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Can Yugoslavia add injury to insult for Team USA?

by Chad Ford

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Also Below: Argentina's win no miracle | Yao loses it | Point guards starting to find homes | Peep Show

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INDIANAPOLIS -- While everyone was busy talking about upsets and shocking the world Wednesday night, Reggie Miller had something else on his mind — winning the gold.

Miller huddled up his team after the historic loss to Argentina Wednesday night.

Paul Pierce relayed to the world what he said: "The world is against us. The fans, the referees. . . Everyone wanted us to fail but we can still achieve our goal. We can still win the gold."

The road won't get any easier. Next up is a surly Yugoslavian team reeling from some of the same issues that plague the U.S. Beset with chemistry problems and contention, Yugoslavia dropped two of its first four games, raising more than a few eyebrows.

However, Yugoslavia's last two victories, including Wednesday's 110-78 blowout of Turkey, should make Team USA a little nervous. Team Yugo is coming together at the right time.

"Atmosphere is coming to the team," Peja Stojakovic said. "We are playing more aggressive defense and that is the way we will play now on."

"We are playing the way we are capable of playing," head coach Svetislav Pesic said. "The 22 assists we had today shows we are playing well as a team."

That could be bad news for Team USA. While the USA will no longer have to deal with the swarming, physical defense that Argentina employed, it will have to address the fact that Yugoslavia has seven or eight players capable of putting on huge offensive games.

Will America's loss to Argentina bring this team closer or has the pressure cooker just turned up a few degrees? If the U.S. loses tonight, it is out of medal contention, a nightmare no one imagined.

"I think the loss should bring us together," Elton Brand told Insider. "We've got to come out with some fire. I think tonight should give us the motivation to start the game with the right intensity instead of waiting for the second half. If we don't, then we don't deserve to be here."

"Our lack of intensity in the first half, as in other games, really hurt us," George Karl said. "We've got to start stronger."

The matchups tonight should be delicious. Peja Stojakovic versus Michael Finley and Miller. Marko Jaric against soon-to-be teammate Andre Miller. Dejan Bodiroga versus Pierce. Vlade Divac versus Antonio Davis and Ben Wallace.

Redemption or utter disgrace? Tonight we find out the lot of Team USA.

Can Yugoslavia beat U.S.?

Chad Ford / ESPN.com

Argentina's win no miracle

Forget the talk about miracles or the greatest upset ever.

If you've been following these World Championships closely the last few weeks, you knew that the lack of "Team" in Team USA was a recipe for disaster. Angola beating the U.S. should be generating the "shock the world" headlines. Argentina shouldn't. It was the better team Wednesday night. It's the better team most nights.

No, Argentina doesn't have the talent, athleticism or depth of the U.S. But it has that mysterious, elusive commodity that USA Basketball has yet to grasp. Argentina has chemistry, teamwork, balance and familiarity. Put those four together and the "upset" really disappears.

A great team beats a great collection of individual players on most nights. And no, Blazers GM Bob Whitsitt isn't on the selection committee.

American players still spend too much time trying to go one-on-one. That's what NBA All-Stars do. Argentina's top six players are so fundamentally sound that they're, in many ways, interchangeable. They all handle the ball, shoot for range, attack the basket and play scrappy defense. They are an extension of each other. And that's what great teams do.

"I said the only weak point they have is they don't know each other," Emmanuel Ginobili said after the game. "They are not accustomed to team defense. When we made the pass with the small guy to the big one, they didn't know whether to change, to switch or not, who's going to go on top for the three. I think they were confused with all the picks and moving game."

Bewildered was more like it. "We make everyone play ugly," point guard Pepe Sanchez said. "We put a lot of pressure on the ball and we put out hands on them. They didn't like it."

While the Argentines danced and celebrated, the pain and embarrassment on the American players' faces was evident. "It's very shocking," Elton Brand said in a hushed voice. "This cuts very deep. We'll feel wounded even if we win the gold."

"I'm embarrassed to be on the team to take the first loss," Paul Pierce said.

However, coach George Karl came quickly to his team's defense. "Our players should be complimented because they came. They knew the challenge would be hard, but they came."

Was Karl placing the blame on the top-tier NBA players who declined an invitation to Team USA? Could Argentina have beaten a team with Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan? Probably not. But that isn't the point. This should be the wake-up call, especially if the U.S. doesn't win the gold, that USA basketball needed. Not only has the need to put a more talented team on the floor never been greater, the team needs more time, more practice, more balance and more chemistry if we expect to keep coming home with the gold.

Even then, the time is coming when even a real Dream Team may not be good enough. The world now believes it can beat Goliath. That is half the battle.

"I am impressed with the conviction the team had of not losing the battle before starting," Argentina coach Ruben Magnano said. "Our conviction outweighed anything that was technical or tactical."

"In a time of feeling poorly, awful, there's a part of me that celebrates this victory for basketball," Karl said. "I think someday the world will be our best."

The international community has believed it for years. Now, finally, maybe America will believe it too.

The game has changed forever

Chad Ford / ESPN.com

Crowning achievement by Argentina

Bob Kravitz / Indianapolis Star

Down goes Goliath

Sam Smith / Chicago Tribune

Yao loses it

Yao Ming finally lost it Wednesday. After a week of standing in the post over a hopelessly overmatched defender only to see his guards chuck off-balance threes, he's had enough.

