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Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft

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Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#1 » by Dantares » Thu Apr 2, 2009 1:20 am

per Andy Katz http://dimemag.com/2009/03/the-2nd-best ... his-draft/

Blake Griffin is both the No. 1 pick and the best future pro in this draft class. He’s like a 6-10 version of Charles Barkley with stupid athleticism, a great motor, and legitimate ball skills. And Griffin is really 6-10 - there won’t be a Michael Beasley height crisis with him come draft time. He’s got the top spot locked up.

So who’s number two?

Right now, most draft boards have UConn’s Hasheem Thabeet, Arizona’s Jordan Hill, or Arizona State’s James Harden in the two-hole. They then fill out the rest of the top five with the other two and some combination of Brandon Jennings, Duke’s Gerald Henderson and USC’s DeMar DeRozan. You don’t see Louisville’s Earl Clark until 7th on one site, and as late as 13th on another. If GM’s actually see the real draft board taking this general shape, they’re sorely mistaken.

Clark’s game is built for the League. At 6-9, he’s got a two-guard’s first step. With the exception of one game against UConn’s Stanley Robinson during Big East play, I haven’t seen Clark struggle to get into the lane off of a quick burst against anyone this year. It didn’t matter who Michigan State put in front of him yesterday, Clark was able to get into the second-layer of the D. That’s where I think Clark separates himself from the pack. He doesn’t try to finish everything at the rim. Instead, he maintains picturesque shooting form and pulls between six and ten feet when the defense collapses. Aside from LeBron, who can finish over and through anyone in the universe, great scorers all look to get to spots on the floor where they know they can get a bucket. Paul Pierce and Kobe are the two best at this in today’s game - if they get within a step of the free throw line, just count it. Clark has the foundation for that type of game.

His quickness translates to both sides of the ball. At times during yesterday’s loss to Michigan State, Rick Pitino had him D-ing up in the backcourt as part of Louisville’s light two-man full-court pressure. He pestered Spartan PG Kalin Lucas on a couple of trips; and Big 10 POY Lucas could very well be the quickest guy with the rock in the nation. Clark might not have the upper body strength to guard a big three, but his quickness would allow him to stick with an NBA two-guard right now.

Everyone wants to say that this is the weakest draft class in recent memory - some say of all time. Maybe that’s why Clark is going to be the second best pro to come out of it. But he’d be a special player no matter the other guys in his class.


looks like the cats out of the bag already, i thought the wolves would get lucky and he would fall down the board easily. Dude is skilled, I didnt know who he was until I watched a Lousiville game, high bball IQ and so much talent i was suprised he was a projected a late lottery pick with his tremendous skillset.
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#2 » by Krapinsky » Thu Apr 2, 2009 1:29 am

Probably should have posted this in the college player thread, otherwise we're going to have a different thread discussing every player.

Clark is in the mix for me though with Derozan and Evans.
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#3 » by big3_8_19_21 » Thu Apr 2, 2009 1:44 am

Having not watched either of them much, what is the major difference that puts Earl Clark over Al-Farouq Aminu?

Statistically they appear very similar except Clark shoots more 3's and hits them at a higher % where Aminu shoots a higher % inside the arc. Both are similar in size and vaunted for their athleticism.

I'm just curious, what separates them? I honestly just don't know enough about them.

Or are they really just that similar? They are picks 12 and 13 on DX.
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#4 » by Devilzsidewalk » Thu Apr 2, 2009 1:46 am

he gives me that feeling he could be doing more
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#5 » by Krapinsky » Thu Apr 2, 2009 1:54 am

Aminu is very raw but has great athletic ability and tries hard, while Clark has all the talent in the world with great ball skills but leaves you wanting more. I like Clark much much more.
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#6 » by big3_8_19_21 » Thu Apr 2, 2009 1:57 am

How do Aminu and DeRozan compare, then?
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#7 » by Zeitgeister » Thu Apr 2, 2009 2:05 am

big3_8_19_21 wrote:How do Aminu and DeRozan compare, then?


They are both very similar, except Aminu probably has a higher ceiling. The guy has an absolute freakish wingspan to go with his athleticism.
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#8 » by Krapinsky » Thu Apr 2, 2009 2:10 am

Similar. The difference to me is that Derozan has a position, where as Aminu looks like a tweener, which limits his upside.
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#9 » by collin_k41 » Thu Apr 2, 2009 4:11 am

Take this with a grain of salt as I only have watched one Louisville game this season but Earl Clark does nothing when he doesn't have the ball. He doesn't really try to get open, he sets horrible screens and seems to just be lazy. Other than that...he is 6'9" and crazy fast for his height, he can score in about any way you can imagine, he's not great at anything but he's just a good overall scorer. He fights for rebounds and generally hustles on the defensive end and can definitely dribble. With his speed and other tools he posseses this guy could become a beast. Could...I can also see him ending up like marvin williams or worse. Is that so bad?? You normally want to shoot higher with a top 5-6ish pick. He's definitely on the list of guys we should look at in our draft range.
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#10 » by Mayoistooslow » Thu Apr 2, 2009 6:31 am

I've always liked Clark, but if Rubio declares, he's not the 2nd best prospect in the draft. I'd much rather pick him than Gerald Henderson though. Hopefully he's there when we're on the clock. Some vids just in case anyone is interested.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCBTIzg2 ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fz-K22Xd ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSfllWZw ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTvwMyAb ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gv1p4I9V ... re=related
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#11 » by Foye » Thu Apr 2, 2009 4:05 pm

I haven't seen him ball but IF he is as talented as advertised we should probably draft him if Griffin, Rubio are of the board.

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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#12 » by john2jer » Thu Apr 2, 2009 4:16 pm

Can we just draft everybody?
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#13 » by Devilzsidewalk » Thu Apr 2, 2009 4:54 pm

pretty much, how many picks do we have again?
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#14 » by john2jer » Thu Apr 2, 2009 5:43 pm

We have a couple 13,14 picks, I think.
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Re: Earl Clark 2nd best prospect in draft 

Post#15 » by revprodeji » Thu Apr 2, 2009 11:32 pm

Talent wise is Earl Clark amazing? yes..

The problem is he is lazy, does not seem to care and that makes him incredibly inconsistent. He could have a tim thomas career. It is a matter if a team is willing to take that risk.

For those people pushing for Marvin williams. Skill-wise Clark is not much different. If anything he has a similar ceiling. But he is much more sporadic and does not make his teammates better like Williams does.
Reminds me of Corey maggette in that he will put up numbers and be great for 2k, but likely will not help a team win.

AFA is very raw. Likely 2-3 years from giving Ariza effort, but lots of Josh Smith potential.
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