# Rudy is on fire



## pablinho (Sep 8, 2006)

Rudy´s team has won all the competitions and has being named MVP always this season in the finals, now there is only one competition left, the ACB, the tough domestic league in Europe, yesterday they played vs powerhouse Real Madrid in their arena, both teams are ranked #1 and #2 in the league and again Rudy had a hell of game. He made again 30 points in 30 minutes (11/15) playing injuried... and beat Real Madrid in their home:

Highlights of that game > http://acbtv.acb.com/video/562
Boxscore > http://www.acb.com/fichas/LACB52270.php

This is not uncommon, Rudy numbers in his last games are hell numbers with fantastic % ( 24 points, 18, 30, 26, 28 and yesterday 30) here is the link about all his games in the ACB this season http://www.acb.com/stspartidojug.php?cod_jugador=B0X&cod_competicion=LACB&cod_edicion=52

The dude is averaging 21.4 PPG 59%2FG 41%3FG 91% FT 4 APG 3RPG. in only 28 MPG. http://www.acb.com/jugador.php?id=B0X You gotta understand in Europe they play only 40 min per game with low scores generally and the assists are very hard to count.

I am not going to say Rudy will do this in NBA, because he has to translate his game to NBA, but i can say safely than Rudy Fernandez domination in Europe is similar to Manu Ginobili and Sabonis days.


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## BuckW4GM (Nov 2, 2005)

very exciting! i just hope rudy's ready for a new challenge since he has seemingly conquered every competitions in europe. time for him to do his stuff in the nba.

thanks for the updates on rudy.


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## Masbee (Dec 31, 2002)

Continuing to put up these kinds of impressive numbers against ever stronger Euro competition is fantastic.

I sure hope the Blazers can convince him to come over next year.


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## crandc (Sep 15, 2004)

Man, I love KP! I think Phoenix will regret extremely letting him get away. Most sports people say that if Rudy were in this year's draft he'd be a top 10 pick. 

This Blazer team is going to be so scary next year and for a long time to come.


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## dwood615 (Jul 20, 2004)

good update im excited for this guy...they say he is like kevin martin


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## Jayps15 (Jul 21, 2007)

I was really glad I found a stream for this game earlier, Rudy looked pretty amazing out there. I'm still not 100% sure what happened to his right shoulder but you can tell he is playing through a lot of pain, but still playing at a really high level, he didn't get to the free throw line at all last night but still played an amazing game. He was super efficient with his shot yesterday, going 11 of 15 from the field including 8 for 11 from 3pt range.

I'm still trying to understand what the scuffle midway through the 3rd quarter was about, I saw the contact but Rudy immediately offered to help the guy up and got shoved to the floor for his troubles, I couldn't understand what the announcers were going on about at that point in the broadcast. The game stayed tight after that though and I was happy DKV pulled out the win. Madrid is the #1 team in the ACB, and was one of the Spanish teams to compete in the Euroleague tournament this year so this was really against some of the best competition that Rudy will face.

He steps up huge against some of the other best competition too, in two games vs. Tau Ceramica (a Final 4 Euroleague team, so pretty much the best competition you can face in Europe) he's averaged 27.5pts going 10/12 from 2pts 5/14 from 3pts and 20/21 from the FT line, with 5apg and about 4rpg.

Damnit I can't wait for him!


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## World B. Free (Mar 28, 2008)

Did you guys see Rudy get knocked to the floor by the guy from the other team?! About 1:40 into the video

And it looks like they have a hologram advertisement under the hoop. That is trippy


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## B_&_B (Feb 19, 2004)

Thanks for the update on Rudy!


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## PorterIn2004 (Jan 1, 2003)

crandc said:


> Man, I love KP! I think Phoenix will regret extremely letting him get away. Most sports people say that if Rudy were in this year's draft he'd be a top 10 pick.
> 
> This Blazer team is going to be so scary next year and for a long time to come.


With that, I wonder how much Phoenix "let him get away." They may have had no idea who Pritchard was after with the pick and, had they used it themselves, might've had someone else in mind. IIRC, Fernandez, while not an unknown, wasn't getting near the press at the time that he is now.

It's true, though, that he'd be perfect for their system and it seems like they don't exactly have a plethora of SGs.


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## It's_GO_Time (Oct 13, 2005)

This news gets me excited . . . but I can't help wonder how he is going to fit in with Roy.

I know the popular thought is to have Roy play PG . . . but I wonder if having two natural SGs playing PG and SG in the NBA will work.


