

they're rebuilding the team.

They (S&M) aren't rebuilding anything.
They haven't done shit since Indianapollis and shouldn't be in Japan at all! They got (bought) wildcard - damn FIBA.

If they are rebuliding. let they, but not on WC. Croatia or Russia should be there.

[V-2]

Groups A and B are clearly < Groups C and D. It seems like the Argentineans' biggest obstacle will be Spain. Germany ain't that strong, France would have a great opportunity had Tony not injured his finger.
Groups C and D are well deeper. Team USA is the big favorite, but after that everything is up for grabs. Greece, Italy, Slovenia, Turkey, Lithuania...
Go Greece.

[themvp]

Croatia or Russia should be there.

Agree. :depressed

[ata]

France beat Serbia & Montenegro. Looks like the defending WC05 champs have some problems.


WC02

[V-2]

Spurachick I think the format you posted may be wrong. I think it's A-C, B-D, which means Argentina-Greece and USA-Spain, love it.

[orhe]

Man!!! the SCG - France game was basically a fight.., the refs swallowed their whistles

[spurschick]

WC02

Oops - my mistake. :lol

[spurschick]

Spurachick I think the format you posted may be wrong. I think it's A-C, B-D, which means Argentina-Greece and USA-Spain, love it.

The format I posted is for the 2nd round.

[Bruno]

The France/S&M was an ugly but very intense game.

S&M is a waste of talent : they can maybe the best team outside the nba if they find a way to play with all their players. When Stojakovic, Kristic, radmanovic, jaric... don't play, they are way less strong.

Milicic is a waste of talent : he is very talented but he really need to get a brain. He was dominant as hell in the post today but has shot a lot of long jumper instead without a lot of sucess. Rakosevic has been quite good.

Franch swingmen (Mickael Pietrus, Gelabale and Foirest) really need to play better. Diaw (in the second half), Weis and Florent Pietrus have played well.

[spurschick]

Game Report, USA vs China 121 - 90 , GROUP D

SAPPORO (FIBA World Championship) - Team USA thrashed China on Sunday to remain unbeaten in the FIBA World Championship.

Dwyane Wade scored a game-high 26 points and dished four assists to lead the Americans to a 121-90 victory.

There was little Yao Ming's China could do against an overpowering USA side, who built a big lead early on and never looked back.

Wade thrilled the Sapporo Arena crowd with several dunks on fast breaks while five of his team-mates also finished in double figures.

There was little Yao Ming's China could do against an overpowering USA side, who built a big lead early on and never looked back.

"We beat a good team and Yao just keeps getting better and better," said USA coach Mike Krzyzewski.
"I thought China hang in there marvellously because we pressured like crazy but our guys were more adjusted tonight and I thought played with great effort.
"Wade's scoring was one thing but his passing was even better."

The United States, who had beaten Puerto Rico 111-100 in the opening game, forced 12 China turnovers in the first half and 25 for the game.

Shane Battier scored the first five points for Mike Krzyzewski's team as they built a 21-6 lead with five minutes played.
China tried to stay close, and Fangyu Zhu's three-pointer 18 seconds before the end of the first stanza left them trailing 32-17.

They trailed 43-28 midway through the second quarter before Wade stole the show.

The Miami Heat star scored nine points in a short space of time on dunks, lay-ups and free throws to give his team a 63-38 half-time lead.

China went back on the court determined to show a better image and they briefly succeeded, going on a 10-0 run over the first three and a half minutes of the third quarter to close the gap to 61-50. Carmelo Anthony stopped the rot with a lay-up and

Jonas Kazlauskas' men then caved in as Wade & Co went on a 17-2 run to take the score to 88-56 with two minutes remaining in the third quarter.

Liu Wei's perimeter effort allowed China to go into the last period trailing 93-62.

Any hopes of a miracle comeback were shattered when Yao fouled out with six minutes left to play and with the score 103-73.

Yao, who led China in scoring with 21 points and hauled down 10 rebounds, got a warm ovation from the crowd as he walked towards his bench.

The United States will get a tougher test on Tuesday when they meet Slovenia while China will look to get their first victory of the tournament when they take on Puerto Rico.

"We learned from yesterday's defeat against Italy," said Yao.
"In the last 24 hours we watched tapes and I think we have learned a lot.
"Of course, when you plays against the US you cannot afford to make any mistakes."

[spurschick]

I think we've established that the Assists and PF columns are reversed.

http://www.spurschick.com/wc06/us_chi.jpg

[LaMarcus Bryant]

When is the next game and is it on tv?

