Well, WBC 2002. Yep, it's the World Basketball Championships (for men), 2002, live from Indianapolis this month. Info at www.2002worldbasketball.com I know Pau Gasol, NBA rookie of the year, will be there from Spain, and I think Steve Nash from the Mavs will be there with Canada and his Mavs mate Dirk Nowitzki. I think the Chinese guy who Houston picked number one will be there with the Chinese squad. I know Jason Kidd and Kevin Garnett are on the U.S. squad, and I think Reggie Miller is there as well.
Hopefully they'll improve that official website soon...only four weeks until the start, and it's still just a promotional website. I've got tickets for both Saturdays...seeing CAN-YUG and USA-CHN the first weekend and the semifinals the second weeked. Most teams are starting their preparations...there's a tournament going on in Turkey right now with seven teams who'll be in Indy (plus Bulgaria). Yugoslavia beat Canada 90-79 today, Yugos had their full team except Divac (who will be in Indy last I heard), while Canada was missing Nash and Magloire (MacCulloch won't play because of a foot injury). US doesn't start training until the 17th.
Interesting -- I had no idea Magloire was Canadian. How old is Divac? I would think at this stage of his career, unless his country is strapped for players he'd have said au revoir to national team play and would use the NBA offseason strictly for healing, recuperating, etc. Maybe the same pride of playing for country exists in b-ball as it does in soccer.
From Toronto...he was the first major recruit out of Canada that I remember. I actually don't think he's played for Canada since he graduated from high school, but he sounded pretty solid on playing for them this summer. Divac is 34. He hasn't played for the Yugos since 1999 and this is probably a good chance for a fairwell appearance.
That's a shame. It would have been fun to see Shane Heal play. Think Steve Kerr, but even deadlier with the outside shot. For a short white guy, he is pretty good in international competition.
The US roster is: Ray Allen, Elton Brand, Antonio Davis, Michael Finley, Jason Kidd, Raef LaFrentz, Shawn Marion, Andre Miller, Reggie Miller, Jermaine O'Neal, Paul Pierce, and Ben Wallace. I've heard that Kidd was considering pulling out to recuperate after the Nets' long season, but nothing definitive.
Jason Kidd has pulled out of the US team, supposedly because he aggravated a groin injury...Baron Davis replaces him.