ISTANBUL—Many were concerned for Team USA after barely beating Brazil in a 70-68. But they showed no fear, blowing out Iran in a 88-51 victory. Outside of basketball, it’s usually a political battle. But playing on the hardwood, there is nothing that really goes on than just trying to beat your opponent.

“For me, it’s a normal game,” Iran captain Mahdi Kamrany said.

It was a fairly easy game for the United States.

“We just respected their basketball team and we just played a basketball game,” U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “There’s no political aspect in my mind in the ballgame.”

Kevin Love had 13 points and Kevin Durant had twelve points, has both helped Team USA stay on top in the FIBA World Championships and stay undefeated at a 4-0 notch. Hamed Haddadi led the now 1-3 Iranians with 19 points while Arsalan Kazemi had 14.

“I’m very happy, I played against the best team in the world,” Kamrany said.

However, despite it’s a basketball game, a lot of politics-matter was going on in the scene. A fan was holding a sign that showed a USA flag and an Iran flag which would read “PEACE” in the middle. The closest warlike seen in basketball-terms was when forward Rudy Gay got a bump on Haddadi. Other than, it was a well-played, clean basketball game.

“We should leave politics to the politicians,” U.S. center Tyson Chandler said. “We’re here to play basketball.”

In a war for decades now, the war is now coming to an end as we end a chapter in both countries’ histories. After the game, both coaches nodded and had a good agreement with each other.

“That’s the first level of diplomacy. That’s one thing we’re in agreement with,” Krzyzewski joked.

This is the first time the Iranians faced the Americans, and this could start out to be a fun rivalry between the two since there is not a lot of history between both countries in the sport of basketball.

“That’s one of the beautiful things about sports,” U.S. center Lamar Odom said. “If you think about the history of sports, you take people from different cultures, from different beliefs and bring them together. Sports is the one thing that can kind of bring people together and have a great atmosphere. It was great playing a game like this.”

The U.S. struggled in the Brazil game and a little bit today, but they got a lot better.

“As the game moved along we got better in the game,” Coach K said.

The reserves played excellent for USA, as Danny Granger had ten points and Derrick Rose delivered eleven. Tyson Chandler led USA in rebound with seven along with seven points. Eric Gordon had eight points. Stephen Curry led the team in assists with five along with four points. Both Chandler and Love showed much effort in today’s game and showed that the big men on this team are very important to the team’s success and can be very competitive towards other team’s big men.

“Tyson and Kevin Love showed they could make a contribution, and I think that’s important,” USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo said.

USA looks to keep fighting strong and hope to deliver that FIBA World Championships trophy since 16 years ago in 1994.

“NO ONE…And I mean NO ONE should EVER compare Kobe Bryant to my dad and say that he is anywhere near close to my dad. He’s jagging his game.” This was what Michael Jordan’s son, Marcus Jordan, said on his Twitter account. This one of the tweets he said on his account that has caused much controversy.

But the big news came yesterday, when Jordan was caught partying under probe in Las Vegas, Neveda. Partying at the Strip nightclub, the 19-year-old was too young to be involved in such a thing, as you have to be at least 21 years of age. It was tweeted on August 20th that he spent $35,000 at a Casino.

“Last night was stupid… 35K at Haze,” the University of Central Florida sophomore guard said. “Totals 50K something the whole day.”

Since then, the tweet Marcus made has been removed from his account. Jordan told Fox Sports that he is totally aware with the situation and had a talk with his son along with his wife.

“I didn’t mean it the way it came across,” he said. “My family and friends know the type of person I am.”

Jordan was with his dad and his basketball camp and was seen hanging out with his brother who plays guard for Illinois, Jeffrey, and teammate A.J. Rompza. Jordan went as far to post a video of the three of them hanging out over there. UCF Knight’s basketball had no comment on the situation that happened.

In my opinion, this was a pretty inconsiderate and not a very well thought-out action Marcus Jordan did. He had no idea of what was to come and the consequences that should be to follow. It was not a good deal on his part. However, Jordan still hasn’t learned his lesson. Just tweeted today, Jordan wrote the following: “Im on my way! yeah Im on my way,I never give a fck about what any nga say, the bths all pretty, me Romp and Jeff about to do it for the city.”