[spurschick]

Today (Sunday)
Replay of France v. Serbia & Montenegro at 5pm CST on NBA TV
Replay of Argentina v. Lebanon at 7pm CST on NBA TV

Argentina plays Venezuela at 11pm CST tonight, but it's not on TV, at least not here in the US.

Monday
Replay of USA v. China at 3pm CST on NBA TV

Tuesday
LIVE - USA v. Slovenia at 5:30AM CST on ESPN2

[Cherry]

"Como en los Juegos Olímpicos, volvimos a sentir esas cosquillas..."

http://www.lanacion.com.ar/anexos/imagen/06/558226.JPG
Emanuel Ginóbili
Para LA NACION


SENDAI.– Lo más importante del primer triunfo en el debut contra Francia fue el cambio de actitud, la pasión con la que jugamos, especialmente en defensa, donde tuvimos mucha agresividad. Creo que es muy distinto jugar el tercer partido seguido de un torneo amistoso en Singapur, con todos los problemas de viajes y mala comida, a enfrentarse en el comienzo de un Mundial a un rival difícil. Te preparás distinto, se escuchan los himnos, todos estamos más concentrados. La adrenalina es otra y la energía crece. Creo que fácil entender que esa es la razón del cambio que tuvimos. Además, empezamos a jugar lo importante, lo que realmente vale. La motivación es muy diferente.

Como en los Juegos Olímpicos u otro campeonato de nivel, volvimos a sentir esas cosquillas, ese fuego adentro que te hace esforzarte más. Siempre digo que ni ayer éramos los peores del mundo ni ahora los mejores. Hay que estar tranquilos y sin exitismo. Haber ganado hoy (por ayer) no garantiza nada. Todos queremos ser campeones del mundo y entonces tenemos que seguir mejorando. Porque hoy jugamos contra un rival complicado, pero que por ahí nos perdonó algunos errores. No sé si eso va a pasar cuando enfrentemos a los Estados Unidos o a España. Creo que tenemos que mantener esta agresividad y seguir mejorando la defensa.

Ya quedó demostrado en la primera fecha que el torneo es parejísimo, así como alguna vez nosotros le ganamos al Dream Team cuando era impensado para todos, ahora Nigeria le ganó a Serbia y Montenegro y Qatar le hizo partido a Grecia. Todo se emparejó y cualquiera le puede ganar a un equipo grande que tiene una mala noche.

Por eso nosotros tenemos que respetar a todos, enfrentar cada partido con humildad y olvidarnos que somos los campeones olímpicos. Contra Francia demostramos responsabilidad, pero no sé si mañana vamos a jugar con la misma agresividad. Nunca se sabe si un equipo puede salirse inesperadamente del buen camino. Por ahí una tontería, una cosa muy chiquita te hace perder el equilibrio. Por lo pronto, lo que espero es que la Argentina no baje la intensidad y la agresividad que demostró en el debut.

Puntualmente sobre el partido del debut me parece que el líder que marcó el tono defensivo fue Pepe (por Sánchez) por cómo lo corrió y lo molestó al base rival. Yo cometí muchos errores, perdí al que tenía que defender. En ofensiva anduve un poco mejor y metí ese triple a tres segundos del final de la posesión en el último minuto que, por ahí, no era un tiro bueno, pero tenía que hacerlo porque no me quedaba más tiempo.

La verdad, no estaba seguro de que íbamos a ganar, pero sí de que pondríamos toda las ganas y la pasión. Pudimos haber jugado mejor, cometimos algunas distracciones y por ahí nos costó readaptar la ofensiva a la zona. Lo que pasa es que después de jugar 32 minutos de una manera cuesta cambiar. Por suerte robamos dos pelotas y encontramos el tiro para no complicarnos más. Estamos en el camino, aunque no en el ideal, para eso falta bastante.

Estuve con Tony (Parker). Lo vi de bastante buen humor. Hablamos de nuestros equipos y me contó que se volvía a San Antonio para chequearse la lesión en el dedo, pero que iba a volver para estar junto al equipo en Saitama, para la rueda final. Me pidió que no hiciera locuras y que cuidara mi físico porque en la próxima temporada tenemos que volver a ganar el anillo de la NBA.

Can someone traslate this article? :spin

[spurschick]

Can someone traslate this article? :spin

It says, "I'm extraordinarily hot..." :smokin

Okay, maybe it doesn't say that.

What it basically says is that the win over France wasn't as important as their change of attitude and renewed passion, especially on defense. They prepared differently for the actual WCs than for the friendly tournaments. The adrenaline and energy grows and the motivation is different.

As in the Olympics, they have begun to feel that fire again and must maintain their aggressiveness and continue to improve on defense. Teams like Nigeria and Qatar have shown that anyone can take advantage of a team having a bad night. All teams have to be respected and they have to forget they are Olympic champions.

