Our favorite Argentinean Sebas Adúriz (aka Palomba) is in Mar del Plata for the FIBA Americas tournament this week and was kind enough to file the following report along with the accompanying photographs. Thanks Palomba!

UPDATE: Argentina went on to defeat Brazil 80-75 in the somewhat-academic title game Sunday night. Carlos Delfino scored 16 along with nine boards.

FIBA Americas Olympic Qualifiers semifinals: September 10, 2011. Islas Malvinas arena, Mar del Plata, Argentina

Boxscore

"Oh, Argentina, it’s an emotion, I can’t stop. Ole, ole, I love you more every day."

Carlos Delfino was swinging his shirt over his head and chanting with teammates at center court. The crowd of 8,000 packing the Islas Malvinas arena in Mar del Plata sang along with them. They were all exultant and relieved: moments before, J.J. Barea’s potential game-winning three had bounced off the rim. And with it, the Caribbean country’s chance at an automatic berth to next summer's Olympic Games in London.

The last minute was terrific, befitting of a game with so much on the line. Having led by as many as eight, Argentina clung to a lead of just 80-79 in the waning seconds. In what would be their second to last possession, Puerto Rico would predictably attack with their stars: an Arroyo or Barea drive to the rim. This time it was Boston’s backup point guard, but Delfino walled off his way to the paint, forcing Arroyo to pass and then grabbing the rebound that came from the contested shot that followed. It may have been the defensive play of the night. Argentina’s point guard Pablo Prigioni was then fouled and made one of two free throws, doubling Argentina's lead to 81-79. And with six seconds to go, Barea missed his last shot.

"My heart stopped," Manu Ginobili would say afterwards in the press room. "Imagine what it would have been like to be left out in front of my people, my friends and family. This was the game with the most pressure in my whole career, maybe only compared to playoff game seven in the 2005 Finals [against Detroit]. It was an opportunity that we couldn’t let go." 

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Carlos practices his shooting one hour before the game (photo by Sebas Adúriz)

Our favorite Argentinean Sebas Adúriz (aka Palomba) is in Mar del Plata for the FIBA Americas tournament this week and was kind enough to file the following report. You can also check out his previous report from the Brazil/Argentina game. Thanks Palomba!

FIBA Americas Olympic Qualifiers: September 8, 2011. Islas Malvinas arena, Mar del Plata, Argentina

Argentina ended group play at the FIBA Americas Championship on Thursday with a solid victory against the Dominican Republic, defeating John Calipari's club 84-58. The game decided nothing other than places for Saturday’s semifinals: now Argentina will face Puerto Rico and Brazil will face Dominican Republic. Winners earn tickets to London 2012 and play in the finals on Sunday.

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Brew Hoop goes south!

Our favorite Argentinean Sebas Adúriz (aka Palomba) is in Mar del Plata for the FIBA Americas tournament this week and was kind enough to file the following report. Check out the box score here, and time permitting he'll have more this weekend. Thanks Palomba!

FIBA Americas Olympic Qualifiers: September 7, 2011. Islas Malvinas arena, Mar del Plata, Argentina.  

Well, I believe this Brew Hoop correspondent thing cannot get better than this. Wednesday night I made my way to the press seats in the Islas Malvinas arena (thanks to some connections with the organization…ejem), and made myself comfortable to watch Argentina’s third game of the second round of the FIBA Copa de las Americas, the so-called continental Olympic Qualifiers for London 2012. 

The opponent was no less than Brazil and head coach Ruben Magnano, the Argentinean who just so happened to guide his home country to the Olympic Gold medal in Athens in 2004. Even though both teams had already qualified for Saturday's semifinals--the two other qualified teams are Puerto Rican team led by Carlos Arroyo and J.J. Barea and Al Horford’s Dominican Republic--the South American derby still mattered for both teams and fans. After all, no one wants to stand the other side's jokes when the game is over. 

Continue reading this post »

First round in FIBA Olympic qualifiers is over and Argentina with its Buck player, Carlos Delfino, won all four games against Paraguay, Uruguay, Puerto Rico and Panama. The team showed, as expected, a very tight defense, good ball passing and team work, but some problems in their offensive: with Scola and Delfino missing too many shots,  Argentina ended relying too much in Manu Ginobili individual attempts.

Delfino, who played only the last three games due to a slight injury in his ankle, embraced his glue, multifunctional role, in a way that resembled what he does with the Bucks. Starting as SF,  he carried the ball, he made sure to keep it in movement, made some good assists, and had some key steals which mostly turned out in fast break points. Nevertheless, the rim seemed to shrink down as games went by: he made 3 of 5 treys against Uruguay, 1 of 4 against Puerto Rico and 1 of 8 against Panama, arguably his poorer match. Regardless of this, he managed to score a total of 36 points in these three games.

