1.
Kaunas
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Kaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the centre of a county in Trakai Municipality of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413, in the Russian Empire it was the capital of the Kaunas Governorate from 1843 to 1915. It became the temporary capital city in Europe during the interwar period. Now it is the capital of Kaunas County, the seat of the Kaunas city municipality and it is also the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kaunas. Kaunas is located at the confluence of the two largest Lithuanian rivers, the Nemunas and the Neris, and near the Kaunas Reservoir, the citys name is of Lithuanian origins and most likely derives from a personal name. Before Lithuania regained independence, the city was known in English as Kovno, the traditional Slavicized form of its name, the Polish name is Kowno. An earlier Russian name was Ковно Kovno, although Каунас Kaunas has been used since 1940, the Yiddish name is Kovne, while its names in German include Kaunas and Kauen. The city and its elderates also have names in other languages, an old legend claims that Kaunas was established by the Romans in ancient times. These Romans were supposedly led by a patrician named Palemon, who had three sons, Barcus, Kunas and Sperus, Palemon fled from Rome because he feared the mad Emperor Nero. Palemon, his sons and other relatives travelled all the way to Lithuania, after Palemons death, his sons divided his land. Kunas got the land where Kaunas now stands and he built a fortress near the confluence of the Nemunas and Neris rivers, and the city that grew up there was named after him. There is also a region in the vicinity named Palemonas. On 30 June 1993, the coat of arms of Kaunas city was established by a special presidential decree. The coat of arms features a white aurochs with a cross between his horns, set against a deep red background. The aurochs is the heraldic symbol of the city since 1400. The heraldic seal of Kaunas, introduced in the early 15th century during the reign of Grand Duke Vytautas, is the oldest city heraldic seal known in the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The current emblem was the result of study and discussion on the part of the Lithuanian Heraldry Commission. An aurochs has replaced a wisent, depicted in the Soviet era emblem, blazon, Gules, an aurochs passant guardant argent ensigned with a cross Or between his horns
2.
Soviet Union
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The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a socialist state in Eurasia that existed from 1922 to 1991. It was nominally a union of national republics, but its government. The Soviet Union had its roots in the October Revolution of 1917 and this established the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and started the Russian Civil War between the revolutionary Reds and the counter-revolutionary Whites. In 1922, the communists were victorious, forming the Soviet Union with the unification of the Russian, Transcaucasian, Ukrainian, following Lenins death in 1924, a collective leadership and a brief power struggle, Joseph Stalin came to power in the mid-1920s. Stalin suppressed all opposition to his rule, committed the state ideology to Marxism–Leninism. As a result, the country underwent a period of rapid industrialization and collectivization which laid the foundation for its victory in World War II and postwar dominance of Eastern Europe. Shortly before World War II, Stalin signed the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact agreeing to non-aggression with Nazi Germany, in June 1941, the Germans invaded the Soviet Union, opening the largest and bloodiest theater of war in history. Soviet war casualties accounted for the highest proportion of the conflict in the effort of acquiring the upper hand over Axis forces at battles such as Stalingrad. Soviet forces eventually captured Berlin in 1945, the territory overtaken by the Red Army became satellite states of the Eastern Bloc. The Cold War emerged by 1947 as the Soviet bloc confronted the Western states that united in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1949. Following Stalins death in 1953, a period of political and economic liberalization, known as de-Stalinization and Khrushchevs Thaw, the country developed rapidly, as millions of peasants were moved into industrialized cities. The USSR took a lead in the Space Race with Sputnik 1, the first ever satellite, and Vostok 1. In the 1970s, there was a brief détente of relations with the United States, the war drained economic resources and was matched by an escalation of American military aid to Mujahideen fighters. In the mid-1980s, the last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, sought to reform and liberalize the economy through his policies of glasnost. The goal was to preserve the Communist Party while reversing the economic stagnation, the Cold War ended during his tenure, and in 1989 Soviet satellite countries in Eastern Europe overthrew their respective communist regimes. This led to the rise of strong nationalist and separatist movements inside the USSR as well, in August 1991, a coup détat was attempted by Communist Party hardliners. It failed, with Russian President Boris Yeltsin playing a role in facing down the coup. On 25 December 1991, Gorbachev resigned and the twelve constituent republics emerged from the dissolution of the Soviet Union as independent post-Soviet states
3.
