Thunder tonic: South American players
I’m joining a new fan club. The South American NBA Players fan club. Watching these playoffs, I’ve figured out what the Thunder needs. A couple of South Americans. Brazil, Argentina, doesn’t matter. South Americans generally play defense, particularly around the basket. They also hustle, scrap and don’t seem to care if they shoot the ball or not.
That’s exactly what the Thunder needs. Here’s the lineup of the NBA’s South Americans:
Houston’s Luis Scola is from Argentina. There’s a reason the Rockets didn’t wither without Tracy McGrady and then even beat the Lakers without Yao Ming. Guys like Scola play tough. Scola averaged 12.7 points and 8.8 rebounds this season. In the playoffs, those numbers are 13.8 and 8.3.
Cleveland’s Andersen Varejao (Brazil) is the long-haired, high-energy post man who does the dirty work for the LeBron James Gang. Varejao is an excellent defender who averages 8.6 points and 7.2 rebounds. Those numbers aren’t much compared to the high-profile scorers, but Varejao is worth his weight in Carlos Boozers. Varejao has the option of becoming a free agent this summer; be still my heart.
Denver’s Nene (Brazil) needs a last name (or is it a first?), but he’s another high-energy center, only with more offense. NeNe has been injury-prone, playing in just 81 games the previous three seasons. But we’ve seen this season, in Denver’s breakout year, what he can do, averaging 14.6 points and 7.8 rebounds.
San Antonio’s Manu Ginobili (Argentina), I assume you know about. Besides being a wonderful all-around player, he’s apparently a world-class teammate whether on the Spurs or on the Argentine national team.
Phoenix’s Leandro Barbosa (Brazil). Basically the last of the Suns’ gazelle-like wing men. Raja Bell and Shawn Marion and Boris Diaw are gone. But Barbosa remains. He’s not the same kind of player as Scola and Varejao; Barbosa likes to shoot, and I don’t know how much defense he plays, but he averaged 14.2 points for the Suns and remains a memory of better days in Phoenix.
Sacramento’s Andres Nocioni (Argentina). Unlike his countrymen, he’s a big guy who likes to shoot. Traded from Chicago in the John Salmons deal, Nocioni averaged 11.4 points and 4.8 rebounds this season.
Detroit’s Walter Herrman (Argentina). Averaged 9.2 points a game as a 26-year-old rookie with the Bobcats two years ago. Now is averaging just 10.7 minutes a game with the Pistons as a 6-foot-9 role player. But Detroit generally knows what to do with ballplayers, and Herrman could still develop.
San Antonio’s Fabricio Oberto (Argentina). Luis Scola light. They are former teammates; the Spurs had the rights to both and signed Oberto when they couldn’t get Scola freed from his contract. Oberto is another high-energy, defensive-minded big man who doesn’t put up big numbers (2.6, 2.6 this season) but helps you win ballgames.
-------------Berry Tramel can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including AM-640 and FM-98.1. You can e-mail him here and follow him on Twitter @BerryTramel. Visit Berry's website here.
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Berry, you are absolutely correct, specially the Argentinian player. Argentinian athletes of all sports,specially soccer, are well known for their smarts and hustle. They will never give up on a ball or a game. In all organized sports they are taught from the very beginning the fundamentals of sports and the need to practice,practice and practice. Per capita, Argentina is probaly one of the greatest sports nations in the world.