Yahoo: Raps sign Linas Kleiza to 4 year 18.8M offer sheet

[Duffman100]

I'm actually starting like the team that Colangelo is building. Demar, Weems, Amir, Davis, Kleiza....

He's finally realized that Toronto likes the blue collar guys...

[Jmatt12]

In 08-09 Denver had the 8th best ranked defense in the league with Kleiza averaging 22mpg and they made the western conference finals. In 09-10 without him and no major roster changes (other than Afflalo), they had the 16th best ranked defense and were ousted in the first round.

You tell me if this is a value deal

Didn't they also lose Dahantay Jones ? People on this board were saying he is an amazing defender. Was he good enough reason why they dropped. Or was losing Klieza an even bigger loss for them defensively.

[Brinbe]

Where was this post earlier?

True, but that's what you get when you progress from shock to anger to simple acceptance, it happens. I'm maintained all along that I'm okay with this deal, I like Kleiza, it's just that it doesn't exist in a vacuum. The Hedo/Jose deals still loom large, imo.

[Los Manos]

Nice evaluation of both Kleiza and Childress from draftexpress at this years euroleague final four.

Linas Kleiza, 6-8, SF/PF, Olympiacos, 1985

The doomsday salary cap predictions made by the NBA league office last summer affected middle-class free agents more than anyone, which is why Linas Kleiza packed his bags and returned to Europe when it became clear the money had dried up.

The No. 1 scorer in the Euroleague at 17 points per game, Kleiza is clearly Olympiacos’ go-to guy and will be a major factor in any success they have this weekend. He’s an incredible mismatch threat at this level, capable of operating effectively—whether facing the basket or with his back to it--at either forward position, and he is incredibly aggressive crashing the glass and getting to the free throw line. He also makes shots from beyond the arc at a very good rate.

Kleiza plays a huge role on one of the biggest teams in Europe and has to be enjoying the season he’s had thus far. With that said, the itch to return to the NBA is a very strong one for players as competitive as Kleiza is. It would not surprise anyone to see him return this summer. He’s still only 25 years old at this point.

Like Childress, Kleiza is a restricted free agent. But with the Denver Nuggets well over the luxury tax and operating at a significant loss this season, he could likely be pried from their grasp for the right price.

From DraftExpress.com http://www.draftexpress.com/article/Eur ... z0t7OzIF5u
http://www.draftexpress.com

Josh Childress, 6-7, Small Forward, Olympiacos, 1983

Quietly developing into one of the top all-around players in European basketball, Josh Childress went from an overpaid and disappointing acquisition to the catalyst for the terrific season Olympiacos has had thus far. Childress “figured out” the European style of play and has become a much better basketball player in turn, upping his NBA earning potential significantly as a result.

With Joe Johnson a significant threat to leave the Atlanta Hawks in free agency this summer, Childress could be an outstanding backup plan for Rick Sund and Mike Woodson. A number of NBA teams we’ve spoken with expect Childress to make the trek back over the Atlantic next season--whether it’s to the Hawks or not. He’ll therefore be studied closely here in Paris by all teams in attendance despite his restricted free agent status.

From DraftExpress.com http://www.draftexpress.com/article/Eur ... z0t7P7BERI
http://www.draftexpress.com

http://www.draftexpress.com/article/Eur ... ines-3458/

[rapsrealm]

http://twitpic.com/23iets

Kleiza in Raps gear.

[RapticPride]

I've watched alot of Denver games so here is my scouting report:

Pros:
Great first step
Can catch fire from behind the arc
Seems unstoppable at times when he takes it to the rack(Rare)

Cons:
Can become a bit of a chucker from behind the arc
Atrocious defender
Poor rebounder for his size
Lacks Bball IQ
Very poor passer/tunnel vision


Overall, for a team lacking defense and rebounding this is a terrible signing. Another DOH! moment by Bryan Colangelo.

[Local_NG_Idiot]

In 08-09 Denver had the 8th best ranked defense in the league with Kleiza averaging 22mpg and they made the western conference finals. In 09-10 without him and no major roster changes (other than Afflalo), they had the 16th best ranked defense and were ousted in the first round.