2005 NBA draft
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The 2005 NBA draft took place on June 28,2005 in the Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City. In this draft, NBA teams took turns selecting college basketball players and other first-time eligible players, such as players from high schools. The NBA announced that 49 college and high school players and 11 international players had filed as candidates for the draft. This was the last NBA draft for which high school players were eligible, the new collective bargaining agreement between the league and its players union established a new age limit for draft eligibility. As of 2016, the players to have declared for the NBA draft straight out of high school ever since these restrictions took place were Satnam Singh Bhamara. This draft is notable for a most recent draft pick from an NAIA school in any round and these players who declared or were automatically eligible for the 2005 draft, were not selected but have played in the NBA. B Portland acquired the rights to 22nd pick Jarrett Jack from Denver in exchange for the draft rights to 27th pick Linas Kleiza. C Cleveland acquired the rights to 44th pick Martynas Andriuškevičius from Orlando in exchange for a 2006 second-round draft pick. D Memphis acquired the rights to 55th pick Lawrence Roberts from Seattle in exchange for 2006 and 2007 second-round draft picks. E Orlando acquired the rights to 57th pick Marcin Gortat from Phoenix in exchange for cash considerations. Prior to the draft, the trades were made and resulted in exchanges of draft picks between the teams. F Hours before the start of the draft, Utah acquired the 3rd pick from Portland in exchange for the 6th pick, the 27th pick and a 2006 first-round draft pick. Previously, Utah acquired a 2005 first-round draft pick on June 24,2004 from Dallas in exchange for the rights to Pavel Podkolzine. Utah used the 3rd pick to draft Deron Williams and Portland used the 6th, G On June 22,2004, Charlotte acquired Clevelands first-round draft pick from Phoenix in exchange for an agreement to select Jahidi White in the 2004 Expansion Draft. Previously, Phoenix acquired a 2005 first-round draft pick on October 1,1997 from Cleveland in a trade with Cleveland. Previously, New Jersey acquired Philadelphias 2005, Denvers 2006 and L. A. Clippers 2006 first-round draft picks on July 15,2004 from Denver in exchange for Kenyon Martin. Previously, Denver acquired a 2005 first-round draft pick, Mark Bryant and Art Long from Philadelphia in a trade with Philadelphia. Toronto used the 16th pick to draft Joey Graham, I On June 24,2004, Denver acquired Washingtons first-round draft pick from Orlando in exchange for the draft rights to Jameer Nelson
4.
Portland Trail Blazers
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The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association as a club of the leagues Western Conference Northwest Division. The team played its games in the Memorial Coliseum before moving to Moda Center in 1995. The team has advanced to the NBA Finals three times, winning the NBA championship once in 1977 and their other NBA Finals appearances were in 1990 and 1992. The team has qualified for the playoffs in 31 seasons of their 45-season existence, including a streak of 21 straight appearances from 1983 through 2003, the second longest streak in NBA history. The Trail Blazers 31 playoff appearances rank third in the NBA only behind the Los Angeles Lakers, six Hall of Fame players have played for the Trail Blazers. Bill Walton is the franchises most decorated player, he was the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player in 1977, four Blazer rookies have won the NBA Rookie of the Year award. Sports promoter Harry Glickman sought a National Basketball Association franchise for Portland as far back as 1955 when he proposed two new teams, the other to be located in Los Angeles. To raise the money for the $3.7 million admission tax, Glickman associated himself to real estate magnates Robert Schmertz of New Jersey, Larry Weinberg of Los Angeles and Herman Sarkowsky of Seattle. Two weeks later, on February 24, team management held a contest to select the teams name, the most popular choice was Pioneers, but that name was excluded from consideration as it was already used by sports teams at Portlands Lewis & Clark College. The name Trail Blazers received 172 entries, and was selected by the judging panel. Despite initial mixed response, the Trail Blazers name, often shortened to just Blazers, along with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Buffalo Braves, the Trail Blazers entered the NBA in 1970 as an expansion team, under coach Rolland Todd. Geoff Petrie and Sidney Wicks led the team in its years. During that span, the team had three coaches, team executive Stu Inman also served as coach. The team won the first pick in the NBA draft twice during that span, in 1972, the team drafted LaRue Martin with the number one pick, and in 1974 the team selected Bill Walton from UCLA. In 1976, the ABA–NBA merger saw those two rival leagues join forces, four ABA teams joined the NBA, the remaining teams were dissolved and their players distributed among the remaining NBA squads in a dispersal draft. The Trail Blazers selected Maurice Lucas in the dispersal draft and that summer, they also hired Jack Ramsay as head coach. The two moves, coupled with the stellar play, led Portland to several firsts, winning record, playoff appearance
5.
