Carlos Delfino and Ersan Ilyasova will both be looking to stay unbeaten on day two of FIBA World Championships group play. Turkey and Argentina were both winners yesterday--Turkey in much more convincing fashion--with the two Bucks playing starring roles for their respective squads. Delfino scored a game-high 27 on 18 shots while adding eight rebounds without a turnover or foul, while Ilyasova piled up a tidy 17 points and eight boards in just 21 minutes.

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It's a big opening day of group play at the FIBA World Championships in Turkey, with Carlos Delfino's Argentina and Ersan Ilyasova's Turkey both kicking things off this afternoon. We'll make this our double-barrel game thread for the day, starting with Turkey at 1 pm CT.

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Time: 3 pm Central

TV: NBA Broadband

The funny part about Vegas is how it forces you to adapt the way you watch a game. Yes, you may be a Bucks fan, and there may be guys running around on the court wearing Bucks' practice jerseys. But it's never really about winning so much as getting a first look at young players, over-analyzing everything they do, and then trying to figure out what (if anything) it all means for the future. Winning is great, but you'd much rather lose and have your rookies look great than win because you had the best non-roster free agents in town. And while it may not be "good basketball," it's the closest thing we'll get to real basketball for another three months, which tends to make everything seem a bit more important, particularly as we contemplate the futures of young players getting their first taste of NBA competition.

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Time: 9:30 Central

TV: NBA Broadband

Somewhat surprisingly, the Heat have won two of three games in Vegas despite fielding not a single player from their 09/10 roster. Then again, only Darnell Jackson fits that description for the Bucks, and he didn't even play in the Bucks' last game. The Heat have been led by Siena rookie Kenny Hasbrouck (15.3 ppg on .515/.444/1.000 shooting) and former USC PF Davon Jefferson (15/5 on 57% shooting). Former Duke and occasional Sixer Shavlik Randolph is also up front, putting up 13/7 but on just 32% from the field, while fellow alum Jon Scheyer is also getting some modest burn (18 mpg).

Up front, we should at some point see a matchup of enormous big men in Dexter Pittman and Tiny Gallon. Both guys tip the scales at around 300 pounds, though Pittman is an inch taller taller and three years older as well.  Meanwhile, the Bucks' struggles can be traced mostly to their weak guard play, which Jim Boylan isn't trying to hide.

"We don’t have what I would call a great offensive team," said Boylan. "Our back court play is a little spotty. In summer league, you need to have really good guards if you want to compete out here and to be quite honest, our guard play has not been the greatest. Our most consistent backcourt player so far has been Dominic James. He’s done the most consistent, steady job for us out here. But we need more than that."

Unfortunately my flight to Vegas has been delayed by a couple hours, so I'm not going to make it in time to catch the game in person--it'll be another late night of watching in front of my computer. 

Time: 7:30 pm central

TV: NBA Broadband

It's a rematch from the playoffs!  Or...not at all.

Three months after the Bucks took Atlanta to the limit in their first round playoff matchup, the two clubs square off with a decidedly different look in Vegas. The Bucks' roster doesn't feature a single player who suited up against Atlanta in April, while Jeff Teague is the only Atlanta rotation player who's currently in Vegas.  Like the Bucks, the Hawks dropped their first two games of summer league by nearly identical 89-85 and 89-84 scorelines.

In contrast to the Bucks, Atlanta actually has guards with NBA talent. First round pick Jordan Crawford is shooting well (.462/.438/.714 for 18.0 ppg in 33 mpg), which is exactly what he's supposed to do, while Teague is also putting up a solid 15.5 ppg but an ugly 6.5 turnovers per contest.  They also have some vaguely recognizable big men--Richard Hendrix, Randolph Morris, Jermareo Davidson--to match against Larry Sanders, Tiny Gallon and Darnell Jackson.

Discuss.

2009/2010 NBA Playoffs - Round One
56-32 (36-8 home)	vs.	49-39 (19-25 road)
May 2, 2010
Philips Arena
12:00 PM
Radio: WTMJ AM 620 TV: FSN Wisconsin/ABC
Probable starters:
Mike Bibby	PG	Brandon Jennings
Joe Johnson	SG	John Salmons
Marvin Williams	SF	Carlos Delfino
Josh Smith	PF	Luc Mbah a Moute
Al Horford	C	Kurt Thomas
Series: Tied 3-3

Hawks Linkage

Peachtree Hoops / Hoopinion / Hawks Str8Talk / Atlanta Journal Constitution

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2009/2010 NBA Playoffs - Round One
55-32 (19-24 road)	vs.	49-38 (30-13 home)
April 30, 2010
Bradley Center
6:00 PM
Radio: WTMJ AM 620 TV: FSN Wisconsin/ESPN
Probable starters:
Mike Bibby	PG	Brandon Jennings
Joe Johnson	SG	John Salmons
Marvin Williams	SF	Carlos Delfino
Josh Smith	PF	Luc Mbah a Moute
Al Horford	C	Kurt Thomas
Series: Bucks lead 3-2

Linkage

Peachtree Hoops / Hoopinion / Hawks Str8Talk / Atlanta Journal Constitution

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2009/2010 NBA Playoffs - Round One
55-31 (36-7 home)	vs.	48-38 (18-25 road)
April 28, 2010
Philips Arena
7:00 PM
Radio: WTMJ AM 620 TV: FSN Wisconsin/TNT
Probable starters:
Mike Bibby	PG	Brandon Jennings
Joe Johnson	SG	John Salmons
Marvin Williams	SF	Carlos Delfino
Josh Smith	PF	Luc Mbah a Moute
Al Horford	C	Kurt Thomas
Series: Tied 2-2

Hawks Coverage

Peachtree Hoops / Hoopinion / Hawks Str8Talk / Atlanta Journal Constitution

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