Delete/Lock...Draft talk over in JPZ's thread....

[doitallpaul]

when's the next time we will see a senior be the number one pick??

 

[ehh]

Originally Posted by DoItAllPaul

when's the next time we will see a senior be the number one pick??

When the league abolishes the age limit rule and it's a HS senior. That or never.

 

[mjshoefanatic]

B-Griff

 

[i nasmatic i]

NBA Draft News: Tick.Tock. The NBA Draft is 20 days away and more and more teams are starting to talk to each other and among themselves on where they plan tospend their draft picks and with most of the upper echelon guys expected to conduct individual workouts in the coming weeks things will get interesting.

The LA Clippers have scheduled a Saturday workout with Blake Griffin which will be open to the media. Working out Griffin this week is smart for the Clipperswith most of the basketball world already in LA for the NBA Finals. Expect a lot of press to peek in on Blake's workout and the Clippers to get gobs offree press on it. Here are today's notes:

Watch Out Sam Young: Several league sources say Sam Young was by far the most impressive player coming out of the Oakland and Minnesota groupworkouts, if any one player seems to have generated positive buzz from the workouts it was Young although several players did well, Young is the name mostmention as the best player they saw. On the flip side B.J. Mullens did not show well in either workout which is sure to get the critics going again on howhe'll struggle at this level. Mullens is expected to start seeing teams individually in the next few weeks. Sources close to the situation said they stillexpect Mullens to be a top 20 pick, but that the odds he goes in the teens to a team willing to take a chance on him are far greater than a team in the top 12grabbing him to solve an immediate need.

DeJuan's Knees: Every year there is someone in the draft class that gets hit with a medical concern and it seems this year it might beDeJuan Blair. MRI's in Chicago revealed some minor concerns about his knees as Blair had both ACL's repaired in high school. The irony of the concernsis Blair has not had a single knee related issue since the surgery in high school, did not miss a single game or practice at Pitt and has had no soreness orknee related issues. That won't stop some teams from passing on Blair, or using the chance of future knee issues - which is almost silly considering howcommon knee tears are these days - as a reason to pass on Blair. One league source commented that if teams were just now hearing about Blair's ACL'sthey apparently did not do their homework on him as he was quoted in an interview with Draft Express talking about it and has been exceptionally open about hishealth. Blair is still expected to go in the top 15, but teams in the top 8 might shy away leaving a very talented and personable player on the board for the 9through 15 teams.

The Legend Of Tony Gaffney: In the draft process you occasionally come across a player that is easy to root for, in this year's classUMASS' Tony Gaffney is that guy. Underestimated at every level of play and told he could not achieve success Gaffney keeps plugging along and surprisingpeople. Gaffney has had the flu for the past few days which has not stopped him from training with a low grade fever, stopping periodically to take trips tothe nearby garbage can. Gaffney still gave a 100% effort in a recent workout, shooting the ball incredibly well and playing with energy. In an era when playerssit with sand in their shoe, Gaffney refuses to quit for any reason. If he's breathing, he's playing; likely why he was a stand out for both the Pacersand Bucks in recent team workouts, drawing considerable interest from the Milwaukee Bucks. Gaffney is a 2nd rounder for sure, but if you're looking forthis year's Luc Mbah a Moute it may be Tony Gaffney, a steal in the second round that you say "Where did this kid come from?". Gaffney isscheduled to see the Portland Trail Blazers in the next week so do not be surprised to hear his name mentioned in connection to one of Portland's threesecond rounders, he'd fit in nicely with the Blazers and be a fan favorite for sure.

Explaining Hasheem: There is little doubt Hasheem Thabeet is going to be drafted in the top 5 selections. NBA teams simply do not pass on7'3 players. How good Hasheem will be as a professional is really going to be up to him. A league source explained Hasheem's situation in such aninteresting way yesterday that it's worth repeating.

