Buddy Holly
07-10-2009, 07:17 AM
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Haislip_hungry_for_second_chance_in_NBA.html
Haislip hungry for second chance in NBA
By Mike Monroe - Express-News The announcement that the Spurs had signed power forward Marcus Haislip to a free-agent contract on Wednesday was lost in the excitement of veteran big man Antonio McDyess' agreement to join the club, but it wasn't the first time Haislip's NBA timing was less than ideal.
Chosen by Milwaukee in the first round of the 2002 draft, the 13th overall selection, the basketball operations staff that picked him was gone after his rookie season. Head coach George Karl was fired and general manager Ernie Grunfeld took a job with the Wizards.
“It just didn't work out for me,” Haislip said Thursday after running through drills with the Spurs' summer league team at the club's practice facility. “The coaches that drafted me left, and then everything changed.”
Haislip played in only 70 games in his two seasons with the Bucks, who declined to offer an extension of his rookie-scale contract. Signed by the Pacers to a non-guaranteed contract the next season, he played in only nine games in Indiana and was waived on Christmas Eve 2004. Four years in Europe honed skills the Spurs believe make him a useful NBA player, one eager to prove he belongs in the NBA.
“I always like people looking to prove a point,” said Spurs general manager R.C. Buford.
Haislip appreciates the chance.
“I'm definitely happy to be here,” he said. “It's nice to be on U.S. soil this season.”
Haislip signed a two-year deal for the veteran minimum salary. For his two years of experience, it begins at $825,497.
The 6-foot-9 forward credits the coaching staff of his Spanish League team, Unicaja Malaga, for recognizing his true role.
“They made me more of a perimeter player, and that's what made me the player I am right now: a player able to put it down on the floor and knock down the three,” he said.
Haislip won't play on the Spurs' entry in the Las Vegas summer league — its first game is Sunday — but will accompany the team to observe.
Happy Hairston: The Spurs renewed their relationship with Malik Hairston on Wednesday, re-signing a player who appeared in 15 Spurs games last season before being waived in April.
The 6-6 swingman signed a make-good contract and will try to earn a roster spot.
“I'm just happy the kept me a part of the family and gave me an opportunity,” he said.
Worth noting: DeJuan Blair and Jack McClinton, two of the team's three second-round draft picks, are on the summer-league roster, but the third, French guard Nando De Colo, is not. He is in training with the French national team, along with Spurs guard Tony Parker. “Les Bleus” are to compete in a tournament this month in which they will try to capture the final berth for Eurobasket 2009, scheduled to be played in Poland in September.
Haislip hungry for second chance in NBA
By Mike Monroe - Express-News The announcement that the Spurs had signed power forward Marcus Haislip to a free-agent contract on Wednesday was lost in the excitement of veteran big man Antonio McDyess' agreement to join the club, but it wasn't the first time Haislip's NBA timing was less than ideal.
Chosen by Milwaukee in the first round of the 2002 draft, the 13th overall selection, the basketball operations staff that picked him was gone after his rookie season. Head coach George Karl was fired and general manager Ernie Grunfeld took a job with the Wizards.
“It just didn't work out for me,” Haislip said Thursday after running through drills with the Spurs' summer league team at the club's practice facility. “The coaches that drafted me left, and then everything changed.”
Haislip played in only 70 games in his two seasons with the Bucks, who declined to offer an extension of his rookie-scale contract. Signed by the Pacers to a non-guaranteed contract the next season, he played in only nine games in Indiana and was waived on Christmas Eve 2004. Four years in Europe honed skills the Spurs believe make him a useful NBA player, one eager to prove he belongs in the NBA.
“I always like people looking to prove a point,” said Spurs general manager R.C. Buford.
Haislip appreciates the chance.
“I'm definitely happy to be here,” he said. “It's nice to be on U.S. soil this season.”
Haislip signed a two-year deal for the veteran minimum salary. For his two years of experience, it begins at $825,497.
The 6-foot-9 forward credits the coaching staff of his Spanish League team, Unicaja Malaga, for recognizing his true role.
“They made me more of a perimeter player, and that's what made me the player I am right now: a player able to put it down on the floor and knock down the three,” he said.
Haislip won't play on the Spurs' entry in the Las Vegas summer league — its first game is Sunday — but will accompany the team to observe.
Happy Hairston: The Spurs renewed their relationship with Malik Hairston on Wednesday, re-signing a player who appeared in 15 Spurs games last season before being waived in April.
The 6-6 swingman signed a make-good contract and will try to earn a roster spot.
“I'm just happy the kept me a part of the family and gave me an opportunity,” he said.
Worth noting: DeJuan Blair and Jack McClinton, two of the team's three second-round draft picks, are on the summer-league roster, but the third, French guard Nando De Colo, is not. He is in training with the French national team, along with Spurs guard Tony Parker. “Les Bleus” are to compete in a tournament this month in which they will try to capture the final berth for Eurobasket 2009, scheduled to be played in Poland in September.