RealGM

Explain this to me guys...

Perry Jones plays like Anthony Randolph, and the hype machine has this kid in the lottery. Fab Melo is a legit 7' kid with soft hands, decent footwork, good rebounding, good rim protecting, and a great learning curve.. and he barely cracks the top 20 according to [expert draft sites]

Is Melo Cousins-crazy or something? What am I missing here... why is this kid not a lock for the lottery?

i currently have him 17th this yr if he declares, which i think he will. i think he gets discounted because the one thing he does very well is tainted by the 'cuse zone.

i've seen some other improvement in him, but not enough to think he's a high upside pick. he's flashed decent touch and improved hands, but nothing advanced offensively. good, not great rebounder as well (better on the o-glass). looks more fluid and agile this yr, but his athleticism isnt tantalizing.

How many good defenders have come from Syracuse? That zone ruins people.

I think he could be slept on like Roy Hibbert was.

BrotherDave wrote:I think he could be slept on like Roy Hibbert was.

I agree... their whole system isnt going to make his boxscores look sexy. But he has incredible timing and a natural feel for the game defensively.. fantastic learning curve after watching him play last year. This kid screams productive NBA C, like an improved version of Samuel Dalembert.

My team needs a C so I probably put too much stock in him, but I have him as fringe top 10 in this draft, assuming Drummond returns to UConn

roy hibbert showed legit, translatable offensive skill and advanced moves in college.
melo hasnt.

Next Jason Collins

If he was a good rebounder Syracuse wouldn't be one of the worst rebounding teams in the country. They can't rebound defensively and are going to lose in the sweet 16 because of it.

Melos role is going to be as a 10-15 minute a game backup who makes a few impact defensive plays but doesn't contirbute enough on offense or at rebounding to become a steady 20+ minute a game player. I definitely think theres a strong posibility he contributes less than that, but I can't ever see him being a good starter or 6th man in the NBA.

I feel a similar way about him as a prospect as I did about Thabeet.

ManualRam wrote:i currently have him 17th this yr if he declares, which i think he will. i think he gets discounted because the one thing he does very well is tainted by the 'cuse zone.

i've seen some other improvement in him, but not enough to think he's a high upside pick. he's flashed decent touch and improved hands, but nothing advanced offensively. good, not great rebounder as well (better on the o-glass). looks more fluid and agile this yr, but his athleticism isnt tantalizing.

+1

Fischella wrote:Next Jason Collins

Way more athletic than Jason Collins.

Can't say I have an NBA comparison in mind though, it's hard to judge a big in Boeheim's system. He should be drafted at least 5 spots higher than he should because he looks like Bubbles from The Wire.

Jason Thompson?

Would be surprised if he's more than a warm body in the NBA. Just seems like one of those guys who isn't a natural born basketball player but can do some things because of his size, like when Solomon Alabi was in college

Mediocre rebounder. Might or might not be a competent defender, hard to tell. Inept offensively. He's a late first rounder because he's tall, but he's a poor basketball player.

Nazr Mohammed?

I like Melo, but he needs more seasoning. Another year in college will do him a lot of good.

BrotherDave wrote:Can't say I have an NBA comparison in mind though...........

Come on BD - I thought it would stick out a mile?

He's so much like Kwame Brown (the Bobcats vesion) IMO.

Big, fairly mobile (considering their size) unit with quick feet but limited upside.

BigSlam wrote:

BrotherDave wrote:Can't say I have an NBA comparison in mind though...........

Come on BD - I thought it would stick out a mile?

He's so much like Kwame Brown (the Bobcats vesion) IMO.

Big, fairly mobile (considering their size) unit with quick feet but limited upside.

i dont see that at all.
melo is bigger with greater length. mobile, but not nearly as agile and didnt have the quick feet that young kwame had.
also, kwame didnt get selected #1 overall out of HS because he had limited upside. he had a ton of upside.

i'll just throw this one out there. if he pans out: brendan haywood

Melo has far better hands than Kwame "Stone Hands" Brown. Melo reminds me a little bit of Tyson Chandler.

Cammo101 wrote:Melo has far better hands than Kwame "Stone Hands" Brown. Melo reminds me a little bit of Tyson Chandler.

That's not a bad comparison, game wise. Melo has shorter arms I think which doesn't let him get away with as much as Chandler but they have pretty similar games now that Melo has slimmed down.