Portland Trail Blazers fans are always keen to hear news on Finnish sensation, Petteri Koponen. The 6'4" point guard is one of the overseas legion of Blazer players that have been put into cold storage by Kevin Pritchard & Co until they are ready for action in the big league. Drafted #30 in the 2007 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, he was immediately traded to Portland and had an impressive showing in that year's Nike Hoop Summit where he compared favourably against the likes of OJ Mayo and Derrick Rose.

The only extended showing that Blazers fans have had was in the 2008 Las Vegas Summer League where he showed his dynamic scoring and passing abilities. Will he be in a Portland uniform any time soon? The jury is still out on that -- and this interview video does little to shed more light on his current status, with his answer being "when I'm ready."

Koponen currently plays for Virtus Bologna and represents his national team.

Brandon Jennings made headlines when he became the first American high school graduate to make the jump to Europe, bypassing the Collegiate and D-League systems. Now San Diego High School junior, Jeremy Tyler is taking the next logical step in the process, dropping his senior high school year in favour of the riches on offer playing professionally in Europe.

Tyler, a 6'11" forward/centre, will be the first American to leave high school early with a preference for playing overseas. The way I look at it, this could be the next logical step for some basketball players, en route to the NBA. This is an option which has not been considered by most players in the past, who have always been drilled into believing that the one and only secure path to the NBA was to play high school ball, followed by some form of college career, before being drafted to the big league.

However, what has been ignored by many, is the vast array of benefits to taking Tyler's (and Jennings') route to a professional career.

1. Professional basketball experience: players all over the world, outside of the USA, play professionally from as young as fifteen years of age. This experience quickly prepares them for the realities of pro ball and also affords them an opportunity to play on a squad where they are not expected to produce big numbers whilst they are still young. Taking this route rather than hitting the NBA as a pro after being a high draft pick relieves a great deal of pressure in the player's first pro experience. Dealing with seasoned veterans from an early age can only make for a more well-rounded player.
2. Dropping the facade: for so long, a charade has been running where young men who never intend to gain an academic education are forced to pretend to take classes at university (and high school), whilst basketball is clearly their key concern. Academic institutions make concessions for these players in the classroom in order to bolster their basketball programs and this can do nothing but detract from the concentration levels of other students, take positions away from legitimate students and reduce training time for players that are ultimately going to make careers in basketball anyway.
3. Life experience: there is a lot to be said for the life experience to be gained by travelling and living overseas, particularly in a non-English speaking country. This is a rich learning opportunity for these young men -- one which may re-shape the way they see life and give them a wider view on big issues in the world. It is worth remembering that these young athletes often become very rich young men, providing them with the power to affect change in the world. A young LeBron James, had he spent time overseas, perhaps would have had a greater perspective on issues such as the Darfur conflict, on which he was pressured around the time of the Beijing Olympics.

Obviously this route to the pros does not apply to every student-athlete. Players who are not a "sure thing" to make the NBA should not forgo the opportunity to gain a college education (or complete their high school studies) should they have the grades to make that move. This of course discounts the fact that education could be continued whilst in Europe -- a move that many American college students make every year, taking in a taste of Europe during their college years.

The New York Times: He is expected to return in two years, when he is projected to be a top pick, if not the No. 1 pick, in the 2011 N.B.A. draft.

Tyler, who had orally committed to play for Rick Pitino at Louisville, has yet to sign with an agent or a professional team. His likely destination is Spain, though teams from other European leagues have shown interest. A spokesman for Louisville said the university could not comment about Tyler.

“Nowadays people look to college for more off-the-court stuff versus being in the gym and getting better,” Tyler said. “If you’re really focused on getting better, you go play pro somewhere. Pro guys will get you way better than playing against college guys.”

Sonny Vaccaro, a former sneaker company executive, orchestrated Jennings’s move and has guided Tyler and his family through the process.

“It’s significant because it shows the curiosity for the American player just refusing to accept what he’s told he has to do,” Vaccaro said. “We’re getting closer to the European reality of a professional at a young age. Basically, Jeremy Tyler is saying, ‘Why do I have to go to high school?’ ”

Vaccaro said he was unsure how much money Tyler would make, though it will most likely be less than the $1.2 million Jennings made in a combination of salary and endorsements this season. Vaccaro said Tyler would make a six-figure salary, noting that the economic crisis in Europe could hurt his earnings.

Will this start another trend in the ongoing move to subvert David Stern's attempt to filter players to the NBA in the manner which he sees fit? If Stern had his way, all players would either follow the College route or failing that, play in the D League, arriving in the pro league as mature, well-rounded, "pro-ready" players. This may just be another method of achieving Stern's aims, without him realising it.

