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Manu Ginobli News & Rumors

Ginobili's return may throw wrench into works, for now
February 11
San Antonio Express-News
 
"A small crowd of students gathered outside the nondescript community college gym in midtown Manhattan on Friday, straining for a glimpse of the NBA team that had invaded their school. Beyond the closed double doors, Spurs guard Manu Ginobili was going through a full-team, full-contact practice that would determine his availability for tonight's game in New Jersey. After about an hour, Ginobili emerged with the answer to one question, immediately giving rise to a host of others. Yes, he would play against the Nets, making his return from a broken left hand after a 39-day absence. But. "I don't have great expectations for the first couple of games," Ginobili said. "I just want to contribute,"
Manu cleared for Saturday return
February 11
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Manu Ginobili is good to go. That was the pronouncement coach Gregg Popovich made after a spirited, hour-long practice in midtown Manhattan this morning. The Spurs' star guard will make his return from a broken left hand Saturday night in New Jersey. How did Popovich know it was time? "When Manu's ready, you bring him back," Popovich said. "He's Manu. When he's ready to go, you don't care if you're winning, losing. It doesn't matter, he's coming back." Ginobili missed 22 games after fracturing his fifth metacarpal Jan. 2 in a loss at Minnesota. The Spurs went 15-7 in his absence, rising to second in the Western Conference. Needless to say, Ginobili is eager to get back on the floor. "I"
Manu to rejoin Spurs Saturday
February 10
San Antonio Express-News
 
"A small crowd of students gathered outside the non-descript community college gym in midtown Manhattan on Friday, straining for a glimpse of the NBA team that had invaded their school. Beyond the closed double doors, Spurs guard Manu Ginobili was going through a full-team, full-contact practice that would determine his availability for Saturday's game in New Jersey."
Ginobili set for full-contact practice
February 10
San Antonio Express-News
 
"For Spurs guard Manu Ginobili, the wait is almost over. Out since Jan. 2 with a fractured shooting hand, Ginobili missed 22 games recovering from the break and the subsequent surgery to repair it. Now, he is one practice away from making his return. In a tiny gym at an obscure community college in midtown Manhattan this morning, Ginobili's availability for Saturday's game at New Jersey will be determined. It will be Ginobili's first chance at a full-contact practice since the injury. With Ginobili having already been medically cleared to play, coach Gregg Popovich will make the final determination based on the guard's general conditioning level."
Ginobili's return 'likely' Saturday at New Jersey
February 9
San Antonio Express-News
 
"At long last, the Spurs have a date targeted for Manu Ginobili to make his return from a broken left hand. If all goes to plan, coach Gregg Popovich said, Ginobili is "likely" to play Saturday at New Jersey. One sign Ginobili's return is imminent: With a straight face, he lobbied Popovich to play Wednesday night in Philadelphia. "I think it's too early," Popovich said. "We'd like to get him into a 5-on-5 situation before he plays. I think we'll be able to do that this week. "Probably, New Jersey is the first time he'll be allowed to play, I think. I think that's likely.""
Brooks sees comparison between Manu and Harden
February 5
San Antonio Express-News
 
"It's become fashionable to make a comparison between Oklahoma City top substitute James Harden and Manu Ginobili. Obviously, they are both left-handed shooters who are creators when they are on the court. But the similarities are deeper than that, according to Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks."
Ginobili working with surgically repaired left hand
January 31
San Antonio Express-News
 
"For much of the Spurs' past few road trips, Manu Ginobili has been a ghost. Still recovering from a broken left hand suffered Jan. 2 in Minnesota, the Spurs' All-Star guard has been mostly hidden from public view, save for a few appearances behind the bench in street clothes. Though still a few weeks away from returning to the court, Ginobili is out of his post-surgery splint and has been cleared to do some basketball work with his repaired hand. "He's shooting mid-range shots, lefty," coach Gregg Popovich said Monday. "He'll be cleared to go one-on-one in a week or so.""
Ginobili's injury hasn't broken Spurs' resolve
January 27
San Antonio Express-News
 
