link Surprise starter for a Dallas team which, despite the absence of Josh Howard, is playing well, Rodrigue Beaubois is living the dream since his arrival in the NBA. The ex-Choletais confided to us his first steps in the North American league on his ambitions, with both the Texan club as well as the French team, which he hasn't forgotten. You have been a starter for Dallas 10 times out of 13 since the start of the season, were you expecting to play so quickly? It was a surprise because at the beginning I didn't play much, not at all really. But once Josh Howard got hurt, the coach trusted me and I think that I showed him something. But I have to continue to work hard to be able to help the team. Your teammates, such as Dirk Nowitzki, who has been impressed, have been full of praise. That must be gratifying... It's clear that it really makes me happy when your teammates and especially ones of such a standing think that about you. Of course I'm satisfied but I know that I can't stop at that. The experienced Jason Kidd also seems to have taken you under his wing... On the court he talks to me a lot, he comes to help me and gives me lots of advice, which I appreciate greatly. And even if he can't just transform me all of a sudden, he's already helped me a lot. You have appeared in the Top 10 of the night many times, often on alley-oops from Jason Kidd. Is that something that you go over in practice? Honestly, we've never worked on that in practice! It's just that one of the Dallas coaches had me do that in the summer league and he talked about it with the coach. And, from time to time, after a timeout, the coach suggests that we do it and we give it a try. Up to now it's worked pretty well except one time when is was stopped. But it's not something that's automatic. And sure I like seeing myself in the “highlights,” and my friends and family call me to talk about it! What does the staff, beginning with your very media-friendly president Mark Cuban, expect from you? They drafted me when I was a bit unknown but they still expect a lot from me. Maybe not so soon, even if I think that I've shown that I'm capable of doing a number of things on the court. But the expectations are not the same for certain rookies who come to a team and are expected to immediately be difference makers. Have you thought about a player like Brandon Jennings, shining since the start of the season in Milwaukee? Yes that's clear! He really took his responsibilities and, honestly, he's really been great in Milwaukee. Which player has impressed you the most since your start in the League? Honestly, it's Dirk! I'm especially thinking of a game against Utah where we weren't good and neither was he. And he decided to take things into his own hands in the fourth quarter and it was really impressive. And even if I've faced very good players, Dirk is above the rest. Collectively, what are the goals for the Mavericks after this fine start to the season? We want to go as far as possible so obviously we're thinking about the championship. It's complicated because there are great teams but I think that we ourselves are also a very good team. And on top of that, we aren't at 100%, you can't forget that. So I think that we have an ace in the hole. The American media as well as your teammates don't call you Rodrigue but “Roddy”... (Laughs) I saw that they had a bit of trouble pronouncing Rodrigue and Roddy was simpler for them. It's fine, and it's true that it's shorter for when people want to call me! But I think that eventually people will end up calling me Rodrigue! Your coaches have even said that you speak English better than certain American players... (Laughs) no, no. I still have a lot of progress to make in English, even if it's true that it's coming along already. I'm really going to start English lessons and in some time I think that it will be good. Tell us about your first impressions of life in Dallas, even if as we imagine you spend a lot of your time in planes and hotels... Yes, that's true. We don't really have the time to savor it. Even when we play at home, there are a lot of practices and when we aren't at practice, we have to rest because we're tired from this frantic rhythm! Otherwise, Dallas is a city that I didn't know at all but that I appreciate a lot today, because I still had time to visit during the summer. Have you had the chance to cross the other Frenchmen in the NBA, beginning with Mickael Pietrus, thanks to whom you were discovered in Guadeloupe? In fact I saw him when we played against them in pre-season. He came to Dallas, we ate together and we talked leisurely. He's sorta a big brother for me, he gives me info and advice about the NBA and life in the US. Otherwise, I already knew Nicolas [Batum] and Alexis [Ajinça], so of course we talk a bit. I also met Ian [Mahinmi] who I talked a lot with as well. I also met Tony Parker and we ate together. We were able to have a good talk and he also gave me a lot of advice. It was very interesting. What do you make of your old team Cholet's good start to the season, especially with the recent arrival of Mickael Gelabale? I'm following it closely and I've kept a lot of contacts over there. So I talk a lot to the players I played with. I saw that they started very well and I was happy. Recruiting Mickael will help them a lot, it's really great for them! A brief mention of your old teammate Nando De Colo, who's had a successful integration in Valencia... We talk from time to time and it's really nice to see that he's adapted very quickly and is putting in good work over there. But I'm not surprised because I played with him for four years and I know what he's capable of, I didn't doubt his capacity. What did you think of the European Championship that the French team played, are you targeting a place in the squad for the World Championship in 2010? Despite the loss against Spain, which is too bad, the positive side was that we are qualified for the World Championship. You have to recognize that that is pretty good. For me, it's a goal and a great honor to wear the jersey of the French national team. There will be choices to be made and we'll see but it's clear that the team is very close to my heart.
thought this might be a decent way to generate some content for non-Blazers parts of the site. Maybe the resident Mavs fans (pretty sure there are some of you) could post a link to this on more active forums/blogs?
