More on Eurobasket
For the Miami Heat guard, this is truly the biggest achievement in his career so far. “Definitely it is,” Goran Dragic said to Greek National Television. “I’m still waiting for that NBA ring but this (EuroBasket gold) is something else. This is for my country. My country gave me everything. I was born and raised there. I’m glad I can give something back to the Slovenian people. You see how the gym was full of them. I want to thank them from my heart.”
Utah Jazz: Congratulations to Coach Igor Kokoskov and Slovenia 🇸🇮 on winning #EuroBasket2017! 👏🏆 Joe Ingles: Congrats Coach!!!!!!!!!!!! Very happy for you!
Emiliano Carchia: JUST GORAN DRAGIC! 🇸🇮 🥇35 PT, 12/22 FG, 7 REB, 3 AST, 2 STL #EuroBasket2017
Goran Dragic will walk away from the international basketball stage with a gold medal. The Heat point guard finished with 35 points on 12-of-22 shooting to go with seven rebounds and three assists. With the offensive outburst, Dragic set a new record for most points scored in a single game in the history of the Slovenian national team, according to Eurohoops.net. The 31-year-old Dragic, who was named the MVP of this year’s EuroBasket, averaged a team-high 22.6 points to lead Slovenia to a perfect 9-0 record in the tournament.
Miami Heat: Gold for @Goran_Dragic and Slovenia!!! 🐉🇸🇮🥇 #EuroBaksket2017 James Johnson: Congrats my man @Goran_Dragic ... let's keep it rollin 🔥🏀🏆🥇
Emiliano Carchia: Spain 🇪🇸 consecutive medals @ #EuroBasket 2007 🥈 2009 🥇 2011 🥇 2013 🥉 2015 🥇 2017 🥉 (PH FIBA) pic.twitter.com/K1S6XyoY65
Nikos Varlas: 16 international tournaments World Cup: 🥇 Olympic Games: 🥈🥈🥉 EuroBasket: 🥇🥇🥈🥈🥉 Juan Carlos "LA BOMBA" Navarro OUT pic.twitter.com/BHcwM4aRrd
Emiliano Carchia: Sergio Scariolo: I am proud of having coached Juan Carlos Navarro
Veteran guard Juan Carlos Navarro announced his retirement from the Spanish national team at the age of 37. "It has been all amazing over these years and I'd like to thank the coaches, the staff and all my teammates", Navarro told reporters after his last practice with the national team. "I'm very happy I've been able to be a part of this team."
Serbia will face Slovenia in the Eurobasket 2017 Final scheduled on Sunday. Bogdan Bogdanovic ended with 24 points and Bojan Marjanovic 18 points. Timofey Mozgov finished with 11 points.
Goran Dragic: One of the greatest competitors I have ever played against! Respect to him and the Spanish National team! Huge fan of Pau Gasol.
Goran Dragic, who was one of the leaders of Slovenia again today said the following after the game: “We are still not done. We have one game left, we have a medal but if we came so far, why not? The last game is going to be a huge game, whoever going to play against us, but we feel like we are ready”. Dragic is living a dream with the NT this summer: “This team has something amazing, something special. It’s a young team with a few veteran players. I am really happy to be part of this team. I am the leader but the young players follow. I try to be an example for them. I try to be vocal on and off the court. And so far, so good. We are all in the same boat and we are sailing towards the goal.”
Anthony Chiang: Slovenia beats Spain 92-72 to advance to the EuroBasket championship. Goran Dragic finishes with 15 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists.
Andy Larsen: Slovenia beats Spain 92-72, and Kokoskov's side is onto the final. Rubio: 13 points (5-12 FG, 1/6 from 3), 3 ast, 4 TO, 3 stls, -22.
Bogdan Bogdanovic: TEAM WIN! 🔐🇷🇸🤛🏼
Anthony Randolph, a blink in the past of Knicks basketball (he spent most of his NBA career in Denver and Minnesota), plays for Slovenia, the team that eliminated Latvia from the European Championships on Wednesday. The Knicks past and future got into a little scrape at the end of a physical game Wednesday at EuroBasket, which started with a cheap shot from Randolph, and Tommy Beer of Basketball Insiders has the video. After the game, Porzingis said Randolph had played dirty all game. Via Eurohoops.net. “He was playing dirty from the beginning. He was trash talking. What happened in the end was natural,” the New York Knicks big guy said.
