Eric Bledsoe

shamu · Post #1 » by **shamu** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 7:49 am

Where do you see him end up in the draft. He's short, but has good length, and a pretty competent defender. He also seems to have a nice shooting game. I know he hasn't been that good as a PG in Kentucky, but would it be fair to say he has Jrue Holiday type potential.

I'd want the raps to try and get a early 20's pick and grab him, as that's where I see him going, though he could go earlier if a team's desperate for a guard a la Acie Law a few years ago.

DirtyDez · Post #2 » by **DirtyDez** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 8:24 am

Huge risk/reward player. If he has good workouts/interviews and his stock blows up i can see Indiana or Memphis taking a chance. Def a better player than Holliday in college but not as athletic.

It_Was_Typed · Post #3 » by **It_Was_Typed** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 3:18 pm

Somewhere in the mid teens to early 20s. He reminds me of Kyle Lowry. Aggressive, tough, inconsistent jump shot. His ability to run a team is the biggest question surrounding him.

Sid the Squid · Post #4 » by **Sid the Squid** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 3:21 pm

Destined to be a NBA scrub or a D League MVP.

ManualRam · Post #5 » by **ManualRam** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 4:21 pm

shamu wrote:Where do you see him end up in the draft. He's short, but has good length, and a pretty competent defender. He also seems to have a nice shooting game. I know he hasn't been that good as a PG in Kentucky, but would it be fair to say he has Jrue Holiday type potential.

I'd want the raps to try and get a early 20's pick and grab him, as that's where I see him going, though he could go earlier if a team's desperate for a guard a la Acie Law a few years ago.

hes gonna turn heads in workouts. i think he'll sneak into the late teens.
wasnt able to show what he's capable of doing becuz he's a PG through and through.

i dont see him as a huge risk player and i think he's a better athlete than holliday.

mattg · Post #6 » by **mattg** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 4:22 pm

It_Was_Typed wrote:Somewhere in the mid teens to early 20s. He reminds me of Kyle Lowry. Aggressive, tough, inconsistent jump shot. His ability to run a team is the biggest question surrounding him.

physically I can see where you get that, however Lowry was twice the player Bledsoe is when he was at Nova. He was a year older but he was the best defender in the whole country and was excellent at running the offense which foreshadowed Lowry turning into a great NBA role player. On the flip side, Bledsoe has shown that he's young, athletic and has a reputation as a good shooter. However he sucked in the tournament, proved he wasn't that good of a shooter and doesn't really have any experience running the point. His draft position depends on how his workouts go and even then I see him as a mid/late first rounder. Most NBA teams have their PG of the future right now, and those that don't still have guys who are better than Bledsoe or projects with just as much upside as him too.

Jazzfan12 · Post #7 » by **Jazzfan12** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 5:54 pm

When I look to draft a point guard, I go for the mentally unstable ones. Everyone talks about Cousins' body language, but Bledsoe's was way worse. He also constantly trying to start fights during games, was extremely selfish during games, and was the captain of the choke squad against West Virginia.

Dr Positivity · Post #8 » by **Dr Positivity** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 6:30 pm

I don't get the Jrue Holliday comparison whatsoever. They're opposites for PG prospects because Holliday is oversized while Bledsoe is undersized. He's closer in style to Ty Lawson

I see him as having a career as a backup point, to be a starting PG with his size you basically need to do everything else right which Bledsoe hasn't proven to me. With that said a good 15-20mpg waterbug PG isn't a bad thing to have. Probably worth a pick in the 15-25 range

ManualRam · Post #9 » by **ManualRam** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 6:38 pm

Dr Mufasa wrote:I don't get the Jrue Holliday comparison whatsoever. They're opposites for PG prospects because Holliday is oversized while Bledsoe is undersized. He's closer in style to Ty Lawson

I see him as having a career as a backup point, to be a starting PG with his size you basically need to do everything else right which Bledsoe hasn't proven to me. With that said a good 15-20mpg waterbug PG isn't a bad thing to have. Probably worth a pick in the 15-25 range

bledsoe aint a waterbug PG. he does have a quick first step, but hes built like a tank.

he's definitely a starter to me once he gains experience.

