NBA the slenderman cometh.

[BigFatCoward]

5 hours ago, Tywin et al. said:

The Chets are smacking the Wembys around. The Thunder could be a really scary team in the not too distant future with just the talent they have and they've got so many draft picks to play with for the rest of the decade. 

If the spurs continue to suck is there any obvious players at the top of next years draft that if paired with VW it would be frightening combo for years to come?  I have no knowledge or interest in college basketball. 

[BigFatCoward]

7 hours ago, Tywin et al. said:

The Chets are smacking the Wembys around. The Thunder could be a really scary team in the not too distant future with just the talent they have and they've got so many draft picks to play with for the rest of the decade. 

If the spurs continue to suck is there any obvious players at the top of next years draft that if paired with VW it would be frightening combo for years to come?  I have no knowledge or interest in college basketball. 

There is a great picture of the two stick insects going for the tip off, but i do find them so weird, why not just take turns. 

[Rhom]

3 hours ago, BigFatCoward said:

If the spurs continue to suck is there any obvious players at the top of next years draft that if paired with VW it would be frightening combo for years to come?  I have no knowledge or interest in college basketball. 

There is a great picture of the two stick insects going for the tip off, but i do find them so weird, why not just take turns. 

Some mock drafts have Justin Edwards of Kentucky at the top of the list... I'll be honest, I watched four exhibition games in Canada this summer, two preseason games, and now three live games and have yet to see him be our best player.  Whatever it is that NBA scouts see in him, I have yet to understand it.

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

5 hours ago, BigFatCoward said:

If the spurs continue to suck is there any obvious players at the top of next years draft that if paired with VW it would be frightening combo for years to come?  I have no knowledge or interest in college basketball. 

I don't really either, but my understanding is this draft class isn't very strong. The Spurs would be better off trying to trade for a disgruntled star and signing some quality vets. I just looked at their roster and Idk who a lot of these dudes are.

[Wilbur]

3 hours ago, Rhom said:

Some mock drafts have Justin Edwards of Kentucky at the top of the list... I'll be honest, I watched four exhibition games in Canada this summer, two preseason games, and now three live games and have yet to see him be our best player.  Whatever it is that NBA scouts see in him, I have yet to understand it.

I am the same way.

However, Calipari has an excellent track record in that he seems to prepare his players for the NBA, including a fair number of players who don't impress me in their time in Lexington.  Then a few years later, those same guys are key components for their NBA teams, and I scratch my head and wonder how that happened.

Look at this list, and point at any of them who looked like world-beaters on the floor at Rupp.  And John Wall should still be on there, had he not fallen into the basketball decision-making hellscape that is Washington.

On the other hand, I am easily fooled by players with great form.  Current freshman Reed Sheppard, Jeff Sheppard's son, has a shooting motion that is better than pain au chocolate and replicates that of Kyle Macy, but will it translate to the NBA?  His dad's didn't really do so, so who knows.

But to answer BigFatCoward's question, stick your hand into the UK grab bag and pull one of the players out, and they will likely provide another key piece for the Chetkins or Wembeleys in the future.

[Arakasi]

Beal is out for 3 weeks more now. Harden is a disaster as usual. Why do teams keep doing these stupid deals? Or why do stars demand them too. Like James should realize that Westbrook would never be able to be effective enough to reduce his minutes but also fell sway to picking up a has been to save the team.

[Proudfeet]

I'm struggling to see what the hype over Wembanyama is about. Its still early, but he looks really raw considering his hype and resume. Honestly, at this point, I think the Spurs are better without him. Especially if they insist on playing him on the perimeter.

[Wilbur]

11 hours ago, Proudfeet said:

I'm struggling to see what the hype over Wembanyama is about. Its still early, but he looks really raw considering his hype and resume. Honestly, at this point, I think the Spurs are better without him. Especially if they insist on playing him on the perimeter.

He is like the gal or guy that you spot in a middle management role who is efficiently doing all the right things, communicating clearly, accomplishing all the set goals, and has a happy team.  You see him or her and ask, "Why is this person in MM and not in the high potential track?"  (Actual reason: went to a state school, not related to anyone, changed careers, you know the drill.)

So you bring them into the executive stream, and for the first three months or so, there isn't anything to talk about.  Mainly because this HiPo is ignorant of the many resources available to them, the communication style is tighter and more demanding, and because the action is faster than they have experienced before.

But within three quarters, you know whether to promote them or counsel them out, as they will adjust to the demands of the role and the style of the other players.  (Or not.)

Same thing with Wemby.  He has high potential to do a lot of things, but he doesn't have fluency in the way the NBA flows yet.  So he will flash some wild skills, and then look sort of lost.  Also, his teammates are not A-team players, either, so they don't always optimize his potential.

[Arakasi]

It’s actually possible Ausar ends up the best here. Wemby and Chet are doing great but I always distrust big men staying healthy. Thompson is already an amazing defender even more so than the two bigs.

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

7 minutes ago, Arakasi said:

It’s actually possible Ausar ends up the best here. Wemby and Chet are doing great but I always distrust big men staying healthy. Thompson is already an amazing defender even more so than the two bigs.

Just stop. Wemby and Chet both have ceilings that can alter the game.  Asuar is a horrible shooting wing with the trajectory of the fourth best player on a good team. 

Speaking of Detroit, whoof, they continue to not develop players. Cade isn't bad, but he's also not a difference maker. Ivey has been incredibly disappointing. At 2-11 they're probably headed to a top four pick. Just a disaster of a franchise.  