Could have played better against France, especially against the zone.

Talked to Tony. Said he was going back to SA, but would return to Japan for the finals to be with the team. Asked Manu not to do anything crazy and to take care of himself because they have to get another ring next season.

[Cherry]

It says, "I'm extraordinarily hot..." :smokin

Okay, maybe it doesn't say that.



the picture say that!:makeout :lol

[angel_luv]

Wow... that picture of Gino is super cute! :)

[MannyIsGod]

Hey Slovenians. You're going to have your asses kicked tomorrow. :)

I like you guys, but I will cherish your team going down.

[MannyIsGod]

Oh, and you Argentinians are next on the hit list. Bring it, bitches!

[Das Texan]

It says, "I'm extraordinarily hot..." :smokin

Okay, maybe it doesn't say that.

What it basically says is that the win over France wasn't as important as their change of attitude and renewed passion, especially on defense. They prepared differently for the actual WCs than for the friendly tournaments. The adrenaline and energy grows and the motivation is different.

As in the Olympics, they have begun to feel that fire again and must maintain their aggressiveness and continue to improve on defense. Teams like Nigeria and Qatar have shown that anyone can take advantage of a team having a bad night. All teams have to be respected and they have to forget they are Olympic champions.

Could have played better against France, especially against the zone.

Talked to Tony. Said he was going back to SA, but would return to Japan for the finals to be with the team. Asked Manu not to do anything crazy and to take care of himself because they have to get another ring next season.



:smokin

[Das Texan]

Oh, and you Argentinians are next on the hit list. Bring it, bitches!



I'm rooting for Argentina, simply because of our stupid philosophy behind international basketball and that we say something and do the exact opposite thing.


And Coach K can jump in a lake.

[angel_luv]

Hey Slovenians. You're going to have your asses kicked tomorrow. :)

I like you guys, but I will cherish your team going down.



Oh, and you Argentinians are next on the hit list. Bring it, bitches!



Your smack talking made me think of this:
http://www.gatorade.com/film_and_downloads/commercials/

The one with Wade and Kevin Garnett.
:lol

[velik_m]

Hey Slovenians. You're going to have your asses kicked tomorrow. :)

I like you guys, but I will cherish your team going down.

no doubt. :depressed

[Rick Von Braun]

And Coach K can jump in a lake.

:lol

I wonder how many people in this board hate his guts... I am ambivalent about him.

[carina_gino20]

Your smack talking made me think of this:
http://www.gatorade.com/film_and_downloads/commercials/

The one with Wade and Kevin Garnett.
:lol

that it is freaky, angel. :drunk

[carina_gino20]

spurschick, did you see that manu gatorade ad in www.lanacion.com in manu's column?

[spurschick]

spurschick, did you see that manu gatorade ad in www.lanacion.com in manu's column?

I'm not sure where on lanacion.com you're talking about.

[spurschick]

Game Report, Argentina v Venezuela 96-54, GROUP A

SENDAI (FIBA World Championship) - For the second straight game, Argentina were able to rest their star players after taking control of this game early on and rolled to another easy win, defeating Venezuela 96-54.

The Olympic champions played in dominant fashion as they did against Lebanon yesterday and once again forward Walter Herrmann provided a huge boost off the bench, finishing with a game-high 25 points in only 26 minutes of play.

Luis Scola added 17 despite playing only 16 first half minutes. Fabricio Oberto chipped in with 10 in 27 minutes of action, 11 more than any other starter.

There was a scare for Sergio Hernandez's men in the third quarter as Andres Nocioni turned his ankle while falling on the foot of an opponent. But the head coach said his forward would be fine to play on Wednesday after the team's day off tomorrow.

Venezuela were held to 27 per cent shooting and only made one of their 17 three-point attempts in a game in which they never led.

A day after scoring 24 points, including six three-pointers, captain Victor Diaz was held to just six points. Once again Richard Lugo carried the load offensively for Nestor Salazar's side, finishing with 15 points.

Venezuela tied the game at 10-10 on a lay-up by Carlos Cedeno, but, as they did against Lebanon yesterday, Argentina felt the opponent were getting too close and responded with an 8-0 run capped off by Carlos Delfino's three-pointer at the buzzer to take a 18-10 lead after one period.

And Argentina carried that momentum the rest of the way. They outscored Venezuela 21-10 in the second quarter to pull way some more, getting their first double digit lead, 20-10, on Scola's lay up.

They then used an 11-0 run to double their advantage when delfino found Oberto open under the basket for an easy lay-up and a 36-15 lead before Venezuela trimmed the deficit to trail by 18, 39-21 at the break.

