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The Final Score: Iran - Asia’s new Basketball Dynasty
By MICO HALILI
With five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter and the outcome beyond question, Hamed Ehadadi left the free throw area, took several power dribbles, jogged past a helpless Yi Jianlian and took his hulking 7â2" frame inside the paint for a lay-up to give Iran a 23-point lead in the 2009 FIBA-Asia Menâs Basketball championship game. The move was emphatic as it punctuated Iranâs dominance of home team China in the Finals. Ehadadiâs effort was also symbolic since it cemented Iranâs, and the Middle East teamsâ, emergence as Asiaâs new basketball elite. If some questioned the legitimacy of Iranâs 2007 FIBA-Asia title since China sent only its second-tier unit to Tokushima, no one is questioning Iranâs back-to-back championships in Tianjin. Against a Chinese team that displayed the cohesiveness of an NBA Summer League squad, Iran dictated the pace, rotated the ball with ease and scored easy baskets. On defense, Iran was only too happy to watch Yi, Wang Zhi Zhi and Sun Yue take one-on-one NBA-style pull-up jumpers. On several occasions, Ehadadi, who stood several feet away from Yi, even dared the 7â0" veteran of the New Jersey Nets to shoot from afar. Iran used team-play to dominate handily while China resorted to one-on-one moves to falter spectacularly.
Unlike China, Iran had the advantage of winning the title in 2007 absorbing all the lessons that came with it. Unlike China, Iran had a natural starting center who played the international style of basketball to perfection. Unlike China, Iran is now unquestionably on top of Asian hoops. And they made it look as easy as an Ehadadi drive to the basket.
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