"I’ll say this – we’re not talking to teams about their second- or third-best player. If I’m going to put these types of guys on the market, then don’t waste your time talking to me about guys you don’t like. Nothing is imminent. … They know we’re open.”
Lets see...
1. Through the roof athleticism
2. A good handle
3. A fantastic work ethic
4. As a result of 3, fast improving jump shot.
I'm looking for the comparison to Carlos Delfino here, and I'm not seeing it. Oh yeah, plus he's American. Not a foreigner.
1. Athletic, but not springy. Two ACL tears have robbed him of that. He still has a good verticle, but he's slow off the ground and with his first step.
2. For an NBA guard, I would call his handle poor. He's not going to be able to get away with turning his back on defenders after two dribbles like he did in college.
3. All hustle and heart, which is why I like him. Will definately fight for rebounds.
4. He improved his college 3-ball, yes. Will probably be a decent shooter from the corners in the NBA. He does not shoot well off the dribble and has no inbetween game to speak of.
I compare him to Delfino because he's big and athletic and makes a lot of hustle plays, but his quickness and handle will really hold him back.
1. Athletic, but not springy. Two ACL tears have robbed him of that. He still has a good verticle, but he's slow off the ground and with his first step.
2. For an NBA guard, I would call his handle poor. He's not going to be able to get away with turning his back on defenders after two dribbles like he did in college.
3. All hustle and heart, which is why I like him. Will definately fight for rebounds.
4. He improved his college 3-ball, yes. Will probably be a decent shooter from the corners in the NBA. He does not shoot well off the dribble and has no inbetween game to speak of.
I compare him to Delfino because he's big and athletic and makes a lot of hustle plays, but his quickness and handle will really hold him back.
He wasn't a hundred percent during his sophomore season (actually freshman because of the injury) and you could see it from the look of his body. He got the opportunity to work out extensively since March and it's showing:
March 2008 - June 2008
He could build up his knees in a way he would have never without the injury. His pre-injury athleticism is back according to a lot of articles and scouts and that is a big plus. I agree that his handle right now is mediocre at best for a guard, that is something he will have to work on although it's gotten better. Again, he wasn't a hundred percent during the season and that effects his entire demeanor, agility and ability on the court.
Not only will he hustle, but he is also a bright kid and that is usually a good combination, even more so when you add a great work ethic to that.
1. Athletic, but not springy. Two ACL tears have robbed him of that. He still has a good verticle, but he's slow off the ground and with his first step.
2. For an NBA guard, I would call his handle poor. He's not going to be able to get away with turning his back on defenders after two dribbles like he did in college.
3. All hustle and heart, which is why I like him. Will definately fight for rebounds.
4. He improved his college 3-ball, yes. Will probably be a decent shooter from the corners in the NBA. He does not shoot well off the dribble and has no inbetween game to speak of.
I compare him to Delfino because he's big and athletic and makes a lot of hustle plays, but his quickness and handle will really hold him back.
1. Athletic AND springy. He has lost 25 pounds that he didn't have the time to lose after his last injury but before the most recent season. That springiness is back.
2. He's not going to project as a guard. He's going to be 6'8 and despite listings I'd bet he's 6'7 now. He still has some filling out to do as well. I think he's a SF.
3. Agreed!
4. Shooting can be learned. Remember what a spectacular three point shooter Rip Hamilton was when he came to Detroit? Neither do I. But he's put in the time, something everyone says Walker is willing to do.
He just seems like a natural fit for the Pistons.
__________________
DETROIT! Lets Restore the Roar!
We can all to that.
check.the.detroit.tigers.forum
1. Athletic AND springy. He has lost 25 pounds that he didn't have the time to lose after his last injury but before the most recent season. That springiness is back.
2. He's not going to project as a guard. He's going to be 6'8 and despite listings I'd bet he's 6'7 now. He still has some filling out to do as well. I think he's a SF.
3. Agreed!
4. Shooting can be learned. Remember what a spectacular three point shooter Rip Hamilton was when he came to Detroit? Neither do I. But he's put in the time, something everyone says Walker is willing to do.
He just seems like a natural fit for the Pistons.
Well, he's 6'6" until he's not. I don't think you can project growth.
Bill Walker's jumper is almost a set shot. He doesn't elevate and he pushes the ball too much. He can put in the reps to become a more accurate shooter, but he's always going to be held back by his mechanics. He doesn't have the speed on his release to become an effective mid range player. As a shooter, he'll never be much more than a spot up guy in the corners.
Well, he's 6'6" until he's not. I don't think you can project growth.
