# Brand-National Team Thread



## Weasel

http://www.wkrc.com/sports/nba/story.aspx?content_id=D5B70841-E0C5-4402-8E85-BB98C51768F2



> ,Carmelo Anthony of the Denver Nuggets; Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison of the Washington Wizards; the Houston Rockets' Shane Battier; Chris Bosh of the Toronto Raptors; Bruce Bowen of the San Antonio Spurs; the Clippers' Elton Brand; Kirk Hinrich of the Chicago Bulls; Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic; the Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James; Joe Johnson of the Atlanta Hawks; Brad Miller of the Sacramento Kings; Chris Paul of the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets; the Phoenix Suns' Amare Stoudemire and Dwyane Wade of the world champion Miami Heat were each named as finalists to make the team.


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## Shady*

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*

:cheers: 

I hope the US can reclaim the World Championship.


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## DaFranchise

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*

This team is already better than the team in 2004 and thats without Kobe Bryant. Im damn glad Coach K is coaching instead of Larry Brown


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## Weasel

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*

I am going to guess because of the few reponses no one was surprised. No doubt in my mind anyway that Brand would make the team.


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## leidout

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*

Maybe i'm the only one who's not on the nationalism bandwagon... but why is this team so superior to the previous 2 that couldn't get it done?

The way i see it, the best we can hope for it to compete again. To even begin to assume that we're going to win the whole thing is exactly what went wrong with the last couple of teams. We've always been the most individually talented, even when we came in 6th place.


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## Roscoe_Clipps

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*

I won't be surprised if Brand becomes captain. He is a veteran and a humble star. He is a respectable player who last year one the sportsmanship award. He would be a quality role-model for Team USA. He understands the role of playing for America and the pride behind playing for the country.


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## qross1fan

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*



DaFranchise said:


> This team is already better than the team in 2004 and thats without Kobe Bryant. Im damn glad Coach K is coaching instead of Larry Brown


Second that


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## cadarn

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*



leidout said:


> Maybe i'm the only one who's not on the nationalism bandwagon... but why is this team so superior to the previous 2 that couldn't get it done?


The fact that this team is 2006-08. Also, "For the first time in history, we now have a national team. Autonomy was given to me to select the coaches. Then, in conjunction with Coach K, we selected the players." etc. etc.


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## Dynamic™

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*

U.S Needs to have more confidence and a little more teamwork, then we will be on the road to winning.


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## Futurama_Fanatic

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*



Dynamic™ said:


> U.S Needs to have more confidence and *a little more teamwork*, then we will be on the road to winning.


not sure if you saw 2002 World Champ and the 2004 Olympics cuz it looked like there should have been a lot more teamwork. From the coach to his assistants to the players, there was just no cohesion.

on Brand being named Captain, not likely unless it is co-captain. US will name some big name player to get more people interested. Don't be surprised if it is Dwayne Wade.


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## bootstrenf

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*

good things and bad things about elton being on the national team.

bad things:
1. all the other superstars on the team will become more familiar with all his game tendencies.
2. he will be fatigued for the start of the season.
3. he might get injured.


good things:
1. he will become more familiar with a lot of the game tendencies of the other stars on the team.
2. he is probably coach k's favorite player and will be given a chance to shine.
3. more media coverage on elton, better for the clippers.


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## qross1fan

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*

Cheer EB on tonight on ESPN at 8 PM Pacific .


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## clips_r_teh_wieners

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*

brand not only not starting but he didnt even log any minutes in the first quarter? why is he even on the team again? kryzescki is an absolute joke


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## qross1fan

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*



clips_r_teh_wieners said:


> brand not only not starting but he didnt even log any minutes in the first quarter? why is he even on the team again? kryzescki is an absolute joke


 Chill, it's an exhibition not the actual games.

Brand is in and he'll dominate just watch. 

As I type that he forces a turnover and hits a J on the other end, all EB needs is 10 8 minutes to show what he can do and prove it and get himself ton more playing time from Coach K.


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## Weasel

*Re: Brand named one of the 15 for the National team*

The game was boring to watch. No big deal that Brand didn't play, gave me an excuse not to watch.


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## sipclip

Sucks that you didn't watch because the game was awesome. This team is going to dominate the world championships.


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## Futurama_Fanatic

sipclip said:


> Sucks that you didn't watch because the game was awesome. This team is going to dominate the world championships.


they need better 3pt shooting. makes me wonder why reddick isnt on this team.


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## Weasel

sipclip said:


> Sucks that you didn't watch because the game was awesome. This team is going to dominate the world championships.



I started to watch in the 2nd half when I got back and wasn't really interested in seeing a blowout.


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## squeemu

So how many points did Brand have? As far as I can tell from this thread, he had at least two...


Does anybody think that Brand won't make the final 12?


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## clips_r_teh_wieners

squeemu said:


> So how many points did Brand have? As far as I can tell from this thread, he had at least two...
> 
> 
> Does anybody think that Brand won't make the final 12?


he had 6 and a couple blocks. no doubt he'll make it...considering how awful bosh is in international play


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## qross1fan

Weasel said:


> I started to watch in the 2nd half when I got back and wasn't really interested in seeing a blowout.


The first quarter and first few minutes of the second quarter were exciting since it was close, but then, the US started taking over like they will for much of the Tournament


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## qross1fan

ClippersRuleLA said:


> they need better 3pt shooting. makes me wonder why reddick isnt on this team.


Joe Johnson, Carmelo Anthony, Gilbert Arenas, Bruce Bowen all can knock down the 3 consistently, this team has what it really lacked during the olympics IMO and that's consistent post play. With EB and Dwight dominating the post, swatting shots left and right, grabbing the boards, doing the dirty work, the team is much much better and they are coached by one of the greatest coach's of all time.


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## sipclip

This teams has tons of 3pt shooting with Lebron, Melo, Wade, Hinrich, Arenas, Battier, Bowen, Johnson, Paul and Jamison all being extremely reliable from the european 3.


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## clips_r_teh_wieners

sipclip said:


> This teams has tons of 3pt shooting with Lebron, Melo, Wade, Hinrich, Arenas, Battier, Bowen, Johnson, Paul and Jamison all being extremely reliable from the european 3.


exactly. this isnt even the nba 3 we're talking about. i was surprised when i saw how many of them had such a quick release from the 3 but its becuz it was more of a long 2. all we need are decent jumpshooters and we have them


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## Futurama_Fanatic

imo carmelos and bowens 3pt shot are too inconsistent to be counted on. the team started off their 3pt shots by missing their first 8/9 3pt attempts before their atheltic might took over.


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## sertorius

I hope the only reason Brand didn't play much is that it was only an exhibition game, because otherwise this is just more of the NBA's star-system BS where a player is rewarded more by the amount of highlights they can create than by their consistency and effort. Just like the commentary, which was just more slurping over the same guys that ESPN slurps over all season long. Bite me ESPN!


