Australia Champs Preview

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS PREVIEW


GROUP C

1. Australia
2. Qatar
3. Turkey
4. Lithuania
5. Brazil
6. Greece

AUSTRALIA V BRAZIL
Saturday 19th August



Brazil defeated Argentina 100-88 to win the gold medal in the 2005 FIBA Americas Championship and earned a spot at the 2006 FIBA World Championship. They competed in each of the fourteen editions of the international event and even won the title twice in the sixties, but they missed the last two Olympic Games.

Brazilian star: Leandro Barbosa

Leandro Mateus 'Leandrinho' Barbosa started his career with Palmeiras before joining Bauru in the Paulista league in 2001. In his first year, he was named rookie of the year, averaging 13.3 points and 5.4 assists per game, and was called for the first time to the National Team at the age of 19.
He played four games in the 2002 FIBA World Championship in Indianapolis but saw limited playing time. However, the NBA scouts remembered his name and after averaging 28.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 2.8 steals per game in his last season in the Paulista league, he was drafted with the 28th pick by the San Antonio Spurs in 2003 and then traded to the Phoenix Suns. Practicing and playing with some of the best point guards like Stephon Marbury and Steve Nash, he has improved his game a lot in his first two seasons with the Suns. He is now a major player and can play both guard positions. He was averaging career-highs 13.9 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game this season before suffering a knee injury.
Last summer, he posted 21.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game for the National Team in the FIBA Americas Championship. Barbosa is a good scorer, very quick, and can drive to the basket or shoot from beyond the arc. He is also a good defender thanks to his athletic body and his impressive wingspan.

[ Current Team: Phoenix Suns (NBA)/ G / 191cm ]

Other star players: Nenê, Rafael Araújo



AUSTRALIA V QATAR
Thursday 24th August

Qatar had home court advantage at the FIBA Asia Championship last summer and finished 3rd which earned them a spot at the FIBA World Championship in Japan. The hosts edged Korea 89-77 to win the bronze medal and had defeated good teams like Japan and Jordan in the previous rounds. Qatar has previously neither played in the FIBA World Championships nor in the Olympic Games and they will not hold a lot of expectations next summer.

Qatari star: Yaseen Ismail

Yaseen Ismail has nearly always played for Al Rayyan, which is one of the best team in the Qatari league. At 18, he was already considered as one of the best prospects in Asia. In 1999, he was a member of the Qatari Junior National Team that finished 10th in the U19 FIBA World Championship. He averaged 25.0 points and 12.4 rebounds per game, and was first in scoring and second in rebounding.
He drew a lot of interest from the United States and was invited to the Hoop Summit in Indianapolis the next summer. Teaming with NBA prospects like French point guard Tony Parker and Slovenian forward Bostjan Nachbar, he spent only 8 minutes on the court. But he was also tested by several NBA teams and decided to declare himself eligible for the draft, before finally pulling his name out. After a brief stint with the Dakota Wizards in a minor league, he decided to come back to his native country to play for Al Rayyan. In four seasons with his club, he reached the Asian Club Championship final twice. He also won the Qatari league twice.
Yaseen Ismail is very athletic and has an impressive vertical leap. He is a great one-on-one player and a spectacular dunker. He is hard to stop on the low post and has good rebounding skills.

[ Current Team: Al Rayyan (Qatar)/ F / 204cm ]

National Team
Khalid Mas'ud Al Nasr (175-G-80) of Al Arabi Club
Malek Salem Abdullaa (195-F-85) of Al Rayyan
Saad Abdulrahman Ali (188-G-85)
Daoud Musa (193-G-82) of Qatar Club
Yaseen Ismail (204-F-80) of Al Rayyan
Erfan Ali Saeed (198-F-83) of Al Rayyan
Mohammed Saleem Abdulla (205-C-79) of Al Rayyan
Hammam Ismail (200-C/F-83)
Hashem Zaidan (211-C-80) of Al Ahli Sports Club
Omer Abdgader Salem (205-C-83) of Al Rayyan
Ali Turki (200-F-82) of Al Jaysh Army SC
Khaled Suleyman (196-F/G-87) of As Sadd Sports Club
Mohammed Orabi (180-C-78) of Al Rayyan




