Team USA expects a stiff competition from Spain in Tuesday’s friendly - Update
Spain will finally get the first chance to avenge their Beijing Olympics Final loss when they face off against the Americans in an exhibition game in Barcelona tonight.
The Spanish contingent has tried to down play the whole affair by calling this game just another friendly fixture and have said that they would not mind a loss that much. Pau Gasol, the Spanish captain and a Los Angeles Lakers
forward, has said that tonight’s game would be tough, but added that winning a friendly is not that important to the Spanish camp, considering they have their eyes set on playing in the Olympic Final on August 12th.
"It'll definitely be a great test," Pau Gasol said, whose side can only meet USA in the Final. "We believe in our chances, but it's just a friendly game. Obviously we'd rather lose tomorrow and win in London."
This definitely means that Spain will not be unleashing all their plays and strategies against the US, and will just look to remain competitive tonight. Avoiding unnecessary injuries can also be a factor for them.
Kobe Bryant, Gasol’s team-mates at the Lakers and a key component of the American outfit, believes otherwise. He expects Spain to go all out in a game which will be all but friendly.
On the topic of the Spaniards not minding a loss, he was blunt;
"There's not a chance," Bryant said Monday. "It's not just practice. It's impossible."
The feeling was shared by USA head Coach Mike Krzyzewski, who stressed that the Barcelona factor can provide the extra motivation for the hosts;
“A number of these guys have Barcelona ties, they either grew up here or they played here, and it'll be an emotional night. So it would be different if we were playing them in Washington D.C., I think, or some other place,"
Coach K has been the mastermind behind the success of USA basketball in the past few years and was present when his team defeated Spain for the gold medal in Beijing.
USA and Spain are ranked number 1 and 2 respectively according to FIBA, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if the two sides meet in the final of the mega event on Aug 12.
Last time when they took on each other, the game which ensued was one of the most thrilling ever in Olympics history, and given the strengths of both the teams this time around, something on the similar lines can be expected.
Tonight’s game will set the pace, and neither side would want to give the psychological advantage.
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