Does Jordan need another talk with his parents or what? Does he want to get in trouble? Does he want to be viewed as a bad example? First came the underage gambling tweet, and now here is this: tweeting obscenities. Listen, if you want to share something like that, do it somewhere else. Keep it away from social networks where everybody can see it. Seriously, can it get more inconsiderate than this?

With the rising of the Internet and the decline of our old regular-day usage like newspapers, the new saying for “think before you speak,” has somewhat turned into “Google before you tweet.” Although it sounds humorous, it makes a point. Jordan obviously didn’t think of what he was doing when he was typing that tweet. Although he was most probably sending this message to his friends, obviously, it wasn’t the case as many viewed it.

I remember doing something similar. I posted a very bad song that literally just says obscenities at least once every two-to-five seconds. At the young age I am at, you don’t want that happening. As I posted this on my Facebook account, I really didn’t think about the consequences. And then I get busted as my family checked out the video. And boy you should have saw their shocking impression. However, my father had a talk with me and said the thing that should be reached out to Marcus Jordan: “Before you do something, think about the consequences. If you think something is wrong, don’t do it.”

Jordan really needs to know what he is saying out there to the world. With how famous he is right now and all of the hype that is following towards him, he doesn’t want stupid things happening like this that can damage his career. One way to be successful is obviously thinking before what you do. You want to be viewed as a good, civilized human-being in his society. And when you do things like these, it hurts your reputation and makes you look like a thug.

Obviously, Jordan isn’t a thug. But saying obscenities like he wrote today; well, it just isn’t necessary. Along with that, ripping on Kobe Bryant is just totally wrong. Keep that opinion to yourself. Although I agree, you just shouldn’t be saying that. First of all, Kobe isn’t nowhere near Jordan but it also means you (Marcus) are nowhere near Kobe. It’s true. That’s the fact.

All I am trying to say is think about the consequences. Marcus Jordan is a good guy, like he quoted to the Associated Press. But he seriously needs to stop with what he is doing. He hasn’t learned from his lesson yet, and it is clear when you look at his Twitter account. Obviously, people are going to see that too and be like, “Man, he still hasn’t learned a single thing yet, hasn’t he?”

With over 8,000 followers, Jordan should know what’s to come now.

BY CHAD SMITH

We all know championships mean a lot, sometimes they mean everything. So, how much does everything else mean?

In today’s world where LeBron James teams up with Wade and Bosh, and where the “Big Three” in Boston have had their greatest success as a trio of well-aged players, there are those that choose to stay loyal. Those that choose to go forward with the long haul.

This is not Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, and Amare Stoudamire wanting to go to New York. This is not Paul Gasol being gift wrapped and shipped out to L.A. for nothing in exchange. This is something more meaningful, something more true and loyal. This is one man sticking with one franchise because they believed in him from the beginning.

Reggie Miller made the long trip from UCLA to Indianapolis as the eleventh pick in the 1987 NBA draft. Virtually the entire state of Indiana wanted the Pacers to take Steve Alford, the Indiana Hoosiers standout player, but the Pacers believed Reggie was the guy for them. Hearts broke when the Pacers passed on Alford and took the lanky kid out of UCLA. Fans didn’t know what to think. In their eyes, his older sister was more famous that he was.

It would be interesting to hear from those same fans today. Although nobody can tell what is going to happen, it is clear that the Pacers made the right choice.

Reggie became one of the most deadly shooters the NBA has ever seen. His clutch shots acted as bloody daggers to fellow NBA stars. People in New York and Knicks fans everywhere cringe at the very sound of his name. What Reggie did to the people in that state, and that organization, was just simply electrifying. One of the most memorable plays in NBA history belongs to Reggie, of course involving the Knicks. It is simply known as; eight points, nine seconds.

He is the NBA’s all-time leader in three-pointers. He is every meaning of the word clutch. Even the greats Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant have said that Reggie was the toughest player they have ever had to guard.