Pau Gasol: To the semifinals!!! Great game by our team tonight, especially by @Marc Gasol who was unstoppable!! #AlwaysTogether #Family #Eurobasket2017 pic.twitter.com/cRn5OdRPWf
Pau Gasol: Getting ready for tomorrow's quarterfinals! Good defense @Willy Hernangomez 😜 #SlowMotion #Istanbul #Eurobasket2017
Boris Diaw: It was a tough competition, a lot of disappointment in the way we played, WE as a team take full responsibility for it. now its time to take pride in bouncing back and redeem ourselves in the near future. #lookingahead
However, Ufuk Sarica decided to begin his comments during the post-game press conference by applauding Pau’s presence with the national team in yet another summer tournament. “First and foremost I want to express my respect for the Spanish Team. Especially Pau Gasol. He’s 37 years old and he goes through an intense summer camp. And after a very long season he fights with the whole until the very end. You see the whole team is together with him in this effort. I think he sets a good example for future generations that want to play basketball. I’d like to point out that. That I really respect Pau Gasol and the Spanish team in particular,” Sarica said.
Jonas Valanciunas spoke to Eurohoops post game and sounded reassuring that Lithuania will bounce back from this loss. “It’s just one year”, the big man said.
Nikola Vucevic: Tough way to end the #Eurobasket17 ... still proud of our team for getting through the first round for the first time ever @FIBA pic.twitter.com/l7ffRiolGD
Lauri Markkanen: Always an honor to play for my country 🇫🇮 #EuroBasket2017 didn't end the way we wanted but I'm proud of everyone who was part of the journey pic.twitter.com/W64CrqwyV2
Mindaugas Kuzminskas will be a game-decision for the Lithuanian NT in the knock-out game against Greece. As Donatas Urbonas reports, the player has back spasms and has not been able to participate to practice since the one before Lithuania’s clash with Germany.
Kobe Bryant: Congrats hermano #grandepau
"Today is certainly a difficult day," Abrines tweeted out in a statement that has been translated from its original Spanish. "Today I have to leave Eurobasket, something that those who know me know it hurts especially, because being part of this TEAM is an honor and a privilege. Even these days, unable to help on the court, although difficult, have been important to me. I can only thank others for worrying so much about me. Finally, this is the time and place to give all the strength in the world to my teammates, to 'The Family,' who will certainly fight until the last day to achieve our goal, winning Eurobasket."
The Spanish national team has called the Abrines injury "minor." The Thunder do not begin training camp until the last week of September. Preseason begins Oct. 3.
Following a mutual decision between the Spanish Basketball Federation and the Oklahoma City Thunder, Alex Abrines will stay out of the remainder of the EuroBasket. As reported by Spanish Marca, the knee injury that the 24-year-old swingman suffered in Game 1 of the tournament vs Montenegro is enough to cause an alarm. “There is no veto in this kind of situation. The only thing that matters is the condition of the player,” is the Federation’s position.
The playoffs are about to start for Miami Heat guard Goran Dragic -- in September. Dragic and the Slovenian national team finished pool play undefeated at EuroBasket with a dominant 95-78 victory Wednesday over a France roster loaded with NBA talent. Dragic, who has led Slovenia in scoring in all but one game during its 5-0 march through pool play in Helsinki, Finland, this time closed with 22 points and eight assists in 28 minutes.
"Being the next Gasols is impossible," Juancho added. "Just like being the next Juan Carlos Navarro is impossible. And [the Gasols] are the two best players at FIBA EuroBasket. Pau is 37-year-old and still one of the best players in Europe. He's like a big teacher or a big brother to all of us. It's impossible to be like Gasol."
Kristaps Porzingis: Latvian fan support in game against Russia 🇱🇻🇱🇻🇱🇻 #EuroBasket2017 #TrisZvaigznes
Ekpe Udoh: Bogdan hoopin...
Ricky Rubio led Spain with 13 points and four assists, while Pau Gasol chipped in 11 points, 10 boards, and three assists.
Emiliano Carchia: Losing effort for Dario Saric 🇭🇷 vs Spain: 18 points (6/14), 13 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 27 efficiency #EuroBasket2017
Germany defeated Italy 61-55 and now is one step closer to making it to the next round, depending on the remaining results of Group B, having a 3-1 record. The star: Once again Dennis Schroder, who finished the game with 17 points. In a low scoring affair, his performance was more than enough.
Pacers forward Bojan Bogdanovic and Croatia suffered their first loss of EuroBasket 2017 on Tuesday, falling to defending European champions Spain, 79-73. Bogdanovic finished with 15 points, three rebounds, and one assist, going 6-for-16 from the field and 3-for-9 from 3-point range.
Against Romania, Pau Gasol was rested, but the bottom line for Spain was the same. The defending Eurobasket champs got an impressive win. Every player of Spain did his job when he was on the court, however, Juancho Hergnangomez was more than impressive with a double-double (20 p., 11 r.), proving that the next generation of the Spanish national team is ready to continue the team’s tradition of dominance.
Juan Hernangomez: BUMSHAKALAKA 🤷🏼♀️ #FFG!