You tell me if this is a value deal

Didn't they also lose Dahantay Jones ? People on this board were saying he is an amazing defender. Was he good enough reason why they dropped. Or was losing Klieza an even bigger loss for them defensively.

And this past season they raved about how good a defender Aflallo was, so I don't put much stock in "those people". BTW, green font and smileys means joking around, I wasn't being serious in the least.

He's passable on the defensive side of the ball, and most definitely an upgrade over Turk while capable of putting up similar numbers on the offensive end. But he comes at half the price, in shape, and without the whining and complaining that Turk has displayed. Will he be shutting down LeBron, Melo, Durant etc...? Anyone who thinks so ain't thinking clearly. Will he compete with Deng, Marvin Williams, Butler, Beaseley etc...? I think most nights he can stalemate that level of competition.

If Turk is moved, he is a very good replacement at that price tag and balances out the wing rotation as it limits DD and Weems minutes at the 3. If Turk isn't moved, then he's the guy breathing down Turk's neck for his starting job and gives Triano the firepower he needs to bench Turk if he comes in all whinie and fat again.

Either way I can't see BC holding onto Turk if Denver doesn't match.

[Jmatt12]

I've watched alot of Denver games so here is my scouting report:

Pros:
Great first step
Can catch fire from behind the arc
Seems unstoppable at times when he takes it to the rack(Rare)

Cons:
Can become a bit of a chucker from behind the arc
Atrocious defender
Poor rebounder for his size
Lacks Bball IQ
Very poor passer/tunnel vision


Overall, for a team lacking defense and rebounding this is a terrible signing. Another DOH! moment by Bryan Colangelo.

What ? Please tell me you are joking. Where are people getting this idea that he is a great defender and tough player.

[Harry Palmer]

I've watched alot of Denver games so here is my scouting report:

Pros:
Great first step
Can catch fire from behind the arc
Seems unstoppable at times when he takes it to the rack(Rare)

Cons:
Can become a bit of a chucker from behind the arc
Atrocious defender
Poor rebounder for his size
Lacks Bball IQ
Very poor passer/tunnel vision


Overall, for a team lacking defense and rebounding this is a terrible signing. Another DOH! moment by Bryan Colangelo.

What ? Please tell me you are joking. Where are people getting this idea that he is a great defender and tough player.

Dunno. He's tough in an overt way, but it doesn't translate to defense or rebounding. He's basically a score-oriented tweener.

[Jmatt12]

In 08-09 Denver had the 8th best ranked defense in the league with Kleiza averaging 22mpg and they made the western conference finals. In 09-10 without him and no major roster changes (other than Afflalo), they had the 16th best ranked defense and were ousted in the first round.

You tell me if this is a value deal

Didn't they also lose Dahantay Jones ? People on this board were saying he is an amazing defender. Was he good enough reason why they dropped. Or was losing Klieza an even bigger loss for them defensively.

And this past season they raved about how good a defender Aflallo was, so I don't put much stock in "those people". BTW, green font and smileys means joking around, I wasn't being serious in the least.

He's passable on the defensive side of the ball, and most definitely an upgrade over Turk while capable of putting up similar numbers on the offensive end. But he comes at half the price, in shape, and without the whining and complaining that Turk has displayed. Will he be shutting down LeBron, Melo, Durant etc...? Anyone who thinks so ain't thinking clearly. Will he compete with Deng, Marvin Williams, Butler, Beaseley etc...? I think most nights he can stalemate that level of competition.

If Turk is moved, he is a very good replacement at that price tag and balances out the wing rotation as it limits DD and Weems minutes at the 3. If Turk isn't moved, then he's the guy breathing down Turk's neck for his starting job and gives Triano the firepower he needs to bench Turk if he comes in all whinie and fat again.

Either way I can't see BC holding onto Turk if Denver doesn't match.

Thanks man. My expectations for LK aren't really high so your analysis seems justified. Also I realize the green font is sarcasm but the the guy you quoted always writes in green I figured you just didnt change the font.

