Author Topic: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball  (Read 97458 times)

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Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #15 on: July 05, 2021, 02:42:38 PM »

Offline Goldstar88

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No big center?
Who would it be? The best big men I can think of are mostly not American.

Is Ben Simmons not playing for the Australian Olympic team?

Nope he is skipping the olympics to focus on his 'individual development' 

ie remembering that when you have a dunk you don't pass it off to another team mate with a worse shot

He can’t do both? Wow... He’s really unlikable.
Quoting Nick from the now locked Ime thread:
Quote
At some point you have to blame the performance on the court on the players on the court. Every loss is not the coach's fault and every win isn't because of the players.

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #16 on: July 05, 2021, 03:31:49 PM »

Offline footey

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No big center?

There really aren’t many options. The only player that I can think of who’s a legit C and is deserving of being on team USA is Brook Lopez.

That’s a very good choice.

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #17 on: July 05, 2021, 03:40:04 PM »

Offline RJ87

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No big center?
Who would it be? The best big men I can think of are mostly not American.

Is Ben Simmons not playing for the Australian Olympic team?

Nope he is skipping the olympics to focus on his 'individual development' 

ie remembering that when you have a dunk you don't pass it off to another team mate with a worse shot

Funny enough, I think playing with the Australian team would be good for him. Would've given him a chance to play off ball next to Patty Mills.
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PG: Kyrie Irving/Patty Mills/Jalen Brunson
SG: OG Anunoby/Norman Powell/Matisse Thybulle
SF: Gordon Hayward/Demar Derozan
PF: Giannis Antetokounmpo/Robert Covington
C: Kristaps Porzingis/Bobby Portis/James Wiseman

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #18 on: July 05, 2021, 03:55:13 PM »

Offline blink

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No big center?
Who would it be? The best big men I can think of are mostly not American.

Is Ben Simmons not playing for the Australian Olympic team?

Nope he is skipping the olympics to focus on his 'individual development' 

ie remembering that when you have a dunk you don't pass it off to another team mate with a worse shot

He can’t do both? Wow... He’s really unlikable.

I don’t think he is that unlikeable, I just feel like he has been over rated.  It seems like Philly still thinks they can get him to improve his shot and actually be an off threat in the playoffs.  He may just need a change of scenery, but he needs to be taking 1000 jump shots a day and get over the mental block.

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #19 on: July 05, 2021, 03:57:15 PM »

Offline blink

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No big center?
Who would it be? The best big men I can think of are mostly not American.

Is Ben Simmons not playing for the Australian Olympic team?

Nope he is skipping the olympics to focus on his 'individual development' 

ie remembering that when you have a dunk you don't pass it off to another team mate with a worse shot

Funny enough, I think playing with the Australian team would be good for him. Would've given him a chance to play off ball next to Patty Mills.

I think he should have played as well.  It makes it feel like he is backing out just to avoid the scrutiny.  But maybe he really does just want to improve?

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #20 on: July 05, 2021, 04:00:04 PM »

Offline Moranis

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No big center?
Who would it be? The best big men I can think of are mostly not American.

Maybe Jarrett Allen, Derrick Favors, Cousins, Robin Lopez, Drummond, maybe even our own Moses Brown just to have some size? I think any of these guys would fill more of a need than Love.

Dwight Howard?
It has been awhile since we've seen a healthy Love, but I do think people forget just how good Kevin Love was, and maybe still is.  I certainly think he can still be a pretty darn effective big man, grabbing rebounds and scoring efficiently while spacing the floor.  The fact that they took him on the team, I think means that he must be healthy and may be much closer to the guy who put up 30/14 to close his season against Boston, than we probably think. 
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Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #21 on: July 05, 2021, 04:07:19 PM »

Offline liam

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No big center?
Who would it be? The best big men I can think of are mostly not American.

Maybe Jarrett Allen, Derrick Favors, Cousins, Robin Lopez, Drummond, maybe even our own Moses Brown just to have some size? I think any of these guys would fill more of a need than Love.

