JaVale McGee

[yungal07]

That first picture says a thousand words.

Fwiw, JaM's build looks like Pech's. They both seem to have a good core and lower body but are thin up top.

Maybe, but McGee looks like he isn't afraid to bang. Pech is scared to move beyond the free throw line.

That's absolutely untrue. Pecherov doesn't mind banging and doesn't mind contact at all. Stop hating.

[Rafael122]

I'm not that sure about that. You guys are acting like there were a bunch of cant-miss prospects sitting there where we were selecting.

No not can't miss prospects, but rather a player who likely WON'T miss.

Mc Gee is a reach when you have Chalmers, Hickson, C Lee, etc. still on the board when we picked.

Chalmers fell into the second round and was deemed a first round pick by default because he's probably the third best point in the draft.

Hickson got taken a pick after us, and from all intents and purposes is a 4 year project, and is undersized at 6'8''

And Courtney Lee is a shooting guard. Last I checked we had Stevenson and Young.

Next.

[fifthstop]

I'm pretty surprised no one has pointed to his most glaring weakness: his name starts with a J. We've had disastrous results with 1st rounders that start with J. I can already see the "Amazingly sucky aVale McGee" thread forming...

Can he break the curse?

[willbcocks]

Maybe it is just me, but McGee looks a little bit like Obama at certain angles.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

That first picture says a thousand words.

Fwiw, JaM's build looks like Pech's. They both seem to have a good core and lower body but are thin up top.

Maybe, but McGee looks like he isn't afraid to bang. Pech is scared to move beyond the free throw line.

That's absolutely untrue. Pecherov doesn't mind banging and doesn't mind contact at all. Stop hating.

The presence of Pecherov, who I think will be a good offensive player in a year or two, is the very reason I find the McGee pick most hard to fathom.

OPEC is more physical than McGee and a better rebounder.

[DCZards]

OPEC is more physical than McGee and a better rebounder.

After watching Pech in the summer league last year, I too thought he was a banger and would help the Zards on the boards. But Pech spent most of his time on the perimeter shooting jumpers and rarely ventured into the paint during the regular season. So now I'm not so sure Pech is really all that physical or that he'll be a better rebounder than McGee at the NBA level.

[Kanyewest]

From NBAdraft.net:

A-

(18) JaVale McGee
The Wizards made a solid gamble taking McGee with their only pick. He's an extremely long and unpolished center, in the mold of the Warriors Patrick O'Bryant. The big difference is that McGee has some fire to accompany his shooting touch and potential and and has a chance to develop into something special in a few years. While McGee slipped from a possible lottery pick, going 18 sets up an excellent situation for both parties.

http://www.nbadraft.net/node/1307

[Ji]

so much for the experts...ive seen us graded from an A to an F

[Kanyewest]

so much for the experts...ive seen us graded from an A to an F

I haven't seen F ratings. The lowest I've seen is a D+ by Chad Ford.

Another one from Draftexpress

Washington Wizards

Picks: JaVale McGee (#18)

C

At 18 there certainly isn’t as much to lose as there would be if he went in the top 10 like some prognostications anticipated earlier on in the process, but still, it’s hard not to feel like there weren’t better players on the board here. Again, this will come down more to McGee’s internal motivation to improve more than any arguments about his talent. If he does pan out, this could be an incredible steal for the Wizards. But that’s a big IF.

Draft Grades Methodology (from Draft Exp[ress:

A: The team probably could not have done any better considering the situation they were in.
B: The team did well in filling their needs, getting fair value from their pick and getting a prospect that fits their system and the direction the franchise is heading in.
C: The team had an average draft, not knocking anyone’s socks off, but also not embarrassing their fans.
D: The team should have done a better job with the picks they made.
F: The team did a terrible job and their fans have every reason to be mad about the picks they made or didn’t make.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

From NBAdraft.net:

A-

(18) JaVale McGee
The Wizards made a solid gamble taking McGee with their only pick. He's an extremely long and unpolished center, in the mold of the Warriors Patrick O'Bryant. The big difference is that McGee has some fire to accompany his shooting touch and potential and and has a chance to develop into something special in a few years. While McGee slipped from a possible lottery pick, going 18 sets up an excellent situation for both parties.

http://www.nbadraft.net/node/1307

Ironically, one of my complaints on draft night was the Wizards could have just acquired Patrick O'Bryant for the #18 pick, rather than McGee. POB actually made strides in D-League, and from his limited minutes of actual NBA ball I believe he's the real deal defensively.

