Why the Suns will not draft Shabazz Muhammad

ATF · Post #1 » by **ATF** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 2:26 am

Anthony Bennett. Far and away the best prospeft of this weak class after Noel. Bennett should be first or second on Lance and Lon's wish list, regardless of what Bleacher Report's crack team of ball geniuses might have you believe. And with a guaranteed top 5 pick, he just might fall into our laps.

[youtube]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0oekBTHJOL4[/youtube]

YouTube · Post #2 » by **Kerrsed** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 3:02 am

It depends who all is on the board. I think they will give him a shot and have him ranked a lot higher than others. I also believe the kid can ball, and UCLA wasnt the right program to showcase his talents, which happens to alot of blue chip recruits. College ball and NBA ball are two different monsters. Most of the guys you see that are kick-ass in college end up sucking in the League. I tend to look more so at how well they preformed in HS and in games like the McDonalds All-American game to get a better feel for what they can bring to an NBA team.

I think that Shabazz will end up surprising alot of people. I think he will end up as a better version of OJ Mayo, which is not a bad thing in my book.

phrazbit · Post #3 » by **phrazbit** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 3:39 am

I think a lot of people dont view Shabazz as the guaranteed point producer they once did. Unless we slip out of the top 5 I'd imagine the Suns will have several players higher on their board.

ATF · Post #4 » by **ATF** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 3:54 am

Better Mayo is definitely not a bad thing.

To me he reminds me a lot of Bernard King. He's got that sweet turnaround in the paint and a sweet stroke overall. He's also not afraid of contact, that confidence is why i don't see him having trouble scoring in the big leagues.

ATF · Post #5 » by **ATF** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 4:04 am

phrazbit wrote:I think a lot of people dont view Shabazz as the guaranteed point producer they once did. Unless we slip out of the top 5 I'd imagine the Suns will have several players higher on their board.

I don't think his stock fell that much. He still scored pretty decently and was freshman of the year in the pac-12. I still think big, natural scorers with his ability and competitiveness hold a place in GM's hearts

Revived · Post #6 » by **Revived** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 4:19 am

Some guys have games that are better suited for NBA than the NCCA. I think Shabazz is one of those guys.

phrazbit · Post #7 » by **phrazbit** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 4:25 am

Most boards I've seen have dropped him to 8th or lower.

I think the way he plays has raised a lot of red flags. He does not have the handles or quickness to play SG, his natural position given his skills is SF, but he is 6'5" and will be one of the shortest forwards in the league. In college he scored a ton of his points bodying up smaller wing players on the interior, he wont be able to do that as a pro where he will be constantly be guarded by guys who are bigger than him. So with his strength largely negated by the size of NBA defenders and his speed and handles already looking mediocre by college standards, it will be interesting to see how he adjusts to scoring as a pro.

Post #8 » by **rsavaj** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 4:59 am

Seems like a poor man's Mayo to me. Not sure his game will translate to the NBA.

Frank Lee · Post #9 » by **Frank Lee** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 5:51 am

ATF wrote:....
To me he reminds me a lot of Bernard King. He's got that sweet turnaround in the paint and a sweet stroke overall. He's also not afraid of contact, that confidence is why i don't see him having having trouble scoring in the big leagues.

man... thats stretching quite a bit... clearly you have some BazzLuv

This guy was a quiet killer... would drop 40 on you with ease. He could get his shot off on anyone.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vlFxT009Sc[/youtube]

Gorilla Warfare · Post #10 » by **Gorilla Warfare** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 8:37 am

Suns will draft Cody Zeller, because we are stupid.

thamadkant · Post #11 » by **thamadkant** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 8:46 am

If everyone else is gone (Noel, Mclemore, Oladipo etc)
I'd consider Shabazz... But if I was Babby / Sarver I would also tell Hunter to develop him even if messes up defensively... Or one of the Van Gundy's or Sloan will be head coah...

I am struggling to fathom how Hunter would give Shabazz 30 minutes with Wesley Johnson, Dudley and Tucker all willing to hustle defensively....

And Shabazz is not "small" for a small forward... He is over 6'6 in shoes and 6'11 wingspan... Many actually thinks he has bulked up his upper body which makes him a bit thick to be a quick SG...
And his dribbling is under rated...
If players like Tony Allen, Klay Thompson and Raja Bell could start as SG.. Shabazz would be OK... I've seen a video of him training on his dribbling... I don't see how he doesn't improve after 1-2 off seasons of committed development on his weaknesses.

ATF · Post #12 » by **ATF** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 11:04 am

Obviously if Anthony Bennett or Noel fell to us, you take them in a heartbeat.

SunZel · Post #13 » by **SunZel** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 1:43 pm

ATF wrote:Obviously if Anthony Bennett or Noel fell to us, you take them in a heartbeat.

No, that is not obvious...Want nothing to do with Bennett.

Fo-Real · Post #14 » by **Fo-Real** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 2:27 pm

I am sure that a lot of the opinions on players are going to change come time for pre draft workouts for both teams and fans. Right now my best options if we got the laker pick would be Oladipo at our pick (if Mclemore and Noel are gone, witch they will be), and Poythress with the Flaker pick.

Frank Lee · Post #15 » by **Frank Lee** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 3:24 pm

Poythruss is staying in school.... wisely. If we are fortunate enough to get a second lotto, I hope we can root out a solid prospect.

Morning Fo

Fo-Real · Post #16 » by **Fo-Real** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 3:28 pm

Damnit!!!

Jarlaxle0204 · Post #17 » by **Jarlaxle0204** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 4:09 pm

I think the Suns draft board should look something like this:

1. Noel
2. Mc Lemore
3. Oladipo
4. Shabazz

I doubt we miss out on one of those top three before getting to Shabazz but you never know. I don't know if Shabazz can play the 2 and it looks like there will be way better SF's in next year's draft. Personally I would prefer to draft either Mc Lemore or Oladipo this year. If we wind up getting the Laker's lotto pick I wouldn't mind taking a chance on Adams and just stashing him in the D-League for awhile to let him develope.

TruthTelling · Post #18 » by **TruthTelling** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 4:19 pm

Shabazz is of course getting underrated quite a bit. If you look at only his short college career then you have a point on the other hand he was unanimously #1 rated high school player.

Not to mention UCLA is a mess and Westbrook, Afflalo and Holiday turned out pretty good.

Would be shocked if Muhammad would not turn out to be at least as good Afflalo.

Obviously he has flaws, every freshman does.

If Shabazz can't be a 2 then Oladipo surely can't be a 2 either.

Mjee · Post #19 » by **Mjee** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 6:02 pm

I actually would like to see Shabazz in a Suns Uni next season.

We need a scorer who can get us 18-20 points a night. Right now we don't have a player how can do that. I don't care if his defense is iffy. We can work on that. We can't teach someone to have that scorers mentality and that what Shabazz has.

Jarlaxle0204 · Post #20 » by **Jarlaxle0204** » Fri Apr 5, 2013 6:14 pm

Mjeezy2006 wrote:I actually would like to see Shabazz in a Suns Uni next season.

We need a scorer who can get us 18-20 points a night. Right now we don't have a player how can do that. I don't care if his defense is iffy. We can work on that. We can't teach someone to have that scorers mentality and that what Shabazz has.

I worry that he will be a blackhole on offense though. See Beasley, Brown. Everything I've seen points to him being a bit of a ballhog. His assists are also pretty low. I'd rather have a real nice shooter like McLemore. Dragic penetrates in and if there's nothing, kicks out for the open 3.

Will the Suns draft Shabazz if available?