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## KobesAdvocate24

JJ's Marksmanship should be sufficient from what I saw. Gilbert was also stroking it well.


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## Shady*

Since when did EB have so much acne?


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## MicCheck12

srry we sont look at men faces so closly


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## leidout

MicCheck12 said:


> srry we sont look at men faces so closly


Is it really any surprise he's a Laker fan?


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## Shady*

leidout said:


> Is it really any surprise he's a Laker fan?


Is it not possible to be a fan of both LA teams?


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## MicCheck12

Shady™ said:


> Is it not possible to be a fan of both LA teams?


There is no such thing it's like liking both vanella and chocolate


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## DoubleTechnical

ebony.... ivory.... living together in harmony


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## Shady*

MicCheck12 said:


> There is no such thing it's like liking both vanella and chocolate


I like both vanilla and chocolate..


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## Futurama_Fanatic

MicCheck12 said:


> There is no such thing it's like liking both vanella and chocolate


funny you should mention that. It is a flavor called swirl a mix of chocolate and vanilla. you can get it at costco for about 1.25.


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## qross1fan

Let's see how much PT Brand gets against China before we jump to conclusions on as if he'll get his P or not. Of course Wade, LBJ and everyone of the highlight players will see more PT during the exhibitions because it's about the money and hsowing off, come the real tournament, coach K will be looking to win, not make some money


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## MicCheck12

ClippersRuleLA said:


> funny you should mention that. It is a flavor called swirl a mix of chocolate and vanilla. you can get it at costco for about 1.25.


 Thats sounds kinda gross iam more of cherry gracia kind of guy


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## squeemu

So how did Brand do? Is there somewhere to find all of the stats and such, as all of the sites I have read only mention how the team as a whole did.


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## yamaneko

Elton: 13 minutes, 13 points on 5/7 shooting, 3/3 Ft's, Team high 6 boards, 2 assists, 1 TO, 1 steal.


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## Weasel

yamaneko said:


> Elton: 13 minutes, 13 points on 5/7 shooting, 3/3 Ft's, Team high 6 boards, 2 assists, 1 TO, 1 steal.



Thanks for the info, for this game I may tune in. Any clue when he played? It is another blowout so I only want to watch the game when Brand is playing.


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## qross1fan

yamaneko said:


> Elton: 13 minutes, 13 points on 5/7 shooting, 3/3 Ft's, Team high 6 boards, 2 assists, 1 TO, 1 steal.


 Nice stats, that's about how many minutes I expect EB to play and I'm in a way glad he won't get tons of time due to the chance of an injury.


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## bootstrenf

yamaneko said:


> Elton: 13 minutes, 13 points on 5/7 shooting, 3/3 Ft's, Team high 6 boards, 2 assists, 1 TO, 1 steal.



damn good line.


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## Futurama_Fanatic

yamaneko said:


> Elton: 13 minutes, 13 points on 5/7 shooting, 3/3 Ft's, Team high 6 boards, 2 assists, 1 TO, 1 steal.


i hope he averages this in a half during the regular season


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## Futurama_Fanatic

MicCheck12 said:


> Thats sounds kinda gross iam more of cherry gracia kind of guy


that is ok. to show my appreciation to another clipper fan i will eat enough swirl frozen yogurt/ice cream for the both of us


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## cadarn

EB looked real good in this game.


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## Weasel

I am hearing that Brand came up huge at the end of todays close game.


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## yamaneko

Pathetic that they can only beat brazil by 4 points. Pathetic how they fell apart without Carmello. Its not looking good, when you lose carmello and that leads to a big collapse. This team is supposed to be deep.

But we have guys like bowen, heinrich, johnson, etc. on the team instead of pierce, mcgrady, bryant, etc. Not to mention brad miller instead of duncan, o'neal, o'neal, etc. etc. 

There will never be another "dream team"


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## PAIDNFULL23

yamaneko said:


> Pathetic that they can only beat brazil by 4 points. Pathetic how they fell apart without Carmello. Its not looking good, when you lose carmello and that leads to a big collapse. This team is supposed to be deep.
> 
> But we have guys like bowen, heinrich, johnson, etc. on the team instead of pierce, mcgrady, bryant, etc. Not to mention brad miller instead of duncan, o'neal, o'neal, etc. etc.
> 
> There will never be another "dream team"


Yeah u are right there will never be another dream team but that isn't what they are trying to do. there whole agenda of putting this team together was *not* to fill it up with a whole bunch of superstars which if you have watched recent US international competitons doesn't work anymore. They need guys like Heinrich, Battier and Miller who don't mind being role players and Joe Johnson is a very talented player who deserves to be on the team and has contributed nicely already . It is disappointing that we only beat Brazil by 4 but they are still getting used to playing with each other and playing the international game. By the time the games start to matter, team USA will be blowing out every team by at least 25 points.


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## bootstrenf

PAIDNFULL23 said:


> Yeah u are right there will never be another dream team but that isn't what they are trying to do. there whole agenda of putting this team together was *not* to fill it up with a whole bunch of superstars which if you have watched recent US international competitons doesn't work anymore. They need guys like Heinrich, Battier and Miller who don't mind being role players and Joe Johnson is a very talented player who deserves to be on the team and has contributed nicely already . It is disappointing that we only beat Brazil by 4 but they are still getting used to playing with each other and playing the international game. By the time the games start to matter, team USA will be blowing out every team by at least 25 points.



ditto


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## leidout

Welcome to reality, we're gonna end up 4th or 5th place. Individual brilliance doesn't win in *team* sports.


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## yamaneko

I think the superstar thing actually does work. When we have lost lately it has been with these mediocre lineups. The last world championships and olympics we have missed a lot of the big names. 

I agree with the current system though...its obvious that the current nba stars will never all get together like the 92 dream team, so the second best thing is get a couple at least, and then try to make a "team". The problem is, thats just not good enough in todays game, when they play the international rules. I think it would be different, even without the chemistry difference, if we were playing all NBA rules. The different deffensive rules to get used to, the weird paint...the offensive foul "zone", the touching the ball above the cylinder, etc. etc. these guys are trying to learn things that they have learned for years is illegal.


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## Weasel

Supposedly Brand played limited minutes today and had a few points.


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## Weasel




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## bootstrenf

elton brand looks funny now. after he lost all that weight last season, his head didn't shrink to match his body size. he looks very top-heavy.


