Hammon to play for Russia in Olympics

http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/olybb/news/story?id=3336490

 

I think another opportunity for manufactured jingoistic outrage is just what the Olympics need.

 

It's girls' basketball. Who gives a shit?...

 

I like the way the poster uses only the last name in the title. Like most people would know who Hammon is, or what sport it is she'll be playing for Russia.

 

I actually knew what he was talking about. I read something about this a couple of weeks ago.

 

Becky Hammon is a cutie. That is all.

 

Excuse the fuck out of me. Just took the headline from the story.

I really don't give a crap about women's basketball either, but I have heard of Becky Hammon.

And, the story I saw was a headline on ESPN's main page, so quite a few other people have, too. The tease even said she's a star. ... "Becky Hammon is an American hoops star. But she just signed on to play for Russia's national team ... "

Anyway, just think it's interesting an American athlete would do something like this to realize a dream. That is all.

EAD

 

American athletes have often played in the Olympics for other countries, but most of them have had some ancestral ties to those countries -- and those other countries have generally stunk at that particular sport (i.e., the Greek baseball team in '04, the Italian hockey team in '92 and '94). Hammon, as far as I know, has no connection to Russia beyond collecting a paycheck there, and she's joining a country with a strong past in women's basketball. So it is a departure from the norm.

 

I think it's an interesting story. This isn't some marginal player going there because she's not good enough to make the team here. I'm curious why all the red tape. She's MVP runner-up in the WNBA. She's popular. Why was she "overlooked" by USA Basketball?

Not sure how good Russian team is supposed to be. But the idea of her helping to beat the Americans, then standing at attention while the (beautiful) Russian national anthem is playing, is interesting.

 

This is like Brett Hull playing for Hockey USA because Team Canada cut him.

 

By WNBA standards, she's a 10...

 

I'm sure I am one of the very few Canadians that believes Hull got treated very unfairly. He was fully within his right to play for the US, especially after Team Canada had cut him from previous teams to the point where I don't even think he was getting camp invitations in his early years in the NHL When Team Canada loaded up with Oilers and Islanders.