The NBA Vs. The Euroleague
A major area of concern surrounding Team USA professional basketball is the notable lack of recent success against teams from around the world. In the quadrennial World Championship tournament, a United States team has not attained the top prize since 1994, and in the Olympics since 2000.
In the 2006 WC competition held in Saitama, Japan, the team came in third place, winning a bronze medal. The 2004 Athens Olympics produced the same result. The 2002 Indianapolis, IN WC tournament did not end well for the U.S., as a team beset by internal discord placed sixth, the worst showing in history by a U.S. squad in international competition.
This situation has brought on an orgy of hand wringing and harsh criticism as fans and other observers have taken turns lambasting the "lazy" players for not decimating foreign competition. Not surprisingly, there is no dearth of proposed "solutions" to address the problem. The 2007 World Championship tournament to qualify for the 2008 Olympics is scheduled to be held in Las Vegas, NV, Aug. 22 through Sept. 2. Time will tell what will happen.
There is a consistent theme here -- the U.S. no longer enjoys a huge advantage in hoops. Long gone are the days when a group of NBA players could just show up and easily batter international opponents. That era ended after the first Dream Team, led by Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan, won the gold medal in the 1992 Olympics by many accounts the greatest collection of talent on one team in any sport in history. Now, the international teams, who feature a more pass-oriented, free-flowing version of the game, smell weakness and are more than eager to heap more indignities on the heads of the American players.
All of this leads to a boatload of speculation as to whether the finest basketball is actually played in the NBA. There are some prominent sports figures who have indicated their fondness for the European-style game. Given the fact that U.S. teams have been soundly beaten in international competition for the better part of a decade, one would have to be very foolish to dismiss this notion.
Making it all the more awkward is the fact that the winner of the NBA championship is referred to as the "World Champion." How appropriate is that title? Shouldn't the championship team have to prove that it's the best team in the world?
Why not hold a true World Championship series between the American and Euroleague champions? The 'PR' value, along with global interest in such a series would be tremendous, and the games themselves would serve to settle for once and for all which side of the Atlantic the best brand of hoops is played on.
About the Author
Matthew Paolini is Citybook.com's compliance officer for the Kailua, HI business Yellow Pages division.
Tell others about
this page:
Comments? Questions? Email Here