If you look at any of the great basketball talents, more times than not they chose basketball. They picked up the ball and started playing. When you're a7-foot African, more times than not the ball was put in your hands and you were told to go play and learn the game. Hasheem did not choose basketball,basketball was chosen for him. As was going to UCONN, as is the decision to be in the NBA Draft. This is a vocation for Hasheem not a dream, as a result thereare lots of questions about how good he'll be as professional, how driven will he be to be great? The team that draft's Hasheem needs to surround himwith guys that help him develop an affection and passion for the game, if he cannot or does not find that love for the game because of bad coaching, poorlocker room chemistry or bad team mates, he could be a huge failure. Great success in this league is rarely about talent, it's generally about drive anddetermination. How bad do you want it and what will you do to get there? Hasheem could end being more like Darko Milicic who approaches the game the same wayand less like Dikembe Mutombo who everyone around Hasheem hopes he can become. Thabeet will go top 5, the question becomes how long will he play in the NBA andwill he love doing it or just love the paycheck?

Is Maynor This Year's CDR: VCU's Eric Maynor is a great personality and very interesting to talk to, however more and more scouts andteam sources label him as this year's Chris Douglas Roberts, saying that you see the talent, but that in workouts he has been less than impressive and thathis stock is taking a tumble. Last year CDR was labeled a "poor workout guy" and slid into the 2nd round. This year Maynor who is among thenation's best closers in the fourth quarter, seems to be headed for a similar fate. This might workout out well for the Spurs who seem to be very high onMaynor and are hoping he slides to them at 37. The Spurs are in the market to buy a lower first round selection and word has it they are very high on OmariCasspi and may be able to nab him in the 20's. Casspi is not expected to pull out over draft position, he is pretty set on becoming the first Israeli toplay in the NBA and is more concerned with getting on a winning team than getting drafted high. The Spurs could end up with two very solid ready to playplayers.

Rubio And The Kings?: It seems the Kings might end up with their man after all, word is the Kings are working on a deal with Memphis to landRicky Rubio at #2, league sources say a lot is still up in the air and a deal is far from done, but should the two teams make a deal it is not going to includeJason Thompson as some have speculated. Any deal between the Kings and Grizzlies might include future draft picks but unlikely will include a roster player ofsubtsance. League sources contend that Memphis really does not have a lot of leverage in this situation as Rubio will not play for the Grizzlies. The Kings arewilling to deal for Rubio and unless Oklahoma City gets in the mix, moving down to #4 still fits Memphis' game plan. The Kings are preparing a contingentplan that could include grabbing Jordan Hill at #4, which would be a solid "win-now" move if the Grizzlies hold out for more compensation. Leaguesources say if the Grizzlies move down to #4, Tyreke Evans would be their man on draft night, which makes sense, considering Evans can play both point guardand shooting guard, backing up OJ Mayo and Mike Conley and would be immensely popular with the Memphis fan base.

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=12865

 

[bangdak]

interesting. still wish the knicks could get rubio and curry. oh well.

 

[nicedudewithnicedreams]

These rumors always change about if Rubio will play for Memphis or not... Please come to the Kings...

 

[bhzmafia14]

League sources contend that Memphis really does not have a lot of leverage in this situation as Rubio will not play for the Grizzlies.
If I hear this one more time.

When did Rubio say hewouldn't play for Memphis?

 

[hampisaboss]

There is no need for Rubio in Memphis the way Mike Conley played after the coaching change

 

[bhzmafia14]

Originally Posted by hampisaboss

There is no need for Rubio in Memphis the way Mike Conley played after the coaching change

Just like there was no need for Rose with the solid play of Hinrich at PG for the Bulls.

Yea right. The type of potential Rubio has and work ethic, he's worthchoosing at no.2 and making him your franchise PG. Conley played well the 2nd half of the season, but he lacks defense and is smaller than most PG's. Acombination of those two things don't match especially when your team as a whole is bad defensively already. Rubio will improve their perimeter defense andhas great size at 6'4. Him and an improve OJ as their defenders will definitely be a good start. Add in a PF that can play defense along with Gasol who isan average defender and will get better. Then, the only weak defender in the starting lineup would be Rudy which won't make him look that bad since therewould be 4 average or above average defenders in the lineup.

I would still rather keep Conley for a little bit before completely rolling with Rubio just to see how things pan out. All in all, Memphis does have theleverage. They're in control of their own destiny. They DON'T have to trade Conley away immediately and they DON'T have to trade the no.2 pick. Theworse case scenario is that Memphis chooses Rubio and he stays in Europe a few more years which will give Memphis more capspace to spend this off-season. Ihighly doubt that would happen, but if it does it won't be that big of a deal with the amount of capspace the team holds.

