Reply With Quote
Nice article Mikey! lol my mom was telling me all about George Karl when he played here...she was a fan of George's like I am of Manu's...which is kinda crazy. Manu absolutely owned Denver, let's hope he can do it again in Seattle
Ginobili: A Year of Living Famously
LAST UPDATE: 5/7/2005 2:24:03 AM
http://www.woai.com/spurs/story.aspx...8-71DDCB975247
By Michael Paceleo
(That's SAMikeyP to you and me)
Twelve months ago, San Antonio Spurs guard Manu Ginobili was watching a 2-0 series lead against the Los Angeles Lakers disappear. After winning 11 straight games to end the regular season and six straight in the playoffs, San Antonio lost four straight to Los Angeles to end the defense of their 2003 NBA championship. Even though Ginobili saw the end of his season, he was about to embark on the start of much more.
What a difference a year makes.
Since the elimination by the Lakers, Ginobili has won a gold medal, signed a $52 million contract, had the best season of his young NBA career, was an All-Star selection and has replaced Kobe Bryant as Denver’s number one hated opponent. Oh yeah, he also found time to get married.
Ginobili averaged a career high 16.0 points per game this season, to go along with 4.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.6 steals. Sportswriters around the country gave their thesauruses a workout when the Spurs come to town trying to describe that style. “Frenetic,” “wild” and “magician” are some of the words that have been applied to the Spurs guard.
George Karl, on the other hand, prefers “ugly.” Then again, the Nuggets head coach has a reason to be so bitter. Ginobili was a big reason that San Antonio eliminated Denver in the first round. In the 4-1 series win, Ginobili averaged 22.8 points a game -- including a career playoff high 32 in game three.
There was a delicious sense of irony in that Rocky Mountain success. The All-Star game was played in Denver. It was also a Denver sportswriter who wrote a scathing article about Ginobili’s worthiness, or lack thereof, of that honor. It was that same sportswriter who again singled out Ginobili, comparing him to a warthog but then insisting that “it’s not an insult.”
(I think I will try that on my wife sometime. “Honey, you look much like a warthog in that dress.” On second thought … no. I have this aversion to being poisoned in my sleep.)
There was much concern over Ginobili’s summer schedule. Spurs fans would have probably preferred Manu take a long honeymoon on the beach rather than play in the Olympics. As it turned out, other countries should have shared the same sentiment.
The worry was the toll it would take on his body. Ginobili’s style of play is a dangerous one to begin with and combine that with the fact that he was in his third consecutive summer of international compe ion, and you’ll understand the source of the concern.
None of that seemed to matter to Ginobili when the playoffs began. He took it upon himself to turn his game up a notch, and in the process drew the ire of Karl. Denver’s coach even went so far as indicate that Ginobili’s hair was somehow involved in his dominance over Karl’s team.
"I should have my whole team grow out their hair like Manu Ginobili, when he flops, his hair flying all over the place gives the effect that he was hit harder than he actually was," said Karl, who is probably just jealous because he remembers back in the day when he had the locks flowing in the wind as he ran down court.
Last May, Manu Ginobili saw his season end in Los Angeles. This May, he has a new gold medal for his neck, a new contract for his bank account and a new bride for his heart. He also has a new stage on which to showcase his ever-increasing talent. The show ended its Denver run and now heads to Seattle and hopefully points beyond.
What’s ahead? With the way Ginobili’s year has gone, one can only expect greatness.
Nice article Mikey! lol my mom was telling me all about George Karl when he played here...she was a fan of George's like I am of Manu's...which is kinda crazy. Manu absolutely owned Denver, let's hope he can do it again in Seattle
This article is very well written. Nice work Michael.
great artice. Looking back on the year, Manu's contract looks like a steal now and I'm glad Denver never offered him anything crazy and he stayed with the Spurs.
I liked your article Mikey. Manu is a large part of why I think the Spurs will win it all again. He has the drive and compe iveness to wake up his team mates when they become complacent.
LOL at the warthog comment. My husband says I look great all the time.
GO SPURS GO!
good read
Nice job. He's been busy and he's come a long way in a year. Here's to hoping that he doesn't do much of anything this summer. I'm sure the rest will do him good.
manu kicks ass better than than sean marks and im like seans number 1 fan
Nice article!
Outstanding article, Mikey! You still rule the Spurs writer circuit.
Good job!
Reasons that other team's players and coaches REALLY dont like Manu:
1) A bump or a handcheck isn't going to stop him, and will likely lead to an and1.
2) To stop him, you have to foul REAL obviously, meaning that your players will each last about 15-20 game minutes if you don't concede a certain number of uncontested baskets.
Eexcellent!
"Thats a Manu Tres!"
Ginobili rulz.
Great article about one of the truly marvelous athletes to come along in pro sports, a rare gem indeed and he's a Spur and will be for some time.
Thanks for all the kind words, friends. It was fun writing it.
Batman sig is hilarious.
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