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## Futurama_Fanatic

Weasel said:


> Supposedly Brand played limited minutes today and had a few points.


that is interesting considering he has done several key blocks in the games for the US team


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## clips_r_teh_wieners

bootstrenf said:


> elton brand looks funny now. after he lost all that weight last season, his head didn't shrink to match his body size. he looks very top-heavy.


im assuming that's a good thing considering he's undersized at his position as it is, and even more undersized with all the lost weight


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## Weasel

clips_r_teh_wieners said:


> im assuming that's a good thing considering he's undersized at his position as it is, and even more undersized with all the lost weight


Supposedly Brand did very well today in limited minutes, I believe 15-16 points in about 15 minutes.


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## Futurama_Fanatic

saw Brand make a hustle play vs Korea

hope he gets a lot of playing time.


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## qross1fan

Watched the first half of the game and DAMNNNNN did Elton Brand just seem to dominate, hope he can improve on that even more come NBA season


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## yamaneko

Very few people in the NBA can match up with Elton Brand...i imagine even fewer at these world games. Hes just such a unique player, its hard to find a body to defend him.


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## VC4MVP

Weasel, ur missing out not watching these games. It seems obvious to me that bruce bowen will be the last one cut. Brand has played spectacular for the U.S. team. He is getting a lot of rebounds, and offensive rebounds. I bet most of his points are on putbacks and 2nd chance oppurtunitys. He has been hustling really hard during all of the games. A great example was against Puerto Rico to end the first half (i think is when it was) carlos arroyo got a steal, and was ahead of brand, but brand sprinted down the court and was able to contest his shot, and might have got a piece, and arroyo missed the layup. He has been solid for team usa.


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## qross1fan

Brand blocking Splitter 











Dunk with Ha Sueng Jin watching


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## VC4MVP

qross1fan said:


> Brand blocking Splitter
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Dunk with Ha Sueng Jin watching


I love that pick of him blocking splitter.


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## Weasel

It comes as no suprise but Brand made the final 12 as Bowen got cut.


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## yamaneko

Cant wait to see (hopefully) Korolev getting action for Russia if he makes the team, and Sofo getting action for Greece. 

But so many countries seem to have the same problem as USA. Angolas best guys arent there, Japan's two best guys arent playing, a lot of serbias best isnt, nash isnt playing for canada, lithuania is missing their big nba stars, etc. etc. Back in the original dream team days, all countries brought their best. Seems like if you cant get money nowadays then the big stars just arent interested.


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## VC4MVP

yamaneko said:


> Cant wait to see (hopefully) Korolev getting action for Russia if he makes the team, and Sofo getting action for Greece.
> 
> But so many countries seem to have the same problem as USA. Angolas best guys arent there, Japan's two best guys arent playing, a lot of serbias best isnt, nash isnt playing for canada, lithuania is missing their big nba stars, etc. etc. Back in the original dream team days, all countries brought their best. Seems like if you cant get money nowadays then the big stars just arent interested.


Wut r u talking about? This is the USA's best. They realized at the olympics, u cant just have a gigantic team of stars and have them play 1 on 5. So they got some unselfish young stars/superstars and surrounded them with great role players like Shane Battier. That was how they intended, and is working brilliantly. Also, the U.S.'s depth is why they are winning these games. When they bring in the second and thrid unit they destroy the other teams 2 and 3 unit or a fatigued 1st unit. Their bench plays as well as their starters, and when u can bring guys like Elton Brand, Brad miller, Battier, Bosh, Johnson, Howard, and other great players u will usually dominate. The only scare they have had was against Brazil.


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## Futurama_Fanatic

well i predicted it. the US captains are Wade Anthony and Lebron

anybody suprised?


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## Futurama_Fanatic

Weasel said:


> It comes as no suprise but Brand made the final 12 as Bowen got cut.


well Bowen was the most likely to get cut as he brought the least to the team. his defense is too physical for the WC


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## yamaneko

This is no where near the USA's best. When the USA did bad at the worlds and olympics they didnt have the best. The only times they have done well is like the original dream team which DID have the absolute best players. That olympic team had huge holes. Most of the guys on this team i dont think are the best we have.

If i had to pick a top 19, a lot of guys on the team now wouldnt even be there. (granted some have legit reasons like injury)

C Shaq, Duncan, J O'Neal, Bosh

PF Elton, Garnett, Big Ben

SF Lebron, Pierce, Carmello, vince carter

SG Kobe, Tmac, Redd, Allen, 

PG Wade, Iverson, Arenas, Billups

That team would be almost as good as the original dream team if all were participating, and all were healthy. But, if we have a team of just a handful of superstars, and some other decent starters, thats when we need to be able to play a complete team game to be able to win. We didnt the last two competitions, and if we can only beat brazil by 4 points, then it makes me think this year neither will be a cakewalk.


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## VC4MVP

yamaneko said:


> This is no where near the USA's best. When the USA did bad at the worlds and olympics they didnt have the best. The only times they have done well is like the original dream team which DID have the absolute best players. That olympic team had huge holes. Most of the guys on this team i dont think are the best we have.
> 
> If i had to pick a top 19, a lot of guys on the team now wouldnt even be there. (granted some have legit reasons like injury)
> 
> C Shaq, Duncan, J O'Neal, Bosh
> 
> PF Elton, Garnett, Big Ben
> 
> SF Lebron, Pierce, Carmello, vince carter
> 
> SG Kobe, Tmac, Redd, Allen,
> 
> PG Wade, Iverson, Arenas, Billups
> 
> That team would be almost as good as the original dream team if all were participating, and all were healthy. But, if we have a team of just a handful of superstars, and some other decent starters, thats when we need to be able to play a complete team game to be able to win. We didnt the last two competitions, and if we can only beat brazil by 4 points, then it makes me think this year neither will be a cakewalk.


As i said before they wanted role players to play with, young unselfish all-stars/superstars. It has been working out pretty well so far except the scare against brazil ( a lot due to Melo going down).


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## qross1fan

ClippersRuleLA said:


> well i predicted it. the US captains are Wade Anthony and Lebron
> 
> anybody suprised?


Should've been just Melo


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## yamaneko

> As i said before they wanted role players to play with, young unselfish all-stars/superstars. It has been working out pretty well so far except the scare against brazil ( a lot due to Melo going down).


Yes, when they realized that theyre never going to get the best players together again, they went with a different format. Im not knocking whomever is making the decisions...in that situation i would do the same thing. Im knocking the players for not repping their country, and putting the US in this embarrasing situation. Any time an "all star" team loses a carmello anthony for about 10 minutes or so off his usual playing time, and that makes all the difference in the world for your time, i say your team is not in a good situation.


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## VC4MVP

yamaneko said:


> Yes, when they realized that theyre never going to get the best players together again, they went with a different format. Im not knocking whomever is making the decisions...in that situation i would do the same thing. Im knocking the players for not repping their country, and putting the US in this embarrasing situation. Any time an "all star" team loses a carmello anthony for about 10 minutes or so off his usual playing time, and that makes all the difference in the world for your time, i say your team is not in a good situation.


