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Russian rookie could be player down the road
By Ailene Voisin -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PST Monday, February 27, 2006
Story appeared in Sports section, Page C1
Shrouded in mystery and definitely a little light in the stats, young Sergei Monia arrived the other day with a passport, a portfolio and a pedigree. Of greatest significance, at this point, is the pedigree. It says there, in not-so-fine print, that the rookie from Russia has been tutored (and touted) by some of the finest international minds in the game.
The late Soviet patriarch Alexander Gomelsky was his first boss. The legendary Serb Dusan Ivkovic was his first pro coach. The 2008 Team USA assistant Nate McMillan was his first NBA coach.
So he has to be a player, right?
So why is he here?
"We want to take a look," Kings president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie said the other day. "We think he has talent."
Acquired in a seemingly ho-hum, four-team swap last week that sent Brian Skinner to the Portland Trail Blazers and brought Vitaly Potapenko to the Kings, Monia (pronounced MAHN-ya) is among the European prospects Petrie and his colleagues, in fact, have monitored for years. At 6-foot-8 and 220 pounds, with long arms and a compact, sturdy lower body, he is said to resemble many of the classically trained Russian-and Serbian-instructed performers. They move without the ball. They can pass and shoot. They can rebound at least a little. They play multiple positions. They prefer offense, or at least, prefer it to NBA-style defenses.
"The only problem with all Russians," Utah Jazz star Andrei Kirilenko said from his cell phone, "is that we all love to play when the coach supports us. If the coach supports us ... I am telling you, Sergei can become a great defender in this league.
"With most players you can say: 'He has no jump. He can't pass. He can't shoot.' Sergei has everything. He has jump. He is strong. He is fearless to go inside. He is a fighter, so Ron Artest will like him. Ron is a fighter too."
In any discussion about Monia, the testimonials already trump the stats. Selected by Portland in the first round of the 2004 NBA draft, the native of Saratov, Russia, a city of approximately 900,000 residents in the southwestern part of the country, averaged 3.3 points, 2.2 rebounds and 14.6 minutes for the Blazers this season. He started 15 games early - mostly at shooting guard - but did little to distinguish himself.
Nonetheless, given Monia's age (22) and his skills, several scouts and some of his peers are convinced he has a promising NBA future. Blazers general manager John Nash remains contorted about the trade; he initiated the move only because of the team's overabundance of small forwards/shooting guards. Former King Darius Songaila, a teammate of Monia's with CSKA in Moscow in 2002-03, offers a scouting report that could have come from Kinko's, compliments of Kirilenko. It oozes praise and promise.
"The first time I saw Sergei," said Songaila, the Lithuania native now with the Chicago Bulls, "I knew he was a player. One of the best things about him, too, is that he hasn't been corrupted with all that, 'Oh, I'm big-time, I'm in the NBA' type of attitude. You can sense he's eager to learn. The only thing I don't know is ... the whole thing with the language. I don't know how long that's going to take to work out."
If there is a hitch in a deal that affords the Kings salary cap flexibility without expanding the payroll, it's the fact that Monia speaks very little English. In contrast to most international stars joining NBA clubs these days, he struggles even during the most rudimentary of discussions, his accommodating nature notwithstanding. By comparison, as rookies, Peja Stojakovic was fluent and Hedo Turkoglu could be understood with minimal patience. Vlade Divac was more typical of the previous generation; he spoke no English when he entered the league in 1989, though of course, he quickly learned to spin tales and crack one-liners with the chattiest of his colleagues.
"About a year from now," said Kirilenko, who coincidentally, happens to be one of the league's elite defenders, as well as Monia's idol, "things will be much easier for Sergei. But it is a tough process. Sometimes you just have to try talking and talking until they (teammates) understand. (Jazz rookie) Deron Williams was saying to me the other day, "Andrei, I don't know what the hell you're talking about.' I say to him, "If you want to understand, you will.' But I really believe Sergei will be fine. He just needs a chance."