Denver Nuggets
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The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver, Colorado. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association as a club of the leagues Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the Denver Larks in 1967 as a franchise of the American Basketball Association. It changed its name again to the Nuggets in 1974, after the name change, the Nuggets played for the final ABA Championship title in 1976, losing to the New York Nets. The team has had periods of success, qualifying for the ABA Playoffs for all seasons from 1967 to the 1976 ABA playoffs where it lost in the finals. The team joined the NBA in 1976 after the ABA–NBA merger and qualified for the NBA playoffs in nine seasons in the 1980s. However, it has not made an appearance in a round since its last year in the ABA. The Nuggets play their games at Pepsi Center, which they share with the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League. In 1967, one of the ABAs charter franchises was awarded to a group in Kansas City, Missouri, however, Trindle was unable to find a suitable arena in the Kansas City area. League commissioner George Mikan suggested moving the team to Denver, after agreeing to name Denver native and former NBA player Vince Boryla as general manager, Trindle moved his team to Denver as the Denver Larks, named after Colorados state bird. The Trindle group was severely undercapitalized, leading Mikan to order the Larks to post a $100,000 performance bond or lose the franchise, hours before the deadline, Trindle sold a ⅔ controlling interest to Denver trucking magnate Bill Ringsby for $350,000. Ringsby then renamed the team the Rockets, after his companys long-haul trucks, playing at the Denver Auditorium Arena, the Rockets had early successes on the court, developing a solid fan base along the way. However, the team had a history of early playoff exits, early, they had a solid lineup led by Byron Beck and Larry Jones, then later by Beck and Ralph Simpson. Wright played four seasons with Denver, controversial rookie Spencer Haywood joined the team for the 1969–70 season. Haywood was one of the first players to turn pro before graduating from college, and the NBA initially refused to let him play in the league. Haywood averaged nearly 30 points and 19.5 rebounds per game in his only ABA season, being named ABA MVP, ABA rookie of the year, the team finished 51-33, winning their division, before exiting the playoffs in the 2nd round. Just before the start of the 1970–71 season, Haywood signed with the Seattle SuperSonics, the team tumbled to a 30-54 record and attendance suffered. Ringsby sold the team to San Diego businessmen Frank Goldberg and Bud Fischer in 1972
6.
Olympiacos B.C.
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They play their home matches at Peace and Friendship Stadium. As European champions, Olympiacos played in the 1997 McDonalds Championship and reached the final of the tournament, where they met Michael Jordans NBA champions, the Chicago Bulls. They also dominated Greek basketball during the decade of the 90s, based on all those achievements, FIBA declared Olympiacos as the Best European Team of the 1990s. The Spanoudakis brothers led the club to its first Greek Championship in 1949, Olympiacos would win another Greek title and it did so in unprecedented fashion, running off 22 victories in 22 games. Reds completed the first double in their history, winning the Greek Cup, while they did well in the Cup Winners Cup as well. The next year Kostas Mourouzis was appointed as coach and the team won the Greek cup. Melini led Olympiacos with 24 points, while Kastrinakis scored 22, in 1978 the team did their second double in 3 years, winning both the Greek championship and their third Greek cup in a row, beating AEK 103–88 in the final. In 1979 the club also had their first significant success in Europe, the final round of that year was one of the toughest ever in the competition. Olympiacos finished 6th, winning one game, the 79–77 home victory against Maccabi Elite. Olympiacos won another Greek Cup title in 1980 which was the last of the successful Giatzoglou–Kastrinakis era, in 1979,1980 and 1981 Olympiacos finished at the second place of the Greek championship. The team was led by Greek players such as Dimitris Maniatis and Argiris Kambouris, the hero of EuroBasket 1987, well-known players such as Carey Scurry and Todd Mitchell couldnt lead the club to success. It was in the 1990s that the Reds made their biggest mark, the middle of that decade belonged to Olympiacos, not only in Greece, but also in Europe. In the 1991–92 season, record holding Greek basketball coach Giannis Ioannidis left Aris to manage Olympiacos, the torpid giant, by that year the club had fully rebounded, climbing all the way back to rule Greece. Five consecutive Greek Championships from 1993 to 1997 and two Greek Cups in 1994 and 1997, made the team the indubitable dominant club in Greece. In addition to their success, Olympiacos became the most successful team in the EuroLeague of that period. Paspalj scored 22 points and Tarpley recorded a double-double against Panathinaikos, scoring 21 points, the Reds, despite being strong favourites to win the European crown, lost 57–59 to 7up Joventut in the final after a dramatic ending. In addition to domestic competitions Olympiacos had become regime and the goal was winning the double, there, they played against another Spanish team, Real Madrid, who were playing on their home soil and managed to defeat Olympiacos 61–73. In the quarter-finals Olympiacos faced Real Madrid with home-court disadvantage and didnt manage to make the Final Four for a season in a row
7.
