International

Sheryl Swoopes to play in Greece, replaces Wisdom-Hylton on Ravenna Esperides roster

Former Seattle Storm player Sheryl Swoopes joined the roster of the Greek team Ravenna Esperides Wednesday. The 38-year-old basketball legend agreed to replace an open spot left by the departure of Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton.

Wisdom-Hylton, a forward for the Los Angeles Sparks, returned to the United State to take a position as an assistant coach at her alma mater Purdue University.

While the Greek season resumes Sunday, Swoopes will not play then but will become active in later games according to the team’s website.

She was the first player signed by the now defunct Houston Comets during the WNBA’s inaugural season in the Initial Player Allocation draft. She won four championships with the Comets. She is a three-time Olympic gold medalist, a three-time WNBA MVP and the first three-time WNBA Defensive Player of the Year. She signed with…

Polish League All-Star Game foreign squad

The PLKK (Polska Liga Koszykówki Kobiet) All-Star Game takes place January 9, 2010 in Pruszków, Poland. Members of the Polish National Team and Polish All-Stars will face a squad of All-Stars who are foreigners:

• Samantha Richards (KSSSE AZS PWSZ Gorzów Wlkp.)
• Veronika Bortelova (CCC Polkowice)
• Marta Fernandez (Wisła Can-Pack Kraków)
• Ashley Shields (Blachy Pruszyński Lider Pruszków)
• Alana Beard (Lotos Gdynia)
• Sidney Spencer (KSSSE AZS PWSZ Gorzów Wlkp.)
• Amisha Carter (CCC Polkowice)
• Brittany Denson (KS Odra Brzeg)
• Ivana Matovic (Lotos Gdynia)
• Janell Burse (Wisła Can-Pack Kraków)
• Tracy Gahan (Blachy Pruszyński Lider Pruszków)

Coach: Jose Hernandez (Wisla Can-Pack Krakow)
Assistant Coach: Jorge Aragones (Wisla Can-Pack Krakow)

The Polish team will be led by newly appointed Polish national coach Dariusz Maciejewski.

• All-Star Game Web site
• PLKK Web Site Web site Translated into English

All-Star Game video promo:

Spartak releases Lauren Jackson, star will suit up for Canberra

Lauren Jackson is close to signing a deal to play with the Canberra Capitals for the rest of the WNBL season.  Just last week, Capitals coach Carrie Graf and Jackson’s agent indicated that the WNBA star might stay in her native Australia if enough funds were raised by investors to pay her a salary of $220,000 AUD.

Until early November, Jackson had plans to spend the winter playing for Spartak Moscow under a lucrative contract. But when the club’s owner was assassinated on November 2, doubts about her return to Russia began to surface.  She went to Australia to recover from back injuries after the end of the WNBA season.

“She wants to be here—that’s her priority," said Graf Tuesday to ABC Sport. "She wants to stay home and wants to be in Canberra.”

“If we’ve got all the paperwork done tomorrow and can…

Will Lauren Jackson skip Russia and play for the Canberra Capitals?

Lauren Jackson’s fans in her home country are now getting a taste of what Seattle Storm faithful endured last spring when her future with the team seemed to be in limbo. Jackson, who had plans to play for Spartak Moscow this winter, has not yet arrived in Russia. She went to Australia to recover from back injuries after the WNBA season and now the Australian WNBL is wooing the star.

Further complicating matters is the death of flamboyant Spartak owner Shabtai Kalmanovich earlier this month. While the team is continuing under the guidance of Kalmanovich’s widow, former basketball player Anna Arkhipova, the Australian government, the WNBL and others are working on keeping Jackson at home.

According to the WNBL, the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) government pledged $50,000 AUD towards efforts to convince her to play with the Canberra Capitals. Jackson has indicated on several…

Spartak Moscow owner Shabtai Kalmanovitch assassinated

Shabtai Kalmanovitch, owner of the highly successful Spartak Moscow women’s basketball team, was shot and killed in Moscow according to reports coming out of Russia and Israel.

Kalmanovitch, known as a high-roller who spent tons on money on his basketball club, giving players high salaries and luxurious perks, was an Israeli immigrant from the former Soviet Union and a former KGB spy. He was caught and sentenced to seven years in prison. He only served five and relocatd to Sierra Leone, making a lucrative living in the diamonds trade according to the Associated Press.

