Tomjanovich doesn't think so. When I look at the personnel on our team, we've got so many guys of high character and pride that I don't think I'll have to do a lot of motivating. Throw in the ego factor, and every player thinks he deserves and wants big-time minutes. Earlier this year, Tomjanovich did the math and saw that equal playing time across the board would give each player 16 minutes a game. There are going to be times we have to rotate guys.
International basketball is full of surprises, especially when it comes to officiating.
Tomjanovich is fully aware of what happened to the 1972 U.S. team that lost the gold medal to the Soviet Union on some bizarre officiating. Add in the language barriers, and Tomjanovich knows he'll be in for some surprises. And it's not just one area. Guys from different countries call it different ways. It was explained to me to simply be ready for anything.