Bill Walker's jumper is almost a set shot. He doesn't elevate and he pushes the ball too much. He can put in the reps to become a more accurate shooter, but he's always going to be held back by his mechanics. He doesn't have the speed on his release to become an effective mid range player. As a shooter, he'll never be much more than a spot up guy in the corners.
And you don't see any of those things as fixable? I do. Players can improve their mechanics. Some guys succeed with crap mechanics and don't ever change (Prince, Marion, etc.) but it doesn't mean other guys can't change.
__________________
DETROIT! Lets Restore the Roar!
We can all to that.
check.the.detroit.tigers.forum
And you don't see any of those things as fixable? I do. Players can improve their mechanics. Some guys succeed with crap mechanics and don't ever change (Prince, Marion, etc.) but it doesn't mean other guys can't change.
Fixable to a degree. Maybe. By the time a guy gets to the NBA, he's usually passed the point of making anything but minor tweaks to shooting mechanics. Trying to make large changes can do more harm than good.
Anybody can become a better shooter through repetition, but shooting in the NBA is as much about footwork, balance, and instincts as it is accuracy. He doesn't have a fast release, he hasn't shown an in-between game, and he doesn't elevate.
Could that all change? I guess. But putting faith in a guy for things he's shown no proficiency at in the past but could conceivably develop down the road is getting into pretty strange territory.
That's not scouting or projection. It's a man-crush.
Portland has got nothing Detroit would even consider looking at.
I dunno...I would consider a deal of Outlaw, Frye and the #13 for Prince. However, Dumars has basically said that he wants to acquire a big-time player.
__________________ Chick Hearn: This game is in the refrigerator. The door is closed, the lights are out, the eggs are gettin' cool, the butter's gettin' hard, and the jellooooooo's jigglin'!
The 2009-2010 Los Angeles Lakers
PG: Derek Fisher, Jordan Farmar
SG: Kobe Bryant, Shannon Brown, Sasha Vujacic
SF: Ron Artest, Luke Walton, Adam Morrison
PF: Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, Josh Powell
C: Andrew Bynum, D.J. Mbenga
1. Denver's Carmelo Anthony, Chucky Atkins and No. 20 pick for Billups and Prince
This deal has already been rumored for a while. Nothing is imminent, in part because Anthony and Billups are base-year-compensation players. They can't be traded for each other until after July 1, when they lose that designation.
This move isn't as farfetched as it seems. The Nuggets are struggling and need some balance on their team. They're desperate for a point guard to run the team, especially one who can shoot. And they probably can't move Allen Iverson, Kenyon Martin or Nene, which appears to limit their two tradable assets to Marcus Camby and Anthony.
Anthony would give the Pistons a go-to scorer. He has struggled to keep his nose clean in the league, but there's no denying his talent. Playing with a more disciplined, structured team like the Pistons could be just what Anthony needs. Detroit would miss Billups' leadership, but Stuckey should be able to come in and hold down the fort.
But are the Nuggets getting enough for Carmelo? It's debatable. A backcourt of Billups and Iverson would be formidable. Prince is a glue guy who would add some defense. And Billups could help set an example in the locker room. But unless the Nuggets were to get great years from Martin and Nene, would they have enough to win in the West?
Another factor also speaks against the Nuggets pulling the trigger. Billups turns 32 in September. Anthony just turned 24. History says that, in the long run, the Pistons would win this trade.
But if the Nuggets decide they want to cut ties with Anthony and still compete for a championship, this may be the best option they're going to get.
2. Utah's Carlos Boozer, Ronnie Brewer, Jarron Collins and Morris Almond for Hamilton, Prince and Arron Afflalo
As a contender without the right pieces to get over the top, the Jazz are in a similar boat as the Pistons. Could this swap help both teams?
Utah would get two veteran wing players to shore up its two weakest positions on the floor. The Jazz would lose an All-Star in Boozer, but the move would allow them to shift Andrei Kirilenko back to the 4, where he thrived before Boozer joined the team -- and they have Paul Millsap to back him up. Also, Boozer has an early termination option after the upcoming season. I think the Jazz are concerned that he'll bolt Utah for a bigger market.
Detroit would be giving up two key wings but getting back a low-post scorer and rebounder in Boozer, something the team has needed the past few years. Stuckey would step in as the starting 2 guard. Brewer would give the Pistons a long defender who can play both the 2 and 3, and Almond showed a lot of promise in the D-League last year. The Jazz would still need to find someone to play the 3, but they have trade bait like Jason Maxiell or Antonio McDyess to make that happen.
This is a trade that would shake up the core of both teams while allowing them to compete for an NBA championship next year.
