carina_gino20
11-09-2006, 06:47 AM
Buck Harvey: Perfect next to Duncan: Grunge rocks
Web Posted: 11/09/2006 12:20 AM CST
San Antonio Express-News
The guys at ESPN came to see Amare.
They got Fab, instead.
They got a guy with Steve Nash's old haircut playing David Robinson's old position. They got The Other Argentine of the Spurs, as well as someone other than the Argentine the Spurs were expected to sign a year ago.
Luis Scola was supposed to be the perfect addition.
Fabricio Oberto was, instead, perfect. He was perfect from the field, setting a franchise record, and he was perfect for a night next to Tim Duncan. Oberto set picks and grabbed double-digit rebounds and threw a pass that should have been enough in regulation.
Pressed to play overtime — as well as more minutes than he ever has in San Antonio — Oberto came up with the kind of play that is, well, perfect for him.
Has he ever played the guitar this well?
"Never," said Brent Barry, Oberto's six-string partner.
Barry says they "struggle to play chords," which is why their music has been a running joke in the locker room. The two have yet to strum together this season, though they played enough last year.
Sean Marks, now with the Suns, says that. Asked the genre of music they play, Marks deadpanned, "Work in progress." :lol
Oberto's game has gone through the same. He watched most of last season, playing less than 500 minutes.
But those who had seen him play professionally in Spain and with the Argentina national team knew something was there, and Manu Ginobili always believed. He said privately, after the Spurs signed Oberto, his friend would be better than Nazr Mohammed. :nerd
Their salaries don't suggest that, nor do their appearances. Gregg Popovich repeated a recent line again Wednesday night, saying, "He's the ugliest, most productive player I've ever been around."
Marks heard that and laughed. He played against Oberto last season in practice and he understood what Popovich meant. "He's like Manu," said Marks, "because he sees the game a different way. He knows where to go and how to play. That goes a long way in any league."
That goes a long way for the Spurs, who have thus far seen versatility and production from both Oberto and Francisco Elson this season. Wednesday night, with so many others struggling, the Spurs needed all of it.
Oberto's perfect shooting was just part of it. He moved well in space, and he seemingly caught everything he touched. Asked about this talent, he came back with his own facetious question.
"You think from playing the guitar?" he asked.
That's Fab, who might be the best-liked Spur. He was always a favorite of the Argentina media, and it's a quality that helps a locker room, too.
The personality plays well on the court, too. He does the dirty work, setting picks and rebounding, and that's an ideal complement for Duncan.
He's not a shotblocker, and he looks closer to 6-foot-8 than his 6-foot-10 listed height. But he also started on Amare Stoudemire, his physical opposite, and competed.
It's his sense of the game, however, that separates him from others, and a play with about 20 seconds left in regulation highlighted that. Then, with the Spurs ahead by a point, Ginobili swung him the ball. As defenders closed, he saw the floor as Marks says he does, and threw a simple yet slick pass to Duncan for a three-point play.
Should he and Ginobili make Duncan an honorary Argentine? "We could get him a passport," Oberto said.
An accurate free-throw stroke would be a better gift. Duncan followed by missing two. Had Raja Bell not missed one himself with 1.5 seconds left, the Spurs would have lost.
Oberto instead got his 11th basket without a miss in overtime. But it was another play in OT that said more about him, and how he can ultimately help the Spurs, and why he can be perfect at times for this team. Then Duncan missed, and Oberto read the bounce and worked to get in position.
With fingers that play a guitar — with a style ESPN would rather not highlight — Oberto swatted the ball to a teammate.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/columnists/bharvey/stories/MYSA110906.01C.COL.BKNharvey.spurs.364ec42.html :lol :nerd
Web Posted: 11/09/2006 12:20 AM CST
San Antonio Express-News
The guys at ESPN came to see Amare.
They got Fab, instead.
They got a guy with Steve Nash's old haircut playing David Robinson's old position. They got The Other Argentine of the Spurs, as well as someone other than the Argentine the Spurs were expected to sign a year ago.
Luis Scola was supposed to be the perfect addition.
Fabricio Oberto was, instead, perfect. He was perfect from the field, setting a franchise record, and he was perfect for a night next to Tim Duncan. Oberto set picks and grabbed double-digit rebounds and threw a pass that should have been enough in regulation.
Pressed to play overtime — as well as more minutes than he ever has in San Antonio — Oberto came up with the kind of play that is, well, perfect for him.
Has he ever played the guitar this well?
"Never," said Brent Barry, Oberto's six-string partner.
Barry says they "struggle to play chords," which is why their music has been a running joke in the locker room. The two have yet to strum together this season, though they played enough last year.
Sean Marks, now with the Suns, says that. Asked the genre of music they play, Marks deadpanned, "Work in progress." :lol
Oberto's game has gone through the same. He watched most of last season, playing less than 500 minutes.
But those who had seen him play professionally in Spain and with the Argentina national team knew something was there, and Manu Ginobili always believed. He said privately, after the Spurs signed Oberto, his friend would be better than Nazr Mohammed. :nerd
Their salaries don't suggest that, nor do their appearances. Gregg Popovich repeated a recent line again Wednesday night, saying, "He's the ugliest, most productive player I've ever been around."
Marks heard that and laughed. He played against Oberto last season in practice and he understood what Popovich meant. "He's like Manu," said Marks, "because he sees the game a different way. He knows where to go and how to play. That goes a long way in any league."
That goes a long way for the Spurs, who have thus far seen versatility and production from both Oberto and Francisco Elson this season. Wednesday night, with so many others struggling, the Spurs needed all of it.
Oberto's perfect shooting was just part of it. He moved well in space, and he seemingly caught everything he touched. Asked about this talent, he came back with his own facetious question.
"You think from playing the guitar?" he asked.
That's Fab, who might be the best-liked Spur. He was always a favorite of the Argentina media, and it's a quality that helps a locker room, too.
The personality plays well on the court, too. He does the dirty work, setting picks and rebounding, and that's an ideal complement for Duncan.
He's not a shotblocker, and he looks closer to 6-foot-8 than his 6-foot-10 listed height. But he also started on Amare Stoudemire, his physical opposite, and competed.
It's his sense of the game, however, that separates him from others, and a play with about 20 seconds left in regulation highlighted that. Then, with the Spurs ahead by a point, Ginobili swung him the ball. As defenders closed, he saw the floor as Marks says he does, and threw a simple yet slick pass to Duncan for a three-point play.
Should he and Ginobili make Duncan an honorary Argentine? "We could get him a passport," Oberto said.
An accurate free-throw stroke would be a better gift. Duncan followed by missing two. Had Raja Bell not missed one himself with 1.5 seconds left, the Spurs would have lost.
Oberto instead got his 11th basket without a miss in overtime. But it was another play in OT that said more about him, and how he can ultimately help the Spurs, and why he can be perfect at times for this team. Then Duncan missed, and Oberto read the bounce and worked to get in position.
With fingers that play a guitar — with a style ESPN would rather not highlight — Oberto swatted the ball to a teammate.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/columnists/bharvey/stories/MYSA110906.01C.COL.BKNharvey.spurs.364ec42.html :lol :nerd