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Spain wins EuroBasket, but can they beat Team USA

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KAUNAS, Lithuania — There is only one thing that is ultimately relevant for Americans about the team that just won EuroBasket: One year from now, will Spain have what it takes to defeat Team USA in the gold medal game of the London Olympics?

Because let’s face it, this Spanish team showed it is clearly the second-best team in the world right now, just as they were three years ago in Beijing when they put 107 points on the board (in a 40-minute game, no less) against the Americans but couldn’t keep pace with what was truly a second Dream Team, losing 118-107.

“Like Pau (Gasol) said, it is extremely tough to beat Team USA. But in one game, anything can happen,” France’s Tony Parker said after his team lost 98-85 to Spain on Sunday in the gold medal game at EuroBasket2011. “I watched that game in 2008, and it was one of the best games ever in an international competition, but you have to play your best game to beat Team USA.”

Spain pretty much played its best game, at least offensively, in that gold medal loss to the Americans, and it still wasn’t enough.

But one of the key things that is different about them three years later is the defensive component they have added by bringing in Serge Ibaka, the Oklahoma City Thunder forward who single-handedly changed Sunday’s gold medal game by blocking five shots in an 8-minute span of the second quarter, allowing Spain to gain some separation on the scoreboard that held up throughout the rest of the night.

What else do they have that they didn’t have in 2008?

For starters, their second Gasol, Marc, is twice the player he was in 2008 when he was a chubby faced novice whose talent was probably half that of his older brother, Pau.

Marc is still not as polished of an offensive player as Pau, but he has another year of growth ahead of him in the NBA when the lockout is settled, and he’ll have the freedom to play more physically on defense against whoever is manning the middle for the Americans (Dwight Howard and ?????), more freedom to burn a foul or two and send Howard to the line now that he has Ibaka backing him up.

And then you have Juan Carlos Navarro, who earned the MVP award in this tournament with a 27-point performance chock full of momentum-killing shots — the same shots he was hitting in the quarterfinals and semifinals of this tournament when he emerged as the biggest clutch performer on a team loaded with NBA players.

“Juan Carlos is a special player not because of his body or his muscles, but because the basketball gods sent him a gift and said ‘You are a special one,'” Spanish coach Sergio Scariolo said.

Forget for a moment about Ricky Rubio, who was an utter bust in this tournament — so much so in the final match that he got only seven minutes of playing time and had four fouls, no points and just one assist. The Spanish still have Jose Calderon, who few remember was forced to sit out the gold medal game in 2008 because of a muscle tear in his leg. Rubio was in foul trouble in that game, too, and Navarro had to move over and run the point against Jason Kidd, Deron Williams and Chris Paul, and he did it with such aplomb that Spain stuck with the Americans all the way until the final 2 minutes.

One NBA scout who attended this game but could not be quoted because of the league’s lockout-related gag order said this Spanish team is much better, much more mature, and — this is the biggest thing — much more athletic because of the addition of Ibaka than they were in 2008. Factor in how much of a big-game player Navarro showed himself to be, and it adds up to a team that is a more than a notch above where the Spaniards were three years ago when they arrived in Beijing (and remember, that was a Spanish team that had choked the gold medal game of EuroBasket a year before, losing on their home court in Madrid to Russia).

A year from now, who knows if LeBron James is going to have proved himself capable of scoring a fourth-quarter bucket when it is all on the line (he disappeared in the fourth quarter in Beijing, too, when Dwyane Wade and Kobe Bryant carried the Americans). Who knows if the Americans will have the size and girth to defend both Gasols, especially if Howard gets into foul trouble. (It says here that Kevin Love may turn out to be one of the most important players on the 2012 team if the U.S. federation is smart enough to bring him. In Turkey last year, he barely sniffed the court despite being the most productive per-minute player not named Kevin Durant).

And if Durant is on the team as he is expected to be, will he defer to his elders and let Carmelo Anthony, James, Bryant or Wade be the big shot guy?

