(interbasket.net) -- With the NBA playoffs set to begin in a couple hours, Ibn would be remiss not to talk about the unprecedented competitive Western
Conference this year and the roles that international players are
having on every playoff-bound team. There is no less than 20
foreign-born players playing important roles on those eight teams.
Interbasket will break down each team's international player and how
important they are to their team's success.
1. Los Angeles Lakers Key Rotation Players: Pau Gasol, Ronny Turiaf, Vladimir Radmanovic, Sasha Vujacic International Importance: 8.5/10 Notes: The Lakers have the most players in their likely playoff
rotation with four and the newest one, Pau Gasol, has arguably been the
most important player for the Lakers since being stolen from Memphis.
The Lakers went from being serious pretenders to contenders with the
late-season addition of the Spanish Superstar and World Champion.
Vladmir Radmanovic starts for the Lakers because he has the
potential to become a game-changer with his outside shot, the problem
is the 6-10 Radman isn't very consistent with his play. If Radmanovic
isn't breaking his leg in skiing accidents and lying about it, he can
be a game-changer for Los Angeles.
I'm convinced that Ronny Turiaf is posed to make a splash in this
year's playoffs. With his energy, all-out hustle, defense (he led the
team in blocks with 1.4 a game), and with opposing teams focusing on
other players -- Turiaf is going to that X-factor player that everyone
talks about this time of year.
What a difference a year makes. The former-baby-faced Slovenian has
longer hair, facial hair, and grown up this year for the Lakers -
bringing consistency and competitiveness off the bench. Sasha Vujacic
is the sniper that the Lakers need, is showing feistiness on defense
while leading the Lakers in three-point shooting percentage (43.7).
2. New orleans Hornets
Key Rotation Players: Peja Stojakovic International Importance: 5/10 Notes: Peja not only brings his well-known three-point shooting,
but also brings the most playoff experience to the inexperienced
Hornets. Peja's range keeps the middle open for Chris Paul, David West
and Tyson Chandler to manuever inside.
I'm hoping Peja can help the Hornets advance and have a better
playoff showing that his last couple years in Sacramento. Peja's always
been a better second or third option player, and with Chris Paul
dancing around the paint and the threat of David West, Peja is free to
roam the arc for open shots.
3. San Antonio Spurs
Key Rotation Players: Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Fabricio Oberto International Importance: 10/10 Notes: International players have always played a big role with
the championship Spurs teams, and with every year that Tim Duncan gets
older, the more the Spurs seem to rely on French point guard Tony
Parker and Argentine superstar Manu Ginobili, whom is arguably been
their best player this year. If the Spurs win it this season, it would
be surprising if Manu wasn't named the Finals MVP (he was ROBBED last
year).
And Manu has a good repoire with Fabricio Oberto, the Spur's
starting center and glue guy. The Argentine center clogs up the middle,
cleans up the messes and rolls to the hoop for easy baskets. Oberto is
sometimes the forgotten Spur, but that doesn't mean Fab isn't important
to their overall success.
4. Utah Jazz Key Rotation Players: Andrei Kirilenko, Memo Okur International Importance: 8/10 Notes: AK and Memo Okur are the #3 and #4 players for the Jazz
and their play is hugely important for the Utah Jazz to advance on
their progress from last year. As some of you may recall, Kirilenko
wasn't in the best place last season and Memo Okur couldn't find his
outside stroke in the playoffs despite earning a reputation for being a
big-time shooter. Kirilenko is playing this season as if last season
didn't happen, with renewed confidence. It's likely he got a shot of
adrenaline from leading Russia to the gold medal in the European
Championships (and the automatic bid to this years Olympics).
Okur was well on his way to becoming the best Turkish player in the
world before he lost his outside shot last season and before Hedo
Turkoglu found his career in Orlando. Okur has suggested that his down
year hasn't affected him, that he'll take the shots as they come. With
Carlos Boozer demanding double teams and Deron Williams passing the
ball, the Jazz are certainly hoping that Okur is on his game this
playoff season.
5. Houston Rockets Key Rotation Players: Luis Scola, Dikembe Mutombo International Importance: 7/10 Notes: When Yao Ming went down, every one thought that the Rockets would go down with the 7-6 Chinese center, but that hasn't been the
case. Not by a long shot. Houston definitely is more of a threat with
him in the lineup for the playoffs, but the team-based play and the
impending threat that Tracy McGrady
could go for 50 on any given night is what makes this current version
of the Rockets go. With that said, Mutombo, at age 57, is still
intimidating and blocking shots, while Scola's adapting to the NBA game
will help fuel the Rockets forward.
