<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Now that Ramos? season is officially over, he is doing a coast to coast tour of the US to get in as many workouts as possible before the draft next week. He started off in Miami right after being invited to the Moody Bible camp in Chicago for his first ever NBA workout, and then flew up to the West coast for 3 workouts with Seattle (Thursday), Golden State (yesterday), and Portland (today). People in Miami said that he?s a little further away then they initially thought, although it?s easy to forget that he just recently turned 19 when watching him play in person against professionals. David Harrison was just too polished and motivated for him; the same can be said about Ales Chan who had a lot to prove as well. The Seattle workout was extremely impressive according to people in the gym, as he dominated Pavel Podkolzine in almost all the one on one and big man drills, while conceding some of the transition and shooting drills. One scout (not necessarily from Seattle) joked off the record that ?Pavel is the type of guy that you lose your job over? because of how raw he has looked in workouts so far. Pavel was scheduled to meet up with Ramos for a rematch in Portland, but that will not happen for unknown reasons.</div> <font size="1">Full Story courtesy of Draft City.</font> Interesting. As I said in the Jefferson thread, Seattle have got some interest in him and have had scouts looking at him. Firstly, hopefully that scout was Seattle and it will prevent us from drafting Pavel , but looking at Ramos he seems to be a project, but one with a big body and a bright future. I'd still like to go the Jefferson route if both are on the board, but at the same time Ramos' biggest appraisal is that he is an excellent defender. Food for though, definately.
Ramos is very intriguing, but I agree that Jefferson or another non-foreign project would be the best fit at #12. I'm glad Ramos owned Pavel in workouts because I don't trust Pavel for second as a legit big man in the NBA. Reminds me of Gheorghe Muresan too much.
There are too many expensive centers on our team to draft a project center w/ our first round pick. Draft the best available player and fill our needs via trade or free agency.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Iron Shiek:</div><div class="quote_post">There are too many expensive centers on our team to draft a project center w/ our first round pick. Draft the best available player and fill our needs via trade or free agency.</div> That's true, from what I am hearing Jefferson may just be the best player available at 12. Kirk Snyder is drawing rave reviews too, after coming through testing as probably the most athletic player in the draft. He's NBA ready, and has the added bonus of putting Nevada on his back and taking them to the NCAA Tourney.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Supersonic:</div><div class="quote_post">That's true, from what I am hearing Jefferson may just be the best player available at 12. Kirk Snyder is drawing rave reviews too, after coming through testing as probably the most athletic player in the draft. He's NBA ready, and has the added bonus of putting Nevada on his back and taking them to the NCAA Tourney.</div> Kirk Snyder is vastly overrated. If anyone actually watched the tournament last year they would see that Nevada won as a team moreso than individual efforts of Kirk Snyder. I think that Trent Johnson deserves more credit than Snyder. If I were a GM Snyder would be a late first round pick, not the Sonics pick at number 12. You can play bully in college (which is what Snyder did and is doing in his workouts) but at the guard position it is more important that you have legitimate perimeter skills than having 4 percent body fat. Dave Young is my man and if he killed Snyder like it was reported then Kirk should be the last player on the minds of the Sonics at pick #12. I wouldn't mind selecting him though if we traded down or if he were available in the second round (both scenarios I don't see happening).
It depends on whether the Sonics are restarting the rebuilding process. If they are, taking a chance on Ramos might be a good idea. If they aren't, Humphries would probably be the best pick, as he's arguably the most ready out of all the power forwards in the draft except Okafor. I doubt all these NBA scouts are wrong about Kirk Snyder. If he goes from a second round pick to a lotto pick, he's probably pretty good. I believe he has improved a lot since the season ended, especially as far as his jumpshot goes. He's expected to be an all-star, just a really good role player, and I see no reason why he can't be.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Iron Shiek:</div><div class="quote_post"> I think that Trent Johnson deserves more credit than Snyder. </div> What about Todd Okeson. That wigger can bounce.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting RiverspoonJones:</div><div class="quote_post">What about Todd Okeson. That wigger can bounce.</div> Not to sound oversensitive but couldn't you have said that another way? From what I can remember Okeson had a decent game, but what is the point of calling him a wigger? Just b/c we write back and forth on this site doesn't mean that we are comfortable enough w/ each other to start joking around about race. That street cred argument way back (the reason you feel that Flip could be traded) kind of rubbed me the wrong way, too. I'm not uptight, I just don't want this to get out of hand.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Casual:</div><div class="quote_post">I doubt all these NBA scouts are wrong about Kirk Snyder. If he goes from a second round pick to a lotto pick, he's probably pretty good. I believe he has improved a lot since the season ended, especially as far as his jumpshot goes. He's expected to be an all-star, just a really good role player, and I see no reason why he can't be.</div> It is a pretty bad secret around the NBA that Portland has promised to choose this kid with the 13th pick. He could even be selected before that pending on who is picked before him. He is definitley a guy who can do it all, especially defend, and has also shown that he can carry a team on his back. As for Peter John Ramos I heard that he did better than Pavel during his workouts but is still below him in terms of draft status.
