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One has size and potential and the other has playmaking ability and potential. Its a tough decision because there's been so many players who have flopped or haven't been that good that are similar to them.

Neither.

Depends on team need, your coaching staff etc

starting from scratch id take Rubio, This guy has been on the radar for so long that surely all those scouts, for that many years cant be wrong

Thabeet has bust written all over him (i think he'll end up somewhere Tyson Chandler-ish)

I actually dont mind either of them, but i wouldnt be super excited if my team had a number 2 pick and had to choose between them... id actually take harden

and if u mean for the celtics.... neither, considering what it'd take to get them

I'd rather have Rondo as that what it would cost to get the #2 pick.

Avalanche wrote:
I actually dont mind either of them, but i wouldnt be super excited if my team had a number 2 pick and had to choose between them... id actually take harden

I don't blame you. Harden seems like the most NBA ready. Plus we are a team that shouldn't try to take too many chances. Detroit did that by taking Darko.

I was just wondering who you guys think will be a better pro?

I wouldn't take either of them - nor would I trade Rondo for them. Both seem likely to bust.

I think if we had the 2nd pic and we were able to hold on to RR, then Thabeet is the pick. He could learn some good d from kg and perk and fit on well NOW to the system. Rubio would not, with or with out rondo.

I would take Rubio, because it looks like he's enjoying the game when he plays. Thabeet looks like he only plays basketball because he's tall. Give me the guy who loves basketball over the guy who treats basketball like it was just a job.

thabeet easily. guys with that size that can move like that are hard to come by.

I am in the neither category but voted for Thabeet. I am not super optimistic about him but at this point I am horrified by the "I don't want to play there or there" routine, it just isn't something you here from great players who have their heads on straight.

I hate big stiffs and love tall pgs but the tall Euro PG has generally turned out to be a SG who can pass the ball and is has a cranky jumper. Has there ever been a Euro pg that panned out? Parker is great but he is as Euro as Kobe. Jose Calderon is the only guy jumping into my head am I missing someone?

Man does this draft bite.

Id rather have size but Thabeet has bust written all over him

Tricky Ricky wrote:Id rather have size but Thabeet has bust written all over him

I keep seeing that and I need some clarification.

What do you mean by "bust"? Is someone saying Thabeet's the next Shaq???

No, they're saying Dalembert or Chandler or possibly Mutombo. His upside is Mutombo with more of a postgame. Which would be great.

But if he doesn't reach that he's a bust?

Are you a bust if you go in the top-5 and aren't an All-Star? Even in a weak draft like this?

The team that takes Thabeet is going for a defensive-minded center, not a go-to player.

If by "bust," you mean out of the league, you're crazy. He WILL block shots. And I think he will improve his rebounding. And his offense. Remember he's only been playing ball for 6 years. But even if he doesn't, he'll be a great shotblocker and adequate rebounder.

And the "basketball is just a job" line someone wrote above -- where do you get that from? Because he openly talks about providing for his family? You're totally wrong when you insinuate that he has no love for the game and I'll leave it at that.

Weak draft or not you are bust if you aren't worth the 20 mil being invested in you. Mutombo was a great player, this board is the only place I have seen that comparison, do expect him to avg 16/12/3 next year? Then don't bring that up.

I think Thabeet is somewhere between Diop and Dampier. The concern with him is whether he can catch on fast enough to the NBA game to make enough of a difference on the defensive end to not just pull him and play with a better offensive player.

sully00 wrote:Weak draft or not you are bust if you aren't worth the 20 mil being invested in you. Mutombo was a great player, this board is the only place I have seen that comparison, do expect him to avg 16/12/3 next year? Then don't bring that up.

I think Thabeet is somewhere between Diop and Dampier. The concern with him is whether he can catch on fast enough to the NBA game to make enough of a difference on the defensive end to not just pull him and play with a better offensive player.

With all due respect, and I mean that because I generally agree with what you write, what the heck are you talking about? Don't bring up Mutombo because I don't expect Thabeet to average 16 ppg next year? Huh? I said "upside."

No I don't expect him to average 16 ppg. But on that crappy Nuggets team that Mutombo debuted with, yeah, I think he could average 16 points per game. It would be hard with Mayo and Gay jacking up shots. Or Durant.

By the way, Mutombo NEVER CAME CLOSE to averaging 16 ppg again. He only averaged 13 ppg 3 more times. He was a great defensive player who could put the ball in the hoop if he was close enough.

And what stats Thabeet puts up next year isn't really that important, is it? Memphis is in a rebuilding process. The Thunder are looking to make the leap but wouldn't be expecting him to score 15 a game. I think Thabeet is somewhat unique because of his short basketball career. He made huge strides each offseason at UConn and I would expect him to keep improving. I think this season will be a little rough. The question is whether he learns from it and improves his game and his strength. I think Season 2 is the time to judge him. And I think each team that's thinking about picking him is OK with that.