"As the Spurs' charter flight lifted off from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport late on the night of Jan. 2, uncertainty was in the air. In the back of the team plane, All-Star guard Manu Ginobili sat with his newly broken left hand in a splint. His fifth metacarpal had been fractured in a 106-96 loss to Minnesota hours earlier. A timetable for his return was unknown. Meanwhile, the remaining Spurs braced for unseen turbulence ahead. "Very pensive," is how forward Matt Bonner described that flight back to Texas. "Obviously, there was that kind of unknown question mark.""
Ginobili's hand injury sped up Neal's return
January 7
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Had things gone according to the Spurs' plan, Gary Neal would have played Thursday night for the Austin Toros against the Maine Red Claws in an NBA Development League game at Cedar Park Center, just northwest of Austin. Instead, Neal was in the starting lineup for the Spurs at the AT&T Center, going 3 for 3 on 3-point shots in the first quarter of a blowout victory over the Mavericks. On his way back to NBA action after undergoing an appendectomy on Dec. 12, Neal had been assigned to the Toros so he could get some contact in 5-on-5 practices. Ideally, he would have played a couple of D-League games, including Thursday's against the Red Claws, to be fully ready for NBA action. What changed"
Spurs survive minus Manu
January 5
San Antonio Express-News
 
"In the first of what likely will be dozens of games without injured All-Star Manu Ginobili, the Spurs on Wednesday night needed a lift from someone, anyone, when the Warriors took an eight-point lead with 6:46 remaining at the AT&T Center. They got it from point guard Tony Parker, with an animated assist from coach Gregg Popovich. The result was a 101-95 victory that was tonic for the Spurs' confidence and proof that Popovich can still get from the bench to midcourt in just a few excitable seconds. Parker scored 10 of his 21 points in the final 3:41 after Popovich had spent all of the previous Warriors possessions screaming at him to continue attacking on offense."
Manu set for surgery on Thursday
January 4
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said that Manu Ginobili will undergo surgery after breaking the fifth metacarpal on his left hand. Popovich said the surgery would be performed Thursday. "They'll put it out later in more detail, but he's going in in the morning," Popovich said. "They are going to do what they do." Popovich said that Ginobili likely would be idled for six to eight weeks. "They have to put it back together again," Popovich said. "I don't know what they are going to do, but he's going to have surgery.""
Replacing Manu a group effort
January 4
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The Spurs had yet to play the Timberwolves in their first game of 2012 on Monday night, so the loss of leading scorer Manu Ginobili to a fractured fifth metacarpal in his left hand was still half a day away. Point guard Tony Parker watched as Ginobili put up a few final jumpers at the team's morning shootaround at the Target Center, then took a seat and discussed how vital Ginobili had been to a 3-1 start Parker deemed encouraging. There was improvement still to be made on defense, the three-time All-Star said, but the team's offensive efficiency early on after such a short training camp had been better than anyone expected."
The Spurs' record with and without Manu
January 4
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The Spurs obviously are going to miss Manu Ginobili while he recovers from his broken left hand. It's interesting to look at how much more the Spurs have struggled without Ginobili in the lineup in recent seasons when he's become a featured player for the team. In regular season games, the Spurs have notched a .714 winning percentage in the 638 career games with Ginobili playing. When he's been out they are at .619. Since the 2006-07 season, the Spurs have really missed Ginobili during his absences. During that span in the regular season, San Antonio is 249-104 (.705) with Ginobili and 33-29 without him (.532)."
Ginobili nails it — playoff timing
January 4
San Antonio Express-News
 columnist Buck Harvey
"They were in New Orleans in 2008, in the second round of the playoffs, and Manu Ginobili was stretching his sore ankle in the locker room with an elastic resistance band. Everyone was calm, relaxed — until the band snapped, catching Ginobili's shooting hand. A nail had been ripped off at the base, and both pain and ingenuity followed. A Spurs staffer sped to a New Orleans beauty salon, bought an acrylic nail and glued Ginobili back together again."
Rubio's skills, floor leadership impress Ginobili
January 3
Minneapolis Star Tribune
 
