NBA
Latin American prospects emerge

By Percy Allen
Seattle Times staff reporter

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The Dominican Republic, a baseball-rich country that had been long considered the breeding ground for the game's best shortstops, is slowly undergoing a grass-roots movement that threatens its most popular sport.

To the east, a basketball movement that is swelling in support among the youth and in the government has already taken hold of neighboring Puerto Rico, the largest island in the Caribbean.

To the south, Venezuela and Argentina are building outdoor courts and indoor clinics at accelerated rates and a 19-year-old Puerto Rican prodigy named Peter John Ramos has many believing that the best Latin American athletes will soon turn to basketball.

"If he goes in the first round of the draft, and this isn't to put pressure on any one player, but you'll see big changes in how the NBA looks at Latin players," said Carlos Morales, a former Puerto Rican national basketball coach. "He's not a big name. He's crept up in the draft, and now he's getting attention. And he has a wonderful story."

The Ramos legend goes something like this: He grew up in Brooklyn, and at the age of 14 a Puerto Rican scout spotted him at a big-and-tall store. Ramos had never seriously played basketball, but the scout arranged to fly him and his family to their homeland.

Five years later, Ramos has developed so quickly that several NBA front-office executives, including Sonics general manager Rick Sund, flew to Puerto Rico to get a close-up view of the 7-foot-3 center who could be among the first 15 players selected in tomorrow's draft.

"When our scouts say, 'Hey Rick, you got to go see this guy,' " I say, 'OK, I'll go see him,' " Sund said. "He jumped on our radar last year, and we've known about him for some time now. ... That's the first time I've ever been to Puerto Rico on a scouting trip. Whether I go again, we'll see. The players there are certainly getting better."

There are several signs that basketball is increasing in popularity in Caribbean and South American countries.

In Paraguay, the recent census identified teenagers 6-6 or taller so it could point those children toward basketball programs and track their progress.
 
In Mexico, the national basketball coach asked congress to implement a similar policy so the government would identify tall children at an early age.

In Argentina, the national team placed second — four spots ahead of the sixth-place U.S. team — at the World Basketball Championships two years ago.

The NBA is surveying three locations — Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil and Buenos Aires in Argentina — where it might stage exhibition games before next season begins.

Last year, the league played its 16th preseason game in Mexico City, which fostered hopes of expanding to surrounding Latin America markets.

The NBA's marketing machine heavily promotes Dallas forward Eduardo Najera, the NBA's first Mexican player, and San Antonio guard Manu Ginobili of Argentina in Latin American countries.

In an interview with a Latin trade publication, Arturo Nunez, NBA Latin America managing director, compared Ginobli to Argentine soccer superstar Diego Maradona.

"What's happening with him is amazing," Nunez said. "He is the Maradona of basketball."

Nearly a third of the record 35 Latin American journalists that covered last year's NBA Finals between San Antonio and New Jersey hailed from Argentina.

The exposure is key, said Alvaro Martin, a play-by-play announcer for ESPN's Spanish-language networks,

"Television is having a huge impact," he said. "You're beginning to see 16- and 17-year-olds who know how Steve Javie likes to call a game. They know how Larry Brown likes to coach. They are coming in with a level of sophistication that is unparalleled.

"They know that somebody had already landed on the moon. They don't need to be pioneers. They can be basketball players."

Six years ago, the NBA didn't have a Latin American player. Today, 10 percent of the 65 international players hail from countries south of the border.

The recent explosion has many of the league's front-office executives looking at the Latin American countries much like they did the European countries a decade ago.

"I think it's going to be Argentina and Brazil, that's the next hot spot," said David Pendergraft, the Sonics' director of player personnel. "China, they're going to have some good players. A crazy amount of people there. Africa. I think those guys are going to have to come here first and play to get coaching. But in South America, great coaching.

"It's got us concerned enough that we're contemplating that maybe we need a South American scout just to be around it every day."

Recently, the Sonics hired Lojze Milosavljevic to scout in Europe, which allowed the team to better understand the players from that region.

Last year, Sund made his first trip overseas. After watching European basketball for nearly two weeks, he vowed to make a yearly trek across the Atlantic.

After watching Ramos in Puerto Rico earlier this year, Sund said it's possible he will have to make scouting trips to Latin America as well as Europe.

"You're beginning to see more and more of the kids pick up a basketball like they picked up a soccer ball," Sund said. "And the more success that people from those countries have, and if Ramos goes in the first round, then it's only going to continue."

A year ago, the Sonics worked out Brazilian point guard Leandro Barbosa and strongly considered selecting him with one of their two first-round picks. Phoenix selected him 28th overall.

"The language barrier wasn't as big as a barrier as I first thought," Sonics coach Nate McMillan said. "In fact, that wasn't the reason we didn't take him."

The achievements of Barbosa, Denver forward Nene and Ginobli has provided a track record of success for Latin American players.

"The next explosion is going to be South America," Pendergraft said. "The coaches there now. They are almost on the same level as the Europeans."

Percy Allen: 206-464-2278 or pallen@seattletimes.com