Back-Up Power Forwards in the Draft

Another FA thought....Marcus Haislip anyone?

Just an idea: http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Marcus-Haislip-2681/

 

Jeff Pendergraph is a tank.

A legit 6'10", 240 lbs. Not bad.

 

Danny's glaring flaw was that he couldn't guard any position at all. He reminded me of Zach in that he'd often start boxing out his man before being shot over. Dude was also an unbelievable foul machine averaging 6.3 fouls per 36 minutes for his career.

If a Fortson type player is how Blair projects, I want nothing to do with him.

Unless they move way way up in this draft, I don't see anyone being able to crack Portland's rotation into double digit minutes anytime soon. Hansbrough seems all about team... sort of a rich mans Eduardo Najera. Dude gets after it on the boards and D and can hit an open jumper. He seems the sort who would bring focus and intensity to practice even if he's not getting minutes. I could see KP going that way.

STOMP

 

More on Harangody here.

OK, maybe I was wrong about the "less ripped than Jon Brockman" comment. Accoring to the article, Harangody did more reps of the bench press than anyone else at the Chicago predraft camp. The article also described him as "Matt Bonner with muscles". I'm not sure that's what the Blazers need in a back-up 4, but like Brockman, Harangody has been a great rebounder in college and isn't afraid to mix it up inside. The fact that he has a good jumper with range would just be a bonus.

In any case, if he stays in the draft and is available, I wouldn't mind seeing the Blazers use one of their 2nd round picks on him.

Harangody measured out a little shorter than I'd expected, but he still has a pretty good standing reach (8'10") for an NBA 4. He played center in college, but would definitely be a 4 at the next level.

BNM

 

Blair or Gani Lawal our are best options in the draft. Both are pretty raw offensive players, but both can rebound. I like Gawal more as he's taller, younger, and more athletic. And he doesn't have the injury background that Blair has.

I don't want anything to do with Hansbrough. This guy has Mark Madsen 2.0 written all over him.

 

I'm fully convinced our backup 4 is 27+ years old and has a reputation for solid, physical defense and rebounding -- if unspectacular -- I'm not saying you can't take a power forward in the draft, but this is one of the weakest for bigs I can remember off hand.

Just take BPA, or try to target a guy you really like and move up, and I don't see any of these guys as fitting that criteria (you could move up to get a big, but do you really want to part with the assets it will likely take to get into the top 8 to grab Blair? Yikes!).

 

We have very little chance of signing Milsap. Why would he want to play 14 minute a game. Plus Utah will resign him. They said they would go over the cap for one year to keep him. Plus i would be shocked if Boozer changed his mind and did not opt out.

 

I agree Blair is not worth moving up for.

 

I don't think he'll last until the 2nd round.

If KP doesn't see anyone else special I'd be fine with grabbing him at #24. He doesn't have the upside of some other picks but he has the lowest downside. The Blazers are in a different spot than 4 years ago, they don't need to select risky draft picks with the hope they turn into a star. We need solid contributors to fill in niche rolls on the team.

The Mark Madsen comparisons are silly. Hansbrough was on the most talented college team in the country scoring over 20 ppg with 84% FT 39% 3PT. Madsen scored 12ppg shooting 57% FT and never made a single three.


edit: Now I see you were talking about Harangody. He probably will last until the 2nd

 

Hansbrough if we could get him on the cheap would be a good pick...I am not so big on blair...in any other draft i think he would be around the 5 or 6th pick...

 

What is wrong with Heytvelt as a 2nd rounder?

He has good size (6'10)...

efiicient scorer around the rim who can shoot from the outside as well...

rebounds pretty good

I look at him as a Jeff Foster (smaller of course) kind of journeyman backup...Not sure I would take himas a 1st rounder, but I sure would in the 2nd...I think he is being undervalued on draft boards currently...

I agree...Pendergraph is interesting as well....

 

I don't, I think Hansbrough will be a comparable scrub.

 

It looks like Jordan Hill could have a Brook Lopez type of slip. Reports now say he could fall out of the top-10.

 

The Blazers have worked this guy out several times i think, he needs to bulk up to even be drafted

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Chris-Johnson-5034/

 

Here's another guy to consider: Ahmad Nivins.

Apparently, he's measured out better than expected (6'10", 242) and has been having some great workouts.

"Nivins was the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year, averaging 19 points and 11 rebounds per game in a tough conference and measures in at 6'10 and just over 242 pounds and was getting almost no love from the NBA. That was two weeks ago; today Nivins' dance card has filled up with more than eight workouts scheduled over the remaining 15 days until the NBA Draft."

"The word is that Nivins - who was viewed as a marginal second rounder - really help himself with one of the best showings at the Minnesota group workout. NBA teams are lining up to get a look and Nivens is blowing guys out of the gym in individual workouts."

"he is a proven, mature, high character guy that has an exceptional skill set and can contribute right away."

BNM

 

DraftExpress has him going 20th to Utah. If they lose Boozer (which it looks like they will), they can move Millsap into the starting role with Hansbrough as his back-up.

BNM

 

Given that he put up very good numbers, was POTY in a decent conference and has no off-court issues, it makes you wonder why he wasn't ranked higher to begin with.

BNM

 

More on Nivins from his DraftExpress profile:

"Compared to when we last wrote about Nivins two years ago, his game has progressed significantly in many phases. One thing that jumps out immediately is that his FG%, FT%, and True Shooting% have each steadily increased over the past three seasons, even with his huge bump in usage this season. Another statistic of note is the fact that he plays an astounding 39.6 minutes per game, #1 in our entire database, and posts an outrageous 72% True Shooting percentage also good for #1. More impressive than that is his consistency over the course of the season, as looking at his game log he’s scored more than 14 points in every contest this season and the worst he’s shot from the field in one game this season was 5-for-11. "