This topic contains 1 reply, has 1 voice, and was last updated by AvatarAvatar Callahan_Devil 15 years, 3 months ago.

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  • #2997
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    thejsofa
    Participant

    Just winging it I like the rookies in the following descending order:

    Bayless
    Beasley
    Love
    Gordon
    Randolph
    Rose
    Mayo
    Green
    Hickson
    Thompson
    Walker
    Speights
    Roberts
    Alexander
    Jordan

    Just an educated hunch, with some late picks emerging and some first round busts.
    If Bayless does come on and Oden is healthy, no stopping Portland by the end of the year.

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  • #140511
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    Callahan_Devil

    I like the following rookies for their real value (potential) in descending order: Rose, Beasley, Westbrook, Love, Bayless, Mayo, Gordon, Randolph, Brook Lopez, JaVale McGee, Augustin, Speights, Batum, Hickson, George Hill, and Mario Chalmers. Mayo’s putting up big numbers because he’s THE FEATURED PLAYER on the Grizz because of the team’s lack of talent, their lack of shooters and the value they gave up for him. Don’t get me wrong, his confidence and his shot are superior, but he lacks the size, length and explosive athleticism at the 2 guard to ever reach star potential. Yet, there is still hope for 2 guards that lack these attributes, but his inability to consistently take the ball to the hoop and draw contact will severely hinder his potential. Brandon Roy is one of these 2 guards that still succeed without these physical attributes and that’s what makes these great players great, being able to consistently drive to the hoop, draw contact and go to the foul line for 8 or more easy points a game. It’s either Mayo is completely in love with the jumpshot, he lacks the body and aggressiveness to draw contact or he might be afraid to get injured by driving to the hoop. Mayo really reminds me of Ben Gordon. They both came into the NBA as 21 year old rookies and they both lack the size, athleticism, and aggressiveness to consistently drive to the hoop and draw contact. Mayo’s numbers are so far better in his rookie year, but he also plays 15 more minutes a game, and he’s only averaging 5 more points than Gordon did in 2004-2005. Just imagine what Gordon would’ve done in his rookie year if he had been with the Grizz this year. Also, after BG’s rookie year was over, he said his stamina wasn’t all their throughout the year. With Gordon as well as Mayo, their defense at the NCAA level just doesn’t seem to translate to the pros. His shot is so hot some nights that I can understand why he does shoot and doesn’t drive to the hoop, especially when his team is so bad. Besides Gay, he’s the ONLY real offense threat they have. Also, Rudy Gay’s passiveness is a giant attribute to Mayo’s numbers. After Kevin Love was done playing in the scrimmage between the Select Team and the Redeam Team he stated that he was so amazed by how ripped Boozer was and how ripped he would be in time. The Wolves are awful, but they are also terribly mismanaged. As seen with Ollie and Collins starting. McHale was right when he said that Love was the best big man in the 08 Draft, his lack of upper body strength, quickness and athleticism are a little alarming, but he’s never truly been on any kind of professional conditioning program. Especially last year when Ben Howland made him fatten up. If you look at him between his year at UCLA and the Wolves, he’s much slimmer in the waist, but he still has that massive lower body strength. Love really wants to get better and if you’ve heard him speak, he gets real giddy when he starts to imagine how he’s going to get better and better. He’s very confident in himself. For a PF or C his mid range game is in the top 10, believe me, I watch, he does not miss anything from 10 to 20 feet. These shots are not over guards either, they are over seven footers, I admit though, he does not have the upper body strength yet to take it over anybody. He looks a little scrawny up top, but as seen from his pre-draft measurements on draftexpress.com he does though have a standing vertical of 30″ and a step vertical of 35″, so don’t question his leaping ability, just the upper body strength to hold onto the ball and take it over a seven footer. It’s unfortunate that Love’s passing ability isn’t able to be fully utilized yet at the pro level yet, but with McHale taking over, he’ll give him every opportunity to fully utilize every ability he has. His pump fake for a rookie is awesome, you just don’t see that too often in Freshman draftees. Once he gets you up in the air, he will drive to the hoop off the dribble, or he will jump up to shoot and draw the contact. His ball handling skills for a big man are also above average. I see him being a Carlos Boozer – Bill Laimbeer type of player at his full potential. There’s always going to be an abundance of undersized sharp shooting 2 guards, that’s what the college game is based on, but players with breathtaking athleticism and skilled big men will always be more in demand because they’re a rare breed.

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