The Americans are going to have to play as a team, which they proved themselves capable of doing back in 2008.

But they were hungrier then, wanting to redeem themselves from their embarrassing loss to Greece at the 2006 Worlds, and to avenge the horror show the 2004 team had been at the Athens Olympics (Wade, James, Anthony and Amare Stoudemire were all members of that Nightmare Team).

The Spanish team plays as a team every bit as much as the Argentina team that won the 2004 gold medal did, and the American players are simply not as used to the pressure of a one-and-done game as many of their international competitors are.

Would I pick this Spain team to beat the Americans next summer?

At this point, no.

Would I say they have no chance?

Hell, no.

Spain is a better team than it was in 2008, and Team USA is going to have to be a better team than it was in 2008 if they want to fly back across the pond from London with gold medals around their necks.

There is a worthy opponent for them, and they’d be best advised to take this Spanish team seriously.

 

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  77. There are many exceptions to the FIBA ‘one naturalized player’ rule. Look at Poland with Dardan Berisha and Thomas Kelati… So don’t be overly surprised if Niko Mirotic, Europe’s Under-20 MVP, plays alongside Ibaka in London. That would be a significant addition and uograde.

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  85. It’s going to be a great game (providing Spain’s roster doesn’t change). I think the Team USA roster has to be assembled with the Spaniards in mind. That means we can’t have Kevin Durant and Lamar Odom trying to match up with the Gasol brothers down low. I don’t care about the typical FIBA “stretch four”, Spain has become a game changer and really doesn’t play like any other national team. Extremely difficult to match up against.

    With that said, here is my ideal 2012 USA roster-

    Chris Paul, Deron Williams
    Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Eric Gordon
    Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony
    Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin
    Dwight Howard, Kevin Love, Tyson Chandler

  86. Can Spain beat team USA? This is obviously referring to next summer in London.

    1. We don’t know who will be on each team at this point so IMO it is way to early to even think about asking the question.

    2. In addition we do not know how well Linas Kleiza, arguably the best player in the Euroleague in 2009-10, (For those that don’t follow the Euroleague they can Google Kleiza and 2009-10 Euroleague) will be recovered from his surgery. We also don’t know how much more progress Jonas Valanciunas will make between now and next summer. A healthy Kleiza and a bigger, stronger and improved Valanciunas could make Lithuania as good as anyone in next summer’s Olympic games depending on who is on Team U.S.A.

  88. Ibaka is as naturalized as Olajuwon was in 1992. That said, I am always astonished about how you americans give such an importance to the athletic part of the game. That is why the distance is narrowing constantly. In 1992 I saw the best group of PLAYERS put together I will ever see, and they won every single game with a 30 or more points advantage. They were just walking the court, but they knew how to play. They were great athletes, but their advantage was even greater in terms of bball skills. This advantage is only present nowadays with Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant. You still put together the best group of ATHLETES, but this sometimes has proven to be not enough.
    You are afraid about Ibaka, but he’s been a secondary player in this tournament. His defensive display in the final game was impressive, but he didn’t do anything like that the rest of the tournament (10 games). I won’t say he’s not a very good addition to Spain NT, but no way will he be the man who will make the difference in the Olympic Games. Better look if Pau and Navarro are fit, if Marc Gasol improves even more this year and if Rudy finally can remember how he used to play the game back in 2008. And even with these facts Spain will need to add some other real weapon to their roster if they want to compete with Team USA if KD and KB are to play.

    • “I am always astonished about how you americans give such an importance to the athletic part of the game. That is why the distance is narrowing constantly. In 1992 I saw the best group of PLAYERS put together I will ever see, and they won every single game with a 30 or more points advantage. They were just walking the court, but they knew how to play. They were great athletes, but their advantage was even greater in terms of bball skills. This advantage is only present nowadays with Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant. You still put together the best group of ATHLETES, but this sometimes has proven to be not enough.”
      —————————————————————————————————————
      The 1992 team was GREAT, but let’s also keep in mind that the competition in international basketball, back in 1992, wasn’t even remotely close to what it is now. So let’s not forget that part.

