2024 Summer Olympics in Paris

[GDAWG]

4 hours ago, Cujo said:

 

Sad.

 

The world's 3735634623th best competing for a medal.

 

It's been said that FIBA doesn't want NBA players to dominate 3x3 as they do 5x5, which is why FIBA schedules 3x3 tournaments during the NBA season.  The WNBA players can play 3x3 though.  USA Women had a really good 3x3 team in Tokyo that included Kelsey Plum and Jackie Young, both of whom are on the current 5x5 team.   Two players on the current team , Rhine Howard and Dearica Hamby are current WNBA players.  

[Cujo]

39 minutes ago, GDAWG said:

It's been said that FIBA doesn't want NBA players to dominate 3x3 as they do 5x5, which is why FIBA schedules 3x3 tournaments during the NBA season.  The WNBA players can play 3x3 though.  USA Women had a really good 3x3 team in Tokyo that included Kelsey Plum and Jackie Young, both of whom are on the current 5x5 team.   Two players on the current team , Rhine Howard and Dearica Hamby are current WNBA players.  

 

My problem with 3x3 is that the WORLD'S BEST aren't competing in the event. Only soccer has this kind of problem, but still fields viable young players that live up to the country's standards. This is playground basketball being played by washouts, has-beens and never-weres. Rules are goofy. Scoring is dumb. The entire concept is garbage. And you see by the USA going 2-5 that it's not even being taken serious.

[Digby]

18 hours ago, Sport said:

I've been enjoying these games with the peacock app a lot. I can parachute into a sport, check it out for as long as I'm interested, and then get out. It's a choose your own adventure Olympics rather than just what NBC network wants to show me in prime time. I watched the men's hammerthrow final yesterday and was riveted. The Gold Zone thing is pretty cool too. 

 

Gold Zone solves the problem with going a la carte to watch events that I find, which is that I don't know when I should be tuning in for the relevant stuff. It's a good idea apart from the hosts being irritating. Which reminds of the absolute best part of the Peacock sport-specific coverage: No Colin Jost bits.

[Cujo]

3 hours ago, Digby said:

Gold Zone ... It's a good idea apart from the hosts being irritating.

 

Translation: Matt Iseman is an annoying doucher

[GDAWG]

12 hours ago, Cujo said:

 

My problem with 3x3 is that the WORLD'S BEST aren't competing in the event. Only soccer has this kind of problem, but still fields viable young players that live up to the country's standards. This is playground basketball being played by washouts, has-beens and never-weres. Rules are goofy. Scoring is dumb. The entire concept is garbage. And you see by the USA going 2-5 that it's not even being taken serious.

 

The Women's Team has two current WNBA All Stars.  In 2021, the Women's team had three WNBA All Stars, two of whom are on the 5x5 team for this Olympics.  So none of the women are washouts or has-beens.  

 

One idea to improve things for the men is to have the 4 best college basketball players (who did not enter the NBA Draft or Transfer portal) play for Team USA because one of the FIBA Sanctioned tournaments take place in late May, Early June.  If FIBA isn't so stubborn about 3x3 rules, there's a way that they can allow NBA players to play in the tournament, and not just from the US: move one of their 3x3 tournaments to around the time of the Summer Leagues.  This way, they can get NBA players who want to play 3x3 to be eligible to play.   But this isn't happening because FIBA wants "competitive balance."  I think the best USA Basketball can hope for is 4 of the best college basketball players on the Men's team who are not entering the transfer portal or NBA Draft.

[Cujo]

1 minute ago, GDAWG said:

The Women's Team has two current WNBA All Stars

 

Do they? So why's the men's team saddled with jabroni ass scrubs? -- Another reason I cannot make sense of any of this. Which is why I cannot stand 3x3 being on the same level as ANY other Olympic event.

[SFGiants58]

17 hours ago, BBTV said:

 

Each country gets to have one of its shooters at each game, and they get one shot per game (except during free throws - that would be too easy. Coach could call for the shot right away and play the whole game 3 on 2, but if by some chance the shooter misses, then the other team has a distinct advantage.

