Eurobasket 2009

[Tiago]

Take out Parker from France and they're worse than Belgium. What a horrible team that was.

Exactly. But I think they'll still make to Eurobasket throught extra qualifying round next year, same as Italy. The best players will come to play.

there is just one spot left for the Eurobasket, and 6 teams in the Additional Qualifying Round!

France
BIH
Italy
Portugal
Finland
Belgium

Portugal will pick that spot

[AdamTheGreek]

Greece and the Skops will finally play, that game in Poland will be intense.

[Theo Papaloukas]

Greece should be a contender here. The squad will probably be:
PG - Dimtris Diamantidis/Theo Papaloukas
SG - Vasilis Spanoulis/Nikos Zisis/Nick Calathes (hopefully)
SF - Panagiotis Vasilopoulos/Stratos Perperoglou/Giorgios Printenzis (more likely)
PF - Antonis Fotsis/Costas Tsartsaris
CT - Giannis Bourosis/Sofoklis Schortsanitis/Kosta Koufos

If Koufos doesn't play, look for Andre Glyniakadis to be there.

Spanish team will always be the favorites with a squad as below:
PG - Jose Calderon/Ricky Rubio/Sergio Rodriguez
SG - Juan Carlos Navarro/Rudy Fernandez
SF - Alex Mumbru/Carlos Jimenez
PF - Felipe Reyes/Jorge Garbajosa/Victor Claver
CT - Pau Gasol/Alex Mumbru

Other contenders will be:
Serbia, Turkey, Croatia, Russia, and Lithuania.

A full strength French team would be very good, it would look like this, but it probably won't happen.

PG - Tony Parker/Joseph Gomis
SG - Mickael Pietrus/Nando de Colo/Tariq Kirksay
SF - Nicolas Batum/Yakoubha Diawara
PF - Boris Diaw/Ian Mahimni
CT - Ronny Turiaf/Joakim Noah/Johan Petro

[sorokii]

Spanish team will always be the favorites with a squad as below:

PG - Jose Calderon/Ricky Rubio/Sergio Rodriguez
SG - Juan Carlos Navarro/Rudy Fernandez
SF - Alex Mumbru/Carlos Jimenez
PF - Felipe Reyes/Jorge Garbajosa/Victor Claver
CT - Pau Gasol/Alex Mumbru

should be like this:

PG - Jose Calderon/Ricky Rubio/Sergio Rodriguez
also Raul Lopez, Carlos Cabezas and Victor Sada have chance to be in, instead Ricky or Sergio, depending on shape.
SG - Juan Carlos Navarro/Rudy Fernandez
SF - Alex Mumbru/Carlos Jimenez
Carlos Jimenez I think has retired from NT, so we will see Victor Claver, Saul Blanco or any surprise in this spot, surely the weakest of Spanish NT
PF - Felipe Reyes/Jorge Garbajosa/Victor Claver
CT - Pau Gasol/Alex Mumbru
I think you ment Marc Gasol, not Alex Mumbru

[Rasho Brezec]

You left out Slovenia as a contender.

[penzias]

Spanish team will always be the favorites with a squad as below:

PG - Jose Calderon/Ricky Rubio/Sergio Rodriguez
SG - Juan Carlos Navarro/Rudy Fernandez
SF - Alex Mumbru/Carlos Jimenez
PF - Felipe Reyes/Jorge Garbajosa/Victor Claver
CT - Pau Gasol/Alex Mumbru

should be like this:

PG - Jose Calderon/Ricky Rubio/Sergio Rodriguez
also Raul Lopez, Carlos Cabezas and Victor Sada have chance to be in, instead Ricky or Sergio, depending on shape.
SG - Juan Carlos Navarro/Rudy Fernandez
SF - Alex Mumbru/Carlos Jimenez
Carlos Jimenez I think has retired from NT, so we will see Victor Claver, Saul Blanco or any surprise in this spot, surely the weakest of Spanish NT
PF - Felipe Reyes/Jorge Garbajosa/Victor Claver
CT - Pau Gasol/Alex Mumbru
I think you ment Marc Gasol, not Alex Mumbru

Yes, as you say, carlos jimenez has retired from NT, and Pau Gasol is unlikely to be next year in Eurobasket. He hasn't said anything yet but everyone assumes he won't play as he did in 2005. Also the presence of Garbajosa is doubtful.
Ricky Rubio is 100% sure, no doubt. Sada, Cabezas or Sergio would be the 3rd string PG.

[brassviews]

I hope Italy makes it though it's going to be tough with France in the way.

[KWSN-Men]

Ettore Messina refused the offer to become a head coach of Greece. He would have been a serious addition to the NT with his experience.

Since the draw was not posted I'll add it here.

Group A (Poznan)
FYROM
Croatia
Israel
Greece

Group B (Gdansk)
Russia
Qualifier
Germany
Latvia

Group C (Warsaw)
Great Britain
Serbia
Spain
Slovenia

Group D (Wroclaw)
Poland
Turkey
Lithuania
Bulgaria

[parso15]

Group D (Wroclaw)
Poland
Turkey
Lithuania
Bulgaria

Turkey & Lithuania are in the same group as usual

[brassviews]

I still don't know how scrub teams like Macedonia and Bulgaria made it.

Italy and France should be in their spots with the amount of talent they possess.