Emiliano Carchia: Kristaps Porzingis drops 28 points over Great Britain.
Brian Seltzer: 3-0 in group play w 2 games to go. Dario Saric, Croatia positioned for spot in #EuroBasket2017 final 16. Saric came up big late, finished w 14 p, 2 r.
The final score was 76-72 and while Croatia never lost the lead, Montenegro almost stole the game at the final minute. Bojan Bogdanovic continues his streak and he is by far the most effective offensive weapon of Croatia. He proved it with 23 points and four out of seven threes. 12 points by Nikola Vucevic.
According to a report, the San Antonio Spurs have cleared forward Davis Bertans to continue to play for Team Latvia at EuroBasket 2017 after suffering a finger injury in a game versus Serbia. Bertans did not suit up for the team's game against Belgium and was held back as a precautionary move. After suffering the injury, he did say he was not in any pain and X-rays showed no break.
Comparisons between Lauri Markkanen and Dirk Nowitzki might seem way premature but are inevitable, considering the Finnish big guy’s feats in the EuroBasket tournament. And, of course, Henrik Dettman, who also coached Nowitzki back in his early days with the German NT, from 1997 to 2003, is quite possibly the ideal person to talk about the resemblance between the two players.
“I don’t need to say how special is. You all see it when he plays. There’s something I’ve been saying for some time: It’s unfair to compare human beings with each other. And we are talking about players from different areas. But there are many similar things in the game that Dirk and Lauri play,” Dettman said during the post-game press conference.
Henrik Dettman: “The only thing we don’t know is if Lauri has the same work ethic that Dirk has with the game. If Lauri has the same work ethic, and is healthy, he’ll definitely reach the same level that Dirk has. He has skills, speed, understanding for the game. It’s also natural.The new generation has to be better than the one of the past.”
Pau Gasol: Muchas gracias @baloncestofeb! 💪🏼💪🏼💪🏼 #200partidos #SomosEquipo #LaFamilia. Thanks very much #baloncestofeb! 💪🏼💪🏼💪🏼#200games #Family
With their best defending effort since the start of the tournament, the Greeks were in the game until the last minute. That was Goran Dragic’ cue, who iced the 78-72 win for Slovenia with four straight points, while Klemen Prepelic also made two crucial free throws. Luka Doncic was spectacular in the first half with 14 points, 5/8 field goals, 2 assists, 2 rebounds and no turnovers in 15,5 minutes of action. He finished the game with 22 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. Goran Dragic also did his part with 20 points.
Lithuania prevailed over Italy with 78-73 and reached its second consecutive win. Italy now stands at 2-1. Mindaugas Kuzminskas contributed 14 points for Lithuania, Jonas Valanciunas had 13 points.
Davis Bertans suffered a finger injury in Latvia's loss to Serbia in pool play. X-rays revealed no break and he is not feeling pain. He sat out of the team's 92-64 win versus Belgium. Q. Are you going to be available for next week? Bertans: I don't know, that's a question for the doctor. I'm not a doctor so I can't really answer that. Tomorrow is the day off and then we'll see."
Reports go on to say he did not suffer a break after x-rays were conducted and he's not feeling any pain. "I'm waiting for what the doctor will say, it's hard to say because I have not had the ball in the hands since Friday, but I do not feel pain. We have a morning off, and we will see what we can do. There was a X-ray, nothing broken."
Stephen Noh: Markkanen steps out of bounds on game-tying attempt, injures himself on the play. He's being helped off the court after the game.
Vincent Goodwill: Hearing from Bulls personnel that Markkanen's injury isn't bad, and it's likely he plays Sunday
While Lauri Markannen in his effort to tie the game against Slovenia was injured, Finland’s coach Henrik Dettman denied that anything major happened.
Brian Seltzer: Well-rounded showing by Dario Saric in Croatia's 74-58 win over Romania. 11 p (3-11), 10 r, 2 a, 1 s, 1 b. Most telling #? Game-high +22.
Anthony Chiang: Goran Dragic finishes with 29 pts, 4 reb, 5 assists in 81-78 win over Finland. @Goran Dragic averaging 29.5 pts through 2 EuroBasket games.
Spain beat the Czech Republic 93-56 and cruised to another easy win. The Spaniards pulled away early and never looked back showing flashes of brilliance in the process. The star: Who else? Pau Gasol. He had 26 points and 8 rebounds going 9-of-10 from the field and 7-for-7 from the free-throw line in a very efficient performance. Also, Ricky Rubio put on a show, finishing the game with 17 points and 5 assists.
Germany defeated Georgia 57-67 and improved their record to 2-0, while Georgia fell to 1-1. The star: Who else could it be? Dennis Schroeder was once again amazing for Germany. Since early on he was scoring, assisting and hustling back on defense. He finished the game with 23 points!