Here are his numbers:
MIN   2p    3p     FT    REB As Steals  Points
Vs Uruguay (85-81)
22    1/2    3/5    0/0     5     1       1          11

Vs Puerto Rico (81-74)
33    5/9  1/4      1/2     4     0       3          14

Vs Panama (90-71)
29  3/3   1/8        2/2    3     5       3          11

If you want more, here are the boxscores, recaps (in Spanish), and video highlights for all the first phase games of the tournament.  Check the nice put back and steal & running Carlos made vs Puerto Rico: as usual, he’s the one with the long socks :)


Now Argentina will face in the second round the better 4 teams of the B group. Her’es the fixture, starting today at 4 PM vs. Canada

Monday 5

Vs Canada

Tuesday 6, 4 pm

Vs. Venezuela

Wednesday 7, 4 pm

Vs. Brazil

Thursday 8, 4 pm

Vs Dominican Republic
 
Hopefully, I will be watching live games against Brazil and Dominican Republic and afterwards semifinal games (Sat 10th, winners go to London) and the final one. So far, I’ve enjoyed watching some very good basketball: the Barea-Arroyo tandem is fun to watch, as Greivis Vasquez  and Al Horford.

Finally, if you missed some USA presence in this post, here’s something funny to watch. Ribeirao preto, Brazil, 2000,  17 years old Carlos playing Pan American Under 21 final game vs USA. Delfino aside, Scola and  Tayshaun Prince were there too. And apparently Drew Gooden (!), Carlos Boozer and Zach Randolph were also in USA’s roster.  Carlos was chosen MVP of that game. 

I guess it's Murphy's law.

I've been anticipating Carlos participation in FIBA America's Olympic Qualifiers for the last months, and when the time finally came, I'm busier than ever, with a load of work enormously surpassing by far the average I’ve been having for the last two years.

Despite these problems, I'm in Mar del Plata, the city where the tournament takes place, ready to watch Carlos’ second game. Today Argentina will play against Puerto Rico (six NBA players on court) at 18.30 Milwaukee time (20.30 ARG). If you want to join me, you can follow the game through Argentina's official TV network live stream http://www.tvpublica.com.ar 

Carlos, despite carrying a tendonitis in his right ankle, has been playing very well through warm up friendlies and against Uruguay, his first game in the tournament.

He came from the bench and in 22 minutes, he scored 11 points (all from the field with 3 treys from 5 attempts), 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal. Interesting to note, his popularity has risen a lot among Argentinean fans, who are placing him along with Ginobili and Scola, our local basketball semi gods.

Hopefully, I'll write again after the match.

While he prepares for next Olympic Qualifiers to be held here in Argentina in September’s first two weeks, Carlos, as most of Argentinean NBA players, are enjoying some holidays and talking with the press.

Aside from big expectations for the tournament (the so called Golden Generation will play officially again in Argentina after 10 years), lockout is one of the main concerns they are asked about, especially because players need to be insured while playing the tournament.

Yesterday Carlos said in a local radio show that he intended to keep playing if the lockout continued. When asked about posible destinations, he mentioned Italy–he has an Italian passport and his wife is from there--and also Argentina ("Why not?" he said).  In these days, some rumors from the Turkish and Argentinean press also suggested that Besiktas, the Turkish team that signed Deron Williams, was also interested in his services (apparently depending on the result the Kobe transaction) and was offering big money.  Carlos has not publicly said anything about it.

Maybe I’m wrong, but the Besiktas situation reminds me of the Khimki experience, the Russian team Carlos played in before coming to Milwaukee. Even though he had a huge salary, the experience was far from good. And he has repeatedly said  how well treated he feels in Milwaukee, so I will be fairly surprised if he chooses to have a contract that could somehow put at risk what he has achieved here.

On the contrary, I believe him when he says he doesn’t want to stop playing. And Italy and Argentina seem to be two places he can leave without any consequences when the lockout finishes. We’ll see.

07/22/2011 Update:  "In Milwaukee I'm the happiest player of the world"

Today Carlos answered some questions about this issues to Basquet Plus website, and more or less confirmed what I wrote . Here's the translation

Media say Kobe Bryant asked for one million dollars to play in Besiktas Turkey and they offered him 500 thousand. Deron has already signed and they say the executives are thinking about you. What do you know about this?

 

It came to me via twitter, I read it there. I don’t know anything from my agent, which hasn’t been contacted. Personally I know nothing. I’m without worries and what I want is to play the Olympic qualifiers. After that I’ll make a decision. I talked with my agent and if lockout continues, I want to play somewhere. I’m not saying yes or no to Besiktas. I want to go to some good place and not ending in one like Khimki, which aspired to be top of the line, but was not there. In my condition I want to be in a team that can fight for something and at the same time has the peace of mind and certainty I can go back to NBA when it starts again. My dream is to be there and I’m completely happy in Milwaukee, where I have contract for another year. The ideal situation for me is lockout being canceled.

