Beno Udrih

Udrih made his professional debut with a brief stint in the Slovenian Second Basketball League in 1997, followed by three seasons in the Slovenian Basketball League. He was named the 2000 Slovenian League Rookie of the Year, and has played for the senior Slovenian national team since that same year. He played for Union Olimpija, from 2000 to 2002, where he made great improvements, and played in the EuroLeague for the first time. Udrih played for Maccabi Tel Aviv in the 2002–2003 season, and split the 2003–2004 season among Avtodor Saratov (Russia) and Olimpia Milano (Italy).\n', ' Prior to his NBA debut, he appeared in the Southern California Summer Pro League for the Spurs, and also in three games with the Spurs squad in the 2004 Reebok Rocky Mountain Revue, while averaging 10.3 points, 5 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 24.7 minutes per game.\n', ' Udrih signed with the San Antonio Spurs in the summer of 2004 after being drafted with the 28th overall pick of the 2004 NBA draft, signing a 3-year, US$2.4 million contract, and served as a key backup for starting point guard Tony Parker. In Udrih\'s rookie season, he won a Rookie of the Month award. Following that achievement, he was selected for the Rookie Team for the Rookie Challenge during All Star Weekend. In the 2005 NBA playoffs he won the championship with the Spurs. However, Udrih\'s playing time dropped significantly in the 2005–06 season with the Spurs signing Nick Van Exel during the off-season, but increased again after the All-Star break due to an injury to Van Exel\'s elbow. In the following 2006–07 NBA season and playoffs (where the Spurs won another NBA championship) his minutes were very limited, as the Spurs signed veteran point guard Jacque Vaughn to back up Tony Parker.\n', '