Dwight Howard?
It has been awhile since we've seen a healthy Love, but I do think people forget just how good Kevin Love was, and maybe still is.  I certainly think he can still be a pretty darn effective big man, grabbing rebounds and scoring efficiently while spacing the floor.  The fact that they took him on the team, I think means that he must be healthy and may be much closer to the guy who put up 30/14 to close his season against Boston, than we probably think.

A big center would've been very useful with the line up they already have.

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #22 on: July 05, 2021, 05:40:21 PM »

Offline Goldstar88

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No big center?
Who would it be? The best big men I can think of are mostly not American.

Maybe Jarrett Allen, Derrick Favors, Cousins, Robin Lopez, Drummond, maybe even our own Moses Brown just to have some size? I think any of these guys would fill more of a need than Love.

Dwight Howard?

Forgot about Jarrett Allen, TP for that. I don’t think the others are good enough, though.
Quoting Nick from the now locked Ime thread:
Quote
At some point you have to blame the performance on the court on the players on the court. Every loss is not the coach's fault and every win isn't because of the players.

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #23 on: July 05, 2021, 07:54:58 PM »

Offline RJ87

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No big center?
Who would it be? The best big men I can think of are mostly not American.

Is Ben Simmons not playing for the Australian Olympic team?

Nope he is skipping the olympics to focus on his 'individual development' 

ie remembering that when you have a dunk you don't pass it off to another team mate with a worse shot

Funny enough, I think playing with the Australian team would be good for him. Would've given him a chance to play off ball next to Patty Mills.

I think he should have played as well.  It makes it feel like he is backing out just to avoid the scrutiny.  But maybe he really does just want to improve?

I don't know what to think of Ben at this point. Based on everything that's come out, his attitude seems to be the thing holding him back. It's disappointing when you see these young guys with so much talent who don't want to do the work or don't think they need to to do the work. Makes me extra grateful for the Jays because those are guys who want to improve.

With that said, I'd still roll the dice on Simmons because he's young enough to get his head on straight.
2021 Houston Rockets
PG: Kyrie Irving/Patty Mills/Jalen Brunson
SG: OG Anunoby/Norman Powell/Matisse Thybulle
SF: Gordon Hayward/Demar Derozan
PF: Giannis Antetokounmpo/Robert Covington
C: Kristaps Porzingis/Bobby Portis/James Wiseman

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #24 on: July 05, 2021, 09:10:18 PM »

Offline gouki88

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Ah Ben Simmons using the old 'taking time to work on my game'

Haven't bothered for the 5 years I've been on an NBA roster but thought now might be a good time to do that.

Loser.
He should just be open and honest about it - he couldn't give two stuffs about representing Australia. He also doesn't care about improving his game
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C: Chris Webber (00-01) / Ralph Sampson (83-84) / Andrew Bogut (09-10)

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #25 on: July 06, 2021, 02:24:57 AM »

Offline Adelaide Celt

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Ah Ben Simmons using the old 'taking time to work on my game'

Haven't bothered for the 5 years I've been on an NBA roster but thought now might be a good time to do that.

Loser.
He should just be open and honest about it - he couldn't give two stuffs about representing Australia. He also doesn't care about improving his game

No one will ever convince me you can't 'work on improving your game' whilst being part of an Olympic National team. You will be pitted against some mediocre opponents giving you the chance to try out some stuff you're too afraid to do in the NBA season. Then you'll be pitted against some extremely good opponents to truly put your skills to the test.

Ben Simmons is a sniveling coward.
NO AMOUNT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL MANIPULATION, HORMONAL OR SURGICAL MUTILATION WILL EVER CHANGE A PERSON'S GENDER

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #26 on: July 06, 2021, 04:19:42 AM »

Offline ozgod

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Ah Ben Simmons using the old 'taking time to work on my game'

Haven't bothered for the 5 years I've been on an NBA roster but thought now might be a good time to do that.

Loser.
He should just be open and honest about it - he couldn't give two stuffs about representing Australia. He also doesn't care about improving his game

Ben Simmons hard at work, training up those skills at Wimbledon. He's going to be working on one kind of shot at least



Quote
Ben Simmons and Maya Jama have shown off their budding new romance while taking in the action at Wimbledon.

