Morning all.
First thing: Eurobasket quarterfinals. Two games today:
Germany vs. Spain 10:45 am CDT
Latvia vs. Slovenia 1:30 pm CDT
At Afrobasket, they have finished the group stage, and the quarterfinals are on Thursday, where Senegal (and Gorgui Dieng) take on Angola. Senegal blew out all three of their group opponents, winning each game by more than 30 points. Dieng is not dominating to the extent he did last time, but he also hasn’t had to play many minutes. He’s taking threes in this tournament, which is something to keep an eye on.
Things are beginning to percolate with remaining free agents now that we are getting deeper into September. Tony Allen signed a deal with the New Orleans Pelicans, which is disappointing for Wolves fans, but might leave Dante Cunningham available.
Two names to surface recently: Jason Terry is in town to meet with the Wolves, according to reports. Terry is 40 years old, but still went out there 74 games last season for the Bucks at 18 minutes per, and can still shoot threes. More of an off the ball player now, he could be helpful next to either a point guard or a ball dominant wing player, making threes and being smart. I wouldn’t be unhappy with a Terry signing.
Another player currently in the Twin Cities is Gerald Green. Many will remember him for his earlier legendary stint with the Wolves. Green has made nine stops in his NBA career, and last year was in and (mostly) out of the rotation in Boston, though he did help jump start them in the first round of the playoffs after early struggles against the Bulls.
Meh. This one isn’t as appealing to me, though when you are offering the minimum, you get what you get. I think I’d prefer Anthony Morrow, to be honest. Still, Green can exist on an NBA court, so it could be worse. We’ll see what happens.
Most importantly, however, is that the Minnesota Lynx get underway in the playoffs tonight at Williams Arena. They host the Washington Mystics, who upset the New York Liberty in the second round. This will be a best of five series, and Neil will have a preview a little later this morning. The game tips at 7 pm on ESPN2.
The second semifinal features the Phoenix Mercury and Los Angeles Sparks. While neither the Lynx nor the Sparks can afford to take their semis for granted, things appear set up for a rematch of last season’s Final.
Have a Tuesday.