They were up by 12 or so when Melo went down, and then Brazil went on a run as the US went cold. Im not sure wut u r saying is true, they wanted to go with a youth movement, and didnt even invite allen iverson and other guys. They had guys like Ray allen, michael redd, shawn marion, amare, and other stars try out, but they all either got injured or had to leave for personal reasons.


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## cadarn

The best players aren't going to win if they can't play as a team, which yamaneko's picks wouldn't. Not too hard to understand.


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## Futurama_Fanatic

qross1fan said:


> Should've been just Melo


yeah i would pick melo also because he is playing harder than anybody else on the team. 

i guess Wade and Lebron are captains to get more publicity for the WC.


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## qross1fan

Brand started the game


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## Weasel

Brand is looking good. However the USA defense against the penetration looks awful.


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## Weasel

Brand has had quite a few blocks. Too many subs for USA, it keeping most of the players cold.


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## yamaneko

arroyo looks like a superstar out there. lol. That apodaca guy is pretty sweet too.

terrible defense by the USA team. 

Carmello is looking 10X as good as he did against the clipps in the playoffs. Hes reminding me of a larry bird with his inside/outside play.


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## yamaneko

Fadi El Khatib scored 35 points for lebanon. Do the clippers have his rights at all since they had signed him before for like two days? probably not. Wouldnt mind seeing him next year if we lose one of our guys like singleton, ross, etc.


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## VC4MVP

Brand has quite a few nice blocks this game. I only watched till the third quarter, it was a great game, but arroyo and aruso were dominating.


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## Weasel

Anyone know how many blocks Brand ended up getting last night?


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## qross1fan

Weasel said:


> Anyone know how many blocks Brand ended up getting last night?


 According to the stat sheet @ FIBA, they have him with 3 blocks when I counted about 6 myself.


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## Weasel

qross1fan said:


> According to the stat sheet @ FIBA, they have him with 3 blocks when I counted about 6 myself.



Bad stat sheet, I thought he had at least 4-5.


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## yamaneko

i think id have a heart attack if these refs were in the nba. Downright pitiful. NBA summer league officiating is 10X as good as these FIBA guys. ANd im not just talking abuot the stupid FIBA rules. IM talking just low down dirty shame TERRIBLE calls both ways.


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## Weasel

Against China Brand had 11 points. I am sure he had other stats but I can't find them at the moment.


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## Futurama_Fanatic

Weasel said:


> Against China Brand had 11 points. I am sure he had other stats but I can't find them at the moment.


i wouldnt be suprised if he didnt start. china had 4 players over 7 feet


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## qross1fan

Weasel said:


> Against China Brand had 11 points. I am sure he had other stats but I can't find them at the moment.


Full Stats:

11 Points, 2 Rebounds, 3 Dimes, 1 Steal 4/8 from the field in 13 minutes and no he didn't start. I didn't stay up for the game, but TiVo'd it, after looking at the score, I won't waste time watching it


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## yamaneko

Was a lot better game. China is just poorly coached, because they seem to have some decent players, but cant run a play for the life of them. That 17 year old kid looks good. i bet we see him in the nba in a couple of years. In his 5 minutes he showed a lot more "nba" type game than any other guy on the team other than yao. Yi jian lian i think will make it here too, but wont be a star.


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## yamaneko

Sofo yesterday had a nice stat line i believe 5 poitns, 3 assists couple boards, a steal in 4 minutes of play


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## Weasel

yamaneko said:


> Sofo yesterday had a nice stat line i believe 5 poitns, 3 assists couple boards, a steal in 4 minutes of play



I was unaware that Sofo was on the Greek team. Pretty good stat line for 4 minutes of play. This experience may be helpful for him down the line.


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## Futurama_Fanatic

Argentina just smacked Lebanon around. They seem like one of the few teams that can compete with the US.


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## VC4MVP

I highly doubt any of u guys on the west coast were able to catch the game, i couldnt and im 3 hours ahead of u. Anyone have a box score? I wonder how Brand and the rest of team usa did. Any1 see the highlights, they didnt have any1 on nba tv.


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## El chido

For some reason I woke up at 3:00 am. And I was able to catch part of the first quarter and the whole second quarter. EB looks great in there. He just keeps blocking shots on the defence, and in offence he is scoring well too. I believe that he had 11 points at half time. He is running the court well on fast breaks and getting easy hoops. He is also going to the line at will. Another thing is that he looks in great shape.

GO EB GO


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## El chido

EB ended up with 16 points for the game.

GO EB GO for the gold


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## Weasel

El chido said:


> EB ended up with 16 points for the game.
> 
> GO EB GO for the gold



In 13 minutes which is amazing. Looks like he was assertive when he was playing as he took 10 FT's.


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## Futurama_Fanatic

i hope EB plays like this during the regular season and playoffs next year. as for the game i caught about two minutes before i fell asleep cuz US was up 70-51


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## squeemu

Brand seems to be having very good numbers, but also seems to be playing almost less than anybody else. Not too much less, but his 15 minutes or so compared to 20 or more by most other players is interesting...


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## Weasel

Brand had 16 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks in 28 minutes of play against Italy today.


----------



## yamaneko

usa is terrible. Italy almost beat them. Italy..a team that doesnt even have nba stars like some of the other teams.


----------



## Futurama_Fanatic

Weasel said:


> Brand had 16 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks in 28 minutes of play against Italy today.


sounds like he will be getting more minutes as the WC continues.


----------



## yamaneko

Well, howard got injured a little, plus coach K was playing the "hot" people as much as possible instead of wholesale subbing in this game. Because there were only three guys who were doing anything for US, Carmello, D Wade, and Brand. Brand could have had 20+ if he would have hit is free throws. 

Brand is looking EXCELLENT. Midseason form. Dunking without even taking a step, right under the basket. 

Sofo didnt score in 5 minutes in the last game, and last night Greece might have their medal hopes dashed as their top guard got taken out by Varejao and is out. For some reason, no box score on the greek brazil game. Brazil almost beat the us in the presseason, and they cant beat ANYONE here though.


----------



## Weasel

The game times are bad. It would be nice to see Brand play in some of these games. 3:30 am is too late but not much can be done about that. It was nice when the games were on at 10 pm.


----------



## universal!

yamaneko said:


> usa is terrible. Italy almost beat them. Italy..a team that doesnt even have nba stars like some of the other teams.


Italy is a good team. Good teams don't necessarily equate to having NBA player and vice versa. Italy has played the U.S. well the last few times they've met.

Case in point about team play: the way the Italian team swung the ball around to get good open shots.


----------



## Weasel

Brand today against Senegal had 4 points and 3 rebounds in 11 minutes of play.


----------



## Futurama_Fanatic

Weasel said:


> Brand today against Senegal had 4 points and 3 rebounds in 11 minutes of play.


didnt expect him to get much playing time in a blow out.


