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Suns' Diaw shining in EuroBasket Tournament

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  • #1

    Suns' Diaw shining in EuroBasket Tournament

    http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2170086

    Updated: Sep. 23, 2005, 12:44 PM ET
    Suns' Diaw shining in EuroBasket TournamentBy Simon Wilkinson
    Special to ESPN.com


    Editor's note: Dozens of NBA players, from stars like Dirk Nowitzki and Tony Parker to role players like Nenad Krstic and Darko Milicic, are participating in the European Championships in Serbia-Montenegro this week. Simon Wilkinson is covering the action for The Press Association in Europe and has agreed to hook us up with daily dispatches. Here is the fifth of his reports.



    BELGRADE, Serbia Montenegro -- It seems the much-awaited diamond in the rough, the future great European player soon to enter the NBA with a bang will not be found at the European Championships, at least not this year.



    The general consensus among experts at the tournament seems to be that the next big European star -- yet to play in the NBA, that is -- will not be found here.



    Although the European Championships might have failed to showcase the future of European NBA players, it has been able to produce some exciting competition and the numerous upsets have made it somewhat comparable to a top seed in the NCAA tournament or an NBA playoff game being upset.



    France is responsible for two of these upsets, having followed their shocking win over hosts Serbia Montenegro with an equally surprising and lopsided defeat of Lithuania Thursday night to avenge their loss to the defending champions in 2003.



    That result now sets up a semifinal with Greece (against whom France lost in the group games) where revenge will once again be the dish Les Bleus will try to serve.





    AP Photo/Dusan Vranic
    Boris Diaw, of France and the Phoenix Suns, is in the running for MVP.Phoenix Suns new acquisition Boris Diaw led the way for the French, pouring in 18 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and dishing out three assists -- in front of his future head coach, Mike D'Antoni, in town to do some basketball clinics.



    But Diaw insisted he wasn't trying to prove his worth to anyone.



    "Obviously I'm glad I was able to play well with him in the crowd looking on, but it's not something that's on my mind while I'm out there on the court. I'm just here trying to play my role and helping our team get as far as possible," he said.



    And role playing is what this tournament is all about. To a certain extent, there's a parallel between the French team and the defending NBA champions San Antonio Spurs -- and it has nothing to do with Tony Parker.



    Every French player knows and understands that he has a role to play for the greater good of the team and they accept that. It's one thing to know it, but a completely different thing to do it.



    To a certain extent, the host nation proved to be the opposite of this. They showed what happens when players become bigger than the team.



    And in a different way, the German team knows it must play around Dallas Mavericks star forward Dirk Nowitzki and that's why it's been successful so far. Should the Germans deviate from that concept later Friday when they take on the undefeated Slovenians, they will have to prepare to play two consolation games to earn a place in next year's World Championships in Japan.



    Russia deviated from their original game plan Thursday and paid a heavy price by losing to Greece for a place in the semifinals. Utah Jazz forward Andrei Kirilenko & Co. started the game strong, using a 13-0 run. They did so by playing with their inside players and not settling for 3-pointers. Some Russian foul trouble, turnovers and missed free throws -- the latter two coming in large part from Kirilenko himself -- enabled Greece to come back into the game and trail only by seven points at halftime.



    But Russia still had the lead and had they kept playing the same way in the second half, they would be preparing for their first semifinal game in a Eurobasket competition since 1997. Instead, they stopped going inside and proceeded to rain a lot of 3s -- 19 attempts in the second half alone -- with no good coming from it.



    Portland Trail Blazers forward Viktor Khryapa was 2-for-8 from downtown and point guard Jon Robert Holden went 0-for-8 from beyond the arc. Even Kirilenko got in on the act, going 1-for-6 outside the 3-point line.



    Although Russia lost the game themselves, Greece stuck to the same game-plan -- even when it had failed in the first quarter -- and eventually got going.



    What has been noticeable in the tournament is that European NBA players who try and play an NBA style in these games don't really succeed, except maybe for Nowitzki.



