HoopsHype.com Rumors

KC Johnson: Covered Deng's entire NBA career. He loves playing for Bulls. Rarely seen him happier, prouder than here. Big moment he handled w/ class. Twitter

Chicago Bulls, Luol Deng, Great Britain, Olympics 

Britain had to go through a lengthy process to prove to governing body Fiba that they were good enough to play at London 2012, but with just one win, questions may now be asked about their progress on the global stage. "We would love to have advanced," Deng continued. "There were a couple of sleepless nights but it's all worth it. In the future it will make all of us hungry for more, and better players. "There were a lot of mistakes. We had turnovers and I made a lot of careless plays. Individually we all have to get better, but collectively we've got to do a better job," the Chicago Bulls player added. BBC

Luol Deng, Great Britain, Olympics 

Marc Stein: Post-game @LuolDeng9 for Bulls Nation: "Did I look like I needed surgery? I'm fine right now. I feel great." Twitter

Chicago Bulls, Luol Deng, Injuries, Great Britain, Olympics 

Tom Withers: Luol Deng on Britain's first OLY hoop win since '48: "This was a vision we had early on. We made history. You've got to start somewhere." Twitter

Chicago Bulls, Luol Deng, Great Britain, Olympics 

Ian Whittell: David Blatt, the man who (might have) said GB shouldnt be in the Olympic tournament is now going out of his way to say nice things about us Twitter

Coaching, Russia, Great Britain, Olympics, David Blatt 

Ian Whittell: Chris Finch: "I have things in the States I need 2 concentrate on. I've enjoyed it and I'd like to stay involved in some capacity but I'm not sure what my future commitments will allow ... " Lets hope he can sign off with a W in the BBL derby v Bob Donewald and China. Twitter

Coaching, Russia, Great Britain, Olympics, David Blatt, Chris Finch 

Patty Mills' 39-point haul against Great Britain has pumped up his teammates and inspired tweeters to get #Boomers trending in Australia on Sunday. The Boomers came from behind in the third quarter to smash Britain 106-75, securing their spot in the quarter-finals. Boomers player Joe Ingles tweeted his jubilation after the game: "So proud to be an Aussie and especially a Boomer!! Love playing with these guys and for my country! So proud of our team tonight! Maybe the best second half I have been apart (sic) of! Onto the next one... #boomers" Mark Worthington tweeted: "Love being an Aussie. True fighting spirit. Best when our backs are against the wall. Love being a BOOMER!!!!! #London2012" West Australian

Twitter, Patrick Mills, Great Britain, Australia, Olympics 

Ian Whittell: not official yet but expect tomorrow to be Chris Finch's last game as GB coach. Decision taken long before last nights disaster. wants to concentrate on NBA career. an amazing 7 years in charge of GB and has done an unreservedly fantastic job. last night doesnt alter that Twitter

Coaching, Great Britain, Olympics, Chris Finch 

“There are like 250,000 Lithuanians in Great Britain,” said veteran forward Darius Songaila, who had stints in the NBA with Sacramento, Chicago, Washington, New Orleans and Philadelphia before returning to Europe the past two seasons. “A lot of people come out and support us. We find Lithuanians working in the stands and security and the cafeteria. Everywhere. The crowd is unbelievable coming out and supporting us. It’s almost like a home game.” ESPN.com

Darius Songaila, Great Britain, Olympics, Lithuania 

Ian Whittell: GB coach Chris Finch: "We have an NBA player too. Hes trying 2 get to the bucket, people are holding him, jumping him, riding him 2 the hoop. I don't think he's getting the respect he deserves for his All Star level of play. Luols a very nice guy, sometimes too nice. I was happy to see him angry tonight because he needs to be angry. He deserves more respect." Twitter

Spain, Great Britain, Olympics, Chris Finch, Daniel Clark 

Marc Stein: GB's Dan Clark on Calderon dribbling out clock: "Me and (Deng) both fouled him but the ref obviously didn't want to play the extra five min" Twitter