----------



## yamaneko

Sofo went off today. 10 minutes. 5 of 5 from the field, 14 points!


----------



## VC4MVP

Weasel said:


> The game times are bad. It would be nice to see Brand play in some of these games. 3:30 am is too late but not much can be done about that. It was nice when the games were on at 10 pm.


Lucky pacific time.... 10pm for u 1am for me. And it isnt like i can watch the 6 30 am games.


----------



## Weasel

Anyone know what time the game is on Sunday? I believe USA plays Australia next.


----------



## Futurama_Fanatic

Weasel said:


> Anyone know what time the game is on Sunday? I believe USA plays Australia next.


yeah they are playing the Aussies. is Bogut on the squad?


----------



## Weasel

ClippersRuleLA said:


> yeah they are playing the Aussies. is Bogut on the squad?



I think so. Also I saw on ESPN that the game will be shown Saturday at 10 pm. I am glad that I will be able to watch his game. Also interesting to watch Brad Newley as supposedly the Clippers have interest in him.


----------



## Roscoe_Clipps

Yeah, tomorrow, 5am Auzzie time  (its 9:16pm here now...) Work it out!!
Bogut is playing but the team struggles to give it to him...
Newley gets limited minutes...when watching him take into account he is a project...

Australia will get hammered. There are no players who can really create their own shots other than the point guard CJ Bruton...aka Australia's version of Iverson... (you'll see)

Bogut does okay but doesn't look as hungry in the international competition/ it is rumoured that he might be injured/ sick.

Oh well, I just can't wait to see some Brand...Don't get to see much Clipper action.


----------



## Futurama_Fanatic

Manu Ginobli had a good game. 28 points on 10-15 shooting.


----------



## Weasel

Brand is starting at center.


----------



## qross1fan

Brand getting the start at C. 

Interesting to see Brad Newley live for the first time for me since the Clips like him


----------



## Weasel

Talk about a blow out in the 2nd quarter.


----------



## Futurama_Fanatic

Weasel said:


> Talk about a blow out in the 2nd quarter.


am i the only one who was reminded of the clippers shutting the hornets out for 12 minutes during that quarter?


----------



## clips_r_teh_wieners

ClippersRuleLA said:


> am i the only one who was reminded of the clippers shutting the hornets out for 12 minutes during that quarter?


not only 12 minutes, wasnt it 16 points in a single HALF? 8 points each quarter???? that really is an incredible accomplishment


----------



## Futurama_Fanatic

clips_r_teh_wieners said:


> not only 12 minutes, wasnt it 16 points in a single HALF? 8 points each quarter???? that really is an incredible accomplishment


I have a feeling that if the Lakers had done it that ESPN and every other major sports outlet would still be talking about it.


----------



## VC4MVP

Any1 watching US vs Germany tomorrow morning? It is 6 30 am EST so it is 3 30 Pacific Time. That will be a sick Brand vs. Dirk matchup. I probably wont be able to see it so tell me how brand and team usa do against dirk if any of u guys watch it.


----------



## clips_r_teh_wieners

VC4MVP said:


> Any1 watching US vs Germany tomorrow morning? It is 6 30 am EST so it is 3 30 Pacific Time. That will be a sick Brand vs. Dirk matchup. I probably wont be able to see it so tell me how brand and team usa do against dirk if any of u guys watch it.


i would have more shot of watching it at 6:30 am than at 3:30 am over here. gotta get up for work early. brand imo, sshould be able to do a better job on dirk than haslem cuz of his tremendous wingspan and he's got more quickness of an undersized forward to bother dirk. usa should be able to take this easily if dirk doesnt go off, which he wont. he's got no help


----------



## universal!

I plan on watching US VS Germany (all games local time for me!7.30pm). Just hope it's more interesting than the US destruction of Australia.


----------



## Weasel

Against Germany, Brand had 6 points and 7 rebounds (5 offensive) in about 20 minutes.


----------



## VC4MVP

I watched the entire game actually, except the early 1st quarter. I didnt see 2 much from brand, but the u.s. played the worst game all tournament. One thing they did very well tho, was shut down dirk, and didnt double team him. They shot about 10/40 from three. It was not the prettiest win, but it was still a blowout none the less. One thing i loved tho, was how many offensive rebounds they were getting (i think Weasel said Brand got 5).


----------



## qross1fan

US vs Greece; Sofo vs Brand, sweeet


----------



## Futurama_Fanatic

could somebody tell me how sofo played? i have homework and school tommorow so i dont think i can watch the whole thing.


----------



## qross1fan

ClippersRuleLA said:


> could somebody tell me how sofo played? i have homework and school tommorow so i dont think i can watch the whole thing.


I'm going to guaranteedly be up and play extreme information to Sofoklis, in fact, I think I might be pulling for the Greeks everytime Sofo is in the game. I also doubt I'll pay any attention to EB when Sofo is in


----------



## Roscoe_Clipps

Hear he had a blinder (Sofo)- can anyone confirm this?


----------



## Weasel

I didn't catch the game but it seems like Brand had a bad game. He didn't play much according to the stats and Coach K's hockey substitutions end up hurting him. With Gasol getting injured I think Greece will end up as the Champions.


----------



## El chido

Sofo does look overweight, but I believe that with some experience in the nba he will be a good player.
He had on play where he backed down on EB really easily and EB had to foul him. The guy looks very strong and I believe that he can bang the ball inside unlike some people say that he cannot play inside. He actually does have some inside moves. It would be nice if the Clippers bring him in the next few years. Hopefully his playing in the tournement will make the clippers bring him in sooner.


----------



## cadarn

sofo had a good game beating team usa.


----------



## El chido

Comments on Sofo

The first thing that I noticed from sofo was that he was not scared about being on the court even when he was playing against some of the best players in the nba. He seemed to be calm and was playing his game. There are many things that I like about his game right now. The guy is huge in body. He was standing next to EB and I do believe that sofo looked about 2 inches taller that EB. Another thing is that even though EB seems to have lost even more weight EB next to sofo looks like a high school kid. Now just because the guy is huge does not mean that he is slow. He was actually beating the whole US team in fast breaks and he got like two dunks just from running the floor well, something that will be good if he comes to the clippers because if Livi finds him in the fast break and we all know that he will, Sofo will get his fast break points(I really do not think that anybody will get in the way of this guy and try to take a charge on him, so sofo will either score or get fouled). 

Now the guy is not just a big fat guy that pushes people and that has no game. He actually posted up on EB and on other US guys and he backed down on them with ease and power without fouling them with a charge. This tells me that he knows how to use his body and is not out of control. With 25 less pounds this guy could look like a young Karl Malone body type.