[RapticPride]

I've watched alot of Denver games so here is my scouting report:

Pros:
Great first step
Can catch fire from behind the arc
Seems unstoppable at times when he takes it to the rack(Rare)

Cons:
Can become a bit of a chucker from behind the arc
Atrocious defender
Poor rebounder for his size
Lacks Bball IQ
Very poor passer/tunnel vision


Overall, for a team lacking defense and rebounding this is a terrible signing. Another DOH! moment by Bryan Colangelo.

What ? Please tell me you are joking. Where are people getting this idea that he is a great defender and tough player.

I wish i was joking. I am really getting fed up with BC's lack of vision for putting together a balanced team. Just ask Denver fans what they think of his defense if you don't believe me.

[JadedRaptorsFan]

YAAY!!! PLAN THE PARADE!!!!!

[Ku-Bar]

from Eric Smith's Twitter sorry if this was already posted on page X of thread ... not investing the time to read every page and for that I do apologize. Nobody's fault but my own.

http://tweetphoto.com/31497903

I do find it strange he's rocking the cap before Denver has matched?

Am I reading between the lines justly or reading too much into it?

Never heard of this before ever, plus a media scrum before the offer sheet is matched or not ...

I doubt Denver cap situation is too good re: rumors of dumping Martin to a team with capspace ala Camby dealt to Clippers for a 2nd rounder ...

Not looking to add salary but to shed contracts and re-up Melo...?

Means Denver unlikely to match? Therefore, the cap can be rocked without fear of return to Mile High?

[UnRealGM]

can he spell some minutes at the 2 or is he just too slow?

[RapticPride]

can he spell some minutes at the 2 or is he just too slow?

He lacks the lateral quickness to even guard 3's, so................

[MinnyMo]

His rebounding numbers arn't that bad, his RPG avg per36 is 6.6 which is pretty good for a small forward

[Duffman100]

His rebounding numbers arn't that bad, his RPG avg per36 is 6.6 which is pretty good for a small forward

He's also NOT that bad of a defender. I won't say he's good, but he's not atrocious.

The Denver games I've seen, he has been overtly tough....I've seen him knock a few guys to the ground and box out effectively.

[hkr]

His rebounding numbers arn't that bad, his RPG avg per36 is 6.6 which is pretty good for a small forward

Except that he's a tweener who, according to 82games and the few games I've watched, played more at PF than the SF spot. So 6.6 is pretty bad.

[Jmatt12]

I wish i was joking. I am really getting fed up with BC's lack of vision for putting together a balanced team. Just ask Denver fans what they think of his defense if you don't believe me.

Thanks dude. I just went on Nuggets board to get some insight.

[dagger]

David Thorpe's take on Kleiza from Jan. 2009

http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_ ... s-no-fluke

ESPN's David Thorpe has been a regular part of ESPN's TrueHoop since long before either of those things had "ESPN" before their names. As a guy who works closely with a lot of basketball players, including NBA players, he knows a ton about the game and has been unbelievably generous in explaining a lot of fascinating things to me.

Thorpe's probably best known for training Kevin Martin, but has worked with several other players, including Udonis Haslem, and a certain ... Linas Kleiza.

Thorpe advised Kleiza last season. Thorpe and I talked about Kleiza regularly all year long, and I watched a fair number of Nugget games just to see the things Thorpe was telling my about with my own eyes.

Kleiza scored 41 points against the Jazz last night, and is bathed in a lot sunshine today. But it's no fluke. This is not some random player who has already enjoyed the best night of his career.

Yet people may not have learned his name yet. Consider this blog post from the Salt Lake Tribune's Ross Siler:

Forget having a courtside seat for Kobe Bryant's 81-point game. Forget covering one 1,000-win coach in Jerry Sloan and another on his way in Phil Jackson. Years from now, what I'll most remember from being a beat writer is watching two career-high games from Linas Kleiza.
Kleiza hit five three-pointers on the way to scoring 29 points against the Lakers in a March 2007 victory. That was one of a string of performances that earned him the nickname "TV L" among the Nuggets for the way Kleiza came to life for games on TNT, ESPN, and ABC.
Well, there was no national TV Thursday and Kleiza still embarrassed the Jazz. He had 20 points in the second quarter, 27 by halftime, 36 through three quarters and a career-high 41 for the night. He's a relatively unknown third-year forward but can kill you if he gets hot.
"We felt like he was cherry-picking," Jazz forward Paul Millsap said. "We're not sure what he was doing, but we've got to work on our transition defense."
The Jazz didn't know Kleiza beyond their scouting report, with the exception of Deron Williams, who played against Kleiza both with USA Basketball ("He had like 40 and 17 against us") and when Kleiza played at Missouri in college.
Did Millsap ever imagine Kleiza would be the player to go off Thursday? "Never thought that at all," he said. "We thought it was going to be one of the Big Two. We played a solid game on them. He goes off tonight, so it's tough."
Thorpe agreed to answer some questions about Linas Kleiza:

