Hawks Wave Tavares

[tbhawksfan1]

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Maybe he'll forgive us andd come backs...?

[Jamaaliver]

I'd be down with another small money contract for him to be a backup...particularly if Doncic gets drafted here.

I doubt he'd come while Budenholzer was here though.

Tavares doesn't seem a good fit in his system.

[kg01]

I'd be down with another small money contract for him to be a backup...particularly if Doncic gets drafted here.

I doubt he'd come while Budenholzer was here though.

Tavares doesn't seem a good fit in his system.

Walter wasn't a good fit for any NBA team's system ... Budz' fault?

Just toss him on the scrap heap of non-NBA players Hawks fans fall in love with for some odd reason. Up (or down) there with Jordan Crawford, KJ McDaniels, Dwight (heigh-ohhh).

[macd-gm]

I'd be down with another small money contract for him to be a backup...particularly if Doncic gets drafted here.

I doubt he'd come while Budenholzer was here though.

Tavares doesn't seem a good fit in his system.

Walter wasn't a good fit for any NBA team's system ... Budz' fault?

Just toss him on the scrap heap of non-NBA players Hawks fans fall in love with for some odd reason. Up (or down) there with Jordan Crawford, KJ McDaniels, Dwight (heigh-ohhh).

This is what worries me about Doncic. Supposedly it's such a great Pro league but guys like Taveres can go over there and tear it up while they can't even get off the bench/make a roster in the NBA. I watch the games and everyone is moving so slow and there is so much space to pass the ball.

[kg01]

I'd be down with another small money contract for him to be a backup...particularly if Doncic gets drafted here.

I doubt he'd come while Budenholzer was here though.

Tavares doesn't seem a good fit in his system.

Walter wasn't a good fit for any NBA team's system ... Budz' fault?

Just toss him on the scrap heap of non-NBA players Hawks fans fall in love with for some odd reason. Up (or down) there with Jordan Crawford, KJ McDaniels, Dwight (heigh-ohhh).

This is what worries me about Doncic. Supposedly it's such a great Pro league but guys like Taveres can go over there and tear it up while they can't even get off the bench/make a roster in the NBA. I watch the games and everyone is moving so slow and there is so much space to pass the ball.

It's a legit question to ask. I get that he's putting up great stats for a guy his age against men but ... it's not insulting to ask about the degree to which it'll all translate.

I'm expecting him to be more like a Hedo Turkeyglue honestly. Point-forward, facilitator, not a huge scorer, not a #1. If that's the comp, I can't take him with a top3 pick.

And I don't want to hear the "oh he'd be great in Budz system". Sap was great in Budz system. Alice was great in Budz system. What'd that get us in terms of being a contender sans a real alpha? Zip, zilch, nada, nathaniel.

I want us to stock the roster with guys who are high level regardless of system.

[Jamaaliver]

I'd be down with another small money contract for him to be a backup...particularly if Doncic gets drafted here.

I doubt he'd come while Budenholzer was here though.

Tavares doesn't seem a good fit in his system.

Walter wasn't a good fit for any NBA team's system ... Budz' fault?

Just toss him on the scrap heap of non-NBA players Hawks fans fall in love with for some odd reason. Up (or down) there with Jordan Crawford, KJ McDaniels, Dwight (heigh-ohhh).

Seriously. This wasn't a shot at Budenholzer. It's clear he just didn't have much use for Tavares is all.

But Edy played a single game for CLE at the end of the season and looked pretty amazing. He had 10 rebounds and 6 blocks in 24 minutes in a (admittedly meaningless) game at season's end. He then got injured and missed the entire playoffs.

I have to think he could at the very least be a situational, defensive backup Center. Seeing him be productive in the 2nd best pro league in the world reinforces that.

I believe he could be especially useful to us, since we've been a sub par rebounding team for most of the past decade.

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[kg01]

I'd be down with another small money contract for him to be a backup...particularly if Doncic gets drafted here.

I doubt he'd come while Budenholzer was here though.

Tavares doesn't seem a good fit in his system.

Walter wasn't a good fit for any NBA team's system ... Budz' fault?

Just toss him on the scrap heap of non-NBA players Hawks fans fall in love with for some odd reason. Up (or down) there with Jordan Crawford, KJ McDaniels, Dwight (heigh-ohhh).

Seriously. This wasn't a shot at Budenholzer. It's clear he just didn't have much use for Tavares is all.

But Edy played a single game for CLE at the end of the season and looked pretty amazing. He had 10 rebounds and 6 blocks in 24 minutes in a (admittedly meaningless) game at season's end. He then got injured and missed the entire playoffs.

I have to think he could at the very least be a situational, defensive backup Center. Seeing him be productive in the 2nd best pro league in the world reinforces that.

I believe he could be especially useful to us, since we've been a sub par rebounding team for most of the past decade.

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If any of that were true, he'd be in the NBA. Walter is a statue.

[Jamaaliver]

^I guess. He was named defensive player of the year for the NBA minor league system and then signed by the reigning champs directly thereafter.

But...I suppose he's only able to have success in Euro ball.

