FIBA World Cup

[Half-Full]

Jaylen Brown is still playing for the same team as A Baynes.

What a terrible exhibition of basketball "skills". J Brown dribbles the ball for 15 seconds and then "passes" the ball to the timekeeper.

Have grown tired of his act, and his want of $170million from the Celtics.


Tatum actually provided the only two real highlight plays of the game. It is hard for him, and others, to get into good form when the minutes are shared and subs are made so often.

Would think the horrible coaching staff would play to win in the big game coming up versus Canada.

Why the coaches are terrible, they let Joe Harris be some sort of isolation scorer off the dribble, talk about delusions of grandeur. The only time he sat in the corner and waited to get the ball to shoot there, he got the 3.

Smart, 100% losing record as Team Captain.

If Team USA is losing to some team with Mary Kay and Golding, what will happen against Serbia?



For those who thought Kemba was a distributor, 1.5 assists per game.

At times an unstoppable scorer, so just another Irving or I Thomas.





Bet none of you knew that Nick Fazekas was Japanese.

Not sure Team USA will be able to beat Japan, let alone Turkey and Czechia.

Popovich, as always, a giant fraud and is nothing without tanked-for Timmy.
Mitchell, volume shooter. Lopez, acts like an out of control Rasheed Wallace now. Plumlee, his is Team USA's Scalabrine.


The 1994 Team USA may have been unlikeable, with horrible people who were horrible, but at least they won.


If Team USA is "Team Shamrock", the Celtics just lost to Baynes and the Spurs' 6th Man.

Given Coach Pop's record (winningest coach in NBA history, winning record in each of his 22 seasons with the Spurs, 5 NBA titles), your assertion that he is a "fraud" is laughable.

[Bar Fight]

:lol: Good lord some of yall are sensitive. Anything other than glowing reviews of our players and you lose your ****

Its weird how certain posters avoid this thread at all costs after wins/positive news and only show up after negative news.

Couldn't the same be said about posters who only show up and comment when they play well (hence why this thread was a ghost town last night with only like 2-3 posters contributing to the GT)?

Game started after midnight on a Friday— most arent going to stay awake for that.

If you didn't watch the game, how exactly are you going to criticize me for saying I wasn't impressed with two of our players performances in the game?

[SmartWentCrazy]

:lol: Good lord some of yall are sensitive. Anything other than glowing reviews of our players and you lose your ****



Couldn't the same be said about posters who only show up and comment when they play well (hence why this thread was a ghost town last night with only like 2-3 posters contributing to the GT)?

Game started after midnight on a Friday— most arent going to stay awake for that.

If you didn't watch the game, how exactly are you going to criticize me for saying I wasn't impressed with two of our players performances in the game?

When did I say I didnt watch. DVRs exist for a reason...

[return2glory]

Honestly haven’t been impressed with Tatum and Brown at all. Look like the exact same players they were last year.

I wouldn’t look too much into it. It’s FIBA. Their roles will be different with the Celtics. Not to mention it’s been 3 games.

Their roles have nothing to do with the fact that their handles are still mad shaky (and in Brown's case, just horrific) and their court vision is questionable (particularly Brown, who made appalling decisions with the ball)

It’s only a few games, but I’ve seen improvement in Tatum’s body and passing already.

I would agree with you on Brown in the few games. He is the same player so far as he was his first 3 years. Poor handles, bad court awareness and low BBIQ. On the game thread I called him the equivalent of a skinny fat guy. Basically he is a smart dumb player.

I don’t expect as much from Brown as a lot of people do here. I think he is a solid player, nothing great. I don’t except him to ever be an all-star, but would of course love if he became one while playing for the Celtics.

Tatum, I expect will be an all star player at some point and I think he will have a big year.

[Slartibartfast]

Australia has a quality team and they did a great job of exploiting weaknesses. With so much size, they were able to neutralize a lot of Team USA's defensive quickness. They used their huge bigs to pulverize our guys on multiple screen actions and then roll to the hoop for drop downs and offensive boards. Their bigger guys (including Ingles, who is huge for a guard) could also see over the top to make interior passes.

Our lack of size really hurt on contests too. All they had to do was bait the lone USA big to commit and then rim the was open for business.

Offensively, I thought USA did a pretty good job using quickness in transition (Jaylen had some bad brain farts under pressure but he also had some great transition takes). But having so many combo forwards on the wings and so little confidence from the bigs handling the ball made them vulnerable to Delladova/Mills pressure. The only guy other than Kemba/Mitchell who can create consistently from 25 feet out in the halfcourt is Middleton and he wasn't very good or aggressive. They baited Kemba and Mitchell into some hero-ball as a result.