    Some point to Khryapa's poor performance Thursday and say it is the typical display of an NBA player trying too hard to show he is playing in the best league in the world, even though that style of play is to the detriment of his team in a European competition.



    However, some coaches in this tournament have shown they will not put up with European NBA players who try and showcase too much of their NBA style of play, thereby taking away from the rest of the team.



    French head coach Claude Bergeaud is one of the no-nonsense coaches who's made his message clear from the start that the trio of Parker, Pietrus and Diaw understand they're not there to score 30 points a night. And Bergeaud has even been astute enough to find the best way to get the most out of the Spurs point guard who is recovering from a long promotional summer tour and carrying some injuries. He has been using Parker effectively as a sixth man.



    Asked whether the three were playing well enought to stay within the French team system, Bergeaud had some interesting things to say.


    "They are getting better and better as we advance in the tournament. For Boris it was easier because he played for the national team last year, so the European style of play is not that distant a memory for him," Bergeaud said.


    "But for Tony Parker and Mickael Pietrus, it's taken longer because they haven't been playing for us the past two years. For Tony, he's played about 220 NBA games since his last appearance for France.



    "The one thing that some people may not be able to see by just watching a game, is that it's not easy to switch between NBA style of play and European style of play just like that. It doesn't happen overnight."



    And the opposite is true too, according to the critics. Some European players enter the NBA and can't get to grips with the different style -- even one that emphasizes more one-on-one play, which should please just about anyone, except players like Diaw.



    "I'm not out here to make a name for myself. It's not my style of play and I want to keep it that way. I feel that when I do decide to take shots, I'm not actually forcing anything. I'm either open or I'm taking what the defense is giving me," Diaw said.



    "As for all this talk of being the tournament's best player I don't really pay much attention to it. How can a guy who has shot 4-24 from the free-throw line be MVP? Let's be serious!"



    And Pietrus underlines the difference between playing for the national team and in the NBA.



    "When you play for your country, you can't put yourself first and set out to fulfill your individual goals. It's just not acceptable," he said. I know I could score 30 points for France if I wanted to. Other players could too. But if it's not going to give us the win, then what is the point of it?



    "In the NBA, it's different. Yes, you're still playing for the fans, but more players have individual goals they chase and to a certain extent, it's more acceptable over there. But when you make the switch between playing in the NBA and playing for your country, you need to make sure you forget yourself and start thinking as a group."
    -------------

    The goal should always be to win.
    Tags: None
  • #2
    Re: Suns' Diaw shining in EuroBasket Tournament

    http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_yl...v=ap&type=lgns

    Germany beats Slovenia to reach Euro semis

    By NESHA STARCEVIC, AP Sports Writer
    September 23, 2005
    BELGRADE, Serbia-Montenegro (AP) -- Dirk Nowitzki scored 22 points despite poor shooting Friday to lead Germany past Slovenia 76-62 and into the semifinals of the European Championship against Spain.

    ``We achieved a small sensation no one believed we could do,'' Germany coach Dirk Bauermann said.

    Spain advanced by beating Croatia 100-85 in overtime, with Juan Carlos Navarro scoring the final 12 points of the game. Fran Vasquez scored with 3 seconds left to tie the game at 73 at the end of regulation.

    ADVERTISEMENT


    France and Greece will meet in the other semifinal.

    Mithat Demirel had 15 points for the Germans, making all of his shots from the floor and going 4-for-5 from the line. Pascal Roller also had 15 and Demond Greene 10. Patrick Femerling grabbed 10 rebounds.

    ``Winning this game is like getting the gold medal,'' Germany guard Marko Pesic said.

    Slovenia got 13 points apiece from Sani Becirovic and Primoz Brezec.

    Croatia led by as many as 12 against Spain, but Vasquez and Navarro combined for 16 points in the third quarter to help Spain take a six-point lead.

    Croatia took a three-point lead near the end of regulation. Navarro made a free throw to make the score 73-71, but missed his second attempt. Vasquez grabbed the rebound and made the putback to send the game into overtime.