"Manu Ginobili sees similarities between himself and Ricky Rubio -- to a point. Both came to the NBA as seasoned veterans. Ginobili played in international events for Argentina and had been a star in Europe, just like Rubio. Both had played against good players and had played in big games by the time they became NBA rookies. Of course, there are differences, too. "Rubio had much more fanfare," Ginobili said. He and his San Antonio Spurs teammates had just finished their morning shootaround Monday. Ginobili, the Spurs guard, is right. He was a second-round pick by the Spurs while Rubio was a lottery pick. Ginobili, relatively speaking, was operating under the radar when he arrived for his"
Ginobili breaks hand in defeat
January 3
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Fighting from behind through a first half in which the Minnesota Timberwolves made 67.5 percent of their shots and 7 of 8 from 3-point range, the Spurs somehow found themselves within eight points after a Richard Jefferson 3-point basket with 3:04 left in the half. What they needed before halftime of what would eventually be a 106-96 loss was a defensive stop to help them further turn the game's momentum. So, on Minnesota's next possession, Spurs guard Manu Ginobili slapped down hard with his left hand in an attempt to strip the ball from Anthony Tolliver's grasp as the Timberwolves forward turned to launch a shot from just inside the 3-point line."
Manu, Pop ponder loss to Rockets
December 31
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The long NBA lockout, which began in midsummer and stretched deep into the fall, allowed Manu Ginobili to spend quality time in Argentina, where he is one of the most popular personalities in his native land. For the civic-minded Spurs guard, this interlude included a lot of personal appearances on behalf of many causes, including promoting a new book authored by mathematics professor Adrián Paenza. Ginobili explained to his countrymen that he is hooked on math, so it seemed natural Thursday night when he turned to the most logical of disciplines to explain how the Spurs laid an egg in a 105-85 loss to the Rockets in Houston in their third game of the season. Taking note of how surprised"
Manu shakes off the rust
December 27
San Antonio Express-News
 
"They told Kawhi Leonard, from almost the moment he joined the Spurs last June, to be ready. He heard it from coaches. Teammates, too. When Manu Ginobili comes hurtling through the lane, don't fall asleep. The ball could be coming your way, from the oddest of angles with the oddest of English. "They told me he throws some unique passes," Leonard said. So when the moment of truth came Monday, late in the third quarter of the Spurs' 95-82 season-opening victory over Memphis, Leonard stayed true to that advice. He was ready. Ginobili's behind-the-back pass hit Leonard in the sweet spot, in the corner, and the rookie small forward buried a 3-pointer to cap a 16-0 Spurs run. "It's good that he"
Ginobili locked in after the lockout
December 27
San Antonio Express-News
 columnist Buck Harvey
""I had such low expectations," Manu Ginobili said as he was leaving the arena Monday night, and he wasn't being modest. His coaches had low expectations, too. They'd seen him in practice looking like a guy who, well, had spent the past three months playing with his twins. To them, Ginobili appeared to be weeks away from being himself, and this scared them as they faced a 66-game season. So what happened Monday stunned them. If Ginobili can play this way this quickly, don't all their plans change? The Spurs felt the opposite emotion last spring. Then, when Ginobili's right elbow bent the wrong way, so did the Spurs' locker room. One coach admitted this over the summer: While they said the"
Ginobili nowhere close to done
December 25
San Antonio Express-News
 
"It's hard to remember the first time Gregg Popovich declared one of his Spurs teams older than dirt. An archive search brings up references as far back as 2006, when Tim Duncan was near his prime and Manu Ginobili was still in his 20s. The assertion was more accurate when he made it before the start of the 2008-09 season, but the context was more instructive than the declaration. Then, a visiting columnist asked Popovich why his team was being dismissed as a legitimate title contender by so many experts. After all, the previous spring the team had returned for a second straight season to the Western Conference finals. But misfortune had struck the Spurs in Game 3 of their conference"
With season looming, Manu's mojo day-to-day
December 23
San Antonio Express-News
 
"There have been times, during this blink-and-you-missed it training camp and preseason, that Spurs guard Manu Ginobili felt like a stranger in his own body. At times, his legs disobey his brain, his eyes see things that are not there, and the game he's been playing most of his life feels as alien to him as a spacewalk. "I still feel awkward sometimes," Ginobili said. "Out of balance." Rest assured, this is all part of the plan."
Manu 'happy' despite lockout
November 19
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Manu Ginobili has been half a world removed from his team back in San Antonio for most of the lockout. Ginobili has been chilling in the Bahia Blanca region of Argentina, enjoying time with his family back home that he normally doesn't have the opportunity to savor when the NBA usually is playing. Despite his enforced idleness from the Spurs, Ginobili told FIBA.com that he's "happy" about life as he practices with Estudiantes de Bahia Blanca to keep fit. He still plans to play for Argentina at the Olympics in London next season. And it sounds like he's not missing the grind of squaring off with defenders like Tony Allen and Shane Battier too much."
TP says Duncan, Bowen, Ginobili are his favorite teammates
November 11
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Tony Parker is a busy man these days, what with running the team operations and playing for ASVEL Villeurbonne in the French League during the lockout. But Parker consented to a brief interview with the fashion website Grungy Gentleman.com. Iin the He talks about his passion for Tissot watches, rap music and hard work. But the most interesting part of the interview came when he was asked who his favorite teammate of all time was."
Fear the beards: Is James Harden the next Manu?
October 26
San Antonio Express-News
 
