Bounce: Radenovic looks on bright side
by Multiple Authors on Jun. 29, 2007, under Sports
<strong>Lettermen like Oden pick </strong>
Portland fans at the Rose Garden holler after their team selected Ohio State's Greg Oden as the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft Thursday.
The Dallas Mavericks took a Serbian with the final pick of Thursday night’s NBA draft, but it wasn’t ex-Arizona Wildcats forward Ivan Radenovic.
It was center Miovan Rakovic.
Radenovic, who held out hope he’d be selected by an NBA team, went undrafted, as did former UA point guard Mustafa Shakur.
But it wasn’t an entirely bad night for Radenovic, who said he already has been contacted by the Los Angeles Clippers and will play for their Las Vegas summer league team.
“I still have an opportunity to make a team,” he said. “Maybe this way it’s even better for me because I can choose where I can go. We’ll see what happens.”
Radenovic and Shakur were long shots to get selected in the second round, despite working out for a number of NBA teams over the past three weeks.
Shakur did not return a call left by the Citizen.
“It’s unfortunate that a lot of the people (projected) in the first round fell to the second round,” Radenovic said. “And the people that weren’t projected got into (the second round). That pushed me out of the draft.”
Shakur, at 6 foot 3, was considered the best point guard of his class coming out of high school. But, outside of his first season, he was inconsistent at UA.
He had an awkward shooting rhythm and a penchant for driving too deeply into the lane and turning the ball over. He averaged 11.9 points and 3.8 assists per game last year.
Radenovic, a 6-11 forward, joined the UA program 3 1/2 years ago from Serbia. He was a project at best, but he showed he could find the open man and hit from long range.
He worked himself into one of the better players in the Pac-10 last season, when he averaged 15.1 points and a team-leading 7.6 rebounds.
UA inducting 7 people, 6 teams into Hall of Fame
Seven people and six championship teams will be inducted into the University of Arizona’s Hall of Fame during homecoming weekend (Nov. 2-4).
The individuals are:
● Dana Burkholder, volleyball player from 1998-2002.
● Tara Chaplin, cross country/track and field athlete from 1998-2002.
● Jennie Finch, softball player from 1998-2002
● Brianna Glenn, track and field athlete from 1998-2002
● Roland Schoeman, swimmer from 1998-2002.
● Jerry Stitt, baseball player from 1964-68
● Sara Tolar, swimmer from 1998-2002.
The teams are:
● The 1998 women’s swimming 200 and 400 freestyle relay teams (Shannon Hosak, Liesl Kolbisen, Denali Knapp and Lindsey Farella).
● The 1998 women’s swimming 800 free relay team (Trina Jackson, Laurie Kline, Mauren Phillips and Farella).
● The 1999 women’s swimming 400 free relay team (Farella, Knapp, Emily Mastin and Sara Tolar).
● The 2000 women’s swimming 800 free relay team (Jackson, Tolar, Jenny Vanker and Mastin).
● The 2007 softball team, which beat Tennessee in the championship series last month.
Two hundred pay last respects to Beck
SCOTTSDALE – Former San Francisco Giants manager Dusty Baker andmanager Bruce Bochy were among the estimated 200 people who attended the funeral Thursday for former major league pitcher Rod Beck.
Giants owner Peter Magowan and general manager Brian Sabean also attended the services at a Scottsdale mortuary.
A three-time All-Star who saved 286 games, Beck was known for his bushy mustache and gregarious personality. His family and friends remembered him as an intimidating competitor who was a soft touch away from the field – and as a man who devoted time and money to helping children with AIDS.
“At his core, he was determination,” his wife, Stacey, said in remarks during the service. “He never quit. That doesn’t mean he never failed. He just kept trying.”
A portrait of Beck, his hair flapping as he fired a pitch in a Giants uniform, was placed above the closed casket.
The Giants plan to honor Stacey and Rod Beck at their annual “Until There’s a Cure Day” event, scheduled for July 27 at AT&T Park. The event raises funds for AIDS education and research.
“He stepped up and gave a face to those with AIDS,” Stacey said. “He hugged and kissed children others were afraid to touch.”
Beck was found dead in his northeast Phoenix home Saturday. He was 38. He is survived by Stacey and their two daughters.
Police don’t suspect foul play, and the medical examiner is awaiting results of toxicology tests to establish a cause of death.
Nicknamed “Shooter” and well-known for his fondness for country music, cowboy boots and cigarettes, Beck pitched for the Giants, Chicago Cubs and the Boston Red Sox before finishing his career with the San Diego Padres in 2004.
Flutie, Coker will analyze football for ESPN
Heisman Trophy winner Doug Flutie and former Miami coach Larry Coker will serve as analysts for college football games on ESPN’s networks this season.
Flutie will join Craig James and Chris Fowler in the booth for ESPN’s Thursday night matchups.
Flutie called several games last season – including Boston College-Miami on the anniversary of his 1984 Hail Mary pass to beat the Hurricanes – and worked as an ABC studio analyst.
Coker, who was fired last season, will make his television debut on ESPNU games.
QUOTABLE 'When you play since you were 8 or 9 years old, you know the game is not a one-man sport. I'm far from being a savior.'
KEVIN DURANT,
forward from Texas, who was chosen second by the Seattle SuperSonics in Thursday's draft
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ON THIS DATE
1933: Primo Carnera knocks out Jack Sharkey in the sixth round at the Long Island City Bowl to win the world heavyweight title.
1957: Jackie Pung loses the U.S. Women’s Open when she turns in an incorrect scorecard. Betsy Rawls is declared the winner.
1969: Donna Caponi beats Peggy Wilson by one stroke to win the U.S. Women’s Open.
1990: Dave Stewart of the Oakland A’s pitches the first of two no-hitters on this day, beating the Toronto Blue Jays 5-0. Fernando Valenzuela of the Los Angeles Dodgers duplicates Stewart’s feat, throwing a 6-0 no-hitter against the St. Louis Cardinals. It’s the first time in major league history that two no-hitters are pitched in the two leagues on the same day.
1994: Martina Navratilova sets a Wimbledon record, playing her 266th career match. Navratilova passes Billie Jean King’s record of 265 when she and Manon Bollegraf beat Ingelisa Driehuis and Maja Muric 6-4, 6-2 in a doubles quarterfinal.
2004: Randy Johnson of the Arizona Diamondbacks becomes the fourth pitcher to record 4,000 strikeouts when he strikes out San Diego’s Jeff Cirillo in the eighth inning of the Padres’ 3-2 win.
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SPORTS SOUND-OFF
Regrets, congratulations for Williams
Re: Ex-Wildcat Marcus Williams going to Spurs
He rolled the dice. I think he would have gotten guaranteed money next year if he stayed in school and helped Arizona make a solid run.
D.W.
Congratulations to Marcus. Hopefully we will see him next year in the NBA finals.
Re: Williams’ shot out of whack
Lute Olson has been telling Williams for a couple of years about his shot and his body development. That is why his accuracy and consistency was off. Now it cost him money and a first-round pick.
ROBERT J.
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NUMBER OF THE DAY
21
Major League Baseball players who have hit at least 500 homers, including Frank Thomas, who joined the club Thursday. Others closing in:
Rank, player HRs
24. Alex Rodriguez, NYY 492
25. Jim Thome, PHI 482
26. Manny Ramirez, BOS 481
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TRIVIA CORNER
Who is the oldest No. 1 overall draft pick playing in the NBA?
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Answer: Shaquille O’Neal, 35, who was drafted first by Orlando in 1992
By Steve Rivera, Citizen Staff Report, The Associated Press, Al G.
