Do you guys think Diogu will provide as much scoring and rebounding as Sweetney is for the Bulls? If he does in his rookie season I will be happy. I just think people are comparing him to Brand too much without him proving anything yet. If he can play like Sweetney I will be happy...
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Warriorfansnc93:</div><div class="quote_post">If he can play like Sweetney I will be happy...</div> And if he can play like Brand I will be happy x 100
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Warriorfansnc93:</div><div class="quote_post">Do you guys think Diogu will provide as much scoring and rebounding as Sweetney is for the Bulls? If he does in his rookie season I will be happy. I just think people are comparing him to Brand too much without him proving anything yet. If he can play like Sweetney I will be happy...</div> I think Sweetney plays a bit like Elton Brand, but not as talented. In certain aspects he plays offensively like him, but without the defensive impact since he doesn't offer much shot-blocking or transition D. He just can't play large minutes because I think he's just got a big weight problem like Robert Tractor Traylor had which tires him out. Sweetney is 6'8, 275 lbs. That's a bit too much for his size. Athletically, he's decent when not playing overweight and he's got a long wingspan. He may not be the answer for teams that like to run so he may be out of place with the Bulls since they like to push the ball and shoot a lot in transition. I remember St. Jean definitely wanted him in the 2003 draft. As far as Diogu goes, I think he'll possibly play a bit like Elton Brand defensively in maybe a year or two. But I think he'll play more like Zach Randolph offensively now since he has a more polished face-the-basket game than Sweetney or Brand, and he's also got great footwork, thrives on contact, has great hands and positioning. He's got some really quick spin moves on that baseline and makes use of the triple threat position. The most important aspect of his game is he's very, very strong for his size, fundamentally sound, and he's got a great basketball I.Q. He also knows where to be off the ball and is a very saavy, but tough as nails player. In terms of hustle or aggressiveness, he'll be a lot like Foyle or Biedrins. He may not be a franchise player or possibly not even an all-star talent, but he's a talented big guy you'd want to have on your team. Given the dearth of talent at power forward, I think he can be an impact player in a very short amount of time. He's incredibly talented, motivated and he doesn't have weight or health issues. Also, having a point guard that can set him up can lead to some big numbers for him on the offensive end as he knows where to be off the ball and he can finish against bigger players on either side of the rim with the ball. His game is also more substance over style, sometimes ugly but effective, but I think he'll set the tone once he can figure out what it takes to get to the foul line and how to work with what the defense gives him. Defensively, he knows where to be, but he's never really had to get down and dirty because of the worry of foul trouble. Still, you have to love the possibility of what this guy can do for our team: We could be riding the free throw bonus the rest of the way in some quarters, while enjoying higher fg% points inside the paint, rebounding, blocked shots, and creating double teams.
Well, let's see what he can do in NBA. As much as he was excellent in summer league, he also struggled against NBA bodies. I would love to se what he can do in NBA. If he can be half way decent right now, he brings inside scoring, rebounding and toughness, which we all lacks...
Well, I can't say the track record for successful college 6'8 power forwards to nba pros has been successful, but when all this talent is in the same package with tremendous strength and finesse you just have to take it safe pick or not. Dunleavy was also seen as a safe pick with all this talent, but physically this guy doesn't offer that much strength or finesse let alone overall speed and quickness off the dribble. Plus mentally, Diogu is way more aggressive than Dunleavy as a "safe pick" and Ike was the team's star player whereas Duke had tons of star players that went to the pros. You don't think much of ASU Sun Devils, but Diogu was clearly the player that made the team go. He's got some nice physical features for an undersized big man like tremendous wingspan, large soft mits, mobility and he's got hard to find big man skill as well as some perimeter skill. The guy put up some impressive numbers in a decent conference.
Diogu is better than Sweetney in almost every way. Smarts, work ethic, defense, you name it. Diogu was such a freaking monster in college, I just can't wait to see him on the court!
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting kdub:</div><div class="quote_post">Diogu is better than Sweetney in almost every way. Smarts, work ethic, defense, you name it. Diogu was such a freaking monster in college, I just can't wait to see him on the court!</div> Thanks! Diogu will probably play more than 20 minutes a game that Sweetney seems to average because he'll actually be in shape. I think 240-245 lbs is about right for Ike given his frame (REREM has seen him play at this target weight). If he weighs as much as Murphy that'll be good for him. He's shorter than Murphy, but I bet Diogu has a longer standing reach and he has broader shoulders which can add more bulk if necessary. Murphy is tall, but he's not very thick. I like our power forwards to be like football linebackers and our guard/forwards to be like running backs and our point guard to be like a quarterback. How awesome would Jrich be if he was a running back and how awesome would Baron be if he was a quarterback? I guess these football analogies would make Dunleavy the kicker.