The pools were today released for the Under 19 World Championships of Basketball for Men, to be held in Auckland, New Zealand from 2-12 July, 2009.

Group A: Angola, Greece, Lithuania and Puerto Rico

Group B: Egypt, France, Iran and USA

Group C: Australia, Canada, Spain and Syria

Group D: Argentina, Croatia, Kazakhstan and New Zealand

The host country avoided being placed amongst the top-rated teams in USA, Spain and Greece at the pool stage. Coach Kenny McFadden was happy with the way the draw fell.

McFadden said it was a bonus to miss one of the real big guns like the USA, Greece and Spain who may have the NBA-bound Ricky Rubio in their lineup, but there was no such thing as an easy pool at an event like this which Fiba rates its third most important on the global stage.

"A lot of people have asked me about the lack of experience we've got, but I guess the only positive thing about junior basketball is for a lot of those other countries it's the first time they've been at the worlds as well," said the former Saints NBL star.

"It's our home crowd, as opposed to getting on a plane and going halfway round the world trying to find about what this international and European basketball is all about."

Australia, which won the 2003 title in Greece, will be potentially faced with a tough opponent in powerhouse Spain. Previous Aussie squads have included Andrew Bogut amongst many other youngsters that have gone on to success.

The 2007 USA U19 team included Michael Beasley (Miami Heat), future lottery pick Stephen Curry (Davidson College) and DeAndre Jordan (LA Clippers).

Truehoop had this today on Stephen Curry and the unusual attention he has attracted of late:

Davidson's Stephen Curry was the darling of the NCAA tournament last year, and he has only gotten better. Last night, he played Loyola, and they double-teamed him. There are different kinds of doubles. Some start on the catch. Some start when the star puts the ball on the floor. This one started at the opening buzzer. Just two guys, all night long. Curry did an amazingly mature thing: He simply stood in the corner, scored zero points, and let his four-on-three teammates whoop it up, having a field day. Davidson won by a country mile, and Loyola's coach Jimmy Patsos is quoted by the Associated Press saying: "We had to play against an NBA player tonight. Anybody else ever hold him scoreless? I'm a history major. They're going to remember that we held him scoreless or we lost by 30?" I'm not a history major, but I'll remember that Coach Patsos stuck with a crazy scheme long after it was proven to have been a crazy scheme, assuring his team a loss.

Many may know Curry as the son of former NBA sharpshooter, Dell Curry. However this Curry seems destined to go on to be much more famous than his father, even representing his country at the 2007 U19 FIBA World Championships in Serbia.

Fox Sports had this to say on the Curry-love going on in the Loyola-Davidson game:

Stephen Curry has seen plenty of defenses. Box-and-ones, diamond-and-ones, triangle-and-twos and plenty of double teams throughout his career.

But this was ridiculous. 

From the moment the ball was tossed up to start Tuesday night’s game against Loyola (Md.), Davidson’s star guard was hounded by two defenders.

They didn't leave him - no matter where he went.

That was the instruction put forth by Loyola coach Jimmy Patsos, who has added to his recent antics - which included sitting down the end of the bench a couple weeks ago for the entire game and handing off the coaching duties to his assistants in a loss to Cornell.

"I’ve never seen anything like it,” Davidson coach Bob McKillop told FOXSports.com shortly after the victory. “From the time the ball entered the court, there were two guys on him and they didn’t leave him the entire game.”

"I felt like I was dreaming,” Curry added. "It was the weirdest thing ever."

Curry put up the goose-egg for the first time in his career.

That’s right. No points on just three shots against Loyola.

Most players would have called it a nightmare instead of a dream. Not Curry.

Instead of trying to force shots and get his numbers, Curry decided to stand in the corner and take the two defenders with him, allowing his teammates to play four-on-three the entire game.

"I had the best seat in the house," Curry said. 

FIBA had this video interview with the rising star:

Brandon Jennings gives his impressions of life in Italy, as he has had a taste of life in Roma. He tells us that he models his game after Kenny Anderson and that he is close friends with Marcus Williams and Tyson Chandler, who both give him advice on what he should do when he reaches the NBA.

It also sounds like he wants to talk a little trash in Italian when he hits the league...

A new-look Ros Casares defeated FEVE San José in the Supercopa Femenina on Thursday night in Valencia. Spain power forward Anna MONTANANA, who joined Ros Casares in the close season from Salamanca and Elisa AGUILAR spoke to FIBA.com after the 72-50 triumph.