FIBA Update: Janis Timma shines as Latvia advances
The final day of Eurobasket group play saw a lot of teams and stars throttle back. Not Latvia and Janis Timma who advanced with a win over Estonia.
Most Orlando Magic fans have focused on Mario Hezonja and Evan Fournier throughout group play of Eurobasket. Their performances have been a bit underwhelming.
If fans are looking for the most consistent Magic player throughout all the FIBA competitions, it has to be Latvia’s Janis Timma.
With his team absolutely needing a win to ensure they advanced to the second round of Eurobasket following Wednesday’s surprise loss to Ukraine, Timma delivered in a big way with his best game of the tournament.
Timma scored 15 points on 5-for-8 shooting and grabbed six rebounds. He posted a +15 as Latvia defeated Estonia 75-64. Timma was also 3 for 4 from beyond the arc.
It was not an easy game by any means for Latvia though. They trailed by 15 points in the first half and needed a 22-5 third quarter to put the game away.
This was a game of lessons without losing, as he told Eurobasket’s Web site after the game:
"They just showed us that we needed to play better. In the next round we cannot play like that, no teams will make mistakes to let us come back from 15 points down. It was a good lesson"
The conclusion of group play though for Latvia should cement roles as the team enters the knockout stage. Timma has comfortably been a bit of a wild card. His versatility as a forward has come in handy. In this game, he finally got his shots to fall.
Throughout the whole group play stage, Timma has shown his promise with his inside-outside play. It is just about getting things consistent. The Magic should be very happy with how he played and curious to watch him continue to develop.
Latvia will be back in action Saturday against Slovenia.
Croatia tanks
Croatia had already wrapped up their place in the next round. And so European jockeying took place with Georgia needing a win to assure their place in the second round.
Croatia came out flat and struggled defensively as Georgia took a 71-58 win on the final day of group play.
Georgia went on an 18-0 run in the third quarter with Croatia playing some really sloppy basketball especially on the defensive end. There did not seem to be a lot of interest in the game.
Mario Hezonja, who has received very inconsistent minutes through the group stage, got the start and played 24 minutes. He went scoreless, missing all three of his shots.
Croatia did try to involve him in some pick and roll early on in the game, but he mostly used it to try to pass, not quite attacking the paint aggressively.
Hezonja had four rebounds and two assists. He showed some good instinct and ability to fight on the glass for a guy his size and looks engaged defensively. But this game was not designed to get him going, and it was clear.
Croatia was happy to finish second in their group and advance. They will play the Czech Republic on Sunday in the round of 16.
France finishes unbeaten
Israel too was satisfied with its tournament positioning and rested its best players — Omri Casspi, Lior Eliyahu and Gal Mekel — leaving France plenty of space and talent to win 86-61. Tony Parker did not even score for France. Rudy Gobert and Nicolas Batum did the heavy lifting on offense.
France has suffered some inconsistency in the group play and will need to shore some things up to defend their title. They did get some good news with Evan Fournier pouring in his best play of the tournament Thursday.
Fournier scored 12 points, making four of his six 3-point attempts. That is the kind of shooting France wants to see from their sharpshooting young guard. Fournier was always seen as a shooter and scorer off the bench. He just needed to be ready to shoot when the ball came his way.
His story in the NBA was that he was a bit of a streaky shooter. If this game means he is on the upswing of a hot streak, that makes France a very dangerous team.
France will play Turkey on Saturday in the Round of 16.