kolko
08-04-2005, 12:25 AM
Buck Harvey: No Scola, no loss? What will be missed
Web Posted: 08/04/2005 12:00 AM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA080405.1C.COL.BKNharvey.17b01465.html
The Spurs weren't to blame. And when things went wrong with Plan A, they reacted well finding Plan B.
No Luis Scola?
The Spurs merely switched to another Argentinean, and Fabricio Oberto could turn out to be a better fit this season than even Scola would have been. Oberto's size also allows the Spurs another option; if they give away Rasho Nesterovic this summer, as reports suggest they are trying to do, Oberto can help at center.
Still, the Spurs lost something when Scola couldn't get out of his contract with a Spanish team. The Spurs needed another scorer, a young bull to come off the bench and change games, a talent who would do more than fill a role.
Scola, not Oberto, was it.
There are no guarantees Scola would have starred. Some scouts wonder if his size would translate to the NBA low block, and even Spurs execs saw some potential issues.
Scola is accustomed to scoring, for example. If he had arrived and found himself with few minutes and fewer shots, would he have reacted well? Oberto, described as a great teammate, won't be a problem.
But even NBA top-10 draft picks come with the same questions, and that is Scola's status. Still in his mid-20s, he was considered the best forward in Europe last season.
A way to measure: Orlando in June drafted another forward from the Spanish league, Fran Vazquez, with the 11th pick.
The Magic's move also measures something else. Global networking — or the lack of it. The Magic didn't do their homework on Vazquez, because he says he's not coming. "I was afraid to adapt to the American way of life," he told a Spanish newspaper, "and of not giving the level they have asked."
Orlando will retain his rights, just as the Spurs retain Scola's. But the Magic invested a lot in Vazquez without connecting with him.
The Spurs know the field better than that, which is why they keep stocking their roster with international talent. In doing so, the Spurs have created a culture that welcomes the world, and Manu Ginobili will take that a step further with Oberto.
Whereas Vazquez feared "the American way of life," Oberto knows he has his best friend waiting to walk him through it. That's why Oberto will help more than a rookie should next season.
Oberto's basketball IQ and passing ability will ease the transition, too. He's a non-shooting version of Robert Horry, a smart man who knows how to win. At times next season, when Oberto is setting hard picks and catching the ball with soft hands, he will be better than Nazr Mohammed.
Then there's the Nesterovic factor. A source outside the Southwest Division confirmed Wednesday that the Spurs offered Nesterovic to Dallas for Tariq Abdul-Wahad, and the Mavericks turned it down.
Why would the Spurs want Abdul-Wahad, an injury-plagued swingman who has played only 14 games over the past three seasons? To dump a large portion of Nesterovic's contract.
With Oberto aboard, the move would be less painful. But if this is about Peter Holt saving money, then the move could be costly in other ways. Nesterovic plays Shaquille O'Neal and Yao Ming well, and both Miami and Houston could line up against the Spurs in the playoffs next spring.
Scola wouldn't have helped at center, and he isn't known as a ferocious rebounder. Besides, Oberto started for the Argentina national team, not Scola.
But starting status is often a nod to seniority, and Argentina also had great depth. When Scola did enter Olympic games last summer, he averaged over 17 points.
That would have been his role for the Spurs, too, and Ginobili had a similar part in 2003. After being stolen in the second round and groomed in Europe — just as Scola was — Ginobili provided power off the bench.
The Spurs have struggled to find the same since, the reason Ginobili twice has returned to the bench. The Spurs can still solve this by signing someone else this summer, and reports indicate they are interested in both Michael Finley and Nick Van Exel. Dallas might release Finley this month, and Portland cut Van Exel on Wednesday.
But Scola would have been younger, still developing, with long-term potential.
He was Plan A for a reason.
Web Posted: 08/04/2005 12:00 AM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA080405.1C.COL.BKNharvey.17b01465.html
The Spurs weren't to blame. And when things went wrong with Plan A, they reacted well finding Plan B.
No Luis Scola?
The Spurs merely switched to another Argentinean, and Fabricio Oberto could turn out to be a better fit this season than even Scola would have been. Oberto's size also allows the Spurs another option; if they give away Rasho Nesterovic this summer, as reports suggest they are trying to do, Oberto can help at center.
Still, the Spurs lost something when Scola couldn't get out of his contract with a Spanish team. The Spurs needed another scorer, a young bull to come off the bench and change games, a talent who would do more than fill a role.
Scola, not Oberto, was it.
There are no guarantees Scola would have starred. Some scouts wonder if his size would translate to the NBA low block, and even Spurs execs saw some potential issues.
Scola is accustomed to scoring, for example. If he had arrived and found himself with few minutes and fewer shots, would he have reacted well? Oberto, described as a great teammate, won't be a problem.
But even NBA top-10 draft picks come with the same questions, and that is Scola's status. Still in his mid-20s, he was considered the best forward in Europe last season.
A way to measure: Orlando in June drafted another forward from the Spanish league, Fran Vazquez, with the 11th pick.
The Magic's move also measures something else. Global networking — or the lack of it. The Magic didn't do their homework on Vazquez, because he says he's not coming. "I was afraid to adapt to the American way of life," he told a Spanish newspaper, "and of not giving the level they have asked."
Orlando will retain his rights, just as the Spurs retain Scola's. But the Magic invested a lot in Vazquez without connecting with him.
The Spurs know the field better than that, which is why they keep stocking their roster with international talent. In doing so, the Spurs have created a culture that welcomes the world, and Manu Ginobili will take that a step further with Oberto.
Whereas Vazquez feared "the American way of life," Oberto knows he has his best friend waiting to walk him through it. That's why Oberto will help more than a rookie should next season.
Oberto's basketball IQ and passing ability will ease the transition, too. He's a non-shooting version of Robert Horry, a smart man who knows how to win. At times next season, when Oberto is setting hard picks and catching the ball with soft hands, he will be better than Nazr Mohammed.
Then there's the Nesterovic factor. A source outside the Southwest Division confirmed Wednesday that the Spurs offered Nesterovic to Dallas for Tariq Abdul-Wahad, and the Mavericks turned it down.
Why would the Spurs want Abdul-Wahad, an injury-plagued swingman who has played only 14 games over the past three seasons? To dump a large portion of Nesterovic's contract.
With Oberto aboard, the move would be less painful. But if this is about Peter Holt saving money, then the move could be costly in other ways. Nesterovic plays Shaquille O'Neal and Yao Ming well, and both Miami and Houston could line up against the Spurs in the playoffs next spring.
Scola wouldn't have helped at center, and he isn't known as a ferocious rebounder. Besides, Oberto started for the Argentina national team, not Scola.
But starting status is often a nod to seniority, and Argentina also had great depth. When Scola did enter Olympic games last summer, he averaged over 17 points.
That would have been his role for the Spurs, too, and Ginobili had a similar part in 2003. After being stolen in the second round and groomed in Europe — just as Scola was — Ginobili provided power off the bench.
The Spurs have struggled to find the same since, the reason Ginobili twice has returned to the bench. The Spurs can still solve this by signing someone else this summer, and reports indicate they are interested in both Michael Finley and Nick Van Exel. Dallas might release Finley this month, and Portland cut Van Exel on Wednesday.
But Scola would have been younger, still developing, with long-term potential.
He was Plan A for a reason.