In Praise of Ronny Turiaf ~ LA Lakers
Sure Kobe’s the best player in the NBA, Jordan Farmar is a home town kid and is making a bit of an impact off the bench, and Andrew Bynum’s the league’s youngest player with huge upside.
But our favorite Laker is Ronny Turiaf. He may not be the smoothest offensive player, he may miss his rotation on defense sometimes, but he’s a fierce defender, can be clutch when it counts, and most of all plays with more heart and soul then anyone else on the team if not the league. This is kind of ironic, given that Ronny almost had to end his career after being diagnosed with an enlarged aortic root and underwent open-heart surgery before his rookie year. The Lakers, despite having no guarantees that he would ever be able to play for them and having voided his original contract, underwrote the surgery and Ronny came back in a big way to make a real impact with the team this season. Next time you’re watching a game, and Ronny’s not in, watch the bench. He’s the first one to get up and celebrate a big play, he’s the first one to welcome his teammates back to the sideline, and he never misses a second of the action. When he does get in the game, he can be a stopper on defense and a superb offensive rebounder. Here are some things you may not know about Ronny:
- He’s French. He was born on the French Island of Martinique, and attended High School in France.
- It’s pronounced Rone-y, rhymes with Pony.
- He went to Gonzaga, and was conference player of the year in 2005.
- He was offered more money post-surgery to play in Spain, but signed with the Lakers instead.
- He’s 6′10″, making him the Lakers’ 3rd tallest player after Andre and Kwame. (Lamar is also 6′10″).
- Someone loves Ronny as much as us and has put together a remix of his best on-court plays and a couple bench dance moves:
(1 tacos)
giordano wrote:
hey, Ronny chui l’un de tes plus grand fan, chui de Madinina kome toi !!!
J’aurai bien aimé te rencontré un jour, car j’fé du basket aussi !!! j’te laisse mon numéro : 0630110750, au ka où tu voudrait me répondre !!! okayy MADININA 972 en fosss !!! pliss fosss à toi osssi !!!
Posted on 01-Apr-07 at 12:21 pm | Permalink
jobi & jen wrote:
We love RONNY!!!!
We went to school with him at Gonzaga and we’ve loved him ever since.
We’re also Lakers fans…so it works out very well.
Posted on 03-Apr-07 at 6:33 am | Permalink
Carmen wrote:
RONNY RULES! thanks taco for spotlighting my main LAKER man
Posted on 03-Apr-07 at 4:59 pm | Permalink
Taco » Ronny Turiaf Staying With the Lakers wrote:
[...] Ronny Turiaf is still with the Lakers and as far as we know has no intention of leaving. Unlike certain other players. (No Ratings Yet) Loading … [...]
Posted on 18-Jun-07 at 12:33 am | Permalink
Taco » Ronny Turiaf Kicking Ass ~ LA Lakers wrote:
[...] Los Angeles Times, whose website is showing signs of life of late, has the following to say aboutour main man Ronny Turiaf: Turiaf, 24, is averaging 9.8 points and 5.3 rebounds in 25.8 minutes, eclipsing the 4.5 points, [...]
Posted on 07-Nov-07 at 9:55 pm | Permalink
dm wrote:
I am impressed with Ronny’s game and intensity. I am interested in Ronny taste of music. Ronny mentioned that he enjoys reggae music, can you offer a few of your favorite musicians or tracks
Posted on 14-Feb-08 at 11:10 pm | Permalink
LA TACO » F Villa ~ Los Angeles wrote:
[...] last night. The assholes at the door either didn’t recognize our didn’t realize that Ronny Turiaf is the heart and soul of our town’s greatest team. In any case, Ronny’s too good for [...]
Posted on 27-Feb-08 at 12:50 pm | Permalink