Toronto Raptors
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The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association, as a club of the leagues Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. The team was established in 1995, along with the Vancouver Grizzlies, when the Grizzlies relocated to Memphis, Tennessee to become the Memphis Grizzlies in 2001, the Raptors became the only Canadian-based team in the NBA. They originally played their games at the SkyDome, before moving eastward along Bremner Boulevard to the Air Canada Centre in 1999. Carter was instrumental in leading the team to a then-franchise high 47 wins and their first playoff win in 2001. During the 2002–03 and 2003–04 seasons, they failed to make significant progress, after Carter left, Chris Bosh emerged as the team leader. In the 2007–08 season, they advanced to the playoffs again, after Masai Ujiri was brought in as the new General Manager in 2013, he traded Bargnani to the New York Knicks. With a backcourt led by Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, the Raptors returned to the playoffs, won their second Atlantic Division title, however, they failed for a fourth consecutive time to advance beyond the first round of the playoffs. In the 2015–16 season, they won a franchise record 56 games, Bitove and Allan Slaight of Slaight Communications each owned 44%, with the Bank of Nova Scotia, David Peterson, and Phil Granovsky being minority partners. Wagering on NBA games in Ontario nearly cost Toronto the expansion franchise, as a result, a nationwide contest was held to help name the team and develop their colours and logo. Over 2,000 entries were narrowed down to eleven prospects, Beavers, Bobcats, Dragons, Grizzlies, Hogs, Raptors, Scorpions, T-Rex, Tarantulas, the name Raptor is a common informal name for the velociraptor, a swift medium-sized dromaeosaurid theropod non-avian dinosaur. On May 24,1994, the logo and first General Manager. As part of the deal, Thomas received an option to purchase part of the team and he would purchase 4. 5% in May 1995 and a further 4. 5% in December 1995, half each from Bitove and Slaight, decreasing their share to 39. 5%. The teams colours of red, purple, black, and silver were also revealed, Naismith silver was chosen as an ode to Canadian James Naismith. As General Manager, Isiah Thomas quickly staffed the management positions with his own personnel, the teams roster was then filled as a result of an expansion draft in 1995. Following a coin flip, Toronto was given first choice and selected Chicago Bulls point guard, Armstrong refused to report for training and Thomas promptly traded him to the Golden State Warriors for power forwards Carlos Rogers and Victor Alexander. Thomas then selected a range of players in the expansion draft, including veterans Jerome Kersey, Willie Anderson. Subsequent to the draft, the Raptors landed the seventh pick in the NBA draft lottery, behind their fellow 1995 expansion club
8.
