This is what we passed on!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjpdC0YlgL4...related&search=

We drafted an undersized PF in Leon Powe when we needed a shooter and Guillermo Diaz was still on the board! He was one of the best shooters in this draft. We traded Powe shortly after anyway

I love the Nuggets management

 

Also Leon Powe IMO has more upside, but the downside is he's injured quite a bit and he's something of a tweener. Scouting reports mentioned he's like a Larry Johnson type forward with long arms without the shot range or ballhandling, so he is more like a power forward than an actual small forward. But I doubt the LJ comparrison because he's kind of slower and more inside type guy.

In terms of big names, I think Powe's name gets thrown around a lot more than Diaz here in the West.

But Powe is kind of a shell now with all those injuries. He's kind of stiff and unathletic because of it. It's like he can't fully extend his motions and do all that quickness and high jumping stuff. But he's still a pretty talented back to the basket player and has a decent face up game.

Diaz is pretty good for combo guard. He can score, but he's streaky, and doesn't look like he's under control much with the ball. He can throw some mean dunks down, but so can a lot of guys his size. It'd be great if he was 6'4 or 6'6.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Actually I think Denver should have kept Leon Powe and not re-sign Reggie Evans. If Denver had their MLE available, I guarantee you Bonzi Wells would be a Nugget this season.
</div>

Im not sure about Powe, Those knee injuries scare me. Im interested to learn what makes you a big fan of his? I see you rocking the sig and I wondered if maybe he went to your school or something?

I love Reggie Evans and im glad we signed him back. He is one of the best rebounders in the league for the amount of minutes he plays a game. 8 rebounds in 20 minutes is impressive. He is also a very tough defender.. He may not have an offensive game to save his life but we dont need him for that. OT: Evans' offense actually looked really good during the preseason. He averaged 17 points per game and added a few new post moves.



<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">1. He can't shoot
2. Where will he find minutes behind Miller and Boykins?
3. He's undersized against most PGs in the league
</div>

1. I think he is a very good shooter, He is a bit streaky at times but his jumpshot is pretty solid.

2. We still found 20+ minutes for Watson a game when he was with us. Granted, Smith wasn't on our roster at the time.

3. That's true, but I think his athletism and quickness will give him the upperhand.

 

I dont know about yall, but I definitely prefer J.R. Smith over both Le-knee-on Powe and Diaz....Since the pick we got from Boston was used in the deal to get JR. Its not like Diaz would have even made the team if we did draft him.....let alone crack the rotation and play any kind of important role for us, ever.


The thinking by Bearup to force Eisley to take a 2nd non guaranteed year, knowing it could be a good trading piece during the summer.....as well as gaining an extra 2nd rounder during the draft(If we didnt trade the pick, we would have taken Mike Hall with it....which would have been pointless, sicne we knew we would be able to sign him to summer league after the draft....so we basically got the pick for nothing)....is the reason we have J.R. Smith today. If J.R. turns out to be anything, everybody can look back at these couple of small ass, GENIUS moves that our front office made, as the reason why.


<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">I love the Nuggets management</div>

You should....smart ass.

 

<div class="quote_poster">NotoriousC23 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I dont know about yall, but I definitely prefer J.R. Smith over both Le-knee-on Powe and Diaz....Since the pick we got from Boston was used in the deal to get JR. Its not like Diaz would have even made the team if we did draft him.....let alone crack the rotation and play any kind of important role for us, ever.


The thinking by Bearup to force Eisley to take a 2nd non guaranteed year, knowing it could be a good trading piece during the summer.....as well as gaining an extra 2nd rounder during the draft(If we didnt trade the pick, we would have taken Mike Hall with it....which would have been pointless, sicne we knew we would be able to sign him to summer league after the draft....so we basically got the pick for nothing)....is the reason we have J.R. Smith today. If J.R. turns out to be anything, everybody can look back at these couple of small ass, GENIUS moves that our front office made, as the reason why.




You should....smart ass.</div>



There is no way in hell I'd rather have J.R. over Powe or Diaz. Just over work ethic alone, nevermind actual skill. Which J.R. has almost none of. J.R. right now is completely one sided, cant do much else besides dunk and chuck up shots.

Give me a kid as talented, hardworking, and skilled guy as Powe, and give me a lazy, stupid, arrogant J.R. Smith, I wouldn't even think.

Okay, yah. My bias is very noticable considering how much I like coach Scott, but seriously. J.R. reminds me way to much of a Darius Miles/Isaih Rider/Sprewell.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">You should....smart ass.</div>

Nice to see you to.

“I don’t know this guy. I might have said one word to this guy. I don’t know this kid. I think he overreacts to stuff. We go out there, we post on the forums and leave it at that. Maybe he wasn’t hugged enough as a kid. I look at him a little bit, he gets a little insecure about something. I don’t know.”

 

JR Smith is in Karls doghouse already. Smith is complaining that Karl wants him to wake up early. Boo hoo.

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - If J.R. Smith is going to win the Nuggets' starting shooting guard job, he better wake up.

Literally.

Smith said Nuggets coach George Karl wants him to "be serious" about practice by showing up early. It doesn't always work.

"I'm not really a morning person," Smith said. "But I've just got to get into it. I've been trying. I've been making an effort."