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## PorterIn2004 (Jan 1, 2003)

Kiss_My_Darius said:


> This news gets me excited . . . but I can't help wonder how he is going to fit in with Roy.
> 
> I know the popular thought is to have Roy play PG . . . but I wonder if having two natural SGs playing PG and SG in the NBA will work.


I don't follow the Lakers that closely but surely there are times when Bryant's running the point with another SG on the floor with him. Much as I dislike him, Bryant would certainly be up to the task and I can't see Jackson not taking advantage of that mis-match if they've got any other decent option at SG.


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## It's_GO_Time (Oct 13, 2005)

PorterIn2004 said:


> I don't follow the Lakers that closely but surely there are times when Bryant's running the point with another SG on the floor with him. Much as I dislike him, Bryant would certainly be up to the task and I can't see Jackson not taking advantage of that mis-match if they've got any other decent option at SG.


There are times (often in the 4th quarter) when Kobe runs the show. But generally the Lakers have a true PG on the floor . . . this year either Fisher or Farmar.

I don't know enough about Rudy to know how Roy and Rudy will work on the floor. I do watch Roy a lot (like everyone else here) and have a different opionion of him at PG. I think putting the ball in his hands in a half court set up and letting him create is great, but having him bring the ball up and run the fast break will not work well.

But I know others who watch the Blazers as much as I do are high on his ability to play the point and it sure would fit in perfectly if Rudy is an emerging star SG to have Roy out there at the PG position.

If anything I hope it is a problem the Blazers will have to deal with next year. : )


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## Jayps15 (Jul 21, 2007)

Kiss_My_Darius said:


> This news gets me excited . . . but I can't help wonder how he is going to fit in with Roy.
> 
> I know the popular thought is to have Roy play PG . . . but I wonder if having two natural SGs playing PG and SG in the NBA will work.


I'm not so much worried about that myself after having watched Rudy play so many games (20+ including his play on the spanish national team),I think at its peak we would probably see Rudy and Roy on the court at the same time for about 15 minutes per game and Rudy has the ability to play extremely well off the ball on offense. His 3pt shot has a very quick release and you can see his ability to catch and shoot is one of his strengths. He also cuts very well when he doesn't have the ball, you can see the obvious highlights of him cutting baseline from the corner for alley oops in just about every game, but he also gets into the lane well and if he gets a pass on the money he'll take 2 steps and lay it in or get fouled without ever putting the ball on the floor.

And passing won't be a problem with Roy and Rudy out there together either, while he leads the ACB in scoring by a wide margin at 20.6ppg with the 2nd place scorer averaging 16.7ppg, he's also top 5 in the league in assists at 4.53apg per game with the league leader averaging 5.18apg (he's also 2nd in steals, 3rd in FT%, and 2nd in efficiency ranking). I think he's to talented not to work on at least some level over here, it's just a matter of Nate finding the best uses for him as a weapon.


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## PorterIn2004 (Jan 1, 2003)

Kiss_My_Darius said:


> There are times (often in the 4th quarter) when Kobe runs the show. But generally the Lakers have a true PG on the floor . . . this year either Fisher or Farmar.
> 
> I don't know enough about Rudy to know how Roy and Rudy will work on the floor. I do watch Roy a lot (like everyone else here) and have a different opionion of him at PG. I think putting the ball in his hands in a half court set up and letting him create is great, but having him bring the ball up and run the fast break will not work well.
> 
> ...


I agree that they _might_ not work so well together, at least for extended minutes. Still, it seems to me that worst case is they each play around 30 minutes (eventually -- less for Fernandez for awhile, likely), covering all the SG minutes between them and the rest of the time Roy can be at PG and/or SF.

I'm picturing McMillan's high-octane second unit working better this next season with a line-up like:

PG -- Rodriguez
SG -- Fernandez
SF -- Roy/Webster/Outlaw
PF -- Outlaw/Aldridge
C -- Aldridge/Przybilla/Oden

Who knows how well it'll work but it seems a safe bet that it'll work better than it did this season and, until injuries began messing with the rotation, it seemed to be working pretty well.


