snowman wrote:Parliament10 wrote:I'd say that we need like 5 more players, or so.
add another 7'0 guy to the roster.
Cody Taylor: Reggie Kissoonlal will play summer league with the Celtics, a source told @RookieWire. He played last season with the Maine Celtics.
So that's Aleksander Balcerowski @ 7'1, Kissoonlal @ 7'0 and Vincent Valerio-Bodon @ 6'10. Looks to me Brad is looking at additional big men for either the regular roster or 2-way contracts. Again, no mention of Kabengele @ 6'10, so either he has a spot already or he has been sent packing.
Valerio-Bodon is not a big man. Although he does have good size (some sites list him at 6'9", some site sites list him at 6'9.5". There might be a site that lists him at 6'10") he plays much more like a wing, kind of like Rashard Lewis, Peja, Turkoklu, Kukoc. I'm not saying Valerio-Bodon is as good as those guys, but just in terms of size and position, he's similar.
As I said before, I do think VVB does have a chance to make the roster. He could be a guy who surprises people. He could potentially be kind of like Sam Hauser but taller and more athletic. Wouldn't shock me if he is able to get some minutes here and there. Guys with that type of size, who can move pretty well, who can shoot it like that (41% from 3) and have decent athleticism and aren't dreadful on defense, they usually get at least a shot at some minutes in the NBA. Not to mention, it's not like he's some 18 or 19 year old kid who is raw and needs a bunch of development. VVB is 22, has a few yrs experience playing pro ball overseas. And if you watch some of his overseas film, he seems to play really poised.
The key is, can he defend NBA-level athletes? And how quick is he to adjust to the style of play, speed and physicality of the NBA game? If he looks pretty good in SL, I think he'll at least get a training camp invite.
Kissoonlal, I don't think has a shot at a 2-way or a standard roster spot. He only got 10 MPG for the Maine Celtics this past season. He did have some decent numbers in limited minutes (solid TS% 3 pt%, rebounding % and blocks %). But idk man, 27 years old and was only able to get 10 MPG in the g league. Just seems like a career g-league or overseas guy to me.
Balcerowski - yes, I think they picked him up with the idea they he could possibly make the team as a 4th/5th big man. He's 7'2", same height as Kornet. Looks like he's similar weight to Kornet, too. But Balcerowski appears to have a more rugged/solid build, as opposed to Kornet who is more doughy and just not as strong physically. Shooting-wise, Balcerowski appears to be somewhat similar to Kornet as well. Both of them show occasional glimpses of being able to knock down the 3, but they're not elite shooters by any stretch of the imagination. They can knock them down here and there, but overall low volume and low % from 3.
Overall, I feel like Balcerowski is build a little bit stronger than Kornet, he might be a little more skilled, a little more athletic than Kornet too. But it's hard to say, since they have been competing against very different levels of competition. Brad seems to love Kornet and Kornet has familiarity with our system from being here for a few years now. So I don't see Balcerowski over-taking Kornet on the depth chart - unless he really kills it in SL, gets a TC invite and kills it there too.
Kornet is 27 and about to turn 28. Balcerowski is only 22. So (if he looks good in SL), I like the idea of keeping Balcerowski in the organization, to try and keep developing him. Then he could be a really solid backup back for us in a year or 2. We'll need that as Al gets even older (then retires) and as KP and Rob probably have more injuries.
We can carry up to 21 players till the end of training camp. It would not shock me if VVB and Balcerowski get TC invites, if they play well in SL.
Lastly, these international guys rarely accept 2-way contracts. 2-way contracts don't pay very much (in comparison to what good players can make overseas).