I think right now a more accurate comparison is Zach Randolph. Both are similar physically in that they have some bulk and are pretty short for their position. Neither is considered above average in athleticism which is why I think Diogu is more like Randolph than Brand. Diogu also can hit the mid-range shot with consitency, like Randolph. Diogu will probably be a better defender and shot blocker than Randolph though because he just has more desire and work ethic. Sweetney isnt a bad comparison but after the similarities in their post games I dont see all that much that is similar. Both are good FT shooters but Sweetney has no range on his shot and his weight really limits him. Brand is a common comparison for Diogu but he is significantly more athletic, which would help alot for undersized players. I think we would be very lucky if Diogu turns ot like Brand but its not that likely.
Diogu is not Sweetney. Sweetney never even dominated in college. He was a pick based solely on size. Ike dominated in college, the Pac-10 no less. He scored, rebounded, and most importantly led ASU to victories. The best comment I heard on Ike was he has "great hands." Without great hands, you are nobody. Webber has great hands, as does Duncan and Brand. Ike is not Webber, Brand or Duncan, but he can simply play and score. I am not saying Ike is going to be a superstar, I just want him to continue what he did at ASU, which is score, rebound and play hard. Please, no more "Sweetney" comparisons. Guys who never dominated before but are picked high based on size litter the NBA rosters, Sweetney, Kwame, Curry, Araujo (I like him), Ostertag, etc. while low picks such as Boozer, Okur, Miller, who can actually play excel.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting philsmith75:</div><div class="quote_post">Diogu is not Sweetney. Sweetney never even dominated in college. He was a pick based solely on size. Ike dominated in college, the Pac-10 no less. He scored, rebounded, and most importantly led ASU to victories. The best comment I heard on Ike was he has "great hands." Without great hands, you are nobody. Webber has great hands, as does Duncan and Brand. Ike is not Webber, Brand or Duncan, but he can simply play and score. I am not saying Ike is going to be a superstar, I just want him to continue what he did at ASU, which is score, rebound and play hard. Please, no more "Sweetney" comparisons. Guys who never dominated before but are picked high based on size litter the NBA rosters, Sweetney, Kwame, Curry, Araujo (I like him), Ostertag, etc. while low picks such as Boozer, Okur, Miller, who can actually play excel.</div> Yes!
Good points Philsmith. Does anybody have a list of decent offensive players with bad hands? Does that even exist? It's like only one of the reasons why guys like Dampier and Kwame Brown couldn't be more than they are. (forget injury excuses or confidence problems) I can think of Brendon Haywood. He's not bad. I am glad the W's have so many big men with good sets of hands. Biedrins has great hands. Murphy has excellent hands. Taft and Diogu both have soft hands. If Jrich was a power forward like the position he played in high school, he'd be out of this world with his hands. Jrich can actually palm the ball better and catch one-handed than Amare Stoudamire so I think that is interesting considering the size difference. Stoudamire is a big that can catch almost any pass though (even though Nash delivers with pinpoint accuracy). I think between the two matching up in a windmill dunk contest with some slippery basketballs, Jrich would end up completing more dunks and he wouldn't need to cup it.
Yeah, check out the rookie from Uconn Villenueva He had 27 tonight and he never dominated... I thought Sweetney was pretty good from Gtown. I think we can not make any comparisons of how good Diogu is going to be until we see him play in the nba
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Warriorfansnc93:</div><div class="quote_post">Yeah, check out the rookie from Uconn Villenueva He had 27 tonight and he never dominated... </div> Unfortunately Toronto didn't win again. I expect Babcock to be fired this season for sure.
healthy diogu is definitely better than sweetney...at least diogu is not overweight When is diogu coming back and if he is back how many min will he play per game? i hope he plays ahead of foyle...bring more offence and solid defence not to mention atheleticism
Right now Foyle is playing purely defensively, and that's fine. A lot of the old fast-break teams had a center primarily for defense. I think Ike will take some time, but I'm perfectly willing to wait for him. If he does make an impact now, that'd be great, but he's still a rookie and he's been set back quite a bit by injury so early.
The heaviest Diogu played,I'm pretty sure,is 255,and he played lighter,by a little,this past year as a jr,after being around 255 as a soph. I think at 250 or less he's surprisingly quick. He looked quicker as a jr,but weight may have been a minor part. I've speculated he could play as light as 240,sacraficing some bulk+power for more speed+quickness,and at 240 I think he'd be quick enough to play SF in many matchups,would be at least asmobile as Dun. Likely he will play around 255 for now. Thats about 20 less than Sweetney,and less than Brand carries lately. Ike is a lot more agile than Sweetney. Ike is no sprinter,but is real quick for his size. What makes him different from a 6-8 flop like Fizer? The short answer is just about everything. Most significant-He brings full effort all the time,and secondly,he has a lot in the toolbox. If you are covering Ike,he soon will find your weakness,you can't stop everything he can do,which is why his stats were so solid. A lot of guys don't even know what a maximum effort is. a lot of guys have a few good moves and that's it. A lot of guys are good in one part of the game and weak in others. By the end of the season Monty will be finding ways to keep him in the game a lot. Obviously we can't expect him to be as good as Brand-yet I would not be too surprised if he is,someday.
