Expectations for Wall

[verbal8]

i'm sure lebron's "entertainment group" is disappointed that wall isn't signing with nike.

Oh well there goes Ms. Cleo's prediction

[closg00]

All of those shoes are made by Chinese slaves anway.

[fishercob]

All of those shoes are made by Chinese slaves anway.

Yep. And Reebok and adidas are just divisions of the same company. I highly doubt that at this point there's any difference in performance quality between Reebok, NIke, adidas, Puma and Starbury for that matter. It's all about design -- and more importantly -- branding.

[keynote]

Yep. And Reebok and adidas are just divisions of the same company. I highly doubt that at this point there's any difference in performance quality between Reebok, NIke, adidas, Puma and Starbury for that matter. It's all about design -- and more importantly -- branding.

I disagree. Sure, most people buy sneakers based on fashion trends and subjective comfort, but there is a demographic of consumers who evaluate how basketball sneakers perform under basketball conditions. Hard core runners can tell the difference between some expense pair of Sauconys or New Balance performance running shoes and a pair of fashion-oriented Reebok Classics; hard core ballers can tell the difference between the Nike Zoom Kobe V and the Starburys. I used to consult Kicksology before buying basketball shoes. They don't update the reviews as frequently as they used to, but you get the idea.

Moreover, some shoes are designed for big men: the shoes are heavier, with greater cushioning and stability (e.g., Nike's "Force" line, any shoe with "Max Air"; Adidas' TS Commander). Other shoes are designed for backcourt players (e.g., Nike's "Flight" line, Zoom Kobe V, Huraches; Adidas' TS Creators) - they're sleeker, lighter with thinner cushioning solutions. This stuff goes way beyond pure aesthetics and brand recognition.

Some folks buy BMWs for the status, but there are plenty of people who buy them because they want a high performance sedan.

[fishercob]

I'd say we're both right. WIthin a reasonable range, there's little difference. I'm not saying that any Nike is the same as any Reebok. But you commented earlier that Reebok doesn't measure up from a performance standpoint to adidas. Maybe there are some design differences, but the materials , etc., are likely all the same given that they're made the same company.

[keynote]

I'd say we're both right. WIthin a reasonable range, there's little difference. I'm not saying that any Nike is the same as any Reebok. But you commented earlier that Reebok doesn't measure up from a performance standpoint to adidas. Maybe there are some design differences, but the materials , etc., are likely all the same given that they're made the same company.

Actually, I'm saying that Adidas (the parent company) deemphasized performance for the Reebok line for a few years now. Reeboks have been marketed as either trendy kicks (the retro "classics" line, including Pumps) or inexpensive, low-performance shoes - the most expensive hoops shoe on the Reebok site is $75. All of the higher priced, high-end performance sneakers (and, all of the associated high-profile endorsements) have been through the Adidas line. Now, that may change - for Wall's sake, I certainly hope so. But for now, it's clear that Reebok shoes aren't designed to compete performance-wise with Adidas' and Nike's high end shoes.

Now, before, when Reebok was a separately-held company: you're probably right. I personally didn't like Reeboks from a performance perspective, but your mileage may have varied.

[fishercob]

It's pretty astonishing that Reebok gave Wall $25M in this economy. Talk about expectations! The days of huge shoe contracts seemed to be gone. Reebok must be really, really sure about this kid who played one year of college ball. These are the kinds of decisions that can get people fired. Let's hope the Reebok guys know more than John Hollinger does.

[Ruzious]

Ted got a $10 mil kickback from Rebock to guarantee the Wiz pick him 1st.

I'm kidding, sheesh. Calm down.

But Ted is a good businessman...

[Kanyewest]

Rajon Rondo's shot in H.O.R.S.E. go to 5:40 and see Rondo knock down a bunch of 3s.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-LKYhuO7aM

I'm more interested to see Wall knock down jumpers in game. BTW, I noticed that the Lakers defense doesn't concede 15 footers to Rondo although they do let him take 3 pointers and 18 footers. I do think that Wall could extend his range but it'll take a lot of hard work.

[_H2O_]

16.6 PPG.

That's college.. round it off to the NBA then I guess you'd subtract?

[willbcocks]

“Hopefully I’ll get picked by the Wizards,” Wall said. “And if I do, yeah, I want (Obama) to come to the games. But before that, I want to play him in that game of H-O-R-S-E. I challenged him to a game of one-on-one and H-O-R-S-E, but as the president, I guess he backed down. He didn’t want to play, so I’ll convince him into that first and then invite him to some games.”

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=A ... zards-wall

[no D in Hibachi]

As I was watching the Celtics I couldn't help but think about how the future Wizards team compares favorably to them. Rondo is a blur who puts constant pressure on the oppositions transition defense, but at this point he's not the greatest half court PG. PP has nothing to do with transition offense, but the Celtics are best in the half court set when he is running the show. I anticipate something like this for the Wiz where Wall is the transition, push the pace PG and Arenas is the half court set PG.

