Article: Dream Team's performance wasn't pretty

["Michael J.King Sr." <kingpin@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Dream Team's performance wasn't pretty  By Buddy Thomas
New Bedford Standard Times columnist  12 September 2002

There was a time when I thought basketball was the most beautiful and 
athletic sport in the world.
Only a true athlete could play it well.  The ability to run a lot, jump a 
little, dribble, shoot and defend met the athletic qualifications.  The 
beauty came in the flow of the game.  The well-executed fast break, the 
back-door cut, the perfectly timed bounce pass.  Then came the slam dunk, 
the between-the-legs dribble, the in-your-face trash talk and general 
all-about-me attitude and, just like that, the image changed.  It still 
takes athleticism to play the game.  But its beauty is limited to the eyes 
of the beholder.  And judging by television ratings and reaction to Team 
USA's forgettable performance at the FIBA World Championships in 
Indianapolis, very few of those eyes are even open.
Rest of story at:

http://www.s-t.com/daily/09-02/09-12-02/b01sp098.htm