"Buyer Beware" <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Did the NBA slap "Buyer Beware" stickers on Kevin Durant and other draft prospects when it distributed results from last week's predraft camp to teams Monday? The Seattle Times gained a complete copy of the confidential report, and the Texas forward was one of several players projected in the lottery who had less-than-impressive workouts. Durant, who will likely be chosen No. 2 in the June 28 draft by the Sonics, was the only player who could not bench press 185 pounds at least once. His overall performance ranked 78th out of 80 prospects, and his lackluster workout appears to have widened the gap between him and Ohio State center Greg Oden, who had an impressive combine. Durant measured 6 feet 9 without shoes and 6-10 ? with shoes. He weighed 215 pounds and had a 7-4 ? wingspan, second widest among prospects and a half-inch wider than Oden's. Durant, however, fell short in nearly every other statistical category to the 7-foot center, who is expected to be chosen No. 1 by Portland. Oden had a better vertical jump (34 inches to 33 ?) and he ran faster in an agility drill (11.67 seconds to 12.33) and a three-quarter-court sprint (3.27 seconds to 3.45). The Sonics, however, are not dissuaded by Durant's workout. According to one front-office official, center Robert Swift also struggled with the bench-press test before the draft, and three years later he's the strongest player on the team.</div> Source: Seattle Times
Yep I saw that http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/draft2007/ne...tory?id=2894925 If I recall Ridnour couldn't get a rep at 185 also.
This isn't the NFL combine. If the kid wasn't naturally strong he wouldn't have been able to pull down over 11 rebounds a game in one of the most physical conferences in the country. He'll learn how to gain muscle mass, just like he'll learn the NBA game and become one of its elite players. No one is drafting him b/c of the size of his arms--we're going to draft him b/c he had statiscally the best freshman season in the history of the NCAA. ...and those statistics did not include how many times he benched press 185 pounds either.
He has the longest wingspan in the draft - everyone knows the bench press is a lot easier with shorter arms. Remember when Troy Bell was the best athlete in the draft, while Wade was 14th best and Chris Bosh 51st best? Monta Ellis was rated the worst athlete at the 2005 combine testing. If you tested basketball IQ and feel for the game, he and Oden would come out miles in front, hence why they're going 1-2.
I read that Monta Ellis tested out horrible also, 26 inch vertical, last guy in the running and agility drills but roll out the ball and he gets any shot he wants and dunks everything. Lastly, I'm sure Magic and Bird would probably come in dead last if they had this back in the day.
Nah... im thinkin durants lowering his stock so that other teams could pick him LOL question, who of these players werent able to bench 185? coz they were all skinny coming in to the league MJ Kobe Tmac VC Ray Allen AI
How many of those players have a 7'4 wingspan and did the testing at 18 (turns 19 in September)? Maybe Kobe and Tmac meet the age restriction, and Tmac probably has the closest wingspan out of the players you mentioned.