Would You Like to See Me With All Star Friends?

This is a Spanish article that goes with this NBA video about the Dunk Contest:

The escort of the Spanish Portland Trail Blazers, Rudy Fernandez, could be one of the participants in the slam dunk contest for the next All Star mates, to be held in Phoenix on February 15 2009.

Rudy competes with two other candidates to join such a prestigious competition. His rivals are Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Joe Alexander, the Milwaukee Bucks. The three have posted videos on the website of the NBA in explaining why they want to be in Arizona on February 15.

The Mallorcan, who speaks in English, Castilian and Spanish also said that he "making a kill in front of someone is a description of superiority." Rudy, who has shown his quality in his crushing of the rim.

Almost always accompanied by his compatriot and friend Sergio Rodriguez, Rudy has excelled at dunking and now has the opportunity to be among the best...Fernandez calls for the fan vote to allow him to outperform their competitors. "It is very important for me to be with the stars," Rudy said as he finished his promotional video.

¡Vote for me in the slam dunk initiative!

Snow surprised us in Portland last week and has not left us. When I arrived it had been made clear that Oregon is likely to rain every day and the truth is that you just get used to it. But the rain, as far as possible, does not force you to change your routines. But the snow ... Snow means you must drive carefully, take more time to go to the sites, etc. And with my whole family here! There were days when I could not leave home, only to train and I always drive with care by the ice. But I spent a good Christmas with family in my new home.

This week, the NBA has announced the campaign for the competition of the All Star to be held in Phoenix in February. For the first time, fans can vote for one of the four participants in the slam-dunk contest, a list of three rookies who formed the slam dunk party. The other two are rookies Joe Alexander of the Bucks and Russell Westbrook of Thunder.

I got the NBA's proposal to participate in this slam-dunk initiative, and although I am not the typical player who participates in contests, I accepted because it is a great opportunity to join the weekend of the stars, something that I have followed since childhood by the telly. At the end of last month came a team of NBA TV to record the promotion of training in the field of Blazers. I recorded some questions before the camera. I had to do a bit of comedy but it was fun. Now there are a number of videos of the three candidates on NBA.com and the fans can vote for one of the three... I will vote, of course.

Original post here.

When I have the ball, I experiment

In this Portland Tribune article some of my story is given. There I am able to say what it is like being of Portland's las más populares celebridades: The most popular celebrities. It was the same for me in Spain, but not the same. My privacy there was given to me more. Here in Portland, not as much. I hear, "Roo-dee! Roo-dee!" and turn my head fast. Is something wrong? No, just a fan. I will get used to this.

Sometimes fans say I am like Pistol Pete Maravich. I am not sure about him. He played for the Polish National Team?

In the article, I talk about my experiments with the basketball. Also, I talk about how Sergio loves to play the karaoke game called SingStar. With the mic, Sergio tries different things and is a better singer. And with the basketball, he definitely experiments too.

What else? I am in my new house and my parents and girlfriend are here with me. My girlfriend Cristina is why I have grown the beard. She likes it. As they say, she is a fashion model. But we are both regular people.

Sweaters Hecklers

The conversation about sweaters is something I am blogging about.

When this story came out, it said that Sergio Rodriguez and I went shopping together in Los Angeles and that we each bought the same kind of sweater.

Then four days later, we wore our sweaters on the same day.

This is truthful. But Joel Przybilla said we are, "Exactly the same.'' This is not truthful. We had the same sweater, but mine was no longer as clean as Sergio's because I had worn it once already. But I see now that Sergio did not help to cover me when he said to my reporter, "Rudy, he's dirty. He wore it yesterday, and now again today. That's not my fault.''

Now my team heckles my sweaters. This amuses me less than others are.

Spanish Nicknames

As many know, Sergio Rodriguez and I have known each other many years. Now we are on the same team and we play together often.

I do not know if that means we need a nickname, but different ones come anyway. The Oregonian even ran a poll to see what the nickname should be.

The one used most by commentators is Spanish Connection, and I have heard the Two Amigos also. Sergio likes Spanish Armada best of all.

