The Suns' Horacio Llamas' first appearance in a March 2
NBA game "was hailed by the Mexican press as one giant leap
for basketball south of the U.S. border," according to Jerry
Kammer of the ARIZONA REPUBLIC. El Imparcial, the largest
newspaper in Sonora, "hailed" Llamas as the first Mexican to
play in a regular-season NBA game under the header "Llamas
makes history!" The excitement turned "euphoric" last week
when the Suns announced they will keep Llamas for the rest of
the season. Kammer: "In his brief tenure with the Suns,
Llamas is showing signs of becoming the sort of sports
phenomenon not seen in Mexico since 1981," when Fernando
Valenzuela "surged to Dodgers stardom." Roberton Gonzalez, a
Mexico City marketing consultant for Llamas, "said he has
been approached by a half-dozen corporations," including
Corona Beer, Spalding and Telefonos de Mexico. Gonzalez
added that Fila is "talking about having Llamas design his
own shoe for marketing in Mexico, where scholastic ball has
been on the upswing" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 3/16).