6. Phoenix Suns
Key Rotation Players: Steve Nash, Boris Diaw, Leandro Barbosa, Gordan Giricek International Importance: 10/10 Notes: Steve Nash by himself is a 10/10. The reigning MVP is
enough to say that international players really play important roles
for the Phoenix Suns, but we need to recognize the roles that
multi-talented small forward from France Boris Diaw, and power bench
players Leandro Barbosa and troubled Gordon Giricek play for the
revamped, re-Shaqed Phoenix Suns. Adding Giricek's shot-making ability
has made the Suns that much more dangerous, and his shooting will
become more important as Shaquille ONeal gets more comfortable in their
re-tooled offense.
7. Dallas Mavericks
Key Rotation Players: Dirk Nowitzki International Importance: 10/10 Notes: As the 7-0 German with the gimpy ankle goes, so goes the
playoff chances for the Dallas Mavericks. Enough Said. 10 out of 10.
It's going to be a ugly off-season filled with second-guessing if the
Mavs don't make it to at least game seven of the Western Conference
Finals.
8. Denver Nuggets Key Rotation Players: Linas Kleiza, Eduardo Najera, Nene International Importance: Notes: These three big guys cannot be more different from each
other and that's why they'll play important roles. Linas Kleiza has
become a surprisingly consistent offensive option coming off the bench
with his ability to not only shoot the three but put the ball down on
the floor and attack the basket with his 6-8, 255-pound frame.
Eduardo Najera really has created a great niche for himself. He's a
poor-man's jack of all trades and I don't mean that in a detrimental
manner. He plays defense, he rebounds, he gets on the floor, dribbles,
drives, and is efficient with his time. Najera has also added a
consistent three-point shot, the 6-7 Mexican forward has shot and made
more threes this season than in all of his seasons combined. his
newfound touch which will stretch the defense for Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony to work their offensive moves with more space to spare.
Nene is working his way back into the rotation after having a tumor
removed, but if the Brazilian power player can get into game shape, the
Nuggets will be in good shape on the inside. Even if Nene can give
10-15 minutes of smart play, strong defense and throwing his weight
around, the Denver interior will be fortified and that much more ready
for a rugged playoff run. The Nuggets will need his strength to
counter Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom in the first round.
What about the East? This isn't the case in the East where
the amount of international players in key roles can be counted on one
hand and two fingers - Hedo Turkoglu, Jose Manuel Calderon, Samuel Dalembert, Anderson VarejaoSasha Pavlovic, Carlos Arroyo, and Andrea Bargnani.
And none of those players are the true, unquestioned leaders that the
West has in Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki. Hedo Turkoglu plays a key
role in Orlando, and Calderon runs the Toronto team, but the rest of
those guys are solely role players. Teams like Washington (Darius
Songaila), Boston, Detroit (Walter Herrmann), and Atlanta (Zaza
Pachulia) have international players, but none of them play a
significant enough role.
This week we look at the Utah Jazz's international players, Andris Biedrins, Tony Parker and Manu without Tim Duncan, Anderson Varejao's holdout, Andrew Bogut's career thus far, discuss Hedo or Memo, and introduce Kyrylo Fesenko. Every Wednesday during the NBA season, interbasket takes a closer
look at ten international NBA players that has caught our eye. (This week is for period 11/29 - 12/05/2007)
The Warrior's Steady-Hand
When one talks of the Warriors most will first think of Stephen Jackson
and Baron Davis. Then they'll think of Monta Ellis, Al Harrington, and
Matt Barnes. Those five maybe the faces and the heart of the team, but I think the efficiency and work down-low of Latvian center Andris Biedrins is
hugely-underrated.
Biedrins is averaging 10.1 rebounds, and the 12
players that average more rebounds per game than Biedrins, Biedrins
averages the least amount of minutes. Did I mention that he leads the
league in FG% too?
Game by game, Biedrins stats may look inconsistent, but it's more
the coach and style than the ups-and-downs of the 6-11 center with long
arms and great hands. Don Nelson loves his small ball, and he'll start
Harrington in the middle against teams with dominant centers, as he did
with Dwight Howard. And Harrington played the majority of minutes when
they played Yao Ming. So although Biedrins is good for a double-double
each game, Harrington's effectiveness in hitting threes determines
Andris's playing time about 30% of the time.
I think Nelly may be learning that though Biedrins isn't going to
draw opposing centers outside 10-feet, Biedrins is very effective in
the pick-and-roll with Baron Davis.
Dare I say that Andris more than held his own against Dwight Howard
too and I don't think it was a coincidence that the Warriors started
their run when Biedrins was in the lineup.
I am not complaining about Nelson at all. Being in the bay area, I'm
lucky to catch many of the Warriors games; and they've perfected the
up-and-down, shoot-the-first shot-offense while still getting back to
scrap on defense. Additionally, Nelson was the one that first gave
Biedrins (and Ellis) his shot, I just wish Biedrin's minutes were more
consistent.