"They say a comparison might be the sincerest form of flattery. If so, Manu Ginobili is only adding to his legend as one of the most notable players of his era. ESPN.com's David Thorpe makes a pretty convincing case that the collective grouping of Ginobili's unique abilities makes him one of the best players in the league."
Manu stands firm at own risk
October 18
San Antonio Express-News
 columnist Mike Monroe
"When NBA players union president Derek Fisher took to his Twitter account nearly two weeks ago to coalesce support among his membership around the cyber-slogan #StandUnited, one of the first retweets emanated from Argentina. Manu Ginobili added the message that Fisher wanted NBA fans to understand was the heart of the union's fight with owners who had locked them out: "Let Us Play!" Few have as much to lose as Ginobili in this hissing match between billionaires and millionaires. At age 34, with a reckless style that enables his brilliance but endangers his limbs, the Spurs star sees the rapid approach of retirement. He is under contract to the Spurs this season and next, at long last"
Manu to Argentine media: 'I'd like to go back to Bologna'
October 14
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Don't panic, Spurs fans. Fan fave Manu Ginobili isn't headed to Italy just yet, especially after tweaking his right ankle in a pickup game in Bahia Blanca, Argentina on Tuesday. But if the NBA lockout drags on long enough, the competitive urges that make Ginobili one of the world's best players and his fondness for an Italian city where he became a star of the Italian League are apt to get the better of him. Speaking to reporters at Bahiense del Norte, the club where he began his basketball career more some 20 years ago, Ginobili acknowledged that he has fond memories of his days playing in the Italian League for a team in Bologna and that he would like to return there if circumstances"
Report: Manu hobbled by slight right ankle sprain
October 13
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Manu Ginobili is hobbling around his Argentinian home after suffering a slightly sprained right ankle earlier this week. The Argentinian paper La Nueva Provencia reports today that Ginobili sustained the injury while working out with several members of the Argentinian national team during a pickup game in Bahia Blanca, Argentina. (Hat tip: Project Spurs.com) The injury, which is not considered serious, apparently occurred when Ginobili landed awkwardly on his ankle after attempting a 3-point shot."
Ginobili's agent denies Italy report
October 5
San Antonio Express-News
 
"With the first two weeks of NBA regular-season games likely to be canceled come Monday, speculation continues to build about players heading overseas, including two of the Spurs' "Big Three." It appears likely that as soon as the cancellations become official, All-Star point guard Tony Parker will sign with Asvel, the team in Lyon-Villeurbanne, France, in which he has an ownership stake. An Internet report out of Italy on Tuesday indicated Spurs All-Star guard Manu Ginobili, who played several seasons in Bologna, Italy, had agreed to sign with Italian League power Virtus Bologna if Lakers star Kobe Bryant turned down a lucrative deal Virtus has offered him."
Manu's foundation aids Argentine poor
September 28
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The late winter air in this port city on Argentina's Atlantic coast is humid and cold, but just after sundown on an early September night it is not too chilly for youngsters to run and play outside at Mama Margarita House. The Mama Margarita center is a chain of cinderblock buildings on a street given otherwise to commerce and storage. The buildings surround a modest courtyard, which contains a small garden. But mostly it serves as playground for the children for whom Mama Margarita is the primary source of regular meals. The complex currently houses 26 full-time residents, ages 6-14, but the number changes month to month. Another 300 kids show up regularly for daily meals, plus lessons on"
Italian job: It is Manu's choice
September 26
San Antonio Express-News
 
