lets talk jeff taylor

[vincecarter4pres]

Just did this write up on Jeff Taylor if anyone's interested.

Comments welcome if you read anything you like... or don't like lol.


http://atlanticavenets.com/2012/06/11/s ... ff-taylor/

[NBA Fan 1234]

Great write up, dude. Spot on.

@maestro-I see him more as a sg (natural position), but could play sf for stretches of games. Depends on the matchup I guess.

[vincecarter4pres]

Great write up, dude. Spot on.

Thanks man.

He's one of my favorite players out of this draft and I think he'll be great value wherever he lands.

[Ruzious]

I think the red flag with Taylor is - other than his short reach - his age. Call it the Wes Johnson factor. He's 23 years old and was never much of a jump-shooter until his last season. Same thing with Johnson - and it hasn't carried over to the NBA. Never trust the sudden improvements of an over-aged prospect, imo.

[vincecarter4pres]

It's not really sudden improvement, it's been steady improvement.

[Ruzious]

It's not really sudden improvement, it's been steady improvement.

He was never much of a 3 point shooting threat until last season. Without that, he's not a prospect, imo.

[vincecarter4pres]

He gets to the rim with relative ease, is a top perimeter defender and has a very solid midrange game, along with getting out in transition while being a low maintenance guy who seems to have a good head on his shoulders and have no qualms about who he is as a player.

Also, his jumper took a giant leap in his junior season. He then worked on it like crazy and it became deadly this season.

I understand the concerns, but it's a mistake to automatically put a label on a player due to preconceived notions and pigeonhole them into a grouping based on wide sweeping assumptions instead of looking at each prospect and actual person case by case.

For every Josh Howard there are at least say 10 Antoine Wrights, for every Brandon Roy there are 10 Wes Johnson's, sure this is true.

But why is it a player who seems so obvious as a high level can't miss like a Faried, or a Granger, or a Ty Lawson is written off simply because there have been so many Wayne Simien's, Joey Grahams and Randy Foye's?

Projection certainly isn't an exact science or anything close, but why are there always 1 or 2 players every year that a majority of the draft savvy know should go high yet fall and then the rest of the basketball world is so stunned by their "inexplicable" success and effectiveness?

[lovethewire]

I think the red flag with Taylor is - other than his short reach - his age. Call it the Wes Johnson factor. He's 23 years old and was never much of a jump-shooter until his last season. Same thing with Johnson - and it hasn't carried over to the NBA. Never trust the sudden improvements of an over-aged prospect, imo.

The only problem with Wes is he was picked what 5th? Josh Howard was a steal because he was late 20's as will Taylor probably be, but those guys were also excellent defenders, Johnson wasn't

[Ruzious]

Guys, I'm not feelin what you're dealin <copywrite>. Firstly, Josh Howard was a MUCH better NBA player before his knee problems than Wes Johnson - no matter where they were drafted.

Second, Jeff Taylor has NOTHING to do with Faried, Roy, or any other outstanding player. People didn't rate Faried higher, because they were stupid. He wasn't just a very good rebounder, he was a truly great rebounder, an outstanding defender, and an excellent athlete - who - while lacking a jump shot - didn't really need one. And he wasn't 23 years old.

Taylor is a good athlete - who's short arms make him effectively under-sized at the 3. He was never a good college 3 point shooter until his senior year - at 23 years old. In his junior year, he improved from awful to barely adequate. If his 3 point shooting success doesn't carry over to the NBA, I doubt he makes it in the NBA. I won't discount the value of hard work, but at this point, Al Thornton is as positive a comp as I could give him.

[vincecarter4pres]

Taylor is a flat out elite athlete. One of the best athletes in this draft period.

He was a good 3 point shooter his junior year and became one of the best shooters in college his senior year.

These are both facts.

He's nothing like Al Thornton, that comparison makes my face hurt.

[pillwenney]

I don't understand why get overly concerned with prospects like Taylor and their ability to score on their own. Clearly that won't be his role at the next level. He'll be a defending/shooting role player.