Kirk Snyder said he will be rookie of the year <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">I'm going to be Rookie of the Year," Snyder said matter of factly after working out for the Suns on Friday. "That's going to happen. So that's that."</div> Nevada's Snyder not lacking in confidence
^I don't even think he will get enough time on the court to be a ROY in Portland. I guess he has to say that to up his stock. Every player should be saying that.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Casual:</div><div class="quote_post"> I doubt all these NBA scouts are wrong about Kirk Snyder. If he goes from a second round pick to a lotto pick, he's probably pretty good. </div> There are plenty of players in the history of this league that were overhyped coming into the draft. The NBA draft is a crap shoot. You can do all of the research in the world and still make a mistake. Snyder is a good player but there is a reason why people did not call him a first round lock when he declared for the draft (and why most of the country hadn't heard of him until the tournament). He has talked his way into the lottery. If he really wanted to prove to everyone that he is head and shoulders above the rest of the shooting guards in this draft he should have gone to Chicago and dominated. Instead he didn't want to risk dropping his stock so he decided only to privately work out w/ teams that are in the lottery. It is definitely a smart move on his part, but after he gets drafted he'll have to consistently show how legitimate his confidence really is (and if he has the game to match it). My guess is that he will be a serviceable back up or a Trenton Hassel type starter.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Iron Shiek:</div><div class="quote_post">He has talked his way into the lottery.</div> I don't think this is a case of the dreaded Ivan Chiarev disease the NBA had a couple months ago. Teams have liked what they have seen from Snyder and are not basing their opinion's on hearsay. This is not the strongest draft so I am really not surprised that a potential second rounder has upped his stock to lottery status and gotten a promise. There are no clear cut players to be drafted here, everyone has question marks, even the #1 pick. It's like shooting fish in a barrell <font size="1">(or something like that)</font>
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Iron Shiek:</div><div class="quote_post">Not to sound oversensitive but couldn't you have said that another way? From what I can remember Okeson had a decent game, but what is the point of calling him a wigger? Just b/c we write back and forth on this site doesn't mean that we are comfortable enough w/ each other to start joking around about race. That street cred argument way back (the reason you feel that Flip could be traded) kind of rubbed me the wrong way, too. I'm not uptight, I just don't want this to get out of hand.</div> Sure, I can admit the above comment was mispointed... and perhaps required a bit more thought about posting. However, I don't recall discussing race it said "street cred" argument, so I don't think it is myself with preconceptions of any racial connotations with the topic. If you disagree with my opinion there, that's fine... but I don't see how it is linked to whatever problem we have here.
Ramos went to my high school for a short time, back when he was still playing ball in NYC. His rep is the same now as it was then, he could be very good but he is lazy at times and his hands are questionable at best. I was a few years older than but all the coaches spoke about how impressive he could be. Also he can be a bit lazy in the learning aspect, he practically failed out of my high school.
Here are the four players who compose Sonics director of player personnel David Pendergraft's fear list, meaning they're players with potential that's scary to pass over: Kirk Snyder, 6-6, Jr., G, Nevada: Perhaps the top athlete in the draft, Snyder has a vertical leap that was measured at 35 inches. He averaged 19.3 points in the NCAA Tournament as a junior. His team beat Michigan State and Gonzaga at KeyArena and advanced to the Sweet 16. Peter John Ramos, 7-3, C, Puerto Rico: He has size and four years of professional experience in Puerto Rico, which probably means he will be picked ahead of a player like Kris Humphries. But Ramos is years away from having the muscle to hold down the middle. Kris Humphries, 6-9, Fr., F, Minnesota: He led the Big Ten in scoring and rebounding as a freshman, and turned 19 in February. Minnesota coach Dan Monson called him, "a young Karl Malone," but the question will be whether Humphries is big enough to be as physical in the NBA as he was in college. David Harrison, 7-0, Jr., C, Colorado: Harrison was the Tennessee state player of the year in 2001 and ranked as the No. 3 high school center behind Tyson Chandler and DeSagana Diop -- both of whom were lottery NBA picks that year. Yet after three years, Harrison is pegged as a late first-round pick because of questions about his desire. Source
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">The Dominican Republic, a baseball-rich country that had been long considered the breeding ground for the game's best shortstops, is slowly undergoing a grass-roots movement that threatens its most popular sport. To the east, a basketball movement that is swelling in support among the youth and in the government has already taken hold of neighboring Puerto Rico, the largest island in the Caribbean. To the south, Venezuela and Argentina are building outdoor courts and indoor clinics at accelerated rates and a 19-year-old Puerto Rican prodigy named Peter John Ramos has many believing that the best Latin American athletes will soon turn to basketball. "If he goes in the first round of the draft, and this isn't to put pressure on any one player, but you'll see big changes in how the NBA looks at Latin players," said Carlos Morales, a former Puerto Rican national basketball coach. "He's not a big name. He's crept up in the draft, and now he's getting attention. And he has a wonderful story." The Ramos legend goes something like this: He grew up in Brooklyn, and at the age of 14 a Puerto Rican scout spotted him at a big-and-tall store. Ramos had never seriously played basketball, but the scout arranged to fly him and his family to their homeland. Five years later, Ramos has developed so quickly that several NBA front-office executives, including Sonics general manager Rick Sund, flew to Puerto Rico to get a close-up view of the 7-foot-3 center who could be among the first 15 players selected in tomorrow's draft.</div> <font size="1">Full Story courtesy of Percy Allen and the Seattle Times.</font> Just thought I'd post this; an interesting article about the prgress of basketball in Latin America, with a particular focus on Ramos.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting shapecity:</div><div class="quote_post">Here are the four players who compose Sonics director of player personnel David Pendergraft's fear list, meaning they're players with potential that's scary to pass over:</div> Apparently it's a list of players he'd be scared to take, as well as ones he'd be scared to pass up. That would explain David Harrison being on there.
