basketballwacko2 wrote:pacers33granger wrote:Leaf likely didn't get much coaching as he ended up becoming a type of player we didn't have time to invest in. We certainly could have used a stretch 4, but when it became apparent he was more of a 5, there simply wasn't any room for him.
Honestly it was the report about him refusing to go to the G League to get reps that did it for me. I could give him the benefit of the doubt because of Nate's mediocre development with end of the bench guys. But he doesn't seem to want to work hard and/or smart to get better.
On draft night 2017 I was on this board screaming for John Collins now look what we got! An empty uniform. Collins shooting over 40% from 3 range, averaging 20 points and 10 rebounds and bocking 1.8 shots per game! This is one of the worst draft picks in Pacers history.
In all fairness, he (Collins) absolutely failed the interview and personal background check. With his drug test failures to get a 25 game suspension already, and the fact that Atlanta isn’t totally sold on him per reports (despite being a 20/10 young player who can block shots and shoot the 3, which should make him a complete keeper, he’s mentioned in talks all the time), we may not have missed there in that regard. OG with the injury may have been a health flunk.
But yeah, I’d still have liked to take the flier in OG. He was exactly what we were needing and looking for at the time in terms of that swing forward. And as bad as Leaf has been here, just a couple years of production from OG or Collins, if the red flags eventually prove totally true, would still be more valuable than what we’ve gotten from TJ.