Hedo or Memo?
When it came down to whom was the better Turkish player - Memo Okur or Hedo Turkoglu,
the last couple of years had only strengthen my belief that Memo Okur
was the better player. But things have flipped around this season. Both
players are playing for teams that have great records and are
contributing, but it's Turkoglu this year that is having the better
season, not just of the two players, but of his career.
I've always thought that Hedo Turkoglu's decision making towards the
end of games has been terrible, but I have to commend his play this
year. He is key to Orlando's start, I would even go to say that outside
of Dwight Howard, he is the most important player on the Magic. I have
no qualms in saying that Orlando wouldn't be near where they are at
this point of the season without him.
Thus far, Hedo has scored in double figures in every game this year
and though his shooting percentages have taken slight dips, his
offensive stats have skyrocketed. His eighth season in the NBA,
Turkoglu is averaging career-highs in points this year (18.6), rebounds
(6.1), and assists (4.1).
It's early, and outside of a complete collapse, the Magic should be
in the playoffs this season. To me, this is the time when Hedo will
prove his worth to me. As I mentioned earlier, his decision making has
never been great, and when the Magic are in a close playoff game this
year, Hedo is their only truly-playoff-tested player. Let's see if he
has learned from his mistakes.
Mehmet Okur
on the other hand has never had problems hitting in the clutch. Even
last year in the playoffs when he hit a cold streak, he still found
ways to hit a couple big time shots when they counted. But unlike Hedo,
Memo is having a rough start to the 2008 season.
He truly had a great season last year; not only because he was one
of the main cogs on an up-and-coming Jazz squad, he was also named to
the NBA all-star team after putting solid numbers, and earned himself a
reputation for hitting clutch shots.
But things have dropped this year - maybe because of Andrei
Kirilenko's renewed involvement (see below) and the continuation of
Boozer's dominance -- however, Okur is playing roughly around the same
amount of minutes an only shooting 1.5 less shots a game than last
year, so it just might be a matter of raising his shooting percentage.
"I just go out there and play,"
Okur said. "(Carlos) Boozer, Deron (Williams), Ronnie (Brewer) — those
guys, they step up their game, especially on offensive end. So I just
want to try to shoot open shots," Okur has taken the team-first perspective when talking about his productivity this year "I'm
gonna do what I'm doing out there because Boozer is doing a great job
on the block, and Deron creates open shots for us. ... If I'm open, I'm
gonna shoot it. If not, I'm gonna pass to whoever's open."
In addition to Memo shooting problems on the court, Okur went down
with a slight injury that caused him to miss a game. He did come back
strong the next game with 25 points in a win over Miami.
Who is Kyrylo Fesenko?
With the aforementioned injury to Memhet Okur (and to Carlos Boozer), 7-1, 288lbs Ukranian center Kyrylo Fesenko got called up from
the Utah Flash, his NBDL team, for the Jazz's game against the Los
Angeles Lakers Friday.
Fesenko, who would also leave the game with an injury, did well in his short NBA debut -- accumulating six points and seven rebounds in only 11 minutes.
Fesenko is a physical, energetic, and agile center. Constantly
moving, looking for contact, aggressive with hair-flying. The way
Kyrylo plays, I can see him being a more-effective Zaza Pachulia.
His
naivete might be his biggest asset, he doesn't come into the NBA afraid
of anyone and though light-hearted off the court, his intensity
on-court will be hard to match. The 20-year old kid wants to dunk the ball like Shaq every time he touches it " I like (Shaq's) animal rage under the basket, his power," he said. "When you look at him even on TV, you are afraid of him. He is huge, big..."
While trying out for the Pistons last year, Fesenko got a chance to meet his childhood idol Shaquille
O'Neal. So what did Fesenko when he had a chance to chat with his
basketball hero? He reportedly told Shaq in a half-joking fashion "I will dunk over (you), if (you) play one or two more years."
This kind of humor and blase attitude off the court has apparently made quite an impression on the Utah media and his Jazz teammates, even though he's only been a in Utah a month or so "He might be so unaware, he plays well," said Carlos Boozer speaking of Fesenko's
In his only NBA game thus far, Fesenko was hit on the side of the
head Chris Mihm while attempting to rebound a missed shot. He left that
game, but was activated for the next game against Miami, but with Okur
and Boozer back from injury, Fesenko didn't play norget the chance to dunk on Shaq (he also didn't play last night against Seattle).
Things, however are looking up for Kyrylo as his short 20-day stint in the NBDL has made an impression on Jerry Sloan "His
demeanor out here is 100 percent better than what it was when he left.
