Tyler was in Portland for a pre-draft workout with the Trail Blazers on Thursday and was asked an innocuous question about whether he had crossed paths with Blazers coach Nate McMillan over the years. Tyler responded with a quizzical look, wracking his brain as he tried to untangle the query. "Nate McMillan," he said finally. "No ... What college is that?" The answer drew dropped jaws and laughter from the assembled media, and Tyler was quickly reminded that McMillan was the coach of the Blazers. "Oh," Tyler then responded. "I'm tripping." http://hoopshype.com/rumors/tag/jeremy_tyler
Well, we only gave up some cash for his rights, so it's not like we have much to lose, right? Very low risk. I imagine the W's will hire a mentor for this kid to keep him on the right path and help him adapt.
He has potential. He can't be worse than Patrick O'Bryant. Right? I think it would be neat if Jerry West can get someone like Kareem to be a big-man coach for this team.
He asked, "What college is that?" Oh well. Talent is what counts. Apparently, Bob Myers, the GM in waiting, knows him so we'll see if he can make the team. If he can make the team, then he could go to D-league to work on his game.
I'm still hoping for Clifford Ray. There's a Lacob link there as he used to be an assistant in Boston. I sent an email to the Owner's Box asking if they've looked into him for that role.
As Kawakami pointed out, this is a $4M swing from last year when the 2nd rounder was sold for $2M. I love this move. Its risk taking with a huge upside (hello Mr. West); he's got legitimate size and athleticism. With the right coaching and handling, he could be our answer to the development of Zach Randolph/Jermaine O'Neal. Patience will be needed.
I know Tyler has a horrible rep, but from recent interviews it sounds like he's been humbled after his experience in Israel and is ready for redemption. At one time he was the Rivals.com top rated player in high school as a sophmore. Low risk, high reward.
I heard him say on the NBA TV draft preview show that he wanta to be like an Amare Stodamire. From the highlites it looks like he has the physical and athletic skills to be that kind of player. All you need to do as a big is rebound and defend the paint a bit. I hope he can at least do that.
Jeremy Tyler destroying the max vert jump drill: [video=youtube;cknHW4l8ULY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cknHW4l8ULY[/video] Dude is a great athlete. Hes 262 lbs. and just turned 20 less than two weeks ago. His body fat % was among the highest of the class but he doesn't really look fat. Could probably lose some weight though but hes clearly got the athleticism to carry that kind of weight. He averaged about 10 pts and 6 rebs in Japan last season. Not sure where Japan ranks next to euroleagues, the NCAA, etc. He's got plenty of work to do but keep in mind he was the top rated prospect in this class a few seasons ago and reports say he does have natural touch around the rim and a so-so mid-range jumper. I heard a good point about him from somewhere (can't remember who said it) that if this guy stayed in school and went on to have a one and done year in college he may well have been a lotto pick or better. There are definitely questions about his maturity, mental makeup, etc. but Myers and Riley were convinced he had matured. He had a brutal season in Israel as a HS senior before playing in Japan. Brandon Jennings had similar struggles in Europe and it seemed to help him. I'm not sure Tyler is totally humbled but I do believe that the last two years have taught him a lot. Mark Jackson says he wants to play him right away if he's ready for it. This pick would have been a disaster under Smart/Nellie/any of our previous coaches. I think Jackson is a good presence as a HC for a guy like this. I also like the personalities in the locker room right now with Curry, Udoh, Lee, Reggie, Dorell compared to the Baron, Jax, Barnes days. Lots of hard working, professional, high character players in the locker room these days.
If you just search "Jeremy Tyler" on youtube there are a ton of highlight packages from what appears to be almost all his games in Japan. These include his FG makes and misses. At times he looks awful and at others you say to yourself "that could work in the NBA right now". His jumper from the baseline seems pretty decent but for some reason gets much worse away from the baseline. Hes clearly gigantic compared to the competition and the competition does not look good. Still there are some flashes of what looks like a guy who could be pretty good. A lot of really bad plays too though. And who the FUCK taught this kid to shoot free throws?????? He shoots them with his LEFT foot forward and his right foot back (hes a right handed shooter). Never seen that in my life. Should be an easy fix but wow how the hell has he gotten by with backwards FT shooting mechanics. Here's a clip of highlights of his in a Japan league game. There are several others like this if you want to see more, just search him on youtube: [video=youtube;4VIevNm3g5A]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VIevNm3g5A[/video]
MTII article. Bolded interesting points: http://www.ibabuzz.com/warriors/2011/06/24/second-rounder-jeremy-tyler-is-a-most-intriguing-choice/
TK on Tyler form yesterday's media session with the rookies: http://blogs.mercurynews.com/kawaka...yler-the-warriors-not-so-wild-6-11-wild-card/
And here is a blog posting analyzing Tyler's season in Tokyo: http://www.asiabasketballupdate.com/1/post/2011/05/making-the-case-for-jeremy-tyler.html Mentions that he developed a nice mid-range J and that he thrived at the 4 next to Robert Swift at the 5. Last 12 games he really put it all together. Author thinks Tyler is a PF. And within that article it links to another article from the NY Times chronicling Tyler's story. Pretty good read. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/21/s...r=2&adxnnlx=1303315212-FPoq8NM6aTlpc6IxLc Rqw