Friday, June 6, 2008

Rudy says he's coming to America

I think most people were confident Spanish superstar Rudy Fernandez would join the Trail Blazers in the 2008-2009 season, and though there are still hurdles to overcome, one significant obstacle looks to be taken care of. Rudy held a press conference today in Spain where he announced his intention of leaving DKV Joventut to join up with the Trail Blazers.
Spain shooting guard Rudy Fernandez said he was leaving local side DKV Joventut to join the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers on Friday.

"They have pushed hard for me to join them and have assured me I will be an important figure for them," Fernandez told a news conference.

"It wasn't an easy decision to take but it is the time for a new challenge after a fantastic year with Joventut."

Regardless of Fernandez's announcement, we won’t know for certain until at least July 1, which the earliest date that the Trail Blazers could sign him.

If you're one of those multi-lingual types, there's more information on Rudy's departure over at the ACB League website.

40 comments:

  1. YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    PARTY TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  2. I'm stoked! Rudy is that guy who can enjoy shooting a step back three. B-Roy can do it but only with the shot clock way down. We need a real scoring threat. Time for B-Roy to learn how to play point and prove he can guard quick PG's in the league like Parker. I get the impression B-Roy is closer to that position than Rudy is. LET'S GO BLAZERS!

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  3. hello, my name dani, I'm catalan, I've seen play rudy and I can say that is one of the best players from spain and we will demonstrate in this team with Brandon Roy

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  4. yes. Yes. Yes! YES!!!!!

    Rip City baby!

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  5. enjoy him, we miss in badalona :(
    please, make him play!!

    the crying goodbye in La Penya in this video
    http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=mR_yEUjS5p0

    in PenyaAllStar call Rudy "Noi Maravelles" (Wonderful Boy)

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  6. YESSSSS!!!!! thats just what the doctor ordered. With Roy, Fernandez, Outlaw, Aldridge, Oden and our bench (wich will now include Przybilla) We should be an awesome spectacle to behold! Now the only question is can Nate put his sargeant hat on the shelf and unleash these guys. Trust em. Let em ball, because if he does that this league is in serious trouble. Everybody strap on your seatbelts and get ready for a wild ride. p.s. Kevin Pritchard is the new and improved Jerry West, this guy has a brilliant mind!!!

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  7. Great news for Blazers! It's amazing that guy! He is the best and most spectacular European player!

    You'll enjoy a lot his alley ups!! and his three point shots!!!

    Rudy forever! Man, you are the best!

    Rudy! Rudy!

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  8. YESSSSS!!!!! thats just what the doctor ordered. With Roy, Fernandez, Outlaw, Aldridge, Oden and our bench (wich will now include Przybilla) We should be an awesome spectacle to behold! Now the only question is can Nate put his sargeant hat on the shelf and unleash these guys. Trust em. Let em ball, because if he does that this league is in serious trouble. Everybody strap on your seatbelts and get ready for a wild ride. p.s. Kevin Pritchard is the new and improved Jerry West, this guy has a brilliant mind!!!

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  9. i'm glad we got rudy. we will be bad ass this year. i say we get ride of sergio though. PIck up another guard in the draft. don't trade jack or blake.

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  10. If you want to see how especial is that guy go to:

    http://penyaallstar.blogspot.com

    You can translate the web using this translator, just pick catalan-english! and enjoy

    http://traductor.gencat.net/jsp/go2url.jsp?locale=ca

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  11. Hi guys! I am a DKV Joventut supporter and I must confess that we are very sad because of Rudy's decision, but I'd like to congratulate you about it.

    Badalona have took care of his basketball and human education. He has become the best european player at this moment,but the most important: he is a good guy with a very big heart.

    We all love him and Badalona will follow him around the world!!!

    Please take care of him and don't stop singing: RUDY RUDY!

