Spurs Brazil
08-17-2007, 09:30 AM
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/stories/MYSA081707.01D.SpursUdoka.en.3430106.html
Udoka copies Bowen's path to Spurs
Web Posted: 08/16/2007 10:57 PM CDT
Mike Monroe
San Antonio Express-News
Months before the Spurs won their fourth NBA championship, coach Gregg Popovich termed the team's defense the worst he had seen in years.
The negative motivational reinforcement worked, as the NBA title proved, but there was a grain of truth underlying Popovich's harsh criticism.
Little wonder, then, that on the first day NBA teams were allowed to contact free agents, Spurs general manager R.C. Buford was on the phone with Erin Cowan, who represents Ime Udoka. Udoka's defense for the Portland Trail Blazers last season had earned comparisons to Spurs' All-Defensive first-teamer Bruce Bowen.
Udoka, a 6-foot-5, 220-pound guard-forward, on Thursday joined the Spurs, signing a two-year contract believed to be worth slightly more than $2 million.
While Buford stressed that the Spurs were not looking to replace the 36-year-old Bowen, the general manager listed traits that led the Spurs to make an offer to Udoka, 30, that sound like a summation of Bowen's skills.
"Our coaches liked his competitiveness and his character," Buford said before Udoka met area media representatives at the Spurs' practice facility on a rainy afternoon that must have reminded him of his upbringing in Portland. "Plus, he shot the ball well from 3-point (range) last year. Sometimes those things work out with the Spurs."
Buford said the Spurs' coaches will determine Udoka's role as the season progresses. That is fine with Udoka, an expert at biding his time and waiting for the right basketball opportunity.
After working his way from Portland State University to the International Basketball Association and then to pro leagues in Spain and France before a three-year apprenticeship in the NBA's Development League, Udoka said he wants only to contribute to the Spurs when coaches call on him.
"Overall," Udoka said, "I think I have a style of play that I can come in and fit well with what they do. I'm not a young guy, but a guy who started every game (last season), and now can come off the bench and, hopefully there is not a dropoff.
"I'm a thinking player, so I think I can pick up their system. I can defend and shoot the ball. It was a privilege for them to contact me the first day of free agency. It showed they really were interested in me."
The Spurs considered bringing Udoka to training camp a year ago. They worked him out after he won first-team All-NBDL honors for Fort Worth in 2005-06, but decided against taking him to training camp.
That worked out well for Udoka. He caught on with the Trail Blazers, the team he had followed growing up in Portland.
His hard work in training camp and the preseason earned him a spot in coach Nate McMillan's starting lineup on opening night, and he started the first 75 games of Portland's season. A partial tear of the meniscus in his right knee ended his season, but he passed a physical exam administered by the Spurs' medical staff on Thursday morning, clearing the way for a contract signing.
Udoka said he knew well the story of Bowen's path to the NBA, one that took him to Europe and the Continental Basketball Association before he caught on with an NBA team. In fact, he said he has tried to emulate Bowen's game.
"Definitely, in a lot of ways (I have)," Udoka said. "He keeps the game simple and is known as one of best perimeter defenders. That's what I am: a hard worker who takes challenges against the top scorers. That's what I did every night in Portland."
The opportunity to be Bowen's "understudy" was part of the appeal in coming to San Antonio, Udoka said.
"I just want to come in and work hard and learn from great teammates like Bruce," Udoka said. "I understand defense is a team thing, and they're one of top defensive teams in the league. It has been an honor to be compared with great defenders like Bruce and Mario Elie. I definitely don't try to be something I'm not."
Udoka said he will remain in San Antonio most of the rest of the offseason.
"It was great to be there in Portland, and they gave me an opportunity to showcase myself," he said. "But I was only there one year and I had a journey to get to the NBA. It was just another step. If I couldn't stay in Portland, San Antonio was definitely my top choice."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[email protected]
Udoka copies Bowen's path to Spurs
Web Posted: 08/16/2007 10:57 PM CDT
Mike Monroe
San Antonio Express-News
Months before the Spurs won their fourth NBA championship, coach Gregg Popovich termed the team's defense the worst he had seen in years.
The negative motivational reinforcement worked, as the NBA title proved, but there was a grain of truth underlying Popovich's harsh criticism.
Little wonder, then, that on the first day NBA teams were allowed to contact free agents, Spurs general manager R.C. Buford was on the phone with Erin Cowan, who represents Ime Udoka. Udoka's defense for the Portland Trail Blazers last season had earned comparisons to Spurs' All-Defensive first-teamer Bruce Bowen.
Udoka, a 6-foot-5, 220-pound guard-forward, on Thursday joined the Spurs, signing a two-year contract believed to be worth slightly more than $2 million.
While Buford stressed that the Spurs were not looking to replace the 36-year-old Bowen, the general manager listed traits that led the Spurs to make an offer to Udoka, 30, that sound like a summation of Bowen's skills.
"Our coaches liked his competitiveness and his character," Buford said before Udoka met area media representatives at the Spurs' practice facility on a rainy afternoon that must have reminded him of his upbringing in Portland. "Plus, he shot the ball well from 3-point (range) last year. Sometimes those things work out with the Spurs."
Buford said the Spurs' coaches will determine Udoka's role as the season progresses. That is fine with Udoka, an expert at biding his time and waiting for the right basketball opportunity.
After working his way from Portland State University to the International Basketball Association and then to pro leagues in Spain and France before a three-year apprenticeship in the NBA's Development League, Udoka said he wants only to contribute to the Spurs when coaches call on him.
"Overall," Udoka said, "I think I have a style of play that I can come in and fit well with what they do. I'm not a young guy, but a guy who started every game (last season), and now can come off the bench and, hopefully there is not a dropoff.
"I'm a thinking player, so I think I can pick up their system. I can defend and shoot the ball. It was a privilege for them to contact me the first day of free agency. It showed they really were interested in me."
The Spurs considered bringing Udoka to training camp a year ago. They worked him out after he won first-team All-NBDL honors for Fort Worth in 2005-06, but decided against taking him to training camp.
That worked out well for Udoka. He caught on with the Trail Blazers, the team he had followed growing up in Portland.
His hard work in training camp and the preseason earned him a spot in coach Nate McMillan's starting lineup on opening night, and he started the first 75 games of Portland's season. A partial tear of the meniscus in his right knee ended his season, but he passed a physical exam administered by the Spurs' medical staff on Thursday morning, clearing the way for a contract signing.
Udoka said he knew well the story of Bowen's path to the NBA, one that took him to Europe and the Continental Basketball Association before he caught on with an NBA team. In fact, he said he has tried to emulate Bowen's game.
"Definitely, in a lot of ways (I have)," Udoka said. "He keeps the game simple and is known as one of best perimeter defenders. That's what I am: a hard worker who takes challenges against the top scorers. That's what I did every night in Portland."
The opportunity to be Bowen's "understudy" was part of the appeal in coming to San Antonio, Udoka said.
"I just want to come in and work hard and learn from great teammates like Bruce," Udoka said. "I understand defense is a team thing, and they're one of top defensive teams in the league. It has been an honor to be compared with great defenders like Bruce and Mario Elie. I definitely don't try to be something I'm not."
Udoka said he will remain in San Antonio most of the rest of the offseason.
"It was great to be there in Portland, and they gave me an opportunity to showcase myself," he said. "But I was only there one year and I had a journey to get to the NBA. It was just another step. If I couldn't stay in Portland, San Antonio was definitely my top choice."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[email protected]