I think Jon G, Joe T, and others at DX love the tall guys with potential, and thus their C-rating. I'll forever wonder what grade the DX guys would have given the Wizards had they (also) selected Hendrix at #47.

They said glowing things about Hendrix (who was selected at #49 by GS) in their draft article posted today on yahoo.com.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=A ... &type=lgns

At 49, the Warriors did extremely well for themselves, drafting one of the players we pegged as one of the steals of this draft: Richard Hendrix. Hendrix fell quite a bit on draft night because of a knee problem that was discovered during the Orlando pre-draft camp. Thus, the parallels with Carlos Boozer continue, as he not only put up very similar numbers in college, but also was red-flagged for the exact same reason (according to one NBA team we talked to, at least). We see Hendrix as more of a Paul Millsap type in the NBA, and this is exactly what Golden State needs considering the type of players they currently have on their roster.

[Ruzious]

From NBAdraft.net:

A-

(18) JaVale McGee
The Wizards made a solid gamble taking McGee with their only pick. He's an extremely long and unpolished center, in the mold of the Warriors Patrick O'Bryant. The big difference is that McGee has some fire to accompany his shooting touch and potential and and has a chance to develop into something special in a few years. While McGee slipped from a possible lottery pick, going 18 sets up an excellent situation for both parties.

http://www.nbadraft.net/node/1307

Yup, and I though it was interesting that they gave Cleveland a D for picking Hickson with the next pick. Height really sways people - sometimes rightly and sometimes wrongly.

[Ruzious]

Ironically, one of my complaints on draft night was the Wizards could have just acquired Patrick O'Bryant for the #18 pick, rather than McGee. POB actually made strides in D-League, and from his limited minutes of actual NBA ball I believe he's the real deal defensively.

I think Jon G, Joe T, and others at DX love the tall guys with potential, and thus their C-rating. I'll forever wonder what grade the DX guys would have given the Wizards had they (also) selected Hendrix at #47.

They said glowing things about Hendrix (who was selected at #49 by GS) in their draft article posted today on yahoo.com.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=A ... &type=lgns

At 49, the Warriors did extremely well for themselves, drafting one of the players we pegged as one of the steals of this draft: Richard Hendrix. Hendrix fell quite a bit on draft night because of a knee problem that was discovered during the Orlando pre-draft camp. Thus, the parallels with Carlos Boozer continue, as he not only put up very similar numbers in college, but also was red-flagged for the exact same reason (according to one NBA team we talked to, at least). We see Hendrix as more of a Paul Millsap type in the NBA, and this is exactly what Golden State needs considering the type of players they currently have on their roster.

Why do I have a feeling we're going to have a lot of Hendrix updates next season.

I think it's interesting what goes on in the D League, but you put way too much emphasis on it. There's no way that O'Bryant was worth the 18th pick, imo.

[closg00]

I'm from Reno and watched this bum play for 2 years. Guaranteed bust. We dubbed him "Bricklayer McGee" from day one. All the guy can do is dunk with nobody around him and swat shots from undersized, slow Western Atletic Conference players. You're talking Idaho, San Jose, Hawaii....not exactly hoop powerhouses.
Can't make a free throw to save his life, can't mix it up, serious bad attitude, lazy, you name it.

Thank God he left after his sophomore year. It'll just give our new guys like Luke Babbitt a chance to move right in.

The only good thing about it for me is I'm a Cavs fan and I was praying he still wouldn't be around at 19 when Cleveland picked. Thank you Wizards.


Posted by: Nevadawolfpack | June 28, 2008 10:08 AM

From the Post Blog FWIW

[LyricalRico]

OPEC is more physical than McGee and a better rebounder.

After watching Pech in the summer league last year, I too thought he was a banger and would help the Zards on the boards. But Pech spent most of his time on the perimeter shooting jumpers and rarely ventured into the paint during the regular season. So now I'm not so sure Pech is really all that physical or that he'll be a better rebounder than McGee at the NBA level.

Well, Pesh was fully healthy in summer league. By the time he got into a regular season game he'd already missed time with injury. Also, EJ wasn't directly coaching him in summer league. I'm sure that had something to do with it as well.

