#ronny turiaf

[nbagifstory]

Stephen Curry and Ronny Turiaf — Golden State Warriors

[bballgifs]

[throwbackhoops]

2008 | Kobe Bryant shakes the entire Warriors team and finds Ronny Turiaf for the dunk

[nbagifstory]

Kobe Bryant and Ronny Turiaf — Los Angeles Lakers

[nbatrades]

Charlotte Bobcats Deal Peja Drobnjak to Atlanta Hawks

On August 16th, 2004, the Charlotte Bobcats traded center Peja Drobnjak to the Atlanta Hawks for a 2005 second round draft pick (Ronny Turiaf).

The expansion Charlotte Bobcats arrived on the NBA scene in 2004 and used some unique strategies to build their team. Owned by Bob Johnson and ran by veteran coach and executive Bernie Bickerstaff, Charlotte's first player ever on the roster was big man Peja Drobnjak.

Drobnjak was with the Los Angeles Clippers and the Bobcats agreed on a deal with Los Angeles where Charlotte would select the 6-foot-11 perimeter shooting center in the June 22, 2004 NBA Expansion draft.

As part of the arrangement with the Clippers, Charlotte swapped its fourth overall pick and the 33rd pick in the 2004 NBA Draft to Los Angeles in exchange for the second overall selection.

Though Drobnjak was the first player to join the Bobcats roster, Charlotte had no real interest in keeping the center. Charlotte eventually worked out a deal to send Drobnjak to the Atlanta Hawks for a second round pick in 2005.

Drobnjak joined a Hawks team expected to struggle during the 2004-05 season. The Hawks had acquired veteran forwards Antoine Walker and Al Harrington but had a lot of youth on the roster such as Josh Childress, Josh Smith and Boris Diaw.

With a new roster and a new head coach in Mike Woodson, Atlanta struggled out of the gate, going 2-14 over the first 16 games. The losses piled up as Atlanta lost 50 of its first 60 games. The Hawks were 29th in both offensive and defensive efficiency during the 2004-05 season and finished with the worst record in the NBA at 13-69.

Drobnjak was primarily a reserve at the center position for the Hawks and participated in 71 games, registering 8.4 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 0.7 APG and 0.6 SPG in 20.2 MPG.

Drobnjak's team option of $3.1 million for the 2005-06 season was declined by the Hawks, making him a free agent after the season. Drobnjak signed a contract with Tau Ceramica in Spain.

The 2005 second round pick the Bobcats acquired from Atlanta in the trade was sent to the Los Angeles Lakers four months later. In that deal, Charlotte also sent a 2008 second round pick (later amended to a 2009 second round pick per Pro Sports Transactions) to the Lakers for shooting guard Kareem Rush. The Lakers used that pick on Gonzaga big man Ronny Turiaf who was selected 37th overall in the 2005 NBA Draft.

Atlanta Hawks general manager Billy Knight on adding Drobnjak (via Hawks.com):

"With his NBA and international background, Peja is an experienced and physical big man who can also shoot the ball from the perimeter. He has a good feel for the game and strong work ethic. We're pleased to add him to our roster."

Charlotte Bobcats general manager and head coach Bernie Bickerstaff on the purpose of the trade (via The Charlotte Observer):

"It clears a logjam. It clears space at the (center) spot and gives guys like (Primoz) Brezec, (Jamal) Sampson and Emeka more opportunity. And it gives the kid (Drobnjak) a chance to play more in Atlanta."

How the deal replenishes a second round pick for Charlotte (via Bobcats.com):

"This trade allows us to open up a roster spot and also gives us a second round pick next year that we lost last month. We had six players at the power forward and center positions and this will relieve some of the logjam and present more minutes for the guys on our roster."

Image via Getty Images/Jonathan Daniel

[heybelinda]

[elora-em]

Fort Boyard avec les basketteurs ! 🏀

[bballstories]

Ronny Turiaf - Seven Pounds : #2 Golden State Warriors

10 years ago, Ronny Turiaf saw his life and his NBA career pass through the hands of a surgeon. One year after his first steps in the league, he got a heart surgery. Few months ago, he played his tenth season in NBA. Turiaf played alongside a bunch of superstars (LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, John Wall, Stephen Curry, Chris Paul, DeAndre Jordan, Blake Griffin…) and has built a perfect teammate reputation with all of them. Travel with us on the different stops of his NBA journey.

Second step : Golden State, turning point of his life (2008-2010) 

“Golden State is the result of work done in Los Angeles. The decision was not an easy one but in a sense though. Sometimes, you make choices that are made with the head and not the heart. I had a proposition I could not refuse compared to the sacrifices made throughout my career. My goal was to be financially able to help my family and the people in need. At that time, I was unrestricted free agent. The Lakers had seven days to make a choice. We waited until the last minute. I was in the locker room with Mitch Kupchak. We sat and talked for 3 hours. We talked about everything from life, our careers, my three years in LA. When I was at the hospital for my operation, he brought me my jersey, we talked about that day. He wanted me to stay. But I made a choice. 

In Golden State, I really enjoyed the game for two years on court. Stephen Jackson, Stephen Curry, these are players who have given me a lot. And I played for the best coach in the NBA. He’s the best to put players in the best possible conditions on the court. Don Nelson. I remember that we offered him 1,333th game won. It was April 7, 2010 against Wolves. He became the winningest coach in the regular season, he surpassed Lenny Wilkens. 

This franchise has been a turning point in my life because I had the chance to meet people who believed in what I wanted to do off the field. We created my foundation, they helped me to do many things. We missed the playoffs two years but I felt fullfilled from that experience in Golden State. I played 20 minutes of average, I almost do a triple double, I saw Stephen Curry’s arrival under the spotlight. I also scored the points that allowed Stephen Jackson released a triple double. He made his 10th pass to me.”