The Sport Count

Entries tagged as ‘Team USA’

Beijing 2008: The Sport Count Awards

August 24, 2008 · 9 Comments

As the gold dust settles on Team USA’s victory over the racist Spaniards (no matter how much you slit your eyes, that medal will still be silver, bitches), we’re feeling empty.

China is about to go back to their persecuting and age falsifying ways without the glare of the world’s media scrutinising them, and The Sport Count is a little sad that there are no more medals or prizes to award for these games.

Trying to fill this void as best as we can, The Count has decided to bestow some laurel wreaths of our own on the athletes of these games past. Who will take out our top prize? The picture of the smiling man below might be a slight indicator.

"I got me a Count Award - but does Ricky Rubio?"

Most Valuable Player

Winner: Dwyane Wade | Team USA

For me, the best player should get the MVP; the person who played best, regardless of the impact on their team’s standing (hence, I would’ve voted KB24 MVP for the last 3 seasons, but they didn’t ask me). And the best player in Beijing was Dwyane Wade.

D-Wade came into the games with a whole bunch of baggage, and insisted on  being awesome. In a team focused on LeBron, Kobe, and a bit of Carmelo (yeah, we get it, he’s a prototypical international four, STFU), D-Wade was an absolute animal, showing us on fast break after fast break and front-up after front-up that he’s back, and ready to wreck in Miami (and fantasy basketball) next year.

Runner Up: Pau Gasol | Spain

I really don’t like Pau, but he was the beating heart of this Spanish team, showing why he’s regarded as a Don of the FIBA game. I’m very very glad he lost, and I hope Sun Yue puts some poison in his Orangina, or similarly freaky Euro-drink in training camp, but he certainly put up some great performances.

Most Likely Future Draft Pick

Winner: Ricky Rubio | Spain

Next Summer, Ricky will still be ineligible for the draft, which will leave him plenty of time to join best pal Frodo Baggins in a quest or two. After  that, it’s a deadset lock that this little fella will be plying his trade in the hardwood of some lucky lottery team.

Getting a start in the Olympic Finals, and dropping some nifty no-lookers in the  process, little Ricky is sure to be an NBA rotation player for at least a couple  of years to come (but that jersey name has to go).

Runner Up: Patrick Mills | Australia

In short, The Count’s favourite point guard. The future of Australian ball is in good shape, with Mills certain to join Australian bigs Andrew Bogut and Nathan Jawai in the NBA in the very near future. If he can work on his jumpshot and develop a CP3-esque runner, Mills is going to be bonkers — you heard it here first (seriously, you did).

Biggest Idiot

Winner: The Entire Spanish Team | Land of Racism

Read here. These guys are arseholes. For the first and only time, I’ll use Jason Kidd’s words (via Yahoo) to articulate a point:

‘We would’ve been already thrown out of the Olympics [...] At least, we wouldn’t have been able to come back to the U.S. There would be suspensions.’

Damn straight there would’ve been suspensions, and so there should’ve been. This was shocking behaviour from rich, grown men who should know that their cultural mimickery might have implications outside of their perceived meaning in Spain.

Runner Up: Chris Kaman | Germany (?)

From a legitimate disgrace, to a light hearted one: when your own father thinks you’re an idiot, it’s time to take a look in the mirror. Kaman can now look forward to a summer spent being called a traitor by his family, and trying to win back the love of his coalminer father.

Biggest What-ifs?

Winner: Andrew Bogut | The Boomers

Bogut’s ankle injury was the turning point of the games. (Keep in mind we’re Australian, and watching a fair amount of post-Olympic highlights packages, so we’re feeling v. patriotic). If Bogut doesn’t hobble off in the first quarter of the quarter finals against the Redeemers, I guarantee that Australia would’ve won the Gold.

I flat out guarantee it. (As we speak, I’m bidding on an Upper Deck Bogut auto and riding a Kangaroo).