Now the guy does need to continue working on his game and get more moves down low, but he did show that he can play down low with anybody. He showed that he can power himself in or use finese like the hook that he shot in the first half, or that move that he had against EB where he powered himself in and got fouled by EB.

One thing that I realize is that he was actually playing against good defenders in Howard and EB, so this shows that he can hang with the best. In all if the guy can keep loosing weight and keep it down unlike (Elmore Spenser and Stanley Roberts) I say bring the guy over to learn from EB and to be the backup for Kaman and EB and I think that with the right team this guy will be a force down low.


----------



## Gousgounis

Sofo can pay even better than he did today. If he loses 20-30 pounds Elton Brand will be a bench player. He will play one more year in Europe and then move to the NBA.


----------



## bootstrenf

Gousgounis said:


> Sofo can pay even better than he did today. If he loses 20-30 pounds Elton Brand will be a bench player. He will play one more year in Europe and then move to the NBA.



that's funny...


----------



## paperclip

bootstrenf said:


> that's funny...


It is funny. I think the tandem Brand and Sofo would be a great froncourt. What they may lack in height they would make up in skill.


----------



## bootstrenf

paperclip said:


> It is funny. I think the tandem Brand and Sofo would be a great froncourt. What they may lack in height they would make up in skill.



agree that the tandem might be good.

i just think it's funny that he thinks sofo is so good, that he would relegate brand to the bench...


----------



## leidout

bootstrenf said:


> agree that the tandem might be good.
> 
> i just think it's funny that he thinks sofo is so good, that he would relegate brand to the bench...


By the time Brand is at the end of his contract, that could be the case...

And Chris Kaman better pick up his game more than he already has if he wants to stay with the team, because Sofo looks like he could easily become a much better center.


----------



## yamaneko

We so needed the superstars in this tourney. Too early to give it to all of the young guys, and some just werent all that great. Dang, you can make a dream team almost of the players who DIDNT make it on the team:

Shaq, Duncan, Garnett, Kidd, Bibby, Billups, Tmac, Bryant, Vince Carter, etc. etc. 

But actually, as much as i hate the guy, i think kobe would have made the difference in this tourney. Kobe has decent D, and can hit the outside shot, and could have been another option when the team was struggling other than carmello. 

USA didnt lose by much, and he would have made the difference. But, if the team had ALL of its superstars, like the 92 dreamteam, i think we would have blown by everyone, chemistry or not. 

I really wish the international game would get more NBA rules. I dont like the park in the paint on defense thing, amongst other things. however, some international rules I do like are the one where if the shot clock goes off, and the other team gets the rebound ,you can run out on the break instead of having to bring the ball in from the sideline.


----------



## leidout

yamaneko said:


> We so needed the superstars in this tourney. Too early to give it to all of the young guys, and some just werent all that great. Dang, you can make a dream team almost of the players who DIDNT make it on the team:
> 
> Shaq, Duncan, Garnett, Kidd, Bibby, Billups, Tmac, Bryant, Vince Carter, etc. etc.
> 
> But actually, as much as i hate the guy, i think kobe would have made the difference in this tourney. Kobe has decent D, and can hit the outside shot, and could have been another option when the team was struggling other than carmello.
> 
> USA didnt lose by much, and he would have made the difference. But, if the team had ALL of its superstars, like the 92 dreamteam, i think we would have blown by everyone, chemistry or not.
> 
> I really wish the international game would get more NBA rules. I dont like the park in the paint on defense thing, amongst other things. however, some international rules I do like are the one where if the shot clock goes off, and the other team gets the rebound ,you can run out on the break instead of having to bring the ball in from the sideline.


Are you actually trying to say that we didn't have enough talent out there? Hah! These guys were selected to build a specific team and practiced longer than any US team before... It's got nothing to with needing Kobe at all, it's all about a TEAM mentality.

Try watching any of the close USA games again, whenever Wade, Lebron, Melo, etc. gets the ball and dribbles around, what do his teammates do... NOTHING! No player movement, no fighting for position, and no effort trying to rebound. Sometimes they'll try to kick the ball back out, but then the situation just repeats itself. You think Kobe is gonna help the team be more team oriented? i think not. The only American player i honestly see who's game translates beautifully to international play is probably Rip Hamilton's non-stop motion offense. So far Carmelo seems to be the only one to realize the importance of constant movement.

Wade doesn't get those "superstar" treatment (10 fouls a game), and neither would Kobe, the Americans should dominate on rebounds in every game due to their size & speed, but they never fight for rebounds that don't bounce directly at them, etc... theres just so many problems with the NBA style (streetball-like, isolation offense, too many touch fouls) game that are being exposed more and more as these international competitions go on.

The individual talent level is above and beyond everyone else every single year by far since 1992. But until the change in mentality occurs and the players start to hustle instead of going for the flashy individual plays, we'll continue to lose even with a new Dream Team.


----------



## Weasel

I was unaware that the Bronze medal game was last night. I thought it was going to be tonight. Brand put up some good numbers during his time, 11 points on 5/7 shooting and 6 rebounds. Unfortunately he also had 5 TO's. The USA takes the Bronze, it is a medal but I am sure they are all disappointed.


----------



## Futurama_Fanatic

well i guess a medal is better than no medal at all, even if it is the worse metal. if only we had three point shooting...and a team.


----------



## Free Arsenal

Well, the country i'm from doesn't even have a team at the competition, it could be far worse than just getting Bronze.

Oh yeah! I stole 11 million UCash from Weasel.


----------



## Dynasty Raider

leidout said:


> Are you actually trying to say that we didn't have enough talent out there? Hah! These guys were selected to build a specific team and practiced longer than any US team before... It's got *nothing to with needing Kobe at all, it's all about a TEAM mentality*.
> 
> Try watching any of the close USA games again, whenever Wade, Lebron, Melo, etc. gets the ball and dribbles around, what do his teammates do... NOTHING! No player movement, no fighting for position, and no effort trying to rebound. Sometimes they'll try to kick the ball back out, but then the situation just repeats itself. You think Kobe is gonna help the team be more team oriented? i think not. The only American player i honestly see who's game translates beautifully to international play is probably Rip Hamilton's non-stop motion offense. So far Carmelo seems to be the only one to realize the importance of constant movement.
> 
> Wade doesn't get those "superstar" treatment (10 fouls a game), and neither would Kobe, the Americans should dominate on rebounds in every game due to their size & speed, but they never fight for rebounds that don't bounce directly at them, etc... theres just so many problems with the NBA style (streetball-like, isolation offense, too many touch fouls) game that are being exposed more and more as these international competitions go on.
> 
> The individual talent level is above and beyond everyone else every single year by far since 1992. But until the change in mentality occurs and the players start to hustle instead of going for the flashy individual plays, we'll continue to lose even with a new Dream Team.


Good post leidout: The last thing we need is a player that will score 81 points. I think we'll be OK in 2008, although I'm not sure Coach K is the right coach for us to do so. 