Still, USA is plenty formidable. With a smaller rotation, I think they can get their forwards and bigs more comfortable and aggressive taking advantage of the attention Kemba and Mitchell draw. Middleton and Tatum could have both been more aggressive and both missed some decent looks. Barnes I thought did a solid job.

If I'm Pop, I'd start Kemba, Smart, Middleton, Tatum and Turner. Then use Mitchell as the 6th man, Lopez as the alternate big and Jaylen and Barnes as the back-up swings. Keep White, Plumlee and Harris as the deep bench.

[31to6]

Team USA had won what, 78 straight games over the last 13 years? While we all know this team sucks by Team USA standards there's nothing wrong with noting that something that had happened 78 straight times didn't happen for a 79th time, without people getting their dander up on the tired subject of who's a real fan/who's a good poster -- especially when two of our guys had pretty pedestrian/poor games. It's a message board game thread it's going to be o k a y

[Parliament10]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fan_(person)

A fan, or fanatic, sometimes also termed aficionado or supporter, is a person who is enthusiastically devoted to something or somebody, such as a singer or band, a sport or a sports team...

​Fan --
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/fan

a person who is very much interested in and spends a lot of time watching or reading about, esp. an entertainer or sports team.

Fanatic --
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/fanatic

a person who is extremely interested in something, to a degree that some people find unreasonable.

I think that when you are a Fan, you're passionate about your team.
Some people do go too far though, in their negativity. (Tough Love?)

I'm the Exact opposite, though. -- I'll support the team, No Matter What. (Green Goggles?)
But am I any less right, or wrong?


Don't Rain too much on My Happiness.
And I won't Spread too much Sunshine on your Criticism.

[Slartibartfast]

I wouldn’t look too much into it. It’s FIBA. Their roles will be different with the Celtics. Not to mention it’s been 3 games.

Their roles have nothing to do with the fact that their handles are still mad shaky (and in Brown's case, just horrific) and their court vision is questionable (particularly Brown, who made appalling decisions with the ball)

It’s only a few games, but I’ve seen improvement in Tatum’s body and passing already.

I would agree with you on Brown in the few games. He is the same player so far as he was his first 3 years. Poor handles, bad court awareness and low BBIQ. On the game thread I called him the equivalent of a skinny fat guy. Basically he is a smart dumb player.

I don’t expect as much from Brown as a lot of people do here. I think he is a solid player, nothing great. I don’t except him to ever be an all-star, but would of course love if he became one while playing for the Celtics.

Tatum, I expect will be an all star player at some point and I think he will have a big year.

Jaylen needs to be put in a position to succeed. He should never be tasked with creating from behind the arc unless he has a major mismatch.

But focusing so much on what he can't do will lead to undervaluing him. He has big ugly flaws. But he has enduring strengths that allow him to shine pretty brightly in the right role. He's the quickest defender on team USA outside of Marcus and maybe Mitchell. He is amazingly fast in transition. And he will assault the rim effectively if you get him the ball in the halfcourt with open space (kickouts) or shorter distances (mid-post).

Tatum on the other hand is easy to overvalue, IMO, because he has fewer ugly flaws. He rarely makes boneheaded plays. He's calm with the ball. But he's also less dynamic. His shot was off and he couldn't contribute much other than his usual solid team D. Jaylen, for better or worse, brings a dynamism to the game that doesn't depend as much on his scoring and rhythm.

I value them both about the same.

[OldCeltics]

Team Shamrock USA

[Triple7]

My favorites were after the wins, tons of "yeah we won but we didn't look impressive, team is horrible to watch".

"Hurr durr... everyone isn't like me - die hard green goggles wearing Celtics fan. This board sucks!"

Yes, that team was miserable to watch even during lot of their wins. Great example being entire series against Pacers. Not a single end to end great performance.

Naw, I called this team out repeatedly when they sucked. I also cheered them when they win.

Others like to just bitch and ignore the positive.

You guys need to lighten up a bit. Every poster is different. Some are negative thinkers, whiners, and some are homers. What matter is we root for the same team. With all the different characters here, this makes our board so much more fun, compared to some boring fan bases like the nets and bucks.

[Bar Fight]

Game started after midnight on a Friday— most arent going to stay awake for that.

If you didn't watch the game, how exactly are you going to criticize me for saying I wasn't impressed with two of our players performances in the game?

When did I say I didnt watch. DVRs exist for a reason...

Did you fast forwards the parts where they were completely mediocre (so, most of the game)? Not sure how you could have watched that and been impressed with them.

[Feed Your Head]

If you didn't watch the game, how exactly are you going to criticize me for saying I wasn't impressed with two of our players performances in the game?

When did I say I didnt watch. DVRs exist for a reason...

Did you fast forwards the parts where they were completely mediocre (so, most of the game)? Not sure how you could have watched that and been impressed with them.

