No Subject

The best basketball still is played in America, but the game truly is
global.
The International team featured players from Senegal, Portugal, Greece,
Puerto Rico and virtually every other corner of the globe. Clearly,
big-time
players are everywhere.

Example A is Nowitzki. A 19-year old from Wurzburg, Nowitzki already is
a highly paid junior player in his country. He led all scorers with 33
points
and grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds. He not only hit two 3-pointers, but

also knocked down 19 of 23 free throws.

College recruiters have known about Nowitzki for a few years. One called

him ``the closest thing to Larry Bird in the world, and he's taller.''
California, Boston College and Wake Forest have recruited the big German

the hardest, but he's likely to sign a million-dollar contract with a
club team
in Germany.

Nowitzki isn't alone. Neilsen, a 6-9 guard from Australia, handles the
ball
smoothly and uses his size to cause all sorts of problems. Argentina's
Scola, 17, may be the best player in the world for his age. Antonio
Fotsis,
16, of Greece, is another star of the future.

College coaches know about most of these players but NCAA rules
prohibited them from attending the game. But no rules could keep the
NBA away.

The first four rows of the Alamo Gymnasium stands were packed with
NBA scouts, including Chicago Bulls general manager Jerry Krause. Billy
Knight, the Indiana Pacers' vice president of basketball operations,
came to
scout the several U.S. players who haven't ruled out a jump to the NBA.
He left talking about the foreigners.

``We'll start a file on these guys, that's for sure,'' Knight said. ``We
do the
same for college players. There are quite a few who have the chance to
be very good players.''

Several U.S. college players haven't ruled out a jump to the NBA. Based
on action this day, the only ones who could even dream of instant pro
success are New Jersey's Al Harrington and Houston's Rashard Lewis.
Harrington, a 6-8 forward, led the U.S. with 26 points and 9 rebounds.
He's said he'll put off the pros and attend either Georgia Tech, St.
John's or
Seton Hall.

Lewis still is talking NBA. Like previous Hoop Summit participants
O'Neal
and Kevin Garnett, Lewis is a big man (6-10) with guard skills. He hit
two
treys and finished with 18 points.

``This gives us a chance to see guys out of their high school element,''
said
the Pacers' Knight. ``I like to see them when everything isn't geared
around them. To see them against the foreign guys really helps.''

****