D2 PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL Waiting for his BYMICHAEL LEE
Kevin Seraphin grabbed the microphone, scanned his audi- ence and burst into a Creole rap from his native French Guiana. As the words flowed, a smile came over his face. He contin- ued to rhyme, rock and sway side to side until he was inter- rupted by his own laughter. Seraphin later admitted that
he hardly knewall of the words, but his instincts carried him through the song. TheWashing- ton Wizards and Seraphin are still waiting for his instincts to take over on the basketball court, as the 20-year-old strug- gles to adjust to a style of basket- ball unfamiliar to the one he played in France. His limited English, coupled with the del- uge of information coming at him,makes his adjustment even more difficult. “Right now, I’m discovering
everything, so it’s tough,” Seraphin said through an inter- preter. “In France, I knew right away what to do whenmy point guard was calling a play. It was instinctive. Now I’m having to think before moving. It’s frus- trating. The game is different, the rules are different,andit’s so fast. Even when we play on half court, it’s fast.” The Wizards selected
Seraphin with the 17th overall draft pick, which came to the team as part of the draft-day deal with Chicago that also brought guard Kirk Hinrich to Washington. They are willing to be patient with the raw, 6-foot- 10 project who has only been playing basketball for about six years but possesses a massive physique, quick feet and enor- mous hands . “He’s a big body guy, probably
our strongest guy in the post,” Coach Flip Saunders said. “Whenwedrafted him,weknew that his first year was going to be a learning process for him, not only to learn theNBA game, but also learn the language. It takes some time to learn all those things. But he’s got a great amount of physical ability and he’s a willing learner.” Seraphin grew up playing
soccer and didn’t pick up a basketball until he was asked to play at age 14.He moved shortly thereafter from Cayenne, French Guiana, to France, where got daily training at the Cholet Basket youth academy. Seraphin said his first year away from home was “very, very diffi- cult” but he made his profes- sional debut for Cholet’s senior team in less than three years. “There is a reason for his up- side,” Seraphin’s agent, Bouna N’Diaye, said. “He has room to grow.” Seraphin made an impres-
sion with NBA scouts at the 2009 Nike Hoops Summit in Portland, where he had eight points, nine rebounds and four blocked shots to help theWorld Select team record an upset of a U.S. team led by John Wall. Although Wall blocked his shot in thatgame,Seraphinsaid that, since joining the Wizards, he has reminded the No. 1 overall
instincts to kick in Wizards see lots of potential in French Guianese big man
EZ SU
KLMNO SOCCER Moreno nearly goes out awinner
pick that he got him twice. Seraphin had an impressive sequence in which he dunked onfuture SacramentoKings for- ward DeMarcus Cousins and sprinted back to send Wall’s layup attempt into the first row. “I thoughtmaybe Icanplay in
the NBA. Before, a dream,” Seraphin said. “After that, it became a goal.” A year later, Seraphin was
seated in Treviso, Italy, across a table from Wizards vice presi- dents Tommy Sheppard and MiltNewton discussing his pos- sible future in the league. “I had a really good feeling
with the Wizards, the first time I met them,” Seraphin said . “You know right away when some- body wants you, and I could tell that they liked me.” Seraphin visited the Wizards
a week before theNBAdraft and immediately fell in love with the city, telling N’Diaye that it was his “top choice.” When he spoke with team president Ernie Grunfeld, Seraphin told him: “You have to take me! You have to take me!” Grunfeld smiled back and
told him something might get worked out. “It wasn’t about what he told
us,” Grunfeld said. “He was a nice person. He had a good sense of humor. He’s a competi- tive, seriousyoungkidwhoadds physicality to us. We needed beef; someone who likes to mix it up inside.” Seraphin has been compared
Denver Nuggets center Nene, a rugged defender from Brazil.He takes up a lot of space and can also clear it out with vicious screens. Rodrigue Beaubois, a second-year point guard with the Dallas Mavericks, trained with Seraphin in thesameyouth academy and said that it is best to avoid collisions with him. “You don’t want to be in that situation,” Beaubois said with a laugh while shaking his head. “He’s a beast. Physically, he’s amazing.He’s very strong.He’s a big baby, that’s for sure. I really think he’s going to be good for [the Wizards].” Seraphin got little playing
time during the preseason, a trend that will likely continue in the regular season. “I’m not comfortable on the court, so I understandwhy the coach is not playing me,” he said. “But it’s tough to watch the game from the bench. I don’t like that.” Ariel Levis, an employee in
the Wizards’ sponsorship de- partment, has duel French and American citizenship and is helping Seraphin get acclimat- ed to his new surroundings in Washington. And while Andray Blatche and Hilton Armstrong have tried to assist him and offer advice, Seraphin said that it has helped to have another French-speaking teammate in fellow rookie Hamady Ndiaye for the timeswhenhe gets really lost. “With guys like that, all of
sudden, the light bulb goes off and their improvement sky- rockets. Sometimes it takes lon- ger. You really don’t know,” Saunders said about Seraphin. “Once he starts understanding everything, he won’t have to think he can just react, and when he starts reacting, instead of thinking, that’s when he’s going to be at a high level.”
