Ben Pepper was re: Acie Earl

[jumpshot@nobbys.net.au (Karen J Davies)]

>But I'll agree with you there are some promising
>Australian basketballers upcoming, apparently including Ben Pepper,
>who hopefully will be at the Celtics training camp in October 1999.

I very much doubt that Ben Pepper, if he shows up for camp, will make the
final cut.  He is good for this league, but he just does not have the touch
or phyisical game to make even a solid backup in the NBA.  He is
enthusiastic and runs the floor well, but for eg DeClerq is way ahead of him
in almost every aspect of the big mans game.  He has a loooonnnngggg way to
go to be as good as a healthy Bradtke, and he only made an 11th/12th man on
a terrible Philly team.

And if I hear one more Australian commentator mention the words Matt Neilsen
and NBA in the same sentence (unless there is a big NOT in there somewhere)
I will implode....

> That doesn't say much for the quality of Australian basketball.

No, the main problem is a lack of quality Big Men in Australian Basketball.
We are a country that has a population of around the same level as LA, so
big guys are not as thick on the streets. And even then, they are more
likely to play one of the more mainstream sports of this country (Aussie
Rules, tennis, cricket...) Along with this, their are generally very few
quality big guys attracted from overseas because they can earn at least an
entire NBL teams salary cap in Europe.

>Australian basketball finished the past 2 years as the best in the world
>(from juniors, wheelies through to the open age group as the highest
>ranked team overall).

hmmmmmmm my national pride battles with a certain basketball sense of
embarresment every time I hear someone say that.  When it all comes down to
it, the best of the countries is all that really matters.
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Jeremy Davies      Writer-in-progress !        "The lifestyle's the best,
PO Box 376         Fantasy, Sci-fi, Horror        it's just the writing 
Cessnock NSW 2325  Historical (Crusades period)         that sucks".
AUSTRALIA          Lifetime Celtics fan.....    Ben Katz on being a writer
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