 

I imagine Turkey, as it was Russia, may be a difficult society for you to adapt

 

It’s tough. When lockout came out, I told my agent in Argentina and the American ones where were the places I would like to go if something was offered; if not, I don’t want to be reached. Besiktas may be interesting but you travel to a place where you don’t understand the language, you don’t understand what is written, and that is complicated. Estambul has an European side, where we played World’s second fase, and I have good memories. But officially I know nothing. Meantime, I don’t stop to think anything of these questions.

 

Do you daydream about coming here (to Argentina) to play in the league if lockout continues?

 

Yes, of course. I want to play basketball and I will not stand still. There are many options and I don’t want to close any door. If there’s an option to play int the (Argentinean) League, it would be a nice option. Being close to my family, play in a warm place after being playing for the last 8 years in places with 20 grades below zero. But first of all, I want to play Olympic Qualifiers and then see what decision I make. For me, the better and easiest solution is the lockout to end, so I can continue to be a Milwaukee player, and keep being the happiest player on earth. After that, if something happens and I have to walk in another way, I’ll see which my options are.    

Meanwhile, I translated the part of the central article of Basquet Plus last edition, the only basketball magazine we have here, where Carlos talks about last season. Nothing very new but you’ll find some colorful details about his injury and walking his dog around Milwaukee.

The fourth musketeer

Carlos Delfino had a very special season:  started very well, continued it with serious health problems and it’s going to end it with an Olympic qualification party in Mar del Plata.

Carlos Delfino’s stay in Argentina will be longer than usual, so he takes the chance for doing everything he likes: being with his family, fishing and watching Unión (local soccer team), his passion. And in his Santa Fe, relaxed, he talks about a peculiar year.

What’s your season balance?

For me is very positive because I ended playing. After the Worlds I thought I was going to have a good season, solid. And when on the first week of competition happened what happened, I thought it could end.  Some pessimistic people even thought my career could end. I didn’t gothat far. That’s why I tell you it was a positive season: because I was able to play again. I did it well and could forget about the injury. Because until I came back there were a lot of doubts:  if I would be able to play, to shoot, if I could handle a strong blow, everything… and that's only concerning sports. Because questions were also raised about if I could drive a car, listen to loud music… so it was positive in the end.

I don’t want to recall bad memories, but what did it happen exactly?

It was a blow. I keep it in my mind. I know how it happened. Last year I had the same injury and the problem was that Haslem fell over my neck and I lost conscience for a few seconds. This time, when I hit myself with a knee after drawing an offensive foul, I stayed on the floor, I stood up a little bit dizzy, and when the referee asked me if I was OK, I said yes. Two minutes remained for halftime. I went to the locker room and I told the trainer my head was aching. He immediately asked me if it could be the same thing that happened last year and I told him no, because symptoms were not the same. He gave me a pill and put some heat on the area. It was the first game on the road: October 28th. I finished playing and my head continued aching. I went to sleep. My old man was arriving that night. I slept two hours. I went to fetch my old man and the pain continued. I thought it was because I had finished playing. Next game, I played fine and just before it finishes, I receive an elbow blow in my ear.  I told the trainer, who is from Colombia, that it was hurting. I had a bruise. He told me to put ice. I kept sleeping badly, we trained, we traveled, and I woke up in the morning and felt that the light bothered me. From Boston we went to Indiana, we had a day free and I slept form the beginning to the end, like 15 straight hours.  That got me in a good mood. But I went to play and the neck was hurting, I was dizzy, everything waswrong. They applied laser in my neck. I played, and about 8 minutes before the end of the game I receive a blow in my cheekbone, an NBA classic.  The game finished and before the next one, I told the Colombian trainer what was happening to me. And he told me too many concussion symptoms existed. I was feeling like a buzz. He didn’t want me to play. But I went out to play and when they introduced me, I didn’t understand a thing. Everything moved. I played the first half and stopped. I couldn’t go on. Next day they took me to the hospital, they studied me and they see there was no blood clot. That was good news. They kept me shut down for two weeks. I couldn’t go out of my room. The problem had been the first blow. That was the one that weakened me. The second one was the knock out.

In those two weeks you received some treatment?

