Oh Canada, Dalembert Is Sent Home
Hooped Up | July 16, 2008
Is teams Canada’s bid for the Olympics being sabotaged by it’s rookie head coach Leo Rautins?
First Juan Mendez was sent home, then Denham Brown decided to boycott the team. Today Samuel Dalembert was sent packing after Canada’s 79-77 win over Korea at the FIBA Olympic qualifying tournament in Greece. The Haitian-born Dalembert ,who grew up in Montreal, was not on the bench for Canada’s win against Korea Wednesday and immediately raised eyebrows.
When the Canadian head coach was asked about Delembert’s absence, Rautins responded with this statement.
“He is not on the team,” said Rautins when asked to explain Dalembert’s absence. “Everybody who’s here now wants to be here and wants to be a part of this team. If that’s not your agenda your’re not here.”
Power trip much Leo?
Throughout team Canada’s Olympic bid, Dalembert was the highest profile member as a key member of the Philadelphia 76ers and one of two current NBA players on the roster. The other being Joel Anthony of the Miami Heat. Dalembert was also the poster boy for team Canada’s bid making himself available for several media events to discuss the teams chances and was the only jersey available for purchase by Basketball Canada.
So your telling me that Samuel Dalembert is good enough to start and play heavy minutes for the Philadelphia 76ers, but isn’t good enough to play for team Canada? Really???
Previous to Dalembert, Steve Nash who put Canadian basketball on the map and was a NBA MVP twice in 2005 and 2006 was the biggest name to leave the Canadian national program. Although, Steve Nash sighted personal reasons for not participating in Canada’s latest attempt for Olympic glory. It goes without saying that when the best players a country has to offer, can not be retained or attracted to play for it’s National program, you need a new structure in place.
Rautins does not seem to have the respect of the best players the country has to offer and does not have the clout to attract them either.
So did Basketball Canda make a mistake in hiring Leo Rautins?
Loading ...
Leo Rautins is an idiot! He is trying to steal the spot light from the players that will make team Canada do well.
will Canada ever stop making bad decisions? I mean come on. Canada should have Barret or Sherman Hamilton coach to get the country somewhere.
Why not give Jack Armstrong or former Raptors coach Butch Carter a shot.
Basically Andy Rautins, who has one leg and has never played a minute professionally is more of a priority than winning. And Leo has the nerve to say that others have an agenda? Please!!!
There are better Canadian guards then his son, with more experience and skill. Leo picking his son to play is a joke and Canada needs to fire him two times quick!
What a joke!
FIRE LEO SOMEBODY PLEASE! My dick could beat Korea with out Dalembert.
leo rautins is the world’s poorest excuse for a basketball expert. steve nash is an asshole and not having dalembert on the squad, baffles me. it’s not like they have a chance without him, so who gives a damn what his agenda is. WIN AT ANY COST!!! christ. I’m Canadian and I even know that our national program is just as bad as the country itself.
I know a former national team member back from the 90s with Nash when they were actually good and most were pro players. Watching the Korea game with my son, who was coached by my friend, we noticed how poor the team’s fundamentals are; bad ball movement, poor defensive rotation. Sorry but English is a very poor ball handler and hogs it too much of the time. Firing Triano really set the program back. He is a class act with a nop notch resume. Shields before him really help set it up as well. Every other country makes exceptions for their pros, especially NBA players, what makes Leo think he knows better than the rest of the world? Ego trip much Leo is right.
Anyone who doesn’t think that Rautins is doing a good job with the team is a complete fool. Dalambert thought he was bigger then the team and I totally and 100% agree with the “together we stand, divided we fall..” mentality that Leo is employing here. Dalambert is NOT the be all, end all of Canadian Basketball people.
2 of 13 guys on the Canadian roster play basketball in the NBA. The best league in the world. Do you expect Dalembert to listen to all the inexperienced scrubs that will never play in the NBA? He was the lead dog of the team. This whole team good ole Canadian attitude kills Canada everytime.
If you play a pro sport for big cheques you gotta have swag. Leo wouldn’t know that becuase he wasn’t in the league long enough to notice it. That’s why he will only get in the way of progress.
If Leo was hired to turn off the countries top pro’s and make the Canadian basketball program a joke he has succeeded.
Where do I start with this one
Dear ” the truth” you have know idea about basketball canada and the politics and behind the scenes of the whole organization. You obviously are a friend or relative of Leo Rautins and are not informed. I respect your comment but please inform yourself of some knowledge. If we are talking about Jamaal Magloire…. we would not be having this conversation, but we are actually talking about a player who is know for being a team guy and really has embraced his strengths which is rebounding, blocking shots, and being a presence. The above bloggers made comments of the lack of fundamentals aka Carl English, and how Leo has his son on the team, but yet still Dalembert is the agenda guy. ABSOLUTELY TRUE. Thank you for some excellent observations.
Dear the truth we are weak, very weak……no one wants to play for there country because there is alot of things the average person doesn’t know about. Every guy on that squad paid there dues with camp after camp since they were in high school… its called PLAYER DEVELOPMENT CAMPS THAT HAVE VARIOUS LEVELS. YOU PAY MONEY OR SOMEONE ELSE PAYS FOR YOU.
Its a system that over looks certain players and turns them away. Steve Nash would play limited minutes for our country under an excellent coach and system, so would Denam Brown, and to some degree Jamaal Magloire. I could name you at least five guys better than Andy Rautins and Ryan Bell. Educated fans of basketball Canada know that Carl English, Rautins, whatever the point guards name is ( I can’t remember because I’m so frustrated ) couldn’t hold there on in the best pick up game in Toronto, and I’m not even in Toronto.
PEOPLE OPEN YOUR FLIPPING EYES. Dalembert is a professional athlete who is a good pro who was sooooo excited to BECOME A CANADIAN CITIZEN so he can give back to a country who excepts minorities ( to a certain degree )
BUT HE’S GOT AN AGENDA, HE’S NOT A TEAM PLAYER………WHY CAUSE HE WANTS TO WIN, HE WANTS TO KEEP CARL ENGLISH FROM SHOOTING 12 TO 15 SHOTS PER GAME…….GIVE ME A BREAK PLEASE……..CALGON TAKE ME AWAY.
Time for a foreign coach, like America, time for someone with a long lost child living in Vancouver or something to get a passport and teach us FUNDAMENTALS, BALL MOVEMENT, SMALL BALL, TEAM DEFENSE AND HOW TO GUARD SOMEONE. If you have ever played basketball past highschool you know you can at least play someone hard and take pride individually to achieve a team concept.
Where is Rob Smart, Shawn Swords, Denham Brown, and all these guys playing wherever your playing that I have played against and followed and I know and they know should be on this team.
Please “the truth” stay away please.