moocow007 wrote:HarthorneWingo wrote:moocow007 wrote:
I've watched quite a few Westchester games thus far and my take is that Sanchez needs a LOT of work on his mental focus and overall intensity (consistent effort, etc.). Every once in a while (usually a couple times a game) he'll flash some moves that makes you think that he's a possible Boris Diaw type guy but then then he'll do something else (badly miss an assignment, throw a pass to no one, not box out...which is a HUGE problem for him..., take an awful shot, etc.) that makes you think that maybe he should go to some minor league of the D-League team to work on his game before being promoted to Westchester. Yeah. You know Jeremy Tyler would flash some brilliance but then just do things that makes you shake your head? Sanchez makes Tyler look like Tim Duncan in terms of inconsistency. Sanchez is kinda like Jekyll and Hyde just a whole lot more Hyde (unless you think Hyde is the better one in which case he's a whole lot more Jekyll). When he makes a great read and pass you think "wow great feel for the game", but when he plays poorly the general thought is "I'm not sure he's ever played competitive basketball before".
Sanchez is 26 years old, not a young guy either. So his chances of really getting things together and making the leap to the NBA (and staying in the NBA)? Not good IMO. Again, he has some intriguing skills, but he should be doing a whole lot more than he has so far which is not a good sign. If he wants to be the next Galloway, he needs to be able to at least dominate the bulk of his D-League opponents and show some solid consistency (no, being consistently inconsistent is not consistency) like Galloway had. Sanchez should look at his teammate, Darnell Jackson, if he wants to get an idea of what it's going to take to even sniff the NBA. Sanchez has a lot more skills than Jackson but right now Jackson (who has played in the NBA before) IMO is more deserving of a call-up because he consistently fights, plays hard, and does the right things.
Right now, the best bet as far as someone that can help contribute for the parent team is Thanasis. That's honestly pretty much about it. The Westchester Knicks are like the NY Knicks...relative to the other teams in their league, they are arguably among the least talented once you get past the one guy that stands out for them in some way. Anthony is the Knicks lone guy that looks great. Thanasis (pretty much for his defensive potential and overall upside) is (now that Galloway is not longer there) the long guy that looks good enough to at some point join the parent Knick team from the baby Knicks. I don't see anyone else on the Westchester Knicks roster having a shot in the NBA. Honestly? I'd take Ben Strong over Sanchez right now. Strong plays smart, is always in the right place at the right time and works real hard.
Thanks for the scouting report MC. I guess we'll have to get our forward help somewhere else. Hopefully, Early can improve so he can the SF position when Melo plays PF. Maybe there is help elsewhere in the D League.
As for Thanasis, it just seems like he still can't shoot from outside. But I haven't watched nearly as many games as you have. I check in every once in a while and every time I do I see Thanasis throwing up bricks.
Oh no question...his shooting is a problem. He'll definitely need to improve either that OR his ability to create off the dribble to justify any big role in the NBA. What works for Thanasis is that he's still young, he has legit NBA size and athleticism for the wing position (he would IMO be one of the most athletic players in the NBA right now if he were playing here) and he actually does play at 110mph every minute on the court. Right now that frenetic zeal is resulting in a lot of fouls but there's no question Thanasis love of the game. There's room there for him to either improve his shot or work on his shot creation off the dribble (his ball handling seems to be pretty solid so I would think that it's just a comfort thing with him and would believe that dribble drive might be easier for him to learn than shooting) and as he matures I think he'll learn that he doesn't have to try to steal every pass, block every shot, etc. to be a presence defensively. As of right now his career path is probably along the lines of a MKG. They share a lot of similarities.
Thanks Moo for the extra insight. I watched the last two games, so my insight is obviously just a little piece of what you've seen.
I agree with your insight on Thanasis & Sanchez. Honestly, the rest of the guys aren't showing much for me or are just way too old that they have no real future.
They should send Early and Wear down to Westchester more often, simply to let some of our current players play more minutes. If only they could pay the players in the D-League more, otherwise we'd have told Tyler to come back rather than playing in China. We just need to get younger and also need to cut these tweeners.
