Yao isn't the only Rocket competing in the Olympics. I'm not sure how much time Vasilis is going to get because he's one of the younger players on the Greek roster. But it would be nice to see him play when Greece plays the US team.
I hope that Spanoulis gets significant minutes and does well. It would give us an idea of his strengths and weaknesses.
From this draftcity article on greek NT, he's not expected to have much PT. http://www.draftcity.com/articles/0063.htm
Nice find User, any minutes he gets will be good. I hope we atleast get to see him play when he plays us.
Dude's like 12 years old in basketball years. I don't expect anything from him, but getting to see him on TV would be awesome for us wannabe scouts.
Anytime you're described as having great enthusiasm in your game, it can't be a great thing. Cheerleaders have great enthusiasm in their game. Jack Haley had great enthusiasm. That being said, I hope he works out, and I'll propose a nickname. Vanilla Spoon.
As long as he can solve problems,rock the mike like a vandal,and wax chumps like a candle things should be ok.
I think a piece of Spanikopita could make the Greek team. If you get Vassilis, will penecillin clear it up? Sorry, bored and hung over on a Friday afternoon, and the jokes are just writing themselves.
Game 1 for Spanoulis: http://www.athens2004.com/en/BasketBallMen/results?rsc=BKM400B03&frag=BKM400B03_C73 6 min. 0/2 FG pretty quiet game but Greece won big over Australia 76-54. We can watch Spanoulis on TV Tuesday at 2:15 PM (central time) on channel USA vs. the US.
I sent an email to Dimitris Ritsonis who wrote the report on the Greek team that user found. He sent me this scouting report on Spanoulis: Vassilis Spanoulis (6-4, born 1982) had his best season this year and was named Eurobasket All-Greek League Most Improved Player of the Year. He is playing for Maroussi and this season he had 11.0ppg, 2.1rpg, 3.3apg, and 1.1spg. In the playoffs, his numbers were moreorless the same, except from his slipping assists (1.1 apg). He is not an impressive player, however he is an excellent defender, he is very well-built and, despite his young age, he is very experienced due to his previous years with the Junior NTs. He had a breakthrough season, coming off the bench, but playing around 30 mins for a team which finished second in the Greek A1, behind Panathinaikos. Spanoulis is a real "killer", especially in the last minutes of the crucial games, shooting decisive shots, or earning smart offensive fouls. He earned his first invitation in the NT, from Coach Panayiotis Yiannakis, who also coaches his team, Maroussi. He is pretty easygoing, doing exactly what the coach asks for, yet he has still a lot of work to do. He needs to work on his shot, try to hold his enthousiasm and use more fantasy in his game. He can only penetrate in the decisive moments and he often disappears for some parts of the game. He is also a player affected by his first shots. He cannot drain any other shot, when he misses the first 2 or 3. His mentality, however, can be easily repaired. But to play in the NBA is something different. He needs to bulk up more and be more motivated. He has to learn what team defense means. He has to improve his jump and be able to block or prevent his opponents to take on easy shots. Looks like kid of a mixed bag, but there's always hope he'll be ready in a couple of years...
No, I like fantasy better. If more players utilized dragons and unicorns in games people might start tuning in to international basketball...