 

[bigmike23]

Just like there was no need for Rose with the solid play of Hinrich at PG for the Bulls
because rubio is a sure thing like rose was?

and almost EVERY scouting report on Rubio says his D sucks so how the hell will he help?

 

[osh kosh bosh]

Originally Posted by mjshoefanatic


B-Griff

Don't perpetuate terrible nick names please.

 

[doitallpaul]

Blake is that dude. Watching him at Oklahoma and just seeing how he plays the game and doesn't show emotions is real cool. He just plays the game and takescare of business and lets his actions speak. None of that B.S. going nuts over a bucket or jawing if a call goes against him. He also is a really personableguy and will be a good ambassador for the league.

 

[bhzmafia14]

Originally Posted by Bigmike23

Just like there was no need for Rose with the solid play of Hinrich at PG for the Bulls

because rubio is a sure thing like rose was?

and almost EVERY scouting report on Rubio says his D sucks so how the hell will he help?
Rubio has a higher ceiling than Conley does. Just like I'm pretty sure people knew Rose had a higher ceiling than Hinrich in his prime.

What scouting reports are you reading? Rubio was defensive player of the year in his league. He's bound to be an average defender in the NBA coming in ifnot better. I have yet to see a scouting report saying his D sucks.

If Memphis did trade down for the no.4, they should be able to unload Jaric's contract and get a quality player from Sacramento. If they also trade down,they better get on the phone via trade or free agency to get a low post thread (i.e. Boozer, Bosh, Stoudemire). A big man rotation of Gasol, Thabeet and Boozerwould be solid. I would still rather just take Rubio at the end of all of this though.

 

[frankie valentino]

Originally Posted by bhzmafia14

Originally Posted by Bigmike23

Just like there was no need for Rose with the solid play of Hinrich at PG for the Bulls

because rubio is a sure thing like rose was?

and almost EVERY scouting report on Rubio says his D sucks so how the hell will he help?

Rubio has a higher ceiling than Conley does. Just like I'm pretty sure people knew Rose had a higher ceiling than Hinrich in his prime.

What scouting reports are you reading? Rubio was defensive player of the year in his league. He's bound to be an average defender in the NBA coming in if not better. I have yet to see a scouting report saying his D sucks.

If Memphis did trade down for the no.4, they should be able to unload Jaric's contract and get a quality player from Sacramento. If they also trade down, they better get on the phone via trade or free agency to get a low post thread (i.e. Boozer, Bosh, Stoudemire). A big man rotation of Gasol, Thabeet and Boozer would be solid. I would still rather just take Rubio at the end of all of this though.




But see, that would require spending money, what in the Grizzlies history would suggest they would do that?

 

[bangdak]

Originally Posted by bhzmafia14

League sources contend that Memphis really does not have a lot of leverage in this situation as Rubio will not play for the Grizzlies.

If I hear this one more time.

When did Rubio say he wouldn't play for Memphis?
his agent did.
you really expect a player to come out and say, "hey i dont want to play for you?"
a lineup of gasol, thabeet and boozer would be scary and intimidating, but this team will be spending all its money on starters that they cant even have adecent bench.

 

[bhzmafia14]

Originally Posted by Frankie Valentino

Originally Posted by bhzmafia14

Originally Posted by Bigmike23

Just like there was no need for Rose with the solid play of Hinrich at PG for the Bulls

because rubio is a sure thing like rose was?

and almost EVERY scouting report on Rubio says his D sucks so how the hell will he help?

Rubio has a higher ceiling than Conley does. Just like I'm pretty sure people knew Rose had a higher ceiling than Hinrich in his prime.

What scouting reports are you reading? Rubio was defensive player of the year in his league. He's bound to be an average defender in the NBA coming in if not better. I have yet to see a scouting report saying his D sucks.

If Memphis did trade down for the no.4, they should be able to unload Jaric's contract and get a quality player from Sacramento. If they also trade down, they better get on the phone via trade or free agency to get a low post thread (i.e. Boozer, Bosh, Stoudemire). A big man rotation of Gasol, Thabeet and Boozer would be solid. I would still rather just take Rubio at the end of all of this though.

