Has Coby Karl made his case to make the roster?

[campybatman]

I'm reading he can play some point guard as well. But is a liability on defense.

He'd looked aggressive offensively in summer league play. Still, I haven't really watched much of him.

[ParticleMan]

Classic NBDL stud. In baseball he'd be a AAAA player. He just doesn't have the athleticism to compete at the NBA level.

[Slartibartfast]

He's made some terrible passes in the summer league so far, but he's usually got the right idea. Not worth cutting Walker or Giddens for, however.

[BRUNiNHO91]

From what I saw our best players in the summer league, with chances to make the team were Giddens, Walker, Pruitt, Lofton and nobody else...Hudson didn't play much...I don't see anybody else who makes it, or at least anybody else who SHOULD make it..Swift is **** horrible..

[Dogen]

To be honest, I haven't been impressed with anyone from our summer league team yet. Sure, there are a couple of decent players, but does anyone see a standout that could crack the rotation on a team contending for a championship? I don't.

[campybatman]

Not even as a point guard?

[ryaningf]

Karl can play point guard just like TA or House can...which means he can dribble it up the court. The passing part, the running the team part, the good vision and ballhandling part, the making other people better part? Not so much. In the little bit he's play point at SL, he's been a turnover machine.

Chris Lofton has a better chance of getting a training camp invite--he at least has a certifiable NBA talent: shooting.

[sox839]

I think one of the players from summer league could get a roster spot I'm thinking swift, karl or sweetney. You figure they have one roster spot available assuming they resign big baby which they should. But I think pruitt is in trouble he has been in the system for two years and last year had an opportunity to to be the backup point and didn't show anything. Karl is going to be on an nba team regardless what happens here. Swift has the best chance to make the squad because of his size and though slow most 7 '0" 280 lbs are slow and he can work with cliff ray . Swift could eventuallty be perks primary backup just not this year.

[GuyClinch]

Hudson can make it IMHO. People put too much stock in what guys do during the limited times they see them. Remember these guys scrimmage run drills and spend a great deal of time around coaches that we don't see.

What I like about Hudson is that he has an NBA body (strong fast) and can play D. I guess he can shoot and score as well though granted we didn't see much of that.

[Spin Move]

I watched 2 of the summer league games 1 against orlando one against the thunder and was really not at all impressed.

[Rocky5000]

Too bad Hudson hurt his finger. We only saw basically 1.25 games of him.

I'd like to combine all of our prospects into one super player, Gabe's Height + Hudson's Defense + Lofton's Shooting + Mullins Court Vision. As ryaningf said, Lofton has the best shot of being something in the NBA. Yes, he's one dimensional, but he only ever projects to be a role player, and he's very good at what he does. Look at guys like Boobie Gibson, Damon Jones, Eddie House, Peja, Vujacic, Roger Mason, etc. Being a great shooter can keep you in the league.

[cfan79]

I don't care how he spells it there's no way I want anyone named Coby/Kobe on my team.

[cfan79]

I'd rather have Kobayashi on my team.

[sully00]

It has been pretty tough to watch, the Thunder had an NBA quality squad and it wasn't pretty, yesterdays game was more of summer leage level game.

The non roster guys compared to Giddens, Pruitt, and Walker clearly are not as athletic. Lofton cannot handle the ball well at all, Karl can handle a little but is limited otherwise I do not see a PG at all. Swift looks like he hasn't played basketball in a long time. Fazekas is a knock down shooter at 6'11" and can do everything basetball wise but you are literally waiting for it to happen.

I think that Swift or Fazekas might make a case as a 15th man just on size and skill but I expected more out of them at this point in their careers.

Pruitt hasn't looked bad, I think he has shot to stick if we don't come up with a Vet pg.

Haven't see much of Hudson but have seen enough of Lofton and Karl to say I wouldn't give them his roster spot.

I think Giddens is still shaky great one min lost the next but Bill looks like and NBA player out there shooting 3's, getting to the rim, just looks real comfortable on the court.