      Also, you forget that the ’08/10 teams were not just thrown out there, they played as a TEAM, too. Have people already forgot about that? I have seen them playing as a TEAM and they played stellar defense. Not to mention they trained all summer long. So it was definitely not just a bunch of very talented players thrown out there just before the games, as it was in the past. This is just disrespectful toward the good job USA Basketball has been doing in the past few years. Both the ’08 and ’10 squads were TRUE teams who played as a team. So let’s not criticize the current U.S. teams by basing your opinions on PREVIOUS teams who have nothing to do with today’s.

  89. Sure, Spain will be better, but so will Team USA. The Wade/LeBron/Kobe/Howard/CP3/D-Will/Carmelo core plus Kevin Durant? Westbrook? Blake Griffin? Eric Gordon? Kevin Love?

    Yeah, I’ll take Team USA thank you.

  90. If the US is wise, they’ll have LaMarcus Aldridge on the roster. Howard and Bosh are going to have their hands full with the Gasol brothers. Aldridge has adapted a tougher play style and would be more valuable, in my opinion, than Kevin Love would be.

    Regardless, I’m really looking forward to the 2012 games, especially the highly probable gold medal contest between the US and Spain.

  91. Prepare to meet Nikola Mirotic, another player ‘stolen’ by Spain who will provide so much misery to the US in a year’s time… This team is getting better all the time. The gap keeps narrowing and is just a narrow sliver now.

    BTW – how peculiar it is that American players “need” to have the traveling rules waived when they play in international tournaments, but foreign players who have been in the NBA since their teens like Tony Parker don’t get any preferential treatment in FIBA ball and simply adapt. Then of course these players don’t demand to have NBA rules on basket interference or the 3-pointer distance waived when they play for their NBA clubs.

    Let’s call an end to injustifiable discrimination. Let FIBA rules be applied to all in FIBA competition just ike NBA rules apply to all in NBA competitions!

  92. Spain has a chance, since they compensate their lack of athleticism and talent (just if we compare with Team USA) with hunger and team spirit, but even with the referees doing their job (I mainly talk about FIBA rules and LeBron doing travelling) Team USA is unbeatable at their best.
    By the way, If I were David Khan I would immediately fire Rubio and hire Navarro. What a player!

    • Refs were adviced not to apply FIBA rules too strictly, mainly on travelling from a static position, otherwise US players could barely play a normal game. They were called, I don’t remember exactly, but say 4 or 5 travelling violations, when they should have been called more that 15, according to FIBA rules.
      This is, and will be a big issue for the Olympics. How can you force players change their basic movements when bouncing the ball, just for a single two-or-three week tournament? Why not play on NBA rules?
      I’d say Spain could possibly beat USA now they have a phyical player like Ibaka on FIBA rules, but they would suffer a painful defeat on an NBA court.

      • It was good when FIBA stepped up from the high school 3 to what they’ve got now (22′) but they need to take the extra step to get out to 23’9″ so the unathletic, slow footed midrange-shooting SG-as-PG can finally come to an end.

        Three pointers should be special. In FIBA, the easy 3 is stunting the athletic development of the league. NOBODY could stay in front of Bo McCalebb, to the point that he ended up looking like an Allen Iverson or even a Derrick Rose. But he’s not, bless his surprisingly Macedonian heart. I’d consider that the NBA missed a truly transcendent talent, but considering that AI and Rose BOTH went #1 in their respective drafts and earned a league MVP, while McCalebb went undrafted, it’s probably more likely that FIBA guards have no answer to a guy that’s quick AND strong enough that their twin arm handchecking just can’t hold them back.