At least Smith woke up in time to have a good outing Sunday. He scored 15 points, shooting 3-of-7 from three-point range, to help the Nuggets to a 124-105 preseason pounding of Detroit.

Karl has expressed frustration with Smith's defense. But Karl thought Smith had a solid all-around game. "It seems like he's in a better rhythm when he's with the starters," Karl said.

Karl started Smith, but that is no indication he will be in that spot when the season opens Nov. 2. Before the game, Karl said Smith, 21, has much work to do.

"J.R. is probably the most talented of all the guys," said Karl, comparing Smith with DerMarr Johnson, Yakhouba Diawara and Linas Kleiza, other candidates to start. "I don't know if he understands the fundamental nature that I want to play with and (the) professional commitment I like to have from young players. . . . A young player has got to have a commitment to do a little extra to develop."

That includes paying more attention to the alarm clock. But Smith still has time because Karl won't announce a starter until just before the opener.

Karl didn't use Johnson so he could get longer looks at others and play point guards Andre Miller and Earl Boykins together.

Karl loves Diawara's defense but said before the game he is "worried" about his offense. But Diawara, after coming in shooting 5-of-21, was 3-of-6 Sunday, including 2-of-5 from three-point range, for eight points.

Kleiza scored 12 points to make his preseason average 15.6, second on the team. But it will be tough for Kleiza to start since he and Carmelo Anthony are basically both small forwards.

"It depends on matchups," Kleiza said. "I'm not worried about it. I just want to get on the court."

Karl might not yet know his starter. His finisher is another story.

"Who we start, I'm not sure is as important as who we finish with, which right now probably will be Earl," Karl said. </div>

 

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/nba/...5086980,00.html

 

JR Smith? I don't think so.

 

<div class="quote_poster">BALLAHOLLIC Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Nice to see you to.

?I don?t know this guy. I might have said one word to this guy. I don?t know this kid. I think he overreacts to stuff. We go out there, we post on the forums and leave it at that. Maybe he wasn?t hugged enough as a kid. I look at him a little bit, he gets a little insecure about something. I don?t know.?</div>
lmao

 

Not that impressive. Yeah he's dunking and he's Puerto Rican but he wont even be known as a dunker in the league. So What.

 

<div class="quote_poster">samoan-maverick Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Not that impressive. Yeah he's dunking and he's Puerto Rican but he wont even be known as a dunker in the league. So What.</div>

LMFAO


Anyways, if you guys think you have had a bad draft, look at Orlando Magic's draft history. Jeryl Sasser, Steven Hunter just to name a few.

 

<div class="quote_poster">shapecity Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I respect what he did for Oakland basketball, Cal basketball, and battling through life. Powe has always overcome obstacles and keeps a humble demeanor about himself. He's a very giving and loyal person.

On a skill level, Powe is a throwback player. He doesn't have a flashy game, and relies on strength and fundamentals to compete. He has a back to the basket game, can hit free throws, and knows how to find the open man when the double teams come.

In his last preseason Celtics game he had 11 points and 15 rebounds in 29 minutes. He's a workhorse on the court and has a high basketball IQ.

He does have bad knees, and lost a lot of his explosiveness, but he never relied on it to begin with. Powe understands how to use his strength and leverage to get position for rebounds and has a good knack for reading the ball off the caram. Plus having a 7 foot plus wingspan doesn't hurt.

I also like Reggie Evans, but for me Powe is a better version of Evans because he's accomplished offensive player. If given the minutes Powe will put up 20/10 in the NBA. He'll make a living at the free throw line because he throws his body into the defender to draw contact.

I've seen Diaz really compete since college, but he digressed his last season at Miami. I don't think he has the ball handling skills to get a shot off in the NBA and to take advantage of his athleticism.

But hey, landing Diaz that late in the draft would have been a bargain. I couldn't believe him and Powe lasted that long.</div>
Gotta chime in here. Leon is a freind of the family, but that's not why I love him. Anytime I hear people saying good things or bad things about "The Show" I wonder "do you they really KNOW Leon?" Most of the time we judge people off what we hear the media say or in a game we might catch a glimpse of the person and base and our opinion on that. Let me tell you, I have seen this kid play on the same team as LeBron (handle himself quite nicely mind you), I have seen this kid play on a badly coached and talent lacking Cal team (put the team on his back WITH those bad knees everybody likes to mention 20 and 10 to lead the PAC-10 and led the PAC 10 in rebounding as freshmen), I have seen this kid KILL NBA comp during work-outs that you don't get to see on TV, I have seen this kid workout like a mad man with his guardian/parent EVERYDAY over the summer while other NBA players ride around in Downtown Oakland in their LandRover's (true story), and finally I have seen this kid in Church at midnight on New Year's Eve and at the altar when he was preparing to go to Colorado to have surgery on his knee. Basically, I say all that to say, if you KNEW Leon the person, all that he has over come, you couldn't help but cheer him on. And if you KNEW Leon the hooper and seen what he has done to Cats media claim to better than him at all levels of his game, you wouldn't doubt him. Paul Pierce might be "The Truth" but Leon Powe is "The Proof" that heart out weighs any and every obstacle imaginable and that God deals with haters in a special way. I'n not speaking on haters, I'm just speaking on Leon. One love to all - keep your eye on "The Show".