USA - Belinelli has Vegas buzzing; Cipriano hopes to make NBA

LAS VEGAS (NBA Summer League) - Italy's Marco Belinelli is already making a big splash with the Golden State Warriors.

The 18th selection in the NBA draft, Belinelli had 37 points in his Summer League debut on July 7, a 110-102 victory over New Orleans.

On Monday, the 1.96m guard had led Golden State again with 23 points in a 94-87 triumph over Philadelphia.

"The opening game went really well, the second one didn't go as well," Belinelli said in Gazzetta dello Sport. "But the important thing is that we won. I have taken good shots which my team has allowed me to do, so I'm really satisfied."

Belinelli was particularly outstanding in the opener. He was 19 of 27 from the floor, including five of seven from three-point range.

That effort had the crowd buzzing in the next game.

"It's great to have the fans behind me," he said. "I am just doing my job, which is to prove what I am capable of doing and win games, this is the summer league. The toughest challenge will come next in the regular season."

Warriors boss Don Nelson, who has yet to announce if he will coach next season, is convinced Belinelli will be a big-time player.

"I think he's been sensational," Nelson said to ESPN.Com.

Belinelli, who played for Italy at the 2007 FIBA World Championship and will represent the country this summer at the EuroBasket, said: "I still have things to improve on. Sometimes I try to penetrate and it works, other times not.

"But I am really happy how things are going. I feel good, I am adapting well to the team. I have a good feeling with my team-mates and with the team assistants."

Nelson can't help but rave about him.

"He shoots the shot you don't expect," Nelson said. "He shoots it a little late, or he shoots it a little quicker than the [defender] expects. He'll surprise you how he comes off screens or when he back-cuts you. He's very unpredictable offensively and that's what I like about him."

Olimpio Cipriano, meanwhile, is hoping to lead his country into the Olympics again but for now, he’s doing his best to become the first Angolan to make it in the NBA.

The 1.93m guard is playing with the Detroit Pistons in the NBA Summer League and made his first appearance in the team’s 80-78 triumph over Memphis.

Cipriano, who played for Angola at the 2007 FIBA World Championship, came off the bench and played 13 minutes against the Grizzlies, scoring three points.

"I have been working to be one of the chosen players,” he said, before adding that he can feel the backing of his countrymen despite being half a world away from southern Africa.

“I know that Angola has been supporting me from a distance, but if I don't achieve this goal now, I believe that another Angolan will achieve it the coming times."

FIBA