Dana Barros, for Cape Verde NT????

[alermac]

http://www.asemana.cv/article.php3?id_article=32444

Dana Barros hopes to play on Cape Verdean national basketball team

Former Boston Celtics player Dana Barros announced on Sunday that he is considering returning to the court to play for the Cape Verdean national basketball team in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. 41-year-old Barros told the Boston Globe that he is studying the possibility of joining the national team to dispute the pre-Olympic qualifiers in Athens, Greece, between July 14 and 20.

In order to make it all the way to Beijing, the Cape Verdean men’s basketball team will have to pass the Athens test, in which it will confront the national teams of Germany and New Zealand (Group B). If it passes this first test, it could play in the second phase (quarter finals) with one of the teams from Group A, which includes Greece, Lebanon and Brazil.

Dana Barros, who is the director of the Boston Celtics’ Athlete Development Department, was contacted by his cousin Tony Barros, a former U-Mass Boston star and currently a player on the national team.

According to the Boston Globe, another American basketball player of Cape Verdean origin, Ryan Gomes, turned down the invitation to participate in the Cape Verdean national selection. Gomes told the Boston Globe that his dream was to defend the American flag in the 2012 Olympics, but nevertheless felt honored by the invitation from his ancestral homeland.

In March, Cape Verde’s national basketball team lost its coach Emanuel Trovoada, who had led the selection in Afrobasket 2007 in Angola, in which Cape Verde managed to seize the bronze medal. At the time, Trovoada said he would no longer be coaching the Cape Verdean team for health reasons.

[mvblair]

Thanks for the news, Alermac.

This would be great if he does it. I think any player who can show sufficient interest/love for a country or proper heritage should be allowed to play.

I especially love to see guys go to play for National Teams that are struggling. It's easy for somebody like Chris Kaman to go to Germany, but for Barros to go to Cape Verde is another matter.

Does anybody know how Barros is related to Cape Verde? Parents? Grandparents? Born there?

[rikhardur]

I don't know if he'll be in the right conditions to play basketball again, but it's an interesting situation nontheless. Cape Verde has a strong NT and it could be even stronger if many players with Cape Verdean roots mainly in the US decided to play for the NT.

[thadzonline]

all the while I was thinking he was from Lithuania

[rikhardur]

all the while I was thinking he was from Lithuania

Because of the Barros surname? It's quite Portuguese.

[mvblair]

I don't know if he'll be in the right conditions to play basketball again, but it's an interesting situation nontheless. Cape Verde has a strong NT and it could be even stronger if many players with Cape-Verdian roots mainly in the US decided to play for the NT.

You're 100% right about his conditioning. Even on a "bad" national team, the players are so incredibly athletic and in better shape than anybody else. If Barros isn't in good shape, there is no reason for him to be on the team (unless he can shoot like a pistol).

[Test]

I didn's see him playing but i know his birthday is the same day as mine

[alermac]

Does anybody know how Barros is related to Cape Verde? Parents? Grandparents? Born there?

The article mentions Dana is cousin of Tony Barros, another American with Cape Verdean roots.

[rikhardur]

The article mentions Dana is cousin of Tony Barros, another American with Cape Verdean roots.

He also has family in Portugal afaik, some of them used to live near an old acquaintance of mine.

[damelo]

Read today in magasine that his father is Cape Verdean.

[usausa]

I saw him last year at my sports broadcasting camp at boston. He is really short in person (i was taller, but then who isnt ). He went to high school not even 30 min away ffrom my house.

Here is an interesting fact. At the time, he was a better football (american) player than a basketball player in his high school days. (i beleive that is what he said.) I believe it was WR and got scholarships to play D1 Football.

[JGX]

Gomes told the Boston Globe that his dream was to defend the American flag in the 2012 Olympics

That seems...unlikely.

I'm sure Barros can still shoot, but the guy has been retired for years. I think half their team is from the Boston and Providence areas, huge Cape Verdean population there.

[rikhardur]

Looks like some Cape Verdean-American players are deciding to join the NT Maybe Barros' announcement will spark something.

Cape Verde: Peter Cipriano joins national team for Athens

[by Kris SANTIAGO] - Cape Verdean-American Peter Cipriano decided to join the national team for the Olympic Qualifiers in Athens.

The 2, 06 meters tall inside player from New Jersey should be able to help Cape Verde instantly due to his physique as the team lacks a true inside presence.

Cipriano played his college ball at Southern University where he earned All-SWAC first-team honors and went on to have a pro career in Europe where he played in Germany for BG Karlsruhe in the BBL.

He had to adjust to the European game and struggled therefore in Karlsruhe, who faced financial problems and were later relegated to a lower division the same year.

