Post#2779 » by geiger » Fri Aug 8, 2008 1:28 pm
John Salmons coincidentally is a very good NBA player right now and is a likely starter this season. Bellinelli didn't get on the court last season, but it doesn't mean he won't become a good NBA player down the road. Summer League success doesn't always translate to NBA success, that's for certain - Nate Robinson was the MVP last season. However, skills are what they are - when you see a player that has prototypical size and athleticism for his position exhibit a strong set of skills as part of his production, that will usually translate well to the league. In other words, if it's a super quick guy beating kids who aren't good enough to be 3rd string PGs off the dribble all the time to get his points, it might not give you an insight into his subsequent NBA success. However, if you see a guy exhibit an all around game, solid 3 point shooting, mid-range pull up jumper, running off screens, and ability to take people off the dribble, and he plays well in the summer league, chances are that he will also be able to contribute to an NBA team.
Speights by the way did not outplay Smith by a wide margin. I watched every game. Their games were entirely different and Smith showed an excellent variety to his game, hitting jumpers, putting the ball on the floor, and even banging inside a little bit. Speights did abuse some guys not good enough to be back ups in Spain in the post, but his defense was attrocious and he showed that he needs to gain a lot of strength to be able to effectively play in the post against bigger, stronger NBA players.
