More international than ever before
June 30, 2005The NBA keeps surprising me. Who would have though an Australian Andrew Bogut, an Australian, would be number 1 pick in the draft.
From NBA.com :
Short of last year’s record nine international players selected in the first round, seven players from outside the United States were chosen in the the first round this year: Andrew Bogut (Australia), Fran Vazquez (Spain), Yaroslav Korolev (Russia), Francisco Garcia (Dominican Republic), Johan Petro (France), Linas Kleiza (Lithuania) and Ian Mahinmi (France).
What interests me and most people is this though :
San Antonio has a habit of mining international gold with their less-than-desirable draft positioning. Manu Ginobili (1999, No. 57) or Tony Parker (2001, No. 28), anybody?
At No. 28 this year, the Spurs took Ian Mahinmi, an 18-year-old power forward from France. How little known was this guy? He’s not included in the official NBA Draft Media Guide and his player page on ESPN.com is bare bones. From what we’re gathering, he’s a rebounding machine ala Dennis Rodman.
Spurs have set a standard in the NBA with their draft picks and persisiting with the players they back. So we get longer contracts and lesser trades. While most NBA teams look totally different in a year or two because of the trades, Spurs have the same core bunch year in and year out, a mantra for a successful team.
