It's Europeans' turn to battle for berth to '08 Olympics

Memphis guard Mike Miller knows the European Championships got under way this week, mostly because teammates Pau Gasol and Juan Carlos Navarro are playing for Spain, while another new import, Darko Milicic will be in action for Serbia. A few members of the U.S. National Team who were asked the same question weren't aware the Championships were going on, mostly because they don't have to be. One chuckled.

Tony Parker has his French teammates fired up. (AP)

American arrogance? You can spin it that way, but it's mostly just a case of tunnel vision. The majority of members on the gold medal-winning squad at the FIBA Americas Championships were just satisfied with going 10-0, clinching a bid to Beijing and looking forward to a little rest before training camps begin in early October. Although it was unanimous that everyone enjoyed their summer in Las Vegas, you know how it is when you're stuck in that city longer than three days; two weeks seems like two lifetimes.

So while U.S. players recover from a job well done the 16 top teams in Europe battle it out in Spain for two bids to the 2008 Olympics. The Spanish team is already in as reigning world champion, but remains the one under the most pressure to perform. At home, Spain is expected to win, and has set out to do so by bringing its full complement of stars to the event.

"We are the team to beat, but then most of the teams are saying that to take the pressure off themselves," Spanish forward Gasol told the international press. "There are great teams out there and it's not going to be easy."

It's not, but the United States went out and held serve at home, so if Spain wants to wear the collar the big boys wear, it has to come out and perform, too.

To put in perspective how much this means to them, Toronto's Jorge Garbajosa, victim of one of the most gruesome ankle injuries in recent memory less than six months ago, subjected his country and club to hours of negotiations in order to hash out a last-minute insurance agreement that would allow him to play. The announcement that the Raptors would clear Garbajosa to play despite their fears came down on Sunday, and Garbajosa reportedly shed tears of joy and relief.

EuroBasket is that big a deal, much larger than the Americas Championships, where it seemed a foregone conclusion the U.S. would win. Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker and Gasol are all overseas hoping to lead their respective teams, making for a much more competitive tournament than the FIBA Americas, where a short-handed Argentina provided the stiffest test.

That said, what Mike Krzyzewski's team accomplished, winning games by nearly a 40-point average, will have an additional impact on the European competition. Regardless of what teams say publicly, the fact the Americans looked so good sets the bar higher for many of the favorites, knowing the days of being able to stifle the artists formerly known as the "Dream Team" with zones and international tricks are over.

Your serve, Espana.

Here's how EuroBasket '07 stacks up:

The top three teams from each group advance to two six-team groups, and from there, the field eventually gets trimmed down to the quarterfinal round of eight. Madrid will host the final on Sept. 16.

Group A

Teams (listed in projected order of finish): Greece, Serbia, Russia, Israel.