The Aussie NBA star and British TV personality were spotted looking very smitten at the All England Club on Monday.

Simmons and Jama could be seen sharing a kiss and showing their affection for each other as they sat alongside Hollywood star Sienna Miller.

Jama is a TV and radio personality in the UK, as well as a model.

https://au.sports.yahoo.com/wimbledon-2021-ben-simmons-goes-public-maya-jama-romance-230654933.html
Any odd typos are because I suck at typing on an iPhone :D

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #27 on: July 07, 2021, 10:15:59 AM »

Offline Goldstar88

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Coach Pop on Tatum’s development. He was also asked about the Udoka hiring.


The last time Gregg Popovich had Jayson Tatum in his USA basketball rotation, the Celtics forward sprained his left ankle on the last play of an overtime win over Turkey and missed the last six games of competition in the 2019 World Cup.

“We were hugely disappointed when he got hurt, let me put it that way,” the U.S. men’s Olympic coach said during a Tuesday Zoom conference. “He was going to be our go-to-guy, and he was just finding his legs so-to-speak “

He is, in the San Antonio coach’s estimation, a far different player from the one he first coached.

“Not totally confident, not realizing maybe how good he could really be at both ends of the floor,” Popovich said of the Tatum of two years ago. “Probably a concentration on offense, like most NBA players when they come in. During that time to now, under Brad’s tutelage, he’s become more of a two-way player, he’s way more confident, he’s developed more skills. On top of that he’s more aggressive and knows he can dominate people. So he’s much different coming into this situation than before.



On Udoka:

“I couldn’t be more thrilled. The guy is a stalwart,” said Popovich. “People over-emphasize O’s and X’s in the league. Everyone knows their O’s and X’s. It’s basketball, it’s not analytical geometry or something like that. That stuff’s not tough.

“But to understand how to get the most out of people, and how to develop relationships with players, to make people accountable, to make them really want to play for you are the keys. He’s got all that,” he said. “He’s really a gifted communicator, although less is more. He’s not a talker, he’s a communicator, and more than anything he’s genuine. You know exactly what you’re getting, and I’m sure that’s what Brad Stevens felt when he interviewed him for the first time.”
-Boston Herald



« Last Edit: July 07, 2021, 10:48:59 AM by Goldstar88 »
Quoting Nick from the now locked Ime thread:
Quote
At some point you have to blame the performance on the court on the players on the court. Every loss is not the coach's fault and every win isn't because of the players.

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #28 on: July 07, 2021, 05:15:58 PM »

Offline Goldstar88

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Jersey number 10 it is!


“I remember that first team when I was hoping, wishing, that I got No. 10,” Tatum said. “Kobe, everyone knows that was my favorite player. I was 15 years old and got to wear the number of my favorite player. It just felt like I had some level of connection with him.”

The connection carries on this summer. He doesn’t remember if he had to ask for the jersey in 2013; this summer, he didn’t have to ask anyone. USA Basketball simply put out a list of names and jersey numbers, and Tatum got No. 10.

For now, it’s Tatum’s jersey.

To him, it still belongs to Bryant.

“It’s a tremendous honor,” Tatum said. “And I’ll wear it proudly.”

With this being the first Olympics since we lost him, it holds that much more value,” Tatum said. “It’s not something I take lightly.”

Tatum knew Bryant well. They worked out together and Bryant offered him advice many times.

“I remember one talk, it might have been after a game, and he was saying that a lot of people won’t understand what you do,” Tatum said. “He said, ‘What I mean by that is, the ones that really want to be great and really want to be special really take that whatever-it-takes mentality.’ He told me it takes sacrifice, because the ultimate question is about how much are you willing to give up to be great.”
-NBA.com

Quoting Nick from the now locked Ime thread:
Quote
At some point you have to blame the performance on the court on the players on the court. Every loss is not the coach's fault and every win isn't because of the players.

Re: U.S.A. Olympic Basketball
« Reply #29 on: July 08, 2021, 09:36:32 AM »

Offline Goldstar88

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Quoting Nick from the now locked Ime thread:
Quote
At some point you have to blame the performance on the court on the players on the court. Every loss is not the coach's fault and every win isn't because of the players.