[Bosnian-Bobcats-FanParticipant]

how good do you guys think Bennett can be in the NBA?….

i really like his game sure he’s a bit undersized but his wingspan should help makeup for it he’s gonna be a tough cover for NBA 4’s due to his versatile skill set….

Where do you think he will ultimately be drafted? i feel like charlotte should try and trade back get an extra pick and pick bennett and someone else….let me know im interested in hearing everyones opinions!

[RUDEBOY_Participant]

There are times when he does look and play like UNLV Great Larry Johnson…But he’s not as talented as LJ…I think the best comparasion to him might be Clarance Weatherspoon….

[RUDEBOY_Participant]

He could go in the 4 to 12 range…Alot of people compare him to UNLV Great Larry Johnson..There are times when he does play like him,but he’s not as talented as LJ…I think his best comparision is Clarance Weatherspoon…….

[ilike.panochasParticipant]

Clearance Weatherspoon wish he had hops like Bennett. Bennett is a freakish athlete at 250lbs. I will hold off on the Larry Johnson comparison, but they do have similar tools and skill set, LJ also played couple years of Junior College before joining UNLV so his game was much more polished coming in his draft class. Elton Brand can also be a good comparison.

[Mr. 19134Participant]

Weatherspoon had like a 38 inch vert and was very explosive. Elton Brand actually measured 6’8.5″ BAREFOOT, Bennett might have trouble measuring that tall in sneakers.

And you’re right LJ was like 23 by the time he entered the draft.

[ZaratukParticipant]

I think the NBA spacing will help him alot and he should become a pretty good high post player. The only problem I have with him is that he really is bad on defensive rotation and lazy on that end. I believe it might held him back early in his career

[BigChamp12Participant]

I think he’s going to be good… really good, not a superstar or anything, but a really good player. He’s still raw at only 19tears old I think. I see him going into the league as a Pf that can eventually bounce out to the Small Forward, iin comparison to a Paul Milsap type player. In my own opinion, I think he’ll be better than Milsap. He’s WAY more athletic and stronger with a mean streak. and a nice jumper out to 3point range. And I dont even think his team gets him the ball enough or in the best spots.

[Ghost01Participant]

I think he could definitely go in the top 3. I’m pretty sure as of now he’s 2nd on the Bobcat’s radar behind McLemore. This guy has versatility, ball handling ability, 3 point shooting, and on top of that, he’s a really good post player. I think a team like the Wizards should really consider him as well. A lot of projections have them taking Noel or Porter. Porter is a nice fit, but why take on Noel when you still owe Nene a ton of money, and due to Okafor’s current play, it is no longer a given they won’t pick up his option for next year. Noel has very little offensive skill to begin with, and he’s going to have to rehab a torn ACL before getting out there. And the Wizards, since Wall has come back have been really good defensively. Give them a low post scorer, like Bennett, and suddenly along with Beal and Wall, you could see the team beginning to come together.

[BasketballJunkie224Participant]

i think he could be good, but i also think that as of late it is harder than ever to become really good in the nba. 1-450 (or however many guys there are in the nba) are the best athletes in the world but lets be honest from 300-450 probably arnt all the best players in the world but i mean for the most part the best players arnt going anywhere and the good players arnt getting that much worse season after season. so it is hard to come in and become a good player right away. i think bennett will do alright tho. dont think he will ever be an allstar but i mean i see no reason why he can start on a team at some point someday

[SiggyParticipant]

I think he’s overrated on this board. He’s softer than you’d think he’d be given his build and he’s an absolute turnstile defensively.
I don’t get the LJ or Millsap comparisons. Both were tough as nails and were more willing to bang. LJ was a much better playmaker as well. Bennett doesn’t make plays for anyone or even look to do so. He’s strictly a finisher. Millsap was a way better defender as well. That’s how Millsap has been able to flourish with tweener size. It’s not just his ability to hit jump shots, but he can defend both forward positions, has toughness and will mix it up. Bennett lacks toughness and can’t defend either forward position.
I think he’ll be more comparable to Al Harrington.

[Ghost01Participant]

Its pretty easy to ridicule every prospect in this draft on their lack of toughness and defense. And those who are good defensively are atrocious offensively and/or have torn ACLs. Shabazz Muhammad is a ballhog who doesn’t rebound, doesn’t pass, and doesn’t defend. Ben McLemore goes invisible way too often and isn’t great creating his own shot. Otto Porter is solid at everything, but not great at anything. Victor Oladipo has all the intangibles, but is so inconsistent from the outside he could very well end up being a defensive stopper and nothing more.

The point is, this draft is weak. And Bennett does enough things right to go in the top 5. And this site in comparison, to what the actuall experts are projecting really doesn’t overrate him at all.

[AwardedBallerParticipant]

He doesn’t rebound? He averages the same amount of rebounds as McLemore and Oladipo averages one rebound more than him, and he doesn’t defend? Have you seen a UCLA game this season? Come on, don’t speak out of spite.

[BigChamp12Participant]

I’ve been wondering why people say he doesn’t rebound. I dont even see where B Mac is that much of a better defender. I say B Mac is much more athletic than Bazz but he has no shot creation either. He’s just more efficient, and thats not about a lot. B Mac is the safest choice, but I dont think he’s too much better than Bazz.

