I think everyone would remember a while ago when Rasheed Wallace
either wasn't talking to reporters or cursing them. Once in one
of the great playoff moments, the NBA forced Wallace to talk to
reporters after several fines and Wallace answered every
question, "Both teams played hard."
To the common folk it might seem like Wallace doesn't care about
his teammates but for us NBA fans it is clear that he does. He
has proven to be an excellent and reliable teammate on a
terrific Pistons team that just finished its season series with
the Spurs with a second straight blowout win.
Wallace as an Olympian comes to mind with the sudden rush of NBA
players to play for the 2008 team in Beijing that includes
participation in the world championships in Japan this summer.
Allen Iverson said he wants another chance; so do Paul Pierce,
Baron Davis and Carmelo Anthony. Let's say this: If any of them
are on the team, it means the selection process still is flawed
and is about marketing and selling stars rather than building a
winning team.
There has been a burst of publicity lately that Iverson is a
changed, respected, responsible man. Perhaps, Pierce got most of
the blame for what happened at the 2002 World Games sixth-place
finish under George Karl, but Golden State's Davis also had some
part in it. USA Basketball executives were furious at Davis, so
it was comical to hear him add his name to the list last week as
he seems about to put another coach on the unemployment line.
There was a confrontation last week when a columnist reported a
verbal attack by Davis. Yep, we want that guy in a USA jersey.
That brings us to Anthony, he is putting up quite a scoring
season and hit his second game-winning shot in a row last week.
It was the fifth of his NBA career, an interesting contrast with
Anthony is a remarkable offensive talent, and has had a career
full of embarrassments already from refusing to enter games as a
rookie to that drug-glorifying DVD he made in Baltimore last
year. But he was a major problem on the 2004 team from his
trash-talking and childish behavior in practices to wearing his
pants like a handyman with a heavy tool belt, much to the
disappointment of USA Basketball officials.
The next Olympic team could do without all of them, especially
because there are enough excellent perimeter and wing players.
James and Bryant are two taken spots, and Dwyane Wade should be
added. Maybe Gilbert Arenas gets a spot, too, though scoring
won't be a problem. Chauncey Billups would be a good choice when
looking for facilitators and defenders and Bulls' Kirk Hinrich
remains high on the list of possibilities.
The problem is big men. Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Shaquille
O'Neal and Jermaine O'Neal are not expected to play.
About the author:
Cathy Jones writes on sports betting and gambling one of the
fastest growing online industries and she is one of the top
senior article writers for
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