Jennings ? A bust ! At least here E-mail
Written by Ricky - Sixers4guidos   
Monday, 16 November 2009 17:50

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It's funny, but it's true.

Everyone is deservingly praising Brandon Jennings after his unbelievable 55 point game vs Golden State, and all media are describing how a phenomenal player he is. 

But it's interesting to notice how someone has a different opinion about Jennings and remembers him as a pure bust.

Everyone knows that Jennings played last year here in Italy, for Lottomatica Roma, and his season wasn't exactly something for the ages. Today's "Il Messaggero", a Rome based national daily newspaper, has a column reminding basically how much he sucked here in Italy. Don't believe it? Follow me.

Carlo Santi, Lottomatica Roma beat writer as you would say there, wrote an article whose title is "Jennings, da brocco a stella macina punti", which more or less means "Jennings, from stiff to scoring machine star". 'Brocco' is, literally, a very slow horse, the one not to bet on at the races, you know?

Here are the main excerpts from the column, a really interesting read. I added the words between parenthesises, in the attempt to make the text clearer (?).

"We are talking again about Jennings, considered a spoiled and insecure kid here in Rome... now a star in the NBA....he shocked the League with a stunning show... he did well also in preseason, now he got attention from mainstream media and gained trust from many... but in Rome he was little considered... they never believed in him, (giving him) few minutes on the court (and he produced) obviously few points..."

There is more: "to be honest, he never excited (people) in the few occasions he played, even showing an attitude that could have been considered ornery/morose... sure, US basketball is different from european, few defense and many chances to show (someone's) shooting ability... he was the first to jump from high school to Europe..."

Last part: " in May this kid was kept out (of the roster) in the five game quarterfinals series that Rome played against Biella, always choosing (Ruben) Douglas* instead of him, even after Brandon fully recovered from the knee injury....(Rome GM) Bodiroga picked Jennings, but that gift wasn't accepted by Lottomatica's coaching staff"

* = If you wondered who Ruben Douglas is... well, we are talking about a 6'4, 30 y/o guard from Panama, never drafted by the NBA, who had an excellent career in Europe, between Greece, Spain and Italy. He is known here for having knocked down a last second three that gave Bologna tthe title back in 2005, in the final series vs Milano - btw it was the first time that refs used the instant replay to review a call.

To sum it up, in Italy Jennings not only sucked in the games he played, but couldn't even make the playoffs roster because he was considered worse than an undrafted journeyman from Panama.

Now explain that to Golden State fans.

Comments (8)Add Comment
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written by kittles, November 17, 2009
Greetings from a sixers fan from barcelona.

Do you think thats because he didn't take his trip to europe that serious, are can we talk about the fact some people think/say european teams play some D and now he's facing a much less aggressive defense from the NBA teams? Not so strict with travelling calls, etc.
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written by AlexD, November 17, 2009
I always believed that Jennings gonna be a stud. And never believed that he will be successful in Europe. So everything happened exactly like I thought=)

Douglas also was playin in Russia, for Dynamo. I remember him and his big afro hair =), good player.

What's up, kittles! What's up, Barcelona! My favorite city! =)
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written by Zeke, November 17, 2009
I wonder if he struggled because he was a 18 year old kid who knew he was basically only there for a practice-year.
Ridiculously stupid article if it was implying that Italian league basketball is played at a higher quality than the NBA.

I saw Jennings in person during the Sixers home opener and he was by far the most talented player on the court. 76ers are idiot for not trading anything (including Iggy) to move up and take him in the draft.

p.s. ESPN reporting trade rumors including Sammy for contracts. Please God!
How ironic would a Sammy for Kenny Thomas trade be? A huge Billy King screw up for another Billy King screw up.
just to get everything straight
written by Ricky - Sixers4guidos, November 18, 2009
Sorry for the late responses guys, yesterday I was away.
@ Kittles: welcome, bienvenido ! Great that you are from Barcelona, lovely city. Btw I am a huge Genoa fan so I'll always thank Barca for beating Sampdoria twice in european cups finals. I don't think Jennings took the trip to Europe too lightly, probably it's the NBA style of play that fits well with his.
@Alex: props for the predictions ! How about you go bet, so that you make some good $ ? lol
@Zeke. I think you nailed it, that was the reason. And no, the article is not implying that italian league's level is higher than the NBA, of course, read the excerpts, it says "different" smilies/wink.gif
I would welcome that (funny, yeah) trade, at least Jenny Thomas' contract expires next summer !!!
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written by River, November 20, 2009
He reminds me of iverson in his rookie year
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written by Rancocas Creek, November 22, 2009
Nice piece Ricky. I'm in Philadelphia and check in once in a while for the 76ers coverage. That said, I also like hearing about your perspective with the NBA and Euro leagues. Shared players, styles of play, differences, trends, etc. Keep it up. Go Sixers!
thank you Rancoas Creek
written by Ricky - Sixers4guidos, November 23, 2009
I appreciate, really. Check back when you have a chance. Btw, what's Rancoas Creek ???
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written by Rancocas Creek, December 08, 2009
Rancocas Creek is a waterway that runs through South Jersey off of the Delaware River. I grew up in and around it.

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