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Wade speaks up for Tim Duncan
Submitted by lchavez on 08/24/2008 - 12:00BEIJING — San Antonio Spur star Tim Duncan made no secret his disgust for international officiating following the 2004 Athens Olympics when he played for the bronze-medal winning USA team.
Duncan spent most U.S. games on the bench in foul trouble and thoroughly frustrated. Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Carlos Boozer were teammates of Duncan's on that team. The bad taste lingered and pushed them to make the commitment to the 2008 team.
But Wade understands why Duncan didn't want anymore to do with FIBA and international ball.
Audios:
Wade on Tim Duncan
Leslie shows off golden touch
Submitted by lchavez on 08/24/2008 - 11:35
BEIJING — USA women's star Lisa Leslie showed off a little on
Sunday night at the men's gold-medal game. Well, a lot. She wore her four Olympic gold medals, the latest achieved on Saturday when the USA women beat Australia in a third straight Olympic gold-medal game.
She and Teresa Edwards are the only two women with four Olympic golds in basketball. Leslie, 36, retired from international competition after Saturday's game. She's off to care for 1-year old daughter Lauren and finish her WNBA season with the Los Angeles Sparks.
Leslie talks about her new book "Don't Let the Lipstick Fool You", motivation for returning after the birth of her first child and why she never thinks about her one bronze medal. (She was wearing all four in this photo but the fourth one is hiding behind the others! The Beijing gold hangs from the red ribbon.)
Audios:
Leslie recaps her Olympic run
Paul wins first gold; hopes for more
Submitted by lchavez on 08/24/2008 - 10:55
BEIJING — You already knew Chris Paul has an incredible future ahead of him before he helped guide the U.S. team to the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics on Sunday. The New Orleans Hornet capped off a reputation-making year, that already included a runner-up finish in the NBA MVP balloting, in Beijing.
I have to think somewhere the late Skip Prosser, Paul's coach at Wake Forest, is grinning. Here is Paul's final interview in the mixed zone at the Beijing Olympic Basketball Gymnasium on Sunday evening.
FYI - Paul is eager to defend the USA's Olympic crown in London in 2012. Hence the photo, which show's the present, future (Paul, Deron Williams) and past (Jason Kidd) of the USA backcourt.
Audios:
Paul on winning the gold medal
USA 118, Spain 107
Submitted by lchavez on 08/24/2008 - 04:30
AP photo
BEIJING — The gold medal belongs again to the USA.
The U.S. men's basketball team beat Spain 118-107 at the Beijing Olympic Basketball Gymnasium on Sunday to secure a 13th Olympic gold medal for the USA.
Spain held on throughout the game, trailing by four with about two minutes left in the game. Dwyane Wade hit a 3 with 2:02 left then a Kobe Bryant drive and four Chris Paul free throws kept the Spaniards from getting any closer.
Nice touch, USA hoops
Submitted by lchavez on 08/23/2008 - 22:03
BEIJING — I had to hand it to Mike Krzyzewski for the expected gesture he made on Saturday afternoon.
We were at Beijing Normal University for the Americans' final practice prior to today's gold-medal game against Spain. And by we, I mean the press corps that has followed the USA men's basketball team throughout the Beijing Olympics.
We were upstairs above the floor watching the final minutes of warmup of that final practice and had just been asked to leave, because they were closign practice, when Krzyzewski turned to the balcony and shouts up his thanks as the rest of the team clapped and cheered for us.
Kidd has non-basketball plans
Submitted by lchavez on 08/23/2008 - 07:32BEIJING — USA guard Jason Kidd has endured all the old-man jokes he can stomach here with a young USA team that is now 17 hours away from winning the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics.
Probably. Maybe. Most likely.
Kidd still is waiting on that contract extension with the Dallas Mavericks. At 35, having not led the Mavs to the promised land in the 2008 NBA playoffs, and starting but playing second fiddle to youngsters Chris Paul and Deron Williams in Beijing, Kidd knows his NBA glory days are
numbered.
Wade's brush with anonymity
Submitted by lchavez on 08/23/2008 - 06:59BEIJING — USA guard Dwyane Wade doesn't go many places where he's not noticed but apparently the Great Wall of China is one of those places.
Wade was visiting the drink stand at the Wall several days ago looking for something to quench his thirst when, lo and behold, he ran across a bottle of Gatorade with his mug on the front. That's where the audio clip picks up. He can tell the story better than I can.
Audios:
Wade tries buying Gatorade at the Great Wall of China
Athlete of the day
Submitted by rcarter on 08/23/2008 - 04:00
AP photo
You'll have to stay up late — after midnight — to see the men's gold medal basketball game and American team leader LeBron James play for the gold medal. The game starts at 2:30 a.m. Sunday EDT.
If you can't keep your eyes open that long, check out the men's marathon — perhaps the most Olympic of Olympic sports. It'll finish live during NBC's prime-time telecast from 7:30 p.m. to midnight EDT.
— Mike Persinger
USA 101, Argentina 81
Submitted by lchavez on 08/22/2008 - 12:14BEIJING — The USA men's basketball team has been so good at thrashing opponents every which way throughout the Beijing Olympics that a nine-point halftime lead over Argentina in the semifinals on Friday looked like a crisis.
The U.S. also has run teams out of games with such ferocity in China that, when Argentina was able to slow the U.S. pace, limit long misses, and force the Americans to run their halfcourt offense, it also looked like a crisis for the U.S.
The U.S. still beat Argentina, 101-81, behind Carmelo Anthony's 21 points and six others players scoring at least 10, at the Beijing Olympic Basketball Gymnasium on Friday.
Preview of medal ceremony
Submitted by lchavez on 08/22/2008 - 07:00
BEIJING — Shhhh. Don't talk so loud. Don't draw attention. I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to be here right now as the people from BOCOG practice the men's basketball medal ceremony at the Beijing Olympic Basketball Gymnasium two days before they're supposed to do it for real.
It's 3:30 p.m. in Beijing, four and a half hours before the semifinals — Spain vs. Lithuania and the U.S. vs. Argentina. It's definitely a dress rehearsal.
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