But see, that would require spending money, what in the Grizzlies history would suggest they would do that?
Well the fact that they gave Pau a max deal, signed Posey, Cardinal and had one of the highest payrolls during their 3-year playoff stint it wouldbe very likely. That's what outsiders looking in don't get. Heisley spends money, but he's going the route of building through the draft. He hassaid that if he finds a player that will put Memphis into playoff contention (via free agency), he will go after him. They did offer Josh Smith an offer sheetlast off-season and they gave him the amount of money him and his agent were asking for. So, yea that history gives them a strong possibility.

his agent did.
you really expect a player to come out and say, "hey i dont want to play for you?"
a lineup of gasol, thabeet and boozer would be scary and intimidating, but this team will be spending all its money on starters that they cant even have a decent bench.
People claimed his agent said that, but it was clear that Chris Wallace talked to Dan Fegan and he told him "He doesn't mind Rubioplaying in Memphis as long as they weren't committed to Conley at PG." That's exactly what happened with that. The fact is, Memphis shouldn'tback down because the guy says he's not going to play in our city. I'll pick him anyway and force him to stay overseas if he's that arrogant to doit which I don't think he is. Same situation with Yi and Milwaukee.

That's another concern with the bench. If Memphis did go out and sign Boozer, they will have to extend Rudy (if they keep him) that next summer. Then youwould have to extend Conley, Gasol and OJ soon after that. If Memphis were to get Boozer, they would have to be going into playoff contention next season or atleast close to it. They should be in the playoffs competing for a spot in the West Finals or barely missing it by 2010-11 IMO.

 

[i nasmatic i]

Originally Posted by Frankie Valentino

Originally Posted by bhzmafia14

Originally Posted by Bigmike23

Just like there was no need for Rose with the solid play of Hinrich at PG for the Bulls

because rubio is a sure thing like rose was?

and almost EVERY scouting report on Rubio says his D sucks so how the hell will he help?

Rubio has a higher ceiling than Conley does. Just like I'm pretty sure people knew Rose had a higher ceiling than Hinrich in his prime.

What scouting reports are you reading? Rubio was defensive player of the year in his league. He's bound to be an average defender in the NBA coming in if not better. I have yet to see a scouting report saying his D sucks.

If Memphis did trade down for the no.4, they should be able to unload Jaric's contract and get a quality player from Sacramento. If they also trade down, they better get on the phone via trade or free agency to get a low post thread (i.e. Boozer, Bosh, Stoudemire). A big man rotation of Gasol, Thabeet and Boozer would be solid. I would still rather just take Rubio at the end of all of this though.

But see, that would require spending money, what in the Grizzlies history would suggest they would do that?
When they were making the playoffs, they had salaries around $60 M...not extremely high, but not extremely cheap either.

 

[bhzmafia14]

1	Eddie Jones	$14,576,250
2	Pau Gasol	$10,993,000
3	Lorenzen Wright	$7,700,000
4	Mike Miller	$6,750,000
5	Brian Cardinal	$5,393,300
6	Shane Battier	$4,903,000
7	Damon Stoudamire	$3,750,000
8	Bobby Jackson	$3,375,000
9	Jake Tsakalidis	$2,900,000
10	Raul Lopez	$1,744,313
11	Troy Bell	$1,478,280
12	Dahntay Jones	$1,223,160
13	Hakim Warrick	$1,196,520
14	Antonio Burks	$641,748
15	Anthony Roberson	$398,762
16	Lawrence Roberts	$398,762
17	John Thomas	$103,443

That was the last season the Grizz made the playoffs in 2005-06. The guy had no choice but to rebuild with young talent and at least give worthy contracts toplayers that he got to see develop. Lorenzen Wright was making 7.7 mil

.

 

[i nasmatic i]

Off-topic, but Lorenzen Wright provided me with one of the funniest stories I've ever read:

"Lorenzen Wright and Jerry West verbally went at it big time in late August regarding the center's demand to be traded. The tension chilled a bitwhen the Grizzlies president called several teams as Wright watched, just to educate him on how little interest there was in him. Obviously, the moment Westcan trade him for anybody of vague import, Wright will be out of Memphis."