Just a few personal comments that are not associated with anything in particular, just my thoughts:

* Admittedly, I've only watched one game, but have read posts here and other boards, and I dont understand WHY Elton didn't get quality playing time. 

* Seemingly, the goal was met even though we did not win the gold. See, I think LeBron and Wade (and possibly Elton), wanted to showcase Melo for the league. It is a known fact that those three are pegged to keep the league prosperous. Wade and LeBron are established, but Melo is not as established outside of Denver, and is a borderline 'star' in the eyes of many. I believe they all deferred to Melo, thus his good showing. So, now, as far as the League and fans are concerned, he "should be" considered a leader ala Wade and LeBron. So, that goal was met. 

* The gold will come.


----------



## Shady*

Man, another disappointing year... :upset:


----------



## yamaneko

> Are you actually trying to say that we didn't have enough talent out there? Hah! These guys were selected to build a specific team and practiced longer than any US team before... It's got nothing to with needing Kobe at all, it's all about a TEAM mentality.


Correct, IF were not going to have guys who have spent months together like th eother countries (which actually might be different for Venezuela next year), we NEED ALL of our superstars, in order to win on talent alone. In this case, I think kobe actually would have been all the superstar we needed to make up the 5 points or whatever we lost by. Theres not enough talent on USA to make up for the lack of chemistry, when carmello is your best player. Heck, if all the superstar SG/SF's showed up, carmello wouldnt even be on the team. Kobe, Pierce, Redd, Allen, Vince, Tmac, etc. 

We need one of two things. INCREDIBLE team ball, or else ALL of our superstars. This time, since there wasnt enough time to prepare, we needed the superstars, or at least one more to win. I think with this three year commitment thing it will be different. I also think we need to get rid of Coach K. When are people going to learn that being a good college coach doesnt always mean good pro coach: Coach K, Montgomery, Pitino, etc. 

Stick D'Antoni as coach, get a couple more superstars on the team, have a year of practice off and on under your belt, and in the americas qualifying tourney for Olympics next year, USA will win by 40 a game. BOok it.


----------



## yamaneko

> Seemingly, the goal was met even though we did not win the gold. See, I think LeBron and Wade (and possibly Elton), wanted to showcase Melo for the league. It is a known fact that those three are pegged to keep the league prosperous. Wade and LeBron are established, but Melo is not as established outside of Denver, and is a borderline 'star' in the eyes of many. I believe they all deferred to Melo, thus his good showing. So, now, as far as the League and fans are concerned, he "should be" considered a leader ala Wade and LeBron. So, that goal was met.


Are you saying that wade and lebron puprosely tanked for their country in order to hype up carmello? You watched the games and came up with that conclusion? Dude, thats a pretty terrible accusation to say that that was even on wades and lebrons mind, let alone, say that they wanted carmello to play better than them (thus costing the team), just to hype up a guy thats a rival in their league. And "maybe" elton wants to hype up carmello too? I hope you were just being sarcastic.


----------



## Darth Bryant

Gousgounis said:


> Sofo can pay even better than he did today. If he loses 20-30 pounds Elton Brand will be a bench player. He will play one more year in Europe and then move to the NBA.



:laugh:


----------



## Darth Bryant

leidout said:


> By the time Brand is at the end of his contract, that could be the case...
> 
> And Chris Kaman better pick up his game more than he already has if he wants to stay with the team, because Sofo looks like he could easily become a much better center.



Why the end of the contract? Because Brand will be so "old"? Give me a break. Brand came off his best season. Is better than Sofo in every aspect, including a healthy body. One bad game, in a horrible set of rotations (which have been strange throughout the entire US team run) and the Sofo homers start thinking Brand is washed up.

There is a reason Sofo isn't over here in the NBA. If he was NBA ready, he would be here because all the teams would have been fighting at throwing him a contract. He's not here because he isn't NBA ready. Isn't as good as Kaman right now. And more than likely never will be.


----------



## Darth Bryant

leidout said:


> Are you actually trying to say that we didn't have enough talent out there? Hah! These guys were selected to build a specific team and practiced longer than any US team before... It's got nothing to with needing Kobe at all, it's all about a TEAM mentality.
> 
> Try watching any of the close USA games again, whenever Wade, Lebron, Melo, etc. gets the ball and dribbles around, what do his teammates do... NOTHING! No player movement, no fighting for position, and no effort trying to rebound. Sometimes they'll try to kick the ball back out, but then the situation just repeats itself. You think Kobe is gonna help the team be more team oriented? i think not. The only American player i honestly see who's game translates beautifully to international play is probably Rip Hamilton's non-stop motion offense. So far Carmelo seems to be the only one to realize the importance of constant movement.
> 
> Wade doesn't get those "superstar" treatment (10 fouls a game), and neither would Kobe, the Americans should dominate on rebounds in every game due to their size & speed, but they never fight for rebounds that don't bounce directly at them, etc... theres just so many problems with the NBA style (streetball-like, isolation offense, too many touch fouls) game that are being exposed more and more as these international competitions go on.
> 
> The individual talent level is above and beyond everyone else every single year by far since 1992. But until the change in mentality occurs and the players start to hustle instead of going for the flashy individual plays, we'll continue to lose even with a new Dream Team.



Although I would agree with some points of your post, your overlooking other ones in your arguement. The fact that team USA didn't really have chemistry. Thats not just from a street baller mentality. Perhaps its from the fact that they had only been together for a very short time practicing. How long has the core of Greece's team been playing together?


----------



## Darth Bryant

yamaneko said:


> Are you saying that wade and lebron puprosely tanked for their country in order to hype up carmello? You watched the games and came up with that conclusion? Dude, thats a pretty terrible accusation to say that that was even on wades and lebrons mind, let alone, say that they wanted carmello to play better than them (thus costing the team), just to hype up a guy thats a rival in their league. And "maybe" elton wants to hype up carmello too? I hope you were just being sarcastic.



Repped. I'd wadger Wade and Lebron could give a rats *** what the leauge thinks of Carmello.


----------



## leidout

CDRacingZX6R said:


> Although I would agree with some points of your post, your overlooking other ones in your arguement. The fact that team USA didn't really have chemistry. Thats not just from a street baller mentality. Perhaps its from the fact that they had only been together for a very short time practicing. How long has the core of Greece's team been playing together?


So explain how Spain and Argentina are always so competitive every year... yet their core is in the NBA Are Manu and Pau moonlighting as Euroleague players during the NBA season? They may get a little more practice than us, but it's not as exaggerated as some of you would like to believe... After 6 (?) years of losing, you need to start facing facts...


