VITALS: 6-3, 176, Bauru Tilibra (Brazil) OVERVIEW: The 20-year-old Barbosa is considered one of the best foreign point guard prospects in the draft. He averaged 28.2 points this past season in his native Brazil for Bauru Tilibra, second only to legendary Oscar Schmidt, who is now 45. Barbosa shot 45 percent on 3-pointers, although he is not considered a great shooter. Barbosa is a flashy passer and ballhandler, sometimes too much so for his own good. Barbosa also spent time on Brazil's national team at the 2002 World Championships and logged just 21 minutes of action. LIKELY DRAFT POSITION: Anywhere in the first round. Barbosa struggled in workouts with Milwaukee (8) and Chicago (7) but shined in auditions with Seattle (12, 14) and Golden State (11). Both of those clubs have kept quiet after his visits, which often is an indication that they are interested. Seattle would consider Barbosa at pick No. 12, but would probably prefer him at its other first-round selection so it can get a power forward, namely Georgetown's Mike Sweetney. Golden State would probably choose between Barbosa, UNLV's Marcus Banks, Louisville's Reece Gaines and Oregon's Luke Ridnour. Orlando (15) or Boston (16) are both looking at that same group of point guards. COMPARATIVE UPSIDE: Gary Payton COMPARATIVE DOWNSIDE: Antonio Daniels ROLE PROJECTION: Future starter. POSITIVES: Barbosa is a terrific athlete with above-average size for the point guard position. He has developed into a fine outside shooter, can find the open man and has quick hands for steals. SHORTCOMINGS: Basketball in Brazil is like street ball in the United States. Nobody runs offense systems, and defense means bothering to make the trip to the other end of the floor. Consequently, Barbosa has never played truly organized basketball. At just 20 years old and not having a good handle of the English language, the transition to the NBA could be a difficult one. WHAT THEY'RE SAYING: "I have heard mixed things about Barbosa. He's a tremendous athlete, but he played in a very weak league. Now you have to project how he is going to perform at 10 levels above that, so the jury is still out. But he is intriguing." Phoenix Suns international scout Tim Shea
i think that he will suck the 1st couple of years, but he will be worth the wait, this is who i want the magic to draft.
I like Barbosa. His size and quickness at PG really make him interesting. If he gets a jumper, he really could be a Steve Francis TYPE of player.
They say he has a really wierd shot release and his english isn't too good. This guy won't be good for like 5 years.
good outside shooter? Cant run a fastbreak or offense? sounds like hes ALREADY a Celtic! AAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHA
I'm not sure where the shakey jumpshot rumour came from. Barabosa shot nearly 50% from 3pt range in Brazil. That might not translate to legit NBA 3pt range right away but he will definitely make you pay if you don't respect his outside shot. Same with the idea that he can't play in transistion. I'd rate him just behind Kirk Hinrich as the 3rd best transistion PG and he didn't have the benefit of being in KU's excellent basketball program. His ability to move nearly as fast with the ball as he does without it combined with good court vision should yield an excellent transition player. He has good instincts. THe question about his ability to run the 'O' in the half-court is related only to his english speaking ability. Talent wise he is unquestionably a surperior prospect to Reece Gaines or Luke Ridnour but teams are unsure of how long it will take him to learn the language and fit in with the team. Plus his game is not quite as polished as a PG as Ridnour or Gaines just yet due to coming from Brazil where a. he had inferior coaching to college players at top D1 programs and b. He was also asked to lead the team in scoring as well as run the show. He's capable of being a similar player in the L but its the age-old question of the value of upside versus the value of a proven commodity with less upside.
i know... i dont see him slippin to 26 (or whatever the Wolves have)... I just found it funny that they had him slippin that far...
and in the end... he got picked at #28 by San Antonio... and then traded to the Suns for a feature 1st round pick...
