Team GB - What could be possible?

This summer the national basketball team of Great Britain (Team GB) dominated their qualification group and won a place at the next Eurobasket Championships to be held next year in Lithuania. It was a hugely impressive display (although rendered pointless by FIBA changing the structure of the tournament meaning all but 1 of the teams in the qualification round are now in the championship, but I digress) by a clearly very talented team.



Deng is GB's main man.

 6'9'' Chicago Bulls small forward Luol Deng was the star, of course, averaging a superb 22.6 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.9 steals per game. These are fantastic statistics, but beyond the numbers Deng really was the key factor in GB's success, he made the big shots and came up with stunning plays exactly when we needed them. A true class above anyone else in the tournament.

So with Deng as our catalyst can Team GB make an impression at the next Eurobasket? Let's examine Deng's supporting cast and, in one case, potential co-star.



Gordon with his GB shirt.



The man I speak of is Ben Gordon. Gordon is a 6'3'' guard who currently plays for NBA's Detroit Pistons. He was born in London but has spent the majority of his life in America. However, Gordon has pledged his alleigance to the Union Flag and is expected to represent GB next summer and at the London 2012 Olympics too. In Gordon, Team GB has a second NBA megastar, something very few national teams can boast.

So with Deng and Gordon leading the way for Britain who else is set to shine for their country? 6'9'' power forward Pops Mensah-Bonsu is a sure bet. Pops is a rebounding machine. At the qualifiers he averaged 13.5 rebounds per game. To give you an idea of what a fantastic achievement this was, 7'0'' Orlando Magic centre Marcin Gortat, considered a strong rebounder at NBA level, also played at the tournament. In virtually identical minutes for Poland, Gortat managed 8.9 rebounds per game. Pops puts 100% heart into every GB performance doing everything that's

asked of him, and doing it well.

Lets not forget that when Team GB qualified (and qualified well) this summer, they did so without three key big men. Veterans Andy Betts and Robert Archibald pulled out with injuries, while former first round NBA draft pick Joel Freeland felt he needed to concentrate on his club career over the summer. All three of these guys have a lot to offer Team GB, especially young Freeland who is establishing himself as an excellent player in the Spanish ACB, probably the world's best league outside the NBA. Daniel Clark was available this summer, and really proved his worth with some terrific performances. Current team captain Andrew Sullivan, playing in the UK for Mersey Tigers this year, is a tireless worker and still has plenty to give this GB team.



Sharpshooter Reinking is a key scorer.



GB has always been considered much stronger at the forward than at the guard. Ben Gordon will go along way to remedy that problem, but certainly there is not the same level of depth. Naturalised veteran Nate Reinking provided some excellent scoring relief for Deng and Mensah-Bonsu averaging 14.5 points per game. Reinking is 36 now, going on 37 in December, but refuses to be written-off, if anything getting better with age. GB has talent coming through the ranks of the US college system. Ogo Adegboye and Justin Robisnon both contributed at the qualifiers, in particular pure point guard Adegboye impressed with unexpected maturity and savvy. GB mainstays Jarrett Hart and Mike Lenzley were absent, though, and the national side will be a better team when they return.

Now that is the foundation for a very strong team that GB can put forward for the next couple of years. But there are some wildcards too. Britain-born New York Knicks shooting guard Kelenna Azubuike has been unable to qualify for the national team as he doesn't currently have a UK passport. If, and it is a Yao-Ming-sized if, Azubuike can be accepted as a British citizen he would be a massive asset with his shooting and strong defence.

 There is another NBA player who could potentially qualify for GB. Portland Trailblazers forward Dante Cunningham appears to have some British lineage. In the same position as Azubuike, Cunningham lacks the necessary British passport, and barring some decent development might well be unlikely to break significant minutes into the rotation anyway.