Runner Up: Manu Ginobli

When Manu hobbled off in the semis against the USA, Argentina were toast. With Manu on the floor, as much a talisman as anything else, you never know how many treys and eye gouges the Argentinians would’ve thrown at the Americans, which might’ve resulted in a positive result for the Argies, and this will remain a hot topic in the post tournament wrap ups to come.

Posted by: James

Categories: Olympic Games · The Sport Count Awards
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Are We Talking About Rocky I Or Rocky II?

August 20, 2008 · No Comments

Australian coach Brian Goorjian:

“We’ve all seen [...] Rocky. We’re in a tournament, and we get a chance to step up to the plate and take a swipe at the Big Dog. That’s the way I look at it. We’re in a tournament with the best team in the world, and we get to take a swing.

tried hard, didn't actually win.

Rocky: tried hard, didn't actually win.

Did you watch the end of Rocky, Brian? Yeah, both fighters get beaten like dogs and, defying the expectations of the boxing elite, the match goes down to the wire. But after that final bell sounds, it’s that cocky bastard Apollo Creed whose hand is lifted in the air, while Rocky — the underdog, beaten and bruised, but not broken — is forced to make do with the love of a good woman.

Do you have some good women lined up, Brian? Will we see Andrew Bogut, bleeding from the brow, screaming in anguish to the woman he loves?

If Brian is talking about the original Rocky, the analogy seems about right; based upon their pre-Olympic meeting — in which the justifiably confident Americans were forced to play hard through the fourth quarter for the first time in their Olympic campaign — the Australians are in a position to draw blood from Team USA.

The idea is that Australia, boasting just one NBA player, and coming off some grotesque form in their early games, will rely on guts, determination, and national pride to see them through. (It’s worth knowing that ‘guts and determination’ have, for decades, been the national cry whenever Australians enter a field upon which we’re likely to lose, from Gallipoli — a fateful Great War battle which has shaped the national consciousness — onwards).

It was ‘guts and determination’ that impressed ball heads back in Atlanta; in pre-Olympic play, Australian point guard Shane Heal — a relatively diminutive long range bomber with a feisty attitude — went chest-to-chest with Charles Barkley, screaming in the Round Mound’s face after copping a hard elbow.

In 1996, Australia was willing to fight, but that just meant they went down fighting. And, barring a genuine miracle, the result will be the same 12 years later.

The Australians will likely test the Americans, and the final margin may even total less than 20, but a loss is a loss, and it will be the Americans who advance. Predictable? Sure. But this isn’t the time for bold predictions which can’t be backed up. This isn’t the time, despite the distant hopes of our small nation, to start writing cheques our players can’t cash.

All we can ask is that our boys go out there and give it a red hot go.

Andrew Bogut

Andrew Bogut.

The Boomers boast quality players. Andrew Bogut’s 23 points against Lithuania (including a surprising 3-3 mark from beyond the arc) showed how dangerous he is from inside out. Back-up point guard Patrick Mills was electrifying — seriously, there is no other word — in that pre-Olympic match, wrecking Chris Paul in transition play, sparking talk of a 2009 draft spot. And 7-footer Chris Anstey boasts years of international experience, a surprisingly soft shooting touch, and an apparent willingness to pick fights with any NBA star.

But that’s not enough. Not nearly.

Pre-Olympic play is one thing. Place these Americans — desperate to win, supported by nearly the entire basketball world — in an elimination match, and you’re likely to meet a completely different beast. This is a team with depth and versatility at every position. They have the strength, speed and energy to clamp down on whatever offense you run (remember the full court press Kobe single-handedly ran against South American teams in their qualifying matches?). And, importantly, they’ve learned how to beat the 2-3 zones teams have thrown at them, leaving opposition teams confused and impotent.

So, expect to see guts and determination from the Australians. But don’t expect to see Rocky II.

Posted By: Anton

Categories: Olympic Games
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Cue Whinging

August 18, 2008 · 1 Comment

Europe, yesterday.

