USA-Australia

[Duke79UNLV77]

Isn't the game going on now? I can't find any updates on the internet. Anyone watching or know of a link?

[roywhite]

Isn't the game going on now? I can't find any updates on the internet. Anyone watching or know of a link?

USA 87 Australia 76 final

Not comfortable at all; Australia played well; was within 7 at one point in the 4th quarter. They got some back-door plays, hit some outside shots, hit the offensive boards, and handled the US pressure fairly well.

I saw parts of the 1st half and then a good part of the 4th quarter; Chris Paul was clutch down the stretch.

An interesting way to end the exhibition schedule; may be a good message to the US team that nothing is guaranteed.

[Billy Dat]

I work from home and watched Q1-3...we didn't look very good. Australia stayed patient against our pressure D and got lots of open looks and lay-ups...they missed a bunch of chippies, too. We largely went 1 on 1 vs their packed zone and match-up man and it wasn't really pretty. That's where the difference between Lebron and Kobe is striking. Kobe loves to pound that dribble and try and beat his guy. Lebron looks to facilitate more, he almost over passes. I am sure we'll wind up winning by between 10-20. Maybe Fran Frascilla is right...we look like we are sick of the exhibitions and want to play real games.

A couple of nitpicks with the TV coverage:

-Rick Kamla, as many have said, is one of the most annoying play by play guys I have ever listened to. Our offense could look like garbage and we might get lucky and get a steal and dunk and he starts going over the top, "KING JAMES MAKERS THEM PAY!" What a bufoon.

-Whoever directs these broadcasts thinks it's a good idea to show replays during the game action instead of at dead balls (granted, there are fewer dead balls). So, you see the ball being thrown in-bounds, they cut away to a highlight, you hear crowd noise in the backround, and then they cut back to the action where something has taken place and you have no idea what is going on. They also tend to cut to close-ups during action and, again, you have no idea what's going on. Come on, ESPN2, how many bball games have you covered...get your act together.

[studdlee10]

USA looked disinterested to say the least. After all the rhetoric about respecting everybody, I was a bit surprised to see the lack of effort. The D got beat time and time again on back door cuts and screens, where they had previously done a great job on. I get the feeling, the team feels as though they passed their tests against Russia and Lithuania, and just coasted. I'm still not encouraged by the lack of ball movement on O. Still too much one on one. I hope coach has some tricks up his sleeve, or we could be in for some disappointment.

[roywhite]

USA looked disinterested to say the least. After all the rhetoric about respecting everybody, I was a bit surprised to see the lack of effort. The D got beat time and time again on back door cuts and screens, where they had previously done a great job on. I get the feeling, the team feels as though they passed their tests against Russia and Lithuania, and just coasted. I'm still not encouraged by the lack of ball movement on O. Still too much one on one. I hope coach has some tricks up his sleeve, or we could be in for some disappointment.

Just a guess, but I'd say K blasts the guys for this performance. That is what he would do if a Duke team played with a lack of intensity and lack of teamwork on offense and defense.

Seems like Coach K has been an easy rider with this group so far, so maybe one of the assistants plays bad cop. But the staff can't be happy with today's game.

[studdlee10]

I just realized that USA has been in China for less than a week. That might have had some influence on USA's poor performance and shooting. Team USA has been on a whirlwind tour of Macau and Shanghai, not to mention the countless promotional appearances and interviews. Add a few games into the mix, and I can see how the jet lag might just be catching up with them now.

From personal experiences in Taiwan and China, it takes me 3-4 days to recover from the fatigue caused by jet lag and it takes me even longer to get on a consistent sleeping schedule. And I've had the luxury of lounging around and napping.

The team will get some much needed rest and will be able to get their legs under them for their set shots.

I'll use their performances against a top 5 squad Lithuania and the reigning Euro champs Russia as a better gauge than a lackluster performance against Australia.

[Tennessee&DukeFan414]

I am a bit worried. Today, we did not shoot well, and play too much 1 on 1 and left the Aussies with too many open shots. We would have lost to Spain or Greece today. I still think the US will win, but it will be tough because Spain mostly is absolutely loaded with Rubio, Navarro, Fernandez, Garbajosa, the Gasols and Greece has great players like Papaloukas, Shortsanitis, Diamonditis, etc.