"This time, no one can question Manu Ginobili. This time, he isn't limping with an injury that risks his partnership with the Spurs. This time, the NBA is the one not honoring the contract. So if Ginobili decides to return to his old team in Italy to earn some money and enjoy la dolce vita? Ciao and good luck. Virtus Bologna called Ginobili earlier this month. And even if he's only a rental until the lockout is over, the move makes sense. The club has slumped in recent years. So why not bring back such a popular former player, as well as someone who added NBA credibility and global visibility after he left, and sell a few tickets?"
FIBA a reminder what game all about
September 15
San Antonio Express-News
 
"It's nearly impossible to miss Del Harris when he is in a basketball arena. At age 74, the former coach of the Rockets, Bucks and Lakers still has a full head of thick, white hair that almost glows. Harris was on the bench as an assistant to Dominican Republic coach John Calipari at the FIBA Americas Olympic qualifying tournament that concluded its two-week run on Sunday night. Knowing fluent Spanish from his seven seasons coaching in the Puerto Rican professional league from 1969-75 was an asset. On Sunday night, I spotted his gleaming head of hair some 20 feet away in a section near press seating at Polideportivo Islas Malvinas, the arena packed to the rafters with flag-waving,"
Ginobili-led Argentina team coveting another run at Olympic glory
September 11
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The photo is slightly out of focus but has been blown up to 6-by-8 feet. That gives it a slightly hazy look, almost like it was shot through a thin film of gauze. It hangs over the entrance to Bahiense del Norte, the storied basketball club in Bahia Blanca, an industrial port city of 275,000 on the Atlantic coast, some 500 kilometers southwest of Mar del Plata, where today the finals of the FIBA Tournament of the Americas will take place. Bahia Blancans know the faces, no matter how blurred, and they know the moment: Manu Ginobili, Pepe Sanchez and Alejandro Montecchia, teammates from the club and key members of Argentina's 2004 Olympic basketball team. The photo depicts the three standing"
Ginobili has offer from his former club in Italy
September 9
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Manu Ginobili's agent, Herb Rudoy, on Thursday confirmed an offer made to Ginobili to rejoin the Virtus Bologna team in the Italian League, but said no response has yet been made to the offer. Ginobili's brother Leandro, working as a television analyst at the FIBA Americas tournament, also confirmed the offer for Manu to play again in Italy if the NBA lockout continues. "I don't think Manu is thinking he will go play in Italy for two months before returning to the Spurs," said Manu's 41-year-old brother. Leandro Ginobili said his brother is completely focused on the final two days of the tournament and has made no response whatsoever to the offer from Virtus Bologna, first reported"
Ginobili's heart in FIBAs, mind on lockout
September 8
San Antonio Express-News
 
"As Spurs guard Manu Ginobili has helped his Argentine national team qualify for the semifinals of the FIBA Americas Olympic qualifying tournament, he has kept track of two situations thousands of miles from here: the NBA lockout and teammate Tony Parker's pursuit of an Olympic berth for his French team. Thus far, it has been much more enjoyable for Ginobili to read about Parker's exploits for France in the Eurobasket tournament in Lithuania than to follow the progress, or lack of, in the labor talks.. The unquestioned leader of one of the best international teams of the past dozen years, Ginobili and four of his NBA colleagues have remained focused on the competition at Malvinas"
Treading on hallowed ground: A trip to Estadio Manu Ginobili in Bahia Blanca
September 4
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The gymnasium where Manu Ginobili developed the game that has made him an NBA champion, Olympic champion and an NBA All-Star sits a few blocks from the center of Bahia Blanca, a town of nearly 300,000 in the Southeast corner of the province of Buenos Aires. Ginobili was not the first star to be developed by the basketball club Bahiense del Norte, but he is the most celebrated, by far, and the gym has been re-named in his honor. Ginobili's friend, Dario Faure, came behind Ginobili on the Bahiense del Norte team by two years, and he understands the import of the tidy facility."
Ginobili, Argentina roll over Uruguay
September 1
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Spurs guard Manu Ginobili made only three baskets in Argentina's 86-51 thumping of Uruguay on Thursday, but Spurs fans will be delighted to know two of them were emphatic dunks. The spring appears to be back in Ginobili's legs, even after a hard, month-long training camp. "I'm feeling great," Ginobili said. "The team is doing good. We had a long month of training camp where we practice twice a day almost every day. I am feeling good and in great shape. "The team is rolling, so I have no complaints." All three Spurs-connected players in the event were in action on the second day of the FIBA Americas tournament, which will qualify the top two teams for the 2012 Olympics in London. Center"
Manu looks rusty, but Argentina cruises to easy win over Paraguay
August 31
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Argentina showed Tuesday why most observers have pegged them as a heavy favorite to win the FIBA Americas tournament. "The Golden Generation" jumped on Paraguay early and cruised to an 84-52 victory in their first game of the tournament at Mar del Plata, Argentina. For Spurs Nation, the best part of the game was seeing Manu Ginobili playing in mid-season form, without the "Robo Cop" bandage on his broken right arm from the playoffs. Ginobili started at shooting guard, but served more in the role of a playmaker than as a shooter for his team. He struggled at times with three of Argentina's 12 turnovers, but also added 10 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals."
Fans go to great lengths to reach FIBA Americas
August 31
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The bus taking 42 basketball fanatics to the FIBA Americas pre-Olympic basketball tournament bounces along Argentina's Route 2 past open spaces that look a lot like South Texas, minus the scorching heat. It is late winter in the Southern hemisphere, after all, and the temperature today is a delightful 53 degrees. This is a non-scheduled bus, but the first of only two Aerolineas flights from Buenos Aires' Jorge Newbery Airport was canceled. A plume of volcanic ash from the Puyehue volcano in Chile apparently made it too dangerous for the small aircraft that makes the short hop to Mar del Plata. Aerolineas' second flight isn't until 6:50 p.m. and there are basketball games to be seen, so"
Manu to Argentine reporter: 'Two more years and then … I don't know'
August 9
San Antonio Express-News
 
