Jeff Van Gully wrote:malik959 wrote:HEZI wrote:Another great read
https://elitesportsny.com/2020/06/04/new-york-knicks-draft-profile-north-carolina-pg-cole-anthony/
Man what did anyone expect Cole to do with this sorry North Carolina team? Bacot was garbage, he is a slow footed big man that can't do anything outside of put backs. He shot less than 50% in the key, and basically played volleyball with himself under the rim. Leaky black shot 35% from the field and 25% from the three. Brandon Robinson was purified garbage, very inefficient and inconsistent. Brooks was the only other player that could be reliable and that's not saying much. The team was pure garbage.
When was the last time we had a point guard we could rely on to score? Lin? Do you remember how MSG reacted to him? Having a guard that can score in MSG is like the second coming of Jesus where New York becomes the talk in a positive way. Cole has the ability to create for himself and he's able to do it from all areas on the court. Giving him reliable players around him (Barrett/ Woods/Mitchell) helps to put him in a position to where he can put the weight on his fellow teammates. A Cole/Robinson connection would be the best thing sense sliced bread because unlike having Payton/Frank, Cole is a threat from outside so teams can not back off and just play Robinson. A Cole/Woods connection would be great too because a pick and pop option is possible unlike Payton/Randle where the ONLY option is to go to the hoops. Personally I wouldn't mind a Cole/Frank back court with RJ at the 3, but Bullock would work well too.
Now don't get me wrong I love Hayes and Haliburton, Haliburton being the safe bet, but are we as fans willing to wait another 3-4 years on Hayes? People on this board would call him a bust on the first week because he wont be good enough to push Frank out of the starting seat. Cole to me, although I don't feel like he will be that "Dame, Fransis, Marbury, B. Davis, Walls level of a star, I do see him as a Lowry, Conley, Murray level player. A guy that may not be that All Star player, but plays close to that level. Someone that you don't cringe when he goes to take an outside shot, someone that your not hollering "SHOOT THE DAMN BALL!" when he's open at the top of key.
The thing I like most about Cole is his confidence to take over when needed. He's caught a lot of flak for the same reasons Melo did when he was here. Get the ball with 2 seconds left on the clock after everyone else has failed and expect him to do something with the ball. We talk about efficiency and numbers, but fail to observe a players surroundings, oh player A doesn't pass the ball to player B who only makes 25% of the 10 shots he takes. Cole is my pick and will forever be my pick, if we don't get him I feel (like Donovan Mitchell or SGA) we will regret not picking him up.
i hear all that. but cole's shooting was abysmal. not a good look for someone whose biggest draw is his ability to "get his."
No it wasn't. His shooting was amongst the best in the nation. He was terrible driving inside but that was mainly due to running into walls that were built down there because of lack of spacing on the UNC team. He had trouble finishing around multiple defenders in the paint but his aggressiveness still earned him plenty of trips to the line, almost 6 per game. Those opportunities to finish in the paint should get much better in the NBA as long as he gets proper floor spacing.
