Post#22 » by pillwenney » Thu Apr 17, 2008 12:43 am
The Kings don't have a great situation, but it's not that bad.
You failed to mention that while Brad isn't the best defender ("doesn't defend" is flat out wrong), you can also do things with him that you can't with pretty much any other center in the league. But of course putting him under the label of "perimeter big man" connotes nothing positive despite the fact that you can run an offense through him from his perimeter spot. The only other guys can do that with in the league are guys like KG.
Mikki--I agree with your assessment.
Shelden--I seriously doubt he'll be "out of the league" any time soon. Will he ever prove to have been worth the #5 pick? God no, but that doesn't mean that he deserves the irrational hatred that some give him on these boards. He's a fine post defender and a pretty good rebounder, he can score a little in the post and has a decent mid-range shot.
Spencer's D isn't great at this point, but frankly it's not that big of an issue. He's a good shotblocker and when he's focused, he's not a bad post defender. His rebounding is horrible at this point, but he still has a very, very, very bright future in this league. He does things that a 19-year-old center just shouldn't be able to do. Outside of this athleticism (which isn't nearly as bad as some think--about average for a center), all of his current weaknesses can be chalked up to normal rookie stuff--in experience and lack of a physical strength.
Kenny--fair enough.
SAR - Let's at least wait to see if he comes back healthy. If so, he could still be a fine scorer.
And like others have said, Artest plays significant minutes at PF.