AUSTRALIA V TURKEY
Sunday 20th August

Turkey has a talented team which had high hopes for the 2005 EuroBasket campaign. But in the opinion of many experts they underachieved in finishing with a 1-3 record and being eliminated in the Preliminary Round. They received a wild card from FIBA to play in the 2006 FIBA World Championship in Japan thanks to their past performance, their potential and their role as hosts for the 2010 FIBA World Championship.

Turkish star: Mehmet Okur

Mehmet Okur started his career playing for Oyak Renault in 1997.
In 1998, he joined Tofas Bursa for two seasons, winning the Turkish League twice. Then he spent two seasons with Efes Pilsen, winning the Turkish League for the third time and reaching the Final Four of the FIBA Suproleague in 2001. During the next summer, he was drafted with the 38th pick by the Detroit Pistons and returned to win the silver medal in the Eurobasket 2001 in Turkey. In his last season with Efes Pilsen, he averaged 13.1 points and 8.1 rebounds per game in the Turkish League and 12.1 points and 6.6 rebounds in the Euroleague. At 23, he led the National Team to the 9th place of the 2002 World Championship in Indianapolis, averaging 17.3 points and 6.6 rebounds per game and joined the NBA the next month. In his second season with the Detroit Pistons, he won the 2003 NBA title but was not seeing a lot of playing time. That's why he decided to leave Detroit to sign with the Utah Jazz. In his first season under coach Jerry Sloan, he earned much more playing time and improved his numbers to 12.9 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. Since the beginning of the season, he has been averaging 17.9 points and 8.7 rebounds per game.
Despite being 2.11 m, Mehmet Okur can shoot from anywhere on the court.

[ Current Team: Utah Jazz (NBA)/ C / 211cm ]


Position Player Born Height Current Club
Guard Bar1_ Ermi_
1985 1.90 Efes Pilsen

Guard Ender Arslan
1983 1.87 Efes Pilsen

Guard Hakan Demirel
1986 1.85 Fenerbahçe

Guard Kerem Tunçeri
1979 1.90 Be_ikta_

Guard Serkan Erdoan
1978 1.95 TAU Cerámica

Guard/Forward Hidayet Türkolu
1978 2.08 Orlando Magic

Guard/Forward 0brahim Kutluay
1974 1.97 Fenerbahçe (former NBA player)

Forward Cenk Akyol
1987 1.98 Efes Pilsen (drafted by the NBA, but has yet to play in the league)
Forward Kerem Gönlüm
1977 2.08 Efes Pilsen

Forward Mirsad Türkcan
1976 2.06 Ülkerspor (former NBA player)

Forward Reha Öz
1978 2.02 Mersin B^B
Forward/Center Ermal Kurtolu
1980 2.07 Efes Pilsen

Forward/Center Kaya Peker
1980 2.07 Efes Pilsen

Center Cem Dinç
1985 2.10 Indiana University

Center Fatih Solak
1980 2.13 Ülkerspor

Center Mehmet Okur
1979 2.11 Utah Jazz

Center Ouz Sava_
1987 2.10 Ülkerspor

Center Semih Erden
1986 2.10 Fenerbahçe


AUSTRALIA V GREECE
Tuesday 22nd August

Eighteen years after winning their first Eurobasket at home, Greece triumphed in the 2005 edition in Belgrade and earned a spot for the 2006 FIBA World Championship. After defeating France thanks to a three pointer at the last second by Dimitrios Diamantidis (Panathinaikos Athens, Greece) in the semifinals, they dominated Germany 78-62 in the final. The Greek National Team participated in the FIBA World Championship four times and finished in fourth place twice in 1994 and 1998. Greece hosted the Olympic Games in 2004 and finished fifth.

