At long last, Sabonis ready to try the NBA

At age 15, he stood 6-foot-7 and was playing for the Lithuanian 
Republic's junior team. At 17, he was already a member of the \
1981 Soviet national team that toured the United States and 
spanked chair-throwing Bobby Bob Knight's Indiana Hoosiers.

Ten years ago, he was a fourth-round draft pick (77th overall) 
of the Atlanta Hawks, but the NBA voided the pick because he 
wasn't yet 21.

He is the oldest of three children; his father, Andreus, is a 
6-foot-1 tailor. His mother, Milda, is a 5-11 bookkeeper. But 
his grandfather is 6-7, which helps explain how the biggest kid 
in the family would branch out to 7-3 and 292 pounds.

In 1986, 12 months after the Hawks gambled and lost, another NBA 
team took a flyer on Arvydas Sabonis, a player who might have 
been the best center in the world in his early 20s -- forget 
about Hakeem Olajuwon and a still-in-development Shaquille 
O'Neal.

Nine years and several operations later, here is a slightly 
nervous Sabonis -- call him "Sabas" -- getting ready for the 
Trail Blazers' season opener in the Rose Garden on Friday night 
against the Vancouver Grizzlies.

Here is "Sabas" facing the media for the first time since the 
press conference to announce his signing for five years and 
close to $12 million. With the help of able interpreter Jose 
Castro of Oregon City, the 30-year-old Sabonis, 30, answered 
questions cheerfully in Spanish, one of three languages he 
speaks fluently (along with Lithuanian and Russian).

*The trauma of the move from Real Madrid to Portland over, 
Sabonis is adjusting to life in the Northwest, a new $780,000 
home in Sylvan Heights, and the fact his wife, Ingrida, is back 
in Lithuania to pick up their two sons, Zygimantas and Tautvydas.

With Ingrida gone, Sabonis is left with all of the little 
details that go into moving into a new house, even if it is a 
Street of Dreams showcase.

Castro said the upstairs Jacuzzi in chez Sabonis sprung a leak 
and water was dripping onto the kitchen.

No wonder facing Vancouver's Benoit Benjamin doesn't seem so 
daunting a task.

"I can't wait," Sabonis said about the start of his first NBA 
season and the beginning of what he called "another chapter in 
my life."

Asked to compare European basketball with the NBA, he said, 
"Well, in the NBA you have the best in the world. It's a 
different world playing for the NBA."

How much better are the players over here? Sabonis smiled and 
spread his hands apart about three feet.

"This much," he said.

Sabonis told reporters his relationship with coach P.J. 
Carlesimo was good. "No problems."

He said communicating with his teammates was difficult at 
present, "but once we start I'll catch on pretty good and get 
to know (them)."

The style of play is different in the NBA, Sabonis said.

"Defense is hard, you play a lot faster and jump more," he said. 
"There is really no time to rest in the games."

No rest in the games? Forgive him. He hasn't seen the Clippers.

Sabonis spent a summer in Portland in 1988 and elected not to 
have surgery on a right foot that gives him constant pain. He 
didn't seem to regret the decision.

He also has had two Achilles' tendon ruptures and tendinitis in 
both knees, but he was emphatic about one thing: he's used to 
the discomfort. He doesn't think it will prevent him from 
playing 20 to 24 minutes a night. "Or maybe more," he said.

"I've had it (the pain in his foot) for five years," Sabonis 
said. "It's going to be there."

Sabonis was a notorious lover of the good life in his younger 
days. Marriage has settled him down, although he still enjoys a 
good beer and no doubt has already sampled several of the local 
microbrews.

Here's a Sabonis sampler on other subjects:

*The replacement referees he'll see Friday night: "I don't want 
to have any problems with them, so I won't say anything."

*On why he didn't try the NBA earlier in his career: "It was 
impossible, in a way. I could have been here before, but I had
 some difficulties."

*On why he hasn't received any fan mail from Europe: "I don't 
have a P.O. box right now."

*On the Rose Garden, the Blazers' $262 million arena: "I like it, 
but it's a little dirty." Seeing the surprised looks, Sabonis 
quickly said, "No? Don't you think so?"

*The emotions surrounding his first game: "I'll think about it 
tomorrow."

*When he will start shooting three-pointers: "Tomorrow."

Sabonis said he likes soccer and hockey in addition to basketball.
He has watched some American TV, mostly movies and sports. He 
said basketball is fun for him, not just a job.

Famous for begging off on interviews, Sabonis was asked about 
his relationship so far with the U.S. media.

"Like always," he said, looking at his watch.

And then was gone, off to check on that leak.