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He kind of reminds me of someone most here never watched play. Nadav Henefeld. He was 6' 7", crafty, high IQ, hit threes and clutch shots. He was a winner and a big reason for the 1989-1990 UConn Huskies dream season, and keyed a stunning upset against Dikembe Mutombo and Alonzo Mourning. He signed a contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv. UConn won the Big East for the first time and made the Elite 8 only to be struck down by a miracle Christian Laettner buzzer beater to send the Blue Devils to the Final Four.

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From NBA.com

Strengths
Big enough to play PF, but has the ballhandling, creativity and playmaking skill of a PG… Aggressive offensive player who is in attack mode every time he steps onto the floor... Brings toughness, competitiveness and swagger.
Was learning how to play without the ball this season in a more compact role at the pro level. Elite cutter thanks to his strong feel for the game. Capable of playmaking out of secondary ball-handling situations.
Has made significant strides on defense. Covers ground well and plays with real intensity getting over screens, battling on the glass and rotating to protect the rim. Gets in passing lanes, blocks quite a few shots and rebounds well.

Improvement Areas
Mechanics have been tweaked repeatedly to the point that you rarely see him shooting the same way, sometimes kicking his legs out excessively or looking stiff with his release.
Struggles to create offense from a standstill... Reliant on changes of speed and using his body to create space, which might prove more difficult against NBA defenders.

An unathletic dude who can’t shoot

Cool. Sign me up.


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BigSlam wrote:An unathletic dude who can’t shoot

Cool. Sign me up.


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He is just as athletic as Luka, not sure why you are acting like he is Dario Saric out there.


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JMAC3 wrote:

BigSlam wrote:An unathletic dude who can’t shoot

Cool. Sign me up.


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He is just as athletic as Luka, not sure why you are acting like he is Dario Saric out there.


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Yeah he plays really aggressive on both ends. He won't blow past swarms of defenders but he's tricky and crafty with his pace and fakes like Luka. His BBIQ is high and he's literally addicted to the sport and doesn't take his talents for granted it seems in interviews. He's a professional. He will get better but I worry about his inconsistent mechanics (manifested in his foul shooting). I never really settled into a comfort zone watching him because I was not feeling any sort of rhythm. But then again, maybe he constantly tinkers because he's trying to get better. He has the potential to have great feel for the game once he realizes his abilities and more calmly manages his limitations. Kemba used to dribble into traffic out of control like Felton. He could only play at one pace.

That being said Luka is far superior as a passer, facilitator and handler. Avdija is clearly a secondary handler but we don't need a primary one with Graham out there.

Yeah there are plenty reservations to have about Deni but anyone that says he's unathletic hasn't watched him much, I would have loved him at 8 but I think 3 is still too rich for me.

His inconsistent mechanics made me feel something's off about him. Combine that with his change of pace tactics and it makes him seem struggling to get traction out there. But if you isolate change of pace you can appreciate the potential to employ it as a weapon like Kemba learned and Luka perfects.

JMAC3 wrote:

BigSlam wrote:An unathletic dude who can’t shoot

Cool. Sign me up.


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He is just as athletic as Luka...

Luka's not particularly athletic either? He just has great size and strength and otherworldly coordination and BBIQ. His physical intangibles are very meh other than plus size for his position.

JMAC3 wrote:

BigSlam wrote:An unathletic dude who can’t shoot

Cool. Sign me up.


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He is just as athletic as Luka, not sure why you are acting like he is Dario Saric out there.


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In traditional sense Deni is clearly more athletic than Luka.
He's actually 6'9" 227 lbs machine, one of quickest players of such size in open court, and he also can dunk and block shots quite well.
He's certainly not as talented as Luka and probably can't stop on dime as well as Luka (which is special kind of athleticism Doncic and for example Harden have)

KingCat wrote:He isn't my guy, but I hate the narrative that he is unathletic cause he is a white European. He has a pretty good first step and is def more athletic than Hezonga

He's athletic. Some on the Wolves board want him to be the pick. He fills the biggest need for us as an SF with good height. I personally want Wiseman.

JMAC3 wrote:I’m not saying he is close to Luka, but I think he can do a lot of the same things. Bigger guard/forward who can run the offense. Makes playing small guards who can shoot (Burke, Curry) but not great ball handler (rozier) more of an option.

Uses his mix of size, speed and skill to score. Luka uses his size the most once he gets inside, able to bump defenders off him and get some daylight- Deni could do the same with his size.

Makes playing positionless basketball easy- can shoot off the dribble at a decent rate- still needs to work on it though.

Has sneaky athleticism in open court and will dunk on you if you’re not careful.

I could see him being a 15-8-5 guy pretty easily.


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He's a bad a$$ in game dunker.

JMAC3 wrote:Also I’m a stickler for IQ. Basketball or street IQ it doesn’t matter.

Watching the interviews with Mike Schmitz, Luka seems the most put together out of the top 5 and he isn’t even speaking in his primary language...


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You just called Deni Luka

I have no idea what to make of this dude. I like Dean Demakis, but I think his assessment was maybe a little overly pessimistic. I'm baffled by this dudes shooting. His shot looks good to me, but the numbers paint a completely different story. I like his passing, IQ, size, versatility, and intangibles.

I think the questions for him are can he shoot?

Just how good is his defense really going to be? Will he be a solid versatile defender, but nothing special, or someone who is considered a real positive on that end, even if not technically elite?

Can he create offense and leverage his passing skill, or is he just going to be a glue guy at the next level? Hes got some decent athleticism and good size. His handle looks decent and there could be some potential there, but is it good enough to really make things happen?

Worst case in my mind is he is more athletic Dario Saric. Meaning he fails at the 3, he has to play the 4 full time and he is a 33% three point shooter who can pass a little.

Medium result is he proves to be a solid starter at the 3. Can get you 15 points a game, 4 assists, 6 rebounds on good percentages and decent defense.

The super win case is he becomes a primary ball handler on wing, he runs a ton of pick and roll. Develops an elite pull up three game and his averages are 22/7/9. All while being a high IQ guy who can help you win games.

Anything over that would pretty much be unrealistic to project, but I wouldn’t put a limit on this guy. I think he has the IT factor.


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JMAC3 wrote:I think he has the IT factor

Yeah, I kind of get that vibe from him too.

Look and I could be wrong about him, but one of the appeals to him for me is that he has a high floor and a high ceiling.

Even If he isn’t a transcendental talent he is still 6-9, can move around well, can dribble and pass above average for a guy his size, has decent shooting mechanics and has a good head on his shoulders.

That player can still play 25-30 mpg on nearly every team in the league.

I always ask myself how would a player look on rockets? Clippers? Lakers? Celtics? Warriors?

This is why I think PJ is so valuable, he would be the starting center on Rockets and he would be a perfect fit.


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Rob Dauster on Avdija:

wilson115 wrote:Rob Dauster on Avdija:

Watch on YouTube

His skillset and positional versatility make him an ideal fit for the Wolves.