Greek star: Dimitrios Diamantidis

Dimitrios Diamantidis was born in Kozani but started his career with Iraklis Thessaloniki in 1999.
In 2000-01, he had the opportunity to play few minutes in the FIBA Suproleague and appeared with the National Team for the first time. But he had to wait until the 2002-03 season to earn significant playing time and a spot on the National Team to participate in the Eurobasket 2003 in Sweden. The next season, he revealed himself as one of the most complete Greek players, averaging 14.8 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.2 steals per game in the domestic league. He played in the 2004 Olympic Games with the host team that finished fifth, but didn't play a lot. Last season, he joined Greek powerhouse Panathinaikos Athens. With his new team, he reached the Final Four of the Euroleague, finishing third, and won the Greek League title. He was also named the Euroleague Best Defensive Player. Last summer, he won the gold medal in the Eurobasket 2005. In the semifinals, he scored the winning three pointer at the buzzer against France to give Greece their qualification for the final. He was nominated to the Eurobasket 2005 First Team.
Diamantidis is a very complete player who can dominate the game at both ends of the court. He is 1.96 m and can play both guard positions.

[ Current Team: Panathinaikos Athens (Greece)/ G / 196cm ]


AUSTRALIA V LITHUANIA
Wednesday 23rd August


Lithuania Team at FIBA Europe Championship 2005
(EUROBASKET 2005)
Despite playing without most of their stars, Lithuania finished 5th at the EuroBasket 2005 and gained a spot at the FIBA World Championship in Japan. The Baltic team was 5-1, losing only once to France in the quarterfinals. The young squad coached by Antanas Sireikas showed that the next generation was ready to play.
The Lithuanian head coach will have to build a very competitive squad to win its first medal in the World Championship. The three time European champion won three consecutive bronze medals between 1992 and 2000 in the Olympic Games but has never shined in the World Championship. Sireikas hopes he will be able to count on Sarunas Jasikevicius. But the Indiana Pacers' point guard would like to take a second summer off to concentrate on his NBA career. Playing without the three time Euroleague champion could be a hard task for the Lithuanians. Forward Saulius Stombergas (Unics Kazan, Russia), guard Arvydas Macijauskas (New Orleans/Kansas City Hornets, NBA, USA), center Eurelijus Zukauskas (Olympiakos Pireus, Greece), power forward Darius Songaila (Chicago Bulls, NBA, USA) and center Zydrunas Ilgauskas (Cleveland Cavaliers, NBA, USA) missed the last Eurobasket and Sireikas doesn't know yet which players will be available to join the National Team next summer. But even with a younger and less experienced squad, Lithuania will be a tough team to play.

Lithuanian star : Sarunas Jasikevicius

The Lithuanian genius , Sarunas Jasikevicius studied in the United States, spending four years at the University of Maryland. But he went undrafted and came back to his native country to play for Lietuvos Rytas.
In 1999, he moved to Ljubljana in Slovenia to compete in the Euroleague and had a breathrough season, finishing second in assists. He joined Spanish powerhouse Barcelona in 2001 and became the best European point guard. He spent three years in Spain, winning both the ACB league and the Copa del Rey in his first season. In 2003, Barcelona won it all, clinching the ACB league, the Copa del Rey and its first Euroleague title ever.
Jasikevicius decided to leave the Catalan club to sign with Maccabi Tel Aviv. In two years in Israel, he won both the domestic league and the Euroleague twice. He received the European MVP award in 2005 after finishing second in 2004. He achieved the last goal of his career by joining the NBA last summer to play for the Indiana Pacers. After winning three consecutive bronze medals from 1992 to 2000 in the Olympic Games, and a gold medal in the Eurobasket 2003, Sarunas Jasikevicius would like to rest next summer instead of trying to clinch a medal at the Word Championship for the first time, but you never know....

[ Current Team: Indiana Pacers (NBA)/ PG / 193cm ]

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