[Ghost01Participant]

Not only have I seen a UCLA game…I actually read scouting reports. Most of the teams UCLA plays don’t have NBA players on them, and heres this, via Chad Ford, on Shabazz:

“A great athlete with NBA strength, Muhammad can score from anywhere. Although he appears to be more of a one dimensional player, he plays hard on every possession. Muhammad’s not an elite defender or great rebounder, and doesn’t get others involved, but he can get 20 points a night.”

Sorry if I was a little hard on him, but clearly this isn’t a guy who is projecting to be a very good NBA defensive player.

[ilike.panochasParticipant]

Have you even watch him play at all? You have no clue of what your talking about and just talking out of your a$$. Bennett is Soft??

Check out this clip, and how he physically abuses James McAdoo (a first round prospect) for an entire game and every facet. He was abusing him like a rag doll.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQ4Ye1o6A68

[SiggyParticipant]

Yes i have seen him play. He’s more Al Harrington or Derrick Williams than LJ or Millsap.
A player imposing himself on offense is different than a player who moves bodies on the interior, seals the help defenders, sets crushing screens, fights for positioning or even something simple like boxing out. If he wasn’t soft, he wouldn’t be as terrible of a defender as he is. Watching him play, it’s understandable why he sees himself as a future SF as opposed to a beast PF.
His size is deceptive. Bennett does not play as physically as someone you’d expect someone build would.
Bodying McAdoo isn’t much of an accomplishment either. He’s soft too.

[Ghost01Participant]

Your basis for calling him soft is he doesn’t set hard screens? Were you the same guy who thought OKC should give Kendrick Perkins 45 million dollars for setting hard screens? Where are all these “tough” big men in this draft? Cody Zeller? Alex Len? Mason Plumlee? Cuz those are all the guys going in the lottery.

Bennett has abused a lot of players in the paint this year. He has a good post up game, and clearly, you haven’t watched as much of him as you claim. Where are these big men that he getting abused by and “out toughed” against?

[SiggyParticipant]

No, my basis is that he does not play physically, in a lot of areas of the game and that’s been the case since HS where he should’ve been more dominant than he was given his physical characteristics.

The guy is built like a beast but sees himself as a SF. That should give you an indication of his mentality as a player.

Post game? No. He’s much more of a face up player than a post player.

[ilike.panochasParticipant]

What kind of physicality do you want from him. Anthony Mason was 6’7 260lbs who played point forward, and was a so-so defender, would you classify him as soft? Just because Bennett has some SF skills doesn’t make him a soft PF. And YES he does have a decent post up game for a 18 year old freshman who is far from a finish product.

You talk about he doesn’t set hard screens, or he is not a good defensive player, those things has nothing to do with how tough a guy is. Bennett is a #beast. Call him overrated, but he is far from soft that you describe him to be.

[SiggyParticipant]

I’d like to see him move bodies on the interior. The word “presence” comes to mind and Bennett does not have a physical presence. He doesn’t own the paint. For a guy with his physical ability he does a whole lot of ball watching, drifting on offense and just standing around instead of jockeying for position or doing any of the little things that physical, big men do. One of the major reasons why he’s such a terrible defender is because he does a whole lot of standing around instead of battling and doing his work early.

Mason played physically, so no I would not consider him soft. Bennett doesn’t, so yes, I consider him soft.

Playing physically has everything to do with being tough, at least from the physical standpoint. Mentally, he doesn’t look tough either. The link I posted above from a UNLV fan on this site touched on some of the same things I’ve seen from Bennett as well.

Bennett only looks like a beast but he has the mentality of a Derrick Williams.

[Ghost01Participant]

So first it was he wasn’t physical enough, now its he doesn’t have “presence”, what are you talking about exactly? He doesn’t “move bodies”? Like what you are basically arguing about is that he isn’t a scrappy player. Well, he isn’t. He’s a versatile scorer, and a polished post player for 18. Your argument doesn’t have one ounce of substance to it. He isn’t tough, because he doesn’t set enough screens and doesn’t play hard enough on defense. He doesn’t have presence because he doesn’t “Own the paint”. You are just using blanket statements without actually explaining why he isn’t good at what you are claiming he isn’t good at. As I have said, a lot of these prospects are flawed defensively, and I’m not arguing Bennett is an exception to this. But players tend to improve defensively as they get more mature. Every time I have watched UNLV, he shows a variety of ways to score the ball, and is very very versatile. I wouldn’t be worried about his height, because most NBA teams are playing stretch 4s and undersized guys at the 4 anyway. But the fact is, just because you don’t think he’s tough enough or he doesn’t own the paint are all just saying and words without actually demonstrating what you mean by that. He isn’t Joakim Noah. He isn’t Anderson Varejo. Duh. We know that. That isn’t his game, he isn’t a hustle player.

Its like saying if I started an argument against Ben McLemore, and stated he doesn’t play good enough defense, cause enough havoc and isn’t an elite passer. Well yeah, that’s not who he is, but you can succeed at shooting guard without being good at those things, just as you can succeed at power forward without doing the things you’ve mentioned.