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## mook (Dec 31, 2002)

Kiss_My_Darius said:


> This news gets me excited . . . but I can't help wonder how he is going to fit in with Roy.
> 
> I know the popular thought is to have Roy play PG . . . but I wonder if having two natural SGs playing PG and SG in the NBA will work.


sort of hearkens back to when we had Drexler and considered taking Jordan. in hindsight we should've taken Jordan and tried to make him and Drexler work. failing that we trade Drexler for a couple of very high-value players. 

similarly, we all have assumed Roy is the main guard of our franchise for the next decade. but it's conceivable that:
a) Fernandez is even better than Roy
b) Fernandez and Roy don't fit that well together

five years from now I don't know if both Rudy and Brandon are still on the Blazers. but if one of them is traded, I've got a feeling we're going to be pretty darned happy with whatever we get in the trade.


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## MrJayremmie (Dec 29, 2007)

Wow... Rudy, get your butt over to Portland! 

Can't wait to see this guy light up the NBA game! Our team is going to rock with Oden and rudy entering! Oden is going to be the most dominate Center since Shaq, imo. And Rudy might be a better offensive player than Many (less so on D though)... damn. Can't wait!

Can you guys imagine next year's second unit????

Blake/PG
Rudy
Outlaw/Jones
Frye/Outlaw
Pryzbilla

that 2nd unit will be able to take on some bad teams by itself, imo.


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## mook (Dec 31, 2002)

PorterIn2004 said:


> I agree that they _might_ not work so well together, at least for extended minutes. Still, it seems to me that worst case is they each play around 30 minutes (eventually -- less for Fernandez for awhile, likely), covering all the SG minutes between them and the rest of the time Roy can be at PG and/or SF.


if Fernandez is as good as we all hope, we'd probably be better off keeping one of them at SG and eventually trading the other for a premier natural SF or PG. 

we're better off with two All Stars playing 35 mpg at their natural positions than having two All Stars compromising over one position.


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## PorterIn2004 (Jan 1, 2003)

mook said:


> if Fernandez is as good as we all hope, we'd probably be better off keeping one of them at SG and eventually trading the other for a premier natural SF or PG.
> 
> we're better off with two All Stars playing 35 mpg at their natural positions than having two All Stars compromising over one position.


I understand your logic here, Mook, but I like your previous post about Drexler and Jordan -- with _them_ I'd have made it work. Jordan could easily have spent more time than he did at PG and Drexler as it was spent nearly half his time at SF, making room for guys like Ainge. If we could somehow get a "do over" on that one, I'd start Jordan at SG and either start Drexler at SF or bring him off the bench like Manu, with both of them playing plenty of minutes throughout a game.

And heck, maybe they both would've played a bit less -- fewer miles on them would've been fine, too.

That said, while Jordan is clearly (and laughably) a better player than Roy at this point in Roy's career, I think play-making might be a larger percentage of Roy's total package than it was Jordan's, making him, in some sense at least, an even better choice as a PG.

That said, the hole in my plan is that, with Jordan and Drexler, they each were pretty capable at two positions with only one position overlapping. With Roy and Fernandez, much as I like Roy's ability to play 1 through 3, I have a hard time picturing Fernandez ever getting meaningful minutes at any position but the 2, which feels less flexible to me than with Jordan and Drexler.


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## It's_GO_Time (Oct 13, 2005)

Jayps15 said:


> And passing won't be a problem with Roy and Rudy out there together either, while he leads the ACB in scoring by a wide margin at 20.6ppg with the 2nd place scorer averaging 16.7ppg, he's also top 5 in the league in assists at 4.53apg per game with the league leader averaging 5.18apg (he's also 2nd in steals, 3rd in FT%, and 2nd in efficiency ranking). I think he's to talented not to work on at least some level over here, it's just a matter of Nate finding the best uses for him as a weapon.



I guess I'm coming across too negative here. I too think it will be a matter of Nate findinf the best uses for him as a weapon. I just can't help but wonder if there will be a jam at the SG position and if he can get 30 mins a game (assuming he deserves it).

I was actually thinking along the lines of mook, could you trade him for a star PG (although I realize mook is saying if it doesn't work trade the worse of the two). I know it is early and talks about trading a young player with this hype gets met with a lot of opposition. And there won't be any incredible offers for him to start . . . so I think the obvious route is to hope Rudy comes over, see how he gels with the big three and then decide where to go from there.


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## darkhelmit54 (Jan 23, 2005)

I don't think it's that complicated for Brandon.

He plays moderately on and off ball at SG as the game starts off as he gets into a groove (unless he's feeling it and we go to him every time). He plays more off the ball as a perimeter threat in the middle of the game while it drawls on, and he takes over at PG at the end of the game. This is his natural progression when he plays 'SG' all game anyways.