 

The shooters don't have to shoot at the players either - if a game winning 3-ball is in the air at the buzzer, the shooter can shoot the ball.

 

Tell me the sight of these on the sidelines wouldn't up the pace of play.

 

 

 

I’d watch the hell out of that sport!

[TBGKon]

51 minutes ago, Cujo said:

 

Do they? So why's the men's team saddled with jabroni ass scrubs? -- Another reason I cannot make sense of any of this. Which is why I cannot stand 3x3 being on the same level as ANY other Olympic event.

If you read the post you quoted, it has to do with FIBA rules about 3x3 qualifiers and the timing of those events.  

[GDAWG]

1 hour ago, Cujo said:

 

Do they? So why's the men's team saddled with jabroni ass scrubs? -- Another reason I cannot make sense of any of this. Which is why I cannot stand 3x3 being on the same level as ANY other Olympic event.

 

Because the 3x3 events take place during the NBA season, which is also the WNBA offseason so WNBA players can play at FIBA Sanctioned 3x3 tournaments.  

 

It's why I suggested that if FIBA wanted NBA players in 3x3, they move one of their sanctioned events to when the Summer Leagues are going on but they don't because they want to give other countries a chance to win.  

[BBTV]

1 hour ago, SFGiants58 said:

I’d watch the hell out of that sport!

 

Say what you want about me (and plenty have!) but my ideas for football, baseball, and now the olympics all generate ratings. We may have even come up with something for soccer, but I can't remember.  Not sure why networks aren't lining up to offer me executive positions.

[MJWalker45]

If anyone had Brazil beating Spain in women's soccer I want to see their time machine. Because that's the only way anyone would have predicted that. Marta will get one more chance at a gold medal!

[nickp91]

USWNT vs Brazil for the 3rd time in the Gold Medal match

[GDAWG]

1 hour ago, nickp91 said:

USWNT vs Brazil for the 3rd time in the Gold Medal match

 

It would have been a fun storyline had Catarina Macario been a part of this for Team USA, because she was born in Brazil.  Sadly an injury took her out of the Olympic team.  

[FiddySicks]

Skateboarder Arisa Trew just won gold for Australia in park. She’s been one of my favorite young skaters for a few years now, and just recently became the youngest person to ever land the 900 (what catapulted Tony Hawk mainstream fame). 
 

She’s FOURTEEN! Youngest medalist this Olympics. 
 

I can’t even believe how good some of these kids are nowadays. Mind blowing. 

[GDAWG]

So ummm...what happened to the Jamaican women on the track?  Weren't they supposed to dominate the 100 and 200 meters?  Instead, none of the Jamaican women medaled and apparently the three who swept the podium in Tokyo didn't even make the finals.  

 

Also, Gabby Thomas is amazing.  She'll need a few more Olympic golds and overall medals though to be in the same conversation as Katie Ledecky and Simone Biles.

[GDAWG]

Edit.  

[Digby]

I was watching the cycle relay event thing last night, where each team goes as a unit of three and loses one cyclist per lap, and the other team is on the opposite side of the track at the same time. Very odd event but quite exciting and aesthetically fascinating to watch. 

[MJWalker45]

11 hours ago, GDAWG said:

So ummm...what happened to the Jamaican women on the track?  Weren't they supposed to dominate the 100 and 200 meters?  Instead, none of the Jamaican women medaled and apparently the three who swept the podium in Tokyo didn't even make the finals.  

Their best runner has been injured for weeks and qualified for the final before having to pull out because she wasn't able to get warmed up well enough to compete. They just had a bad break during this Olympics overall. 

 

[burgundy]

This is absolutely insane. I'm exhausted just watching. What a finish!

 

 

[dont care]

On 8/6/2024 at 11:18 PM, GDAWG said:

Also, Gabby Thomas is amazing.  She'll need a few more Olympic golds and overall medals though to be in the same conversation as Katie Ledecky and Simone Biles.

What? She has 1 gold from this Olympics and a silver and bronze from Tokyo. She’s nowhere close to the other 2. She is nowhere close to either of those 2. And those 2 can still win more in 4 years (Biles is likely done though).