Since when did going after another player’s “jewels” become the act of frustration or retaliation in basketball? Just two days after watching Carmelo Anthony take a “cheap shot” to the groin from Argentinian guard Facundo Campazzo, we saw another hit to the groin take place on Wednesday when a frustrated Nicolas Batum threw a vicious shot at Juan Carlos Navarro. Check out what went down between France and Spain, along with how Team USA defeated Australia to move onto the semifinals below. As always, you’ll also find a dose of NBA news from around the league:
Batum explained why he punched Navarro in the groin and discussed bad “Olympic Spirit”, reported byAdrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports: “After France’s Nicolas Batum delivered a vicious punch to the groin of Spain guard Juan Carlos Navarro, Batum left no confusion over his intentions. “I wanted to give him a good reason to flop,” Batum said. Batum was angry with the Spanish guards for falling to the floor for what he believed was incidental contact throughout Spain’s 66-59 quarterfinal victory over France at North Greenwich Arena. Asked by Yahoo! Sports if he believed his punch to the groin had given Navarro “good reason,” Batum smiled and said, “I hope so.” France’s coaches and several players believed Spain intentionally lost a final preliminary round game Monday in which Spain blew a 12-point fourth quarter lead to Brazil. The loss allowed Spain to face France in the quarterfinals, and would potentially keep it away from the powerful United States until the gold-medal game. Asked if he was convinced that Spain had taken a dive in the fourth quarter of the game with Brazil, Batum told Yahoo! Sports, “They did what they had to do.” When told that some won’t think that a deliberate punch to the groin is in the Olympic spirit, Batum said, “Do you think if you lost a game on purpose, that’s the Olympic spirit?”
- Batum apologized for his poor behavior on twitter:
I want to apologize for my stupid act at the end, I showed a bad image of France and myself, Congrats to team Spain.
@nicolas88batum
Nicolas Batum
Our Chris Sheridan explains how game ball for the win against Australia could have gone to three different players: “Can a Molten be split in thirds? Because the game ball for Wednesday’s 119-86 quarterfinal win over Australia should be divided up between Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Kevin Love. You knew there was eventually going to be an eruption from Kobe, even when he was scoreless at halftime. And erupt he did, going for six 3-pointers and 20 points in the second half, a bunch of those points coming in rapid succession as the U.S. team pulled away with a furious burst against a tough opponent that cut a 14-point halftime deficit to six midway through the third quarter. You knew what you were going to get from LeBron James, because he does it in every single game (that matters). We saw it in the NBA playoffs, we saw it when he single-handedly took over the pool play game against Lithuania with 5 minutes left, and you saw it when he scored the first points of the second half as part of a pullaway burst in the final game of Group A play against Argentina (who will be the Americans’ opponent in the semifinals). He finished against Australia with a triple-double of 11 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists. But K.Love? This is a guy who was buried behind Andre Iguodala on the depth chart less than a week ago, a guy who has never gotten the level of love from coach Mike Krzyzewski that he deserved. Even in Turkey in 2010 when he was averaging more than a rebound per minute for Team USA in the World Championship, he had a hard time getting sufficient burn.”
Marquis Teague has agreed to terms with the Chicago Bulls, according to Aggrey Sam of CSN Chicago: “Marquis Teague, the Bulls’ first-round draft pick, has agreed to terms with the organization, as first reported by the Chicago Tribune. Teague, a point guard from the University of Kentucky, was the last first-round selection in the 2012 NBA Draft to sign his contract, but more significantly, the Indianapolis native will receive 100 percent of his $857,000 rookie-scale deal in his first season, as opposed to the 120 percent typical of most rookie contracts.”
- Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune reported that the Jazz will re-engage in talks with Josh Howard.
- Terry Stotts will coach the Portland Trailblazers, according to Ben Golliver of CBS Sports: “The Portland Trail Blazers announced the hiring of Dallas Mavericks assistant Terry Stotts as their next coach in a statement on Tuesday afternoon. “Terry is one of the elite offensive minds in the NBA, has extensive experience with multiple organizations and was instrumental in the Dallas Mavericks winning the 2011 NBA Championship,” Blazers GM Neil Olshey said in a statement. “He understands the vision for the future of the franchise, appreciates the process involved and will create an environment on the court that will produce championship habits.” Stotts, 54, previously served as the head man on two occasions: from 2002-2004 with the Atlanta Hawks and 2005-07 with the Milwaukee Bucks. He holds a career coaching record of 115-168 and boasts one playoff appearance and zero .500+ seasons to his name.”
Luol Deng discussed the importance of gaining experience by playing in the Olympics, from Ian Whittell of ESPN Chicago: “Despite the punishing, physical nature of the tournament he went through, Deng insisted that the experience will be of benefit to him back in the more familiar surroundings of the NBA. “I try to tell people, I can’t be in a gym at home doing this, there is no way,” said Deng. “When I’m out there I’m playing, I’m trying to win, but I’m also at the same time working on my game, seeing how I can get better. “In a strange way it makes the NBA easier for me. People talk about this is Europe and it’s a level down from the NBA and definitely, overall, it is. But the way I’m being played is definitely different. I know it, I feel it. It helps me a lot, helps my game a lot.”
