AJC > Sports > Hawks > Blog > Archives > 2008 > August > 20
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Quittin’ time?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
SMYRNA - The greatest upset in Australian sports history, per legendary Aussie hoopster Andrew Gaze, never got off the ground Wednesday morning in Beijing.
Team USA trashed the Boomers 116-85, blowing open a reasonably competitive game just before halftime for their sixth straight blowout win (they’ve led by 25 or more in every single game) in the competition.
Andrew Bogut and his mates on the Australian national team had dominated their competition leading up to their quarterfinal matchup against Team USA.
But they were no match for the US early on and after a Deron Williams 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer, it was complete domination.
I’m a bit sick that I woke up this early to watch what turned out to be a glorified scrimmage for the US (a blowout game along with the repeated totally inconsequential references to his son Chris by NBC analyst Doug Collins is a tough way to spend the early morning). The Australians didn’t seem to have the guts or talent to muster much of a comeback once the US grabbed them by the throat.
Not even some spirited third quarter smack talk from some anonymous Aussie forward that needs a shave (he barked at Dwyane Wad after he made a 3-pointer and was fouled by Wade with his team down a cool 27 points) could liven up this tail-whipping.
The next time someone espouses the virtue of the international game and how fantastic it is, remind them that every time one of these international teams gets down big they quit. I mean they just shut it down and take a beating without so much as a frown. If Team USA pulled a stunt like that they’d get roasted the way they did during the past few international competitions when they struggled.
That’s something I’m just not used to seeing. NBA teams that get down big always seem to crawl their way back into the game. At least they try to crawl their way back (hey, you remember the Hawks from a couple years back. They were the kings of getting down huge and then storming back only to lose anyway).
Apparently that resilience isn’t a part of the package for the Australians. Bogut, the Bucks’ $72 million (with incentives) man was invisible out there. I had to scan the screen several times to make sure he was out there, because he had no presence (his ankle injury flared up again at just the right time).
The performance of Bogut and his teammates was a supreme letdown after all the chatter from the Boomers leading up to the game, though in his defense, Bogut wasn’t nearly as brash as some others.
Even after their huge win over Lithuania, he realized that Wednesday’s task would be far greater than anything they’d done before this. “”I mean, they are the best players in the world individually and more talented than every one of us, but we don’t play individual basketball. We move the ball very well,” Bogut said to the assembled press in China. ”That’s what we’re going to have to do against those guys. If we can shoot better than we shot [against Lithuania] we’ll be in with a chance, otherwise it’s going to be a tough game.”
Well said Mr. Bogut. Well said.
Hopefully Argentina or Greece will provide a much stiffer test for Team USA, because this one was a joke.
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