Rebound (basketball)
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In basketball, a rebound, colloquially referred to as a board, is a statistic awarded to a player who retrieves the ball after a missed field goal or free throw. Rebounds are also given to a player who tips in a shot on his teams offensive end. Rebounds in basketball are a part in the game, as all possessions change after a shot is successfully made. A rebound can be grabbed by either a player or a defensive player. The majority of rebounds are defensive because the team on defense tends to be in position to recover missed shots. Offensive rebounds give the team another opportunity to score whether right away or by resetting the offense. A block is not considered a rebound, a ball does not need to actually rebound off the rim or backboard for a rebound to be credited. Rebounds are credited after any missed shot, including air balls, if a player takes a shot and misses and the ball bounces on the ground before someone picks it up, then the person who picks up the ball is credited for a rebound. Rebounds are credited to the first player that gains possession of the ball or to the player that successfully deflects the ball into the basket for a score. A rebound is credited to a team when it gains possession of the ball after any missed shot that is not cleared by a single player, great rebounders tend to be tall and strong. Because height is so important, most rebounds are made by centers and power forwards, the lack of height can sometimes be compensated by the strength to box out taller players away from the ball to capture the rebound. For example, Charles Barkley once led the league in rebounding despite usually being much shorter than his counterparts, also, some shorter guards can be excellent rebounders as well such as point guard Jason Kidd who led the New Jersey Nets in rebounding for several years. Great rebounders must also have a sense of timing and positioning. Great leaping ability is an important asset, but not absolutely necessary, players such as Larry Bird and Moses Malone were excellent rebounders, but were never known for their leaping ability. Bird has stated, Most rebounds are taken below the rim, the action can also be called blocking out. A team can be boxed out by players using this technique to stop the other team from rebounding. Because fighting for a rebound can be physical, rebounding is often regarded as grunt work or a hustle play. Overly aggressive boxing out or preventing being boxed out can lead to personal fouls, statistics of a players rebounds per game or rebounding average measure a players rebounding effectiveness by dividing the number of rebounds by the number of games played
9.
Basketball
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Basketball is a non-contact team sport played on a rectangular court by two teams of five players each. The objective is to shoot a ball through a hoop 18 inches in diameter and 10 feet high that is mounted to a backboard at each end of the court. The game was invented in 1891 by Dr. James Naismith, a team can score a field goal by shooting the ball through the basket being defended by the opposition team during regular play. A field goal scores three points for the team if the player shoots from behind the three-point line. A team can also score via free throws, which are worth one point, the team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but additional time is mandated when the score is tied at the end of regulation. The ball can be advanced on the court by passing it to a teammate and it is a violation to lift, or drag, ones pivot foot without dribbling the ball, to carry it, or to hold the ball with both hands then resume dribbling. The game has many techniques for displaying skill—ball-handling, shooting, passing, dribbling, dunking, shot-blocking. The point guard directs the on court action of the team, implementing the coachs game plan, Basketball is one of the worlds most popular and widely viewed sports. Outside North America, the top clubs from national leagues qualify to continental championships such as the Euroleague, the FIBA Basketball World Cup attracts the top national teams from around the world. Each continent hosts regional competitions for teams, like EuroBasket. The FIBA Womens Basketball World Cup features the top womens basketball teams from continental championships. The main North American league is the WNBA, whereas the EuroLeague Women has been dominated by teams from the Russian Womens Basketball Premier League, in early December 1891, Canadian Dr. He sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied, after rejecting other ideas as either too rough or poorly suited to walled-in gymnasiums, he wrote the basic rules and nailed a peach basket onto a 10-foot elevated track. Basketball was originally played with a soccer ball and these laces could cause bounce passes and dribbling to be unpredictable. Eventually a lace-free ball construction method was invented, and this change to the game was endorsed by Naismith, dribbling was not part of the original game except for the bounce pass to teammates. Passing the ball was the means of ball movement. Dribbling was eventually introduced but limited by the shape of early balls. Dribbling only became a part of the game around the 1950s
10.