This time next year in Springfield, Reggie should be ceremoniously inducted into the Hall of Fame. There are some that question his status there, because he never won a championship, and didn’t have the regular season statistics that most other superstars had. To them I would ask, have you ever seen a Pacers/Knicks playoff game? When the playoffs would begin, Reggie came alive. He became this creature that seemed to be built for playoff type games.

Reggie could become the first full-time Pacer to ever make it into the Hall of Fame. Although others should be in (Slick Leonard, Mel Daniels, Roger Brown, and George McGinnis) nobody is more deserving as a Pacer than Reggie.

Miller currently ranks as the 14th leading scorer of all time with 25,279 points. There are 15 NBA players who have scored 25,000 points or more, and every one (besides Miller and current players Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant) are in the Hall of Fame.

When the Pacers lost in the NBA Finals to the Lakers, they pushed it to six games. Before that, they had made the Eastern Conference Finals five of the past seven seasons. Not counting his rookie year, the Pacers only missed the playoffs twice during Reggie’s 18-year career. Jordan and the Bulls often indicated it was the end of the road.

Only John Stockton played more games for a single franchise. The only other teams Reggie really played for were the numerous All-Star teams, and when he joined the 1996 USA Olympic Team that won a Gold Medal.

In his 18-year NBA career (all with Indiana) he was tireless in his work for the community and the franchise, and he was eternally loyal. He could have chased rings at the end, could have come out of retirement and grabbed one with the Celtics, but being a Pacer for life meant more.

Next summer in Springfield…it’s Miller time.

Again.

Here’s an hilarious post I read over at You’ve Been Blinded:

Danny Granger of the Indiana Pacers is spending his summer vacation in Europe as a member of Team USA. Things are going great on the court -the squad is undefeated- but even with the team’s success Granger can’t wait to get back to the sweet air of the United States. According to Granger’s Twitter account Europeans don’t wear deodorant and smell like dead donkeys.. Which begs the question, when has Danny Granger smelled dead donkeys before?

Read more here

ISTANBUL—Kevin Durant came up big today, helping lead Team USA to a 99-77 victory over Slovenia. Durant, who was the NBA league-leading scorer, is leading the FIBA World Championships in points and is really rocking. He is on fire and is just simply unstoppable. Like his NBA team’s name, he is bringing thunder and havoc to other opponents.

Many believe that the Durantula will have the highest-total scoring-average in Team USA FIBA World Championships’ history. There is no doubt in my mind that it can happen as the small forward went along for 22 points in just 23 minutes, raising USA’s record to 2-0.

However, Slovenia was able to catch up, being trailed 28-23 in the second quarter, and then 42-30 at the end of the half. However, USA then cruised towards a 19-5 run to raise the deficit up towards 61-35. The best Slovenia could do after that was to trail 63-46, then running out. From there, it was all over.

Durant had 14 points in the last game, in just 18 minutes. With today’s points-total, he is now averaging 18 points per game currently. Rudy Gay added 16 points, while Andre Iguodala and Russell Westbrook each added eleven. Eric Gordon, who had a tremendous shooting game last night against Croatia, had a horrendous shooting night today as he only had six points while going two-of-nine overall with and starting out with zero-of-seven. Kevin Love would finish with ten points and eleven rebounds. Lamar Odom would tally up five points with nine rebounds. Derrick Rose would have seven points and five assists.

Slovenia falls to 1-1. Bostjan Nachbar added 13 points for them. Goran Dragic would have seven points with five assists while Gasper Vidmar would have ten points. Samo Udrih would have nine points.

With a hopeful win against Brazil next Monday, USA can wrap-up Group B. With that, they will also face Iran and and Tunisia.

BY CHAD SMITH

Danny Granger played 15 minutes in Saturday’s opening round game against Croatia. He finished with nine points, as Team USA routed the opposition—106 to 78.

Former IU Hoosier Eric Gordon lead the team with 16 points, and team leader Kevin Durant finished with 14 points and eight rebounds. Gordon did not start but provided instant offense from the bench.

