Rudy Fernandez Had a Not-So-Secret Admirer

You know who had an awkward Olympics? Blazers coach Nate McMillan, who next year will have the pleasure of coaching Spanish shooting guard Rudy Fernandez. The same Rudy Fernandez who dunked on Dwight Howard like Euros just don’t, and had a lot to do with Spain getting

to taking out Team USA. You’ve got to figure that, while McMillan wished dude would stop, he also couldn’t help but get a little bit giggly.↵
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↵Before, we could only imagine. Thankfully, The Oregonian got to the heart of the matter ... with quotes! Now, enter the sanctum of McMillan’s conflicted soul:↵↵⇥“I’m sitting there (in the gold medal game) with a straight face, trying not to smile,” McMillan said. “(Spain) are the guys we have to beat, but I’m caught. That’s my player and I want to (he claps his hands twice) but I gotta (he makes a serious face) because we are going up against him.”↵↵

Before that, when McMillan got the chance to watch Fernandez play in the flesh, there were sleepless nights and fervent plans for Portland’s future. Then, back to the grind that would decide America’s ultimate standing in the basketball universe. And more psychological bloopers:↵↵⇥“Every time Rudy did something, D’Antoni would look at me and say, ‘Your player, huh?’ ” McMillan said. “And I would be, ‘Yeah, he’s cool.’ Like no big deal. Then he does something else, and D’Antoni would be like ‘Dang! Pretty good, huh?’ ”↵↵McMillan’s cool-as-ice response: “Yeah, he’s all right. He’s okay. Still has to work on going to his left.” That gold medal was nice and all, and restored honor and dignity to this great nation. But maybe, some day Nate McMillan will look back on these Olympics primarily as the source of endless funny stories about “when I first met Rudy.” Kind of like that Obama family lore we heard over and over again this week; maybe McMillan will buy him Rudy some ice cream at some point.↵