Bobi Klintman - 4 years, $7.9 million

[bstein14]

One thing that really bothers me about Klintman is his athleticism. He just seems really slow when making moves around the basket whether that’s jumping or moving. I feel like you can count to ten when he starts making a play the basket. He has shown something at least.

I’m hoping he works on his agility and gets a new cut because those braids are trash lol

Do you think it’s because he lacks athleticism or he’s just used to the speed of what he can get away with against lesser competition?

Many rookies feel the need to adjust their speed/ decision making once they face NBA players.

I think he lacks the athleticism. He played in the nbl which I’m familiar with being Australian. It’s not even his time to make a decision, it’s his time making a layup or jumping when he drives to the rim, looks like he’s in slow motion

Yes, but people said the same thing about Cade/Luka/Jokic/etc.... you can lack athleticism if you have a very good skillset but obviously being great athletically helps in a lot of areas as well.

I am encouraged from his summer league play that (even though I doubt he's a rotation player this year or the beginning of next) he might work himself into being a serviceable 10th or 11th man by the end of his second year. Reminds me a bit of Trey Lyles. As a second rounder on a minimum deal even if he turns himself into a fringe rotation player that's a win. Someone who can come in and give decent minutes when called upon.

[Billl]

Yeah, I don't think he moves well enough to be a starter quality nba player. Hopefully he can shoot at a high enough clip to be a floor spacer in the second unit at some point. He really needs to work on that lower body strength so he can take up some space horizontally because he's never going to be a quick jump type of guy. He's got nice size and length though, so it's not a lost cause.

[NYPiston]

One thing that really bothers me about Klintman is his athleticism. He just seems really slow when making moves around the basket whether that’s jumping or moving. I feel like you can count to ten when he starts making a play the basket. He has shown something at least.

I’m hoping he works on his agility and gets a new cut because those braids are trash lol

Seems like another Livers type to me with maybe a little more fluidity. If he stays healthy, something Livers couldn't do, he could be a decent rotational piece eventually but I think he's a longshot tbh.

[A_dub06]

Do you think it’s because he lacks athleticism or he’s just used to the speed of what he can get away with against lesser competition?

Many rookies feel the need to adjust their speed/ decision making once they face NBA players.

I think he lacks the athleticism. He played in the nbl which I’m familiar with being Australian. It’s not even his time to make a decision, it’s his time making a layup or jumping when he drives to the rim, looks like he’s in slow motion

Yes, but people said the same thing about Cade/Luka/Jokic/etc.... you can lack athleticism if you have a very good skillset but obviously being great athletically helps in a lot of areas as well.

I am encouraged from his summer league play that (even though I doubt he's a rotation player this year or the beginning of next) he might work himself into being a serviceable 10th or 11th man by the end of his second year. Reminds me a bit of Trey Lyles. As a second rounder on a minimum deal even if he turns himself into a fringe rotation player that's a win. Someone who can come in and give decent minutes when called upon.

Not really fair to compare to Cade/Luka/Jokic, I know you’re not comparing them exactly but at the same time mentioning them as your basis for skill vs athleticism isn’t exactly fair. If he can be a better defender and shoot 3’s at a high clip and volume he’ll have a place on the league but personally I see him as a 8th-9th guy on a low end playoff team at best (not just for his lack of athleticism).

[Invictus88]

I think he lacks the athleticism. He played in the nbl which I’m familiar with being Australian. It’s not even his time to make a decision, it’s his time making a layup or jumping when he drives to the rim, looks like he’s in slow motion

Yes, but people said the same thing about Cade/Luka/Jokic/etc.... you can lack athleticism if you have a very good skillset but obviously being great athletically helps in a lot of areas as well.

I am encouraged from his summer league play that (even though I doubt he's a rotation player this year or the beginning of next) he might work himself into being a serviceable 10th or 11th man by the end of his second year. Reminds me a bit of Trey Lyles. As a second rounder on a minimum deal even if he turns himself into a fringe rotation player that's a win. Someone who can come in and give decent minutes when called upon.

