2010 FIBA World Championship 107
Napoleon Dynamite’s fantasy team is better than yours
Jake Stephens, he of “Napoleon Dynamite” fame stars in certainly the best and funniest fantasy basketball ad campaign ever. ESPN’s fantasy basketball ads feature Stephens (who apparently has some serious access to much-wanted mobile phone numbers) exhorting his charges to, you know, win one for the fantasy team.
Last look at what FIBA Worlds meant to Lithuania
Let’s take just one last gander at the FIBA World Championship before closing the book on that tournament and opening Euroleague play for 2010-11…
Coach Scariolo philosophizes and speculates on new Euroleague rules
As the Euroleague Qualifying Rounds tip off tonight, enthusiasts will definitely want to check out Team Spain/BC Khimki Moscow Region coach Sergio Scariolo breaking down what the new court means on a practical, strategic level. Yes, it’s true. NBA-rules supremacists finally get their way as Euroleague basketball has adopted the longer three-point shot arc and […]
Serbian suspicion confirmed: Photo shows Tunceri stepped out
All Joey Crawford jokes and half-kidding aside, BallinEurope tries not to fault referees for blown calls too often. Nor does BiE want to get into the habit of blaming the zebras for losses; for a long time, the rant from yours truly has been something along the lines of “Well, your team shouldn’t have been […]
FIBA World Championship final: What to watch for in USA-Turkey match
And now, the conclusion of the 2010 FIBA World Championship. In hindsight, it looks like a meeting made inevitable by destiny: Hosts Turkey riding their home advantage and deploying its strongest roster since 2001 (if not ever) to meet the world’s basketball public enemy no. 1, Team USA. Since no one needs reasons to watch […]
Twelve takes on the FIBA World Championship final four
BallinEurope can hardly believe that the final four round of the 2010 FIBA World Championship is here … this fascinating and fun tournament wraps up this weekend, and BiE is happy to see The Continent well-represented and definitely well self-acquitted. Without further ado, here are twelve bits ‘n’ bites to enjoy going into the Lithuania-USA […]
Lithuania wins decisively; three million invited to party
“Celebrate good times,” as they say, “come on!” Of course the folks in Lithuania need no such exhortative encouragement after blowing past Team Argentina last night, 104-85, to reach the 2010 FIBA World Championship final four. The tournament has represented an awesome achievement for Europe in general, with three of the four teams remaining, and […]
FIBA World Championship semi-finals: Of Lithuanian fight songs and Fearless Predictions™
With the informal Turkish national fight song “Oniki Dev Adam” getting lots of media play thanks to the stirring renditions performed by hometown crowds at the 2010 FIBA World Championship, BallinEurope thought it would be a good time to give props to Lithuania’s own popular sports anthem.
How it feels to be a Lithuanian fan
Last Tuesday in the 2010 FIBA World Championship, Team Lithuania completed a huge comeback to defeat the heavily-favored Spain 76-73 – just another win on the way to the tournament round, albeit an exceedingly exciting one, right? Wrong. BallinEurope’s man in Lithuania, known in this space since last year’s LKL championship series insanity as Y., […]
Perovic: No Gasol is the difference for Spain
When Serbia and Spain meet tonight to determine which of the European powers will advance to the 2010 FIBA World Championship final four, it will mark the third time the squads meet in one year – in fact, it’s been 366 days since the relatively unheralded young Serbs surprised the sluggish Spaniards in their Eurobasket […]
Tuesday cigarettes: FIBA World Championship smokin’
For longtime readers of BallinEurope, here’s a brief trip down Memory Lane … we’ll call these “Tuesday cigarettes,” a collection of quotes, links and YouTubes (especially YouTubes) focused on the 2010 FIBA World Championship. Inhale and enjoy! • Team Russia head coach David Blatt, who “was one of those kids crying when the American team […]
BallinEurope live chats, makes more Fearless Predictions™
From the Shameless Self-Promotion Department, BallinEurope reminds readers to represent along with yours truly in the Daily Dime Live chatroom over at ESPN.com tonight starting at 5pm CET (11am EST). As for the games themselves, Official BallinEurope Fearless Predictions™ follow…