2006 IBN Team of the Year

[stuart]

Welcome to the First Annual Interbasket Awards. This vote is for the calendar-year 2006 and only 2006. So obviously anything that was accomplished in 2005 or 2007 should be exempt from consideration when you make your decision for the 2006 Award.

For example, Dirk Nowitzki leading the Mavericks to their first NBA finals appearance in 2006 can be considered, however his NBA play during the beginning of the same 2005-06 NBA season doesn't because it was accomplished in 2005. It was the only fair way. So, please don't consider 2005 Eurobasket, but please consider the 2006 World Basketball Championships in Japan.

Above you will find a poll for 2006 Interbasket Team of the Year - The eight nominated teams and their accomplishments are listed alphabetically below:

CSKA Moscow: CSKA won their first Euroleague Championship, the first time in 35 years, defeating two-time champions Maccabi Tel Aviv 73–69; Posted a 19-5 record in the EL, those wins came in its first season without Aleksandar Gomelsky, a legendary coach who passed away was CSKA's heart and soul for decades. CSKA lifted its first Euroleague trophy since 1971 by downing Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv 73-69 in state-of-the art Sazka Arena in Prague, the Czech Republic, in one of the best one of the most exciting title games ever. CSKA also the Russian Cup with a 76-79 against Khimky in the title game, just a week before the Euroleague Final Four, and then swept its best-of-five Russian League final series against the same opponent, Khimky. This team featured Theo Papaloukas, JR Holden, Matjaz Smodis, Trajan Langdon, David Vanterpool, Tomas Van Den Spiegel, and Aleksey Savrasenko

Dallas Mavericks: NBA Finalists; The Mavericks advanced to their first NBA Finals in franchise history when they defeated the Phoenix Suns in game 6 of the Western Conference Finals on June 3, 2006 in the US Airways Center in Phoenix. They faced the Miami Heat in the finals, held home-court advantage and scored two convincing wins before losing the next four games. Key Contributors were Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, Josh Howard, Devin Harris, Jerry Stackhouse, DeSagana Diop, Marquis Daniels, and Erick Dampier.

Florida Gators: NCAA Champions; The Gators took a 27-6 overall record and #10 national ranking into the 2006 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, where they were a #3 seed in the Minneapolis regional. They beat South Alabama, Milwaukee, the Georgetown Hoyas and moved to the Elite Eight, where on Sunday, March 26th, defeated #1 seed Villanova 75-62 to move on to the Final Four; Florida defeated the George Mason Patriots 73-58 in Indianapolis and the Gators defeated the UCLA Bruins, 73-57 to win the school's first men's basketball championship. Before the start of the 2006-2007 basketball season, the Gators were picked as the preseason #1 in both major media polls for the first time in school history. The Gators featured NBA-prospects Joakim Noah, Corey Brewer, Taurean Green, Lee Humphrey, Al Horford, and Chris Richard.

George Mason University: Surprise Underdogs make the NCAA Final Four; GMU won a school-record 23 games in the 2006 regular season, and for one week were even ranked in the USA Today/ESPN top 25 for the first time in school history; The Patriots were the first team out of the CAA to reach the Final Four and they became the first mid-major team to reach the Final Four since 1979, when both the Penn Quakers and the Larry Bird-led Indiana State Sycamores advanced that far; George Mason's cinderella story ended in Indianapolis, when the eventual National Champion Florida Gators defeated them 73-58 on April 1, 2006. Despite their loss, many consider their performance in the 2006 tourney to be the best run by a mid-major in tournament history. In the final rankings of 2005-2006 season, the USA Today/ESPN poll ranked the Patriots eighth in the nation—their highest rank to date.

