The Curious Case of Robertas Javtokas

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Forgive the trendy title. Oscar Wilde once quipped that the only way to avoid temptation is to give into it. Not exactly sage advice, I know. But it holds true for post titles.

Sham and I were exchanging notes on P.G Wodehouse when the conversation turned to Robertas Javtokas. He writes,

I just watched Dynamo’s latest game. Robertas Javtokas has always been an intriguing player, but he stopped developing a few years ago. I see him a few times a year, intermittently, and the progress has just dried up. There’s still no offense away from the hoop, he still needs spoonfeeding nearer to it, and the lateral movement still hasn’t appeared. He could be a decent backup in the NBA, but so can a lot of the NBA’s current backups. And a lot of them won’t price themselves out of the market, Javtokas-style. And he’s about to turn 29, so things won’t improve from here on out. He can play, don’t get me wrong. He could be a nice rotation player, but only if his price comes down. Otherwise, he’s not worth it.

Javtokas, as our readers likely know, is something of a mythical beast to Spurs fans. The Lithuanian center is a gifted athlete who is known for his dunks, shot-blocking, and having once dunked on a 12 ft rim. Not long after being drafted by the Spurs in 2001, RJ was ejected from his motorcycle after crashing into a van-it’s estimated that he struck the van at a speed of 87 miles per hour. A long recovery ensued, but he was able to return to basketball o3/4. Since then he’s been a solid performer, occasionally catching the eye of the American press. This past summer, for example, John Hollinger reacted to Javtokas’ strong Olympic play and billed him as quality NBA back up.

He’s not in the NBA, though. Rumors have long persisted that Javtokas wants more money than the Spurs are willing to pay. In the summer of ’06, the Spurs pitched an offer his way, but it was rebuffed. The Spurs later withdrew their proposal, signing a combination of Cisco Elson and Jackie Butler. Javotkas is currently playing on the final year of his Dynamo Moscow contract, leading some fans to speculate that Robertas might finally cross the Atlantic this summer. The Spurs own his draft rights. So, if he comes to the NBA, San Antonio will be involved in some manner.

Could he come sooner?

Javtokas’ current team, Dynamo Moscow, is struggling to pay their players. Would the Spurs be willing to offer Dynamo a small buy out and spend some of their left over mid-level money on a pro-rated Javtokas contract? It’s a clever suggestion, but doubtful on multiple fronts. In reality, how often does that sort of thing happen? Quality players simply don’t leave their Euro campaigns on mid-season buy outs. It’s rare, and for good reason. On both continents it’s called basketball, but there is enough difference between the NBA and FIBA that the adjustment from one to the other takes significant time. If Javtokas made the leap, he’d also do so without the aide of a training camp. That’s a lot of risk for a player who is, at best, an 8th man. Then, of course, there is the issue of getting him to accept a contract that extends beyond this season at a price that is desirable to both parties.

There is a feeling amongst some that this summer is RJ’s last opportunity to try his game in the NBA. When Sham sent the email, it simply reinforced my conviction that he’ll never play for the Spurs. Those amongst the Spurs faithful who covet an energetic big would do better to hope that Pops Mensah-Bonsu plays wonderfully in Austin.