duncan228
11-08-2008, 11:35 PM
Spurs point to Hill to fill in for Parker (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Spurs_point_to_Hill_to_fill_in_for_Parker.html)
By Jeff McDonald
Upon arriving in San Antonio for his first NBA training camp, Spurs rookie point guard George Hill wasted little time in seeking out Tony Parker for a tutoring session.
Near the top of his to-learn list: How to execute Parker's signature teardrop shot.
With his mentor now out for at least the next two weeks with a sprained ankle, Hill is on deck to be installed as the Spurs' starting point guard for the time being.
As such, he feels compelled to suspend his be-like-Tony campaign.
I just have to be me, said Hill, the 26th overall pick in the June draft. I don't think I have to change anything if I'm a starter, or whatever. I just need to keep focusing on what I've been focusing on.
Parker rolled his left ankle while driving to the basket with 1:56 left in the first quarter of Friday night's 99-83 loss to Miami. He left the AT&T Center on crutches.
Parker underwent an MRI exam Saturday morning to check for structural damage, results of which will not be known until today. Friday night, coach Gregg Popovich said Parker, a two-time All-Star, could miss the next two to four weeks.
That would put him on thesideline next to fellow former All-Star guard Manu Ginobili, who is out until mid-December after offseason ankle surgery.
The freak nature of Parker's injury was not lost on his Spurs teammates. Battered like a side of beef on a nightly basis, Parker went down without any kind of contact.
It's just bad luck, guard Roger Mason Jr. said, shaking his head.
Even after his four-point, injury-shortened night against the Heat, Parker remained the NBA's leading scorer at 27.4 points per game in large part thanks to a career-best 55-point effort at Minnesota two nights earlier.
Trying to replace him point for point would be an exercise in futility. If the Spurs are to stand any chance of surviving the next few weeks, however, their rookie point guard must play like a veteran.
Less than nine months ago, Hill was still a college guard at little-known IUPUI in Indiana. Now, the 22-year-old is primed to play a critical role for a perennial NBA power with title expectations.
The Spurs don't play again until Tuesday, when the New York Knicks visit the AT&T Center. Hill's mission between then and now will be to summon the confidence to run one of the most veteran-laden teams in the league.
Hill, who is still playing with a splint on his left (non-shooting) thumb that he sprained in the preseason, has appeared in three games, averaging 6.3 points and two assists. If he does earn the starting nod against the Knicks, Hill would become the first Spurs rookie to start a game since Beno Udrih in 2004-05.
He's trying to take his time and learn the process, Bruce Bowen said. He's not going out and trying to show he's a first-round draft pick or anything like that. He wants to take the tutelage he's getting from the coaches and players, and go from there.
With Parker out, Hill will split point guard minutes with veteran Jacque Vaughn. Vaughn was inactive for the Miami game after playing zero minutes in Minnesota, his idleness precipitated by Hill's rapid emergence.
Mason, another offseason acquisition, also has experience manning the point, and could see time there in an emergency.
Popovich said after Friday's game that he would have no qualms handing the reins of his team over to a rookie. Hill says he is prepared for that, should the call come.
My approach is going to be the same as every day: Come in and work hard and try to be a leader, Hill said.
In that way, Hill still wants to be like Parker, teardrop or no.
By Jeff McDonald
Upon arriving in San Antonio for his first NBA training camp, Spurs rookie point guard George Hill wasted little time in seeking out Tony Parker for a tutoring session.
Near the top of his to-learn list: How to execute Parker's signature teardrop shot.
With his mentor now out for at least the next two weeks with a sprained ankle, Hill is on deck to be installed as the Spurs' starting point guard for the time being.
As such, he feels compelled to suspend his be-like-Tony campaign.
I just have to be me, said Hill, the 26th overall pick in the June draft. I don't think I have to change anything if I'm a starter, or whatever. I just need to keep focusing on what I've been focusing on.
Parker rolled his left ankle while driving to the basket with 1:56 left in the first quarter of Friday night's 99-83 loss to Miami. He left the AT&T Center on crutches.
Parker underwent an MRI exam Saturday morning to check for structural damage, results of which will not be known until today. Friday night, coach Gregg Popovich said Parker, a two-time All-Star, could miss the next two to four weeks.
That would put him on thesideline next to fellow former All-Star guard Manu Ginobili, who is out until mid-December after offseason ankle surgery.
The freak nature of Parker's injury was not lost on his Spurs teammates. Battered like a side of beef on a nightly basis, Parker went down without any kind of contact.
It's just bad luck, guard Roger Mason Jr. said, shaking his head.
Even after his four-point, injury-shortened night against the Heat, Parker remained the NBA's leading scorer at 27.4 points per game in large part thanks to a career-best 55-point effort at Minnesota two nights earlier.
Trying to replace him point for point would be an exercise in futility. If the Spurs are to stand any chance of surviving the next few weeks, however, their rookie point guard must play like a veteran.
Less than nine months ago, Hill was still a college guard at little-known IUPUI in Indiana. Now, the 22-year-old is primed to play a critical role for a perennial NBA power with title expectations.
The Spurs don't play again until Tuesday, when the New York Knicks visit the AT&T Center. Hill's mission between then and now will be to summon the confidence to run one of the most veteran-laden teams in the league.
Hill, who is still playing with a splint on his left (non-shooting) thumb that he sprained in the preseason, has appeared in three games, averaging 6.3 points and two assists. If he does earn the starting nod against the Knicks, Hill would become the first Spurs rookie to start a game since Beno Udrih in 2004-05.
He's trying to take his time and learn the process, Bruce Bowen said. He's not going out and trying to show he's a first-round draft pick or anything like that. He wants to take the tutelage he's getting from the coaches and players, and go from there.
With Parker out, Hill will split point guard minutes with veteran Jacque Vaughn. Vaughn was inactive for the Miami game after playing zero minutes in Minnesota, his idleness precipitated by Hill's rapid emergence.
Mason, another offseason acquisition, also has experience manning the point, and could see time there in an emergency.
Popovich said after Friday's game that he would have no qualms handing the reins of his team over to a rookie. Hill says he is prepared for that, should the call come.
My approach is going to be the same as every day: Come in and work hard and try to be a leader, Hill said.
In that way, Hill still wants to be like Parker, teardrop or no.