- Chris Bosh not only gets off the bench, but gets to lead the team in scoring in a meaningless game against Senegal that the U.S. wins handily.
- Jameer Nelson has leadership written all over him. Joel Glass is one of the best PR men in the NBA, and he has a blog now where he tells this story: "This past August, Nelson, on his own initiative, gathered his Orlando Magic teammates for a week-long bonding/basketball conditioning camp. The players worked out during the day and broke bread at night. Nelson passed out T-shirts to the team which said: 'Together-Effort-Attitude-Magic.' When asked about the camp, Nelson simply said he just wants to win, 'and whatever it takes to do that, I’m willing to do.'"
- Skeets: "My name is Tim Duncan and I really, really like music!"
- NOTE: TrueHoop will go down for an hour or so this afternoon/evening. Bigger servers on the way! Do not panic.
- Seriously thorough blog coverage of the World Championships, from Jay Aych who has a package that lets him watch all the games online on demand--which is impressive, because I have heard a lot of these games aren't even on TV in Japan.
- A gritty team goes home: The fighting and bombing in their country was just one of the nasty obstacles the Lebanese team has faced in the last few weeks. There was a suspected terrorist on one of their flights, their coach has been sick, and all kinds of hassles. But hey, adversity breeds character, and after beating France yesterday, they only needed a win against Nigeria to be on their way to the big boy round of the World Championships. Sadly, that didn't happen: Lebanon lost 95-72.
- China qualifies in storybook fashion. Xinhua news agency reports: "Guard Wang Shipeng beat the buzzer for the game-winning 3-pointer for China's 78-77 victory over Slovenia, sending China through to the next round from Group D at the World Men's Basketball Championships here on Thursday. Wang, who was scoreless before the last shot, drove the ball to the left and shot down the biggest jumper of his career with two Slovenian defenders on him. 'The shot could be the biggest one at the international competitions in the history of Chinese basketball,' said Yao Ming, who scored 36 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks in the full 40-minute game."
- IHeartKG sticks it to Sam Smith (bloggers love this game) and links to the ever-incredible. must-watch John Thompson-makes-Kevin Garnett-cry-for-several-straight-minutes interview. Note the moment when Garnett makes a little joke about being recruited by Thompson to go to Georgetown.
- This is just a good Dave Feschuk line, even if it is a little mean: "Stephon Marbury, the New York Knick who once declared himself the best point guard in the world, is now patting himself on the back as a world-class humanitarian."
- The Wisconsinization of the Pistons continues: Terry Porter takes an assistant job with Detroit. Flip Saunders used to coach in LaCrosse, right? Now they need Michael Finley and Dick Bennett.
- See you on the court in November, LaMarcus. Weird detail of the surgery that probably makes sense: Blazer trainer Jay Jensen watched.
- Does Dikembe Mutombo still have the fire in the belly for basketball? Jonathan Feigen says yes. You tell me: "One thing I've learned, as a big man, you can still do it as long as you can go up and down the floor. I think I can still go up and down the floor."
- Dirk Nowitzki scores a victorious 47 in a triple OT Germany-Angola thriller.
- Lonny Baxter, who apparently was firing celebratory shots in the air, gets good character references from Gary Williams, Juan Dixon, and others. He, by all accounts, cooperated with police immediately (and, ironically, is close to getting a criminology degree). The most serious charges against him were dropped. But he's going to be locked up for two months, jeopardizing his Italian contract, all the same. Henri E. Cauvin reports the judge's rationale: "I'm sorry, sir, because I recognize the serious consequences that this will have on your career, but you're the one that took the actions, you're the one that chose to purchase that gun, to load it, to carry it in your SUV and to fire it into the air, and you're the one that will have to suffer the consequences for your deliberate and intentional actions."
- This isn't basketball. But it's about how reporters relate to athletes. Jeff Pearlman calls Barry Bonds evil. (Side note, if there is a hell, and Barry Bonds goes there, this is how he will wake up in the morning.)
- Big nasty meeting about the Nets' proposed Brooklyn home. Even some early vocal supporters are having doubts since the environmental impact report came out. But, shocker, Jason Kidd and Vince Carter are all for it.
- Phil Jackson once blocked Wilt Chamberlain's shot.
- The head of the Portland Police Athletic League pipes up for the Blazer/Police relationship.
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