He's no Ryan Kelly, that's for sure.

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[Jamaaliver]

With a new coach and system coming, I'd really be okay with bringing him back into training camp:

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[atlantabbq99]

^ This is one reason to be skeptical of Luka Doncic, alot of NBA bust can easily get stats and awards in such a weak league.

[dms269]

Tavares is just playing in the wrong decade.

[macd-gm]

^ This is one reason to be skeptical of Luka Doncic, alot of NBA bust can easily get stats and awards in such a weak league.

definitely my concern as well.

[Bob8]

^ This is one reason to be skeptical of Luka Doncic, alot of NBA bust can easily get stats and awards in such a weak league.

maybe I’m missing something but Tavares’s stats are totally unimpressive. 6.5 points and 5.5 rebounds. The best scoring game, 14 points.

http://www.euroleague.net/competition/players/showplayer?pcode=005791&seasoncode=E2017

the same goes for Randolph with 8.8 points and 4 rebounds.

http://www.euroleague.net/competition/players/showplayer?pcode=005757&seasoncode=E2017#!E2017_PO

[Bob8]

Nice interview,

http://www.euroleague.net/final-four/belgrade-2018/news/i/8qiu48k5q8rdti9y/conversation-with-walter-tavares-when-i-had-that-opportunity-i-went-for-it

[Jamaaliver]

Nice interview,

http://www.euroleague.net/final-four/belgrade-2018/news/i/8qiu48k5q8rdti9y/conversation-with-walter-tavares-when-i-had-that-opportunity-i-went-for-it

Thanks, Bob.

Tavares is in a unique position to become the first player from Cape Verde to win the EuroLeague, which would make a lot of people in Maio proud of him.

"A lot of people in Maio watch my games," he says. "My mom calls me and tells me her house is always full of people watching our games! Watching her son win the EuroLeague would be a big thing for everyone."

Unfortunately for Edy, his mother will not attend this Final Four due to visa problems, though he will have his fiancée there for emotional support.

[Jamaaliver]

Dude is productive

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[jayu70]

Dude is productive....

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Here, let me finish that sentence for you.....Except in the NBA!

[Jamaaliver]

Edy Tavares: 'I feel like I can play in any team in the world'

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It was August 2009, and Walter hardly knew how to play. But his height, the coordination of his body and an unquenchable interest in learning, made him a diamond in the rough. He would make his ACB debut at the age of 20, in January 2013 - four years after first touching a basketball.

His skills couldn't go unnoticed in the United States, where the Atlanta Hawks picked him in the second round (number 43) of the 2014 Draft. Alas, the American adventure turned into frustration for the Cape Verdean big man who had already grown into 2.21 meters. Tavares had eleven NBA games with Atlanta in his first season with the Hawks, spending a good part of time in the G League. The same happened in his second year.

"All the players want to practice, and then look forward to playing. You're not there to practice all the time and never play," Tavares tells BasketNews.

"So, you end up getting frustrated and not liking basketball so much because you feel like you can't take that step further to be able to play, or prove that you can be in this league."

Q: How is it possible that the most decisive center on the continent only played 13 games in the NBA?

Edy: I think it was the lack of opportunity. I was practicing and sweating, trying to prove that I could play and have a place there. I haven't been as lucky as Rudy Gobert, who ended up in the Utah Jazz that trusted him from the beginning.

I was unlucky enough to get into a bad team. I was in Atlanta that didn't compete for the playoffs, and the coach didn't trust me that much either. It's not just a question of timing or the time period. I just didn't have a chance.

It all depends on luck, and whether the coach wants there; it's not about the GM brainwashing you and telling you that you have to come because "you're going to be a great project for the future."

The coach must want you there, so that the team is counting on you, and so that they develop you from the beginning to the end. Then, you will get the reward of being able to play, and you'll have no doubts about whether they really wanted you or not.

Q: Did you feel uncomfortable being there?

Edy: Yes, I did. All the players want to practice, and then look forward to playing. You're not there to practice all the time and never play.

So, you end up getting frustrated and not liking basketball so much because you feel like you can't take that step further to be able to play, or prove that you can be in this league.

Spoiler:

Back in 2017, the African center was just looking for an opportunity and some consistency in the NBA, enough to be able to prove his worth. He didn't have it. When Real Madrid showed up later that year, few would guess that it would be a match made in heaven for both sides.

Tavares became all the more acquainted with the requirements of high-level basketball, enjoyed coach Pablo Laso's trust, and had a big impact on Madrid winning their tenth EuroLeague trophy in 2018. At the same time, Tavares was getting unanimous recognition: he was voted twice (2019, 2021) 'Defensive Player of the Year’ in the EuroLeague, he was named to the All-EuroLeague First Team twice, in addition to being the perennial shot-blocking king in the ABC by winning the award five times.

Tavares' imposing size, timing to deflect or block passes and shots, as well as his increasingly better defensive reading have rendered him a unique player in Europe.

Certainly, the three defensive seconds rule makes it easier for European teams to saturate the paint- and no player has taken more advantage of it than Tavares. That's why he's widely regarded as Europe's best rim protector.

EuroHoops