Not much. Spain should win the rest of its games pretty easily. But it does help France in its attempt to advance.
Woo-hoo!!! France win! Now THAT was unexpected! I don't think this is a disaster for Spain - they'll be fine. They almost lost to Great Britain last year in the early going, then something clicked and they steamrolled to the Euro Title.
I totally regained confidence in Nic after his so-so performances during the exhibition games. Especially in the second half, when he started being more assertive. [video=youtube;Zx_kAgsOLuA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zx_kAgsOLuA&translated=1[/video]
I think it's just like World Cup soccer. It basically means nothing. Means they don't have as good of a record after the group D play is finished. They still only have to place high enough to advance, and with New Zealand, Canada, Lebanon, etc. out there, it's pretty hard not to be in the top when it's all said and done. So they'll just have a slightly different seeding spot in the knockout stages on 9/4-9/7.
I didn't really get to watch, what are people's overall impressions of Rudy and Nic and where can I look at a boxscore?
They didn't keep stats. It was France vs. Spain. They just handed out juice boxes and granola bars at the end of the game and everyone gets a little plastic trophy to take home.
Rudy was his active self. He drove a bit, which was nice to see, but he couldn't really get foul calls even if he got hit. Nic was lazy in the first half, and didn't do anything, but gained a lot of confidence after his dunk. He was a lot more assertive in looking to score in the second half. He even showed a nice first step on a few occasions. AND! he had 2 ridiculous blocks on chasedowns.
Both players were their typical unselfish selves. Although Rudy's one-on-one 3 pt miss was not smart and it was at a crucial time in the 4th. (as was his missed Ft and technical) Batum played perfectly for what the Blazers need. A fundamentally solid player in all facets of the game. He's a glue guy. I know he had 14 pts and two blocks. (not sure about assists or rebounds) He just doesn't make many mistakes. Rudy had 13 pts. Played OK
I missed the game, but a box score is useful since there was no garbage time. Here is the efficiency (as defined by NBA.com, not ESPN) per minute. Our players ranked only 5th on each team. eff/min...eff...min...player Spain .48 14 29 Juan Carlos Navarro .38 11 29 Ricky Rubio .33 04 12 Raul Lopez .30 06 20 Marc Gasol .29 08 28 Rudy Fernandez .14 02 14 Fran Vazquez .13 03 24 Felipe Reyes .12 02 17 Jorge Garbajosa .08 01 12 Alex Mumbru .00 00 01 Victor Claver .00 00 01 Fernando San Emeterio -.15 -02 13 Sergio Llull France 1.00 14 14 Alain Koffi .75 12 16 Ian Mahinmi .58 18 31 Mickael Gelabale .50 13 26 Andrew Albicy .39 12 31 Nicolas Batum .31 05 16 Florent Pietrus .23 07 30 Boris Diaw .20 02 10 Yannick Bokolo .00 00 02 Edwin Jackson .00 00 01 Fabien Causeur -.06 -01 17 Badara Ali Traore -.33 -02 06 Nando De Colo
In efficiency not per minute, Rudy was 3rd for his team, but Batum only tied for 4th on his. Maybe Blazer fans are seeing what they want to see?
I meant that after reading this thread, I expected our two guys to rank more highly. Posters were saying Rudy led Spain in this game or Batum led France. I agree that direct observation trumps stats. I just didn't see the game.
I watched the replay on ESPN3.com and I thought Rudy looked "good" (like a 6/10 good) and Nic's game was a tale of two halves, invisible in the first, and then came to life after he murdered the hoop with that tomahawk jam of his.