----------



## Darth Bryant

leidout said:


> So explain how Spain and Argentina are always so competitive every year... yet their core is in the NBA Are Manu and Pau moonlighting as Euroleague players during the NBA season? They may get a little more practice than us, but it's not as exaggerated as some of you would like to believe... After 6 (?) years of losing, you need to start facing facts...



There core is two people? Paul didnt even play in the final game and they did fine without him. The core of that team has played for more than one year, and had more than couple of months to practice together. That is the facts that you need to face. 

They take the worlds a lot more seriously than the US does. The sad thing about USA , is that the majority of players don't sign up is because there is a lack of money insentive and thats the driving force behind most NBA players. If you want to argue ethics and pride of ones country, I'd say I'm sickened by the fact that a lot of these over payed babys in the states could give a crap about representing thier country, and just want the money. I wouldn't aruge that point. But I would argue Talent. The real talent lies within the States. The best players in the world are in the USA. And this USA team probably will win the Olympics and bring home a gold this time. Why? They will get plenty of practice up until then and they have the far supior talent player wise. And I'd argue that a great deal of better players in the NBA didn't even go.

At least you came to your senses about your other crazy posts, as I see you failed to respond to them.


----------



## yamaneko

> There is a reason Sofo isn't over here in the NBA. If he was NBA ready, he would be here because all the teams would have been fighting at throwing him a contract. He's not here because he isn't NBA ready. Isn't as good as Kaman right now. And more than likely never will be.


He is NBA ready right now, Period. But when I say NBA ready, i mean good enough to be on the Clipper's roster. If he wasnt, the CLippers wouldnt have given him an offer. Other teams cant touch him since hes Clippers property. Now, is he NBA starter ready? No, and he may never be. But he is ready to give us at least rebraca like production over a year id imagine. 



> So explain how Spain and Argentina are always so competitive every year... yet their core is in the NBA Are Manu and Pau moonlighting as Euroleague players during the NBA season? They may get a little more practice than us, but it's not as exaggerated as some of you would like to believe... After 6 (?) years of losing, you need to start facing facts...


Its not just one or two guys on the team, they have a team effort where 10 or more out of the 15 or so in their program are together a lot. Those guys came out of the international game...they had to learn the NBA game, so its not like theyre going to have the same rules issues with the defense, trapezoid, etc. When NBA season is over, they just switch back to the style of Ball theyve been playing 12 of the 15 years theyve been playing ball. 

Guys remember about 10 years ago the ridiculous upset of Princeton over UCLA in the tournament? Princeton ran this incredible system that made the most out of their terrible talent. UCLA was way more talented, but not enough to make up for the difference. UCLA had to play better bball if they wanted to win that game, better team defense, better plays, etc. HOWEVER, its not to say that NO TEAM could have beaten princeton that day. Put some nba all stars on the court, and with zero chemistry they could have won....because at some point pure talent does beat a "system." Same thing with the USA. Theyre like UCLA that year. Way more talented, but without that chemistry they lost to a fundamentally sound system. Now, thats not to say it would have been impossible to beat Greece w/o chemistry, better plays, etc. If USA had kobe, and others, on sheer talent alone they would have pulled it off. BUt if the USA is going to throw out teams like they did this year, they BETTER learn better international plays, offense, defense, chemistry, etc.


----------



## leidout

CDRacingZX6R said:


> There core is two people? Paul didnt even play in the final game and they did fine without him. The core of that team has played for more than one year, and had more than couple of months to practice together. That is the facts that you need to face.


Sorry, let me be more clear... 8 NBA players on Spain and Argentina, 4 guys on each team who are generally considered the best players on each squad, that sure sounds like both cores are in the NBA to me. 



CDRacingZX6R said:


> They take the worlds a lot more seriously than the US does. The sad thing about USA , is that the majority of players don't sign up is because there is a lack of money insentive and thats the driving force behind most NBA players. If you want to argue ethics and pride of ones country, I'd say I'm sickened by the fact that a lot of these over payed babys in the states could give a crap about representing thier country, and just want the money. I wouldn't aruge that point. But I would argue Talent. The real talent lies within the States. The best players in the world are in the USA. And this USA team probably will win the Olympics and bring home a gold this time. Why? They will get plenty of practice up until then and they have the far supior talent player wise. And I'd argue that a great deal of better players in the NBA didn't even go.
> 
> At least you came to your senses about your other crazy posts, as I see you failed to respond to them.


Again, you're just making excuses: "we could've won, but we didn't practice enough/weren't talented enough/didn't care enough. This is professional basketball on a world stage, if you're not going to make a professional effort, expect to lose and quit crying about it.

PS, i don't spend all that much time here to monitor posts, especially during the offseason. if theres some "crazy" (a.k.a., you disagree with it) post i didn't back up well enough for you, send me a PM to remind me.


----------



## Darth Bryant

leidout said:


> Sorry, let me be more clear... 8 NBA players on Spain and Argentina, 4 guys on each team who are generally considered the best players on each squad, that sure sounds like both cores are in the NBA to me.
> 
> 
> 
> Again, you're just making excuses: "we could've won, but we didn't practice enough/weren't talented enough/didn't care enough. This is professional basketball on a world stage, if you're not going to make a professional effort, expect to lose and quit crying about it.
> 
> PS, i don't spend all that much time here to monitor posts, especially during the offseason. if theres some "crazy" (a.k.a., you di
> sagree with it) post i didn't back up well enough for you, send me a PM to remind me.



Honestly, if you would have put some effort in your response or at least made any points at all, I would PM you to remind you that there is a discussion going on. But if all you can do is formulate 8 NBA players, 4 on each squad... Without addressing how many times they indiviudally have played for each others countries teams, or with the players of each countries teams rather it be in their leauges, or durning practice for olympics and the worlds, than I might have put in more effort.

As I said, I don't really consider the truth as an excuse. This was there first attempt at playing together and they did fairly well. Given a few more years, and Im sure they will bring home the gold for the Olympics. As they DO have superior talent. NBA pays the best, and the best come to the NBA. Rather it be from other countires, or be here currently. The best in the world play in the NBA, and just happens that the majorty of the best are on team USA.

And the other "truth" is, this is the first time we have even good talent in a long time coming to the worlds in a long time. For a while, we had people *****ing and moaning about the lack of payment, risk of injury, etc. For whatever reason this season actually had some people thinking about there country and not just themselves. As I said, I consider that pretty pathetic considering all which this country has given it's NBA players. But thats a sad state of life. And a fact that can't be over looked. Greed isn't exactly a cop out. I mean It's not like Im saying making an excuse that makes the players look good. I'm being honest. No money, no ballers. This year is different, and I hope it only continues to get better.

The one thing this team lacked more than anything was a solid leader. I believe next year, there will be a leader that for many reasons wasn't avaible this year. Having a vet, with experiance, and intensity will help tremendously.

The Olympics will be won by USA. Don't take my word for it. You will see it first hand soon.


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