Sports Notes - Cambodian Football's Rocky Road - NBA International Players - April 2006

James Loving - National Radio Text Service - Sunday April 30, 2006

NBA Team With Most International Players - - Prince Ranariddh No Soccer Field Deal - Cambodia National Team AFC Challenge Cup Results - John Wooden Talks Real Basketball - NR Top 10 - FIFA Top 10

NBA INTERNATIONAL PLAYERS

At the beginning of this NBA season there were 94 International players listed on NBA rosters.

TRIVIA QUESTION:

What team had the most International players listed on their roster? (Answer see below)

Cambodian Football Setback - WHO-DA THUNK IT!!! No Deal

Politics aside… to me Prince Norodom Ranariddh Siihanouk is the biggest soccer fan in Cambodia.

WHY? Good question.

He puts his money where his mouth is. Ranariddh sponsors two teams in the Cambodian premiere League (CPL). The prince shows up at the games and cheers them on. Plus he usually has his own band playing at the games.

He has helped promote the stimulation of the game in the nation. During the eight years that I have been writing about the team dating back to the 1998 Asian Games there has been very few International teams visiting the country to test the national side.

When I returned from the Pre-SEA Games in Bangkok in September much to my surprise the Tiger Cup champion Singapore squad came to Phnom Penh's Olympic Stadium for a friendly.

Within a month followed games against a German club team. The national team played them one week and Ranariddh's Khemara side the next.

Coincidence or not it was the most activity of soccer matches during my eight-years of Cambodian football coverage.

BUT…. Can you believe? The Cambodia Daily reported in its March 22nd edition that the prince purchased a plot of land that he intended to build a soccer field.

After paying the money to a man that claimed he owned the land it was revealed that the man really didn't own it. Thus… the deal fell through.

Think about it…. a prince can't get a clear land title in his own land.

DID I HEAR A WOW!!!

As his nephew through marriage Ravy Khek the president of the Cambdian Football Federation (CFF) said in our summer of 2000 interview about Cambodian football that due to the Khmer Rouge conflict pretty much all of the national teams records were destroyed as were many of the documents in the country.

Now this. That piece of history comes back to haunt the progress of the beautiful game being a positive force in the healing process of a nation. GO FIGURE…

NCAA TOURNAMENTS BEST - Florida University & UCLA's John Wooden

April was a busy month in sports with the finals of America's NCAA college basketball tournament, the winding down of the English Premiere League, the semifinals of the Champions League playoffs, the beginning of the NBA Playoffs and the start of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the USA.

The University of Florida walked away with the NCAA title defeating UCLA in the final 73-57.

Joakim Noah, son of former French Open champion tennis player Yannick Noah, won the tournament's Most Outstanding Player (MOP) award.

During the week preceding the tournament final the McDonalds basketball classic was televised in Asia.

The game features the most outstanding high school players in America. Former UCLA coach John Wooden was interviewed at half-time.

Wooden coached an NCAA record 10 NCAA titles while coaching UCLA including seven in a row and 10 of 11.

The interviewer related a story to Wooden about the coaches thoughts when he saw a present day player run the court unchallenged and did a 360 spin in the air turnaround dunk.

The now 95-year-old Wooden is from the old school where fundamentals are the focus and individual play is OUT OF THE QUESTION.

Wooden replied, "I would have taken him out of the game before his feet hit the ground."

Trivia question:

Wooden teams won 10 of the 11 NCAA titles in UCLA's history. Who was the coach of the other UCLA title winning team? (Answer below)

1. JIM MURRAY 2. Kobe Bryant & NBA Trivia 3. Cambodia's Royal Palace 4. Zico Leads Japan To World Cup. Who is Zico? - 5. Grammy Music Awards Show 6. Teerathep Leads Thailand to SEA Games Title 7. Thailand Impressive against Premiere Club Sides and Real Madrid 8. Australia's Carins Brothers Rugby 9. DON KING, HBO Picture's... 10. SUPER BOWL - Jerome Bettis Steelers Dynasty -- Full Story NR Top 20

Answer - International Players:

The San Antonio Spurs had seven International players listed on their roster at the beginning of this season, Emanuel "Manu" Ginobli, Argentina; Fabrico Oberto, Argentina; Tony Parker, France; Sean Marks, New Zealand; Radoslav "Rasho" Nesterovic, Slovenia; Beno Udrih, Slovenia and Tim Duncan, Virgin Islands.

UCLA COACH ANSWER

Jim Harrick. What has he been doing lately? Press this link.

Rank/Team/Points

1. Brazil - 830

2. Czech Republic - 779

3. Netherlands - 774

4. USA - 760

5. Spain - 759

6. Mexico - 758

7. France - 754

8. Portugal - 753

9. Argentina - 753

10. England - 744

(FIFA)

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