Or, he's not overreacting to one exhibition lol. You said you haven't been impressed with either of them and that they look like the same players. Where were you when Tatum has looked really good before last night?

That's what SWC was alluding to.

[SmartWentCrazy]

If you didn't watch the game, how exactly are you going to criticize me for saying I wasn't impressed with two of our players performances in the game?

When did I say I didnt watch. DVRs exist for a reason...

Did you fast forwards the parts where they were completely mediocre (so, most of the game)? Not sure how you could have watched that and been impressed with them.

Not sure I said that either, but keep trying

[Bar Fight]

When did I say I didnt watch. DVRs exist for a reason...

Did you fast forwards the parts where they were completely mediocre (so, most of the game)? Not sure how you could have watched that and been impressed with them.

Or, he's not overreacting to one exhibition lol. You said you haven't been impressed with either of them and that they look like the same players. Where were you when Tatum has looked really good before last night?

That's what SWC was alluding to.

I watched that game too. He hit shots. That was really the only significant difference between that game and this one. Still haven't seen nearly the improvement on ball handling, shot selection, and court vision from Tatum and Brown that you would hope for going into their 3rd and 4th year. It's not overreacting to one game to say I'm not impressed. That's no different than yall acting like he's a superstar after a good game.

[Bar Fight]

When did I say I didnt watch. DVRs exist for a reason...

Did you fast forwards the parts where they were completely mediocre (so, most of the game)? Not sure how you could have watched that and been impressed with them.

Not sure I said that either, but keep trying

So what exactly is your issue with me saying I wasn't impressed with them? Seems like you just can't handle criticism of those guys.

[yeahM8]

just watched. that was great!!!!

big moment for basketball in australia.

pop def being pop in there, committing treason when patty going off ahha love it.

[CeltsfanSinceBirth]

Next game against Canada should be fun. Cory Joseph is ok. Birch should be a player people should keep an eye on. If he ever gets some confidence, he could be a good big off the bench. Nice athleticism, active body. Problem is he's a coward. When I watched Canada vs Nigeria, he caught the ball deep a few times and dished it out when he could have dunked it if he went up strong.

USA should have a 20 point win. More size, faster players. Nigeria pulled away when they started to push the ball on Canada.

[Feed Your Head]

Did you fast forwards the parts where they were completely mediocre (so, most of the game)? Not sure how you could have watched that and been impressed with them.

Or, he's not overreacting to one exhibition lol. You said you haven't been impressed with either of them and that they look like the same players. Where were you when Tatum has looked really good before last night?

That's what SWC was alluding to.

I watched that game too. He hit shots. That was really the only significant difference between that game and this one. Still haven't seen nearly the improvement on ball handling, shot selection, and court vision from Tatum and Brown that you would hope for going into their 3rd and 4th year. It's not overreacting to one game to say I'm not impressed. That's no different than yall acting like he's a superstar after a good game.

Tatums court vision has been significantly better, a lot of people have pointed out. But your mind isnt changing, so let's call it.

[Bar Fight]

Or, he's not overreacting to one exhibition lol. You said you haven't been impressed with either of them and that they look like the same players. Where were you when Tatum has looked really good before last night?

That's what SWC was alluding to.

I watched that game too. He hit shots. That was really the only significant difference between that game and this one. Still haven't seen nearly the improvement on ball handling, shot selection, and court vision from Tatum and Brown that you would hope for going into their 3rd and 4th year. It's not overreacting to one game to say I'm not impressed. That's no different than yall acting like he's a superstar after a good game.

Tatums court vision has been significantly better, a lot of people have pointed out. But your mind isnt changing, so let's call it.

My mind will change when I see improvements. And I really haven't to this point. His court vision doesn't look any different than it did in the second half of last season. Better than Brown, but still has serious tunnel vision much of the time. Brown flat out missed so many open guys/mismatches last night. Both of them need to be significantly better if they're gonna be high usage wings

[Feed Your Head]

I watched that game too. He hit shots. That was really the only significant difference between that game and this one. Still haven't seen nearly the improvement on ball handling, shot selection, and court vision from Tatum and Brown that you would hope for going into their 3rd and 4th year. It's not overreacting to one game to say I'm not impressed. That's no different than yall acting like he's a superstar after a good game.

Tatums court vision has been significantly better, a lot of people have pointed out. But your mind isnt changing, so let's call it.

My mind will change when I see improvements. And I really haven't to this point. His court vision doesn't look any different than it did in the second half of last season. Better than Brown, but still has serious tunnel vision much of the time. Brown flat out missed so many open guys/mismatches last night. Both of them need to be significantly better if they're gonna be high usage wings

Brown should never be a high usage wing, IMO.