.

 

[nicedudewithnicedreams]

Memphis screwed up when they traded Battier away for Gay... I was pissed at the time (Rockets fan), but it worked out actually. They never made the playoffswithout Battier. Memphis will probably screw up again and trade the wrong the player away once again. Nothing against Memphis, but they screwed up with theGasol trade and it has affected every team in the West. As a non-Laker fan, it is easy for me to root against Memphis now...

Anyhow, I don't know what is going to happen with Rubio. He is traveling to the US to meet with Memphis, OKC, Sac, and NY so hopefully we will hear moreabout his preference. If the Kings really wants Rubio, they better make a trade. I would hate to see any player refuse to play for a specific team in order foranother team to select him. Not a good look.

 

[bhzmafia14]

Originally Posted by I NaSmatic I


Off-topic, but Lorenzen Wright provided me with one of the funniest stories I've ever read:

"Lorenzen Wright and Jerry West verbally went at it big time in late August regarding the center's demand to be traded. The tension chilled a bit when the Grizzlies president called several teams as Wright watched, just to educate him on how little interest there was in him. Obviously, the moment West can trade him for anybody of vague import, Wright will be out of Memphis."

.

I don't even remember that happening, but I do remember he wanting to be traded. Lorenzen thought he was a top 10 center in the league in Memphis. He hadsome great games, but sometimes he just pissed me off on the court. I remember during one of the first seasons in Memphis, he had a 30-point, 20-rebound gameagainst the Mavericks.

Memphis screwed up when they traded Battier away for Gay... I was pissed at the time (Rockets fan), but it worked out actually. They never made the playoffs without Battier. Memphis will probably screw up again and trade the wrong the player away once again. Nothing against Memphis, but they screwed up with the Gasol trade and it has affected every team in the West. As a non-Laker fan, it is easy for me to root against Memphis now...
I do have to agree with you to some extent with the Batter for Gay trade. With the team we currently have, I would much rather have Battier at SFand add a star PF. The fact that Rudy is selfish and has no defense just makes him unbearable sometime. He's got too much talent to just be an offensivethreat.

The Pau trade was only bad because he was traded to LAL. Memphis isn't the only team that have made deals like this. I kinda hate it had to be LAL that hewas traded to, because then it wouldn't have been such a hyped up deal. If Memphis traded Pau to Milwaukee for the same type of assets, there wouldn'thave been a big deal in the media about it. I'm still waiting to see what Memphis does with this capspace they got from the trade. We traded Crittenton,Marc Gasol - definitely be a starting center for years to come, Darrell Arthur - depends on his work ethic whether or not he takes it to the next level andnext year's 2010 pick. All in all, I'm not mad about the deal because if we get something good with the available cap space then it would make the deallook even. Pau just didn't work here in Memphis, so he had to be dealt.

 

[nicedudewithnicedreams]

Originally Posted by bhzmafia14

Originally Posted by I NaSmatic I


Off-topic, but Lorenzen Wright provided me with one of the funniest stories I've ever read:

"Lorenzen Wright and Jerry West verbally went at it big time in late August regarding the center's demand to be traded. The tension chilled a bit when the Grizzlies president called several teams as Wright watched, just to educate him on how little interest there was in him. Obviously, the moment West can trade him for anybody of vague import, Wright will be out of Memphis."

.

I don't even remember that happening, but I do remember he wanting to be traded. Lorenzen thought he was a top 10 center in the league in Memphis. He had some great games, but sometimes he just pissed me off on the court. I remember during one of the first seasons in Memphis, he had a 30-point, 20-rebound game against the Mavericks.

Memphis screwed up when they traded Battier away for Gay... I was pissed at the time (Rockets fan), but it worked out actually. They never made the playoffs without Battier. Memphis will probably screw up again and trade the wrong the player away once again. Nothing against Memphis, but they screwed up with the Gasol trade and it has affected every team in the West. As a non-Laker fan, it is easy for me to root against Memphis now...

I do have to agree with you to some extent with the Batter for Gay trade. With the team we currently have, I would much rather have Battier at SF and add a star PF. The fact that Rudy is selfish and has no defense just makes him unbearable sometime. He's got too much talent to just be an offensive threat.

