Canada qualifies for 2010 World Basketball Championship - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

pria(kin)16 · 09-05-2009, 11:35 AM

Maybe not a big deal to some around here, but as a big basketball fan, I'm thrilled our essentially no-name squad found a way to qualify over teams with NBA players like Charlie V and Al Horford. Hopefully Nash and quasi-Canadian Matt Bonner join the boys next summer and this is the start to a birth in the next Olympics. Go Canada Go!

The victory clinches a semifinal berth for Canada (3-4), and with it, a spot in next year's world championships.

The Canadians will make their first world championship appearance since 2002 in Indianapolis, where they finished 13th in the last significant senior tournament Canada has played in.

http://tsn.ca/nba/story/?id=289983

Fire · 09-05-2009, 03:08 PM

I'm not a big basketball fan but it's good to see them do well. It's too bad that some of the millionaires think they are too good to play for Canada.

troutman · 09-05-2009, 03:39 PM

I don't think any team that loses to Puerto Rico deserves to be in any kind of championship.

Suave · 09-05-2009, 05:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by troutman

I don't think any team that loses to Puerto Rico deserves to be in any kind of championship.

Well they are the 11th ranked team in the world. So if that's the case, I guess they shouldn't have expanded the championship to 26 teams.

OzSome · 09-06-2009, 01:44 AM

I didn't know Matt Bonner is a Canadian. I thought he is an American but he played for Toronto in his first few years in the NBA. Good to know the Canadians made it.

pria(kin)16 · 09-06-2009, 10:06 AM

Bonner is American, but acquiring Canadian citizenship so he can play for the Red and White. In other news Canada lost in the semis to a much better Brazil team. All that matters though is they have a spot in Turkey next summer, can't wait.

Bonner -- nicknamed the Red Rocket and now the starting centre for the San Antonio Spurs -- is in the early stages of acquiring Canadian citizenship. Should that go ahead as planned, Bonner plans to represent his adopted country as soon as possible.

http://www.basketball.ca/en/hm/inside.php?id=2636&sid=1

JohnnyFlame · 09-06-2009, 11:22 PM

Rautins gets hammered all the time by basketball fans(well mostly Raps fans) as a boring commentator who keeps hammering on the same points. But I find he describes exactly what the problems are with the Raps.

I thought he did a masterful job during the tournament. He had them switching defenses continually. Zone to man to man to pressure and combo's thereof. On offense they went with whatever was working. If they couldn't fire up three's then then went inside as they did against Brazil albeit not in a win. Against Domincan Rep. they fired three's from everywhere.

Very good coaching job and a really atypical Canadian performance--hard working and gritty and never-say-die.

GirlySports · 09-07-2009, 12:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pria(kin)16

Hopefully Nash and quasi-Canadian Matt Bonner join the boys next summer and this is the start to a birth in the next Olympics. Go Canada Go!

Nah screw them. Keep the Canadian team the way it is and reward the guys that played their butts off and qualfied. They can learn alot at the Worlds. The goal isn't to win, they might not win a single game. But this is the team of the future, putting in old geezer isn't going to help in the longterm.