Beijing 2008 - Basketball (Player Profile)

Wow!!! Believe it or not, that four years has just passed by since that great moment for Argentina in 2004. The wait for a gold medal finally came to an end after 52 years of wait. Hours after Carlos TEVEZ lead Argentina to their first, Manu GINOBILI and his colleague ensured it was a double celebration for the nation of blue and white.

Let me put into my own expression, since then nothing will ever be the same again.

Basketball will be another hotly contested event in Beijing. The Chinese are banking on YAO and home crowd to take them further. Team USA is aiming to end their international drought (8 years!!!) and claiming their stake as the best team in the world. Of course not to forget, the world champions Spain lead by Pau GASOL. Not to mentioned, Greece, Lithuania & Germany are all dark horses of the tournament.

So what about our boys? A lot of things have changed during the last four years. Manu went on to win two more NBA titles. DELFINO, NOCIONI, SCOLA, HERRMANN & OBERTO (also an NBA winner in 2007) followed him there. Some important figures (Coach Rubén MAGNANO, Alejandro MONTECCHIA & Hugo SCONOCHINI) are no longer part of the national team set up.

For the current coach Sergio HERNANDEZ, just like last year, his game plan and preparation did not go according to plan. First, Juan Pepe SANCHEZ announces his retirement from the national team. Not so soon, Walter HERRMANN followed suit. Both were expected to be crucial players for Beijing 2008.

At the end of the day, life goes on. So the following are the 12 men that will take on the mission to defend the gold.

Forward

Luis SCOLA (Houston Rockets) – Despite a poor start, he went on to excel in his debut NBA season. Was named in the NBA All-Rookie First Team, posting 10.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg and 1.3 apg.

Leonardo GUTIERREZ (Atenas) – The only local based player in the team. Will deputized SCOLA for the power forward position.

Andres NOCIONI (Chicago Bulls) – Despite the Bulls poor performance last season, he was amongst the most consistent performer for them. Will definitely start in the small forward position.

Federico KAMMERICHS (CB Murcia) – Played an important role in helping Argentina to book an automatic berth in last years FIBA Americas. A Borat look alike!!!

Center

Roman GONZALEZ (San Carlos) – Lead Argentina’s triumph in the recent South American Championship. A much traveled left-handed player. One of the revelation in last year’s FIBA Americas

Fabricio OBERTO (San Antonio Spurs) – Won an NBA title last year with the Spurs. He played in all 82 games during the regular season, with an improve average of 4.8 ppg, 5.2 rpg and 1.2 apg.

Juan GUTIERREZ (CB Granada) – A utility bench player who can play in both the power forward and center position. Did not feature much in last years FIBA Americas.

Guard

Manu GINOBILI (San Antonio Spurs) – The face of Argentine basketball. Much of the team success will depend on his energetic and inspiring performance. Was named 2008 NBA Sixth Man Award.

Carlos DELFINO (Khimki BC) – Responded well in the absence of Manu in last Las Vegas last year. Will start from the bench and used to provide extra fire-power in place of either Manu or Chapu.

Pablo PRIGIONI (Tau Vitoria) – The absence of Pepe means, he will be the starting point guard. Not an easy task but he is very reliable, unselfish and arguably one of Europe’s finest in that position.

Antonio PORTA (Spartak St. Petersburg) – Much will depends on his fitness level as he just recovered from a long term injury. Played in last year’s FIBA Americas.

Paolo QUINTEROS (Basket Zaragoza) – Will be the most likely deputy for PRIGIONI in the point guard position. Could also come in as shooting guard as well.

Overall this is not a bad team but one that has to step up its game if they were to match the class of 2004. Already HERNANDEZ and his boys have suffered defeats in recent friendlies. Winning the FIBA Diamond Ball tournament may provide a boost and some confidence within the camp.

All in all, the starting five could look something like this; SCOLA will start in PF and NOCIONI in SF. Its looks like OBERTO could be the man in the middle though my preference goes to GONZALEZ. Both Manu (SG) and PRIGIONI (PG) will provide the back court support.

It has been a long time that I’ve waited to watch these guys playing together. I just can’t wait for this to start.