Scrappy Nocioni giving Miami fits

[MaNuMaNiAc]

http://www.suntimes.com/output/telander/cst-spt-rick01.html

Scrappy Noce giving Miami fits

May 1, 2006

BY RICK TELANDER SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST

You think Andres Nocioni doesn't frustrate another team? You think, right now, there's a pro coach on this planet who wouldn't love to have the second-year forward from Argentina on his team?

Noce scored a game-high 24 points Sunday in the Bulls' 93-87 victory over the Miami Heat that evened the series at two games apiece.

The pale, sandy-bearded fellow made 7 of 8 free throws, had a team-high seven rebounds and three steals and basically made the Heat realize something is busted in its approach to the game.

Consider the Heat's meltdown just before halftime, when the always-edgy, ever-mouthy Gary Payton and superstar Dwyane Wade nearly got into it during a timeout huddle.

"[Bleep] you!'' snapped Wade, the scoring phenom who essentially had been turned into a dishing point guard by the swarming defense of Nocioni and the Bulls. "I'm not your [bleep]!''

A good part of the problem for the Heat is that it clearly didn't take the Bulls' overachieving and under-recognized players as seriously as it should have.

Maybe Payton could jabber until the season ends, but none of his nonsense even would have occurred if Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng and Ben Gordon hadn't shown how the whole of a team can be far greater than its pieces.

And then there's the demoralizing equalizer that is Nocioni.

No one ever has called Noce a superstar, but here he is after four playoff games averaging almost 23 points and 10 rebounds and shooting 54 percent from the field and 89 percent from the free-throw line.

And there's no accounting for the frustration he causes opponents by jumping in front of their dribbles, slapping the ball from their hands, leaping for rebounds, hitting the floor more often than the ball boy's mop.

"I like to play like this, you know,'' Nocioni said of the high-pressured, ever-so-loud playoff conditions that complement his fervor. "We play hard defense, we run the floor, move the big guys, move the Miami guys.''

That would mean moving Shaquille O'Neal, the biggest guy of all, who's getting moved a lot to a seat on the bench.

That is mostly due to foul trouble.

But fouls occur from frustration and uncertainty and bad positioning and hustle by the other team.

And Nocioni is pretty sure he hasn't singlehandedly turned the Heat into softies.

"They play different in Miami,'' he said. "They play harder in Miami. And we know we have to win a game there.''

Which will not be easy.

But Bulls coach Scott Skiles has turned loose his secret weapon, giving Nocioni so much playing time that the forward even logged more time acourt Sunday (45:48) than the indefatigable Wade.

"Noce has had a great year,'' Skiles said. "I don't know what to say about him I haven't already said.''

But Nocioni averaged only 13 points, six rebounds and 27.3 minutes during the regular season.

Now he has jacked into a new dimension.

"He's a man,'' Skiles continued. "He's genuinely tough -- not the false bravado you see out there around the league.''

"We've watched incredible improvement when he came out of South America,'' dispirited Heat coach Pat Riley said. "They've done a great job of developing him. He's playing with a lot of moxie, a lot of experience and confidence.''

Good as gold

Perhaps Riley is wondering why some scout in near-tropical Miami didn't notice the gem-in-the-rough before Bulls general manager John Paxson, who signed Noce the week before Argentina played its first game in the 2004 Athens Olympics.

Oh, and Argentina won those Games.

And the United States finished third.

I remember approaching Nocioni only moments after his team had come from behind to beat Serbia and Montenegro 83-82 in the opener, with his teammate Emanuel Ginobili having fired in a wild bank shot at the buzzer.

Noce had played an aggressive, muscular, Euro-flop-and-hack game, finishing with 12 points and lots of key rebounds and defensive plays.

Of his English, he said, "I have no.''

But he knew he was a Bull, and when I told him Paxson was thinking of starting him at the three spot, right from the get-go, Noce blushed in shock.

"No,'' he said with amazement. "No.''

Now he asks the NBA attendants at the United Center dais if he should answer a Latino reporter's question "in English or in Spanish?''

He's comfortable with it all these days.

"I play with confidence,'' he pointed out. "I play like this in Europe, nothing different.''

Mostly, he wants us to know, "I need to say thank you to the coach.''

Heat has no answer for him

Nocioni, truth be told, poses thorny problems for Miami in that the Heat doesn't have a player who matches up well with him.

Antoine Walker and Udonis Haslem are both bigger and not as active as Noce. James Posey and Shandon Anderson are both skinnier.

"The team believes we can win the series,'' said Nocioni, who gets his name chanted by the UC crowd more than anyone else these days.

"No-see-own-ee!''

It has the same meter and number of syllables as, "Un-der-ra-ted!''

[Sportman]

I love chapu and i have always thought he could reach this moment even when he played in Europe. He has that trademark which make all people love him. You cant hate somebody like him, the way he plays basketball with heart, passion and as he was a native citizen from chicago. He is not maybe the best, in fact he isnt, but if you have noch in your team you can be TOTALLY sure that noch is going to leave his life for winning the game. Surely he has not the same talent as Wade, Mc Grady, Kobe, Lebron etc, but noch is a player you CANT create, you just have to wait for their bith

[ALVAREZ6]

[PM5K]

Man I wish we had a great Argentinian player that could help us out in the playoffs like this Nocioni guy...

[ducks]

spurs used to have one called manu

[Pero]

Consider the Heat's meltdown just before halftime, when the always-edgy, ever-mouthy Gary Payton and superstar Dwyane Wade nearly got into it during a timeout huddle.

"[Bleep] you!'' snapped Wade, the scoring phenom who essentially had been turned into a dishing point guard by the swarming defense of Nocioni and the Bulls. "I'm not your [bleep]!''

Is Miami is falling appart?

[bdubya]

Sam Smith article



" After the game ....O'Neal didn't talk at all, angrily saying only, as he exited the locker room, that someone had stolen his coat.

The Bulls took the game and his coat, too?"

[nkdlunch]

He's a beast. But Chicago, learn his freaking nickname "Chapu" C-H-A-P-U

[MaNuMaNiAc]

Man I wish we had a great Argentinian player that could help us out in the playoffs like this Nocioni guy...

spurs used to have one called manu

I see the Manu haters are back in full throttle! Two bad games and already hw is no longer a great player... you guys are pitiful!