leem@washpost.com
Forward scores goal, but United clinches worst season with loss
BY STEVEN GOFF Jaime Moreno stood over the
ball sitting on the penalty spot, a fittingmoment on the final day of a magnificent career with D.C. United. He was tied for the MLS career scoringlead,andthoughhe would surely surrender the mark the next day or next year, thiswas his chance to go out on top. In the 39th minute of United’s
3-2 loss toTorontoFConSaturday night,Moreno stuck the ball into the right side of the net for his 133rd regular season goal, tempo- rarily lifting him back into the all-time lead. On an evening of tributes and
tears, the Bolivian forward said goodbye with an 82-minute per- formance in front of 18,071 appre- ciative spectators at RFK Stadi- um. Santino Quaranta also scored
for United (6-20-4), which com- pleted the worst season in club history. Moreno’s goal broke the MLS scoring tie with Jeff Cun- ningham of Dallas, which plays Sunday. It alsoprovideda 2-1 lead, but Dwayne De Rosario ruined the festivities with two second- half goals for Toronto (9-13-8). Moreno, 36, arrived at RFK
withfamilyandfriends.Withlate- day shadows stretching over the old stadium, he made a solitary walk on the field-side gravel to- ward the locker roomtunnel. The public had yet to enter, but ban- nerswere already in place: “Gracias Jaime” “MVP for Life” “Thanks for theMagic”
Looking to the upper deck, he
saw his name spelled out, each black letter 10 rows tall. His uni- form number (99) was also ar- ranged over the dull-yellowseats. As kickoff approached, the
crowd buzzed with anticipation, and it had little to do with the match between the dismal clubs. The supporters’ groups, Barra Brava and Screaming Eagles, be- gan chantingMoreno’s name. In formal festivities,MLSCom-
missionerDonGarber led a group that included United President
JOHN MCDONNELL/THE WASHINGTON POST
D.C.United’s JaimeMoreno scores his 133rd and final goal of anMLScareer that started in 1996. TORONTO FC
D.C. UNITED 3 2
KevinPayne
andformerD.C.play- ersMarcoEtcheverry,EddiePope, John Harkes and Ben Olsen, the club’s interimcoach. Uponhis introduction,Moreno
carried out his 4-year-old daugh- ter Fabiana. The back of her jer- sey: “Legend 99” In a pregame interview,Garber
said: “MLS is beginning to estab- lish a history, and nowhere is that history stronger than in D.C. Jai- me has been a big part of creating that, both in the way he has per- formed on the field and his lon- gevitywith the club. “He is a guywhowas silent but
deep.Wealwaysknewwhat Jaime was feeling,buthewasn’t scream- ing it from the mountaintop. When Jaime spoke, we listened. Hewas passionate about growing the league andwas a vocal propo- nent of professionalismandmak- ing sure our players were taken care of. He had a voice that reso- nated.” On Friday, Quaranta said that, even if he had a breakaway, he
would try to set up Moreno for a scoringopportunity.Barelyamin- ute had passed when Quaranta was presented with a chance that hecouldn’tpassup—areboundof goalkeeper Milos Kocic’s save on PabloHernandez’s shot. In full stride, Quaranta
smashed a five-yarder into the near side for his first goal since April 10.He sought outMoreno to share a hug. Moreno was involved through-
out the half, delivering a through ball that was a bit too heavy for Branko Boskovic and working a tight combination with Hernan- dez that endedwith an attempted heel pass. Toronto drew even in the 23rd
minute when Maicon Santos col- lected Nick LaBrocca’s long ball and beat goalkeeper Troy Perkins to the far corner with a 17-yarder. Nineminutes later, after Perkins’s poor clearance, Jacob Peterson’s header caromed off the left post. In the 39th, Moreno, showing
thepace ofhis early years, tracked down Perkins’s booming kick deeponthe left side of thepenalty area. With Julian de Guzman markinghim,hefakedonce, faked twice, and then attempted to cross. The ball appeared to strike
BASEBALL NLCSNOTEBOOK
Rollins returns to leadoff spot for Phillies Two stolen bases
in Game 5 indicate he’s healthy again
BY DAVE SHEININ
philadelphia — When Phila- delphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins stole two bases Thursday night in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series, PhilliesManager CharlieManuel gained some valuable informa- tion. Rollins, Manuel thought, “has got more legs underneath him.” And so, for Saturday night’s
Game 6, Manuel moved Rollins back into his natural leadoff spot in the Phillies’ batting order for
the second time this postseason. Rollins had been batting toward the bottomof the order, a conces- sion to a nagging hamstring injury that had been plaguing himsince September. Seventy-two of Rollins’s 86
starts this season came out of the leadoff spot, but with Rollins limited by his injury,Manuel has been using center fielder Shane Victorino at leadoff for most of the last month. Victorino batted in the sixth spot Saturday night. “I’ve always looked at him as
our leadoff hitter,” Manuel said of Rollins. “I feel like that’s our best lineup. I’ve always felt that way, since the start of the sea- son.”