1 quarter: 12 minutes at SG
2 quarter: 6 minutes at SF
3 quarter: 6 minutes at SG, 4 minutes at SF
4 quarter: 10 minutes at PG

18 mpg at SG
10 mpg at SF
10 mpg at PG

38 mpg overall. Obviously that wouldn't be followed staunchly throughout every game as situations vary depending on matchups, rest, injuries, etc. but in general I think it makes sense.

That leaves 38 mpg left at PG, 30 left at SG, and 38 left at SF.


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## MrJayremmie (Dec 29, 2007)

Brandon is 6'6 and Rudy is 6'5. Like we started Jack and Roy for the final 2 games with Blake at the point, i think we could do it... Rudy is taller than JAck and a better player.. someone Roy can drive in and kick it too with much confidence, but somebody who doesn't have to rely on Roy and can do **** himself.

I think we could make it work. Yes having your 2 and 3 6'5 and 6'6 isn't quite up to par, but its really not that much smaller to where it will be a big problem, because even if there is a 4 inch taller player they are going to have to guard them on the other end. And then Roy plays PG like 10 minutes a game, to where we can put in a 6'10 Outlaw or a 6'8 Webster at the SF, so it would be all good.

I think it is going to be awesome! But we definitely have to get a defensive minded PG who can run in transition and play on and off the ball and stuff like that.. which is why i vouch for R-Dub (Westbrook).


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## andalusian (Jun 29, 2006)

Roy is more than acceptable as a SF, especially next to a couple of great interior defenders like Oden/Aldridge - so a starting unit of PG/Fernandez/Roy/Aldridge/Oden should be fine.

I fully expect this to be our starting unit once Rudy gets in the groove of things (assuming he comes over).


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## pablinho (Sep 8, 2006)

*Re: Rudy is on fire (updated 4-20)*

Another terrific performance today for Rudy, this time vs Joel Freeland team ( #9 ranked in the league) DKV Joventut won 94-69 ( DKV is ranked #2)


Rudy did "only" 27 points this time (10/16 FG 3/3 FT) 4 reb, 4 assist, 2 TO in 29 minutes

Joel Freeland 2 points (1/4 FG) 2 rebounds 1 assist 2 TO in 17 minutes

http://www.acb.com/fichas/LACB52278.php

Highlights of the game > http://acbtv.acb.com/video/567

Rudy is now averaging an historic 21,6 PPG, 59%FG, 41%3FG, 91%FT, 4 APG, 4 RPG in 28 MPG


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## BBert (Dec 30, 2004)

Thanks for the update, pablinho.

Rudy hasn't been going to the free throw line (where he shoots over 90%) in the last couple of games. Is he avoiding contact due to his shoulder? That's some good shooting, especially if the other team is able to play up on him because he isn't driving.

EDIT: Nevermind. I just watched the clip where they showed him going hard to the basket 3 times. Rudy Rocks!


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## cpt.napalm (Feb 23, 2005)

*Re: Rudy is on fire (updated 4-20)*



pablinho said:


> Another terrific performance today for Rudy, this time vs Joel Freeland team ( #9 ranked in the league) DKV Joventut won 94-69 ( DKV is ranked #2)
> 
> 
> Rudy did "only" 27 points this time (10/16 FG 3/3 FT) 4 reb, 4 assist, 2 TO in 29 minutes
> ...


Thanks for the updates, my spanish is pretty bad and it would be much harder to follow without your updates. I can't wait to see Rudy over here. Anyone have a time machine I can borrow for the summer?


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## STOMP (Jan 1, 2003)

MrJayremmie said:


> Brandon is 6'6 and Rudy is 6'5. Like we started Jack and Roy for the final 2 games with Blake at the point, i think we could do it... Rudy is taller than JAck and a better player.. someone Roy can drive in and kick it too with much confidence, but somebody who doesn't have to rely on Roy and can do **** himself.
> 
> I think we could make it work. Yes having your 2 and 3 6'5 and 6'6 isn't quite up to par, but its really not that much smaller to where it will be a big problem, because even if there is a 4 inch taller player they are going to have to guard them on the other end. And then Roy plays PG like 10 minutes a game, to where we can put in a 6'10 Outlaw or a 6'8 Webster at the SF, so it would be all good.
> 
> I think it is going to be awesome! But we definitely have to get a defensive minded PG who can run in transition and play on and off the ball and stuff like that.. which is why i vouch for R-Dub (Westbrook).