This year’s team, which has been called the U.S. “B” team, can earn an automatic berth into the 2012 Olympics by winning the worlds; a feat that’s been rare for the United States to achieve.

The USA squad shot 55 percent from the field and were only out rebounded 41-39, despite using a small lineup. The only true Center on the team, Tyson Chandler, was held to just four points in 11 minutes of action.

Granger did not start for Team USA, but everyone on the bench was able to contribute a significant amount because of the big lead that was established. In the second quarter, the Americans broke it open, as they outscored Croatia 26 to 6.

Team USA’s blinding speed overwhelmed the lumbering Croatian guards, forcing them to reach in often to foul just to stop a potential fast break. If the U.S. continues to defend, they will be extremely difficult to defend in transition, where they are big, fast, and unselfish. They finished the game with 20 assists on 41 field goals.

The U.S. faces Slovenia on Sunday followed by a game against Brazil on Monday. Tomorrow’s game will be televised on ESPN 2 at 9:30am.

ISTANBUL—It’s times like these where you just love watching basketball. Today was that day when Team USA rolled to beat Croatia in the first game of FIBA World Championships set in Turkey. The final score count of the victory was 106-78. It’s been weeks since USA has been criticized for being said of what they can’t do as well as being called “The B-Team.”

Call it as you wish, but Team USA looks hot. And today, they did, especially off of Eric Gordon. The Los Angeles Clippers’ shooting guard was a long-shot for making the FIBA team but made it, and coach Mike Krzyzweski should be happy and relieved that he did. The long-shot player but up some big shots to help blowout Croatia.

There is a lot of confidence building and many are optimistic that this team can win the whole FIBA World Championships since 1994 despite not having a single player from the 2008 Olympics squad and not having top-caliber center. But they can win it, and it will be led by Kevin Durant. Speaking of the Durantula, he scored 14 points in the victory.

“People aren’t expecting us to come out here and win, so we just wanted to make a statement and I think tonight we did,” Durant said.

Gordon led the United States with 16 points along with four three-pointers. With the help of the guard out of Indiana University, he turned a close game that could either way to a large-margin victory that Croatia can’t defeat. Chauncey Billups scored twelve points in the making.

Today’s game was impressive, and if USA can win the whole thing despite being undersized, boy what a feat this would be. Along with that, some of folks who were on the 2008 Olympics squad may need to watch out for what is coming towards them in the 2012 Olympic team tryouts.

Durant was another key feature, bursting for five points in the second quarter along with eight rebounds, all in a span of just 21 minutes. There was no sight for Kobe Bryant or LeBron James, but this time it was a show of Durant and Gordon. From the way they are playing right now, they have an excellent shot at 2012, but we’ll wait for that. Let’s worry about now. If USA can play like they did in the second quarter, many other teams are in for some trouble.

“We like that type of adversity,” Gordon said. “People think we’re too young or too small, but I think we’re playing well as a team and we play much faster when we’re smaller, and we’re just an overall good team.”

Bojan Bogdanovic added 17 points while Marko Popovic had 16 points to help out Croatia in their 28-point loss. Croatia used to be on top, but haven’t done anything that is astounding since winning the bronze medal back in 1994, the same year where USA won it all. Croatia would end up having a bad shooting night, going three-of-17 from the field, and going one-of-13 from three-point range.

“We were good in the first period but then we didn’t fight,” Croatia coach Josip Vrankovic said. “We had some problems about free throws and 3-point field goals. We will be more careful the next day.”

Team USA needs to play strong for the next four games to be in pool play.

“I think that’s what we’re learning to do,” Rudy Gay said. “Every day is a process and we’re getting better at it. We’ve only been playing together for what, five games? So we’re still learning to play with each other.”

Gay and Russell Westbrook had ten points. USA all-together shot 55-percent and were only outrebounded 41-39. That is something to be proud of, despite having a 6′10″ starting center in Lamar Odom, who usually plays in the small forward/power forward range. Kevin Love played well, too, adding ten rebounds in just 13 minutes.

