USA BASKETBALL GETS IT, GREEK-STYLE (YOU KNEW THAT WAS COMING)

Watching American jocks have their dignity taken away by no-name foreigners has happened so many times lately, it's starting to lose all meaning.

The U.S. basketball team, whose combined NBA salaries and endorsement income adds up to Lord-knows-what, were eliminated by Greece early today in the semi-final of the FIBA World Championship. Greece, with not a single NBA player, won 101-95. (Here's the Deadspin thread.)

Cue Luke Wilson's character in Anchorman after Tim Robbins chopped off his right arm: "Ahh! I didn't not see that coming!"

Actually, pretty much anyone could, even if you can't name a single one of Greece's players. (If you can, then your name is Leo Rautins.) Let's see: A Mike Krzyzewski-coached team gets upset by unheralded opponent since its 3-point shooting was cold that Santa's cojones on Christmas Eve and it got picked apart in the half-court defence. That's pretty much how it plays out every March when Coach K and the University of New Jersey at Durham Floorslappers get bounced out of the NCAA tournament.

So aside from personal vendettas against Coach K, the point here is that you can't take any special glee anymore in the U.S. get beaten at one of its own games anymore.

This will be the third straight FIBA men's championship (along with the '04 Olympics) where the U.S. didn't even reach the final. It didn't make the playoff round at the World Baseball Classic after losses to Canada, Korea and Mexico, and it didn't even qualify for the 2004 Olympic tournament. Is it piling on to point out that its women's hockey team lost to Sweden for the first time ever at the Olympics this February and ended up with the bronze medal in what was generally considered a two-team tournament?

So yes, this is getting a little old. For everyone's sake, the U.S. better win some international sports event of consequence sooner rather than later. (Especially since this means they'll have to play a qualifying tournament for the '08 Olympics, meaning Canada's hopes of qualifying just got cut in half.)

(By the way, the director of the U.S. team was Jerry Colangelo, father of Toronto Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo. Feel free to expostulate that the son is determined to differ from his dad, and that's why he's restocking the Raptors with European players.)

That's all for now. Send your thoughts to neatesager@yahoo.ca.