No, I was lying in my bed. I couldn’t go out to face the light. I felt like I had vertigo. They made me an appointment with a neurologist. They asked me to remember 12 words and to repeat them just when they finished spelling them. I couldn’t remember more than three. Again. I told them five. I was thinking to myself “I’m in the oven”. They made me take another test: I had to say words that started with C. I told them 3 in a minute. They gave me another letter. I told them four. Everything in English. He asked me if I could do better in Spanish. I told him yes, naturally. And I couldn’t say any word. The guy was laughing.  And he tells me it’s not a matter of language, that my head was not working well. I went back to the dark and couldn’t do anything. I was photophobic.  I live in a tenth floor with a beautiful view, but I had to stay in the room, I only woke up for dinner. I couldn’t read. I couldn’t force my view. If I wanted to remember something, my head started aching. Cell phone shut down. I slept during the daytime and was awake at night. During the second week I started walking the dog by night. And I saw people fishing by night. I thought maybe could be a good idea for me, in order to clear myself up. I told the Colombian, Sam, but he didn’t allowed me. So I went out with the dog every night.

I imagine you had some medication to calm you, to avoid going nuts…

No, you can’t. Because you can’t relax that much. You need to work your mind step by step so to sharpen it. Being careful no to cross the line to the opposite side. From there I went to see a guy that worked for NASA. They got me inside a sort of virtual reality cube and tested different things. This was in Chicago. They made me wear some dark glasses with cameras. They showed me some videos and my eyes went in every direction. I was in very bad shape. I went three weeks like this with different exercises. I improved my balance. We were in December. I tried to go and watch a game and I had to exit it. I couldn’t stand it. I went through two more weeks like this.

Was it a concussion, technically speaking?

Yes.

And was it related in some way with last year’s blow?

No. A guy who works with football players told me the kind of blows you receive in basketball do not leave sequels which can last so long.  But he told me if I continued to have concussions in the years to come then yes, we could be talking of something serious. So I didn’t knew if any new hit will cause me a concussion. But in that matter he left me without worries. We even thought to play with some kind of protection, but finally they told me not to, because it could cause more problems. Nevertheless, the league would have not allowed it. In Milwaukee they had bought like 20 XXL hats. Everybody laughed at me because they were too big.  Even Scola saw one.

The last part of recovery before you came back was a pretty fast one.

Yes. At the beginning I rode the exercise bicycle for 10 minutes trying to reach 90 pulsations. First day, at 85, my head started aching. Second at 15 minutes and the same. At some point I started shooting to the rim and I realized I was feeling better than with bicycle. They wouldn’t let me run.  But in a few days the situation changed. Salmons got injured, so we had a meeting with the neurologist, trainer,  team doctor and me. I was feeling well. So they told me to start playing about 15/18 minutes.

I remember. In the second game you played 30 minutes.

In the first game I played 22 or 23. We won in Cleveland, so everyone was happy. In the second match I played 30. Trainer told me: “I thought we were going little by little”. But I was OK, happy. And in a few games I was fantastic.  But a few days after I wasn’t able to move my legs. I was physically in very bad condition, but I got well in two weeks, and when I recovered rhythm I forgot about everything.

Was it special the day you came back?

Yes.

 A lot may have gone through your head.

Yes, emotionally it was a strong experience. When I played the first game, the coach sent me in during the first quarter. I had a little bit of stage fright.  I was asking myself a lot of things like if I would do OK.  I missed the first shot. The second one, in a reply, I made a three and I said to myself: “It’s done”. I remember every point I made in that game. I even dunked it. I was slow, but when I got well, I walked forward. These are the reasons for me to make a positive balance. More from a personal side than from a team one, as I usually do. 

Well, putting aside this matter, it was a good season for you.

Yes. I had a lot of hope for this year. But we had many injuries; the team didn’t do very well. When the season ended, I turned over the page.

Your injury influenced the tam performance, but Milwaukee seems to be a team that lacks something.  Because the team has talent, young players, athletes, a good coach, but it can’t find some regularity.

I think we lacked the chance to work together. The injury issue was very important, it killed us. There were players with whom I played, like Gooden, no more than 15 games. We didn’t have working hours. We lacked ensemble. We never had the chance to get together last year’s old core and mix it with the new players.  This way it’s very difficult to get a playing style, an idea.

It’s a team that with another year of work has a big potential.

Sure. I watched the playoffs between Chicago and Indiana, and honestly I believe we were a better team than Indiana. We didn’t play well and we didn’t have the team together at any moment. And that frustrates me. But we have to keep the core.  For sure there will be some movement but we must be intelligent and surround Jennings and Bogut, the core of the team. We must have better luck with injuries, because, as you say, the coach is a good one.

Delfino gave a short interview for Ole, Argentina's main sport newspaper. He mainly talked about the Bucks’season, but don't expect any big revelation: he said he always had the coach's trust and that he feels at ease in Milwaukee. "Being realistic, we haven't enough level to be champions. But the idea was to get into the playoffs and compete (...) This is the bitter taste I’m left with." I'll try to translate the whole interview tomorrow.

------------

Here`s the full transcription.

What’s your (season) evaluation?

I’m glad and I think while I was physically ok, I had a good time, and when I was not, a bad one.