USA will face Slovenia next, looking to bring more of the same energy and intensity they had in the second quarter. Really proud of this team right now and there is a lot of hope for them this year. Let’s go USA!

Indiana Pacers’ center Roy Hibbert has had some solid seasons so far and last year turned out be his best, averaging about double-digits in points and rebounds. Of course, the 7′3″ center will be dynamic in the rebounding side of the ball, but what people don’t know is that he can be a valuable offensive force, too.

Hibbert was seen practicing with legendary center, Bill Walton, and this could vastly improve his game and make him look much different and much better than he was in his previous seasons playing in the National Basketball Association. And with Indy finally adding a dynamic point guard, Hibbert will have a lot of help to become the offensive force.

As for rebounding, Hibbert will probably do a lot more work for this year. With Troy Murphy already shipped off to the New Jersey Nets, the Pacers are pretty weak at the power forward position. Tyler Hansbrough is still a question-mark, and Indy can’t go on with those other guys: Solomon Jones, Josh McRoberts, Magnum Rolle, etc.

And the Pacers certainly cannot put Granger at power forward, although I can see him playing a bit of that this year. Right now, Indy’s main goal is trying not to let Granger play at the four. Most likely, Indy will start Hansbrough. With this, Hibbert could be seeing a lot more boards. He could be like Dwight Howard, who gets mainly all the boards for his team.

Hibbert needs to watch himself. Fouling is still a big issue that is part of him, and he is going to need to watch out for that. But I guess the fouling trouble will decline this season as he has been practicing all off-season with Walton. Hibbert is an important part to the Pacers, and I see him having a prime year.

I bet we are entering the prime years of Hibbert. If not, they are coming. Hibbert is in for a real strong season, in my opinion.

NEW YORK—The New York Knicks signed a familiar face and a face that brought back memories a decade ago. They signed Patrick Ewing Jr., again. As a start out of Georgetown, the Knicks signed him to a deal. Terms of the deal were not announced, according to the reports.

Ewing Jr. was drafted by the Sacramento Kings as the 43rd overall pick of the 2008 NBA Draft. After a series of transactions, Ewing Jr. was acquired by a team where his father became a star: The New York Knicks. However, he would play in the Development League and he missed all of last season due to injuries.

During this year’s Summer League with New York, Ewing Jr. averaged 4.8 points per game. The Knicks look to give him another shot and hope to develop him into a hopeful star like his father once was, who is now an assistant coach for the Orlando Magic and making Dwight Howard into a star.

The more elder Ewing would have a Hall-of-Fame career, most notably with the Knicks and ended his career with the Seattle SuperSonics and the Magic. He would also be elected as an eleven-time All-Star. In my opinion, Ewing stands as one of the Top 20 players in the history of the National Basketball Association. I also rank him the number one player to never win a ring.

The signing of Ewing Jr. brings the Knicks’ roster to 15 players, which is the maximum. With this, New York’s roster is all set and ready for the regular season on paper.

But it brings to a prediction: Can the Knicks make Ewing Jr. develop like his father? Can the “Father Like Son” scenario really work here in Madison Square Garden Arena? It’s a really good possibility. Ewing Jr. is raw and has only been in the NBA for two years. For real, he is actually entering his second year of professional basketball.

Playing with the Knicks is a great way to start off. The 26-year-old can make a difference, despite his small size at power forward: 6′8″ and 240 pounds. He has great athleticism. Now it most probably will be for sure that he won’t be a Hall-of-Famer and not develop into what his father was, unless if there was some sudden miracle. But he can be an important contributor and maybe one of the best bench players. A Sixth Man of the Year award sometime in his career could definitely be in the making.

Who knows? Maybe he can be one of the Top 100 players of all-time. Maybe he can go as far as Top-50. Ewing Jr. really does bring a lot of hope, however. When he played the D-League Knicks’ affiliate, the Reno Bighorns, Ewing Jr. flourished with 16.8 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in 30 games playing with them.

Ewing Jr. could really be something special in my opinion. I like his chances. But right now, it’s too early to tell and I am getting ahead of myself.

But there is hope. And a lot of it.