        A guy who can’t defend, EVEN with legal hand checking can only stay on the court if his midrange J’s count for 3 points. If FIBA wants to step up its athleticism to sniff NBA levels, they’ll need to put in a genuine, professional 3pt line.

        (THEN, they’ll have to ban handchecking because Zone + Handchecking + Athleticism = Pistons-Pacers 2004).

        • “Three pointers should be special. In FIBA, the easy 3 is stunting the athletic development of the league.”

          FIBA is not a league.

        • McCalebb is actually a very talented player (obviously not on AI/Rose levels), and does seem like a NBA miss.
          Seen him match up in Euroleague play with the most athletic and best defensive guards (inc. Americans) playing in EU today, and he played extremely well, he has a special ability to control the game (kind of a poor men’s CP3).

          On Spain chances vs. US, Spain’s biggest advantage is that most of the team has been playing together for the last 5-10 years and basically play like a team rather than an assembly of players (seen how Dallas – Miami turned out), but US talent is just too much, and also any minor injury to one of Spain’s top players (Gasols, La Bomba, Fernandez), will kill their chances

  93. I agree USA and Spain are by far the 2 best countries. Maybe the Spanish can steal and claim a couple other desperate players without a country, and make it a contest with team USA. But otherwise no way – with Kobe, Lebreezy, Dwyane, Dwight Howard, CP3, Melo, Deronron, etc. even Spain looks pathetic. The only caveat is IF all the players decide to rep USA, which I see no reason wouldnt this time around even though the “redeem team” has done its job.

    • Hey, even in the Dream Team there was Olajuwon, who was born in Nigeria. Do you consider that as player stealing? What a stain in the 92 dream team… as if they needed to steal players

      • No I do not consider it stealing. I believe Olajuwon was a naturalized US citizen by then so it wasnt stealing. But Ibaka playing for Spain had everyone going WTF?!. FIBA aka the Fake Int’l bball association has some retarded rules. Thats why they deserve no respect except for the NBA players in it. The trapezoid lane – which was removed, the 3 point line thats 2 feet shorter, strict travelling calls, and others are bitch rules.

        BTW – Rubio, Vesely, Valanciunas, Motiejunas, are bonafide BUSTS. Hope they can prove me wrong.

        • Again, bullshit.

          Ibaka, like Olajuwon, spent his formation years outside of its home country. His spot in the NT roster was first offered to Fran Vazquez (Orlando’s botched lottery pick). And he ended up playing mop-up minutes. He’ll may not even be in London if the spanish coach chooses Mirotic (another naturalized player) over him.

          FYI, Spain has played without naturalized players for 10 years, winning gold medals in 2006 and 2009, and silver in 2008.

          On the other hand, the list of naturalized players playing for USA NT is long and notable: Rolando Blackman, Rony Seikaly, Patrick Ewing, Tim Duncan…

      • Olajuwon was on the ’96 USNT, not on the ’92 team. Ewing moved to the US when he was 12 and became a US citizen when he was in college. Also, Duncan, like most folks born in the US Territory of the Virgin Islands, was born an American citizen. Duncan was most definitely not “player stealing”, you could make a weak case for Ewing, and a strong case about Olajuwon since he’d only become a US citizen in the early 90s.

    • National teams are only allowed to have 1 naturalized player and for Spain that’s Ibaka. Spain has a chance, for sure, especially since half the team (by next year Rubio will have actually played in the NBA) has played against all the guys in TeamUSA so it’s not like they’ll be unaware of the abilities of LeBron, Kobe, Durant (as do the guys in TeamUSA). They’ll be a lot more evenly matched than the last Olympics and I doubt the Spanish roster will change all that much. Who knows who’ll be on TeamUSA this time … I’m guessing a mixture of the squad from the Olympics and the FIBA Worlds but it’ll going to be yet another different team.

  94. Team USA and Spain are, by far and away, the best basketball teams in the world and this is not even close. There’s nothing more I would love to watch than a rematch between those two teams in London.

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