Uribe in, Sandoval out Giants Manager Bruce Bochy
DIGEST SWIMMING
Former U-Va. all-American dies Former Virginia swimmer
Fran Crippen, 26, died Saturday while competing in a World Cup marathon race in theUnited Arab Emirates. Crippen was compet- ing for the United States in the open-water event. Crippen fell unconscious dur-
ing the final leg of the 10-kilome- ter race in Fujairah, according to Swimming World. Nearly two hours after the other swimmers finished, deep sea divers found Crippen just before the final buoy. The water temperature was reported to have been in the mid- to high-80s, and several swim- mers were treated for heat ex- haustion at a nearby hospital. Crippen was an 11-time all- American at Virginia and was named ACC swimmer of the year in 2003 and 2004.
—Steve Yanda
SOCCER The Kenya Red Cross said sev-
en people have died in a stam- pede while trying to gain access to a soccer match between two of Kenya’s most popular teams. Red Cross officials said that six
people died at Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi and one died after being taken to Kenyatta NationalHospital. . . . CristianoRonaldo had the first
four-goal game of his career to lead Real Madrid over Racing Santander, 6-1, in the Spanish league. Meantime, Lionel Messi had two goals in Barcelona’s 2-0 win at last-place Zaragoza. Ronaldo’s outburst gave him a league-leading 10 goals. “I like to win like this,”Madrid
Coach Jose Mourinho. “The more goals, the better.” . . . Chelsea continued its perfect
home record in the English Pre- mier League with a 2-0 win over Wolverhampton. Meantime, Tot- tenham salvaged a 1-1 draw with visiting Everton. Florent Malou- da and Salomon Kalou scored as Chelsea moved to 5-0 at home. Rafael van derVaart equalized
for Tottenham after a mistake from American goalkeeper Tim Howard gave van der Vaart an open shot inches from the goal.
GOLF Defending champion Martin
Laird shot a bogey-free 8-under- par 63 — eagling the short par-4 15th and closing with three pars — to take a one-stroke lead over Jonathan Byrd in the Justin Tim-
berlake Shriners Hospital for Children Open in Las Vegas. Laird made an 8-foot putt on the 310-yard 15th after driving the green. . . . Sweden’s Maria Hjorth shot her
second straight 3-under 68 in steamy conditions for a share of the second-round lead with South Korea’s Jee Young Lee in the Sime Darby LPGAMalaysia. On the short Kuala Lumpur
Golf and Country Club course, the event was delayed because of lightning for 2 hours 28 minutes. “It’s always hard when it’s such
a long delay, especially when the temperature is so warm outside and you kind of sit inside and you get cool,” Hjorth said.
GYMNASTICS Alicia Sacramone of the Unit-
ed States came out of retirement to win the gold medal in the vault at the world championships in Rotterdam; she edged all-around champion Aliya Mustafina.
PROFOOTBALL The Baltimore Ravens have
placed offensive tackle Jared Gaither (back injury) on season- ending injured reserve and acti- vated six-time Pro Bowl safety Ed Reed(hip surgery) from thephys- ically-unable-to-perform list.