Greek National Team: Silver Medalists in the 2006 World Championships of Basketball, including a defeat of the US National Team; Greece begun play in arguably the toughest group, group C. Nevertheless, with five close wins, they advanced undefeated from the group phase in first place, and then beat China 95-64 in an elimination game to reach the quarter-finals. There they faced France, beating them 73-56. In the semifinals, Greece faced the United States and defeated them handedly before losing to the Spanish National Team 70-47. The Greek National Team boasted Theodoros Papaloukas, Dimitrios Diamantidis, Vasillis Spanoulis, Lazaros Papadopoulos, Nikos Zisis and Rising Star Sofoklis Schortsanitis

Miami Heat: After defeating the Detroit Pistons, the Heat advanced to their first NBA Finals in franchise history against the Dallas Mavericks. The Heat were outplayed by the Mavericks in the first two games in Dallas, with the second game being an embarrassing blowout. Things looked worse in Game 3 when the Heat faced a 13-point gap in the last six minutes of the fourth quarter, with Dallas looking to take a commanding 3–0 lead in the series. Led by Dwyane Wade, however, the Heat began an incredible run in the fourth quarter that gave the Miami Heat their first win in the series. Similar success came in Game 4, when the Miami Heat once again beat the Mavericks with a combined team effort. The Miami Heat were able to establish their ability to play under pressure in Game 5, which went into overtime. Nevertheless, the heroic effort of Wade with his 43 points, including the game tying basket and clutch overtime free throws, propelled the Heat to within one victory of their first championship in franchise history. On June 20, Game 6, the Heat took the NBA title in Dallas, winning the series four games to two. In winning the series, the Heat became only the third team in NBA history to win the final series after being down 0–2, following the 1969 Boston Celtics and the 1977 Portland Trailblazers. Key Contributors were Shaquille O'Neal, Dwyane Wade, Alonzo Mourning, Udonis Haslem, James Posey, Jason Williams, Antoine Walker and Gary Payton.

Phoenix Suns: The Phoenix Suns, led by Steve Nash, Boris Diaw, Shawn Marion and coached by Mike D'Antoni, brought back high-scoring, almost-no-defense back to the NBA. Other players include Leandro Barbosa, Joe Johnson, and Amare Stoudemire.

Spanish National Team: On September 3, 2006, Spain won the gold medal game at the 2006 FIBA World Championship against Greece. The game ended with Spain blowing out Greece 70-47, even without Pau Gasol. This marks the first time the Spanish national basketball team won the gold medal in the World Championships. Pau Gasol was named the tournament MVP, where he and Jorge Garbajosa also made the all-tournament team. The Spanish National Team also included players Juan Carlos Navarro, Juan Manual Calderon, Fran Vazquez, Marc Gasol and rising stars/future NBA prospects Rudy Fernandez and Sergio Rodriguez.

Please don't forget to place your vote for the most deserving players/teams in the other 2006 Categories!

Interbasket Player of the 2006
International Player of the 2006
NBA Player of the 2006
African Player of the Year
Asia/Middle East/Oceania Player of the 2006
European Player of the 2006
Non-US Americas Player of the 2006
Under 22 Rising Star
Team of the 2006
IBN All-World First, Second, Third Teams of the 2006

[caaprius]

I never thought I would say this, but I'm saying: Miami Heat. they were all but out of NBA finals, down 0-2 in series and double digit points in game 3, and then somehow came back.. just as everybody thought that NBA finals were going to be lopsided, Heat just didn't and won it all. that's the story of the year.

Spanish national team, on the other hand, winning WC without Gasol in finals, is also huge, but not as shocking as Heat's win.

[Zalgirinis]

I never thought I would say this, but I'm saying: Miami Heat. they were all but out of NBA finals, down 0-2 in series and double digit points in game 3, and then somehow came back.. just as everybody thought that NBA finals were going to be lopsided, Heat just didn't and won it all. that's the story of the year.

Is it so hard to do when it was "Wade breathes and its a foul!" all the time Also I look at it more as Dallas losing than Miami winning. Dallas just gave it away always having in mind that they can catch up in next game(s).

[chrisfiss]

Spain of course...