[91_92_01_10_15]

Here's the box. It looks like Carlos didn't get in:

http://www.usabasketball.com/seniorm...exh_05_box.pdf

[jacone21]

...snip...

-Whoever directs these broadcasts thinks it's a good idea to show replays during the game action instead of at dead balls (granted, there are fewer dead balls). So, you see the ball being thrown in-bounds, they cut away to a highlight, you hear crowd noise in the backround, and then they cut back to the action where something has taken place and you have no idea what is going on. They also tend to cut to close-ups during action and, again, you have no idea what's going on. Come on, ESPN2, how many bball games have you covered...get your act together.

I agree wholeheartedly. You need only one camera to broadcast a basketball game during live action. There's a reason why those centercourt seats are the most expensive. And I won't even get into live action replays. That's just stupid. I'm hoping it'll get better for the real games, but I'm not counting on it.

[BlueintheFace]

We largely went 1 on 1 vs their packed zone and match-up man and it wasn't really pretty. That's where the difference between Lebron and Kobe is striking. Kobe loves to pound that dribble and try and beat his guy.

I disagree. I think both have actually been looking to pass more than they normally would... or possibly should. The difference is that when Lebron goes it alone, he settles for the outside jumper or baseline fadeaway with a man in his face, while Kobe tries to slither his way into the lane and find contact around the rim.

[jipops]

Just a guess, but I'd say K blasts the guys for this performance. That is what he would do if a Duke team played with a lack of intensity and lack of teamwork on offense and defense.

Seems like Coach K has been an easy rider with this group so far, so maybe one of the assistants plays bad cop. But the staff can't be happy with today's game.

I would guarantee that K will not do anything to remotely blast this team for this game. That would be incredibly stupid. This is not a college team so you can't treat them like a college team.

Also, I haven't watched the game yet, but doesn't it mean something that we held the aussies to less than 80 points, 29 in the 1st half? I'd say K is extremely proud of that stat.

I'd be willing to bet that our guys are getting a little tired of the friendlies and are ready to move on to more meaningful games. I would think it would be a little difficult to maintain the same kind of competitive drive over the course of a bunch of meaningless games in comparison to games coming up in the Olympics. Let's not forget that though our guys shot poorly from outside, they still played defense that was good enough to hold their opponent to a low output. That's actually pretty meaningful.

Once again, I have not watched the game, but a struggle like today is exactly what our guys need to go through going into the Olympics. We'll see that kind of struggle again in Beijing, guaranteed.

[mgtr]

I have been lucky to watch all of every game. It almost seems as if different teams show up to play for the US. Today, as has been noted, we had a lot of one on one, and precious little defense. In other words, the team seems to have regressed. Australia has a good, but not great, team. I hope it is just a combination of jet lag plus getting tired of playing exhibition games.

[wisteria]

The jet lag shouldn't have been a problem by now. It takes at most 4-5 days to adjust. Team USA needs to re-focus a bit, I think.

[dukeENG2003]

I'd say the team respects our competition, but unfortunately US basketball FANS do not yet. Australia is a GOOD team. They had Argentina down by 19 before eventually yielding to them. I'm not saying we played our best game, we most definitely didn't, but lets give a little credit where credit is due. In all fairness, this was never really a CLOSE game (never under 3 posessions in the second half), just not a 30 pt blowout.

[jipops]

I'd say the team respects our competition, but unfortunately US basketball FANS do not yet. Australia is a GOOD team. They had Argentina down by 19 before eventually yielding to them. I'm not saying we played our best game, we most definitely didn't, but lets give a little credit where credit is due. In all fairness, this was never really a CLOSE game (never under 3 posessions in the second half), just not a 30 pt blowout.

You really hit it there. We have a close game and everyone harps on how our guys played yet no one entertains the notion that maybe the other team played well. There still is very little acceptance from US fans that the rest of the world is a on a level playing field (if not greater) with respect to the US.