It_Was_Typed · Post #10 » by **It_Was_Typed** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 6:46 pm

Jazzfan12 wrote:When I look to draft a point guard, I go for the mentally unstable ones. Everyone talks about Cousins' body language, but Bledsoe's was way worse. He also constantly trying to start fights during games, was extremely selfish during games, and was the captain of the choke squad against West Virginia.

Very true...shows shades of Rafer Alston too.

Sid the Squid · Post #11 » by **Sid the Squid** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 6:47 pm

Bledsoe is a 6'2 shooting gaurd who can't shoot..He was wide open all year as opponents collapsed on Patterson and Big Cuz. I see a bleak NBA future for him and the team that wastes a #1 on him.

ManualRam · Post #12 » by **ManualRam** » Sat Apr 17, 2010 9:01 pm

Sid the Squid wrote:Bledsoe is a 6'2 shooting gaurd who can't shoot..He was wide open all year as opponents collapsed on Patterson and Big Cuz. I see a bleak NBA future for him and the team that wastes a #1 on him.

he's not a shooting guard. he's a PG who was forced to play SG.
there's no doubt at the next level he's a pg.

teamjosh04 · Post #13 » by **teamjosh04** » Sun Apr 18, 2010 2:55 am

Bledsoe has a lot of work to do. He is definitely a point guard, but it will likely take him a few years to be good enough to run a halfcourt offense. He has good defensive potential, but hes no Kyle Lowry. His intensity on the defensive end was extremely inconsistent and he would allow guys to drive right by him at times.

He is super explosive in the open court and his jump shot should end up being reliable.

Ive said his ceiling is similar to Lou Williams', but I do like the Rafer Alston comparison as a more likely case. Their attitudes are very similar, both can shoot, often too aggressive, and are very crafty in the opencourt.

ThreeYearPlan · Post #14 » by **ThreeYearPlan** » Sun Apr 18, 2010 4:14 am

Bledsoe had questionable shot selection and would throw up an impossible shot or send the ball to the 5th row when he attacked the basket. How does averaging 3 to's when you run the offense for 5 minutes equal a point guard?

BucksRUS · Post #15 » by **BucksRUS** » Sun Apr 18, 2010 4:34 am

He hasn't shown any positives with regards to running a team's offense. The only way I see him succeeding is if he plays PG opposite a ball dominant SG, such as Wade. In that scenario, he can defend the opposing PG and be a spot up shooter. You want to avoid having him dribbling around with the ball due to his propensity for TO's.

ManualRam · Post #16 » by **ManualRam** » Sun Apr 18, 2010 6:42 am

BucksRUS wrote:He hasn't shown any positives with regards to running a team's offense. The only way I see him succeeding is if he plays PG opposite a ball dominant SG, such as Wade. In that scenario, he can defend the opposing PG and be a spot up shooter. You want to avoid having him dribbling around with the ball due to his propensity for TO's.

he wasn the 3rd rated PG in the country by some scouting services becuz of his ability to shoot and score.
read the scouting reports when he came out of high school. the kid can play the point becuz he IS a point. hes' not even a combo guard. he is a point guard.
http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p= ... id=3654070
http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiti ... son%3d2009
as for the high TO numbers, calipari teams since he started this system at memphis are high turnover teams. they run every chance they get and the half court offense is a series of linked 1 on 1 plays. turnovers will happen.

BucksRUS · Post #17 » by **BucksRUS** » Sun Apr 18, 2010 5:00 pm

ManualRam wrote:
he wasn the 3rd rated PG in the country by some scouting services becuz of his ability to shoot and score.
read the scouting reports when he came out of high school. the kid can play the point becuz he IS a point. hes' not even a combo guard. he is a point guard.
http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p= ... id=3654070
http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiti ... son%3d2009
as for the high TO numbers, calipari teams since he started this system at memphis are high turnover teams. they run every chance they get and the half court offense is a series of linked 1 on 1 plays. turnovers will happen.