Lithuania men's national basketball team
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The Lithuania mens national basketball team is the representative for Lithuania in FIBAs competitions of basketball. Despite Lithuanias small size, with a population of just almost 2.9 million, the Lithuanian team won the last EuroBasket tournaments prior to World War II, in 1937 and 1939. The 1939 team was led by Frank Lubin, who helped popularize basketball in the country and was called the Grandfather of Lithuanian Basketball, following the countrys annexation by the Soviet Union during the war, Lithuanian players frequently formed the core of the Soviet national team. After the restoration of Lithuanian independence in 1990, the team was resurrected. The Lithuanian team won the FIBA EuroBasket for the time in 2003. On 13 December 1925 in Latvian capital Riga, Lithuanians played their first international game against their neighbors, given the Latvians had international knowledge provided by coaches of the American YMCA, they easily won 41–20. Later on, Latvians were crushing the future three-times European champions Lithuanians as well, another game the following year was won by the Latvians 47–12. During the period, basketball saw its Lithuanian popularity decrease and get overshadowed by football, the cold climate and lack of suitable indoor arena only allowed for basketball to be played during the summer period, and even then those who practiced preferred other sports. In 1935, Lithuania decided to promote a World Lithuanian Congress in temporary capital Kaunas, the following year, a delegation of Lithuanian American athletes from Chicago arrived in Kaunas as participants of World Lithuanian Congress. Two of the players, Juozas Joseph Zukas and Konstantinas Konnie Savickus, stayed to teach basketball secrets to Lithuanians, while Savickus had returned to America, another descendant of Lithuanians would arrive to aid the countrys basketball rise. Frank Lubin, who won a medal at the first basketball Olympic tournament at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, was invited to visit the Baltic nation by an Lithuanian official in attendance. Going by the Lithuanian name Pranas Lubinas, he spent five months there and served as the countrys first knowledgeable coach, Lubinas, along with Zukas, helped the Lithuanians beat the Latvians for the first time,35 to 27. The preparations for the EuroBasket 1937 started slowly, with players training only 4 hours a week, after a telegram was sent to the USA, two players arrived one month prior to the tournament, Pranas Talzūnas and Feliksas Kriaučiūnas, the latter of whom was designated as player-coach. The national team was being prepared not only technically, but also physically, the efforts were successful - the Lithuanians became the champions of Europe for the first time, defeating all their opponents and with Talzūnas being picked as the tournaments most valuable player. The crowd then rose to their feet and together sang the Lithuanian anthem, the team returned to a warm reception, with thousands gathering at a train station in a way Kriaučiūnas compared to like we, here in America, greet the president. Basketball regained its ground immediately, and had its popularity rise abruptly, especially among students, gymnasium teams from almost all counties competed in student games, teams were assembled in firms and basketball courts appeared all around the country. According to future player Stepas Butautas, In every yard hoops are being made from barrels, children, teenagers are throwing balls into them, others - even a sock crammed with clouts. Our Veršvai Primary School teacher K. Požemecka built two poles, made hoops from a willow and said, We will play basketball, future team coach Vladas Garastas added that as kids we started using a barrel to make a hoop
11.
2010 FIBA World Championship
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The 2010 FIBA World Championship, hosted by Turkey, was the international basketball competition contested by the mens national teams. The tournament ran from August 28 to September 12,2010 and it was co-organized by the International Basketball Federation, Turkish Basketball Federation and the 2010 Organizing Committee. It was considered as prestigious a competition as the Olympic Basketball Tournament, for the third time, the World Championship had 24 competing nations. As a result, the group games were played in four different cities. The United States won the tournament for their time after going undefeated in the Opening Round. The draw for the Championship took place on December 15,2009 in Istanbul, teams were drawn into four preliminary round groups of six teams each. Teams first played a schedule, with the top sixteen teams advancing to the knockout stage. Previously, Australia and New Zealand, Italy, Russia and Puerto Rico announced their intention to bid from the tournament, france won the first round of voting, but Turkey eventually won the right to host after the joint bidders were knocked out in the first round. The tournament was the first time that Turkey has hosted the event, below is a list of the venues which hosted games during the 2010 FIBA World Championship. Each preliminary round group was hosted in an arena in Kayseri, Istanbul, Ankara. The knockout phase then moved to Istanbuls Sinan Erdem Dome, Ankara Arena, completed in 2010, and Kadir Has Arena, completed in 2008, were built for the championships, while the other three arenas underwent renovations for the event. Turkey automatically qualified as the host country, and the United States also received a berth for winning the 2008 Olympic Mens Basketball Tournament. Most other teams secured their places in qualifying tournaments. FIBA invited four wild card teams to fill out the team field. The four wild cards were determined by FIBA through criteria, for example, a team must have played in the Zones qualification tournament to receive recommendation. Also, in order for every team to have an opportunity for a wild card, once these requirements are satisfied, FIBA then looks at other important factors. Those include popularity of basketball within the country, success of the team, as of 2009, FIBA now requires that wild card candidates pay a late registration fee to be considered. Fourteen teams paid the 500,000 € fee to apply for one of the four wild card spots, FIBA then whittled down the teams to eight semifinalists – Cameroon, Germany, Great Britain, Korea, Lebanon, Lithuania, Nigeria, and Russia
Silver
Bronze
Silver
Bronze