[Arakasi]

Ausar is doing otherworldly things on defense and is a great rebounder. Yes he doesn’t have much of a shot yet and yes he plays for Detroit but if I had to guess which of these three would win DPOY it would be Ausar. He hounded and shut down Shai and has done some pretty crazy things defensively. I said caveat for me was the thin bigs staying healthy. Chet already lost a year and I just don’t trust someone Wembys size to stay healthy. Obv Ausar has to develop a shot first but the rest of his game is really good for a rookie.

 

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

He's also undersized. I wouldn't bet a penny his career turns out better than both of theirs. 

[Arakasi]

6’6/7” with a seven foot wingspan is undersized now? Okay. I do agree that the biggest risk is he doesn’t develop an outside shot. Not a lot of players come into league as bad shooters and become good. Then again the type of competition he was playing before the pros was not very structured and not against good competition. He didn’t need a shot back there.

I agree I’d be very surprised if he ended up better than Wemby. But at the same time I just see a tall gangly guy with little strength who could be injured at any time. For every Jokic there is tons of bigs who flamed out due to injury. If healthy I agree they should both be better. I just have little faith in that either big stays healthy. And Chet already has red flags there.

Edited November 18, 2023 by Arakasi

[Proudfeet]

1 hour ago, Wilbur said:

-snip-

The thing is, from where I'm standing, the expectations for Wembanyama are much higher than that. I'm not expecting him to hit the ground running from the first game, but I thought he'd be further ahead given the hype and his resume, having played professionally and being on the national team. 

As I said, he looks really raw. It doesn't even look like he has a basic go to move. It's not like he's Thabeet or anything, but so far all he has going for him is his length and relatively good athleticism. I'm not saying he's going to be a bust, he'll probably become a lot better just bulking up slightly, but he looks more like a fresh graduate with good academic qualifications than a seasoned middle manager.

Also, the Spurs might not be good, especially with Vassell out, but they generally look more fluent without Wembanyama. I don't know if its a coaching issue, but it looks really stilted when he is in. And I don't know why he's on the perimeter most of the time. Feels like he can be a little closer to the basket even when Collins is in.

 

@Arakasi Wilbur has already shared that on the previous page. Not sure if the Thompson twins are going to develop their shot anytime soon when they spent the past year doing that. Or maybe the shooting coaches on the Ignite are just terrible?

[Arakasi]

Oops missed that. I think there is a difference between prep competition in the US vs elsewhere. Simmons had Doc Rivers on the other day and they were taking about practices and games. In Europe they’ll practice six days a week and have a game. In the US they just play games and have no time for practice. Which I think does a poor job of developing skills on US prep players. My guess is this Ignite team played a ton of games and just blew teams out with superior athleticism. Likely didn’t leave much time for actually practicing your shot and such.

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

I'm convinced Gobert's hands are made of stone. 

ETA: Wolves with a crazy comeback win. They were down 14 midway through the fourth and it looked bleak.

Edited November 19, 2023 by Tywin et al.

[Wilbur]

6 hours ago, Proudfeet said:

...Also, the Spurs might not be good, especially with Vassell out, but they generally look more fluent without Wembanyama. I don't know if its a coaching issue, but it looks really stilted when he is in. And I don't know why he's on the perimeter most of the time. Feels like he can be a little closer to the basket even when Collins is in.

 

@Arakasi Wilbur has already shared that on the previous page. Not sure if the Thompson twins are going to develop their shot anytime soon when they spent the past year doing that. Or maybe the shooting coaches on the Ignite are just terrible?

You may be right on Wemby, but I really do think that the difference in FIBA vs NBA game play and officiating is wider than you might imagine.  This more than any other thing seems to take players a bit of time to transition, and Wemby is young, too.  The pace of the games, and the frequency of the games, is going to shock young players in particular.  And the constant losing.

With regards to the Thompson Twins shooting woes, the Ignite team is basically a top AAU team, and AAU teams have a tendency to be coached by individuals who need to Win Right Now, so personal development is not their highest priority.

Parents, if your kid has an immaculate, perfectly-rounded skill set and needs to harden up with some competition, that is the way to go.  If you kid has any holes in their game, chose carefully to find a coach who will put together such an individual development plan for the player and identify opportunities to demonstrate and measure those skills.  Sometimes winning a lot of games is great, and other times "winning" can be defined by how many times the players were able to execute a skill set or game plan during a game that shows as a loss on the scoreboard.

[Proudfeet]

1 hour ago, Wilbur said:

You may be right on Wemby, but I really do think that the difference in FIBA vs NBA game play and officiating is wider than you might imagine.  This more than any other thing seems to take players a bit of time to transition, and Wemby is young, too.  The pace of the games, and the frequency of the games, is going to shock young players in particular.  And the constant losing.

Agreed. There's a lot to learn and he's still young. And generally, I find that players who sat their first year due to injury seem more immediately ready to contribute than the newly drafted rookies. Not sure how Holmgrem is doing so far, but I thought that players like Griffin benefited from that year off.

Re: Thompson twins. They are actually from Overtime Elite. Sorry for the mistake, but think they are essentially the same. Thanks for the background explanation of the team.

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

Wemby had 8 blocks tonight. I can't imagine what he'll be like in five years assuming he can add some strength and mass and doesn't get hurt. 

Meanwhile Chet had 36/10/5. 

Edited November 19, 2023 by Tywin et al.

[BigFatCoward]

On 11/19/2023 at 5:08 AM, Tywin et al. said:

Wemby had 8 blocks tonight. I can't imagine what he'll be like in five years assuming he can add some strength and mass and doesn't get hurt. 

Meanwhile Chet had 36/10/5. 

He needs to call Giannis's trainer. He'll never be huge, but adding 5-10lb a year for the next 4 or 5 years should be achievable. 

Lebron is insane, honestly think he will be able to average at least 20-5-5 until he's 45. The scoring record when he finishes could be comical. 

Edited November 22, 2023 by BigFatCoward