Not even playing basketball, just being around his teammates and being a little bit more professional about what he's doing." And Fesenko wasn't phased when he moved to the D-League, "I want to play in D-League and to be here, to get enough of game time to adjust to American basketball," he said before being called up "I
repeat it 100 time, I am not upset about it. I glad to be here. What
can be better than to have enough of game time — and a guaranteed
contract with the NBA?"
I guess it's Utah Jazz talk this week. I would be remiss to not mention Andrei Kirilenko's progress this season. His renewed perspective has him filling up box-scores again including
the third triple-double of his career (that seems odd that he wouldn't
had had more by now) -- 20 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists, 6 steals
and 4 blocks.
The great thing about Kirilenko, for Kirilenko fans, Utah Jazz fans
and Fantasy teams that have him on their team -- it's never just points
or rebounds or assists, whenever he is on his game -- you can always
account on great block and steal numbers too.
Andrew Who Again?
Has there been any #1 draft pick in the last ten years that has flew under-the-radar as Andrew Bogut
has thus far? In his third season, the 7-0 center from Australia is
having another decent season by putting up 12.6 points, 8.6 rebounds
and 2.3 blocks, but I really haven't heard anything about him; there
just isn't much discussion of Bogut. Has he shown any potential to eventually become worth a #1 pick overall?
What I am saying is personally, I haven't heard anything about
Bogut, and for being a #1 overall pick, that's a little odd to me.
We're still tracking the progress of Andrea Bargnani. Everyone knows all about LeBron James and Yao Ming. We're still talking about Allen Iverson
and Tim Duncan. Greg Oden hasn't put on an NBA jersey and we're still
talking about him. We know that Olowakandi and Kwame Brown were
complete busts; that's been discussed and proven. So what of Andrew
Bogut?
Is it because he is playing in Milwaukee and no one cares outside of brewtown? I mean, I feel Yi Jianlian will consistently get more press. The question is, what can we expect from the
Australian center? The #1 pick of 2005 hasn't really had the chance to
become the focus point because of the Milwaukee's perimeter-orientated
offense with great guards Mo Williams and Michael Redd.
I wonder whether it's because Bogut hasn't asserted himself enough.
The brash, confident, and dominant college player that we saw at Utah
has yet to surface. Is he still learning the NBA game? Can anyone in or
outside of Milwaukee let me in on what's going on?
Will Anderson Varejao Still be a Fan Favorite if he Returns to Cleveland?
So Anderson Varejao
decides to sign an offer sheet with the Bobcats... 3 years for 17
million... The Cavs have said that they'll match the offer, but as of
this writing nothing is solid. Varejao can opt out of the deal after
the second season and become an unrestricted free agent - which is
likely in either case.
Why? I think it's plainly obvious that Andy is settling for 5.5
million a season and playing for the Bobcats for transparent reasons.
Nothing wrong with playing with the improving-Bobcats, but if the
choice is to play for $5.5 million on the maybe-playoffs Charlotte
Bobcats or play with LeBron James and the Cavs, the Eastern conference
champions? Andy's got dollar signs in his eyes still.
It seems to me that Varejao's plan is to play his #### off, opt-out when the time comes, and play
the free-agent game again trying to get his ridiculous 10/mil. Andy my
friend, you better pull in 20 and 10 this season to even get close to
that -- good luck. You're competing with a lot of other up-and-coming
Bobcats that have already established themselves offensively with the
Cats -- Okafor, the under-rated Raymond Felton, Gerald Wallace, Matt
Carroll, and Jason Richardson. Whoa, on second thought you better focus
on grabbing 15 rebounds, blocking 5 shots, and play D like Ben Wallace
circa 2004 in order toget the 10 mil you are looking for. Maybe the Bulls will sign you?
Seriously, I'd rather pay Fesenko 10x his salary, I think he has much more potential than Varejao.
Nash done with Canada? Steve Nash has said that he probably won't participate in next year's Olympics in Beijing even if Canada qualifies, and many believe that the two-time NBA MVP might be done with the Canadian National Team altogether.
Though Nash is saying that he is still undecided, he is leaning
towards not participating. citing his responsibilty to the Phoenix Suns
"I would say no, but I can't really talk about it until the situation arrives and this season's come to a conclusion," Nash said. "But in my mind right now, I'm not going to play for Canada anymore. I just can't do both."
Many speculate that when Canada decided to part ways with Jay
Triano, the Canadian National Team coach from 1998-2004 and a good
friend to Nash, they knew that the decision would not entice Nash to
come back.
Unlike many countries (and their press), Canadians aren't calling
for the Steve Nash's head. Overall, it seems they take a nicer and more
understanding approach to Nash's likely decision.
