tiago splitter

Ending a frantic few days of courtship ¿ and perhaps cementing the Spurs as the preseason favorites to win yet another NBA title ¿ Aldridge announced Saturday that he will sign with San Antonio and align with Tim Duncan and Kawhi Leonard to form what would figure to be among the league's most-formidable frontcourts.

What was supposed to be a rousing sendoff for the U.S. team playing its last game on American soil before continuing its pre-Olympic tour later this week in England, turned into an embarrassing first quarter that saw Brazil take a 10-point lead amid an assortment of missed dunks, errant jump shots and porous defense by their more famous counterparts.