The second half was much of the same as Nocioni, Oberto and Pepe Sanchez continued the onslaught. The latter was playing the pick-and-roll to perfection with either Oberto or Wolkowyski - who started the second half in place of Scola - and drained consecutive three-pointers for a 60-33 lead.

Herrmann entered the game near the end of the third period and went on a personal
7-0 run to stretch the lead to 68-34.

In the fourth quarter, Argentina stretched their lead up to 40, 80-40 on a free-throw by Herrmann.

Minutes later he was at the receiving end of a long outlet by Carlos Delfino to convert a lay-up and give his team a 50-point advantage, 94-44 before Venezuela scored several baskets late to keep their deficit under the half-century mark.

After the game, Ginobili emphasised how huge Argentina's bench was to allowing the starters to rest for the long competition ahead.

"There is no doubt that we have one of the deepest benches in the league and it's really great for us because there are a lot of games to be played if we want to go all the way to the final," he said.

Once again Sergio Hernandez had nothing but praise for his players.

"I'm as happy as I was with the performance yesterday. We played well for another 40 minutes and it's great to be able to do so knowing that we have a lot of fans who are watching at home."

[spurschick]

http://www.spurschick.com/wc06/arg_ven.jpg

[MaNuMaNiAc]

I'm not sure where on lanacion.com you're talking about.
http://www.lanacion.com.ar/coberturaEspecial/mundialBasquet/acumulados.asp?acumuladoCategorias=1378&titulo=Las%20columnas%20de%20Manu

[spurschick]

http://www.lanacion.com.ar/coberturaEspecial/mundialBasquet/acumulados.asp?acumuladoCategorias=1378&titulo=Las%20columnas%20de%20Manu

Oh yeah... I've enjoyed that spot on many occasions. :smokin

[MaNuMaNiAc]

Oh yeah... I've enjoyed that spot on many occasions. :smokin
http://spurstalk.com/forums/images/smilies/smilol.gif

[Kibic]

Hmm. Coach K., as I remember, have some ugly experiences with international basketball. :)
He participated with USA team (NCAA) in Junior (under 20) WC in Bormio Italy. I have to search the net what was realy the results.

[Kibic]

http://www.usabasketball.com/history/mjwc_1987.html

Optimistic, team play...
My mistake. It was Lengendary Larry Brown. And yes they were favorits. They were asskicked twice. Yugoslavia. In game one Tony Kukoč scores 11/12 for 3p, as I remember.

[austinfan]

Cherry, thank you for that article on Manu. Damn, has he ever looked better?

[angel_luv]

that it is freaky, angel. :drunk

:lol

It is my favorite non Spurs commercial.

[Martin R]

ok girls. here you are straight from http://www.gatorade.com.ar :

http://rapidshare.de/files/30236077/GINOBILI21.zip

[spurschick]

Argentina has Nigeria and Serbia & Montenegro left and the US has Slovenia, Senegal and Italy. Nigeria and Serbia have not really played well, so I'd say Argentina has Group A locked up for the preliminary round. The only team that might give the US a decent challenge is Italy, but I doubt there will be an upset there. (No offense to the Slovenians out there.)

The game I wish they would televise is Angola vs. Spain. They've both made good work of the rest of the group, so this one should be good and I would really like to see if Angola is the real deal. Freakin' Pau Gasol has been shooting some crazy shit like 70%.

[spurschick]

ARG - Nocioni twists knee but will play on

SENDAI (FIBA World Championship) - Argentina forward Andres Nocioni twisted his knee playing against Venezuela on Monday, but will be able to feature in Wednesday`s game against Nigeria, the team doctor has revealed.

The Chicago Bulls star was hurt when he tripped over the foot of Venezuela center Alejandro Barrios during the third quarter of Argentina`s 96-54 win.

Argentina have a rest day on Tuesday, and team doctor Diego Grippo expects Nocioni to be ready to go on Wednesday.

"It`s a slight twist of the left knee," Grippo told the Argentinian Basketball Confederation`s official website.

"The injury was in the collateral ligament and he can get over it in a short time.

"He will have a 48-hour rest and he will take painkillers and undergo physiotherapy. An x-ray is not necessary because the injury doesn`t demand it."

Grippo added: "Tomorrow (Tuesday) we'll see how he responds to the treatment. If he does it well, as we expect, he will be ready to play some minutes against Nigeria."

Coach Sergio Hernandez confirmed he expects to have Nocioni available.

"Doctors told me that after the rest day he will be able to play the next game," he said. "Don`t worry, he`ll be back."

[hendrix]

I'm no doctor, but I'm pretty sure it was the ANKLE.
Maybe some translator needs to get back to class.