Even with all the obstacles he had faced early in his career, he got a job in Finland where he joined Kouvot Kouvala in the first Finnish division and contributed heavily to the team's success with his strong rebounding skills (around nine boards per game speak for itself).

Kouvot made it way to the finals (As the third seed) where they lost after four hard-fought games to champions Espoon Honka.

Besides his nine rebounds, Cipriano scored ten points per game and had a more then solid season in his second year as a professional basketball player.

Besides Cipriano, there are plans to bring in a new local (altogether with an American coach) coach after Emannuel Trovoada left to coach in Angola.

No names presented to me now, but let's wait and see who else is going to represent the small country at the tournament....

http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/inte/blog/allPost/p/lid_9859_newsid/24906/blog.html

[rikhardur]

CPV – Cape Verde coach Ricó upbeat of Athens

PARIS (FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Men) – Recently appointed Cape Verde coach Eric Silva will deliver a message that is loud and clear to his players in Praia later this week when they start their preparations for the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

Silva, known as “Ricó” in Cape Verde basketball circles, expects to work with 15 players in the build-up to Athens – half who were in last year’s FIBA African Championship squad in Angola with the others coming from the United States and Europe.

The islanders, who beat Africa powerhouse Egypt 53-51 in a spectacular bronze-medal game win last year, will take on Germany and New Zealand in Group B in Greece where three places for the Beijing Games are up for grabs.

“To be honest, with this group of players I have, I am able to say that if Dirk Nowitzki misses the tournament, we may have a chance against Germany,” Ricó said to FIBA.Com.

“I will make my players aware that they are capable of fighting neck-a-neck with Germany.”

RicĂł, the former assistant coach of Emanuel Trovoada, the man who guided the country last year in Angola who is missing the Athens tournament because of family reasons, has no fear of going up against the Germans, or New Zealand.

“Definitely, New Zealand is a team within our reach,” he said.

When asked to describe his team, Ricó said: “Well, we are a very competitive team that will be in Athens to qualify to Beijing.

“I continue to believe that any team in this tournament has the same chance to qualify.”

RicĂł would prefer to avoid Greece in the quarter-finals, should his team make it that far.

“I will be very concerned if we have the unfortunate (game) against Greece,” he said.

“It will be very difficult to face them at home. Their fans are very supportive, and this makes me believe that one of the places still to grab will be Greece’s.”

From the squad that shocked all of Africa with its surprising run to the bronze medal last year, Portugal based Mario Jorge will miss Athens because he is getting married.

Survivors Rodrigo Mascarenhas, Marques Houtman, Mario Correia, Aldevino Lima, Tony Barros and Odair Santos will be the backbone of the team.
In addition to these, RicĂł, who is coaching a lower division team in France, has called up Jeff Xavier, Jorge Gomes, Peter Cipriano, Avery Oliver, Ivan Almeida, Fidel Mendonca and Abdulay Faty.

The Minnesota Timberwolves’ forward Ryan Gomes had been linked with the team because of his Cape Verde ancestry but the coach laid the speculation that he could join the national team to rest.

“I have read some reports that he wants to play for the US at the 2012 Olympics,” Ricó said.

“This explains everything about his interest to play for us, does it not?”

http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/news/lateNews/p/newsid/25848/arti.html

[rikhardur]

CPV – FIBA Olympic qualifying tournament: The national team ends first phase of preparation in Praia

The National Basketball team of Cape Verde closed its first phase of preparation for the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament for men to be held from 14th to 20th July in Athens, Greece with a victory against the Mix team of Praia 98 - 57.

The game served as the presentation of the national squad to the Cape Verdean public and its sponsors. During the game, it was clearly noted a certain superiority in terms of individual skills from Rico’s players over the Mix team of Praia, especially in the last two periods.


The national team of Cape Verde won the first period by 20-17, by halftime the advantage was 4 points (39-35). In the third period the national team extended the lead to 15 points (65-40), and closed the game with a 41 point difference, with the final result at 98-57.


The final 12 selected players for the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament for men, from 14 to the 20 of July in Athens, are: Jeff Xavier; Josh Gomes; Abdulay Faty; Fidel Mendonca; Mario Correia, Antonio Monteiro, Marques Houtman; Adelvino Lima; Peter Cipriano; Avery Oliver; Tony Barros and Rodrigo Mascarenhas.


The national team left yesterday to Paris where they will continue their training for 10 days. In the French capital, the squad should participate in an international tournament, against the National team of Cameroon, Lebanon and a Paris Pro team.

http://www.fiba-afrique.org/en/lect_actu.php?titre=actu&id=3140