Willie Cauley-Stein in review - stepping up in the post Boogie era - post 10

[City of Trees]

Willie's Rookie season advanced stats

DRtg: 107
ORtg: 119
TS%: .588
WS: 3.8
VORP: 1.0
PER: 15.3


Now a look at his Per Game stats

MPG: 21.4
FG%: .563
FT%: .648
Reb: 5.3
STL: 0.7
BLK: 1.0
TO: 0.7
PPG: 7.0
https://youtu.be/53zhIqSE614

Trill was as advertised in his rookie season. Came in ready to play and played well. I think this kid showed he has a lot of potential(scouts said he had limited growth potential during the draft process). I'm really happy with the pick, obviously i was calling for this dude when he was still in Kentucky.

What are your thoughts on Willie? Goals for next year under Joerger? Does he start? What should Willie be working on this summer? Let's talk Trill.

Sent from my Z970 using Tapatalk

[SacKingZZZ]

He was who he is for the most part. A not super productive big who will do the dirty work and run the floor hard. His impact on the game won't always be reflected in the stat sheet. He's a solid rotation, role playing big man.

Hopefully he can develop a solid spot shot, that would be a huge. He needs to get stronger. I'm not sure how much size he can add since he's a skinny dude to begin with and at 23 it's unlikely much physical maturing is around the corner. Also, Rondo created a good deal of offense for him so it will be interesting to see how it effects him if Rondo doesn't come back.

I still think he'd be best as that off the bench 3rd big since he can guard PF's and C's and because of that he'll find minutes much easier than someone stuck at one position. I'm interested to see if Joerger will let him continue to switch because when he did last year he wasn't terribly effective at it. But that may have had just as much to do with Karls twisted idea of playing super small on the wing while wanting to switch everything. You can't run 5'10", 5'10", and 6'3" on the wing and stand a remote chance with that defensive gameplan. Anyway, that's the past now, thank goodness... hopefully.

[KF10]

I think the guy still has a lot to learn -- which is strange because he was a junior from Kentucky and is already 22 years old (going to be 23 in August). He can still improve by a lot, imo. Whenever I see him play, the guy soaks a lot of information about the game and somehow improves on a game-to-game basis. Which is great.

Like SKZZZ said, he needs to get stronger and continue on making progress on his J. The defense will get there on its own and he has a very high ceiling in that aspect of the game. If he manages to improve considerably on the O end, he can be a very, very good player. Maybe not a legit star but a player that challenges DPOY, FG% leader, most lob dunks, etc in the near future.

[codydaze]

I think the most glaring thing I saw with Willie is he needs to improve as a rebounder because he has all the tools to pull down 10+ boards a night on a yearly basis. From what I saw, he would lean on his athleticism and think he could just outjump everyone to grab the board, which most of the time he can, but he doesn't get great position as a result. Once he starts to use his body and box out, the guy can be a rebounding monster.

[bleeds_purple]

He will break out next year if he hits the weights like he should. He got pushed around a lot on the inside and lost a lot of loose balls and rebounds due to lack of strength.

[SacKingZZZ]

I think the most glaring thing I saw with Willie is he needs to improve as a rebounder because he has all the tools to pull down 10+ boards a night on a yearly basis. From what I saw, he would lean on his athleticism and think he could just outjump everyone to grab the board, which most of the time he can, but he doesn't get great position as a result. Once he starts to use his body and box out, the guy can be a rebounding monster.

It would depend on what spot he plays. Remember, he's going to switch out and play tight on pick and roll and/or switch so him being planted at the basket waiting for rebounds isn't really his game. With Cousins I'm not sure it should be anyway. And you are right about the position aspect, but as for boxing out, he's going to have a tough time keeping stronger, lower center of gravity players out of the paint regardless. It's the give and take with someone like him.

[City of Trees]

Willie needs to finish stronger around the rim but that will come with improving his strength.

Sent from my Z970 using Tapatalk

[nolimit0820]

Obviously increased strength will elevate his game. It'd give him the confidence he needs to make tough plays. Simultaneously, the reason he is such a compliment to Cuz is his versatility on the perimeter, rotating, and quickness with his post defense.

Willie uses his athleticism despite his lack of strength to his advantage just as Cuz uses his strength for positioning to his advantage despite his lack of athleticism.

As he gets older certainly it'll help him be the anchor this team needs. look at what Steven Adams brings to the Thunder.

I'm hoping for a consistent 15 footer, 10-15lbs of muscle, and an increased motor. I want to see this man be a junkyard dog for this team

[teerfour+40LG]

I think the most glaring thing I saw with Willie is he needs to improve as a rebounder

Yup, defensive rebounding is where he needs to improve the most. We got outrebounded a ton last year, though it wasn't only his fault. Quincy wasn't a good defensive rebounder. All our guards except Rondo were bad defensive rebounders. Even Koufos had a bad defensive rebounding year for him.

[bwgood77]

Read on Twitter

[TacoBell]

I like the way he's been playing lately. Joerger did good to bench him earlier. If he stays motivated he can be amazing, if he gets complacent he'll probably be the next Javalle Mcgee.