FIBA: #PauGasol200 games with 🇪🇸👏 📖 http://go.fiba.com/EB17_TitleDefense … #EuroBasket2017
Our very own Juancho Hernangomez is suited up to compete in the European league, Eurobasket, with his home country of Spain. Juancho gets to share this moment with his brother Guillermo “Willy” Hernangomez of the New York Knicks who will also play for the Spanish national team. Juancho and Willy are very close, and today Juancho shared a special note from his brother as they get ready to head into competition together.
Emiliano Carchia: Cedi Osman not enough for Turkey in loss to Russia: 28 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 7 steals #EuroBasket2017
Emiliano Carchia: Satoransky with 20 points, 13 rebounds & 6 assists leads Czech Republic past Romania (Vlad Moldoveanu 24pts) 83-68 Hruban had 25 for Czech
Pau Gasol: Good first game to start off the #Eurobasket . I'm happy to have played #200games with my national team. Let's keep enjoying the journey!
Ian Begley: Willy Hernangomez had 18 points & 9 rebs in Spain's win over Montenegro in Eurobasket. He shot 6-for-7 from the field and 6-for-7 on FTs.
Goran Dragic: 1st win of the tournament !!! Let's go 🇸🇮!!! @kzs_si #eurobasket2017 #TheDragon #Dracarys 🔥🐲
Emiliano Carchia: Dennis Schroder with a show (32pts, 5reb, 7ast) leads Germany 🇩🇪 to a win vs. Ukraine 🇺🇦 in Eurobasket Group B opening game: 75-63
The start of Heat training camp is still weeks away, but don’t tell Goran Dragic that. The 31-year-old Heat point guard already looks like he’s ready. Dragic has spent the offseason in Slovenia preparing for EuroBasket, and he started the tournament with an efficient 30-point performance to lead Slovenia to a 90-81 win over Poland on Thursday in Helsinki, Finland.
Kristaps Porzingis: Off to Turkey for #Eurobasket2017 #TrīsZvaigznes 🏀👌🏼
Lauri Markkanen: Patiently waiting.. 🐺 #EuroBasket2017 #Susijengi
Motiejunas, who travelled to Texas to be next to his girlfriend who’s giving birth, was quite unfortunate to have stumbled upon extreme weather conditions in Houston. That being said, all flights from Houston have been either cancelled or postponed until further notice, something that might keep Motiejunas in the US longer than expected. As Donatas Urbonas reports, coach Adomaitis hopes the player will make it and join the team’s practice later on the 30th.
David Pick: NBA free-agent Alex Len has withdrawn from the Ukraine national-team and won't participate in FIBA's EuroBasket.
The Golden State Warriors big man had his first full practice yesterday, he is completely healed and despite missing the recent “Acropolis tournament” in Athens, he will be available for the Georgian national team for the start of the official games in the Eurobasket tournament.
In his recent interview with Gazzetta Dello Sport, the Italian international stated that this could be his last EuroBasket with Italian NT. “My last competition with Italy? Maybe. We’ll see what happens but in my mind, this could be my last Eurobasket. There is a question mark, but I only focus at one thing at a time.” Belinelli told the Italian media.
Speaking on the Greek newspaper “To Vima”, Missas gave more details about the health condition of the Greek freak, which is the reason that keeps him out of the Eurobasket. “The story with Giannis is crystal clear”, said Missas. “Giannis wanted to play. That was his goal from the get-go, despite the condition of his knee, which wouldn’t create him any major issue. From day one, he was under great pressure from the Bucks, but he tried his best, giving 100% in every practice. The final decision has to do with him failing in the Bucks’ test. And that’s the end of discussion”.
According to Missas, if Giannis was 100% healthy, then he would play in the Eurobasket: “After the first stage of our training camp the other players of the team were informed about the situation with Giannis, his health and the upcoming trip to China. I have also to say that last year Giannis put on hold his deal with the Bucks in order to play in the pre-Olympic qualifying tournament. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but we can’t forget that Giannis is also a 22 years old kid. And in order to close the whole issue, I have to say that if Giannis was healthy and the Bucks asked him not to play, he would play”.
David Pick: Source: NYK star Kristaps Porzingis is committed to playing for Latvia. His recent absence won't keep him out of EuroBasket.
You are hopeful that you will be able to play in the EuroBasket? Zaza Pachulia: “Absolutely. That’s the plan, that’s my goal. But health is very important obviously. Especially when you talk about ankle. The doctors are paying much attention to it. The Golden State Warriors doctors are also following the situation of course. Obviously, we’re not going to hurt myself. You have to be very smart basically to see where you are and see how much you can do.