"This was inevitable: As soon as Argentina began playing "friendly" warmup games to prepare for the FIBA Americas Olympic qualifying tournament that begins on Aug. 30 in Mar del Plata, Argentine sports journalists were going to take every opportunity to ask Manu Ginobili and some of his longtime teammates from the "golden generation" about their long-term basketball plans. Thus, a story about Ginobili that ran Sunday in "El Tribuno," following Argentina's friendly triumph over Paraguay, 82056, in Salta, Argentina. The story is headlined "There is a high possibility of leaving basketball in two years." Of course, Ginobili will be 36 when his contract with the Spurs expires in two years, so"
Ginobili: This Argentine team is truly special
August 5
San Antonio Express-News
 
"How special is the Argentine team Spurs star Manu Ginobili will lead into the FIBA Americas pre-Olympic qualifying tournament late this month? In an article featured Thursday on FIBA's website, Ginobili said he has never been part of a team that is more singular in its approach to one goal. "I have never been part of a team like this where everyone is fighting for the same goal with so much team-work," he said during a press conference in Argentina, his comments reported by the FIBA site. "We are all proud to be a part of it, it is a great honor, a great pleasure to represent the country and unite together."
TD, Manu listed among notable NBA players who may be ready to retire soon
August 3
San Antonio Express-News
 
"It's a day that Spurs Nation will be bracing for sooner rather than later. Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili both have enjoyed remarkable careers for the Spurs. Duncan has developed into perhaps the greatest power forward in NBA history as he led the team to four NBA titles. Ginobili has emerged as one of the top international players in league history as a part of three championship teams. Both players made the All-Star Game last season, but their contributions to the team are waning. They were both listed in the Bleacher Report's list of 16 notable NBA players "who are going to be ready to hang them up.""
Argentina insures Ginobili's contract
July 30
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The celebrations keep on coming for Manu Ginobili. After turning 34 on Thursday, the Spurs guard reveled Friday in the news that he would be able to represent his native Argentina in the FIBA Americas Olympic qualifying tournament in his homeland next month. The Argentine Basketball Federation negotiated a deal to insure the contracts of the four NBA players on the nation's national team. The news turned out to be one of the better birthday gifts ever received by the Spurs All-Star guard. Ginobili and Luis Scola (Houston Rockets), Carlos Delfino (Milwaukee Bucks) and Andres Nocioni (Philadelphia 76ers) had traveled to Buenos Aires for the first day of the Argentine team's training camp,"
Lockout red tape keeps Ginobili waiting
July 29
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The Argentine senior men's basketball team will begin training today in Buenos Aires in preparation for the FIBA Americas Olympic qualifying tournament, but Spurs guard Manu Ginobili's participation remains clouded by the NBA lockout. According to the ESPN Deportes website, the availability of Ginobili and fellow NBA players Luis Scola (Rockets), Carlos Delfino (Bucks) and Andres Nocioni (76ers) remains uncertain because the Argentine basketball federation has yet to secure insurance to cover the contracts of the NBA players. Ordinarily, NBA teams are required to insure 80 percent of the contract of any player participating on a national team in a FIBA-sanctioned event. Because of the"
Manu talks retirement
July 15
San Antonio Express-News
 