I get that if a team invests money in you, you need to produce at a high level. But it's not that much money for a guy who sticks even if he's not a superstar.

That is what I don't buy into. That is why I am saying don't bring up Mutombo, Thabeet is not an out of the box player, Mutombo was. I don't think Thabeet is going to avg in double figures so he has to be a "great" defensive player a game changer, I don't think he is and I don't know that he will ever be.

I think he is an NBA first round talent and a guy who might be able to play some mins that is not a guy I would want to wrap up 20 mil over the next 4 years for the privilege of staring at a contract starting at 7-8 mil. That is the number 2 pick in the draft. Thabeet is a maybe a 10-20 player in the draft but their really isn't anyone worthy of going 2-5 so your stuck. Yeah I want the #2 player to put up numbers next year and for his whole career it isn't exactly a development spot in the draft and the kid is 22

I think Perkins production 8/8/2 is what you looking at 3 years from now. Not 12/12/4 DPOY and All NBA, leading the league in rebounds and blocked shots. That is why I am saying don't bring up Mutombo, maybe 2/3rds of Mutombo but not Mutombo.

I'm not projecting him as Mutombo, I'm saying that's his upside. As in, best case scenario. I think it's fair to bring up a guy as a best case scenario. If I thought Diop was Thabeet's best case scenario, then I would think Thabeet has no business going in the top-10. I think he's got the potential to be better.

Defensively, Thabeet was as dominant as Mutombo was at Georgetown. That's not hyperbole. Watch UConn's win at Louisville and you'll agree. That's just one example. He consistently shut teams down, with the one exception being the first Pitt game.

But I agree he's not likely to get 38 mpg like Mutombo did because his rebounding (although much, much improved by his junior year) still isn't fantastic. And his offensive game is limited. If Thabeet averages 8/8/2 in 3 years then, yes, I'd consider him a bust. I think because of his size and skill he should be doing better than that by his 2nd year in the league. If he can earn starter's minutes, he'll surpass those numbers this year. He could block 2 shots a game in his sleep if you put a bed on the court for 30 minutes.

It's a strange situation because there are so few NBA ready players in the draft that guys who are unlikely to be superstars are going to go early and have weighty expectations placed upon their shoulders.

I just don't think that Thabeet will be a bust in terms of not being a contributor. Like I said, his shotblocking instincts are as developed as Mutombo's were coming out of Georgetown. And if he can keep improving his rebounding (better positioning, more aggressiveness, better block-outs), his size will enable to him put up double-digit rebounds.

Anyway, I'm probably beating a dead horse here.

I agree that if he's averaging 8/8/2 in 3 years on a non-playoff team (i.e. on a team where he's getting the chance to play and score), he's basically a bust. I think he's better than that. I think 13/11/4 by that point is very doable.

sully00 wrote:That is what I don't buy into. That is why I am saying don't bring up Mutombo, Thabeet is not an out of the box player, Mutombo was. I don't think Thabeet is going to avg in double figures so he has to be a "great" defensive player a game changer, I don't think he is and I don't know that he will ever be.

I think he is an NBA first round talent and a guy who might be able to play some mins that is not a guy I would want to wrap up 20 mil over the next 4 years for the privilege of staring at a contract starting at 7-8 mil. That is the number 2 pick in the draft. Thabeet is a maybe a 10-20 player in the draft but their really isn't anyone worthy of going 2-5 so your stuck. Yeah I want the #2 player to put up numbers next year and for his whole career it isn't exactly a development spot in the draft and the kid is 22

I think Perkins production 8/8/2 is what you looking at 3 years from now. Not 12/12/4 DPOY and All NBA, leading the league in rebounds and blocked shots. That is why I am saying don't bring up Mutombo, maybe 2/3rds of Mutombo but not Mutombo.

If I was sitting at the 2nd pick, I'd take Rubio over Thabeet. Having said that, I would never trade Rondo to get that draft pick.

Maybe you and others who are high on this guy are right but I still think it is total joke to compare the Big East now to what it was in the 90's. In the 1991 Draft coming out early meant you were Junior the Big East and NCAA basketball was a man's league.

Thabeet is much younger than Mutombo was coming out of Georgetown but I think you are going to be shocked at how raw his game is at both ends against NBA players. So in three years he will only be 25 which is when Mutombo entered the NBA but the book will already be written on whether or not he is a bust based on his draft position.

I don't think it is fair to him to expect him to be Mutombo, his draft position isn't his fault. If he can give you a double double and have an impact on the defensive end your happy he doesn't have to go to the HOF to not be a bust.

[quote="sully00"]

Thabeet is much younger than Mutombo was coming out of Georgetown but I think you are going to be shocked at how raw his game is at both ends against NBA players. So in three years he will only be 25 which is when Mutombo entered the NBA but the book will already be written on whether or not he is a bust based on his draft position.

[quote]

Wasn't Mutumbo 37 when he came outa college??