Jonas Valanciunas

[Dr Positivity]

Skillsets and tools matter, not how someone looks in an inferior league, which usually leads to dangerous subjective opinions - Based on how they produce in that league, which players you've watched the most, and which players you've seen the best or worst games of

The stuff that you usually get from watching games (bball IQ, feel for the court, defense) I can get from reading here and other scouting reports. I can see when a guy is producing from his stats too of course

I remember watching a NC game for Ed Davis last year and thinking he looks like a raw scrub big. I went back and watched the tapes and found a lot more to like in his post ability

I don't watch 0 live games, but I don't consider it a requirement to rate a player's NBA ability - which again is 90% judgeable by objective tools like skillset, body tools, and stuff written about their heads and work ethics and etc. Basically everything a player can do is available through clips or write-ups, it's just interpreting it that matters

[Satoransky]

http://euroleagueadventures.com/the-dar ... lanciunas/

[Kirsten19]

Chad Ford has him at 8th.

And as a Pistons fan, i dont mind having him IF HIS CONTRACT ISSUE IS SOLVED.

Its less than a month before the draft, not much time for his agent/lawyer. He still has three years in contract with his current team. Time is running out for him, his agent, his Euroleague team n his lawyer imo.

The pistons fans are not impressed though:

is valanciunas 6'10 230 or 6'11 240?

Sometimes youtube shows the rest of the story...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TS_-RMKo ... r_embedded

That video is depressing.

That video is depressing.

Incredibly depressing... He's not a player I particularly liked anyway, but maybe that was just a bad game or at least I'm hoping it was since he's appraently on Detroit's radar.

I think he size the length as he's a legit 7 footer and a 7'6" wingspan; he has a good motor, passion for the game, good bball IQ, a good offensive rebounder and good FT%

But base on many video i've seen of him, he looks skinny compared to other bigs, was pushed arround pretty often in the paint; he LACKS ATHLETICISM, not that his athleticism is not elite but i actually think its not even close to NBA standard. His leaping/bouncing ability is poor compared to the NBA bigs. His offense looks raw too, doesnt look like he can contribute in the NBA in the next year or so.

Some pros and cons. Its normal. I am one of the few pistons fans who are interested in him.

[Steely Reserve]

Thus guy is the f*cking real deal.

[Kirsten19]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TS_-RMKo ... r_embedded

Doesnt look that impressive in viedo to be very honest

[Kaner]

I honestly see him falling on draft day a la Ricky Rubio, only this kid seems to have less potential. I would be shocked, with all of the red flags raised on this kid, if he goes top 10 at this point...between the average offense, the 8 fouls/40 min, the average athleticism, and the contract situation...I mean i know this is a weak draft, and I keep saying "I've gotta be missin something here. What does everyone else see that I don't?" but instead my opinion keeps worsening of him

[Kirsten19]

I think the situation is different

Rubio doesnt want to go to Minnesota, his team in Spain still want him and do not have financial problem like Valanciunas' team

Rubio is a much better talent though.

[Alfred]

Skillsets and tools matter, not how someone looks in an inferior league, which usually leads to dangerous subjective opinions - Based on how they produce in that league, which players you've watched the most, and which players you've seen the best or worst games of

The stuff that you usually get from watching games (bball IQ, feel for the court, defense) I can get from reading here and other scouting reports. I can see when a guy is producing from his stats too of course

Right, why would any scout ever want to go watch a player live? Seriously? First you say you can't get much out of watching how player performs in an inferior league, and then you say that you can see how a guy is producing from his stats? Which is it?

I remember watching a NC game for Ed Davis last year and thinking he looks like a raw scrub big. I went back and watched the tapes and found a lot more to like in his post ability

I don't watch 0 live games, but I don't consider it a requirement to rate a player's NBA ability - which again is 90% judgeable by objective tools like skillset, body tools, and stuff written about their heads and work ethics and etc. Basically everything a player can do is available through clips or write-ups, it's just interpreting it that matters

So instead of actually watching the player yourself and coming to conclusions that way, you think it's actually BETTER to read what other people who have watched him play say. How on earth could that be true? Second hand information is better than first hand information now?

In any case, I think the reason that people are getting on your case is because you speak as if you're an authority on the matter, when you think you can read a scouting report on a player and automatically know exactly how they're going to translate to the NBA. I don't trust your methodology at all.