The blueprint has been set for how to guard PG's who aren't very good shooters. Just sag off of them 10 feet and dare them to shot. Teams will play Wall like that until he proves he can consistently beat them with a jumper. It totally neutralized Rondo's effectiveness in the finals, which is why I just don't see Wall coming in and dominating right away.

I'd say: 13PPG 6APG 4RPG 2SPG

[montestewart]

As I was watching the Celtics I couldn't help but think about how the future Wizards team compares favorably to them. Rondo is a blur who puts constant pressure on the oppositions transition defense, but at this point he's not the greatest half court PG. PP has nothing to do with transition offense, but the Celtics are best in the half court set when he is running the show. I anticipate something like this for the Wiz where Wall is the transition, push the pace PG and Arenas is the half court set PG.

The blueprint has been set for how to guard PG's who aren't very good shooters. Just sag off of them 10 feet and dare them to shot. Teams will play Wall like that until he proves he can consistently beat them with a jumper. It totally neutralized Rondo's effectiveness in the finals, which is why I just don't see Wall coming in and dominating right away.

I'd say: 13PPG 6APG 4RPG 2SPG

Generally agree w/ all that, and I was thinking similar about Rondo and Wall. If I was putting together a team, I'd want Rondo no matter what, limitations and all, and I'd work with those limitations. They didn't just figure out how to guard poor shooting PGs, so people should be going in with their eyes open about Wall. Still, in Wall's college year he shot better (3P%, FT%) than Rondo in his two years together or separately. I'm not sure I'd call them identical in that department, and Wall's bigger too; I'd say Wall easily has the potential to be an overall better PG than Rondo and (based on his college stats) a much better shooter, and I hope he is, since he'll be chosen #1. Here is where I hope playing next to Arenas and competing against him in practice and informally could be fantastic for Wall's offensive game, giving him opportunities and helping him with his shot.

How do Wall and Rondo compare in pre-draft shooting drills?

[keynote]

ESPN's Sports Science fawns all over Wall:

Wall is faster than Paul and Deron Williams. He has the ups of Kobe Bryant, and the court vision of Steve Nash.

Wall also has the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, etc.

[montestewart]

ESPN's Sports Science fawns all over Wall:

Wall is faster than Paul and Deron Williams. He has the ups of Kobe Bryant, and the court vision of Steve Nash.

Wall also has the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, etc.

He better have the vest of Kevlar if he's coming into the Wizards locker room.

[Kanyewest]

^^ So he needs an imaginary vest for imaginary bullets...

[Hoopalotta]

Monte's the kind of guy who can't resists using a line like that whether he believes what he's saying or not. I've been known to go there as well.

[montestewart]

^
mos def

[Zonkerbl]

Is this the thread where a discussion of Prisbell's story about Wall would go?

Biggest controversy is him breaking to Wall that his Dad was in jail for murder:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 02948.html

Mike Prada weighs in here:
http://www.bulletsforever.com/2010/6/21 ... o-bf-about

But Prisbell goes into the greatest detail in this chat:
http://live.washingtonpost.com/john-wall.html

Particularly in answer to this question:
Alexandria, VA
Did you have any reservations about revealing the details of Wall's father's criminal record to Wall? It served the purposes of the story to have that revelation as the climax, but you inserted yourself into the story and into Wall's personal life.

A.Eric Prisbell writes:
I did. i was uncomfortable being in the position knowing such information that John may not have known (I didn't know what he knew before I talked with him). But when I got the records, it was then that I realized how long of a record the dad had. Before that, I just wanted to get the gist of what he had done if we had to include the background information.

Once I got the records, then I found myself in a situation that I found to be unsettling. I've been in a lot of odd situations in my career, but this made me uncomfortable. First, I wrestled with the idea of IF I should tell John, etc. But, hey, the driving force in his life is his dad, and he cherishes the memories from those prison visits. If I incldue that, how do I not include what the dad did and how long he was in there?

Then the question became how to do it. I talked all this through with editors, of course. We wanted to handle this with extreme care. We wanted to be sensitive, delicate, respectful. Both in how we wrote it and how I talked about it with john. I did not want to mention specifics with John, and I did not. John and I got into the heavy stuff about 12 minutes into a 45-minute talk. We talkd for a long while after that. The fact is: Even after I told John, it did not change his feelings toward his father. That says something pretty strong about John and his relationship with his father. The three words that jump out to me when thinking about John: humble, polite and mature.

I udnerstand reasonable people can and will disagree on the disclosure issue. But i am comfortable with the decisions we made because of how I handled it.
– June 21, 2010 11:40 AM

[AceDegenerate]

Just in case anyone missed this on ESPN:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4S1crnszmo[/youtube]