    Jaume
    jbenededn@uoc.edu
    Supporter DKV Joventut

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  12. RUDY RUDY RUDY...HERE COMES RUDY!!!!! RIP CITY "IS" BACK!!

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  13. I'll be much happier when July 1st comes around and Rudy is playing in summer league.

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  14. I renewed my half season tickets yesterday, and then heard this today. Oh Man, well worth the money!!!

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  15. this is Rudy!!

    http://acbtv.acb.com/video/698

    alley oop!!

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  16. Rudy is the best!
    Rudy "Jugon"
    Rudy Rudy Rudy!

    Good luck!

    supporter DKV Joventut

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  17. Rudy is the best!
    Rudy "Jugon"
    Rudy Rudy Rudy!

    Good luck!

    supporter DKV Joventut

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  18. HELLO
    CONGRATULATIONS BECAUSE RUDY HAS COME TO YOUR TEAM. I HOPE YOU ENJOY THE WAY HE PLAYS THIS GAME. IF HE IS INSPIRED, (THIS HAPPENS OFTEN), HE CAN BE A REAL WIZARD IN COURT.
    BEST WISHES
    MONICA

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  19. Hello, I'm from Badalona,I am a DKV Joventut supporter, and a RUDY FAN!!!!
    He's a very good basketball player, but the most important is that, he's a very good boy!!!!!!

    We all love him and Badalona will follow him around the world!!!

    VISCA LA PENYA, VISCA BADALONA I SOBRETOT RUDY FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  20. I'd like to welcome and thank all of the Rudy fans from Spain for their well wishes and interest. The great thing is that your support of Rudy doesn't have to end with his move to the NBA. I hope you'll continue to follow Rudy if and when he becomes a Trail Blazer. We'd love to have you on board!

    So again, greetings and thanks to Daniel, Jordi79bcn, Pere, Jaume, Maria, Monica0465, Carol and all the other Rudy fans around the world. Welcome to Trail Blazers basketball.

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  21. I am very glad to hear from his Spanish followers that he has a big heart and a great guy. Of couse I don't mind his BBall skills either :).

    I don't know that much about special talent, all the Blazers look great to me, but all the bloggers all year has done nothing less than Idolise him.

    I do disagree with the blogger that said to get rid of Sergio. That is because I think he would be very important in the development of Rudy.

    I was wondering if the starting five could be BRoy, Rudy, Martell, LMA and Oden. sounds like my question has been answered.

    Welcome aboard Rudy.

    hg

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  22. Take care of Rudy please, in badalona we will always love him

    see you

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  23. Hi! I'm another Joventut fan. I've seen all basketball matchs of the last 15 years in Badalona and Rudy is the best player we have had here. Yesterday it was a sad day because he told us that he was going to Portland but the only thing we can say is that we will follow his campaing with Portland with a lot of interest.

    we are going to miss him but i hope he had a perfect season!

    It's a very good player but also a fantastic person as it demostrates the way he said goodbye yesterday! So,take care oh him for us please!

    FORÇA PENYA! RUDY, RUDY!!!

    PS: Sorry for my poor English, but it will be better next months because now I'm a new Portland Blazeers fan!

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  24. Hi! I'm another Joventut fan. I've seen all basketball matchs of the last 15 years in Badalona and Rudy is the best player we have had here. Yesterday it was a sad day because he told us that he was going to Portland but the only thing we can say is that we will follow his campaing with Portland with a lot of interest.

    we are going to miss him but i hope he had a perfect season!

    It's a very good player but also a fantastic person as it demostrates the way he said goodbye yesterday! So,take care oh him for us please!

    FORÇA PENYA! RUDY, RUDY!!!

    PS: Sorry for my poor English, but it will be better next months because now I'm a new Portland Blazeers fan!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Casey,

    I posted this on MB's page also, but was wondering if you could help as well.

    Can you post the video the Blazer staff put together for Rudy? I'd love to see it after hearing Rice rave about it on radio.

    Thanks.