Not really fair to compare to Cade/Luka/Jokic, I know you’re not comparing them exactly but at the same time mentioning them as your basis for skill vs athleticism isn’t exactly fair. If he can be a better defender and shoot 3’s at a high clip and volume he’ll have a place on the league but personally I see him as a 8th-9th guy on a low end playoff team at best (not just for his lack of athleticism).

At this point just having a 4 with decent hands, a respected outside game, defends at an average level and rebounds is something we really haven't had and desperately need. He's made really good decisions with the ball in terms of passing as well. Even if he ends up just camping behind the arc and forces defenders to have to close out that's still an improvement if he does the rest.

He's not a square peg coming to a roster full of them.

[A_dub06]

Yes, but people said the same thing about Cade/Luka/Jokic/etc.... you can lack athleticism if you have a very good skillset but obviously being great athletically helps in a lot of areas as well.

I am encouraged from his summer league play that (even though I doubt he's a rotation player this year or the beginning of next) he might work himself into being a serviceable 10th or 11th man by the end of his second year. Reminds me a bit of Trey Lyles. As a second rounder on a minimum deal even if he turns himself into a fringe rotation player that's a win. Someone who can come in and give decent minutes when called upon.

Not really fair to compare to Cade/Luka/Jokic, I know you’re not comparing them exactly but at the same time mentioning them as your basis for skill vs athleticism isn’t exactly fair. If he can be a better defender and shoot 3’s at a high clip and volume he’ll have a place on the league but personally I see him as a 8th-9th guy on a low end playoff team at best (not just for his lack of athleticism).

At this point just having a 4 with decent hands, a respected outside game, defends at an average level and rebounds is something we really haven't had and desperately need. He's made really good decisions with the ball in terms of passing as well. Even if he ends up just camping behind the arc and forces defenders to have to close out that's still an improvement if he does the rest.

He's not a square peg coming to a roster full of them.

Agreed, he just needs to bring it with the big boys if he’s playing on our regular season roster

[Invictus88]

Not really fair to compare to Cade/Luka/Jokic, I know you’re not comparing them exactly but at the same time mentioning them as your basis for skill vs athleticism isn’t exactly fair. If he can be a better defender and shoot 3’s at a high clip and volume he’ll have a place on the league but personally I see him as a 8th-9th guy on a low end playoff team at best (not just for his lack of athleticism).

At this point just having a 4 with decent hands, a respected outside game, defends at an average level and rebounds is something we really haven't had and desperately need. He's made really good decisions with the ball in terms of passing as well. Even if he ends up just camping behind the arc and forces defenders to have to close out that's still an improvement if he does the rest.

He's not a square peg coming to a roster full of them.

Agreed, he just needs to bring it with the big boys if he’s playing on our regular season roster

As an update to this: In the SL games I watched afterward he kept getting beat badly on off-ball cuts to the basket. His off-ball defense needs a lot of work to be acceptable at an NBA level. It's in stark contrast to the on-ball pressure he applied to Cam Whitmore in the game that guy went 1-15 from the field.

[Crymson]

Klintman is a lot rawer than he looked at Summer League. He struggled in the NBL with consistency on both ends, and he's more of a project than he appears. His shot still needs some tweaking, his defensive decision-making needs work -- it's got to be on point, because he's too slow to recover if he's caught a step behind -- and his finishing needs a *lot* of work. He's an absolutely awful finisher in traffic at the moment, and that's going to be an issue at the NBA level; as a guy who's primarily going to be a shooting specialist, attacking closeouts is going to be an essential skill -- and given that he doesn't have the burst to blow through open lanes, the ability to finish adequately through contact will be a must. Gaining physical strength will be part of that, but he's also got to work on his touch.

He had a surprisingly good tournament, but he's not as game-ready as he may have appeared.

As an update to this: In the SL games I watched afterward he kept getting beat badly on off-ball cuts to the basket. His off-ball defense needs a lot of work to be acceptable at an NBA level.

Aye, he got torched four times in one of those games (I can't remember which). If he gets a step behind, he doesn't have the burst to catch up.

It's in stark contrast to the on-ball pressure he applied to Cam Whitmore in the game that guy went 1-15 from the field.

Klintman did a decent job on Whitmore, but Cam mostly was just missing shots of his own accord.