Why do the Portland Trail Blazers Hate Rudy Fernandez?
As a rookie last season,Spanish star Rudy Fernandez quickly asserted himself as one of the most exciting young players in the league.
Off the bench for up-and-coming Portland, he averaged 10 points, three rebounds and two assists per game while shooting 40 percent from three-point range. His athleticism made him a crowd favorite. The fact that he's just 24 led many to assume he was in line for a bigger role this season.
Not so. First, he was upset when the Blazers nearly signed Hedo Turkoglu, who would've cut into Fernandez's minutes. Now, despite the fact that Turkoglu spurned the Blazers and signed with Toronto, Rudy is still not getting minutes, and he's not happy about it.
It's one thing to lose minutes to an All-Star in Turkoglu, but Ferandez is now getting buried behind Steve Blake, Nicholas Batum and Martell Webster. As an established star in Europe, the threat that Fernandez could simply bolt to go make more money overseas is always a possibility.
Follow Technorati