Not many NBA fans would stay up until 1:30 a.m. just to catch the Redeem Team's next game live.

Even fewer would torture themselves at that hour to watch two foreign teams battle, but it seems at least half of the Portland Trailblazer fan base is doing just that in order to watch the Spanish National Team play whoever.

You see, the Spanish team just happens to feature one of Portland's new top prospects, Rudy Fernandez, who signed with the Blazers on July 1.

Growing weary of guarded reviews from Blazer brass and sugary highlights from Youtube.Com clips, the Trailblazer faithful want to see Rudy for themselves, in a way only live action, full game, world-class competition can portray.

The faithful haven't been disappointed.

Fernandez has demonstrated good ball handling, shooting, passing and penetration skills as well as excellent leadership, moving without the ball and a penchant for coming through at crunch time.

Fernandez's offensive prowess should come as no surprise.

He garnered more hardware than Tim Allen in Euro league play the last four years, including several MVP trophies and a featured role in Spain's 2006 FIBA world championship.

His defense may need some work, however as he moves into a more physical NBA this fall.

The shooting guard position, Rudy's natural spot, is somewhat crowded in Portland with Brandon Roy and rookie draft pick Jarryd Bayless staking out their territory there, so the competition in training camp should be keen.

Blazer Nation will continue to follow Spain's journey through the Olympics even after the big showdown with USA on Saturday.

Hopefully, some of the games will broadcast live in prime time.

If not, well, it's a good thing the Pacific Northwest has no shortage of coffee stands.