"We can't fault him." said Triano, whom is currently an assistant coach for the Toronto Raptor "Nash
has given so much over so many years. I mean, you can't expect guys to
play until they can't walk any more. Especially now, when he's playing
on a team that plays so deep into the summer."
Current national team coach Leo Rautlins was quoted as saying "(Steve's) got a young family, and he's got to do what he feels is best for him ... And whatever he feels is best, we all support him."
Coincidentally, Nash and his Phoenix Suns will be in Toronto tonight
to play the Raptors. Even with the disappointing news, no doubt the
Canadians will be giving the Victoria BCnative a warm welcome/thank you.
Tony Parker, Ginobili Bigger Factors than Ever
With Tim Duncan going down with an injury that will keep him out the next few games, it will be time for Tony Parker to quiet those critics that assert his success is only based on Duncan's inside presence. Given, the numbers of those critics have
grown smaller over the last few years, but when Duncan went down, it
was inevitable that I would come across something to that fashion.
While people drum up something to complain about the Spurs, they
continue rolling through the regular season again at 15-3, with the
second-best record in the league. And they're doing it with
less-reliance on Tim Duncan as Parker and Manu Ginobili are both averaging career-highs in points, FG attempts, 3pt FG attempts, FT Attempts, Assists and Rebounds.
Yes, without Duncan, they would be a different team, but the Spurs
wouldn't have had the last couple championships without the play of
Manu and Tony Parker. The fact that the Spurs are still successful with
less-effective Tim Duncan, shows that the Spurs are special and says a lot about the system Popovich has in place.
News Around the World 11/14/2007: NBA International Report
( interbasket.net) — Yao Ming
leads us off this week as he was named NBA player of the week for
November 12th (Tracy McGrady won the honor the week previous) as Yao
averaged 27.8 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.8 blocks. The Houston Rockets
are now 6-2 dropping their second game last night - Darko Milicic went at Yao all night to the tune of a season-high 20 points (and Rudy #### served up a highlight facial on Luis Scola).
Last week I spoke a little too soon about Yao’s early rebounding as a
sign of things to come; in the three games since, he’s averaged only 8.3 a game which is more Yao-like. At least he’s still blocking shots at a much better rate (2.5/game).
Manu Ginobili
continued his fantastic play. He’s averaging 19.5 points, 4.9 rebounds,
4.6 and 2.4 assists assists in just under 29 minutes off the bench. The
Spurs are 7-1 blah blah blah. #### Hum.
Not to be outdone, the other South American super-six man Leandro Barbosa
poured in a career-high 39 points against Orlando Saturday. Barbosa
just wasn’t just busy attacking the basket and hitting threes (he hit
eight), he also had 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals in that game.
Barbosa is a####ing 19.1 pts on a career-high (barely) 48.4% from the
field.
What ’s up with Steve Nash
and his scoring binges this season? Is he taking cues from Leandro
Barbosa? Maybe teams are taking the Mavs approach with the
“let-him-shoot-so-he-can’t-involve-his-teammates” or Nash is just being
more aggressive this season? Nash has already scored 30 or more points
this season three times. His efficiency hasn’t suffered any as he’s
shooting a blazing 57.8% from the field overall, 54.3% from three (!)
and has yet to miss a free-throw (20-20) in averaging a career-high
pace of 20.6 ppg. Only bad thing I can say is Nash’s
assists-to-turnover ratio isn’t very Nash-like at 2.1 assists for every
turnover.
Stay in Europe, Rudy! Lots of Spanish NBA players in our news this week, and none of the news is overwhelmingly great news in fact, most of it is bad.
In the last two seasons, Pau Gasol
has averaged 20.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 2 blocks a
game. So far this season, Gasol’s stats are down significantly across
those categories. Generally, I don’t make much of early season stats,
particularly points, but sometimes there is something so glaring that I
believe it indicates something larger. Gasol has only blocked a total
of three shots in six games this season - this from a guy that’s
rejected an average of 1.8 per game throughout his career? In the two
losses to Utah and Portland, Gasol had just eight total rebounds in
both games, went scoreless in the second half of both games, and taking
a total of one shot. So why? Is he unhappy with Rudy ####’s more involved
role? Unmotivated by the prospect of another long NBA season without a
chance at a championship? Easier to complain in Spanish when you have
Spanish National team member Juan Carlos Navarro
(who is shooting 28.6% and finally hit his first two-point field goal
last night)? Maybe Gasol is miffed by the conspiracy he insists is
going on with Jorge Garbajosa minutes in Toronto? Not sure.
