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Faaaaaaaaabriciooooooooo.
Yeah, but you have to admit, compared to last year with Nazr and Rasho??? .............
it makes a big, big difference for Manu, Tony and Tim, knowing they have a guy who can actually catch and finish. Fabs knows how to move without the ball and get to the right spots at the right time.
Faaaaaaaaabriciooooooooo.
Moving to open space without the ball leads to great passing and scoring opportunities.
Oberto was also great underneath working for boards, tip-outs and loose balls.
He's moving really well without the ball, something that neither Nazr or Rasho did. He is smart, and although he's not very athletic, he has very efficient movements and doesn't pump fake the ball like he's ing it.
Oh, and he's by far the best center the Spurs have.
plus, hes a very efficient flopper
The guys who can pass the ball, great as they are, have always been there. The man who can get himself open routinely, catch the pass, and capitalize on it, hasn't. Not with Rasho, not with Nazr, not with Elson. And for that, there is no one else to credit that Fabricio's bball IQ and hands. If you ask me, I'd say it's Tony and Manu who need to do most of the thanking, for having him help them padd their assist numbers, and not the other way around. After all, it's not like the big 3 doesn't get enough credit, is it?
Oh yeah, that too.plus, hes a very efficient flopper
Actually Pop always played Oberto and Manu together because they have such good chemistry. The lineup of Manu, Oberto, Vaugh + either Bowen, Finley or Barry normally will sub for Parker and Duncan in order to get the latter the rest they need.
Oberto overcomes heart ailment to become a postseason contributor for Spurs
Web Posted: 05/24/2007 11:06 PM CDT
Johnny Ludden
Express-News
Reboot. That was the word that made Fabricio Oberto pause.
Oberto hadn't been too concerned about the soreness in his chest. What NBA center doesn't get whacked in the sternum a couple of times a game?
Nor was Oberto fretting the next day when he told Spurs trainer Will Sevening he felt jittery. After Sevening took his pulse and said they were going to visit a cardiologist for more tests, he still didn't see reason to be worried.
The doctor told Oberto his heart rate was out of rhythm. Even then Oberto had only one question: How do we get it back in rhythm?
Reboot it, said the doctor. Oberto understood enough English to know what that meant.
"With a computer, you have to reboot," Oberto said. "They have to shut it off."
Oberto laughs now when he tells the story. The procedure was routine, or as routine as any heart procedure can be.
Oberto was back on the court for the start of the playoffs within four days. Five weeks later, he's helped push the Spurs within two victories of the NBA Finals.
With Oberto scoring 14 points and taking seven rebounds in each of the first two games of the Western Conference finals, the Spurs' Big Three has expanded to the Fab Four.
"For somebody who can't jump over a line, Fab is phenomenal," Robert Horry said. "He plays so hard for us. He never gets enough credit for the little things he does out there."
Oberto now has the attention of the Utah Jazz, assuming they've located him. He's made 12 of 15 shots, only one of which wasn't a layup or dunk, by repeatedly slipping behind Utah's defense.
"He's always in the right position at the right time," Tony Parker said, "and we're finding him."
Oberto was even easier to spot a year ago: He was usually sitting near the end of the bench. He appeared in only seven of the Spurs' 13 playoff games for an average of 4.9 minutes.
With Horry, Nazr Mohammed and Rasho Nesterovic ahead of him, Oberto used last season to learn the Spurs' system, adjust to his new teammates and work on his shot. His transition was eased by Manu Ginobili, his friend and Argentine teammate.
"He was unbelievable, being so patient after all he accomplished overseas," Ginobili said. "He never got upset at anybody. He kept working hard and people in Argentina were kind of pressuring him, saying, 'Why aren't you playing? Do you want to go back to Europe? You're a star and you're not playing?'
"He's been amazing. I'm kind of surprised. I think I was even more impatient than him."
Oberto began this season as the Spurs' starting center before coach Gregg Popovich gave Francisco Elson the job for the second half of the schedule.
But with Elson showing his playoff inexperience and Oberto accustomed to playing in pressure-packed games for Argentina, Popovich went back to starting Oberto midway through the Spurs' second-round series against Phoenix.
"This year he feels very comfortable about what he's doing, and he's a real fundamentally sound player," Popovich said. "We just think he understands everything that's going on now."
That has shown the past two games. With the Jazz focused on keeping Parker out of the lane and also worried about Duncan, Oberto has found enough creases in Utah's defense to cut to the rim.
"He's waiting for people to turn their heads," Duncan said. "He's making the right plays."
Oberto has played alongside Ginobili since the two were teenagers. Their familiarity with each other was evident the other night when Ginobili saw Oberto had a lane to the basket then led him there with a crosscourt pass.
"We can look in the eye and read each other like what we're going to do," Oberto said.
While Oberto isn't a scorer — his range doesn't extend too far out of the lane — his passing, screen setting and cutting have been a welcome addition to the Spurs' offense. And though he lacks the size or athleticism to match up with some opposing big men, he's done a credible job of making Jazz forward Carlos Boozer work.
"He plays hard, he plays physical," Parker said. "He's playing like he's not scared."
Few would have blamed Oberto for being frightened last month. After being hit in the neck in a game against Dallas the last week of the regular season, he awoke the next day with a sore chest.
Oberto played against Memphis that night, but when the Spurs met two days later he told Sevening his heart felt accelerated. The trip to the cardiologist revealed the blow to Oberto's neck had somehow triggered an atrial fibrillation.
"The doctor gave me confidence that I would be fine," Oberto said.
While his teammates were closing out the regular season against Denver, Oberto underwent a cardioversion to reset his heart rhythm. He was given anesthesia during the brief procedure, which involved sending an electrical shock to his heart. By the time the Spurs had finished their game he was resting at home.
Three days later, Oberto was practicing. When a team official asked if he would be available the next day for the Spurs' playoff opener, Oberto nodded.
"As long as I have six fouls," he said, "I can play."
* * *
FABRICIO OBERTO FROM THE FIELD
Of players who have appeared in at least 10 playoff games this year, Fabricio Oberto ranks second in field-goal percentage at 68.8. And the only player ahead of him, Golden State's Andris Biedrins at 73 percent, is through. Here's a look at how Oberto, who shot 56.2 percent during the regular season, has done in games in which he's scored in double figures.
Date Opp. Score FGM-FGA Pct. FTs Pts.
May 22 Jazz 105-96 6-7 85.7 2-2 14
May 20 Jazz 108-100 6-8 75 2-3 14
April 3 Sonics 110-91 4-4 100 3-4 11
Jan. 5 Mavs 85-90 7-7 100 0-0 14
Nov. 26 Sonics 98-78 7-8 87.5 2-2 16
Nov. 24 Mavs 92-95 6-8 75 2-2 14
Nov. 19 Kings 108-99 6-9 66.7 1-1 13
Nov. 8 Suns 111-106 11-11 100 0-0 22
Nov. 5 Raptors 103-94 5-6 83.3 2-4 12
"As long as I have six fouls," he said, "I can play."
68.8% FG in the playoff?
haha. great quote. btw, i think Pepe Sanchez is the one to the right of Manu in that pic. No wonder the Argentine NT has so much chemistry, what with playing together for so long. Fabri, Manu, Pepe, Wolkowyski, Scola, and Fernandez (if I'm not mistaken) ---six players from the NT last yr are in that pic.
Good Numbers: 11 Pts 11 Reb
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