After All Star weekend you nailed 30 points in two games and 8 treys in one. Was that because you were feeling confident?

-That happened because I was physically well: resting helped and also the adrenaline of coming back. I felt my legs better. Being away so much time made me suffer…

What meant those records for you?

-They were nice personal things, but if at the end of the season they don’t help… This is a team sport and must be analyzed in that way.

This season seemed it was meant to be your best one.

- I had a good summer, and I wanted to keep playing, keep my level, catch confidence, but with injuries you get physically low. I’m at ease with my performance and I enjoy being on the court. Now, in my holidays, I’ll analyze pros and cons of what happened.

-Are you comfortable with the role Scott Skiles is giving you?

 -Yes, but anyway I think we all had a strange year. Just at the season’s ending we could be all together at the locker room and not everyone was healthy. It’s something difficult what happened to us. Every game was different to the other: rotations and positions changed, and we all paid a little bit because of that. But I can’t complain because I always had the coach’s trust.

-I can imagine how disappointing must be to watch playoffs on tv…

 -It’s the first time in my career that I’m out of playoffs, at any level I have played. It’s hard, because you prepare for them and it’s the season time that you want to be playing. Being realistic, we haven't enough level to be champions. But the idea was to get into the playoffs and compete. On a personal level it’s not nice to know that you play without any chances to keep advancing. This is the bitter taste I’m left with.

-Motivation can come with next pre Olympic games in Mar del Plata (Delfino will be playing in August in Argentina to qualify for London 2012).

-Yes. Though there’s still time for them, I’m starting to think about them and I’m motivated with playing at home, playing again with the national Team. There are big expectations and I will doing a lot in the preparation. It’s a big goal.

Delfino passed his neurological tests and was allowed to finally go back to practice: todya he'll be training with the team. This was told yesterday by Carlos to Argentine sports newspaper Olé. Apparently he’s having no more symptoms and he aims to be in full form by the All Star week. 

It's all good news and Delfino sounds as positive and enthusiastic as ever. I have a really busy day today, but at some time in the weekend I'll try to translate the interview’s most important segments.

Yesterday at Sunday afternoon, Delfino appeared on Fabricio Oberto’s internet radio show De todo menos basquet (Everything But Basket) . He talked with him about many issues, one of them, of course, the injury that has kept him out of the courts for nearly a month.  

Although keeping his proverbial good humor, Delfino still sounded worried and frustrated when referring to his injury. He’s still experiencing some of the symptoms (see below), and though he acknowledges making progress, he sounded like he was expecting to be in better shape at this time. “I’m still in the basement, in a dark tunnel”, he said metaphorically.

These are the most important facts he mentioned:

1)      He didn’t identified the exact moment when he was hit, but he said that against New Orleans (he didn’t came out in the second half) he couldn’t continue playing because he was moving like a fool. “More than usual, at least”.  He also said that at first they thought he had a neck strain but soon realized his injury was a concussion (conmoción)  

2)      He described his symptoms as dizziness, photophobia (“I’m wearing dark glasses even at home”, he joked), and especially big headaches. He also said that he experienced “things moving” while watching them (“se me mueven las cosas” )

3)      During the last weeks he wasn’t allowed to do any physical activity or mental activity like watching TV or connecting to Internet. “I was told to relax, but couldn’t do any exercise, or watch TV, or connect to Internet, or read a book. ¿How could I possibly relax?”, he complained)

4)      Last three days he was allowed to do some exercise –he made 15 minutes of bicycle- and, if I didn’t understand wrongly, even drive his car and walk his dog. He had, nevertheless, to ask for authorization to participate on Oberto’s show and it was for a limited amount of time.

5)       He said that fan support was important for him. He encouraged his followers, for example, to help him win the best Santa Fe’s 2010 sportsman poll (He’ll  soon find out that many of his votes came from the  crucial district of Whitby, Ontario J)  By the way, in the last towo days he gave away two jerseys -one of the Bucks- to his twitter fans. He promised a third one if he surpasses some amount of votes in this poll. Be alert. 

6)      Talking about big fans, he had his mother helping him with home duties and food. “She flew here recently and she’s cooking me some good Argentine food”, he told Fabricio. “Beware because you’ll get soon the size of a center”, was his answer.

7)      Finally, both they made some fun of their diseases (Oberto, who owns a winery, recently retired because of an arrhythmia so they joke a getting out a Cabernet that could be called “Conmoción”  by Carlos Delfino or a Malbec  named after Oberto’s arrythmia); remember fondly some melody they sang after beating Brazil at last Worlds, and talked about music, which allegedly is the main reason for the show to exist.

Unlike Oberto who’s more into international and Argentine rock, Carlos turned out be a “cumbia” fan, especially in its santafesina variation. The cumbia is one of the most popular rhythms here, a favorite of low and lower middle classes (there’s even a sort of gangsta cumbia (cumbia villera)).