Barefoot Roy is 6'5.25 Rudy 6'4.75 Outlaw 6'7 Webster 6'6

STOMP


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## Dan (Dec 30, 2002)

STOMP said:


> Barefoot Roy is 6'5.25 Rudy 6'4.75 Outlaw 6'7 Webster 6'6
> 
> STOMP



Interesting link. Based on that, and I don't know how accurate it is anymore, Dwight Howard is 6'9" barefoot, and just a hair over 6'10" in shoes? I thought he was 7 feet tall?


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## Zybot (Jul 22, 2004)

Anyone else think Rudy looks pretty small in this video, no upper body, could get abused on the defensive end pretty easily without adding some muscle.


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## grepgav (Aug 2, 2007)

Hap said:


> Interesting link. Based on that, and I don't know how accurate it is anymore, Dwight Howard is 6'9" barefoot, and just a hair over 6'10" in shoes? I thought he was 7 feet tall?


Nope, thats correct. Howard actually isn't that tall, he just plays bigger than he is and is massively strong. If you watch guys like Turkoglu are actually taller than he is on the court.

Oden is a legit 7 footer though


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## MrJayremmie (Dec 29, 2007)

> Anyone else think Rudy looks pretty small in this video, no upper body, could get abused on the defensive end pretty easily without adding some muscle.


He will be ok. He has proved that he can make it with how his body is (olympics and in spain... one of the best players in both) but to maximize his impact i do think that he needs to add some muscle.

Guards will be able to post him up, but he will light them up on the other end.


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## Sonny-Canzano (Oct 20, 2007)

The European Kobe Bryant. He's a pure scorer in ever sense of that term. He just has to work on his ball handling. He' often compared to Kevin Martin, they are similar scores, but Rudy is 10x's the passer of Kevin Martin.


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## Sonny-Canzano (Oct 20, 2007)

Dwight has massive shoulders. He is not 6'11". Seeing him in Portland, he looked short standing next to LaMarcus. Something I really didn't expect. He really does look 6'9" and his pre-draft measurements confirms my speculation.


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## PorterIn2004 (Jan 1, 2003)

Sonny-Canzano said:


> The European Kobe Bryant. He's a pure scorer in ever sense of that term. He just has to work on his ball handling. He' often compared to Kevin Martin, they are similar scores, but Rudy is 10x's the passer of Kevin Martin.


I _might_ agree with you on the offensive side, Sonny, but Bryant's a _much_ better defensive player. Bryant approaches guys like Jordan and Pippen whereas I don't think Fernandez approaches Jack yet, even with the height advantage.

(To be clear, I do fully expect Fernandez to leave Jack in his dust offensively.)


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## Jayps15 (Jul 21, 2007)

PorterIn2004 said:


> I _might_ agree with you on the offensive side, Sonny, but Bryant's a _much_ better defensive player. Bryant approaches guys like Jordan and Pippen whereas I don't think Fernandez approaches Jack yet, even with the height advantage.
> 
> (To be clear, I do fully expect Fernandez to leave Jack in his dust offensively.)


Relatively speaking (ACB league vs NBA) Fernandez is a well above average defender. He's second in steals per game (actually his team has players 1,2, and 3 on that list, they are a pain for other teams to play), and he's not bad on the ball either.

And while Kobe is a very good defender I wouldn't mention him in the same breath as Jordan and Pippen, did you see him covering Roy last time they played in the Rose Garden, no effort whatsoever.


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## PorterIn2004 (Jan 1, 2003)

Jayps15 said:


> Relatively speaking (ACB league vs NBA) Fernandez is a well above average defender. He's second in steals per game (actually his team has players 1,2, and 3 on that list, they are a pain for other teams to play), and he's not bad on the ball either.
> 
> And while Kobe is a very good defender I wouldn't mention him in the same breath as Jordan and Pippen, did you see him covering Roy last time they played in the Rose Garden, no effort whatsoever.


You raise decent points.

That said, Iverson typically is among the NBA's leaders in steals and how many people think of him as a good defender? He gambles a lot and sometimes it pays off. I don't really consider steals to be all that directly related to good defense.

As for your second point, yes, Bryant coasts on defense a great deal of the time -- I think he calls it "conserving energy" or some such. :raised_ey Still, when he bothers to care sufficiently, I'm not sure there's a better defense player in the league today, much less one that's also got anything like his offensive game. Artest might come the closest to being good at both ends but who'd you take to win one game between the two?

On second thought, Paul's pretty strong at both ends of the court -- _maybe_ better than Bryant, but even then, Paul's pretty well limited to PG whereas Bryant can pretty easily play 1 through 3 at either end.