TENNIS Roger Federer could tie Pete
Sampras for career titles after reaching the Stockholm Open final, defeating fourth-seeded Ivan Ljubicic 7-6 (7-5), 6-2. Federer will face FlorianMayer
in the final.Mayer saved a match point to edge Jarkko Nieminen 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3). A third title of the year for
Federer will earn him the 64th of his career, matching Pete Sam- pras for fourth in the Open era. Only Jimmy Connors (109), Ivan Lendl (94) and JohnMcEnroe (77) have won more singles tourna- ments since 1968. . . . MarcosBaghdatis advanced to
the Kremlin Cup final after rally- ing past Denis Istomin 6-4, 6-7 (7-5), 7-6 (7-2) inMoscow. In his third final this season,
Baghdatis will face unseeded Vik- tor Troicki.
PROBASKETBALL Jerry Stackhouse has joined
theMiami Heat one day after the NBA championship hopefuls learned they’ll be without injured swingman Mike Miller until pos- sibly January.
WINTERSPORTS Olympic champion Viktoria Rebensburg led a German 1-2
finish at the season-opening World Cup giant slalom in Soelden, Austria, while defend- ing overall champion Lindsey Vonn was 18th. Rebensburg finished in a com-
TELEVISIONANDRADIO
NFL 1 p.m.
1 p.m. 4 p.m.
4:15 p.m. 8:15 p.m.
Washington at Chicago » WTTG (Channel 5), WWXT (92.7 FM),WWXX (94.3 FM), WTEM (980 AM)
Buffalo at Baltimore » WUSA (Channel 9),WJZ (Channel 13), WIYY (97.9 FM), WZAA (1050 AM),WBAL (1090 AM)
Arizona at Seattle » WBFF (Channel 45)
NewEngland at San Diego » WUSA (Channel 9),WJZ (Channel 13), WSPZ (570 AM)
Minnesota at Green Bay » WRC (Channel 4),WBAL (Channel 11), WWXT (92.7 FM),WWXX (94.3 FM),WTEM (980 AM)
MLB PLAYOFFS 7:30 p.m.
GOLF Noon
5 p.m.
San Francisco at Philadelphia (if necessary) » WTTG (Channel 5), WBFF (Channel 45)
LPGA Malaysia » Golf Channel PGA Tour, Shriners Hospital for Children Open » Golf Channel
AUTO RACING 1 p.m.
NASCAR Sprint Cup, Tums Fast Relief 500 » ESPN
WOMEN’S COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL 1 p.m.
Illinois at Minnesota » ESPN only from Comcast.
bined time of 2 minutes 26.39 seconds on the Rettenbach gla- cier to beat giant slalom world champion Kathrin Hoelzl. Manu- ela Moelgg of Italy was third. —From news services
also made a significant lineup change, benching third baseman Pablo Sandoval, who had started Games 4 and 5, and using Juan Uribe there, with Edgar Renteria at shortstop. The Uribe-Renteria combo on
the left side of the infield is a stronger defensive alignment than Sadoval-Renteria or San- doval-Uribe, but Sandoval is a better hitter and contributed a key, two-run double in the Gi- ants’ Game 4 win. “It makes us a little stronger
on the left side of the infield as far as defense,” Bochy said. “When we looked at everything, our best lineup tonight would be putting Juan at third and Edgar at short and use Pablo coming off the bench.”
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2010
the Toronto midfielder on the back of his upper left arm, and referee Silviu Petrescu awarded the penalty. Moreno promptly deposited it
into the right side of the net, just beyondKocic’s reach, for his 44th successful conversion. Toronto answered three minutes into the second half when De Rosario’s 14-yard header off LaBrocca’s free kick floated over Perkins. De Rosario struck again in the
65th, capping a swift counterat- tack. Nicolas Lindsey sprayed the ball wide to Peterson, whose slid- ing cross foundDeRosario on the far side. Olsen made two substitutions,
leaving his lastmove forMoreno’s grand exit. Anticipating the mo- ment, the supporters’ groups be- gan chanting his name again. In the 82nd,with a stoppage of
play and Danny Allsopp waiting to enter, United players ap- proached Moreno in the center circle and, one by one, hugged him. Perkins trotted up from the goal area to salute him. De Rosa- rio embraced him. Moreno waved to the standing
fans,afinal farewellonatouching evening.
goffs@washpost.com
Halladay may be available Phillies ace Roy Halladay
reportedly underwent an MRI exam on his strained groin on Friday, and the test showed no structural damage. Halladay suf- fered the injury in the third inning of his Game 5 start, and pitched through the injury for three more innings.Manuel said Saturday that he expected Halla- day to be available to pitch in relief Sunday night if the Phillies forced a Game 7. Meantime, Giants ace Tim
Lincecum skipped his normal between-starts bullpen session Saturday with an eye toward making a relief appearance in either Game 6 or Game 7.
sheinind@washpost.com
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