I know basketball is not one of the top sports in Australia but it's good to see that there are growth possibilities there. I hope this helps grow the game Down Under! Basketball is the greatest game in the world!
USA game tonight at midnight EST. vs. Australia!
It's live on NBA TV
I'm just going to sit here and be an Aussie for a while....
Congrats Vegemite! The Boomers really took it to the US Team!
Gives pop the motovational piece he needs to make sure they dont dip through the tourney too.
Win/win for everyone.
Massive thank you to my brother from HoopBall Dynasty League 4 Yatin! He went to the Team USA vs. Team Canada game earlier today and sent in this GREAT breakdown of the game:
USA vs Canada 26/8 Recap:
-Team USA came out in the first quarter with a vengeance after going down to my Team Australia at the hands of might Patty Thrills few days preceding in Melbourne.
-They played with more purpose on the defensive end but were still sloppy on the offensive end with a large number of turnovers
-Jaylen Brown was too quick for the Canadian second unit, often blowing past defenders finishing with 19 points on 72% from the field, he also has very good lateral quickness and defensive IQ really was a stand out player on the night. In my opinion, he was the player of the night. I think Myles Turner got the honors but I feel that was more due to Canada’s lack of a real big man rather than how well Turner played.
-Myles Turner got up and down the court well on a fast-paced offense, the 5 offensive boards were huge for Team USA but again I feel those were due to Canada’s lack of a real Center.
-Tried to go small ball with Harrison Barnes at the 5 but it wasn’t very conducive to what they were trying to achieve from it as Canada’s Khem Birch and Melvin Ejim played the 4 and 5 spots against the USA’s small ball line ups – Birch and Ejim were able to switch and rotate very easily on defense and often out rebounded the USA’s small ball line up
-Every time Lopez/Turner weren’t on the court, Khem Birch managed to get buckets inside
-Jayson Tatum looked like he was getting to his spots and creating shots for himself extremely easily, but wasn’t his night only sinking 2/11 from the field. I can’t get over how high and tight his form is, so nice.
-Crowd loved Brook Lopez, it was insane, there were ‘WE WANT LOPEZ’ chants constantly going on and ‘MVP’ chants when he finally checked in, in the second half
-Khris Middleton struggled mightily for rhythm and looked out of synch with the offence, capping an ugly 0/8 night from the field for him. I was expecting big things from him on the night after he received his pay day with that sweet max extension with the Bucks. I hope for Giannis’ play off aspirations and my Dynasty team in HoopBall Dynasty League 4, he plays nothing like this when the NBA season starts hahaha!
-Kemba and Donovan back court was exciting to watch, I imagine that is what the Jazz will look like this season with a back court pairing of Conley and Mitchell. Mitchell’s explosiveness was a real treat to watch live, his ability to distribute was also something that surpassed my expectations.
-There were two standout Canadian players this game;
Canadian power forward, Kyle Wiltjer, dominated in the second half for Team Canada after an early heat check after the break from behind the arch. Wiltjer had a decent midrange game as well
Canadian starting point guard, Kevin Pangos , who is also the captain of the team played well and created good looks for his team mates. Unfortunately, his team mates lacked the finesse to finish many of the looks
-Melvin Ejim played a very PJ Tucker-esque role for the Canadians, undersized 4 that banged above his weight with the bigs when Birch was off. He picked up 5 boards and his defence was good on and off ball, ending with 5 steals. Was not much of a factor on offence though, often standing in the pocket for corner 3’s.
Easy win for Team USA!
Wow what a breakdown!
First 3 games (pool play)
Sept. 1 / 8:30 pm
USA vs Czech Republic @ Shanghai, China
Sept. 3 / 8:30 pm
USA vs Turkey @ Shanghai, China
Sept. 5 / 8:30 pm
USA vs Japan @ Shanghai, China