I’ll leave you, then, with “Bombon Asesino” (Sweetie Killer?)  by Los Palmeras,  one the Cumbia groups Carlos mentioned during the show. Nothing gangsta about them, as you will see.

Summing up, this interview left me in more down mood than when I read the official report that went out a couple of days ago. They talked about a 90 percent of progress and that he will be coming back in 15 days, which I found now somewhat optimistical, according to what Carlos said yesterday.   

 In any case,  it doesn’t seems to be a bad idea to show him some love at his Facebook page or on twitter.  Maybe it can help him to go through these days until some light is found at the end of the tunnel he feels he is in.

 You can listen to the whole show here.

Hi, everybody, Maybe this will be of some interest to some Sixers fans. (It sure will be for Chapuforyou and Noceone.)  

Chapu has a column of his own in the Argentine ESPN website version. It's in Spanish, mainly aimed at Argentine fans but nevertheless with a lot of comment about the Sixers, Here's the link: http://ht.ly/39RU6. In yersterday's column he talks about he hoped to win at least one of the last three road games, the imperative of winning the next ones at home,  the mouthpiece incident (he apologizes), having some exchange of blows with Manu (they are dear friends) and usually hanging out with Darius Songaila.

Here's the previous one, where he praise the Sixers organization. http://espndeportes.espn.go.com/blogs/index?entryID=1167686&name=andres_nocioni    

Here’s an excerpt of an interview that Andres Nocioni, the Argentine forward now with the Sixers, gave to an Argentinean newspaper. He talks briefly about Skiles. So, with many of us wandering how well he’ll do adapting the new players, I thought it was interesting to translate the quote. 

-So then (Doug) Collins’ philosophy and your situation are very similar to those with Skiles and the Bulls when you arrived to Chicago?

-Exactly, they are the same. Only that Collins is a bit political, not so blunt and direct like Skiles. He’s continuously stirring up players so that they progress and advance. That’s what I like about a coach. That’s the reason I always liked Dusco Ivanovic, Skiles, Flor Menendez or León Najnudel (a legendary Arg coach). They are guys that want to get a bit more (from you).

The complete interview,here.

Carlos Delfino completed a very good performance in Turkey’s FIBA World Championship.  He was the tourney’s third scorer (4th in %) behind Luis Scola and Kevin Durant, top scorer and MVP respectively. His numbers totaled 20.8 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 2.8 APG and 2 SPG.

With Houston Rockets’ Scola, he carried a limited Argentina to a laudable 5th place playing a SG for most of the time. Which, by the way, was a lot:  he was in almost every second of the nine games this short Argentina team played in the Worlds 15 day’s schedule. In fact, he ended being the player with more minutes on court: 36.3 %.  To bring some serenity here, I’ve heard him repeatedly saying to the Argentine media that he was feeling physically very well.

You know who is writing this recap, but for me he was the World’s best SG, over Billups or Navarro of Spain, the other two that can compete with him for this honor.  (It should be noted, however, that stellar roles in this cup were reserved for forwards as the tournament`s ideal 5 show: 4 of them were threes or fours). Carlos started in great shape against Germany, then had his weakest game against Australia (sadly, I believe, it was the most watched game among Brewhoopers), then he had so and so games until the first round ended: as I posted in one comment to the Serbia game, I started to doubt on him doing something different in this tourney.

But from Brazil up to Spain, things got really better. Although the comeback of center Fabricio Oberto might have helped (he was ill in the first matches), he showed a determination and a will to share the burden with Scola that grew from game to game. In all of these, Carlos was closely guarded by all teams who knew that Argentina’s offensive resources depended exclusively on what he or Scola could do.  

He had an excellent game against Brazil (a huge game for many reasons), a game that got resolved in the last seconds, with him scoring two key free throws at the end and participating in a key steal to Barbosa. His role as a capable deputy of Scola (quoting Frank here) kept growing, and in last games against Russia and Spain (his best) he turned out to be a winning factor of similar importance.  In all of these games he shared playmaking with Prigioni, moved constantly all around the perimeter and across the paint, assisted Scola and Oberto, and scored in many ways, as the following chart shows.

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Summing up, Carlos comes out of the world reinvigorated, not in physical sense, of course, but in an emotional one: he ended up playing consistently and experiencing the general approval from teammates, media and fans: there is a shared consensus that he was up to the challenge that meant replacing Ginobili and placing himself in a more stellar spot.

One of the ways his confidence showed off was in his comments after the games, some of them becoming very popular and going straight to some headlines: he described the Brazil one as a “polvo”(could be translated as a fuck, stressing the pleasure aspect of it) or the reasons to win over Russia because of the “clothes we wear” pointing his own Argentina jersey. (Usually he had the catch phrases and Scola the well thought conceptualizations, so don’t you worry for not understanding him when he talks in English: is not so different in Spanish).   