[Billy Dat]

I checked out USA Basketball's post-game quotes to see if K had an edge to his "voice"...there was none.

Being the students of K that we all are, perhaps this should come as no surprise. He often speaks about wanting to get to a point where the players are coaching themselves to a certain degree. Examples include when he would let Shane run some in-game huddles during his senior year, etc. I have noticed that during game breaks in these exhibitions, he is in no hurry to bust into the huddle and you can see the players animatedly talking amongst themselves.

Considering how much he speaks about the professionalism of the players on the team and their high individual and collective basketball IQs, I am guessing that he is really leaving it up to them to motivate each other and lead each other. This is probably very smart in that peer pressure is often much stronger then parental pressure. The lessons of Larry Brown's 2004 browbeating (which I am sure was echoed by Karl in 02) have not been lost on him.

So, rather then blast them, I bet he went into the locker room like a dissapointed parent and took the tone of, "You guys know you are better than that..etc"

That's probably the way this team needs to be motivated. Of course, if we hit the medal round and are getting worked by a pick and roll in the second half - I hope he pulls some Xs and Os and #@&@$% out of the bag, too.

[BlueintheFace]

I have been lucky to watch all of every game. It almost seems as if different teams show up to play for the US. Today, as has been noted, we had a lot of one on one, and precious little defense. In other words, the team seems to have regressed. Australia has a good, but not great, team. I hope it is just a combination of jet lag plus getting tired of playing exhibition games.

I think it is because different teams have actually played these games. Nobody will accuse K of showing his hand with regards to rotation. Beyond the moderate surprise of seeing Paul and Williams in together against zones (and at other times as well) we really don't have a great idea of how K intends to approach the upcoming 3 weeks from game to game. However, I think this is partly by design. It is common practice to hold back and deceive your competition before tournaments because of the single elimination format. You want to have some tricks and secrets up your sleeve.

[roywhite]

I checked out USA Basketball's post-game quotes to see if K had an edge to his "voice"...there was none.

Being the students of K that we all are, perhaps this should come as no surprise. He often speaks about wanting to get to a point where the players are coaching themselves to a certain degree. Examples include when he would let Shane run some in-game huddles during his senior year, etc. I have noticed that during game breaks in these exhibitions, he is in no hurry to bust into the huddle and you can see the players animatedly talking amongst themselves.

Considering how much he speaks about the professionalism of the players on the team and their high individual and collective basketball IQs, I am guessing that he is really leaving it up to them to motivate each other and lead each other. This is probably very smart in that peer pressure is often much stronger then parental pressure. The lessons of Larry Brown's 2004 browbeating (which I am sure was echoed by Karl in 02) have not been lost on him.

So, rather then blast them, I bet he went into the locker room like a dissapointed parent and took the tone of, "You guys know you are better than that..etc"

That's probably the way this team needs to be motivated. Of course, if we hit the medal round and are getting worked by a pick and roll in the second half - I hope he pulls some Xs and Os and #@&@$% out of the bag, too.

Good comments, Billy. You're probably right.

I do suspect he wouldn't mind a bit if one of the players (LeBron?, Kobe?) got up in the locker room and spoke bluntly about the need to play better than they did today.

I'm about 98% confident about a gold medal (as opposed to maybe 99% before this last game), but a single elimination medal round carries a big risk.

[sagegrouse]

I'm about 98% confident about a gold medal (as opposed to maybe 99% before this last game), but a single elimination medal round carries a big risk.

99 or 98%?? I can't imagine the probability is nearly that high. Assuming the USA makes the final eight, it still must win three games in a row. Even if the probability of winning an individual playoff game is 90%, the prob. of winning three in a row is 73%.

I'm not counting any chickens until they're scratching around in the yard eating ladybugs.

sagegrouse
'Pardon the agricultural references, but this is ranching country'

[Jim3k]

I'm not counting any chickens until they're scratching around in the yard eating ladybugs.

sagegrouse
'Pardon the agricultural references, but this is ranching country'

If there are ladybugs in your yard, it's a bad idea to let the chickens eat them. They do good work.

Besides, I've seen your ranch and I'm quite sure there are no chickens there.