[ryaningf]

It has been pretty tough to watch, the Thunder had an NBA quality squad and it wasn't pretty, yesterdays game was more of summer leage level game.

The non roster guys compared to Giddens, Pruitt, and Walker clearly are not as athletic. Lofton cannot handle the ball well at all, Karl can handle a little but is limited otherwise I do not see a PG at all. Swift looks like he hasn't played basketball in a long time. Fazekas is a knock down shooter at 6'11" and can do everything basetball wise but you are literally waiting for it to happen.

I think that Swift or Fazekas might make a case as a 15th man just on size and skill but I expected more out of them at this point in their careers.

Pruitt hasn't looked bad, I think he has shot to stick if we don't come up with a Vet pg.

Haven't see much of Hudson but have seen enough of Lofton and Karl to say I wouldn't give them his roster spot.

I think Giddens is still shaky great one min lost the next but Bill looks like and NBA player out there shooting 3's, getting to the rim, just looks real comfortable on the court.

Well said, Sully. I agree w/pretty much everything you said. I think Hudson showed enough to get the invite to camp--probably on a partially guaranteed contract. He's got legit NBA quickness and scoring ability. He needs to run a team better, but he's dynamite in the open court. He's a good shooter, with a jumper that reminds me of Arenas. If he shows well in training camp, I think he could take Pruitt's spot last season--as 3rd point guard, behind Pruitt and Rondo.

Pruitt has improved in one area--getting to the rim and finishing. He's had some very impressive finishes this SL--as well as some monster dunks. That shows me he hears the knocks on his aggressiveness and he's trying to address them--and that's what SL's for. His ability to run a team hasn't improved much--though he's running a good pick-and-pop w/Fazekas. For right now, he is the backup point guard.

Giddens is shaky one min and lost the next, as Sully said. He reminds me of TA, but in all the wrong ways, right down to the shaky jumper and his indecisiveness with the ball. If he was on a lottery team where he'd get 30 minutes a night, I think he could 'develop' enough to put it all together. But on THIS team, with ITS needs, I don't see how he'll be able to settle into a role. He'll be like TA all over again--somebody who's been wasted the last 2 years running. What Giddens should be working on is his garbage man's game--getting offensive boards (with his ridiculous wing span), getting on the break, playing defense, and quit playing with the ball so much and killing the flow...

Walker on the other hand has been doing a lot of good things that will translate to the pros and to his role on the team--quick post ups (where he's been pretty effective), step-back jumpers from 15 foot (a la Paul Pierce), stand still 3 pointers from the corner (only 2 of 3 however), mad-furious baseline dunks in transition, all the while keeping the ball moving on offense and doing a decent job on defense. Bill's been forced to guard a lot of 4s, either by design or because our team has no bigs, and he's been alright. I'd like to have seen more defense from him this SL, but he hasn't been terrible. In some ways, his defensive role in the NBA will be easier because the players we be 'known' and he'll only be playing them for 5 minute stretches at a time.

Lofton will catch on with somebody at some point in his career. He's like House with his quick release and hit-from-anywhere jumper, but his dribbling is sub-NBA. At least House can dribble a little. It was telling that after Hudson broke his finger, and Mullins left the team, that Karl and not Lofton became the backup point--that tells you how much Lofton is not a point guard.

Fazekas can definitely score on the NBA-level, and rebound decently, but his defense is terrible and his athleticism is sub-average, and that's being kind. The guy looks 65 out there! He's SOOO slow....

Swift, I'd guess, will at least get an invite to training camp, probably non-guaranteed. He's also super-slow, but when he's in the vicinity, he's got decent hands, decent touch, and decent anticipation for a 7 footer. He's a definite stiff, but I could see him holding down the 15th man role on somebody's team...

