2012 Summer Olympics Men's Basketball: Quick Preview for Brazil vs. China

In one of the last preliminary matches, Brazil looks to avoid handing the Chinese their first victory in men's basketball at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

The Brazilians feature a handful of NBA players with most of them being in the frontcourt. Tiago Splitter, Anderson Varejao and Nene are all quality big men that have shown to be dependable in all areas of basketball.

The Chinese team features only one NBA player, but counters with no doubt one of the biggest teams in the Olympic Games. The smallest player listed on their roster is Chen Jianghua, a 6'2" PG.

Brazil is coming off their first loss in the Olympic Games as a last-second shot from Russia gave them the win, while China looks to recover from a 20-point loss to Australia.

How the Two Teams Stack Up

On paper, this should be another clear loss for the Chinese. They have a lot of size but not enough talent to fully utilize it. They've lost every game by around 20 points but have managed to keep it competitive during certain times of the games.

The Brazilians, on the other hand, have kept their games probably a little closer than they would like. The team won by only four points against the Australians and only five points against the winless Great Britain team. In their last outing, Brazil lost to the undefeated Russian team by a buzzer-beater.

The longer China can keep this game close the better. They will need to slow down the game in order to fully utilize their length, while preventing the much more athletic Brazilian team from using their speed and agility advantage.

Of course the key for the Brazilians on defense will be locking down Yi Jianlian. Yi is undoubtedly the team's best player and dropped 30 points on a good Spanish team earlier in the week. A victory for Brazil will be the result of pushing the pace and using their athleticism.

Player to Watch for Brazil

Leandrinho Barbosa will be an important player for Brazil as they take on China. The bigs of Brazil will have their hands full shooting over the multiple seven-footers the Chinese will throw at them which may leave Barbosa open on the perimeter.

"The Brazilian Blur" as he was once known, Barbosa is the most consistent scoring option Brazil has. He can shoot the three and also drive the lane. The latter may prove to be the most important as international refs have shown to be a little trigger happy with the whistles at times. If Barbosa can cause some the Chinese players to get into foul trouble, they will be forced to play less aggressive when going against the frontcourt of Brazil.

A successful game from Barbosa will make the lives of Anderson Varejao, Nene and Tiago Splitter so much easier against China.

Player to Watch for China

Not only did China lose yet another game against the Australians but they may have also lost their best player in Yi Jianlian. Yi exited the game with a knee injury that caused the Chinese star to limp heavily following the game.

Yi is a player that created a number of mismatches due to his size and shooting ability. He is also undoubtedly the best player on the Chinese team. Without Yi, the Chinese will lack a dependable offensive threat.

Even if Yi can play against the Brazilians, he more than likely won't be 100 percent. The Chinese have lost by nearly 20 points in each outing even with strong games from Yi. Without him, they may see the game slip away before the first quarter even comes to a close.

Prediction

The Chinese were already the underdogs even with Yi Jianlian in the lineup. Without a healthy Yi, it's hard for any basketball analyst to predict a victory for the Chinese against Brazil.

Brazil will need to put some space between the two teams on the scoreboard to erase any hopes of a miracle victory from China. The Brazilians have been keeping games close against teams they should've beaten easily. They can't afford a slow start against the Chinese in their preliminary meeting.

The Brazilian big men will need to not only crash the boards but also score as well. Tiago Splitter has shown flashes of brilliance on the offensive end, and fans are well aware of the talents of Anderson Varejao and Nene.

It may sound a bit counterproductive given that Brazil's best players are big men, but pushing the ball down the court in a fast-paced manner will give them the best chance at achieving victory over China.