For me, I did not expect to see the Spanish Inquisition as a choice. But then, no one ever expects the Spanish Inquisition! But it does not seem a sensible choice, for I am not inquiring on the court. Rather I am filled with a resolute spirit:

I am shooting. I am defense. I am passes. And I am assists.

What is the word?

Although I myself have played the professional basketball for many years, a new thing to me is the NBA Allstar Team. Players want to be on it, and I am sure that my Brandon Roy will be one of them.

But some players hire writers and video companies to persuade others to vote for them because it makes them look sly. What is the word for this... "pander"?

Sergio and Me

When I was 13, I met a little man named Sergio Rodriguez. He was only 12. We played together in a Barcelona tournament. Sergio comes from Tenerife, a city in the Canary Islands. So we both come from Spanish islands. Now that we're on the same team, Freedarko posts about the different fashions that Portland fans get to Sergio Rodriguez and myself. Part of it runs next:

...there are still certain infallibilities, untouchable commandments for [Portland Trail Blazer fans]. Brandon is a god. Oden will get there. We have too many small forwards. Rudy Fernandez is the unquestionable fan favorite.

How interesting, then, that the high-flying Spaniard’s meteoric rise is countered by the ongoing, ever-present instability of fellow countryman Sergio Rodriguez. It is difficult to ascertain why Rudy, the stunning rookie, is so quickly showered with boundless praise from both the fans and Blazers’ organization while Sergio, a dazzling guard in his own right, is met with a decidedly less enthusiastic response...

Rudy certainly has the benefit of momentum and hype. This past summer, the lanky Euro stepped off his plane at PDX to find over one hundred fans boisterously cheering his arrival. The excitement can be attributed to Rudy's inspiring play in the Olympic finals when he went toe-to-toe with the NBA's best and brightest. Coach McMillan, an assistant in Beijing, sang numerous praises for his sweet-shooting soon-to-be guard, pointing out the maturity and mental toughness that is overshadowed by Rudy’s long range jumper, quick decision making and aerial grace.

And that’s the odd thing about Rudy’s arrival and subsequent place on the team... McMillan already trusts him; Pritchard looks like a genius for nabbing him...Rudy is the star of the second unit, the protagonist of his very own genre B-film. He electrifies the crowd with a barrage of treys and legs-splayed outta-control-lookin-but-very-much-in-control dunks.

Sergio, meanwhile, is a more complicated entity... Some call for Spanish Chocolate to play 30 minutes a night, banking on the stability to boost his confidence, shooting percentage and assist-to-turnover ratio. Detractors pray for a trade before the rest of the league discovers he’s a sham. Within the organization, all signs point to a similar divide. There was the semi-famous public tiff over playing time that led to Sergio’s agent demanding a trade... Most importantly, Sergio’s playing style—fast break-oriented, sleight of hand magic tricks, gambling defense—is completely at odds with McMillan’s philosophy, both as a hard-nosed former player and disciplined coach...

...how exactly does Rudy fit in with McMillan’s value system that warrants his 28 minutes per while Sergio does not? I’ll happily describe Rudy’s game as dynamic, exciting, and at times unstoppable. But he’s often a defensive liability, launches too many questionable threes, and there are stretches in which he tries either too much or too little.

“Rudy as patron saint” and “Blazers have vendetta against Sergio” are both gross oversimplifications, but those are the archetypes that have solidified. Rudy’s cooled a bit since his scorching start... though he still throws in 11 ppg and drains the long ball. But guess what? So does Sergio, who’s once woeful 3pt shooting now stands at a respectable .366, not to mention those four assists a game (in 16 mpg?!) coupled with a lowered turnover count...

...is it time for Sergio to get his chance? Should Rudy return to his Rip Hamilton-esque screen popping ways rather than languish in the role of spot-up deep threat that so egregiously wastes his versatile offensive panache? Best of all, could this team-wide funk translate to more minutes for the eye-popping Spanish tandem together? Just picture it—“Spaniards return Blazers to Western conference elite with electrifying lobs on the court, wear matching sweaters off.”

...I fear Sergio will decay until his will is broken, devolving from unpredictable ringleader to safe passer; I fear the dark gods have placed Rudy on a path to become a generic, imitation Ginobli. Say it ‘aint so.