Sergio Rodriguez May Be Key To Philadelphia 76ers Success
By Bret Stuter
Plays well too
Rodriguez stands 6-foot-3 and weighs in at 176 pounds, the right size for the point. He was named the MVP of the 2004 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship, which was held in Zaragoza, Spain, while playing with the Spanish national junior team. He led the host Spanish team to the tournament’s gold medal. In the eight games of that tournament, he averaged 19 points per game, 4.6 rebounds per game, 8.5 assists per game, and 2.1 steals per game.
Sergio Rodríguez is an off-the-charts basketball talent; one of just a few players capable of surprising even basketball savvy minds with his moves. A very creative play maker, he has an incredible ability to generate offense, whether for himself or for his teammates, based on an outstanding skill set.
He’s no superb athlete, nor a physical freak. What he is is just a basketball player who fills the bill for the basic tools required to carry his game to the next level. At 6-3, he has good size to handle the position while showing a nice enough frame for a point guard. He won’t blow anybody with his athleticism, but he’s a fairly quick guy and he let’s his skills do the rest. He out thinks his competition, much like a marksman baseball pitcher, by forcing a defender to lean one way and then going the other way with the ball. His drives to the basket set up superb passes back out to the perimeter for a clean three, or to the post for a dunk.
Sergio isn’t limited to simply a drive and dish player; he passes from the perimeter, rewarding strong off the ball movement, not only for the players going outside looking for an open look from the three-point line, but also being able to deliver difficult entry passes on sharp cuts to the basket. He does not pass for highlight reels, and despite his ability to make circus passing look easy, he won’t try tht jjust for the sake of doing it. He does like to give the ball up with a no-look pass, but on one hand it helps to create confusion for the defense, and on the other, for him it’s as easy and natural as breathing.
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