LAS VEGAS -- I am in Las Vegas this week to cover Team USA's first exhibition game Friday night versus Canada (8 p.m. ET, ESPN) in the USA Basketball State Farm Challenge. And, while I am here, I will get a chance to see some of the country's best high school talent and the various tournaments being run simultaneously by Nike, Reebok and adidas.
It will be interesting to see the impact that guys like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and the rest of the Olympic team will have on grassroots basketball in America. They are making it cool again to represent the United States and in a first-class way. They understand what is at stake in terms of restoring the respect for the way we play the game, and they have embraced the pressure that will be with them right up to the gold-medal game in Beijing.
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Fran Fraschilla
College BasketballFran Fraschilla is a college basketball analyst for ESPN. He formerly was the head coach at Manhattan, St. John's and New Mexico.
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Fran Fraschilla is an analyst for ESPN and was previously the head coach at New Mexico, St. John's and Manhattan.
Joe Lunardi is the resident bracketologist for ESPN.
Seth Greenberg is an analyst for ESPN and was previously the head coach at Virginia Tech, South Florida and Long Beach State.
