tlongII
07-02-2009, 12:11 AM
http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2009/07/rudy_upset_thats_news_to_the_b.html
The "news" that Rudy Fernandez is "infuriated" with the Trail Blazers for their interest in Hedo Turkoglu comes as a surprise to coach Nate McMillan and general manager Kevin Pritchard, both of whom had separate conversations with the guard earlier this week on the phone.
"I just spoke with Rudy two days ago, to see how he was doing, and he said he was doing fine and that he was happy,'' McMillan said. "I talked to him about our moves, and how we did in the draft, and why we did what we did in the draft and he was fine with it. We talked about Sergio (Rodriguez) and he was OK with everything we've done.''
Pritchard said he "had a good conversation" with Fernandez on Monday.
"We joked around,'' Pritchard said. "And we had a fantastic exit interview. He talked about how excited he was to come back.''
Pritchard said he has not spoken with Fernandez since the ESPN report came out Wednesday afternoon, but he did leave a message for Fernandez to call him.
"The thing with Nate and I is we respect players - we both played - and we are always willing to talk,'' Pritchard said. "So if there really is an issue, we want him to know that we are open to talk about it.''
Fernandez is in Spain and traveled from Campanet to Barcelona on Wednesday. He is conducting camps while also working out with assistant coach Kaleb Canales. Calls to Canales were not returned. Both McMillan and Pritchard said Canales hasn't reported any discontent from Fernandez.
Pritchard also noted that Casey Holdahl from blazers.com is in Spain following Fernandez. Holdahl has also said that Fernandez has been in nothing but good spirits all week.
There are some factions who are implying that Fernandez last season was unhappy with his playing time, which simply is not true. He averaged 25.6 minutes a game, which he felt was about right. There was a point in the season when he was simply tired and couldn't take the minutes. And sure, there were some games he didn't like being taken out - Game 3 against Houston comes to mind - but show me a player who hasn't griped.
Can Fernandez play long term here when he plays the same position as Roy? Considering how much Roy plays point guard, and even small forward at times, yeah, maybe. Maybe not. But right now, it is not a problem.
"He's been fine,'' McMillan said. "It was just two days ago. He didn't say anything then, and he didn't say anything in our exit meetings.''
The "news" that Rudy Fernandez is "infuriated" with the Trail Blazers for their interest in Hedo Turkoglu comes as a surprise to coach Nate McMillan and general manager Kevin Pritchard, both of whom had separate conversations with the guard earlier this week on the phone.
"I just spoke with Rudy two days ago, to see how he was doing, and he said he was doing fine and that he was happy,'' McMillan said. "I talked to him about our moves, and how we did in the draft, and why we did what we did in the draft and he was fine with it. We talked about Sergio (Rodriguez) and he was OK with everything we've done.''
Pritchard said he "had a good conversation" with Fernandez on Monday.
"We joked around,'' Pritchard said. "And we had a fantastic exit interview. He talked about how excited he was to come back.''
Pritchard said he has not spoken with Fernandez since the ESPN report came out Wednesday afternoon, but he did leave a message for Fernandez to call him.
"The thing with Nate and I is we respect players - we both played - and we are always willing to talk,'' Pritchard said. "So if there really is an issue, we want him to know that we are open to talk about it.''
Fernandez is in Spain and traveled from Campanet to Barcelona on Wednesday. He is conducting camps while also working out with assistant coach Kaleb Canales. Calls to Canales were not returned. Both McMillan and Pritchard said Canales hasn't reported any discontent from Fernandez.
Pritchard also noted that Casey Holdahl from blazers.com is in Spain following Fernandez. Holdahl has also said that Fernandez has been in nothing but good spirits all week.
There are some factions who are implying that Fernandez last season was unhappy with his playing time, which simply is not true. He averaged 25.6 minutes a game, which he felt was about right. There was a point in the season when he was simply tired and couldn't take the minutes. And sure, there were some games he didn't like being taken out - Game 3 against Houston comes to mind - but show me a player who hasn't griped.
Can Fernandez play long term here when he plays the same position as Roy? Considering how much Roy plays point guard, and even small forward at times, yeah, maybe. Maybe not. But right now, it is not a problem.
"He's been fine,'' McMillan said. "It was just two days ago. He didn't say anything then, and he didn't say anything in our exit meetings.''