Speaking of a Spaniard’s declining minutes this season — Nate McMillan’s early season assertion
that Sergio Rodriguez had fallen behind rookie Taurean Green for the
backup PG duties haven’t come to fruition yet. I don’t know if it was
just lip service to fire up Rodriguez, but he referenced Sergio’s lack
of three-point shooting for his reasoning. Though Rodriguez’s minutes
have fallen (12mpg last season compared to about 9 this season), he has
obviously outplayed Taurean Green and impressed the coach enough to
handle at least some of the backup PG duties. This is a good time to
bring up that Rodriquez hit an important three pointer followed by a
layup to put the Blazers up 87-82 in their win over the Pistons last
night. So far, Taurean has only played 2 minutes in the Blazer’s seven
games this season.
I’m sure at least a few of these players are in the ear of Rudy Fernandez, and it can’t be helping his case to come over to the NBA any sooner.
Maybe he just needed to let it off his chest. Andrei Kirilenko
is playing like the old AK-47, his last three games Kirilenko has
averaged 13.3pts, 9.3rebs, 9.3asts, 2.6stls, and 2.6blks. AK’s
statlines for the last three (points, rebounds, assists, steals, and
blocks) look like this- 15-8-8-0-3 against Sacramento, 15-12-9-4-1
against Memphis, 10-8-11-4-3 against Seattle.
Many unfamiliar with the Warriors roster probably wondered why they
traded Jason Richardson away this off-season. J-Rich played such a huge
part in their playoff run last season. Not to diminish Richardson’s
importance, but a big reason why the Golden State management didn’t
flinch was because they had a promising second-year, English player Kelenna Azubuike
on their roster. Kelenna has a smooth jumpshot along with a 40-inch
vertical leap, and the ability to get to the free-throw line (sound
familiar?). Let’s not forget that the decision was a little easier when
they looked at their books; Golden State is paying Kelenna the minimum,
while J-Rich is set to make $11 million this year and 40 million over
the next three years. “We liked him last year. He was just awful
young,” Warriors coach Don Nelson said. “He’s worked hard this summer
and it looks like he’s a player. … A real player.”
By many accounts, it’s not difficult to cheer for a guy like
Azubuike. He’s a nice guy with no-attitude on or off the court and is a
strong aggressive player that plays hard, slashes, and can get to the
rim with regularity. After leaving Kentucky early to help his family
pay for his father’s misdeeds,
Kelenna wasn’t drafted in 2005. He tried to catch on with the the Cavs
and Rockets, but was eventually waived by both teams. On both
occasions, Kelenna landed in the NBDL. He led his team to the
championship and was named all-NBDL in 2005, then led the NBDL in
scoring his second year. The promising guard is averaging 18.8pts, 5.2
rebounds and shooting 53% from the field this year.
Jose Juan Barea
is getting a lot more run this year and he’s doing an efficient job —
shooting 57.1% from the field, leading the league in 3pt% at 70%, 100%
from the FT line (7-7) while averaging 9.7 points a game. However his
biggest strength has thus far been negated; penetration and dishing the
ball. Barea is averaging only 1.4 assists with 1.2 turnovers in his
limited playing time.
Yi Jianlian
continues to impress; playing his best game (statwise) against fellow
countryman Yao Ming. “I hate to say this,” Yao said “but he may be
better than me.” Take it easy Yao, let’s not get crazy yet. Though the
Houston Rockets walked away with the win, Yi gave the Buck’s management
a reason to smile with early career-highs of 19
points, 9 rebounds and tying his high of 3 blocks. Overall Jianlian is
averaging 11.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.0 blocks and has scored in
double-figures his last four games.
Walter Herrmann
can’t seem to find his range. After skipping out on the Argentine
National Team this summer to focus on his game. With his extra
training. it’s mind-boggling how he hasn’t improved upon his strong
finish to the 06-07 season. Instead Herrmann is shooting a horrendous
23% from the field, and is 0-4 from three this season. Herrmann’s bad
start has him riding the bench, and has recorded DNPs in a couple games
before coming in for garbage time last night against the Miami Heat.
Remember, this was the same way Walter started out last season —
Herrmann displayed little to nothing in the preseason, was on the verge
of being cut, and along with the injuries he sustained added up to a
terrible start. The start continued into his season until after the
halfway mark of last season when he finished so strong that his name
was brought up for Rookie of the Year and not one giggle was heard -
that’s a serious turnaround.
It looks like it might be deja vu this year, hopefully for Herrmann,
the work he put in this summer starts to show sooner than later. Even
though things may have opened up for Herrmann when Adam Morrisson got
hurt, nothing is ever guaranteed as tough-as-nails rookie Jared Dudley
has been taking Herrmann’s minutes and been producing.
