Eurobasket 2015

[Mindozas]

Prayer is for the weak. Hard work and effort is what counts.

Prayers won't help what so ever, Jesus retired at 33 years old

[christodoulou76]

Group C turned out to be the weakest. Only 1 team advanced to QFs. The same happened in Group A, but they faced the tough Group B in 1/8 finals, so that should mitigate our assessment of that group.

[Noncom]

Group D was the only group with no one team dominating. I bet it was also a group with a very good atmosphere and attendance in the games with Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania probably all coming to support their teams in great numbers? Can anyone there verify what the situation was on site? In Group A in Montpellier only France and Finland had heavy support of the audience and the atmosphere around the stadium was a big let-down. Group B was toughest easily (and likely also good atmosphere in the games with great numbers attending?) and thus definitely not the weakest. Why would you care what is the weakest group anyway? It's all good.

I wouldn't really care if other forum members wouldn't have compared groups in the first place.
That's why I brought this topic up.

I think it's really stupid to compare groups, since a game is game. Every team has a shot to make something incredible.

[CoachZ]

Well we all wish that to be true and a true reality. All teams have a chance bla bla. The fact is that crazy things happen in group games, and sometimes in 1/8 1/4 but in the end always the quality teams marked as one of the favorites before Eurobasket end up at the top. Just look at the 1-4 finishers of all Eurobaskets in the last 30+ years. Outside of Macedonia 2011 there were no feel good stories about small guys making it big. That's just a fact.

It always ends up the same way. 5-6 countries end up always being in that rotation of those 4 teams, and that is it.

[Noncom]

Well we all wish that to be true and a true reality. All teams have a chance bla bla. The fact is that crazy things happen in group games, and sometimes in 1/8 1/4 but in the end always the quality teams marked as one of the favorites before Eurobasket end up at the top. Just look at the 1-4 finishers of all Eurobaskets in the last 30+ years. Outside of Macedonia 2011 there were no feel good stories about small guys making it big. That's just a fact.

It always ends up the same way. 5-6 countries end up always being in that rotation of those 4 teams, and that is it.

Taking into account Europe is a football continent and not basketball, that's why that's the same countries. Countries just didn't invest into basketball. However, now times will change, basketball spreads everywhere, the arenas are getting bigger and the money is bigger also.
I have no doubts a few eurochamps later we will have very colorful finalists, which were nonexistent before.

[CoachZ]

Taking into account Europe is a football continent and not basketball, that's why that's the same countries. Countries just didn't invest into basketball. However, now times will change, basketball spreads everywhere, the arenas are getting bigger and the money is bigger also.
I have no doubts a few eurochamps later we will have very colorful finalists, which were nonexistent before.

Well depends. 10+ years ago the leagues across Europe were more competitive. Money was bigger. Now not so much.

[Noncom]

Why it will be irrelevant? Cause none of the teams from your Group seem like medal contenders? The only measurement when all results are tallied is valid. Otherwise, it's incomplete. Wait for the Eurobasket to finish and then ask the same question again, noone will deny it if the results show the same thing.

So it seems group D was not so weak after all..

[judasmartel]

Taking into account Europe is a football continent and not basketball, that's why that's the same countries. Countries just didn't invest into basketball. However, now times will change, basketball spreads everywhere, the arenas are getting bigger and the money is bigger also.
I have no doubts a few eurochamps later we will have very colorful finalists, which were nonexistent before.

Not to mention EuroBasket is the most competitive FIBA Zone, where even a #16 team on a good day can beat a #1 team on a bad day. Such competitiveness is not even possible in, say, FIBA Asia, where the weaker teams get slaughtered by the stronger teams by 50-100 points on a consistent basis.

That's why I'm looking forward to the day when a heavy underdog wins it all in Europe, like Venezuela did in the Americas.