Second time around, Kareem's in rush to show off his skills
Most people remember Kareem Rush from his days with the Lakers, the team he broke into the NBA with back in 2002. He competently backed up Kobe Bryant for two seasons, breaking through with a 6-for-7 3-point shooting display to put away Minnesota and send L.A. to the 2004 Finals.
Less than three years later, Rush delivered on that promise of greatness, winning his first championship -- in Vilnius, Lithuania.
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| Rush raised eyebrows while playing in two Summer League games. (Getty Images) |
They have brackets, though, and they do give out trophies.
In fact, when his club team, BC Lietuvos Rytas, laces up its sneakers for Euroleague competition, the highest level of European basketball, it will have Rush to thank. His efforts qualified it for the elite competition, which takes only the 24 most accomplished teams on the continent.
By the time that comes, Rush will be half a world away, back where he feels he rightfully belongs. He won't have to worry about the overzealous fans known to throw rocks and batteries on to the court, and no longer has to fret about representing against Zalgiris, his old squad's sworn enemy.
"It was different. All in all, it was a good experience. I got a chance to stay in shape, play some basketball against good competition and saw a lot parts of the world I probably would've never been to," Rush says now of the experience, likening it to a sabbatical of sorts. "I always knew that this summer, I'd be back."
Indiana, which signed Rush to a guaranteed deal in early July, plans on giving him every opportunity to make his mark. The Pacers beat out Miami and Denver for his services, in part because it was his best chance to make an immediate impact.
"I wanted to show people I belong in this league, and that last year was just one of those things where some unfortunate things happened, but I'm here to stay. I knew being gone was just a one-year deal. If I never got hurt, I would've made that team -- that I'm sure of."
Rush is referring to Seattle, which waived him during training camp in 2006 after he tore a groin muscle literally five minutes into his opening workouts. Unable to show the coaching staff what he could do, Rush wasn't the least bit surprised when he was axed.
After a few months of rehab, he was off to Lithuania for four months, far removed from the days where he used to share the court with Shaquille O'Neal and Bryant.
A tumultuous ending to that 2004 championship dream, an unexpected 4-1 pasting at the hands of Detroit, taught Rush how quickly things can change in this league. The team he remembers as "legendary, because we had four Hall of Famers, not including the coach," broke up within a matter of weeks. O'Neal, Karl Malone, Gary Payton and Phil Jackson all wound up elsewhere, and after starting the season 4-for-20 from the field, Rush joined the exodus that December when the expansion Charlotte Bobcats landed him for a pair of second-rounders.
Jackson, who was undeniably complimentary of Rush in his novel, The Last Season, called his former guard after hearing he was traded and told him to take advantage of his chance and not waste his talent. The Bobcats would be counting on him to play a major role.
