He also had zero help around him. It's hard to get assists when the people around you can't make shots. Also defenses were keying on him the whole year. I talked to coaches that were game planning for Weber St. and everything was all about stopping Lillard. Also a guy is going to have an off game, I wouldn't expect him or anyone else to score 25 every game. If he wasn't hitting in a game he had to keep shooting because he was the only one that could create shots.
What have you seen from Teague that makes you think he will be better? And if Teague would have stayed around and proven that he was better then what he showed this last year then he would be deserving of a top pick. Teague hasn't shown the ability or skills that will translate to the NBA, Lillard has.
lol, he just happened to have off games against when he faced better competition...ok.... How about his sophmore year vs ASU? 2-17/0-8 12pts 3boards 5 asst 5 to in a loss...I know, just happened to be an off night.... and I don't buy rthe zero help arguement, he played against inferior talent....You think that b\c Teague played at UK and played the elite teams of the NCAA he had it easy? lol....I don't think so...and he did it as a freshman with several other freshman, not as a junior....
Same could be said for Curry, but he didn't have the big drop off in games against better competition that Lillard did.
So are you saying Lillard won't be good in the NBA? What is your Big board, just wondering who you got above him.
1. AD 2. TROB 3. MKG 4. DRUMMOND 5. BEAL 6. SULLINGER 7. MOULTRIE 8. RIVERS 9. PJ3 10. LILLARD 11. BARNES 12. ROYCE WHITE
He got better as the year improved, increased his average by over 5ppg in the NCAA tourney (when it maters most), 2nd leading scorer for UK in the championship game...was a top 5 HS coming out of high school (I think top hs recruits generally translate to good pros), he is young (19), better assist\to ratio than Lillard and much better than Lillard had when he was a freshman and more athletic than Lillard...
He may be ok, but I don't see him as a top 1/2 of the league starting PG, which if you are going to draft at #6, you better be getting a core player (one of your best 3 players) on your team....I think there are better options to choose there, and I am not convinced that he is so good he deserves to be chosen in the high lottery over other guys Teague, Taylor who could end up being as good or better pros than he is at 10-20 slots lower in the draft....or an established free agent that POR could pick up with thier available cap space.... All the stats, watching him play looks to me like a SG in a PG body...How good of one? I don't see Stephon Curry like someone mentioned, and the fact that he struggled vs better competition has to be concerning does it not? Or when you watch him shoot he doesn't seem to get great elevation and he tends to hold\shoot the ball low and out in front of him and a lot of his finishes in the paint are finger rolls\lay in types that I see getting stuffed in the NBA...very hard to successfully do that unless you are exceptionally crafty like Nash\Miller and I don't see that with Lillard..and he doesn't really have a floater or advanced mid range game, so if NBA teams play him up tight, don't let him take open shots or close out quickly and force him to readjust which again I am not sure he will be able to do with frequent success and if gets in the paint close in on him and make him have to ake the correct pass, which I think is another question mark... He just seems to be more athletic\quick than the competition so he can get in the lane and finish over\around guys right now...against elite big men or PG guarding him though? I see a lot more jump shots in his NBA future...which reminds me of a best case Mo Williams...Who is an ok player, but not worth selecting at #6...
Let's see your big board and see if we can't cherry pick a few bad games out there too. Personally, the BYU game didn't look that bad to me.
I don't really have a big board....I mean I can tell you guys I like.... You know I just look at guys like Lillard and Leonard and I see some question marks and then I begin to wonder is Lillard worth the 6th pick? Is a PG like Teague\Taylor etc that much inferior that POR has to take Lillard b\c he will be that much better? and better than what they can get in FA? I don't think so... Same goes for Leonard...is he THAT much better that he is worth the 11th pick over other bigs who could go late 1st\2nd round? Guys like O'Quinn, Melo, Sims or Watt? I am not convinced and I have been a draft fan for a long long time and I have sen more than my share of guys like Leonard, guys who suddenly come drfat time shoot up the charts and scouts\unnamed GM's rave about thier athleticism\length and potential and I have yet to see 1 of those guys that I can recall right now who has met all that hype, but I'll tell you I have seen a TON of lottery reaches for big men that busted....
Agreed. At where I think he will end up being picked (12-18) he is going to be a quite the value pick. Here is my board btw: 1. Anthony Davis 2. Thomas Robinson 3. Bradley Beal 4. Damian Lillard 5. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist 6. Harrison Barnes 7. Andre Drummond 8. Perry Jones III 9. Terrence Ross 10. Jared Sullinger 11. Austin Rivers 12. Dion Waiters 13. Meyers Leonard 14. Arnett Moultrie 15. Terrence Jones 16. Kendal Marshall 17. Royce White/Moe Harkless/Andrew Nicholson/John Henson Went a little bit longer than most, the four forwards I have at the bottom I either heard good things about but not seen much of (Harkless, Nicholson) or have serious weaknesses or things I am concerned about (White: off-court issues, Henson: Lack of Size and a personal belief that he will be a bust)
I've been buying your Terrence Ross hype in recent days Great athlete with a good shooting stroke and decent shot creation Good size, too
OK, do you not trust your judgement or do you not like telling other people what you think? BTW I totally agree on Leonard. I just have seen enough with Lillard that I trust what I see and don't have to make assumptions like I would with guys like Teague or Marshall. I have the same feeling of Robinson over guys like MKG and Drummond. Robinson is proven to be a very good player and has the physical abilities that will translate to the next level. I am also very big on attitude and both Robinson and Lillard work extremely hard and will continue to get better. Those are the types of players that reach their potential and are successful in the NBA.
Yeah, but those questions exist for everyone after Davis and Robinson: MKG: does he have an outside shot? Will he ever? Beal: doesn't get to the rim, doesn't try. Doesn't shoot a high % for someone whose main skill is shooting Barnes: can he do more than catch and shoot? He has a very limited handle; and look how he faded in the NCAA Drummond: does he have a motor? Can he learn the game? He didn't help his team much. I understand your questions about Lillard, but I think there are only two players above him that are sure bets. After that, everyone has question marks.
To add to that I will take the questions that surround Lillard (competition, passing skills) over guys like Drummond (motor, any offensive skills) and Beal (Great shooter who didn't shoot well, Not able to get to the basket)
And you also have to factor in that Lillard was the main scoring option on his team, he wasn't looked to to distribute the ball as much as he was to score. Which makes his 24.5ppg on only 15.5fgpg that much more impressive.
