If his ceiling went high enough then no, you wouldn't be wrong. Personally I think (and have thought since the jump) that he's got some pretty serious limitations as a pro. But fuck it, he's third on the depth chart and really doesn't matter one bit in this team's long-term and short-term plans ... if we needed him I could see the angst.
Babbitt's problem isn't his skill set, it's adjusting to the speed and athleticism of the NBA game. He's played well in both summer league and the NBDL. but struggles against NBA competition. If he's going to be successful in the NBA he needs to adjust his game, and unfortunately for him, the only way to make that adjustment is lots of playing time in real NBA games. In Portland, he's stuck in a chicken and egg situation. He can't get any playing time, because he hasn't adjusted to the NBA game, and he can't make that adjustment unless he gets significant playing time. He'd be much better off on a crappy, bottom level lottery bound team without a chance of making the play-offs - in a situation where he'd be given an opportunity to sink or swim. I don't see him ever getting that chance in Portland. Portland will be fighting to make the playoffs and get the highest possible seed. Other than the occasional blow out, Babbitt won't see the court, and even then he'll only be playing against other end-of-the-bench guys, not the other team's starters. BNM
well the problem there is, no team that would play him is going to give up a high first for him, and any team that would give up a late #1, will likely not have minutes for him either. so if the option is getting a 2nd or hoping for a year that he figures it out, ill take the latter
Yep, keep him while he's on his cheap rookie contract. If he shows improvement, resign him to an appropriate contract, if not let him walk and find a better situation where he can get more PT. There's really no point in waiving him. It doesn't clear any cap space or open up a salary slot. The only reason you'd need to sign someone else would be an injury and then you apply for an injury exception, or just sign a player for the league minimum for a long term injury, or on a 10-day contract for short term injury.. As you say, no point in trading him when his trade value is so low. So, keep him, put him in charge of towel waving and let him play occasional garbage time minutes and see if he shows any improvement. Unfortunately, with the compressed schedule, there won't be a lot of practice time between games this year. So, he won't even get much practice time against NBA level athletes. BNM
Actually, as the game went along, like in the second half he started to get used to the speed and made like three lay up with out a miss. had he hit a coupe of those late in the shot clock threes in the first half he would have been for many a supprise. As it is he was so-so in this first preseason game. Wow!
The only flaw in your argument is that he plays against some pretty good NBA caliber wings in practice. It's not quite the same as game speed, but there are opportunities to learn the NBA game playing against Gerald Wallace, Nic Batum, Jamal Crawford and Wesley Matthews every other day.
Practices during this abbreviated season are going to be few and far between, at least in terms of all-out effort and scrimmaging. Babbitt will likely end up in the NBDL again, as will Armon Johnson and possibly Elliott Williams.
All that matters is whether he can shoot from the outside. He has enough size and awareness and skill in other areas to get by. He's never going to be as quick as most guys he guards or who are guarding him... and that's OK. If he can shoot 38%+ from three point range then it'll open up the floor for other guys on the team. Right now he hasn't demonstrated he can shoot from the perimeter... but all indications outside of actual game play are that he really can. We'll see if he can bring that skill to the floor or if he'll be out in the cold. He's young enough that I have some level of confidence that it will click for him at some point. Ed O.
I hope that we do exactly that--send our Nevada boys to tear it up in the D-league, get some other team interested in them, and ship the pair off for decent pick.
You left out this part: How much actual practice time did he get against those guys last season. He spent time in the NBDL, and when he was with the team, he was third string, likely spending a lot of his time on the sidelines while the top ten scrimmaged 5-on-5. He really needs actual game time to adjust to the NBA game. Problem is, I don't see him getting any meanigful PT in Portland. BNM
OK that's probably valid, I just don't think it matters much -- trade him, keep him, whatever -- He's a marginal player with probably marginal upside. Whatever decision the team makes with him there's almost no downside, because he's not blocking anybody else, he's not too expensive, there aren't any painful cuts that have to be made if he stays and nobody's counting on him.
I see Nate's influence all over the Babbitt pick. I think he was seen as the ultimate stand in the corner and knock down the open 3 guy - a taller, paler, younger, cheaper James Jones. But, a guy like that needs two things. He needs someone like Brandon Roy penetrating, collapsing the defense and then kicking it out to the wide open shooter. And, he needs to be able to knock down the open 3. Well, so far, two strikes against Babbitt. Roy's gone, and Babbit hasn't shown he can knock down the open 3 in games. He supposedly shoots lights out in practice and did well in the summer league and NBDL, but hasn't shot well in real games. Maybe it's just nerves. The sample size is pretty small and probably not going to get much bigger any time soon. BNM
Maybe, but I know KP and his scouts used to talk a lot about 50/40/90 guys, how difficult it is, how it translates, etc. 50 from the field, 40 from 3, 90 from FT line. I think that's why he was picked.
He looks like a deer in headlights. He should have taken the Kyle Singler rout and went to Europe. Other than not being ready for the NBA he severely lacks confidence. It would have been a great move.
Re: Luke Babbitt 16th pick in the 2010 NBA Draft!!!! Well, he was our top draft pick from a year ago.
I vaguely recall during the lead-up to the 2010 draft, Babbitt started to get mentioned as one of those mid-first round picks with a lot of boom or bust potential, but there was also a nice statistical analysis of his game (using synergy) Here's an excerpt: He wasn't necessarily the knock-down spot up shooter that he was supposedly billed as by some and wasn't especially geared to being an off-the-ball player like he has to be in the pros. The reason drafting him made me so nervous is because his profile was very Morrison-esque -- not especially athletic, but skilled and ball dominant as a college player -- Maybe if he was the focal point of the offense he'd reach his ceiling, but without exceptional speed or quickness (or coordination?) if the team invests a bunch of development time in this guy, what's the (likely) payoff? Hopefully I'm making my point: I don't hate the guy, I just don't care what they do with him.