"As if the NBA lockout hasn't been hard enough on basketball fans, Thursday afternoon brought another bummer to Spurs faithful. Manu Ginobili talking about his basketball mortality. In an interview with an Argentine website , Ginobili says he isn't necessarily committed to calling it quits once his current contract expires after the 2012-13 season, but he does recognize the reality that time is not on his side. He will be 36 years old then, a ripe old age for an NBA shooting guard. It isn't a stretch to assume that could be Ginobili's final season in silver and black. Loosed from the rigors of an NBA job, Ginobili would finally be free to pursue full-time his true passion: Pest control."
Insuring Manu: Argentina Basketball Federation getting closer
July 8
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The way is being cleared for Manu Ginobili to play for Argentina in the FIBA Americas tournament in Mar del Plata, Argentina later this summer. A report in the FIBA Daily newsletter on Thursday quotes German Vaccaro, president of the Argentine Basketball Confederation, about his optimism that all the NBA players who have been part of the Argentine team for more than a decade — Ginobili, Luis Scola, Andres Nocioni and Carlos Delfino — will have their NBA contracts insured in time to begin training in before the end of July. "In our case, I'm optimistic that Argentina will have all their players to play in the tournament we are hosting," Vaccaro said in the article. With the NBA lockout on,"
Ginobili named as No. 3 on NBA's toughman list
July 6
San Antonio Express-News
 
"To anybody who was watching the Spurs' playoff series with Memphis, it really doesn't come as much of a shock. Manu Ginobili, simply stated, is a tough physical player. Ginobili played the final five games of the Memphis series with what amounted to a broken arm. Because his team needed him, Ginobili wrapped his injured limb in a brace that appeared to be borrowed from the movie "Rollerball" and played his games. No complaints, no fanfare. Vintage Manu. Sean Sweeney of Dime Magazine.com must have been watching, after voting Ginobili to No. 3 on his list of the 10 toughest players in the NBA. His award is named in honor of the former Utah forward Matt Harpring, who played through his share"
Manu misses his trainer — for obvious reasons
July 5
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The NBA lockout has thrown up a barrier between the league's players and the rest of the employees of the team. And in the process, these roadblocks can get in the way of some pretty strong friendships. Manu Ginobili seemed to hint at that over the weekend when he tweeted his birthday wishes to Spurs trainer Will Sevening. Ginobili and Sevening have developed a strong relationship over the years, considering that Ginobili has missed 105 regular-season games and six more playoff games during his nine-season NBA career. Sevening has been there for numerous cuts, abrasions, broken bones and bruises over the years from Ginobili, who is known affectionately among the Spurs as "El Contusion""
Ginobili ready to rise from the ashes
June 18
San Antonio Express-News
 
"These are dark days for Manu Ginobili. A plume of volcanic ash has descended on most of Argentina since the June 4 eruption of the Puyehue volcano in neighboring Chile, darkening the winter skies, choking cattle in the Pampas and disrupting air travel. The atmosphere has improved lately in Bahia Blanca, Ginobili's home city, and the Spurs guard has begun a training regimen he expects will have him physically ready for the FIBA Americas tournament scheduled to begin Aug. 30 in Mar del Plata, Argentina. Ginobili has been in Bahia Blanca for a few weeks, carefully rehabbing the right elbow he injured in the final game of the Spurs' regular season. This week, he began weight training; soon he"
TP marvels at Manu's toughness
June 8
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Tony Parker understood that something was wrong with Manu Ginobili. But he had no conception that Ginobili was playing with what amounted to a broken right arm during the playoffs. "It's hard to believe," Parker said about Ginobili's gutty display in the playoffs. "Obviously, you could see he was a little bit hurt. He wasn't 100 percent, but I didn't know he was that bad." Ginobili was involved in a grinding collision between Tim Duncan and Phoenix's Grant Hill in the final regular-season game on April 13. After that, Ginobili played the final five games of the playoffs with a fractured ulna, one of the two long bones running from his wrist to elbow."