Sports : life magnified

Bryant was scheduled to begin training with personal coaches Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Karl Malone this week, but, in the true spirit of his new role as Olympic team captain, head coach, and lone member, he has opted to prepare for the tournament on his own time without anyone’s assistance. Starting at the end of the 2005-2006 NBA season, Bryant will practice tip-offs, work on fundamental self-inbound passes, learn how to play defense, and draw up several play formations, each of which he will be responsible for calling during the games. Although the general response among fans has been complete indifference, many players around the league have objected to the decision, saying that it is unfair to others who have worked just as hard as Bryant.

Allen Iverson had this to say:

Kobe Bryant shouldn’t be the only one allowed to represent our country at the Summer Games. I should be the only one allowed to represent our country at the Summer Games.

Stern reiterated on how 81 points would be enough to defeat most foreign teams.

Gotta love The Onion.

That was Vince Carter’s response to the 81 of Kobe Bryant. I concur.

The NBA keeps surprising me. Who would have though an Australian Andrew Bogut, an Australian, would be number 1 pick in the draft.

From NBA.com :

Short of last year’s record nine international players selected in the first round, seven players from outside the United States were chosen in the the first round this year: Andrew Bogut (Australia), Fran Vazquez (Spain), Yaroslav Korolev (Russia), Francisco Garcia (Dominican Republic), Johan Petro (France), Linas Kleiza (Lithuania) and Ian Mahinmi (France).

What interests me and most people is this though :

San Antonio has a habit of mining international gold with their less-than-desirable draft positioning. Manu Ginobili (1999, No. 57) or Tony Parker (2001, No. 28), anybody?

At No. 28 this year, the Spurs took Ian Mahinmi, an 18-year-old power forward from France. How little known was this guy? He’s not included in the official NBA Draft Media Guide and his player page on ESPN.com is bare bones. From what we’re gathering, he’s a rebounding machine ala Dennis Rodman.

Spurs have set a standard in the NBA with their draft picks and persisiting with the players they back. So we get longer contracts and lesser trades. While most NBA teams look totally different in a year or two because of the trades, Spurs have the same core bunch year in and year out, a mantra for a successful team.