Random NBA notes: Ugh, Stephon Marbury. What a
complete fool. I know I am not privy to all the details and this
involves Isiah Thomas, which further muddies the situation, but I can’t
help but jump to conclusions with this guy. When does one become smart
enough to recognize a pattern in their career? It seems every team
Marbury leaves- gets better, and I read that he’s been with 12 coachs
in 12 years — probably none of which have ever been completely
satisfied with his performance. How about them Celtics? An interior
presence, a great outside shooter, and a versatile swingman. Only
unbeaten team at 6-0, not bad, but lets stop all the comparisons to the
mid-80s Celtics. Thanks. With all this talk of rookies Kevin Durant and
Yi Jianlian, don’t forget about Jeff Green. The rookie from Georgetown
is making the most of his time off the Seattle bench and he doesn’t
have the green light a la Durant. Green scored 12 points, all in the
second quarter against Orlando, on an impressive array of jumpers, drives and even a 10-foot hook.
News Around the World 10/31/2007: Belinelli, Scola Debut
( interbasket.net ) -- NBA Season Commences (International NBA Players Recap) - The NBA started it’s 2007-08 season last night with three games on the schedule.
The San Antonio Spurs received their 06-07 championship rings and
defeated the Greg Oden-less Portland Trailblazers 106-97. The Spurs
international players were huge in the win; Frenchman Tony Parker
scored 19 points, Manu Ginobili (Argentina) had 16 points, 8 assists and 5 steals, and Francisco Elson (Netherlands) scored 9 points with 5 rebounds.
Argentine superstar Luis Scola
made his debut with the reloaded Houston Rockets in their 95-93 win
over the Los Angeles Lakers. The former Tau Ceramica superstar played
only 8 minutes and accumulated 3 personal fouls, 3 rebounds and 1
turnover. “The court is different, the rules are different, the
players, everything is different,” Scola said. “But at the end of the
day, it’s just basketball.” I’m confident that Scola will find his way
- after all he was the ACB MVP and Fiba America’s MVP in 2007. Source: Luis Scola Set for NBA Debut (FIBA)
Yao Ming scored two critical baskets towards the end of the game and
finished with 25 points, 12 rebound, 3 assists and 3 blocks helping the
Rockets to overcome 45 points from Kobe Bryant.
Andrei Kirilenko
was back with the Utah Jazz and showed little effect from his
publicized trade demands over the offseason. The Russian 2007
Eurobasket MVP put up a typical statline — 9 points, 9 rebounds, 8
assists and 5 blocks in a 117-96 win over the Golden State Warriors.
This game also featured the debut of Marco Belinelli.
The rookie from Italy had an eye-opening summer league for Golden State
averaging 22.8 points (including a 37 point summer league debut), but
Marco only saw 12 minutes in his NBA debut and scored 6 points. French
hold-out Mickael Pietrus score 17 points and grab 5 rebounds for the Golden State Warriors.
( interbasket.net ) - With the start of the 2007-08 NBA season upon us, I’m sure David Stern has taken notice of a pattern from this off-season. I’m not talking about perennial Kobe Bryant drama or the KG trade, this involves names that aren’t all household names, but the direction of the moves are making the NBA Commissioner a little more than uneasy.
This 2007 summer has seen a number of players who have either left the NBA for leagues in Europe or have used the European leagues as leverage in their contract negotiations. Every day we come closer to the start of NBA training camps, and NBA heads should pay close attention to several situations that have already past and more importantly, to the outstanding issues that have yet to be resolved.
Vasillis Spanoulis, the little-used Greek guard that was pivotal in defeating Team USA at the 2006 World Championships and a benchwarmer for the Houston Rockets last season, has already decided he would rather return to Panathinaikos of the Greek league rather that ride the bench for another team in Texas - the San Antonio Spurs (the team he was traded to).NBa and the Euroleague
Not that big of news right? I agree. In of itself, it’s another case of Arvydas Macijauskas, a player that will be easily forgotten in the US. Though Macijauskas is a huge star in Europe, he never gained any traction in the NBA as the Lithuanian sharpshooter rode the bench for New Orleans during the 05-06 season. Macas, as he is known, chose to return to Europe after that one season. He chose more playing time rather than earning his time in the NBA. It makes more sense. It’s a matter of what’s best for the player in the short-term. That’s more than likely how Spanoulis will be remembered.
However in early September, Sarunas Jasikevicius, the Lithuanian guard that led his home-country Lithuania qualify for the 2008 Olympics, asked the Golden State Warriors to release or trade him. The Warriors chose the former and waived Jasikevicius.
Since then, the European superstar has returned to the Euroleague and hasn’t missed a step, joining Spanoulis in Panathinaikos backcourt. Again, nothing earth-shattering, but Jasikevicius was one of the many international players that had a reputation in the NBA. If Sarunas had stayed, he could have found a job in the NBA - there are several NBA teams looking for an experienced leader on the floor and a proven winner.
At this point, you may be asking yourself “What are you getting at?”
