Not to distract everyone from talking about the merits and failings of LMA, Miller, cousins et al. I thought I'd post a little snippet about the player actually listed as our 22nd pick in this particular mock draft: http://www.draftexpress.com/article/2010-NBA-Combine-Storylines-3472 I really have no idea if he'll be around at 22 and if the Blazers are even interested, but you gotta love players with his attitude.
Hollinger's Draft Rater wasn't as impressed (not that that's saying anything). He went from #1 to #3 in the UK pecking order this year. That said, I don't think he makes it to 22.
Hhysical gifts? He's 6 '10', and fat. He was never that athletic to begin with, either. I like Cousins, but I think physical gifts was the wrong word.
I agree. The big knock on Cousins is his lack of athletic ability. The only way he scored was pushing terrible SEC big men around.
I wonder if Philly will give Favors a look. The guy measured identical to Dwight Howard at the same age. He'll be the youngest player in the NBA next year. His upside is only second to Wall, IMO.
is 29% from outside 10ft optimal enough for you then? b\c that is what his percentage was in the playoff series vs PHX I suppose you are happy then with 65% of his shot attempts being from outside 10ft then, you know b\c he shot such a high percentage from that range.... That is surely what I like to to see out of 6'11 near-max salaried contract PF.....
The dude has a longer reach and a longer wingspan than Oden. I would say those are physical gifts. The thing about bodyfat is that you can reduce it.
I think he's FAR better than Eddy Curry. I also think that with the culture the Blazers have developed he would be motivated to work. You never know. I think he has the tools to be the best player from this draft though.
I don't, at least in terms of overall skills. If he can get in shape, he may be better, since Curry never cared about getting in shape. But then you have to ask yourself this question. If the guy shows up with 16% body fat when he's not being paid millions, what's going to happen when he cashes his first $50k check?
I don't think he's in any worse shape than at any time during the season and he dominated. When he starts going against pros he'll realize what he needs to do. At least I think he will. As far as comparing him to Curry, I think there no doubt he's better. He had the highest PER of any college player over the last 8 years. Statistically he was one of the most dominant college players that has played in the past decade.
Yes, he dominated. But in a very weak big man conference and only by pushing people around. He doesn't have much athleticism and he won't be able to push most centers around like he did in the SEC. It is possible he gains athleticism but I'm taking the pessimistic view on this. Nothing wrong with being an optimist though!
For a different view. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/ian_thomsen/05/19/mock.draft/index.html I hate his pick for Portland!
FML, if we take Luke Babbitt. I watched a few 'highlight' clips of his and although he appears to be very skilled, he's plodding in that Adam Morrison kind of way and his measurements at the combine were pretty horrible for a guy who projects out as 3/4 (he was something like 6'4" in socks).
http://realgm.com/src_feature/1663/20100525/2010_nba_mock_draft_version_20/ How would you feel about this pick?
I like it. He has Chris Anderson written all over him, minus the douche-ness. Though, I hope KP makes a bigger splash on draft day.
Umm...yeah--Draftexpress has him at 6'7.5 barefoot--pretty good for a SF. And he's apparently actually a pretty good athlete, according to his combine figures. http://twitter.com/chadfordinsider