Kalmanovitch was attacked by assailants armed with semi-automatic guns while driving in his Mercedes in the Russian capital according to the Interfax news agency. He was shot at least 20 times.

It is possible that his murder was connected to basketball reported Ynetnews.com. Anatoly Bagmet, the head of the Investigative Committee’s Moscow branch,…

Week in Review

WNBL

Kristi Harrower

Australia’s WNBL kicked off their 30th season this week in Bulleen, north of Melbourne. Kristi Harrower of the Los Angeles Sparks signed to play with the Bendigo Bank Spirit. So far, she has short-term contract. The team had to raise money to fund her salary. Shortly after arriving from Los Angeles, she led Bendigo in a win over the Dandenong Jayco Rangers with a 23 point effort.

Former WNBA player Margo Twigg (known more by her maiden Dydek) and sister Marta are signed to play on the same team, the Logan Thunder. Margo is the tallest active women’s professional basketball player at 7′2". She holds the record for most blocks in a WNBA career, with 877 blocks in 323 games. Her sister Marta is 6′6" and played for the University of Texas-El Paso.

WNBA Awards

With less than a week before the end of…

Russian women’s team CSKA Moscow in jeopardy of folding

WNBA players with plans to play overseas this winter may face the unfortunate prospect of squads in economic turmoil. Women’s basketball team CSKA Moscow announced today that although it is premature to say the team will cease operations, they are currently seeking more sponsors and avenues of financing to keep the team afloat. WNBA players on CSKA Moscow include Janel McCarville, Becky Hammon, Edwige Lawson-Wade, Ann Wauters and Katie Douglas.

A rough translation of the team’s announcement:

JBK CSKA officially confirms that the club is in a difficult situation.

At this time the there are not enough sources of funding due to the global financial crisis, but it is premature to say that the team has ceased to exist. Management of the club is considering various options for partnership with the sole purpose of retaining control of  CSKA.

In 2008 Hammon (pictured right), who has a Russian passport, signed a…

Top high school hoopsters compete at FIBA Americas U16 Championship for Women

The USA Women’s U16 National Team landed in Mexico City yesterday for the 2009 FIBA Americas U16 Championship. The tournament is a qualifier for the 2010 FIBA U17 World Championship scheduled for July 16-25 in France.

The team plays its first game Aug. 10 against the Dominican Republic, followed by Puerto Rico on Aug. 11 and Argentina on Aug. 12. The top two finishing teams in each preliminary round group will advance to the semifinals on Aug. 13.

A draw placed the USA in Group B along with Argentina, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Group A includes Canada, Brazil, Guatemala and host country Mexico

The bottom two teams from each group will play for 5th through 8th places. The gold medal game will be played Friday, Aug. 14.

The 2009 USA U16 National Team includes:

• Jordan Adams (Mater Dei H.S./Irvine, Calif.)
• Cierra Burdick (Butler H.S./Mathews, N.C.)
• Bashaara Graves

…

Preliminary round scores from the FIBA U19 World Championship for Women in Thailand

July 23
Preliminary Round

• France 89 Korea 47
• Japan 85 Tunisia 64
• Australia 75 Argentina 51
• Russia 54 Canada 46
• Spain 90 USA 86
• Brazil 104 Thailand 45
• Czech Republic 84 Lithuania 72
• China 86 Mali 60

The USA take on China today.

Follow the action online

• FIBA U19 World Championship for Women official site
• USA Basketball
• Canada Basketball

France beats Russia to win European Women’s Basketball Championship

France overcame a fourth-quarter run by basketball powerhouse Russia to win the European Women’s Basketball Championship, 57-53, in Riga, Latvia.

Center Sandrine Gruda had 12 points and seven rebounds for France. Emmeline Ndongue added 11 points.

French basketball legend Cathy Melain was scheduled to retire from competition this year, but put off leaving the game to compete in this year’s EuroBasket. She finished with two points and six rebounds.

France returned to the final in only their second appearance in the tournament since they won the gold medal in 2001 when they beat Russia, 73-68.

They qualified for the final after beating Belarus, 64-56, in Friday’s semifinals.

In the fourth quarter, Russia did not make it easy for France to maintain the lead they held for the previous three periods. France led at the half, 30-19.

In the fourth quarter, with less than two minutes to go, Russia came within…