[Trilogy]

Relying on 2nd hand information might be a reasonable method if the 1st hand person doesn't know crap.

[Laowai]

See Jonas as a Marcus Canby type C but much better offensively.
I hope the Raptors take him and trade Amir Johnson for a 8 to 10 pick.

[trenekas]

This picture Valanciunas does not look very skinny

[Krapinsky]

See Jonas as a Marcus Canby type C but much better offensively.
I hope the Raptors take him and trade Amir Johnson for a 8 to 10 pick.

[Dr Positivity]

Skillsets and tools matter, not how someone looks in an inferior league, which usually leads to dangerous subjective opinions - Based on how they produce in that league, which players you've watched the most, and which players you've seen the best or worst games of

The stuff that you usually get from watching games (bball IQ, feel for the court, defense) I can get from reading here and other scouting reports. I can see when a guy is producing from his stats too of course

Right, why would any scout ever want to go watch a player live? Seriously? First you say you can't get much out of watching how player performs in an inferior league, and then you say that you can see how a guy is producing from his stats? Which is it?

I remember watching a NC game for Ed Davis last year and thinking he looks like a raw scrub big. I went back and watched the tapes and found a lot more to like in his post ability

I don't watch 0 live games, but I don't consider it a requirement to rate a player's NBA ability - which again is 90% judgeable by objective tools like skillset, body tools, and stuff written about their heads and work ethics and etc. Basically everything a player can do is available through clips or write-ups, it's just interpreting it that matters

So instead of actually watching the player yourself and coming to conclusions that way, you think it's actually BETTER to read what other people who have watched him play say. How on earth could that be true? Second hand information is better than first hand information now?

In any case, I think the reason that people are getting on your case is because you speak as if you're an authority on the matter, when you think you can read a scouting report on a player and automatically know exactly how they're going to translate to the NBA. I don't trust your methodology at all.

As I said. A player's offense can be 95% seen in clips. I care about skillset and tools at the college level and if anything they make those more clear. Defensive potential usually comes down to length and athleticism anyways.

This is the second time someone has accused me of speaking with too much authority. Does it really matter? I would accuse someone of that if they took a "I like this guy because I'M RIGHT AND AN EXPERT and I LIKE THIS GUY" subjective approach. I try to stay away from that as much as possible. As far as I'm concerned my and everyone else's history scouting prospects makes no difference. It matters what you say, not who you are.

[Darknemo2000]

Rubio is a much better talent though.

I would not say Rubio is much better player though. For last two years he kind of staled. This season Veseley and Valanciunas were quite a bit better players in euroleague than Rubio was.

[Alfred]

As I said. A player's offense can be 95% seen in clips.

No it can't! Clips can make anyone look good! If I have a highlight mix of Bargnani grabbing rebounds, it doesn't suddenly make rebounding a strong point.

You also never addressed the contradiction in your statement where you said there is nothing to be gleaned from watching a player play inferior competition, but then said that you could examine that player's stats in order to get a better idea of how good they are. You can't have it both ways, those statements are contradictory.

This is the second time someone has accused me of speaking with too much authority. Does it really matter?

Because you say rubbish like "95% of someone's offense can be seen in highlight clips" or "there's no use watching someone play against inferior competition", and saying things in absolute terms.

If scouting was as easy as watching a couple of highlight clips and examining a player's skillset, then scouts wouldn't even exist. The general manager would just watch a few clips, and come to his own conclusion. But they do, because watching games, getting a player in the gym and training with him are two of the best ways of knowing how good a player is.

[Dr Positivity]

There's obviously a big difference between scouting in person and watching a player on tv

I'm saying there isn't a big difference between watching a live game and watching their clips in that game, when it comes to seeing a player's offensive arsenal. I'm not talking about highlights, rather clips like this that just show all their baskets

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34V-s1byysU[/youtube]

I care 100x more about videos in that style than floorcam, instant reply highlights. You can get a pretty clear picture of their skillset from a vid like that. In fact after watching that video I think I made a pretty bad Brooks comparison yesterday (comparing him to Stuckey in the NBA). He looks like a shooter and shot creator

What additive comes from watching a live game on tv and the stuff a video like the above misses - Seeing their effort level, seeing them moving off the ball, seeing their passing and seeing their defense. That's the cost but most of the time those things are cut and dry from what has been written about them. I don't need to see a live Valanciunas game to know he plays hard or a live Singleton game to know he's a defensive standout in college. There's been enough evidence in that area.