The story on a lot of blogs, and in a lot of emails today is: who the hell is Linas Kleiza? It's almost funny that this guy no one knows about went off for 41. But it's not funny or surprising to you, right?
Right. Halfway through last season I realized that he had the talent to be a serious contributor for a playoff team. And then he had those two national TV appearances where he got "super hot" and looked like he'd be capable of scoring 40+ if given the minutes and chances.
[/i]
What kind of stuff have you worked on with him?
Last season he was asked to make an adjustment to being mostly a perimeter player, so LK asked me if I could study his performances and give him feedback on that challenge.

His Denver coaches did an amazing job of spending time with him daily on his jumper and his 3 point shot. Linas is a gym rat (a recurring theme of any guy that I help), and those coaches always made time for him.

I noticed that Linas often lacked total balance when he shot the ball, and didn't always hold his follow-through. So he worked all season on that.

Also, I thought it was a mistake to just be a 3 point guy, he's too good in the paint to just stand around outside.

So we'd talk about opportunities to cut, or post, within the flow of Denver's offense.

George Karl does not like him to shot fake guys, so instead I suggested he should wait just a beat longer before driving on guys who were rushing to close him out.

I also was impressed with his pure speed, so we talked about racing the floor instead of running it -- something Denver may do better than anyone (other than Phoenix).

LK was an amazingly engaged pupil, and improved every single month from November to March.

We have talked a lot about Linas, and one thing you have emphasized again and again is how tough he is -- which people probably won't recognize from the highlights, which paint him as yet another Euro who can shoot.
My goodness that kid is tough. As tough as any forward we have in the league. He is incredibly strong and knows how to use his body, thanks to his days as a power forward.

Toughness, as I define it in basketball terms, is having the ability to perform under any kind of pressure, along with delivering your own kind of pressure to your opponents. LK can not be out-muscled, nor can he be mentally intimidated, and he delivers a healthy dose of power to his opponents.

Is he a starter-type player?
Not in Denver, at the "three," for obvious reasons. But as a small "four" in many cities, yes. As a small forward for a good portion of the league, yes again. Who wouldn't want a good shooting "three" man who can run, defend multiple positions, has a great hoops IQ (schooled at Arvydas Sabonis' Academy in Lithuania) and feel for the game, and is a pro's pro while being so young?

I remember when he was drafted (by the Blazers). The story then was that he was a big man. A bruiser. But now he's clearly a wing, right?
I think of him as a great hybrid guy. Can play three positions most nights, small forward, power forward, and some shooting guard, depending on matchups.

I first met him when his family asked me to advise him on what he should do to better his draft chances. I did not train him at all, but suggested he cut 20 or so pounds to show athleticism in the pre-draft workouts.

Apparently he did exactly that, and has managed to keep the weight off to this day. He looks terrific. I think that is why he reached out to me last year when he was faced with a new challenge.

And the Nuggets' organization deserves so much credit for the way they treat the health and well-being of their players. The guys get healthy meals from the team chef every day, and the whole atmosphere is set up for the committed player to continue growing as a player on and off the floor.

He has been amazing in international play -- you told me about the World Junior Championships when he led all scorers, including Andrew Bogut. And he went to college here. How can he still be such a secret?
His name is Carmelo Anthony, one of the top small forwards in the world. If not for him, LK would be starting at "three" for a playoff team. Perhaps he'll start getting more time as a "running four," and we'll see more of him in terms of minutes.

He's definitely a future starter in this league, if not in Denver then somewhere else.