In what can only be good for the game, FIBA recently tackled the differing identity of basketball across tournaments and countries.

The FIBA Technical Commission — the advisory body to the FIBA Central Board —  recommended that all competitions falling under FIBA jurisdiction should have their rules amended to effectively mimic NBA rules and court dimensions.

The major changes are found in the introduction of the 24-second shot clock, the 3-point line being pulled back to 23′9″, adopting the NBA-dimension restricted zone and the banning t-shirts worn under uniforms. I’m most pleased about the last, because it shows FIBA is addressing idiocy not only Europe, but in the American college competitions too.

Apparently some European leagues are very upset about this, but no-one should be surprised. We’ll get two years of tantrums until they realise that the more relaxed FIBA court dimensions are half the reason the Americans keep wrecking every other team in the world by more than 30 points. Allowing Lebron, Kobe and Michael Redd to jack up triples from under 20′? You’re just hurting yourself there.

See the link above for a run-down on the rule changes.

Posted by: Alex (with thanks to Ben Ko)

Categories: Off The Court · Olympic Games · On The Court
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Who’s That Greek? Sofoklis Schortsianitis

August 15, 2008 · 3 Comments

The Sport Count makes no qualms about the fact that we aren’t fans of the European brand of our favourite game, however last night when watching the Dream Team beat the ‘World Champion’ Greeks (duh, it’s the Celtics) to within an inch of their jump shooting lives, there was a glimmer of hope for the land mass that thus far these games has brought us a fair slice of racism and clinical, charmless play.

Philosophizing The Low Post

Sophocles: Philosophizing The Low Post

Midway through the first quarter, the Greeks subbed in Ruben Studdard. Or so it seemed. In fact they’d subbed in someone who took my breath away in the best possible way, making me re-think my long held prejudices about the Continent of Picasso, Jumpshots and Cowardice.

When 6 foot 9 inches and 300+ lbs of Sophoklis Schotsanitis hit the floor, I was mesmerised. His 3 points, 3 turnovers and 4 personal fouls consituted the best 12 minutes of European basketball I’ve ever seen - and made me hope and pray that an NBA team out there will take a chance on the big man (surely, in Shaq’s prime, someone would’ve given $2m per season for those personal fouls).

I’ll be watching every Greece game for the remainder of the tournament now. I hope you will too.

Posted by: James

Categories: Off The Court · Olympic Games
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Exclusive: Lebron And Phelps SMS Banter!

August 11, 2008 · 5 Comments

ESPN’s Olympics Blog is reporting that King James got fired up for last night’s marquee match up against China with a viewing of Michael Phelps’ world record effort in the 400m. The King of the Court sent the King of the Pool some SMS dap.

OH NO YOU DIDN'T!
Phelps to Lebron: OH NO YOU DIDN’T!

I’m pretty pumped by the idea that the Dream Team are into Phelps; shows that they’re into the same sort of things that I am, specifically large lanky white men who are amazing at swimming. As reported in the same article, the likes of LeBron and D-Wade were really into meeting the American Swim Team. And not just Amanda Beard.

So how did this text back and forth go? Well funny you should ask, because The Count has the exclusive scoop on the phone banter!

Unabridged, and unedited:

Lebron: Prprn 4 2nitz gam. wachd ur race - nice WR, nice Gmedal.

Phelps: TY!! Hungarian dude got silvr!!! LOLZ!

Lebron: YEH! Saw Bush ther! He comn 2 our Gam 2!!!!!

Phelps: hahaha, yeh, met him. Fag.

Lebron: dnt say that arund Bosh, CP3. They lurv him - lol.

Phelps: K. gotta go. gettn medalz - they fckn up th anthm!!!!

Short, sweet, to the point. We’ll keep you posted on the Dream Team’s textual adventures over the course of the games.

Posted by: James

Categories: Off The Court · Olympic Games
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