08/26/2010 - 09:17
TC, U.S. Men Cruise into Worlds
by Devon Jeffreys

They've been tested throughout their warmup schedule.

It appears what they've been through has indeed made Tyson Chandler and Team USA stronger.

The Americans finished off exhibition play in the Global Community Cup with an 87-59 throttling of host Greece in Athens on Wednesday.

TC brought his defense out again and finished with a block and three rebounds in 11 minutes of action.

As tough as their game on Sunday against Spain was for Team USA, their Wednesday game in Greece was just as easy. They led by eight after the first quarter and 10 at halftime. But they once again proved even stronger in the second half, pouring in 26 points to Greece’s 12 to take a 24-point lead after three.

The victory was academic from there and all 12 members of Team USA got at least 10 minutes on the floor. TC was happy to see everything finally come together for he and his teammates, who have all been working hard to gel.

"The thing we need to do is understand that we’re a group that’s just coming together so we have to improve game by game," Tyson said. "We are competing against ourselves. We want to the best that we can be in this short period of time we are together."

Once again, the Team USA offense was predicated by their defense creating transition and fast break opportunities. The Americans outscored Greece 22-2 on fastbreaks and Team USA was a perfect 10 of 10 in converting those opportunities into buckets.

"That’s how it’s going to be throughout the tournament," Ty said. "We are going to have to allow our defense to turn on the offense. We’re a scrappy, athletic team. We got to allow that to transition into offense."

BIG MAN STANDING
As expected, Tyson survived the final cut from 13 to 12 and made the final roster.

In fact, there was no need for a cut at all as Boston Celtics guard Rajon Rondo withdrew from the team on Tuesday to address some family concerns, effectively making the coaches’ decision for them.

At ProBasketballTalk, Rob Mahoney analyzed the roster and gave his outlook on Tyson’s role:

Chandler is the only true center on the roster, which should be good enough to score him some regular playing time. However, as Krzyzewski proved in fiddling with Sunday's starting lineup, Chandler's positional standing in no way guarantees him a starting job. Coach K benched Rajon Rondo in favor of Derrick Rose, which was clearly a significant roster move. In the same game, he also brought Tyson Chandler off the bench to start Lamar Odom, who could very well tip-off at center for Team USA from this point on.

Regardless, Chandler will fulfill the same basic duties for the national team regardless of his starting status. He's a quality rim protector, even if he doesn't pick up a ton of blocks. His length and athleticism make him a quality all-around defender, even if he's had some lapses in the exhibition games thus far. Overall, he's the Americans best on-ball post defender, a good option to defend pick-and-roll bigs, and a solid defensive anchor, even if he's something of an offensive liability.

GREECE IS THE WORD
Team USA arrived in Greece two days prior to their game with the Greek National Team early on Wednesday and got the opportunity to tour some of the historic sites.

The team took in the Acropolis museum in Athens on Monday upon their arrival, then did some sightseeing after practice on Tuesday. Tyson shared his thoughts on the sights, the travel and the opportunity to play in Greece with USA Basketball in the video below:

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ONE ON ONE
While travelling with Team USA, Ty has had plenty of time to think about his new role and new team in the Dallas Mavericks.

In a one-on-one interview with Paul Forrester of Sports Illustrated, TC shared some of what he’s been thinking about in regard to the Mavs.

SI.com: How green does the grass in Dallas look now?

Chandler: Coach [Rick] Carlisle and I have talked about having a meeting about expectations and how I can go out and accomplish and what they want me to bring to the table. I kind of think they know what they're getting. Still, there are some things I've worked on throughout the summer that I feel I can bring to the table that I haven't showed in the last couple of years. It's something I'm looking forward to.

SI.com: Like what?

Chandler: I've been working on my conditioning and my mid-range jump shot and my free-throw shooting. That, and I've been trying to get stronger so I can finish at the basket better. I finish every day of the summer now with 300-400 shots after I've worked out for an hour and a half.

Ty’s new coach Rick Carlisle also recently told Mavericks.com that he’s excited to work with Tyson and add him to the Dallas mix:

"Chandler has done great this summer," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "He's coming off of a couple of surgical procedures over the last year, year and a half, and he's doing really well with them.

"That's great news for us," Carlisle added. "It's going to change the dimensions of our team a little bit, with his length and athleticism at the center position. So, you know, we're gonna knock on wood and cross our figures that his health situation can continue to be positive."

Forrester also asked Tyson about how being traded again has affected him and whether he believes in loyalty in the NBA:

Chandler: I appreciate every team that wants me and I take on every challenge. When I was in Chicago, the challenge was to make them a respectable franchise again after Jordan left. When I went to New Orleans, it was the same thing: It was a franchise that was laughed at. We ended up having the second-best record in the West and almost making it to the Western Conference finals. Then I went to Charlotte, and that was another team that was laughed at and we made the playoffs. So now in Dallas, I'm in a situation with a franchise that has had success and won. My hope is to take it to another level and to get this team back to the Finals.

SI.com: What kind of feeling do you have after a team trades you?

Chandler: Obviously, any added motivation always comes in handy, so whenever I play against those teams I have a little more energy. It pumps things up during the year. But I view it as business.

SI.com: Does loyalty have any place in the game?

Chandler: When a player goes out there and gives you his all, approaches the game with respect and does well for the franchise, there should be some loyalty there. A lot of times, players and organizations will think, He's not giving us this, he's not giving us that. They look at the negatives instead of all the positives a player has given. And a lot of times they'll lose the player, lose the backbone, and they don't understand why the organization goes down. It's the same thing with players: A player will leave an organization and go to another one, thinking the grass is greener, and sometimes it's not.

For more from Ty’s interview with SI, including commentary on his new teammates, the secret to his defense, his trip around the world with Team USA and how that’s preparing him for a new season, click here.

NEXT UP
Team USA departs Greece for the final stop on their world tour, Turkey where the 2010 FIBA World Championships begins this weekend.

Tyson said after practicing, preparing, travelling and conditioning for most of the summer, he’s ready for the real thing:

"I’m excited that it’s finally here," TC said. "I think we all were kind of like biting at the bit. We want to make sure and came and played this game and didn’t look forward to Turkey and look over Greece. I thought we did that and we came out and played a good game and now it’s time."

Team USA opens pool play on Saturday against Croatia in a game that tips at 11 a.m. CST and can be seen on ESPN Classic. The American men will be in action on Sunday as well, taking on Slovenia at 8:30 a.m. CST in a game that can be seen on ESPN2.

For full a World Championships broadcast schedule, click here.

NEXT UP
Q&A with Dallas Mavericks center Tyson Chandler (SI.com, August 25, 2010)
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/paul_forrester/08/25/tyson...
Team USA – Player-by-player and role-by-role (Pro Basketball Talk, August 25, 2010)
http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/08/team-usa-player-by-player...
Chandler, U.S. Men’s basketball team impressive (Pegasus News, August 25, 2010)
http://www.pegasusnews.com/news/2010/aug/25/mavericks-chandler-us-mens-b...
Additional Quotes: USA Practice in Greece (USA Basketball, August 24, 2010)
http://www.usabasketball.com/mens/national/additional_quotes__usa_pract_...
Additional Quotes: USA 87, Greece 59 (USA Basketball, August 25, 2010)
http://www.usabasketball.com/mens/national/10_mwc_exh_4_quotes.html