[Ghost01Participant]

And again, where are these clips of all these big men just making him look soft and weak and taking advantage of his lack of paint ownership?

[SiggyParticipant]

I would post but I’d like to stay on this site.
Otherwise you’re not going to find many lowlights on youtube.

[SiggyParticipant]

Playing with presence and playing physically is the same thing for big men. It means not just standing around, relaxing and ball watching. It means doing your work early so you can establish and maintain an advantage. It means not letting yourself get backed down in the post. It means working more to bury your defender deep so you can get an easier shot closer to the bucket. It means chucking cutters and rooting bigs out of the paint on defense to prevent easy looks, deep position and to establish early rebounding position. It means using you physical size and strength to create easier opportunities for your teammates ( ie screens and sealing the help defender on drives). It means at least being a half decent help defender who discourages the opposition from driving.

Is that a better description? I already said most of that in a previous post in this thread, but I guess I had to reiterate. Bennett doesn’t do any of that. And I could go on. He doesn’t play like a big, he plays like a kid who happens to be talented and big. He has a massive advantage with his body strength, ability to take up space with his width combined with his athleticism, but he doesn’t use that advantage in plays other than when he’s trying to score. That ain’t tough. That sounds a lot like what Derrick Williams does.

And no he is not a polished post player. He is a MUCH better face up player than a back to the basket post player. He doesn’t work hard enough for post position to be a back to the basket post player, nor does he have a great feel or variety of moves with his back to the basket. It’s easier for him to hang around the elbows, mid-post and perimeter, looking for seams to catch the ball for either jumpers or straight line drives.

You’re right, he is what he is. And to me, because of the qualities that I think he lacks, he is more Al Harrington/ Derrick Williams than Paul Millsap or, sigh, Larry Johnson.

[DolanCareParticipant]

Bennett is great scoring down low. Not sure where the soft label comes from….. Now, does he sometimes shoot when he should be banging inside? Absolutely. But that lack of judgement is common for young players.

I think Bennett can be a good pro. IMO the only real problem I have with him is his health. Injury issues have followed him since High School, causing him to miss games and develop a scary reputation for scouts.

If he can stay right, I see him as someone who can average 17 and 8 in the pros.

[SiggyParticipant]

Here’s an interesting take on Bennett from a fellow poster and UNLV fan (who usually only posts about UNLV basketball). I’m sure he’s had a closer look at Bennett than most of us.
http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/jane-bennett

[delfamParticipant]

I agree he’s more Al Harrington than Paul Millsap. Maybe it’s just me but I don’t want my PF shooting three’s when he should be down low banging people.

I would never draft this guy. Maybe it’s just me but between him liking to shoot outside and being undersized for a PF I just don’t see him being a starter on a quality team. More like a good 6th man that can cause some matchup problems.

[trueone313detroitParticipant]

I see alot of laphonso ellis in his game. He not a true three or a true four but you can play him next to another tweener and he can be highly effective. He is good enough to stay in from of the average 3. I see him and I.Austin outta of baylor working good together If a team could get them both. Austin as a stretch 4 and Bennett as a post up 3.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PoTGDam-06I

[delfamParticipant]

Bennett cannot play the 3 in the NBA, he would get eaten alive on the perimeter

[20 out of 10]

Bennett is a Beast posterizing children. Al harrington only wishes he had Bennett’s athleticism.
.
Bennett makes dunking look too easy. His standing dunking is absolutely ridiculous, his standing reach allows him to easily put the ball over the rim and cock the ball all the way back before ferociously throwing it down.
.
Derrick williams is a Lebron James (Small Forward) type of dunker…. Anthony Bennett is a Faried (Power Forward) type of dunker.
.
.
.
Look at the dunk at 0:44, he’s a Beast at those.

[20 out of 10]

That dunk at 1:50m up there ^^ is INSANE from a Freshman….. when this dude develops, his dunks are gonna look like Stromile Swift’s

[20 out of 10]

Stromile Swift-ish
.
.
.
**Treats defender like a rag doll**

[20 out of 10]

Stromile Swift-ish
.
.
.
**Treats defender like a rag doll**

[ilike.panochasParticipant]

Every time I watch his games and in highlights, I see a guy with great motor. The guy averages 8RPG in just 26mpg. He will be a double double machine in the NBA.

[Ghost01Participant]

mess.ee, I’m glad to see there is someone else on this site that believes Bennett is one of the better players in this draft. Enough with these silly player comparisons, I think he is pretty unique. He is going to score and rebound in the NBA, and that fact alone gives him a leg up on most of this year’s lottery picks.

[ilike.panochasParticipant]

I just don’t see how Siggy can say Bennett is soft. Far from it. Zach Randolph has a bit of a finesse game for a 250lbs and a mediocre defender, I wouldn’t classify him as soft. Bennett has a ton of aggression in his game especially on offense, who just happens to have the ability to handle the ball and has a 3 point range.

[Ghost01Participant]

He basically has all the skills you’d want from an undersized 4. I know he isn’t a scrapper, but I’d take a polished player over one of those.

[Author]

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