A bizarre benching after China went up by 20 over New Zealand and frustration with the officiating got Yao his first technical foul of the tournament and sent him stomping off to the locker room after the game.

"It's all on my face," Yao told the Houston Chronicle after the game. "A lot of things we can't control."

In just 26 minutes, Yao had 27 points, making all eight of his shots from the field and all 11 of his free throws. But with Yao that hot, why did he take only eight shots? And why exactly did his coach bench him for the entire second quarter?

"The first quarter, he had a lead by over 20 points," coach Wang Fei said. "We need to have Yao Ming rested for the rest of the game. We needed to preserve him."

Chronicle columnist Fran Blinebury writes that Yao is a contradiction wrapped in an enigma.

"Yao can be an intimidating defensive force from day one merely by raising both arms straight into the air. He can be a tentative defender unsure of when to stand his ground. Yao can be a quick, slick scorer along the baseline, using head fakes and surprising speed to spin and get to the basket. He can give away his clear size advantage by trying to lay the ball off the glass rather than just rattling the backboard with a slam dunk. Yao has soft hands, a good head about the game and excellent range on his shot, which will force opposing players to come out on the floor to guard him. Yao has so much to learn about his own larger-than-life body and how to use it."

Yao's frustration overflows

Jonathan Feigen / Houston Chronicle

The book on Yao is not a quick read

Fran Blinebury / Houston Chronicle

Point guards starting to find homes

The point guard situation for several teams became a bit clearer on Wednesday and created a domino effect for others.

The Pacers signed former Celtics guard Erick Strickland on Wednesday, likely ending Kevin Ollie's tenure with the team. Strickland, who can swing between both the point and the two, averaged 7.7 ppg and 2.3 apg for the Celtics last season.

Strickland's move prompted the Celtics to pick up the phone and call Travis Best. Best is still talking to Milwaukee and Miami. However, Milwaukee can't really offer Best the minutes he wants. Boston can give him some P.T., but it only has enough cash to give a minimum contract. Considering he turned down $2 million a year to play in Minnesota, it seems unlikely he'd take a lesser offer to play in Boston. Miami may be a better solution because . . .

It looks like Cleveland is now in the running to land former Heat point guard Rod Strickland. Cavs coach John Lucas said Wednesday he plans to meet with Strickland within the next few days. "I don't think he's at the end," Lucas told the Akron Beacon Journal. "I think a veteran is important for us as young as we are." Right now, Miami is only offering Strickland a one-year deal worth $1 million. If the Cavs were to up the offer, Strickland may bite. If Strickland plays in Cleveland, Miami may have no choice but to fork over some cash for Best. The Cavs' flirtation with Strickland is also bad news for free agent Damon Jones, who learned on Wednesday that . . .

The Pistons signed Argentina point guard Pepe Sanchez to a two-year contract with a team option after year one. With Sanchez, Chauncey Billups and Chucky Atkins on the roster, Jones can forget about re-signing in Detroit. If the Cavs and Miami are also out of the picture, he may have to turn to . . .

The Jazz got their first up-close look at Raul Lopez's torn ACL. The team needs another veteran point guard in the worst way. "We'll know a lot more after our doctors take a look," GM Kevin O'Connor told the Salt Lake Tribune. "Everything else flows from that." Jones, along with John Crotty and Greg Anthony, is among the top candidates to fill the position. "It's really to the point where you've done all the talking you can do," O'Connor said of his discussions with free-agent point guards. "People know the history of how we play our point guards, and the sort of opportunity that is available here."

For Celtics, it's all for Best

Shira Springer / Boston Globe

Lucas out to make point to Strickland

Chris Tomasson / Akron Beacon-Journal

Jazz Get Look at Lopez's Knee

Phil Miller / Salt Lake Tribune

Peep Show

Lakers: Will Shaq be delaying his right toe surgery once again? He hinted as much on the Dan Patrick show Wednesday but his agent, Perry Rogers, says everything is on schedule. "Shaq's surgery is right on course," Rogers told the Orange Country Register. "We believe his levels will be down and the surgery will go on as scheduled. Our only concern is his right big toe. It will take something out of the ordinary for it [surgery] not to happen. None of this is out of the ordinary." The team did sign Soumaila Samake to a non-guaranteed deal, but that's not enough. "The best-case scenario is he has the surgery on the 11th, and it takes him exactly six weeks to return and he's ready for the opening game," GM Mitch Kupchak told the L.A. Daily News. "I don't think that's something we should assume. So our approach has changed a little bit."

Clippers: Lottery pick Melvin Ely ended his mini-holdout Wednesday and signed a three-year contract with the Clippers. The move ended a stalemate of more than two months during which agent Dan Fagen asked the Clippers to trade Ely. "Yes, it [a requested trade] was discussed," Ely told the Orange County Register. "My agent felt that there might have been a better fit for me elsewhere. But since Day One, the Clippers gave me the feeling that they wanted me."

O'Neal's surgery delayed?

Kevin Ding / Orange County Register

Shaq plans on surgery

Howard Beck / Los Angeles Daily News

Clippers sign Ely as trade talk wanes

Art Thompson III / Orange County Register