3. Dallas' Josh Howard for Tayshaun Prince or Richard Hamilton
Howard is a talented player, but he appeared to wear out his welcome in Dallas this spring with revelations, during the playoffs, that he smokes pot in the summer.
With the Mavericks desperately trying to compete for a title next season as their roster ages, adding a playoff veteran like Prince or Hamilton makes a lot of sense. Prince is a better fit in terms of position, but the Mavs could really use another scorer like Hamilton as well.
For the Pistons? They win either way. Howard can both defend and put up numbers offensively. If they were to swap Hamilton for Howard, the Pistons could find plenty of deals for Prince to bring them back something else they needed.
4. Charlotte's Gerald Wallace, Adam Morrison, Sean May and No. 9 pick for Rasheed Wallace and Tayshaun Prince
Larry Brown has a history of stepping into messy teams and immediately posting impressive results. But he'll struggle to do that in Charlotte unless he gets a few proven winners to put alongside some of the Bobcats' younger players.
This deal would reunite Brown with two of his favorite players from his run with the Pistons. Put Raymond Felton, Jason Richardson and a re-signed Emeka Okafor on the floor with Prince and Rasheed Wallace and you're looking at a playoff team in the East. The deal also would give the Bobcats some future cap flexibility should they want to make more additions down the road.
The Pistons would lose two core players but add an excellent scorer and defender in Wallace. At No. 9, a number of interesting big men could be available, including Kevin Love, Brook Lopez, Darrell Arthur, Marreese Speights and Kosta Koufos. As for Morrison and May? They both look like draft busts right now … but their contracts expire at the end of the season.
5. New Jersey's Richard Jefferson, Nenad Krstic (via sign-and-trade) and No. 10 pick for Rasheed Wallace and Tayshaun Prince
This is a deal that the Nets, especially, would be motivated to do. But it would have to wait until free agents could sign their deals in mid-July.
The Nets are trying to find ways to clear cap space for the summer of 2010 to be in the running for LeBron James. This deal would help them achieve that goal. While Prince and Jefferson both have four more years on their contracts, Prince makes roughly $4 million less a year than Jefferson. In the meantime, Wallace and Prince would keep the team competitive in the East.
The Pistons would get another big-time scorer in Jefferson. And Krstic looked like a potential All-Star big man before he tore his ACL about 18 months ago. He is finally getting back to 100 percent, and the Pistons could probably get him at a reasonable number to shore up their front line. With the 10th pick in the draft, the team would have to take whomever the Nets selected. But considering that all signs point to New Jersey going big here, it would likely be another big body who could help.
6. Houston's Tracy McGrady and No. 25 pick for Rip Hamilton and Rasheed Wallace
This is the least favorable option for the Pistons, but worth noting.
The Rockets flirted with moving McGrady at the trade deadline, but they couldn't find a deal that worked for them. Would the Pistons be able to help them out?
McGrady, like Anthony, is a go-to scorer, and at 29 years old, he still has some gas left in the tank. He averaged 27 ppg in the Rockets' last playoff series with Utah.
The key advantage for the Pistons? They would get some important, long-term cap relief down the road -- enough to make a run at a max free agent.
But there's a significant downside here. McGrady has never led a team deep into the playoffs. He also has a history of back problems and has missed significant portions of several seasons.
This deal would be a no-brainer for the Rockets, who would seriously upgrade their guard position and, with Wallace, would put the perfect complement next to Yao Ming.
The only deal I would do would be the Denver deal. The Charlotte deal is alright, but I think Rasheed could get us a bit more. Morrison is garbage.
The Denver deal is by far the best imho, and the Utah deal isn't bad. I don't really like the Charlotte deal aswell, why bother trading with Charlotte if we don't get emeka.
Sheed is too old to get you more. From Detroits perspective I would do the Denver deal in a heartbeat, the Utah deal, the Dallas deal for Prince but not Hamilton, the Charlotte deal, and the Houston deal.
That New Jersey deal is an effing joke. Why the Pistons would do that is beyond me.
__________________ Kevin Garnett - "I reached out to Antoine about the city...He gave nothing but compliments...I'm exictied...It's like being in a Lamborghini, going 200, head out of the window." Paul Pierce - "You done that, man?" Kevin Garnett - "I don't have a Lamborghini."
All Time Favorite College Basketball Players (that I have watched play, apologies to Russell and Havlicek):
PG - Ed Cota (UNC)
SG - Dwyane Wade (Marquette)
SF/PF - Jeff Adrien (UConn)
PF - Antawn Jamison (UNC)
C - Marcus Camby (UMass)
Detroit Pistons Off-Season Thread
to that.
Linear Mode
