Igokea: How about this for a start?
The team from Aleksandrovac suburban area of Banja Luka has surprised everyone early on with a perfect 6-0 start to its 2012-13 Adriatic League season. With a veteran roster under his command, coach Dragan Bajic can only smile at his opponents’ disbelief. BallinEurope contributing writer Marko Savkovic tells us how they’ve done it… Igokea has […]
Monday hangover: Power struggles in Italy, Spain; Zalgiris’ continued rise; Obama vs. the Lakers Rule
It’s never too late for the ‘Hangover (or so BiE’s telling himself). Excuses aside, following are a few Eurocentric impressions, notes, highlight clips – and the no. 1 reason why Barack Obama is thrilled the Los Angeles Lakers went down in the playoffs last season… • Power vacuum in Italy? Coming into 2012-13, most pundits […]
Rumor: Anadolu Efes to pay for, transfer Saric to KK Split
Now here’s an encouraging rumor about Dario Saric’s potentially disastrous contract situation: According to Euro-Step, one team which can afford to do so will step up to foot the €550,000 transfer fee demanded by KK Zagreb to release the Croatian wunderkind. As rumor has it, “Nikola Vujcic is acting as an intermediary” in a deal […]
Update on Rubio injury, rehab
The “Monday Hangover” column on greater happenings last week in European ball will be posted later today, but in keeping with the promise to cover our new home team, here’s a few words on the woefully still MIA Ricky Rubio. Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune noted on Saturday that “Rubio, coming back from knee […]
The votes are in: Minnesota Timberwolves named BallinEurope home team (also torched on court by runner-up Raptors)
Before US-based news about that other election going down tomorrow swamps the entire blogosphere, BiE wants to get in news of our own polling results. With voting closed on Sunday, it has been decided by readers that the Minnesota Timberwolves of Andrei Kirilenko, Alexey Shved, Nikola Pekovic and hopefully-someday-soon Ricky Rubio will serve as the […]
Economic reality hits Netherlands; national team defunct through 2014
On the evening before a meeting of domestic league officials, the Netherlands’ basketball federation announced that the country would not be fielding a men’s national team or a U20 squad in international competition for next summer and in 2014. The reason? What else but money? The NBB reported that a debt of €400,000 (over $510,000) […]
It’s official: Sergio Llull a Madridista through 2017-18
Surely nothing can temper the giddy enthusiasm Houston Rockets fans are feeling today, thanks to a ridiculous performance on Opening Day by their team’s new acquisition, ol’ What’s His Name, so BallinEurope will sneak in this bit of bad news. Back in August, Real Madrid was reportedly wooing Sergio Llull with a nearly unheard-of six- […]
Poll: Who should be BallinEurope’s NBA “home” team?
We’ll attempt to try something new here at BallinEurope and, in lieu of an actual franchise in the big league setting up shop on The Continent (confidently expected any century now), adopt a home team for the NBA’s 2012-13 season. Which team deserves to be called Europe’s team in the NBA? You decide! Vote below […]
Hire Dre Baldwin (the Best Unsigned Basketball Player Alive)!
Sure, BiE’ll help out a longtime player, if only for his awesome and audacious marketing skills. An email arrived in the BallinEurope inbox entitled simply “The Best Unsigned Basketball Player Alive: Dre Baldwin” (has Allen Iverson heard about this?) and included quite a nice résumé compiled over seven years. Nov 1, 2012ballineurope Please enable JavaScript […]
The BallinEurope Eurocentric NBA preview: 25 storylines to watch
BallinEurope’s said it before and fully expects to say it again: Better late than never. Stuff like podcast recording, the day job and, you know, life, has delayed the release of this season’s “Eurocentric preview.” BiE figures he’s morally convinced, since 80% of the NBA hasn’t tipped off as of this writing. We’re doing something […]
Podcast: From Euroleague to China to the cinema; plus interview with Garret Siler
It’s Wednesday once again and thus time for another episode in the “Taking the Charge” podcast series presented by heinnews and BallinEurope.com. Yes, it’s another gabfest loaded with topical news and views plus interviews, music and Os Davis’ movie recommendation of the week. The episode program goes something like this. • Hein and BiE weigh […]
Taking stock of European players in the NBA, 2012-13
BallinEurope will be celebrating NBA Opening Day with lots of stuff centered on the big league; firstly, BiE takes stock of Continental ballers in the ‘States. Taking a look at this year’s roundup, we note that 53 Europeans have been named to NBA clubs’ 15-man roster, just beating the pace of the 52 listed in […]