Just saw this on CBC, and they said there was an estimated total audience of 1.5 billion people, with approx half of that number in China alone. The slogan One world, one dream I think captures this perfectly. Anyways onto the game. Did anyone else catch it? I'm surprised that China did as good as they did the first half. Ultimately they didn't fare too well, but it was an entertain game, with some nice action. When Ming went down later in the game, I found it funny that the commentary dudes were saying that if he injured his ankle again then China wouldn't be able to compete as effectively. Guess it goes to show how much one player can bring to a team. i expect China to make it to the semis at least, and of course the US will win gold if they don't get cocky like Athens. Anyways, what did you think of the game?
saw the last quarter, it was just amusing to watch the Chinese play ball. they really need to sand out some scratches, they did not do well at all, i'd be embarrassed if i lived there. but oh well its just damn basketball.
U.S.A. all the way. We are too good. Kobe and LeBron can beat anyone in the world. This should be in the Sports category by the way.
It was a cool game, I was afraid china might actualy have a chance in the begening but that fear went away about halfway through....
The Athletes that come through the US in Basketball can very rarely be matched by anybody, watching the US play is like watching there practices against there scout team, the struggle only when it comes to technique but when athletism comes into play they can't be matched.
Yeah. The Men's Basketball is easily the most entertaining event in the Summer Olympics. This game was fun. China was relying on their perimeter shooting to win, though. Live by the 3, die by the 3. After the first quarter, we had them figured out. We move around too much for them. We're too speedy. They were tired before the half. And aside from Ming, they have no post game. Aside from Redd, our offense was established in the lane the entire game. We look good. This team is different than the past couple teams we have sent out in the sense that this group has had time to gel. They've played together. Basketball is a team sport. But on that note, other national teams have been playing together for years. Spain will be tough competiton. Lithuania and Argentina are good too. I'm confident we can bring home the gold though.
Yeah I agree, the US has a much greater skill factor than many of the other international teams, but they also have a national league with massive funding. I think if other countries had similar leagues with equal funding in proportion to their population, it would be a much different world stage. As for athleticism I'm not too sure, some of of the Chinese had some fancy footwork. I'm sure with a bit more technique they could easily rival some of the greats. Also china has a massively huge population of 1 billion to pull from to find talent. I think now that China has had more exposure and facilities set up, we're going to be seeing a lot more players like Ming in the future. I agree, I thoroughly enjoyed the men's basketball much more than the other events thus far. I noticed they were doing well in the first quarter, maybe a bit in the second as well, but during the second half you could clearly tell that they were dog tired. The US team was dribbling circles around them, but it is to be expected when playing against some of the finest players in the NBA. All in all I was impressed by the over all pace and the sportsmanship displayed through out. No doubt that Lithuania should be an excellent match; hopefully they can provide an even playing field. I'm curious to see if there will be an upset like the Puerto Rico defeat in Athens, but I doubt. My money is still on the US for the gold. .
Ming is a diamond in a ruff, you can't tell me that players like Lebron with his shear acceleration to the hoop can come out of China.
lol, lebrons gonna be playing for greece in 2010(hopefully) when he goes free agent. i didnt catch this game but i saw parts of the spain vs. greece...last i saw we were down by like 15 points...anyone see that one too?
Yeah. Spain is just filled with a bunch of talent. NBA-worthy talent. I actually think they are the best team in the tournament aside from the US. Pau Gasol plays with these USA guys on a regular basis. So does Calderon. Navarro, too. And a handful of other guys are great international players. Rudy Fernandez is real good. They could give us some trouble.
yes I think spain is the second best team also. They have some good big men some good point guards and shooters. but we have great big men great point guards and great shooters. I do not see us losing. Im interested to watch a lil ricky rubio tho
Oh ya no doubt, Ming is def a diamond in the rough. Just look at him! And I also agree that players like Lebron likely wont come out of China, but the ones that will, I'm sure will be great in their own way. It's just such a huge un-tapped player base, even though basketball is pretty popular there, especially due to Ming. Spain should be fun to watch too! Anyone know when the next US game is?
It was a pretty good game. All I have to say about Ming is hes so fucking big he cant play for long with out having to take a break.