Just going off of his time at Kentucky, he left a reason to be concerned about his ability to play the point in the NBA. Now playing behind Wall may have stunted his growth some at the point. If I was a GM I wouldn't be counting on him coming in and having the ability to run the team.

ManualRam · Post #18 » by **ManualRam** » Sun Apr 18, 2010 5:55 pm

BucksRUS wrote:
ManualRam wrote:
he wasn the 3rd rated PG in the country by some scouting services becuz of his ability to shoot and score.
read the scouting reports when he came out of high school. the kid can play the point becuz he IS a point. hes' not even a combo guard. he is a point guard.
http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p= ... id=3654070
http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiti ... son%3d2009
as for the high TO numbers, calipari teams since he started this system at memphis are high turnover teams. they run every chance they get and the half court offense is a series of linked 1 on 1 plays. turnovers will happen.

Just going off of his time at Kentucky, he left a reason to be concerned about his ability to play the point in the NBA. Now playing behind Wall may have stunted his growth some at the point. If I was a GM I wouldn't be counting on him coming in and having the ability to run the team.

scouts dont throw out phrases like " pass-first PG," "excellent at running a team" or "instincts for position" for no reason. they dont even hand out that type of praise to most elite level prep PGs.
projecting his ability to play the PG position at the next level based on his effectiveness as a SG in college is pretty ridiculous to me.
players dont just lose those instincts after one yr playing out of position. in that regard he is very similar to j.holiday.

will he be able to start right away as a PG? probably not, but he DOES have the instincts to play the position in the NBA. combine that with his physical tools, athleticism, competitiveness and his potential defensively, he will be a STEAL in the 1st round especially if a lot of teams are stupid enough to think that he's just an undersized 2 or a combo guard.

ExplosionsInDaSky · Post #19 » by **ExplosionsInDaSky** » Sun Apr 18, 2010 10:49 pm

Jrue Holiday is a horrible comparison with Bledsoe. The only comparison is that Bledsoe played out of position much like Holiday.
Bledsoe will stick in the NBA though. He's an above average defender with insane leaping ability. A player that will be able to guard either guard position on the floor. In time he will learn to run the point and I think the Lowry comparison actually holds some water. I expect Bledsoe's role to be similar to what Lowry has done in the NBA.

teamjosh04 · Post #20 » by **teamjosh04** » Sun Apr 18, 2010 11:22 pm

ManualRam wrote:
BucksRUS wrote:He hasn't shown any positives with regards to running a team's offense. The only way I see him succeeding is if he plays PG opposite a ball dominant SG, such as Wade. In that scenario, he can defend the opposing PG and be a spot up shooter. You want to avoid having him dribbling around with the ball due to his propensity for TO's.

he wasn the 3rd rated PG in the country by some scouting services becuz of his ability to shoot and score.
read the scouting reports when he came out of high school. the kid can play the point becuz he IS a point. hes' not even a combo guard. he is a point guard.
http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p= ... id=3654070
http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiti ... son%3d2009
as for the high TO numbers, calipari teams since he started this system at memphis are high turnover teams. they run every chance they get and the half court offense is a series of linked 1 on 1 plays. turnovers will happen.

While I agree that he's a PG, I dont see what being ranked #3 by some recruiting services has anything to do with how well he will run a team in the NBA. Based off RSCI, he was actually the 10th ranked PG

1. John Wall
2. Abdul Gaddy
3. Maalik Wayns
4. Elijah Johnson
5. Peyton Siva
6. Tommy Mason-Griffin
7. Mfon Udofia
8. Junior Cadougan
9. Ray Penn
10. Eric Bledsoe

Being the 10th ranked PG in your class means nothing about his ability to effectively play PG in the NBA. Look at the guys he was ranked behind - are they considered NBA PGs?