    ``We were seconds away from heaven, but instead we fell into the hell,'' said Croatia center Nikola Vujcic, who complained about the officiating and the hostile Belgrade crowd. ``It was clear that someone did not want Croatia to do well here in Serbia.''

    Croatia got two technical fouls late in overtime and Navarro made 12 straight free throws to close the game. He finished with 36 points, making 18 of 21 free throws. Spain had 49 free throws and made 38 of them.

    ``Our start was slow, but we got better as the match progressed,'' said Jorge Garbajosa, who had 14 points for Spain. ``In the end, a bit of luck gave us this difficult win.''

    Vasquez added 26 points and nine rebounds.

    For Croatia, Gordan Giricek had 17 points and eight rebounds, and Roko-Leni Ukic and Marko Popovic added 15 each.

    Earlier, Lithuania beat Russia 89-78 in a consolation game to qualify for next year's world championship in Japan.

    Germany went 11-for-23 from the 3-point range. Slovenia was 6-for-22 and shot only 59 percent from the foul line.

    Nowitzki, the tournament's leading scorer and rebounder, went 2-for-8 shots from 3-point range and was 2-for-10 from 2-point range. The Dallas Mavericks star also had nine rebounds.

    ``This time I didn't play so well, but this time my teammates made it up,'' he said. ``The 3-pointers they made in the final quarter broke the game in our favor.''

    The score was 34-34 at halftime. Nowitzki blocked a shot and hit a jumper to open the second half and Demirel made a 3-pointer as Germany began to pull away. Consecutive 3-pointers by Greene and Roller gave Germany a nine-point lead. Germany went up by 17 with five minutes left.

    Lithuania assured itself of finishing fifth or sixth, enough to clinch a spot in Japan. The top six qualify for the worlds. Lithuania was the defending European champion but was eliminated from title contention with Thursday's 63-47 loss to France.

    Paulius Jankunas scored 19 points Friday to lead five Lithuanian players in double figures. Giedrius Gustas had 13 and Ramunas Siskauskas added 12.

    Russia played without Utah Jazz star Andrei Kirilenko, who injured his nose in the 66-61 quarterfinal loss to Greece. Zakhar Pashutin led Russia with 27 points.

    Comment

    • #3
      Re: Suns' Diaw shining in EuroBasket Tournament

      Originally posted by Will Galen


      Vasquez added 26 points and nine rebounds.

      For Croatia, Gordan Giricek had 17 points and eight rebounds, and Roko-Leni Ukic and Marko Popovic added 15 each.
      Vasquez was really impressive, I don't understand why he doesn't want to play in the NBA right now, he seems ready to me.

      Ukic and Marko Tomas also played very well.

      Comment

      • #4
        Re: Suns' Diaw shining in EuroBasket Tournament

        Originally posted by Pingu
        Vasquez was really impressive, I don't understand why he doesn't want to play in the NBA right now, he seems ready to me.

        Ukic and Marko Tomas also played very well.
        Perhaps for the same reason you don't want to go move to Japan for 5 times the salary. You're comfortable where you are. For some people, that's very important. We'll see if he ever comes over.

        Comment

        • #5
          Re: Suns' Diaw shining in EuroBasket Tournament

          Originally posted by Eindar
          Perhaps for the same reason you don't want to go move to Japan for 5 times the salary. You're comfortable where you are. For some people, that's very important. We'll see if he ever comes over.
          Yeah, I understand that, but then, why put your name in the draft?

          Comment

          • #6
            Re: Suns' Diaw shining in EuroBasket Tournament

            Primoz was on fire in the first half, matching Dirk possession for possession, including a sweet hook shot over him. Then their stupid guards decided not to pass to him anymore.
            Come to the Dark Side -- There's cookies!

            Comment

            • #7
              Re: Suns' Diaw shining in EuroBasket Tournament

              Originally posted by Kegboy
              Then their stupid guards decided not to pass to him anymore.
              Obviously they're Peanut Butter intolerant.

              Comment

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