As his friends and his former coach let out cheers 3,200 miles away, Framingham native David Blatt watched, overjoyed, as his players mobbed each other Sunday on the floor of London’s North Greenwich Arena.
It was an unlikely end to an unlikely scenario for the 1977 Framingham South graduate, who will now forever be remembered in Russia as the Israeli American foreigner who led an underdog team to its first men’s basketball Olympic medal since the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
In a thrilling game that featured 17 lead changes, Blatt’s Russians edged Argentina 81-77 to wrestle the bronze medal away from a shocked Argentine team that had not only won the bronze in 2008, but the gold in 2004.
"Here’s my quote," a jubilant and quick-witted Blatt told The Daily News Sunday as he and his players celebrated the win at a team dinner. "To Framingham, with love."
The Russian coach, a Princeton graduate who himself played a decade professionally in Europe, said he and his players were soaking in the moment and enjoying the ushering of a new era for the country’s program.
"It’s history, and we’re all real happy," he said. "We faced a great opponent, there was great sportsmanship, great Olympic spirit, a great game and a great result."
Blatt told The Daily News Saturday that this year will likely be his last with the club, and if so, it caps a remarkable run for the American-born coach that began in 2007 when he led the struggling team to a European title.
Russia earned a last-minute ticket to the Olympics in July, then upset Brazil and Spain to win its group before defeating Lithuania in the quarterfinals.
They nearly upset Spain in the semifinals, ultimately falling 67-59 despite an 11-point halftime lead.
Blatt’s Russians were led Sunday by the sensational play of Alexey Shved of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Shved scored 25 points, dished seven assists and hauled in five rebounds. Thirteen of his points came in the fourth quarter, including two huge threes – one to keep his team in the game with six minutes to go, and another to retake the lead with just 39 seconds remaining.
"I think (Blatt) did an outstanding job with matchups," said Phil "Smokey" Moresi, Blatt’s coach and mentor at South. "He took Argentina out of everything they wanted to do.
As his friends and his former coach let out cheers 3,200 miles away, Framingham native David Blatt watched, overjoyed, as his players mobbed each other Sunday on the floor of London’s North Greenwich Arena.
It was an unlikely end to an unlikely scenario for the 1977 Framingham South graduate, who will now forever be remembered in Russia as the Israeli American foreigner who led an underdog team to its first men’s basketball Olympic medal since the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
In a thrilling game that featured 17 lead changes, Blatt’s Russians edged Argentina 81-77 to wrestle the bronze medal away from a shocked Argentine team that had not only won the bronze in 2008, but the gold in 2004.
"Here’s my quote," a jubilant and quick-witted Blatt told The Daily News Sunday as he and his players celebrated the win at a team dinner. "To Framingham, with love."
The Russian coach, a Princeton graduate who himself played a decade professionally in Europe, said he and his players were soaking in the moment and enjoying the ushering of a new era for the country’s program.
"It’s history, and we’re all real happy," he said. "We faced a great opponent, there was great sportsmanship, great Olympic spirit, a great game and a great result."
Blatt told The Daily News Saturday that this year will likely be his last with the club, and if so, it caps a remarkable run for the American-born coach that began in 2007 when he led the struggling team to a European title.
Russia earned a last-minute ticket to the Olympics in July, then upset Brazil and Spain to win its group before defeating Lithuania in the quarterfinals.
They nearly upset Spain in the semifinals, ultimately falling 67-59 despite an 11-point halftime lead.
Blatt’s Russians were led Sunday by the sensational play of Alexey Shved of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Shved scored 25 points, dished seven assists and hauled in five rebounds. Thirteen of his points came in the fourth quarter, including two huge threes – one to keep his team in the game with six minutes to go, and another to retake the lead with just 39 seconds remaining.
"I think (Blatt) did an outstanding job with matchups," said Phil "Smokey" Moresi, Blatt’s coach and mentor at South. "He took Argentina out of everything they wanted to do.
"(I’m) very happy and very proud that he represented not only himself, but the town of Framingham, the Bay State League, and Princeton."
Former classmate and South Flyers announcer Geoff Hobson, now the editor of the Cincinnati Bengals website, said Blatt’s win was in his eyes the most compelling story of the Olympics.
"We all know the history of Russia and Jews. This transcended that," he said. "It’s not about country, it’s not about religion. It’s about human beings. He proved that on the basketball court.
"David took the game that Smokey Moresi taught him and spread it to another part of the world."
Moresi said he doesn’t see himself as the "force behind the force," but rather sees himself as providing Blatt with useful building blocks that he then used to build himself a solid career.
Blatt, who is excited to be teaching his own son Tamir — already a phenom like he was at age 15 — was similarly humble.
"My son is better than me," he said. "But I had a better coach."
(Brad Petrishen can be reached at 508-490-7463 or bpetrishen@wickedlocal.com. For news throughout the day, follow him at twitter.com/Brad_Petrishen.)
