Olympic Update: Argentina

The big Olympic news of the weekend surrounds none other than our good friend Manu Ginobili/GINOBILI!/Manuuuuuuuu/Chernobyl-i (you heard it here first). From Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express News (via FanHouse):

After struggling all summer with a jammed left ankle that cast his availability for Argentina's national team in doubt, Ginobili told reporters in his home country he was optimistic he would be able to play next month in Beijing.

“Today, I feel I am more in than out of the Olympics,” he said Thursday.

Two weeks after the Spurs' playoff ouster, Ginobili's ankle was so sore that coach Gregg Popovich said the guard should “definitely not” play in Beijing if it did not improve.

Now, it appears Ginobili might meet that criterion.

Ginobili's improved health can only move good things for Argentina. As I mentioned on Friday, the team was struggling without their alpha dog at the FIBA ToA last summer. Ginobili not only provides quite an offensive punch and great passing for a team that thrives on ball movement, but also gives them a good defender at the shooting guard position. If the Argentines want a serious shot at this thing, they're going to have to be able to restrain Kobe and the tandem of Juan Carlos Navarro and Rudy Fernandez from Spain. Without at least making it difficult for those players, it's hard to imagine Argentina taking home gold or silver without a lot of luck.

Although Manu is optimistic, this situation is far from over. And imagine if Gregg Popovich were still involved in Team USA...how strange of a decision would this be? It's definitely something to keep an eye out for as we get closer and closer to Beijing.

But that wasn't Argentina's only news of the day. Fabricio Oberto is apparently having some injury concerns of his own. From the same San Antonio Express News article:

The injury news wasn't quite so good for the Spurs' other Argentine Olympian.

Fabricio Oberto, the Spurs' on-again, off-again starting center, suffered a bruised left quadriceps in a scrimmage against Poland earlier this week.

The injury is considered minor, and Oberto is expected to miss only a week of workouts.

Not really sure what to make of this one yet. I doubt it means that Oberto will sit out the Games, but it could mean that his minutes are restricted or he plays cautiously. Oberto's been a member of the team since 1996, gives them some size, and now experience guarding NBA bigs. The rest of Argentina's roster isn't exactly tiny, but they're not big enough to keep up with most teams either. Keep this story on the backburner as well, although it will likely turn out to be nothing.