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  26. yeah!! keep informing us casey i probably wrote this two times though .


    rudy!

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  27. As a season ticket holder and a huge Trailblazer fan since the seventies, I have to say I am very pleased with the outcome of this draft pick.

    Rudy has shown the world that he can play the game with the elite and putting him with Roy, Aldridge and Oden will only make the Trailblazers a top caliber team.

    To all the Rudy fan's in Spain, keep following his progress, keep rooting for him and the Blazers, and when it comes time for the all-star game, VOTE for Rudy, Roy, Aldridge and Oden.

    GO Blazers!!!!!!

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  28. I think one of the main reasons the blazers picked up Sergio is because he played with Rudy in Spain. A lot of the videos you see are of Sergio tossing up alley oop after alley oop to rudy. This team is going to be a whole lotta fun to watch in the very near future.

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  29. Hi,

    A great video about Rudy Fernández in www.penyaallstar.net

    In the video you would see one of the best players in the history of spanish basketball.

    Rudy "The wonderful Boy"

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  30. Casey,
    I read an interesting comment by Drew Sharp of the Detroit Free Press "... when Dumars drafted Rodney Stuckey with the 15th overall selection, he envisioned a future backcourt of two big hybrid guards, both capable of running the point or working for shots off the ball ..."

    The Blazers already have one of the best young big hybrid guards in the league in Brandon, and I've mentioned before that pairing Brandon with another hybrid guard would give the Blazers tremendous flexibility. Rudy might develop into that player, but how well he's able to play defense will be the key.

    I've read that due to his slight build, Rudy has trouble slipping screens on the pick & roll. That's definitely something that will have to be addressed before he can ever start alongside Brandon. Rudy would get eaten for lunch if couldn't defend the pick & roll in the West.

    I definitely think that Rudy will see some playing time with Brandon this coming year, but I think most of his time will be leading the White unit along with Travis.

    I think that the Blazers are going to punish teams inside with Greg and LaMarcus, and then I see the White unit being much more uptempo. This should be very good news for Sergio.

    Phil

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  31. Hi, I'm a Penya's supporter too, this season was great about us, with Rudy like MVP in the three champioshimps we won: Catalan League, Spanish Cup and ULEB Cup. I hope the Rudy will won NBA Champioship with Trail Blazers.
    Great news for Blazers and Penya, the historical name of Club Joventud of Badalona. The first player of our club who plays in NBA...

    RUDY, RUDY, RUDY!!!!

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  32. FROM BADALONA TO PORTLAND.
    VISCA LA PENYA I VISCA BADALONA.
    WE ARE "GASEOSAS"
    http://gaseosasforever.blogspot.com

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  33. http://gaseosasforever.blogspot.com
    PLEASE, WRITE SOMETHING IN THIS BLOG.
    THANKS.
    FROM BADALONA TO PORTLAND
    http://gaseosasforever.blogspot.com

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  34. For all the gringos:

    Apart from the videos of his dunks,alley hoops and 3points shots, you gotta watch when is scored vs Unicaja at a very important match in the Euroleague with 0.1 seconds left!! yeah 0,1 !!!sounds impossible !but you gotta see it!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-frhjrXlY0

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  35. I WILL COME TO SEE RUDY PLAYING, HE HAS THE ESSENCE OF BASKETBALL.

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  36. I'LL COME FROM BADALONA TO SEE RUDY PLAYING AT PORTLAND, HE'S THE ESSENCE OF BASKETBALL.

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  37. Casey, great stuff knowing he's 100%! I gaurentee Kerr is going to be kicking himself halfway through next season!

    It's seems to me that being a Zers fan the last 12 months has been just as great in the off season as it has been during. All of the speculation, great draft moves, and promising future are a real positive thing. The finals aren't even over and I can't wait for next season. I'm also extremely anxious to see what KP has up his sleeve come draft day. The man is a genious!

    GO ZERS!

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