So, with or without funny quotes, hopefully a lot of this would be brought in the next days to the Bucks. I would love to continue watching him making his complementary role (again quoting Frank) a really valuable one, an asset of many resources, for the betterment of his team and teammates.    

This weekend, the last one before FIBA World Cup starts, will have again 2 of the 3 international Milwaukee Bucks on court (hope the Aussie one gets better soon). And more: on Monday evening they will be playing against each other.

This will be taking place at Ankara Sports Hall as part of the Efes Pilsen Tournament. This is the schedule.  

Saturday, August 21
9.30 Argentina-Canada (Milwaukee time)

12.15 Turkey- Lebanon (Milwaukee Time)

Sunday August 22
9.30 Argentina-Lebanon (Milwaukee time)

12.15 Turkey-Canada (Milwaukee time)

Monday August 23
18.30 Turkey-Argentina (Milwaukee time)

Argentina’s matches should be aired here, but until now it has not been confirmed.

Ersan started yesterday and today at Turkey’s losses against Lithuania and Serbia: he made 8 and 3 points respectively. I couldn’t find the box scores for more information. Tomorrow Turkey is playing vs. Germany and Ilyasova should be starting again. Here you can see Fiba’s presentation video of Turkey for the world cup: Ersan is chosen as the team's key player.

Carlitos will be starting as SG tomorrow at noon against Spain and Monday against Brazil in Argentina's prèparation games for the World Cup. It should be possible to watch him here.    

More preparatory games for next Fiba's World Cup this Sunday featuring Buck players on the starting rosters:

Carlitos Delfino will be playing SG with Argentina against Puerto Rico in his home town, Santa Fe. 6 pm at the Union de Santa Fe arena, the club where Carlitos started played in his early days.      

And Ersan Ilyasova will be playing PF with Turkey against Serbia, closing the Adidas Istanbul Cup. He was the top scorer in previous matches against Iran (17 pts, 6 reb) and New Zealand  (14 points, 6 reb). It starts at 8 PM, Istanbul time. (I believe it should be something around noon at Milwaukee) 

I know that some Brewhoopers here are going nuts with this long recess, so I can offer a sort of very minor palliative: one santafesino Buck on court and, why not, some resemblance of that old-fashioned Midwest style the Bucks play, according to Joana, which once used this description referring to Skiles imprint on the team ( I hope it’s accurate :) ) .

If you manage to find somewhere TyC Sports channel, Argentina’s national team plays today a 7 pm in its second preparation match against Puerto Rico.

So, what you will see then? Strong defense, ball sharing, Carlitos doing more or less the same thing he does in the Bucks, Oberto anticipating how will be Bogut doing his picking in about 10 years, and Scola scoring in every way possible.

Here are the statistics of yesterday's game against Brazil B team, where Delfino scored 20 points, and had 5 steals, 2 rebounbds and 2 assists. I'll link the new ones here, once they are available.

I swear I wasn’t planning any more Delfino stuff (for the weekend at least), but this came out today in a long article at Ole, the sports newspaper from Argentina. Carlitos, now training with Argentina’s national basketball team, is mainly asked about it and replacing Ginobili, but also, in a tiny segment, about Milwaukee.  

Here’s the segment’s translation.

Happy to continue with the Bucks

Carlos Delfino’s season 2009/20010 was the best since arriving NBA. The santafesino seems to have found his spot in the league’s world in Milwaukee, a team where his percentages were around 11 points per game and where he loosed in the first round playoffs. Lancha’s productions made the Bucks not waiting too much guaranteeing the contract’s year that linked them to Delfino. And Carlitos was happy after his good season. “The arrangement was what we deserved both parts. I’m happy, hoping to keep going in the same way and hopeful with the signings and the team we assembled. They will no longer say that we are going to finish 27 or 28”, he pointed out.

You’ve been improving steadily. Do you arrive to Turkey at your best moment?

“I believe I’m more at ease now. I know what I can give. I don’t try to invent anything. Before, I tried to do a lot of things and ended up blocked. I enjoy playing and I want to play. When I get the feeling I’m participating, I feel comfortable and time runs fast (…)”.

This is how it finished a recent interview to Carlitos in Clarin, the most important newspaper down here in Argentina. His answer reminded me of a recent comment in the who will be the starting SF post where unklchuk  said that Delfino is an egg that hatched, intending there was little space for him to progress.

This made me think of his whole career.

When he first appeared In Argentina, many fans thought he would be a Ginobili-like player: he was an elegant swingman and had an interesting selection of moves: he could shoot threes, but also assist, penetrate and dunk. This situation, I think, ended confusing people about what to expect from him (and maybe confusing him as well). When some of those expectations weren’t quickly met, he was finally perceived as a talented bur erratic player, capable of great moments (check his 18 points in a row for Argentina winning to Greece in last’s Olympic Games) but inconsistent in the final run. Or even worse: a sort of never be promise.

