ballocks

i'm a firm believer that size itself is far less important to a player's game than the way he uses his size. shelden williams, for example, was born to play in the paint. his arms are active, he views shotblocking as a real option and he doesn't look around before attacking the glass. he's not naturally gifted but he knows how to utilize the gifts he does have. that's an underrated trait, imo.

the fact of the matter is that, at least to date in his career, andrea bargnani is quite the opposite. he won't block/alter shots unless he surprises himself (i think he can work on that), his reactions to go to the glass are very slow and delayed- as if he's seeking permission to grab the ball- and he is imo a player who defends as if he's always waiting for help to arrive. these are things that make him seem much, much smaller than he is.

will it change? hard to say. confidence is the operative word. some people eventually get it, some never do. as a european kid, i know nothing about andrea bargnani's upbringing/personality, so i can't even hazard a guess at this point. the team would have to make the call on that one.

peace