Manu Ginobili had fully intended to play for Argentina in the Olympics this summer, but the ankle injury he sustained during the NBA playoffs may force him to change his plans. For the first time, Ginobili admitted that his injury was worse than he first thought, and that there was a possibility it would keep him from representing his country in the games. Which would be just fine with Spurs' coach Gregg Popovich. Pop expressed his concerns, and made it very clear that he and the team would prefer that Manu rest his injured ankle and skip the Olympics.
"My concern is that it is going to get worse. He's got to seriously consider his health."
"He's just as hobbled as he was in the L.A. series. If we had a game today, he couldn't play."
"He's got to go back and live there (in Argentina) some day. But his bills get paid by his performance with the Spurs."
That last line is classic Popovich, isn't it? He should know by now though, after years of filling his roster with foreign-born players, that their country comes first, even before their lucrative job playing in the NBA. Just ask Yao Ming, who skipped out on the Rockets' season early to make sure he'd be ready to play for China in the Olympics.
Under the collective bargaining agreement, an NBA team can't order a player not to play in the Olympics. But it appears there's no rule preventing Popovich from making his feelings known, and for making the decision an extremely tough one for Ginobili.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-19-2008 @ 6:00PM
Brandon Hoffman said...
"Under the collective bargaining agreement, an NBA team can't order a player not to play in the Olympics."
Are you sure Brett?
How were the Cavs able to deny Zydrunas permission to play in the Olympics? From my understanding it was because his contract wasn't completely insured. Does that scenario fall outside of the CBA?
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6-19-2008 @ 6:02PM
Brett said...
I got that straight from the article in the San Antonio paper, but the scenario you mentioned where there was an insurance issue sounds like it would be a logical loophole where the team could step in and have their say.
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6-19-2008 @ 6:30PM
frank said...
Rubbish!Manu will play from his beloved Argentina!
Pop is upset with Manu cause he did not have a good series against LA and he was playing injured?
How about Parker ? he is playing for France!
Or Duncan he is playing for St.Croix the Virgin Islands ??
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6-19-2008 @ 8:09PM
man or pacman said...
No, Parker is not playing for France. And Duncan played for USA in Athens and lost his eligibility to play for the VI. Something he has regretted ever since.
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6-20-2008 @ 1:50PM
roger said...
@Brandon...great point and I believe you are correct but you are wasting your breath asking Brett anything. He does not actually research anything but just copies and pastes but still manages to make it choppy and fragmented giving it the "air" of it being his own words.
"I got that straight from the article in the San Antonio paper".
Excellent work by an outstanding journalist.
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