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Team USA Announces 12 man roster this week! - Does Hayward make the team ?

Team USA Announces 12 man roster this week - Does Hayward make the team ?

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This article contradicts the thread title:

https://www.si.com/nba/2014/07/31/u...-kevin-durant-jerry-colangelo-mike-krzyzewski

There is a timeline governing these decisions: Colangelo said USA Basketball plans to keep 15 players through Aug. 22, when the squad completes a domestic tour through Chicago and New York that includes exhibitions against Brazil, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Over the next three weeks, he said USA Basketball -- which saw power forwards LaMarcus Aldridge, Blake Griffin and Kevin Love withdraw from participating -- plans to "hang on to bigs" before it gets down to its 12-man team. Presumably, that approach would cover USA Basketball in the event of an injury during one of the pre-World Cup exhibitions or training sessions.
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PKM said:
I don't care whether Cousins makes the team, but Plumlee over Cousins makes the whole selection process a joke. NO one other than K woukd have even invited never-has-done-anything Plumlee to workout.
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I'm not going to say what should or shouldn't have happened but this statement is just patently false and is your homerism/anti-Duke feelings combined with a lack of objectivity. Plumlee played better and better last year as the season wore on. In 10 games in April, in 24.6 minutes a game, he averaged 11.7 points on 79% from the floor all while always only being the 4th or 5th option on offense, 6.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 0.7 blocks, 0.8 steals while giving you very, very good team defense and balls out effort on both ends of the floor.

That's a per 36 of 17.1 points on 79% from the floor, 8.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.0 blocks, 1.2 steals and anyone who watched him knows that this isn't cherry-picking. That this is truly the evolution of his game and him figuring out the league.

Plumlee is what just about every great team needs. A balls out, effort guy who leads by example. I know you love your Kentucky guys and that's fine but sorry, for me, in life, I'd rather have 100 guys who maximize their ability and are mature, high effort, leaders than whiny, immature, semi-out of shape, and from a basketball perspective, awful defenders who couldn't lead a horse to water. In this particular case, I may rather have it on a team too.
 
Hantlers said:
Yes. Absolutely yes.

You forget how difficult the WC is. Is Cousins a perfect teammate? Naw, but he's a hell of a player and he's too talented to not be on a contender some day. Again, why aren't we saying the same thing about Kevin Love? Dude quit on his country so he wouldn't hurt his trade value…now that's a bitch move.
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I agree. If you have a talent at Cousins level and he is only top 3 on your team then you have a heck of a team and people to keep Cousins focused. That team goes deep into the playoffs. To me that is the key to Cousins. A strong coaching staff and team around him to keep him focused and his head in it. If that happens then Cousins dominates even more and that team is lethal.
 
QuinSnydersHair said:
I'm not going to say what should or shouldn't have happened but this statement is just patently false and is your homerism/anti-Duke feelings combined with a lack of objectivity. Plumlee played better and better last year as the season wore on. In 10 games in April, in 24.6 minutes a game, he averaged 11.7 points on 79% from the floor all while always only being the 4th or 5th option on offense, 6.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 0.7 blocks, 0.8 steals while giving you very, very good team defense and balls out effort on both ends of the floor.

That's a per 36 of 17.1 points on 79% from the floor, 8.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.0 blocks, 1.2 steals and anyone who watched him knows that this isn't cherry-picking. That this is truly the evolution of his game and him figuring out the league.

Plumlee is what just about every great team needs. A balls out, effort guy who leads by example. I know you love your Kentucky guys and that's fine but sorry, for me, in life, I'd rather have 100 guys who maximize their ability and are mature, high effort, leaders than whiny, immature, semi-out of shape, and from a basketball perspective, awful defenders who couldn't lead a horse to water. In this particular case, I may rather have it on a team too.
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Though I respect your opinion and your statements.. you fell insanely short of proving my position as 'patently false.'
And though I do love my UK guys, I have proven over the years to have real objectivity. Was the first here to say meh to Randle, called Goodwin an ***-clown, was fighting against Knight in the top 10, was cautious about TJones... about the only UK player I unabashedly pumped was Davis.

And Plumlee vs. Cousins is a joke, no matter how many contrarian views you take a shot at... "over a 10 game stretch" lmao
 
Stoked said:
I agree. If you have a talent at Cousins level and he is only top 3 on your team then you have a heck of a team and people to keep Cousins focused. That team goes deep into the playoffs. To me that is the key to Cousins. A strong coaching staff and team around him to keep him focused and his head in it. If that happens then Cousins dominates even more and that team is lethal.
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Cousins is not hard to manage. Give him props and attaboys when he deserves it, sit him when he ****s up.
I've given the account a couple years ago about how John Wall took control of Cousins. If Wall could do it.. an NBA coach should have no problem.
 
PKM said:
Cousins is not hard to manage. Give him props and attaboys when he deserves it, sit him when he ****s up.
I've given the account a couple years ago about how John Wall took control of Cousins. If Wall could do it.. an NBA coach should have no problem.
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There is a big difference between what should happen and what does. I agree that it is completely possible for him to be guided. I do not think it is as easy as you say but certainly not impossible. Some teams I think he would be excellent on are Thunder, Cavs, Pacers, Clippers, Spurs, Bulls, Heat and Hawks. They would focus Cousins and Cousins would improve the team as well.

Part of Cousins bad rap, imo, should be laid at the feet of his coaches and the Sactown FO.
 
PKM said:
Though I respect your opinion and your statements.. you fell insanely short of proving my position as 'patently false.'
And though I do love my UK guys, I have proven over the years to have real objectivity. Was the first here to say meh to Randle, called Goodwin an ***-clown, was fighting against Knight in the top 10, was cautious about TJones... about the only UK player I unabashedly pumped was Davis.

And Plumlee vs. Cousins is a joke, no matter how many contrarian views you take a shot at... "over a 10 game stretch" lmao
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You obviously didn't look at the big picture of what I said.
 
PKM said:
Cousins is not hard to manage. Give him props and attaboys when he deserves it, sit him when he ****s up.
I've given the account a couple years ago about how John Wall took control of Cousins. If Wall could do it.. an NBA coach should have no problem.
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Nobody should have to do anything. He's a grown adult.
 
PKM said:
His attitude is WAY overblown... and that's what coaches do as much as anything... motivate.
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Listen, we can go in circles on this. I don't disagree. A great coach should be able to motivate and get the best out of the most difficult of players. I firmly believe that and as a teacher, it gets me enraged when I hear other staff members speak negatively about certain kids who I get the best out of. But that's with 7th graders. Not adults. And a coach shouldn't have to always deal with such issues. And for you to sit there with a straight face and say Cousins attitude is way overblown on one hand while saying Wall essentially was able to manage him (which tells me he had to be managed in the first place) on the other is laughable.

I find that while you can be very honest about your UK players, you typically aren't about Cousins. My guess is that you have a soft spot for him. That everyone calls the kid a bum and through your interaction with him and those around him, you know he's not. And that may be the case. He may be a great kid. But like I said, you admit he had to managed. And we all see with our own very eyes his immaturity on the court at times. And at the end of the day, only one person can help him be managed and grow up and that's Demarcus.

I honestly don't think from the tiny bit I've seen of him, he's a major pain in the ***. And maybe he has grown up some. But he'll be 24 later this month and his clock is ticking and it would be ashamed for eight years to flash by and all of us to wonder what could have been.
 
Listen to the bill simmons pod cast with "boogie". He is really just an off putting personality. Always too cool. Amazing talent, but no doubt a bit of knucklehead.
 
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