I dunno, I'm not really a Bryant fan -- I certainly wouldn't want to see the Blazers trade for him. I just think he's significantly more well-rounded than Fernandez seems to be at this point, even taking into account the differences in the leagues as best as we can.


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## Jayps15 (Jul 21, 2007)

PorterIn2004 said:


> You raise decent points.
> 
> That said, Iverson typically is among the NBA's leaders in steals and how many people think of him as a good defender? He gambles a lot and sometimes it pays off. I don't really consider steals to be all that directly related to good defense.
> 
> ...


Bryant's undoubtedly the better and more well rounded player, but Rudy is currently dominating the ACB in much the same way Bryant has the NBA.

I think Rudy's defense is getting dismissed as poor offhand, with a lot of folks having not seen him that much. I agree that steals per game isn't an accurate metric for the overall quality of ones defense, but given what I've seen I think Rudy is no less defensively proficient than Jack, and the aggressive risk taking steals are something that the Blazers currently don't have.


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## Sonny-Canzano (Oct 20, 2007)

I really wasn't calling Rudy the second coming of Kobe. 

He's something between Manu and Kevin Martin.


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## nikolokolus (Jan 29, 2008)

With Roy's versatility and ability to "slide" from 1 through 3, I don't envision there being a logjam or a shortage of minutes for Rudy, my only concern with him is how slight his frame seems and how will he hold up playing a more physical game.

If he comes over I'm sure there will be an adjustment period as he acclimates to the NBA, but from the few games I've seen him play this year, he certainly does look like a very "pure" scorer and this team could definitely use a few more easy buckets next year.


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## HispanicCausinPanic (Jul 2, 2005)

There sure seems to be alot of "experts" when it comes to Rudy on here. Nobody here has seen him play. Let's not hype this guy up so much he's got nowhere to go but down!


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## barfo (Jan 2, 2003)

HispanicCausinPanic said:


> There sure seems to be alot of "experts" when it comes to Rudy on here. Nobody here has seen him play. Let's not hype this guy up so much he's got nowhere to go but down!


I agree except for the part about no one having seen him play. There are some here who have seen him play. I'm not one of them.

barfo


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## PorterIn2004 (Jan 1, 2003)

HispanicCausinPanic said:


> There sure seems to be alot of "experts" when it comes to Rudy on here. Nobody here has seen him play. Let's not hype this guy up so much he's got nowhere to go but down!


Yeah, that's more where I've been, I guess (though Barfo's right). I _do get_ that he's been lighting Europe up and I _do_ expect a lot of that to transfer, at least on the offensive side. My own personal expectations are already quite a lot higher for him than they were for Roy, and I _think_ that's reasonable. Fernandez is almost certainly playing against more serious competition than Roy was and he's having markedly more success on the whole.

That said, night to night I think he's going to be playing against bigger, faster, longer, stronger and/or smarter opponents and with brand new teammates. There's also almost certain to be at least a few points made by the coaching staff and other players that will be lost in translation. Then there's the larger piece of general culture shock, both to the U.S. and to the non-basketball aspects of the NBA.

Finally, while I do think Rudy's been playing against tougher competition than the men's U.S. college game provides, I also suspect he may have a bigger adjustment to make due to greater differences in rules and style of play than his U.S. college peers.

And yeah, Sonny, the Manu/Kevin Martin parallel works better for me than Bryant, despite the fact that Fernandez seems to have Bryant-like effects on games. It's more that I can actually imagine him having a Manu/Martin-like impact in his first season or two with the Blazers. They're just different metaphors and I think I missed that the first time -- sorry.

Aaaaanyway, I'm really looking forward to seeing Roy and Fernandez playing together, whether it's at PG and SG or SF and SG. Heck, I can imagine Fernandez having a better rookie season than Oden, if only because Fernandez is a bit more seasoned than Oden with his one year of college ball and then sitting out a year.

Bring on next season already!


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## Jayps15 (Jul 21, 2007)

HispanicCausinPanic said:


> There sure seems to be alot of "experts" when it comes to Rudy on here. Nobody here has seen him play. Let's not hype this guy up so much he's got nowhere to go but down!


Actually some of us have indeed seen him play, many many times at that. I personally like to watch the European style of play much more than the college game, and I only watch a handful of NBA games outside of the Blazers. That leaves a lot of viewing time for ACB, ULEB, and Euroleague games. Not to mention the fact that Fernandez has played in a lot of competitions with his Spanish National team.


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