This was, in my opinion a terrible pick. If I were Isiah I would've snagged Sato. I am very disapointed, however if he blossoms it will be a steal. My grade: C- :thumbsdow
Ariza I think made a stupid move declaring for the draft in the first place. He didn't put up stats at all in college. Should have stayed in college to improve.
Agreed. He cost himself some money, but he's in the league now. He'll improve or he won't, I don't think guys improve as much in college as people think anymore.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Nylex:</div><div class="quote_post">He's not gonna make the team, is he?</div> Nohe really isn't. Ariza has NO defense unless it's by the perimeter. his man-to-man defense is prettty bad. Overall it was a mistake to let Sato go, not only Sato drop, but he's In SAN ANTONIO!
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting FrankWilliams:</div><div class="quote_post">We could have picked Darius Rice!!!</div> Yeah, I'm still confused as to why he wasn't drafted :/.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Nylex:</div><div class="quote_post">Oh well. We couldn't really expect much with a 43rd pick anyway.</div> How about that 7 foot 2 korean dude?
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Biggie_Little:</div><div class="quote_post">How about that 7 foot 2 korean dude?</div> YEA I was gonna say that.... that 7 '2 center wasnt he suppose to be selected much earlier....??
Terrible pick. The scouts told this kid plenty of times that he should pull out of the draft 2 weeks ago in Chicago pre-draft camp. He needed to basically work on his whole game but he didn't listen. Why? I ask why the hell would NY take him when there were more ready players available?
Hey, he is Thomas's first Knick pick and he doesnt seem all that bad. One year of college ball, meaning he can really improve alot he's only 18. He is very athletic, plays good defense, and is supposed to be an excellent passer at 6'8. What more can you ask for. Not everyone has to be a big time scorer to be a good NBA players. You need guys like camby who can get boards, set picks, play solid defense and get put backs. This kid sounds like a harder worker and someone who will work hard for the team to win games, and not just to up his stats. I would love it if this kid could turn into a Tayshan Price type guy, who plays good defense, scores a little if needed, and reounds. A guy who could be forgotten on the court and who will make you pay for it. And I really like the fact that he is supposed to be a good passer and gets a thrill out of making it easier for others to score, from what I hear he sounds like a guy thats willing to do all the dirty work and I really like that. I like this pick also because he still has tons of potentail. If he stayed at school another two years he could have been a lottery pick, who knows. I.Thomas was trying to move up just to get him and we got him anyways at 44, some think he should have been the 1st pick in the second round ( http://proxy.espn.go.com/chat/chatESPN?event_id=5503 check out the second round sleepers. ). I look at it as if we drafted a high schooler. ALot of people think nothing can really matieralize out of a second rounder but look at history and it will tell you other wise. Plus this draft was so weird with all the high schoolers and all that I think alot o good players slipped, and we could have benefited from that. All in all I think it was a good pick and I look forward to seeing what he can in during the summer. Worse comes to worse we simply dont sign him, we'd still have Demarr. Also check out what I.Thomas says about it. http://www.nba.com/knicks/inthepaint/isiahdraft_040625.html
Ariza is no where ready to play in the NBA...I was a fan of his in college and was terribly disappointed when he chose to stay in the draft. Right now, his shooting is probably his biggest weakness...if he can improve that, i say he might have a shot 3-4 years down the line....
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting FrankWilliams:</div><div class="quote_post">YEA I was gonna say that.... that 7 '2 center wasnt he suppose to be selected much earlier....??</div> I think he was selected in the 46th pick.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting The Jersey Boi:</div><div class="quote_post">Just out of curiosity..are you guys talking about Ha Sueng Jin when you say the "7'2 Korean dude"?</div> Yea
I am not going to pretend to be a Knicks fan...but I will tell you this much...I strongly feel that in a couple of years, Ariza is going turn out to be one of the steals of this years NBA draft... I have been a UCLA basketball fan almost all my life (although I am a USC football fan...don't ask, its just always been like that)...and to me, Ariza represented the future of UCLA basketball (I go to a good number of UCLA home games and watch them on TV regularly)...One of the reasons why Ariza didn't put up good stats his first year in college (although they were far from bad) was because he nearly died at the start of the season when his lungs collapsed due to his asthma...Ben Howland was forced to monitor his minutes closely in order to prevent health problems and it was not until the end of the season that Ariza was really cut loose. Ariza is an amazing athlete and all-around player (although it is true, his defense could use a lil work but that is something that dedication and hardwork can correct). At 6'8 with a wingspan of about 7'2 (i believe, someone correct me if i'm wrong) he has a fairly good (although not entirely consistent yet) shot, above average ball-handling abilities, and can jump out of the building. His senior year at Westchester (which plays in one of the most intense conferences in California) he nearly averaged a triple double with 36 pts, 14 boards, and 9 assists a game to go along with what I believe was 5 blocks and 5 steals per game. He was a true superstar prospect coming into UCLA that would have developed much nicer had he not had the health concerns at the beginning of the season. He most definitely WILL make the Knicks roster this year as Isaiah is very high on his talent and was shocked that a player of his talent, athleticism, and size would still be available to them at the 43 spot. Although I was not surprised to see him slip this low in teh draft, I was always confident that he would turn out to be a big time player in the NBA for somebody someday. He is rail thin and needs to hit the weight room, bring a lil more consistency to his outside game, and put some more effort in on the defensive end. He is also young for a ball-player in his grade, being just 19 and only a couple months older than most of the high school prospects coming out this year. You guys have a big time player in the mix and I would advise you guys to check out his game a lil bit more before deciding that this was a horrible pick. Anyone that says the Knicks should have drafted Darius Rice over Trevor Ariza is a fool who has not watched Ariza play enough to know how good he really can be. His debut in the Long Beach summer league should say enough for his talent as he went 9/13 from the field for 22 pts, grabbed 6 boards, and blocked a shot and had 3 steals...in fact, my only regret of him being drafted by the Knicks is that I won't be able to watch him play anymore and he was by far my favorite UCLA player of last season...he's gonna be a good one, and when it happens, i'll be the first to tell you Knicks fans i told you so...
and btw...sato is entirely too small to play in the NBA...give Ariza a year or 2 and he will absolutely dominate Sato...and don't get me wrong, im a huge fan of sato...but ariza is a much better pick than sato...