- Donte Greene listed the names of teams that are interested in acquiring him, from Ian Begley of ESPN New York: “Donte Greene says he is on the Knicks’ radar. The former Sacramento Kings forward and current free agent said in a recent radio interview that the Knicks are among three teams who have expressed interest in signing him. Greene told TheCDNetworks.com, a Sacramento internet radio show, that he is in talks with Chicago, New York and Indiana. He called the trio his “top three” possible free-agent destinations. “Anybody could pop up at any time,” Greene told the radio show on Friday. “But those are the three that we’re focusing on and trying to work out and get a deal done.”
- Michael Lee of The Washington Post has the story on the number of teams that are interested in Anthony Tolliver: “Tolliver’s agent, Larry Fox, said recently that his client shares a mutual interest with the Wizards but is “not in the minimum game.” Tolliver, 27, has attracted interest from Minnesota, Indiana and Cleveland, but Fox felt that Tolliver could address one of the Wizards’ remaining needs. “You look at Washington’s roster, he’d probably be a decent fit there. They don’t have a guy at the forward position that can step out and shoot the ball and that’s a main part of Anthony’s game,” Fox said.”
Dwyane Wade is recovering as scheduled from arthroscopic knee surgery, from Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press: “Dwyane Wade‘s recovery from knee surgery is right on schedule, and the All-Star guard expects to be ready to go when the Miami Heat open the defense of their NBA championship. The way he was walking around London on Wednesday, it would have been tough to guess he had surgery a month ago. ”I feel good. Rehab is going very well,” Wade told The Associated Press. ”I’m happy with it. I’m more encouraged than I was, obviously, when I knew I had to get surgery. So I’m happy.”’- Woj has the update on the Clippers search of a new general manager:
Los Angeles Clippers personnel director Gary Sacks has emerged as the frontrunner for franchise's GM job, league sources tell Y! Sports.
@WojYahooNBA
Adrian Wojnarowski
Zach Randolph donated $10,000 to help save an injured dog, from Eric Freeman of Ball Don’t Lie: “Memphis Grizzlies forward Zach Randolph followed close behind as a wary young pit bull was carried out of the Memphis Animal Services Shelter on Friday. Uncurling from the arms of an animal services employee, the dog was placed in a crate bound for New Orleans’ Villalobos Rescue Center, a veterinary facility specializing in pit bull care. […] “It’s remarkable that he’s still alive,” Randolph later said of the stray pooch. The dog was found July 9 in a drainpipe near the Shelby Farms Green Line trail at Waring Road — scared, weak and suffering from heartworms and several skin infections. MAS officials said he had been trapped there for several days. After hearing about the dog and contacting Villalobos’ owner Tia Torres, whose work is the subject of Animal Planet’s “Pit Bulls and Parolees” reality TV show, Randolph said Friday that he donated $10,000 to the center to cover Little Z-Bo’s continued physical and emotional rehabilitation, and will give more if needed.”
- Alex Kennedy of Hoopsworld listed a number of free agents that are still unsigned. One of them is Tracy McGrady: “Tracy McGrady – McGrady has received interest from a number of teams including the Chicago Bulls. However, talks between McGrady and the Bulls have ended. Once Chicago signed first-round pick Marquis Teague to his contract worth 100 percent of the rookie scale, they activated the hard cap at $4 million above the tax line. If the Bulls want to add a player, the most they can pay is the $473,604 rookie minimum. It’s now impossible for Chicago to sign McGrady without making a trade or buying out a player. Last season, McGrady averaged 5.3 points, 3 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 52 games as a reserve with the Atlanta Hawks. The 33-year-old would like to join a contender, according to sources, and will continue to weigh his options in the coming weeks.”
Roy Hibbert will surprise a young boy who has unfortunately been diagnosed with leukemia, according to Mike Wells of Indy Star: “Lee Eddins had hoped he would be able to watch his idol, center Roy Hibbert, play in person when the Indiana Pacers visit Sacramento, Calif., for a game against the Kings in late November. But Lee, 12, is not expected to live that long. Diagnosed with stage four leukemia six months ago, Lee has been told he might only have a couple of weeks left to live. So Hibbert has planned a special surprise. Later this week, he is flying to Sacramento to meet Lee. “Once I heard he had a dying wish, I knew I had to do something more than send him presents and Skype with him on the computer,” Hibbert said.”
For those who saw the whole game, you have to agree the referees let the Spanish players, coach and bench do whatever they wanted, as usual. Theatrical plays are common among this players, specially with the “veterans”, who are keen on the art of acting.
Now, I would like to remind you of the Eurobasket Final when Rudy Fernandez smashed Tony Parker on the floor during a penetration to the basket, almost injurying him for life. It can’t even be compared to Batum’s act, to which I agree was also pure unsporsmanship.
Here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fd0L3DynejQ
I would just like to say: OPEN YOUR EYES TOMORROW RUSSIA and after that USA, otherwise you will fall against one of the best teams in the world which has also the best floppers.
Here’s a present for you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0rx9aUUWAM