Jose Manuel Calderon, Spain, Great Britain, Olympics, Daniel Clark 

A fiercely proud man played for Great Britain, a country he believes saved him. If Deng reinjures his wrist in this tournament and it affects next season or his career with the Bulls, as some of us fear, we’ll deal with that then. But on this night, as he carried the torch for basketball in this country and for the idea of rebirth in general, you would have had to be made of stone not to get goose bumps. ‘‘This is why I chose to do it,’’ he said after Great Britain’s 95-75 loss to Russia. ‘‘It’s just an experience that, for the rest of my life, can never, ever be taken away, just walking out into that stadium. ‘‘A lot of people were talking about [getting] the wrist surgery or not. And I could have done that, but I’d never, ever get a chance to do this again. . . . The Olympics is not something that’s given.’’ Chicago Sun-Times

Chicago Bulls, Luol Deng, Great Britain, Olympics 

This gym is where Luol Deng spent several of his formative years. It's where, despite being limited to just two weekly practice sessions in the multipurpose gym, basketball replaced soccer as his true athletic passion. It's where, after Great Britain granted his family political asylum from war-torn Sudan, he began calculating a debt he is bent on repaying despite entering these Games with a torn ligament in his left wrist. The face of this country's growing basketball movement hasn't let injury prevent his incumbency. "It's a bloody miracle he made it," Jimmy Rogers says. "England is a third-world country for basketball." Chicago Tribune

Chicago Bulls, Luol Deng, Great Britain, Olympics 

Brixton has produced other fairly accomplished players, some of whom have earned basketball scholarships in the U.S. But nobody has reached Deng's heights. The bond between teacher and pupil remains strong. "Jimmy is everything," Deng says. "I'm very lucky to have someone who knew basketball as well as he did. ... I'm just lucky I fell into his hands and to have someone teach me the game who has such a high IQ." "Luol had this crazy work ethic," Rogers says. "My colleague, Kassim Gabbar, was the first one who actually spotted the talent. My earliest memories are of a young man who was really focused and had a maturity for that focus which was way beyond anything I had seen for a kid 11 years of age." Chicago Tribune

Chicago Bulls, Luol Deng, Great Britain, Olympics 

KC Johnson: Deng: "The wrist is great. I’m not thinking about it." #Bulls Twitter

Chicago Bulls, Luol Deng, Injuries, Great Britain, Olympics 

Ian Whittell: good news, Portland! Joel Freeland perfectly ok after knee tests. Will take his place in GB team that opens Olympic play v Russia on Sunday Twitter

Portland Trail Blazers, Injuries, Great Britain, Olympics, Joel Freeland 

Ian Whittell: joel Freeland has returned to London 4 tests on knee prob. GB being ultra cautious, hopefully wont hav any effect on olympics but not ideal Twitter

Portland Trail Blazers, Injuries, Great Britain, Joel Freeland 

Team USA were ruthless in Manchester on Thursday night, as they defeated Great Britain 118-78. Great Britain can take a little comfort in the fact that they matched the Olympic gold medal favourites for the first seven minutes of the contest, but a Carmelo Anthony inspired 14-0 run which included two three-pointers from the New York Knicks superstar ended the fantasy. Anthony led Team USA with 19 points, matched by team-mate Deron Williams, who also hit 19. The Brooklyn Net drilled four straight triples to push Team USA's lead to 28 in the third quarter. "I thought it was a great game from us," Williams said afterwards. "We're using these warm-up games to find our rhythm, to find some chemistry as we have only been together for a short amount of time. All these practices and all these games will do a lot to build that chemistry and finding our roles within the team." TalkBasket

Brooklyn Nets, New York Knicks, Carmelo Anthony, Deron Williams, USA Basketball, Great Britain 

Arash Markazi: FINAL: USA 118, Great Britain 78. Coach K is now 52-1 as Team USA's head coach. Twitter

USA Basketball, Team USA, Great Britain, Mike Krzyzewski 

Deng has an amazing and oft-told back story - his family fled civil war in Sudan when he was a young child and he lived in Egypt and London before heading to college in the USA. "It just brought us together as a family," he says. "Without my parents, my sisters and brothers, we all worked - well they did; I was young at the time. "Everything that we made, we kind of brought it in together, and we shared that money for the next meal. And that brings you closer as a family because you're working together.'' BBC

Chicago Bulls, Luol Deng, Great Britain, Olympics