[Wizards2Lottery]

I'm from Reno and watched this bum play for 2 years. Guaranteed bust. We dubbed him "Bricklayer McGee" from day one. All the guy can do is dunk with nobody around him and swat shots from undersized, slow Western Atletic Conference players. You're talking Idaho, San Jose, Hawaii....not exactly hoop powerhouses.
Can't make a free throw to save his life, can't mix it up, serious bad attitude, lazy, you name it.

Thank God he left after his sophomore year. It'll just give our new guys like Luke Babbitt a chance to move right in.

The only good thing about it for me is I'm a Cavs fan and I was praying he still wouldn't be around at 19 when Cleveland picked. Thank you Wizards.


Posted by: Nevadawolfpack | June 28, 2008 10:08 AM

From the Post Blog FWIW

Meh, the guy gave it away when he said hes a Cavs fan. I take his opinion with a grain of salt and if hes that bad, EG would have never picked him with a first round pick.

[Kanyewest]

From a college standpoint, I'm sure Nevada fans (at least the sane ones) wanted him to play in all 4 years. It sounds like a fake post to me.

[Zerocious]

We need to start thinking of a handle for JaVale McGee. I think he's here to stay.
How about:
JM
JVMG
Java

your ideas?

How about JV McGee? I know it's not that much shorter than his real name, but I think it has a nice ring to it.

how 'bout 'Jive MC'

Although i'm sure it'll be JMG (no-J MG)

[Zerocious]

from jazzfans.com:

"Rare physical specimen—has an almost unprecedented combination of size, length (7-6), athleticism and fluidity, packed on a frame that should easily be able to fill out nicely. Has excellent hands, runs the floor exceptionally well, and is extremely reactive off his feet. Has an intriguing variety of skills too—the ability to knock down 3-pointers, put the ball on the floor, and execute some incredibly smooth pivot moves in the paint, finishing elegantly off the glass with excellent extension and touch. Gets off the ground impressively and can really be a factor as a shot-blocker or on the offensive glass. A late bloomer who barely played in high school and averaged just 10 minutes a game as a freshman—the sky is clearly the limit on his upside.

The problem is he’s extremely far from reaching his full potential—so far that you have to wonder if he’ll ever make it considering the way he looks at times on the court. Struggles to establish position and finish in the paint, settles for some incredibly awkward off-balance shots, and is virtually a black hole with his passing skills—averaging 4 turnovers for every 1 assist. Looks very disinterested at times, doesn’t hustle, gives up on plays, late getting back down the floor, and might be the worst man to man defender we’ve ever evaluated in the post. Gets pushed around, gambles excessively for steals, has no stance or fundamentals, doesn’t move his feet, and is a complete non-factor even against the mediocre competition he faces. According to Synergy’s “PlayType QuickTable stats,” McGee was scored on 66% of the time when being posted up in the paint (against the likes of Fresno State, Utah State, Houston, etc). Is light years away from being able to compete on an NBA level defensively, if ever.

Chances of returning to school: 0%. Surprisingly already decided to hire an agent, from the NFL ranks. Many scouts are very high on McGee, due to his incredibly high ceiling, which gives him “home run potential” once you get outside the top 10-12 players in this draft. McGee is the type of player that GMs love, but coaches hate, since he could make someone look great down the road, but will take years and years of hard work before he has any chance to do so. If he does, watch out."

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

From a college standpoint, I'm sure Nevada fans (at least the sane ones) wanted him to play in all 4 years. It sounds like a fake post to me.

I dunno, Kanyewest.

I live in Hawaii and went to see Hawaii v Nevada, with Fazekas (the guy who I bought a ticket to see) out and McGee in the game.

Didn't notice him.

Sessions and Kemp, I noticed, as well as Hawaii's Matt Lojeski and Ahmet Guy. Hawaii's center, Guy, had a hell of a game against whoever was guarding him.

In fairness, I read McGee showed improvement as a soph, FWIW.

I believe the poster was legit and that McGee won't be missed in Reno.

[doclinkin]

From a college standpoint, I'm sure Nevada fans (at least the sane ones) wanted him to play in all 4 years. It sounds like a fake post to me.

Reading comments of various articles and Nevada websites it looks like fans were 50/50. Most were disappointed that he didn't realize the potential they all saw in him, and questioned his maturity etc. But the negative comments were generally of the sour grapes variety more than saying they were glad he was gone.