Add Sasha Pavlovic to the mix. The guard-forward who had a breakout last season with Cleveland cannot come to terms with the Cavs on his contract extension. If the two sides don’t get any closer to signing a contract, Pavlovic and his agent have made it clear that they are ready to do more than just entertain talks with European teams that are interested in the Serbian’s services. As of this post, Pavlovic has missed every one of Cleveland’s preseason games.
Then there’s the case of Andrei Kirilenko, who led Russia to a gold medal at this year’s Eurobasket. The Eurobasket MVP announced through a Russian blog that he is willing to drop the remaining amount of his $63m contract and head back to Europe rather than returning to Salt Lake City to endure another season of Jerry Sloan. The former NBA all-star was explicit and adamant about his position and AK can certainly play anywhere in the world. AK has since been tight-lipped and is participating in Utah’s summer leagues and camp.
If it was only Spanoulis and Jasikevicius leaving, many would simplify the moves as frustrated Europeans unable to make it in the NBA. However, if an up-and-coming player like Pavlovic and former NBA All-Star Kirilenko decides to head home to play, I believe that signifies a trend that would immediately dilute the NBA talent pool and give rise to a competing league.
Just a five-six years ago, no one would believe that an
international player returning home would dilute NBA talent. In fact it
was more likely that they would believe it would actually enhance the
NBA’s talent pool. Back then, it was arguable. Now, however, is a
different era and the same xenophobic attitude will get you laughed out
of serious basketball conversations.
With the influx of international superstars into the NBA (Nowitzki,
Yao Ming, Manu Ginobili, Steve Nash), national teams from around the
world defeating the US in international competitions becoming less
jaw-dropping. And some of the top-European clubs defeating NBA teams in
friendly matches (Maccabi Tel Aviv defeating the Toronto Raptors (2005), FC Barcelona topping the Philadelphia 76ers (2006), and CSKA Moscow defeating the LA Clippers (2006)), there is no doubt that basketball is on more equal footing globally.
And that balance is especially apparent in the European leagues where the development and talent is second only to the NBA.
Though the best outside the USA, European leagues were historically
where older NBA players would see their last playing days out. They
were leagues for players no longer ready for prime-time or players
whose NBA careers never even began. Players that fell under these
categories included the likes of former UCLA-star Tyus Edney, Dominique Wilkins, Bob McAdoo, Toronto Raptor Anthony Parker, Louis Bullock, Scoonie Penn, and Trajan Langdon.
And it wasn’t only because the talent wasn’t strong in Europe, it
was also because the money wasn’t comparable nor as stable in Europe.
With the shrinking dollar against the Euro and the rising popularity of
basketball globally, that barrier isn’t nearly as obvious any longer.
And that is most apparent in the rumor reported by the Detroit Free
Press recently - Chris Webber has been offered a two-year contract by
Greek club Olympiakos for reportedly $10-12m/season. Not chump change
by any standard. If true, it would make Chris Webber the highest-paid
American player in Europe EVER. (Webber has sinced turned the offer
down)
It seems as if the scales may be tipping a little more in favor of
the European leagues. If the aforementioned players leave, it could be
an epiphany for other players (and their agents) like Anderson Varejao from Brazil and other free agents yet to sign for the upcoming season.
And it’s not just the European players; it’s becoming an issue for
even American-born players. Just these last couple months, three NBA
players (including Webber) made waves by utilizing the Euroleagues as
leverage for their NBA negotiations.
Charlie Bell, a former Michigan State player and current Milwaukee
Buck, threatened to sign with Greek team Olympiakos in order to escape
the Bucks. Bell isn’t a superstar, but he did average a respectable
13.5 points, 3 rebs, 3 assts and 1.2 steals last year - some NBA team
definitely could use him. Now, I realize that could have been a ploy by
Bell to get the Bucks to release him from his contract (they didn’t,
they matched the offer sheet by the Miami Heat), but the fact that he
and his agent used Olympiakos as leverage shows that this isn’t your
father’s Euroleague anymore.
There is the case of Dee Brown, the former Illinois-star and
promising, young NBA player decided to leave the Utah Jazz in favor of
Turkish club Galatasaray. Dee Brown, a bench player last season, says
it’s only temporary and hopes to catch on with another NBA club next
year.
Sure Webber declined the offer from Greece, and Kirilenko is in the
same NBA jersey despite his threats, as is Charlie Bell. I also believe
that Pavlovic and Varejao are likely to sign with the Cavs, it’s just a
matter of when. Americans will forget the loss of Spanoulis and
Jasikevicius, but the soft line has been drawn this past off-season.
What was unthinkable 6-7 years ago has become status quo. The next
natural move is for more and more players to not just threaten to leave
the NBA, but to leave the NBA for the leagues in Europe....click here to finish the article
