DeMarcus Cousins. How good can he get?

[Cammo101]

Hassan Whiteside (Great Athlete?):

27 inch no step vertical
31.5 inch max vertical

DeMarcus Cousins (Terrible Athlete?):

23.5 inch no step vertical
27.5 inch max vertical

You also left out the part where Whiteside did this in flip flops and Cousins did not even do the bench press because he didn't know how to lift weights, because he never has. True story.

So he's really strong and extremely effective in the post despite never being in a actual strength training program? What a disaster.

I see that as, he's a great talent who does just enough to get by and does not care enough to actually put in the time.

It speaks to work ethic.

[Cammo101]

And for the record, I never said Whiteside would be better than Cousins. I said he had more upside. I have had Cousins ahead of Whiteside in my big board for quite some time now.

[Esohny]

I see that as, he's a great talent who does just enough to get by and does not care enough to actually put in the time.

It speaks to work ethic.

Seems kinda arbitrary. One could say "Wall and Turner need to improve their shooting" or "Wes Johnson needs to learn how to handle the ball like an actual professional" and claim that because they have things to work on, they've been slacking due to poor work ethic.

And how does work ethic affect upside, anyway? It only changes the probability that a player reaches their upside.

[AI2TOHOUSTON]

Whiteside has what Cousins does not, a ton of upside. I have Cousins ahead of Whiteside, I just don't wet myself over him.[/quote]
WTF do you mean Whiteside has more potential then Cousins does??????? Cousins has the potenital to be a 25 and 12 guy while Whiteside might be Marcus Camby AT BEST. Cousins is younger and more polished and has showed that to stop him on Offense you HAVE to double team him. There is a huge distance between these two prospects im talkingParis Hiltons gaping vag big.[/quote]
Whiteside has the potential of KG at best. Nice mid range game, incredibly raw, and not much bulk.

[_BBIB_]

I'm probably in the minority in that I'd take Johnson and Aminu over Cousins. I see Cousins upside as a Zach Randolph/Al Jefferson type, to me that's not enough to justify the baggage that pick brings, considering I value high character and "winning" type players a lot. OTOH I could see Johnson as a Nic Batum/Tayshaun Prince for somebody. Not an all-star, but the an ideal role player on a great team, as a super long defender who hits 3s. I'd be fine with Johnson.

As for Aminu... I actually think he has one of the highest upsides in the draft. Athletic beast, HUGE wingspan, nice skill level. I think he's been a little underrated.

Don't think either player is nearly as long as Cousins and Zach Randolph is not nearly as skilled around the basket.

And the idea that Whiteside has KG potential is a really big stretch especially offensively considering how talented KG is on that floor. One of the most skilled big men ever.

[Cammo101]

I'm probably in the minority in that I'd take Johnson and Aminu over Cousins. I see Cousins upside as a Zach Randolph/Al Jefferson type, to me that's not enough to justify the baggage that pick brings, considering I value high character and "winning" type players a lot. OTOH I could see Johnson as a Nic Batum/Tayshaun Prince for somebody. Not an all-star, but the an ideal role player on a great team, as a super long defender who hits 3s. I'd be fine with Johnson.

As for Aminu... I actually think he has one of the highest upsides in the draft. Athletic beast, HUGE wingspan, nice skill level. I think he's been a little underrated.

Don't think either player is nearly as long as Cousins and Zach Randolph is not nearly as skilled around the basket.

And the idea that Whiteside has KG potential is a really big stretch especially offensively considering how talented KG is on that floor. One of the most skilled big men ever.

Did you just say Cousins is more skilled around the basket than Randolph?

[Zeitgeister]

Whiteside has what Cousins does not, a ton of upside. I have Cousins ahead of Whiteside, I just don't wet myself over him.

WTF do you mean Whiteside has more potential then Cousins does??????? Cousins has the potenital to be a 25 and 12 guy while Whiteside might be Marcus Camby AT BEST. Cousins is younger and more polished and has showed that to stop him on Offense you HAVE to double team him. There is a huge distance between these two prospects im talkingParis Hiltons gaping vag big.[/quote]
Whiteside has the potential of KG at best. Nice mid range game, incredibly raw, and not much bulk.[/quote]

LOL, that's too bad. So what kind of upside does Favors have, Hakeem Olajuwan?

[510TWSS]

Honestly Cammo I see much more projection with Cousins than Whiteside. I do take into account how likely each player will be able to reach that potential. I think Cousins upside is better than Randolph's. I doubt he'll have the offcourt problems that Randolph has been plagued with. Cousins is much longer and is more of a passer than Randolph is. They both can finish around the basket in a variety of ways. Cousins hopefully is a better defender due to size/strength. But I imagine without coaching, Cousins won't be above average on his own.