The game changing stuff (where they get their shots and how and their bodies) is available in clips for me

I think you're putting too much into the 'caring about stats' comment. What I meant is that if one of the advantages of seeing a live game is you can see when a guy is lighting it up and dominating - well that's pretty clear in stats too. Again I don't need to see a live Marshon Brooks game to know he fills it up in college.

[TheRealDeal]

Real scouts use Synergy

Essentially, Synergy has been described as “Google for Basketball”:

• Teams can log onto the Synergy website from anywhere in the world and stream automated video edits from NBA, college, and international games to suit a wide variety of purposes.

• When watching video, staff can easily tag favorite clips to create custom edits for others to watch. Authorized staff can watch these edits from anywhere in the world on the Synergy website.

• Custom edits created by the staff can be viewed in a wide variety of ways including iPods, DVDs, VHS tape or computer projection. Staff can even stream video to Smart Phones.

• A “Caching Server” is also installed at each team’s basketball headquarters and all video is automatically downloaded to this device so that staff can stream video “locally” without depending on the Internet to pull the video from our data center. This is important because video is a “bandwidth hog” and as soon as two or more staff attempt to pull video over the Internet the video ceases to work.

• When on the road, clients can transfer video to their laptop’s hard drive for portable viewing while on a plane or bus, etc. Synergy’s technology allows games to be downloaded very quickly. In fact, several games can be downloaded overnight.

• Synergy lets staff “follow your nose” like never before to become familiar with players or teams in a very short period of time: Tired of watching a player’s pick and rolls? Switch to his isos, spot-ups, transitions or any other play-type without having to wait for video staff to work up requested edits.

[Alfred]

A video where it only shows a player's made field goals is essentially a highlight video, and you can't draw concrete information from it. Highlight videos can be made for virtually every prospect, even players that are sub-optimal shooters.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fz_F2s0vT9I[/youtube]

Wow, there were a ton of clips showing Jennings shooting the ball from range, finishing with contact, making plays at the rim. This kid is definitely a very good scorer in the NBA, don't you think? Nevermind the fact that he is actually a pretty bad finisher, and a pretty bad shooter too. But when you only look at a player's makes in a highlight video, you don't get the full story. Same with the Marshon Brooks video that you posted. I actually didn't get all that much from the video, other than the fact that he got really hot.

In order to get the full story, you actually need to watch them in a game.

The fact that you think you can simply watch a single highlight video, read a few scouting reports, and then act as some sort of insider, making bold proclamations about how Player A is definitely going to be a bust, how Player B has tons of untapped potential that people are just CRAZY not to see, all the while never watching a single game that either of them have played. It seems crazy to me.

[DatHomieYouHaTe]

This guy looks like a nba bench warmer.

no 2 step vert ala bargnani

I see him getting his shot blocked a lot in the nba

[theboomking]

Real scouts use Synergy

Essentially, Synergy has been described as “Google for Basketball”:

• Teams can log onto the Synergy website from anywhere in the world and stream automated video edits from NBA, college, and international games to suit a wide variety of purposes.

• When watching video, staff can easily tag favorite clips to create custom edits for others to watch. Authorized staff can watch these edits from anywhere in the world on the Synergy website.

• Custom edits created by the staff can be viewed in a wide variety of ways including iPods, DVDs, VHS tape or computer projection. Staff can even stream video to Smart Phones.

• A “Caching Server” is also installed at each team’s basketball headquarters and all video is automatically downloaded to this device so that staff can stream video “locally” without depending on the Internet to pull the video from our data center. This is important because video is a “bandwidth hog” and as soon as two or more staff attempt to pull video over the Internet the video ceases to work.

• When on the road, clients can transfer video to their laptop’s hard drive for portable viewing while on a plane or bus, etc. Synergy’s technology allows games to be downloaded very quickly. In fact, several games can be downloaded overnight.

• Synergy lets staff “follow your nose” like never before to become familiar with players or teams in a very short period of time: Tired of watching a player’s pick and rolls? Switch to his isos, spot-ups, transitions or any other play-type without having to wait for video staff to work up requested edits.

So, can the rest of us get synergy?