<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">SAN FERNANDO, Spain -- Fran Vazquez walks through the streets of Spain with no worries. A small-town young man who doesn't own a drivers license, Vazquez has taken his walking shoes and said adios to the Orlando Magic. Vazquez, 22, made a curious, if not controversial, decision to forgo the NBA, recently signing a four-year deal to play for a local professional team in Spain. The Magic are the jilted suitor, wondering why he ignored the intoxicating pull of dollars and destiny in another country. He had no devious plans at play shortly after the Magic selected him with the 11th pick in the first round of the NBA draft last June. But doubts would begin to build the minute he stepped foot on American soil, escalating with the tug of an influential girlfriend, an agent who stood to make significant financial gains if he stayed home, and finally, an unexpected offer making him the richest professional basketball player in Spain. The runaway Magic draft pick sends his regrets. "I know that my decision could affect some people within the [Magic] organization," Vazquez said after practicing with the Spanish national team recently. "I ask forgiveness if my decision has affected some people in a bad way. All I ask is for more time to improve so when I go there [to Orlando], the fans will say, 'That's a great player they signed.' " Should that day never come, the Magic likely will want to look back and wonder what went wrong. How, after scouting him eight times prior to the draft, did Magic officials fail to identify any of those concerns? "I don't think it's a mistake," said Dave Twardzik, the Magic's co-assistant general manager. "When he comes over, he's going to play for us." That's assuming, of course, he wants to come back. With Vazquez prepared to fulfill the terms of his contract in Spain -- and the possibility of a prohibitive buyout clause complicating matters -- the Magic could own the rights to a player whose scouting report consists of one word: Worthless. The first troubling steps occurred on the streets of Manhattan. Vazquez came there with his girlfriend, Ana Toral, for three days in conjunction with the NBA draft on June 28. Before shaking hands with NBA Commissioner David Stern, Vazquez got a new suit from the league as part of the deal, something he could use because it's a sharp upgrade from the only one he owns. Despite the fashionable pose, Vazquez remains a small-town man at heart. He comes from a village of 2,000 people in Chantada, nestled in the Galicia region of Spain along the northwestern coastline. It is part of the Spanish Outback called Espana Profundo. Agriculture is the main industry. His father, who died of skin cancer in March 2004, painted cars. His mother is a domestic worker. Although Vazquez has traveled throughout Europe for competitions, the United States was foreign territory. The frenetic energy of Manhattan overwhelmed him. "Yes, I was a little scared," he said, looking back. "It's not just changing cities, it's changing countries. I was thinking I would have to adapt as quickly as possible to a different lifestyle." "Manhattan shocked us quite a bit," Toral said. "Everybody was running down the streets, and we were just looking at them [wide-eyed]."</div> Source
The Runaway draft pick lol that sounds pretty funny. As shocking as it was ya never know he might get alot better then come to the NBA and takeover.
Finally a good article about the reasons why Fran didn't come, you really should take the time to read it full. And here is my favorite part of it: <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"> Twardzik and Sam Foggin, the team's international scout based in Naples, Fla., combined to see him play eight times. Despite the physical potential, they never got into his head. Vazquez did not take any psychological profiles that are now common among high-profile prospects. Although the NBA administers those tests on a voluntary basis during the predraft camp in Chicago, Vazquez didn't participate in those workouts. Perhaps a closer peek into his psyche would have revealed a naive nature, seeing if there was any reluctance to play overseas, and would have provided other insights. "If a top law firm is recruiting the top minds in law school in the country, you would never hire somebody who you couldn't interview or talk to," the European basketball official said. "You would have a picture of what the kid thinks like before offering him a contract."</div> No workout for Orlando, no interview, no talk to him, just watched him a total of 8 games. That's the mistake the Magic organization did.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Coranor:</div><div class="quote_post">Finally a good article about the reasons why Fran didn't come, you really should take the time to read it full. And here is my favorite part of it: No workout for Orlando, no interview, no talk to him, just watched him a total of 8 games. That's the mistake the Magic organization did.</div> Typical Twardzikery, drafting a player based on a hunch and limited knowledge. I remember an article or Q&A with Fran, and he said him and his agent were shocked when his name was called on draft night. I wonder if the Magic are going to hold onto his draft rights, or try to trade them while there's still 'a chance' he comes to the NBA.