Whiteside is just so raw. He's not exceptionally young. KG was already twice as good at age 20 than Whiteside is now. I, like the poster above me, see Marcus Camby.

Cousins is the best big in the draft hands down imo. He was when they played the season. I really like Favors too. But I think he won't be able to make as big of a difference right away as Cousins could. He also needs to develop his offensive game. He's already pretty good off PnR, O-Reb, finishing inside. He doesn't have a legit post game yet. He doesn't look smooth but there is potential there. I really like his defense though. His calling card should be there as a rookie.

[HtownPA]

ESPN has a full body shot of Cousins at the draft combine. He has blown up since March.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/commenta ... son/100529

[_BBIB_]

Not fat....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39jWHk7VSM0


One photo of a guy jumping that doesn't show anything. Yeah he isn't built like a bean pole, doesn't mean he looks fat

Again not even built like Glen Davis


As stated here he's been 290+ all season
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wn5LSbf7lZA


You are going to be way off on this prediction. Saying Cousins is a bust, that is like some crazy guy I know who called Durant the next Adam Morrison.

[Rob Rowell]

Greg Oden 7'0 285
Kendrick Perkins 6'10 280

To me Cousins is perfect for the Center position he'll be playing at and his mobility was on par with the other bigs while his measurements were way above average. If your going to knock the guy for anything it should be his attitude not his weight. Also the only other big that has as much potential as Cousins is Favors both could be stars the others are at least a tier down.

[princeofpalace]

^
The Bodyfat % is the indication not the actual weight and if you talk to Portland fans they will tell you that Oden struggles with his weight, he has been out of shape for a while now. You can easily look at Perkins and see that he is muscular, but you look at Cousins and he is Zach Randolph chubby.

It would be different if Cousins was 300lbs and around 10% body fat

[HtownPA]

There's more to basketball than just height. A player needs to have a strong work ethic. Time and time again, teams believe they can turn a 7ft giant bum into a franchise center.

Shaq, Hakeem, Duncan were hard workers coming out of college. That's the difference between a 7 ft stiff and a 7 ft star.

Bogut was a hard worker, but he got knocked for not being athletic enough. Hard work and above average athleticism will be amazing athletecism and no work, every time.

Several teams have been burned by reaching on 7 ft giants who were very physically amazing but were lazy or extremely raw, because they are bigger than everybody else.

Portland got burned twice with Oden over Durant and Bowie over Jordan, because "you can't teach height."

Chicago got Eddy Curry over Joe Johnson.

Pistons got Darko over Carmelo, Bosh and Wade.

Memphis got Thabeet, who got sent to the NBDL, over Evans and Harden.

[Esohny]

Except that picking Cousins isn't a reach at all, since he's easily BPA after the 3rd pick, and if not for his supposed attitude concerns, would probably be in the mix for #1. He's highly skilled besides having great physical measurements.

[HtownPA]

Cousins isn't even a top 5 player, no matter which team he goes to. His overweight body will be sitting on the bench like Oden with a fatman's injury by All-star break. I'll be laughing at the team that drafts him.

[Zeitgeister]

Cousins isn't even a top 5 player, no matter which team he goes to. His overweight body will be sitting on the bench like Oden with a fatman's injury by All-star break. I'll be laughing at the team that drafts him.

timestamped and saved.

[DiplomaticMagic]

Lol @ the beginning of this thread

I've been thinking do the Wolves draft Cousins at #4 based on talent? Or do they go with Wesley Johnson to fill their most glaring need?

[Cammo101]

Lol @ the beginning of this thread

I've been thinking do the Wolves draft Cousins at #4 based on talent? Or do they go with Wesley Johnson to fill their most glaring need?

I think the smart move is to take Johnson. He fits better on their roster, and with the lack fo leadership in Minny, Cousins would be doomed to fail. Not to mention he is a similar below the basket type of big as Love and Jefferson.

I do not like the fit in Minny at all.

[Jazzfan12]

Putting Johnson on this team dooms them to another 15 win season. No one on the team is a playmaker and he desperately need playmakers.

[Foye]

Putting Johnson on this team dooms them to another 15 win season. No one on the team is a playmaker and he desperately need playmakers.

The playmaker will come over in 2011.

I agree though that Cousins is the better pick for the Wolves. Can't pass on Cousins potential.