Lester Hudson

[billfromBoston]

Elrod,

I like Hudson better than Pruitt because he isn't a pussy...Pruitt is...

[Banks2Pierce]

He is going to be 24 before the start of next season. His bday is a few days away from mine.

[DelMonte West]

Wow bill, you usually aren't that direct about your opinion of a player. That bit about Pruitt is disconcerting, but not surprising given the kid has a perma-smile on his face. He's the polar opposite of Perkins in terms of body language and overall demeanor out there. It's a shame, too, because I think part of the reason he looks the way he does out there is because he's usually playing with the C-squad. Hopefully he gets it together. Either way we desperately need a bench player willing and able to put the ball in the basket. Can't wait for SL.

[Brooklyn Zoo]

Didn't see this posted elsewhere..a local news piece on Hudson from just before the drafrt. Can't help but root for this guy.

http://www.wpsdlocal6.com/mediacenter/l ... ayport.com

[Red2]

is it too early to call him Lester " the Molestor" Hudson?

[campybatman]

Hudson's birthday is in August. The start of next season is in October/November of 2009. Again, Lester Hudson will be twenty-five before the start of next season. He was born on August 7th, 1984. Today is June 29th, 2009.

Another matter is Hudson's age. He will be 25 years old in August, possibly having fewer productive years than younger players.

"I think there are only 10 to 12 players who can play right away," Hudson said. "I have the NBA body and am more mature. The economy is so low, and teams need somebody to come in right away and produce."

Mock draft boards, which try to predict the order in which players will be selected, still question Hudson's potential at the NBA level.

Half of the most popular mock drafts have Hudson in the middle or latter picks in the second round, and the other half predict Hudson will not be drafted.

http://www.jacksonsun.com/article/20090 ... raft-looms

[ParticleMan]

I'm not sure what the fascination with age is. Being a bit older just means your body won't develop. But your savvy and basketball smarts surely will. There have been quite a few 6-2, 6-3 SGs who've had long productive careers even without being freak athletes. Vinnie Johnson and Flip Murray were two mentioned in this thread. If Hudson comes close to either of those guys we got a steal at 58.

[old rem]

How does Danny find these short guys who can rebound the hell out of the ball. 6'2" and 7.9 boards a game!

The better question is what did this guy have to do to just be a high rd 2? Jennings played in Italy...vs mostly guys with no NBA hopes...and was a dud...that still leaves him top 10. There ARE a lot of guys in the HOF who did NOT play for a "big time" team.......Earl Monroe,David Robinson,Walt Frazier,Willis Reed,Scottie Pippen,Joe Dumars,Karl Malone,Elgin Baylor......just to mention a few.

[Pogue Mahone]

What if Hudson was a Mormon, graduated high school, spent two years on a mission and then did his four years of college? He would be the same age. If he was Mark Madsen, he would get drafted in the 1st RD.

Sure, Hudson has his warts but age isn't really one of them in my mind. It would be one thing if he had been playing organized basketball all of that time and he was still very raw and/or physically underdeveloped for his current age. He is neither. In fact, if anything, he has the chance to get a lot better because he hasn't played as much ball against top competition as many players his same age.

Damien Wilkins, Dikembe Mutombo, Dennis Rodman, Ervin Johnson, Ron Anderson, Rick Carlisle, Lee Nalion, Stephane Lasme, Mark Eaton and Mark Madsen are all players who were Hudson's age and older when they entered the NBA. Many of them had played more organized basketball, as well.

Assuming Hudson can adapt (and his college success, especially against bigger schools, certainly weigh in the positive), a 5-7 year career is likely. What would be the difference if he was a 23 year old who sat on the end of the NBA bench for two years and was just getting his shot now? Minutes played is a much, much better indicator of future development than age, all other things being equal.

[BillessuR6]

The problem is that he is 25 and hasn`t played a single game of professional basketball in his life! To me that is just weird. If he played in Europe he would probably have 7 years of experience playing against professional players...You just can`t underestimate the lack of real competition. He played against future dentists, accountants instead of 30 year-old professional basketball players.

I think he could have been much further along in his development had he played against some real competition, so I don`t think he is ready for the NBA. I hope I am wrong but I am not too optimistic abut him...

Of course, like pogue said, he might make a huge development jump playing against better players even at this age...we will see...

[ParticleMan]

Well, obviously his biggest issue is the lack of competition he has played against. If he put up those stats at Duke he'd be a lotto pick, the next Ben Gordon.

But that has nothing to do with his age. A 21 year old or 18 year old coming into the NBA from a small school would have the exact same issue. The only thing that age hurts is that one expects an 18 year old to fill out his body, whereas Hudson's body is what it is at this point. Also, Hudson will have likely have a shorter career, 5-7 years instead of 10, but that's hardly our concern right now.

And as for Euros, frankly I have yet to see an example where a Euro came in to the NBA and started dominating at the same level that they dominated in Europe (or wherever they came from). They need an adjustment period also, in part because the game is played very differently over there.

[Banks2Pierce]

I definitely saw his birth year as 1985 on one of the sites that I frequent. I wouldn't have made that mistake, but it looks like it definitely is 1984, as that is what the listing is on celtics.com. Sorry about that.

I'd like to see him lock down Harden/Holiday and all the others next week!!

[campybatman]

That's cool... My point was that Hudson will be an older rookie. There's nothing wrong with this, look at Al Thornton (he'll turn twenty-six in December). But, one would assume that a player who's older than his draft class peers would be a more polished player and ready to step right in as a rookie. You look at his maturity and confidence being an older player. Playing time is up to Rivers, but Hudson I expect to crack the lineup if given an opportunity by winter. He certainly sounds like he's hunger (motivated) to contribute immediately in any way.

[Banks2Pierce]

I found where it said 1985...his Facebook page...I was friends with him for a year for some reason.