If you want an example of this point of view, just check what Latin D, an Argentinean writer at Pounding The Rock Spur’s blog, wrote just about a year ago. 

“Carlos is a player I've seen play for many years, and it's this simple: he sucks. Granted, he has a lot of talent - but no heart. On any given night he can be a white Michael Jordan, doing anything and everything, and then he'll disappear for a five-game stretch and you will be left scratching your head in confusion. He's the only Argentine player I know that can finish at the rim with nearly as much skill as Manu, but don't worry, he won't. Instead he'll take countless ill-advised threes and try to win the game with as little effort as possible. As I said before, he sucks, and he's probably the reason the Bucks might not make the playoffs… “

Obviously I don’t agree with him, and I find special joy that the Bucks finally made the playoffs. So getting back to Delfino and unklchuk comment, is he an egg that's hatched?

Well, yes and no.

In the yes part I think he has matured and that he finally has find his identity as a player, so to speak.  His trying no more to be Ginobili and his game has become about to be a bit of everything, strongly oriented to favor his teammatesroles and skills, as any Buck fan saw last season. In his better moments he could carry the ball, develop an effective pick and rolling with Bogut, and be a key piece when the team decided to move around the ball. And he ended the season scoring his threes when they were most needed. As some stated here, he found a place being like a sort of glue in the team’s general functioning.

The “no” part has more to do with my hopes and are still to be proved. I believe Delfino will continue to gain confidence and his new approach to his game will improve even more. He always had the skills and he now seems he now what do do with them. And he has finally come to the point where he needs to define the kind of player he’ll be from here until he retires.

Next World Cup will surely show what this will be: as I’ve been saying, there are a lot of expectations here about his performance. There is a feeling that this may be Argentina’s last chance to win something big before its golden generation (Ginobili, Oberto, Nocioni , Scola) is finally gone.  And for Delfino, the youngest of them all, may be also his last chance of making a major contribution to the better basketball team in Argentina's history.

If he proves his detractors wrong and does not suck, I think much of Buck's ambitions for next season will be empowered.  

P.S; A couple of days ago Delfino ended a training camp for kids in Santa Fe, the city where he is from. Here you can see some nice pictures of it.

According to Ole, the most important Argentinian sports newspaper, Delfino was promised to be a starter when he was confirmed yesterday. Specifically, he was told he would to start as SG and Maggette as SF.

"With the Delfino/Maguette couple, Milwaukee will be able to disguise John Salmon's most sure departure...¨ , completed the article. The day before, Delfino had expressed in his website his desire of continuing with the Bucks; "I would love to continue because of what  I experienced last year and because I believe to be part of a young team who has always better goals(...) he also expressed  some concern about loosing minutes: "I think I need minutes to keep growing"

I don't know. This maybe true if finally Salmons does not return, something, for what I've been reading here, is not as sure as Ole claims. On  the contrary, if these turn out how things will gonna be, you can surely have an advance next month when the World Cup starts: Delfino will probably start as SG replacing Ginobili in Argentina's National Team. (By the way, there's a lot of expectation with Delfino's performance)

Personally, I would like Salmons returning, Delfino starting as SF and Maggette coming from the bench. I haven't seen Magguette playing very much I must admit, but I believe some pick and rolling and some good team passing will be missed if Carlitos sits too much in the bench. 

 Here’s a picture of Hermes Binner, governor of Santa Fe, Argentina’s third state, holding a Milwaukee’s  jersey.  He received it a couple of days ago as a gift from Carlos Delfino,a natural born citizen, after designating him "Sport Ambassador of Santa Fe". So you know now who to talk to, at least until June 30th,  if you want to go deep south and play some ball. Jokes aside, I found somewhat meaningful that Delfino chose to give the Buck’s jersey instead of the national team one, the usual gift in occasions like these.  

By the way, not knowing if Delfino will be playing next season for the Bucks, (in the interview he says he would like to stay and he thinks that Hammond wants to renew him, but that he' ll wait until last minute in the chance making a better deal),  I would like to say again what a great time I had last season reading and posting here, and in general following the Bucks.

I even came close to watch a live playoff game. By chance I was with my wife for the first time in USA on the last days of April and the first ones of May, visiting New York and Chicago. If the Bucks should have made it through Atlanta I would have been able to assist at some of the games at the Bradley Center, if I was able to find some tickets. So watching 6th game in  New York`s Espn bar in the fine company of Bucks fan from Milwaukee made more or less the deal for me. Much better than the usual thing in Buenos Aires in front of the tv or, worst, a blurry web image.  Only bad thing was the game's final score, off course.