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By Ailene Voisin -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PST Monday, February 27, 2006
Story appeared in Sports section, Page C1
Shrouded in mystery and definitely a little light in the stats, young Sergei Monia arrived the other day with a passport, a portfolio and a pedigree. Of greatest significance, at this point, is the pedigree. It says there, in not-so-fine print, that the rookie from Russia has been tutored (and touted) by some of the finest international minds in the game.
The late Soviet patriarch Alexander Gomelsky was his first boss. The legendary Serb Dusan Ivkovic was his first pro coach. The 2008 Team USA assistant Nate McMillan was his first NBA coach.
So he has to be a player, right?
So why is he here?
"We want to take a look," Kings president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie said the other day. "We think he has talent."
Acquired in a seemingly ho-hum, four-team swap last week that sent Brian Skinner to the Portland Trail Blazers and brought Vitaly Potapenko to the Kings, Monia (pronounced MAHN-ya) is among the European prospects Petrie and his colleagues, in fact, have monitored for years. At 6-foot-8 and 220 pounds, with long arms and a compact, sturdy lower body, he is said to resemble many of the classically trained Russian-and Serbian-instructed performers. They move without the ball. They can pass and shoot. They can rebound at least a little. They play multiple positions. They prefer offense, or at least, prefer it to NBA-style defenses.
"The only problem with all Russians," Utah Jazz star Andrei Kirilenko said from his cell phone, "is that we all love to play when the coach supports us. If the coach supports us ... I am telling you, Sergei can become a great defender in this league.
"With most players you can say: 'He has no jump. He can't pass. He can't shoot.' Sergei has everything. He has jump. He is strong. He is fearless to go inside. He is a fighter, so Ron Artest will like him. Ron is a fighter too."
In any discussion about Monia, the testimonials already trump the stats. Selected by Portland in the first round of the 2004 NBA draft, the native of Saratov, Russia, a city of approximately 900,000 residents in the southwestern part of the country, averaged 3.3 points, 2.2 rebounds and 14.6 minutes for the Blazers this season. He started 15 games early - mostly at shooting guard - but did little to distinguish himself.
Nonetheless, given Monia's age (22) and his skills, several scouts and some of his peers are convinced he has a promising NBA future. Blazers general manager John Nash remains contorted about the trade; he initiated the move only because of the team's overabundance of small forwards/shooting guards. Former King Darius Songaila, a teammate of Monia's with CSKA in Moscow in 2002-03, offers a scouting report that could have come from Kinko's, compliments of Kirilenko. It oozes praise and promise.
"The first time I saw Sergei," said Songaila, the Lithuania native now with the Chicago Bulls, "I knew he was a player. One of the best things about him, too, is that he hasn't been corrupted with all that, 'Oh, I'm big-time, I'm in the NBA' type of attitude. You can sense he's eager to learn. The only thing I don't know is ... the whole thing with the language. I don't know how long that's going to take to work out."
If there is a hitch in a deal that affords the Kings salary cap flexibility without expanding the payroll, it's the fact that Monia speaks very little English. In contrast to most international stars joining NBA clubs these days, he struggles even during the most rudimentary of discussions, his accommodating nature notwithstanding. By comparison, as rookies, Peja Stojakovic was fluent and Hedo Turkoglu could be understood with minimal patience. Vlade Divac was more typical of the previous generation; he spoke no English when he entered the league in 1989, though of course, he quickly learned to spin tales and crack one-liners with the chattiest of his colleagues.
"About a year from now," said Kirilenko, who coincidentally, happens to be one of the league's elite defenders, as well as Monia's idol, "things will be much easier for Sergei. But it is a tough process. Sometimes you just have to try talking and talking until they (teammates) understand. (Jazz rookie) Deron Williams was saying to me the other day, "Andrei, I don't know what the hell you're talking about.' I say to him, "If you want to understand, you will.' But I really believe Sergei will be fine. He just needs a chance."
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