The Pau trade was only bad because he was traded to LAL. Memphis isn't the only team that have made deals like this. I kinda hate it had to be LAL that he was traded to, because then it wouldn't have been such a hyped up deal. If Memphis traded Pau to Milwaukee for the same type of assets, there wouldn't have been a big deal in the media about it. I'm still waiting to see what Memphis does with this capspace they got from the trade. We traded Crittenton, Marc Gasol - definitely be a starting center for years to come, Darrell Arthur - depends on his work ethic whether or not he takes it to the next level and next year's 2010 pick. All in all, I'm not mad about the deal because if we get something good with the available cap space then it would make the deal look even. Pau just didn't work here in Memphis, so he had to be dealt.
But really though... What assets did Memphis receive from LA? I guess this was done for a financial reason and the fact that Pau would be wastinghis prime years in Memphis, but still, none of these assets that Memphis received will ever amount to what Pau brought to Memphis and is now bringing to theLakers. While Battier's contributions will be overlooked for the rest of his career, the MVP of Memphis during their brief stint in the playoffs had to bePau. Trading their best player away like that was a bad look. Trading an All-Star caliber player for Kwame... This is another example of even though Memphiswill give you a big contract, they will not keep you for the whole contract. And it wasn't Pau's fault that Memphis started sliding after the Battiertrade anyways. Anyhow, that's two players already, Battier and Pau, that Memphis traded away with the other teams now clearly being the winners in thetrades.

I don't know Rubio, so I don't know how he feels about loyalty... But Memphis has not shown much loyalty in terms of keeping you in both bad and goodtimes. Maybe it's their GM or owner's fault, but they just like to trade good players in their prime for so called assets back in the future...Although the trade for OJ Mayo was a good look!

 

[i nasmatic i]

The Gasol trade really looks bad with the Lakers in the Finals and the Grizzlies picking in the lottery again, but the trade can still be salvaged if theGrizzlies use the money they freed up on free agents this off-season. Marc is a quality center, DA has potential and they got another first round pick (albeita late one) coming next year. Pau's a very good player but he wasn't going to help the rebuilding process. I think there was a deal on the tableinvolving the Bulls, but they didn't offer the cap space that the Lakers did. The years prior, they could have gotten Tyson Chandler and Ben Gordon, butthat would have tied the Grizzlies up in terrible contracts. The Celtics were offering their young talent too, but outside of Al Jefferson no one is/wasworthwhile.

 

[af1 beast]

Jerry West lol that was messed up.

 

[bangdak]

Originally Posted by bhzmafia14

his agent did.
you really expect a player to come out and say, "hey i dont want to play for you?"
a lineup of gasol, thabeet and boozer would be scary and intimidating, but this team will be spending all its money on starters that they cant even have a decent bench.

People claimed his agent said that, but it was clear that Chris Wallace talked to Dan Fegan and he told him "He doesn't mind Rubio playing in Memphis as long as they weren't committed to Conley at PG." That's exactly what happened with that. The fact is, Memphis shouldn't back down because the guy says he's not going to play in our city. I'll pick him anyway and force him to stay overseas if he's that arrogant to do it which I don't think he is. Same situation with Yi and Milwaukee.

That's another concern with the bench. If Memphis did go out and sign Boozer, they will have to extend Rudy (if they keep him) that next summer. Then you would have to extend Conley, Gasol and OJ soon after that. If Memphis were to get Boozer, they would have to be going into playoff contention next season or at least close to it. They should be in the playoffs competing for a spot in the West Finals or barely missing it by 2010-11 IMO.
his agent doesnt mind? since when do the agents decide

even so, conley is shaping up to be a nice point guard. i dont know why theywould trade him.
the thing is, he may not be arrogant enough to do it, but is REQUIRED to pya 8mil dollars to his buyout if he wants to stay. why would he pay to play for ateam he doesnt not want too? w/e, enough of this speculation.
imo, trade gay. he doesn't help this team at all. the pau trade wasn't that bad at all. they basically swapped pau and marc, while pau was an instantimpact whil marc was perfect for a team rebuiliding, trying to learn the fundamentals. plus, they got cap space.
you're reaching with the playoffs predictions bro.