I like this part:

What did she say when she was seven matches without playing?
She told me that it was doing well, but after so many parties had realized that the rotation was difficult with three bases. So I stopped going out in the parties … And seven matches later I went again.

Sergio stopped going to parties which ultimately helped him find minutes. LOL. Hmmm…Any guesses as to what the parties mean?

As Bill Simmons would sing, ‘keep ya head up’.

much better than I’d have done.

would you mind posting the link to the original interview? gracias de antemano. :)

Very high on the unintentional comedy scale.
poor Sergio, this isnt gonna help anybody understand his predicament.

What Sergio Rodriguez (born 1986, in Tenerife) likes is playing basketball in Portland, and he barely gets to. After his second season in the NBA, the foundation raises his voice. For the first time there is continuity in the Blazers, a team that portends a great future but gives little confidence and less consistency. Another year like this would be hard.

First, how is your morale?
Okay. It “builds character”, as Calvin’s Dad would say: I am quite happy and I try to look at the positive side of everything. It has been a difficult year but I learned a lot and I have matured.

Is all considered lost?
Not at all. This is not the year that I would have liked to have, but we have to take the positive and think that everything that happens is for the better. This will help me in the future.

Do you think that the second year was worse than your rookie season?
It has been tough, but no worse or harder than the novice. There have been different circumstances. We have become a winning team, which normally would mean being in the playoffs, there have been no injuries, my adaptation has been better, I am happy in Portland, with the rest of the team …

I mean, what about the important thing: Playing time?
Yes, the only thing is that I have not had the playing time that I would have liked.

And if next year is the same?
Everything has its time. I’m 21 years old, and I’ve had two seasons to adapt. Next year, I’m gonna need more Stumptown ethiopian harar longberry, and booty-slap.

Your boss, Kevin Pritchard, points to Travis Outlaw as an example, how he waited five years to begin playing.
My career has unfolded very quickly. I used to do everything fast and I always rush to succeed and do my best-and that’s because I can, because I am able to do so. Outlaw’s career has been different. Maybe, down the road, my playing time expands similarly, but that’s not how I’d like it to happen-I’d prefer immediate progress, and a larger role sooner rather than down the road a few years.

What do you ask from Portland in the next year?
I ask what I asked him this year and what I asked before: continuity and confidence: confidence to play better, more calmly. And continuity gives you time to make mistakes and correct them. I’d like to be in Portland for a while, but the first priority is my career and my evolution. If Portland is unwilling to develop me properly, or does not believe that I can develop much further than I have, then I’ll deal with that accordingly.

Have you asked to be traded?
Neither my agent nor I have asked for a trade. I know that several teams asked about acquiring me, and Portland refused to discuss trading me. I’m not looking to leave, and Portland has always looked to keep me. What the future holds—who knows?

Is Portland the only place you would play?
Not. I decided to come to play for the NBA because it was my dream and hopefully be in Portland, but even if it doesn’t work out in Portland, I think I belong in the NBA.

It must be hard to talk about your future in Portland, or any other NBA team, when you’re sometimes in for just three minutes or so.
That sucks massive, big, fat, donkey. I want to play more, because I feel that could do it and help the team, but I can’t be bitter about the past and cling to guns and religion. All I can do is work harder.

Ultimately, Pritchard is in charge. Have you talked to him directly?
I have a smooth relationship with him and we talk a lot. He has always shown that he believes in me.

And coach McMillan?
I am open and professional with him. We’ve talked many times.

What did he say when when you weren’t played for a seven-game stretch?
The Natester told me that it was doing well, but with so many players, he understood that the rotation was difficult with three point guards. So I fell out of the rotation … and seven games later, I was back in the rotation

Did it seem wrong to fall out of the rotation when you were playing well?
Yeah, that’s frustrating, but Nate has to do what is best for the team.

Is it worth being in the NBA when you play so few minutes?
Of course. My dream as a child was to be here. I am living the dream of playing in the NBA and compete with the best players. I took a chance to be here, but I think I have done well these past two years and I have shown that I can play. That’s just how I roll.

Were you better two years ago, before you entered the NBA, than you are now after two years here?
I am much better than two years ago, especially mentally. I’ve grown mentally, physically, and as a player. I just lack consistency and confidence. If I get consistent time and can be confident in my role, I know I’ll come through.

Has your game changed? Do you play more conservatively—is there a higher priority now on avoiding turnovers than on playmaking?
My game has not changed; when I was given minutes; I tried to play the same as I always have. It is difficult to find my rhythm (which is admittedly an aggressive style) in three minutes. I can not come in cold and do what I do when I am hot.

I imagine this all gets in the way of preparing for the Olympics.
Playing in the NBA is independent of going to the olympics. The Spanish team has its own dynamics. They know how I play and what I bring to the table. I have been selected since I was 14, and I’ll be devoted to Team Espana for the summer. They have to respect my choice to play in the NBA, but I’m very enthusiastic about the Olympics.

This year the team is stacked, and very tough: Calde, Cabezas, Raul, Ricky …
That’s good. If not, we wouldn’t be the world champs that we are. I am glad that we’re so strong and deep.

Do you talk to Rudy al lot?
Yes, we talk a lot. He gives me support, and encourages me to persevere.

Good interview and great idea to post it. Your translation bring me good memories of my begining in BE. I used also one of those damn treacherous translators. Now I check the use of many words here: http://www.wordreference.com/

Uno de mis hijos se llama Juan y le llamamos a veces Johny, supongo que tú serás también Juan.

makes me wish we played Sergio more. He said exactly all of the right things—maybe he didn’t mean them and just plays a savvy media game.

But when I think of myself as a 21-year-old who's experienced tremendous professional success up to the last couple of years, and I'm firmly convinced that I can contribute substantially to my organization, and my organization isn't putting me in a position to succeed, and I'm giving a native-language interview to a reporter basically BEGGING for me to pop off at the mouth about the situation, and I don't do it? I think that shows a lot of maturity.

Poor Sergio. He’s foaming at the mouth with ire!

(there go the game)
No, that’s not what I meant to say.

I hope that johny has thick skin and the ability to detect sarcasm in a foreign language or I fear that we’ll never see him again.

And if next year is the same?

(a) Everything has its time. I have 21 years and these two have been to adapt. Next year, I would cost much aguantarlo.

becomes

(b) Everything has its time. I’m 21 years old, and I’ve had two seasons to adapt. Next year, I’m gonna need more Stumptown ethiopian harar longberry, and booty-slap.

I guess this is what he was talking about? And getting slapped on the booty.

http://www.cuppin.com/coffee/view/5