[campybatman]

I read some on Karl, Rogers and Lofton, and the reviews on them are just as discouraging as the opinions of posters here. It makes me wonder, if none of these players, outside of maybe Swift, have a real chance of making the Celtics roster. Why bother...? I understand you're auditioning for other NBA teams as well. Still... Sweetney? He's a disgrace. I mean that took some gall to present yourself in that manner, overweight. He'd looked really big.

[LongTimeFan]

I don't think Karl can make the Celts or Lofton. With Lester's injury, I think Pruitt's option gets picked up Pruitt hasn't hurt his chances and may have helped. He's made some nice passes, finished well and played good defense.

Swift had a chance and I think he's pretty residual at this point. He's still a project and young. You can't coach height, so maybe we will put a plan in place for him and try to develope but I'm not so sure we have a roster spot for him. He's 24 and still not ready for prime time.

Other than that I think at this point Giddens, Walker and Pruitt make the roster. The rest have been pretty marginal. In Giddens defense, they've been having him cover the opponents bigs from time to time.

Really in summer league you have to dominate to have a shot at the pros, and iven the video quality it is hard to tell if Giddens, Pruitt or Walker have dominated while on the floor. The rest have certinly not.

[campybatman]

I didn't know this...

For two aspiring NBA guards, this summer is about more than a contract; it's a vindication against a disease nearly every American has been affected by.

Cancer.

Coby Karl and Chris Lofton are teammates and cancer survivors on the Boston Celtics' summer team in the NBA's Orlando Summer League.

In 2006, Karl, the son of Nuggets head coach George Karl, underwent surgery to remove his thyroid after being diagnosed with papillary carcinoma.

After the surgery, Karl underwent a round of chemotherapy, but it wasn't enough. He had to go back to the operating room to have cancerous lymph nodes removed in April of 2007 following his senior season at Boise State.

For Lofton, it was a cancer that strikes deep within the heart of every male—testicular cancer.

The former Tennessee Volunteer was diagnosed at the end of the 2006-07 season. He only confided in a small support group while playing the 2007-08 season and had surgery following that year.

Both players defeated cancer following their final year in school, but instead of letting cancer dictate their professional paths, they hit the court.

Neither college standout was selected in the draft this June—not even Lofton, who was the 2007 SEC Player of the Year.

Neither player is guaranteed a spot on the roster, and this might be the only time they share the floor.

Karl has impressed with his overall play in his game against Orlando. One NBA analyst even tweeted, "He is, without doubt, an NBA player."

Lofton, on the other hand, will have to shoot his way onto a roster. The Celtics are looking at several backup point guard options, but a player who can play 10 minutes and hit two or three threes is always an asset.

No matter where these two warriors' NBA paths take them, they will always be connected through the Boston Celtics' summer league team—and their inspirational battles.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2140 ... s-traveled

Swift has started all three of the Celtics games (through Wednesday) at the Orlando Pro Summer League, playing nearly 21 minutes per game while averaging 6.3 points, three rebounds and 1.3 blocks per contest. While the numbers aren't eye-popping, Swift is appreciative for the opportunity to get back on the floor and show that he can be an effective player when healthy.

"I talked to Boston as soon as free agency came up and they asked me to play in the summer league," Swift said. "I wanted to come out here and show everyone that I am healthy after three years of setbacks and that's where I am at right now."

The Celtics have long been rumored to have interest in Swift and now have the opportunity to get an up-close look at a player who once appeared to have a bright future in the league.

"He (Celtics General Manager Danny Ainge) said to just go out there, have fun, and play," Swift said of his chances to make the Celtics roster. "He, just like everyone else (the coaching staff), wanted to see that I was healthy. So I am just out here playing and having a good time. It hasn't gone any further than that yet. We are going to wait until after Friday (when the Orlando Pro Summer League concludes) to talk."

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=13245

[eris]

No, simply, no.

[cfan79]

You can't judge talent based on Summer League games. Tskitishvilli was a monster during this time of the year. You would hope that Walker and Giddens would do something though.