Bball_Doctor

Honestly Kwame is one of the better players coming out of highschool and possibly the best of his draft class. He is rapidly improving and his numbers don't lie when stacked up against his peers:

Last year numbers:

57 G, 14.3 mpg, 4.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 0.46 bpg, .387 FGP, .707 FTP.

This year (So far):

31 G, 24.3 mpg, 8.1 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.42 bpg, .453 FGP, .744 FTP.

Now compare his second year numbers to other highschool draftees:

Kobe:

79 G, 26.0 mpg, 15.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg, .32 bpg, .428 FGP, .794 FTP.

Garnett:

77 G, 38.9 mpg, 17.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 2.12 bpg, .499 FGP, .754 FTP.

McGrady:

49 G, 22.6 mpg, 9.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 1.35 bpg, .436 FGP, .726 FTP.

Miles:

82 G, 27.2 mpg, 9.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 1.26 bpg, .481 FGP, .620 FTP.

O'Neal:

60 G, 13.5 mpg, 4.5 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 0.97 bpg, .485 FGP, .506 FTP.

Bender:

59 G, 9.7 mpg, 3.3 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 0.47 bpg, .355 FGP, .735 FTP.

Harrington:

50 G, 17.1 mpg, 6.6 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 0.18 bpg, .458 FGP, .703 FTP.

Lewis:

82 G, 19.2 mpg, 8.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 0.44 bpg, .486 FGP, .683 FTP.

Curry:

30 G, 16.4 mpg, 6.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 0.47 bpg, .487 FGP, .566 FTP.

Chandler:

30 G, 19.8 mpg, 8.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.23 bpg, .534 FGP, .629 FTP.

Although his numbers are not as impressive as Garnett's or Kobe's, he stacks up pretty well against the others. The only other I would say performed better is Miles. But seeing Kwame and Miles play, Kwame is much better where as Miles depended on passes and fast breaks. Kwame also has better range and shot blocking ability than O'Neal. In my opinion Kwame could be better than O'Neal offensively, definitely defensively a few years down the road. As a fan in T.O., Kwame out performs McGrady in his second year and his skills are more impressive although the two play a different game. Kwame easily destroys the other highschool players in his draft class and his performance against Chandler tonight showed that. Although Chandler is posting some better numbers than Kwame (but not by much), Chandler plays for a non playoff team and he could easily be the second or third option. Where as Kwame is behind Stackhouse, Jordan, and Hughes. Not to mention I have never seen the Wizards run a play for Kwame. Kwame has solid footwork and he can create his own shots. I believe if Kwame continues to develop and when Jordan retires and he gets more playing time (experience and no sitting on the bench does not give you any and Jordan's and Collin's criticism are not helping) he can develop into a top 3-5 PF in the next couple years. He has all the skills to be great defensively and a tear offensively. His range mimics a young Webber. Critics have to remember hat Kwame plays for a serious playoff contender with a super serious player who wants to get IT DONE last year (close) and this year. Therefore, since mistakes don't cut it and get you sent to the bench. The fact is Kwame did not get the advantages as most other number 1 picks...playing time (on a playoff contender with Jordan)...and more importantly a chance to learn from their mistakes on the floor instead of getting pulled. The guy is still 19 and if you look at his draft class other than Gasol, Kwame is the best player and he will probably develop into a more complete and dominant player than Gasol. My prediction is that he is an all star in 2-3 years. I just hope that the fans and club have patience and more importantly Kwame has patience and continues to work and improve. That is the novelty of having Jordan on your team...learn from the master...but please Jordan stop publicly criticizing this man becuase if you give up...the team will...the fans will...and more importantly Kwame might.

BCH

Nice post.

THey actually do run a play for Kwame, though I only saw it once tonight. You will see the Wiz go into a low 1-4 and send two guards across the lane rolling around picks on the block. The guard will get it on the wing and Kwame will seal his guy under the basket, and the guard will look to pass it to him with the bounce while he has his guy pinned. It is actually a nice little play to run once in awhile, and Kwame usually does fairly well with it. It probably isn't the only option but the do seem to look for it at least once a game.

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johnston797

Bball_Doctor, nice analysis overall!

Actually, I think Kwame is in a much better situation than Chandler & Curry. It's much more similar to Garnett's and Stoudamire's. He is the one young frontcourt stud with All-NBA potentialon a team with some nice vet talent. ( NOTE: Garnett and Stoudamire were the most talented big men ready to play right out of HS and would have succeeded in any envirnoment.)

Chandler and Curry are competing directly for time and it's really tough to have both on the court at the same time b/c of the mistakes that a 2nd year player out of HS makes.

As far as last year's draft class, I think Richard Jefferson is probably playing the best. But if all the players were redrafted today, I would not be shocked to see Brown and Chandler go 1 & 2 in some order. They both look to be much better defenders than Gasol in the future IMHO.

jazzy1

This is the best post on this subject I've read clearly the most thourough. I agree completely. Kwame Will be a star he has allstar level quickness and as stated a jumper that reminds me also of CWebb. He just needs to stay confident and agressive and trusts his game. Once he does that consistently he will be one hell of a player. Playing for MJ as his top pick is an amount of pressure I don't think people realize. Its buckled Kwame at times but he seems more resilent this year. Its a process that'll have him become a star.

NorthEast Wiz

Here is an exerpt from the 1/4/2003 Washington Times:

What has Collins happier about Brown's recent play has more to do with what he is doing off the court than on it.
On the team flight to Chicago on Wednesday, Brown paid special attention to the play of Chicago forward Tyson Chandler, who, like Brown, was a lottery pick out of high school in last year's draft.
Brown noticed that in the Bulls' win against Portland, Chandler scored most of his career-high 27 points on screen-and-roll plays. Brown promised Collins that he would not be taken advantage of in the same fashion by the 7-footer, and he was right. Chandler finished with eight points and four rebounds in 32 minutes.
"He paid special attention to the film, and I think he made it up in his mind that he was going to show the people of Chicago exactly why he was the number one pick in the draft," Collins said. "He's improving because he's working harder in practice; he's playing more attention to detail.

Hopefully Kwame sees the result of his hard work and continues tonight against the Pacers.

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BCH

Kwame had a couple of good offensive moves against the Celts. He had a pump fake, inside dribble dunk, and a catch and shoot from about 8 feet cutting across the lane. He was extremely active setting up for position on the post.

He played in the critical 3rd quarter, and didn't do bad at all.

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