Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012?

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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#61 » by peachbucket » Tue Feb 14, 2012 11:11 pm

Dr Mufasa wrote:Yeah, it's either him or Lamb at 2 for me. I'm more sold on Lamb but would rather roll the dice a little bit to get a big time PF/C instead of just a perimeter scorer, if that makes sense.

It really does feel like with the history of the draft and high potential Cs and the way Drummond will play the role of the head of British Petroleum if UConn misses the tournament, Leonard should be the guy who goes 2nd. But it seems like there's such a hesitance against sophmores or juniors who aren't putting up dominant stats yet. Long way to go though. Derrick Williams didn't make his jump from "top 10" to the "guaranteed 2nd overall" guy until the middle/end of March according to DX's mock draft history


I think talent evaluators are viewing this ashis 'freshman' year since he didn't get substantial playing time as a true freshman. Also, the only reason his numbers aren't 'dominant' is because he is so sytem bound. He is 3rd on the team in fg attempts at 9 per game while shooting almost 20% better than the primary and secondary options. This is both due to the fact that he almost exclusively operates in the low block and the players that he rellies on to get him the ball are selfish and poor passers. Every national game is a broken record with knowledgable announcers/coaches (Kniight, Rafftery, etc..) screaming for Illinios to get Leonard the ball inside in the second half instead of chucking contested threes. Likewise, on defense Illinois plays almost exclusively man where Leonard is almost always drawn out to the perimiter which limits his blocks and rebounds. Because his offensive output is so crucial to the teams success and he spends so much energy fighting for low post position, he is much more passive on the defensive end where he seems to conserve energy and tries to often to stay out of foul trouble. The bottom line, if he was properly utilized I think he would be putting up numbers closer to 19 10 4 and 4 and would be on top of every draft board. Trust me though, this isn't lost on anyone who actually watches his games...especially NBA talent scouts.

The more I watch him the more I think that Pau Gasol might be closer to his floor than his ceiling as Leonard is more athletic and projects to be much more stronger and physical.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#62 » by babyjax13 » Wed Feb 15, 2012 12:09 am

Leonard is a top three pick in this draft, the only question is, who is number 2? If Drummond doesn't declare I think it comes down to Leonard, Lamb, Robinson and maybe a darkhorse like Jones III, Barnes or Beal.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#63 » by peachbucket » Wed Feb 15, 2012 4:31 am

Superiorblogman wrote:Leonard would fit right in with the rest of the busts taking at #2 with the exception of KD and a few others because I swear this guy being a lottery pick is a joke.


How many of his games have you seen?...and what is it about him that screams bust to you?
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#64 » by Eoghan » Wed Feb 15, 2012 4:48 am

Superiorblogman wrote:Leonard would fit right in with the rest of the busts taking at #2 with the exception of KD and a few others because I swear this guy being a lottery pick is a joke.

Superior Blogman, inferior talent evaluator.

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I can't wait for this kid to put in pre-draft workouts, his stock is going to sky rocket.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#65 » by Jazzfan12 » Wed Feb 15, 2012 4:51 am

The more I watch him the more I think that Pau Gasol might be closer to his floor than his ceiling as Leonard is more athletic and projects to be much more stronger and physical.


What the hell
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#66 » by peachbucket » Wed Feb 15, 2012 5:40 am

Jazzfan12 wrote:
The more I watch him the more I think that Pau Gasol might be closer to his floor than his ceiling as Leonard is more athletic and projects to be much more stronger and physical.


What the hell


Too much? Too soon? I think I'll stick by it anyway... Although I did once think Gerald Green was the 2nd coming of Tracy McGrady based on a highlight reel package and an allstar game...but in all fairness, there was no way I could tell from that that he had the basketball iq of a goat. Rest assured, ive seen all of Leonards games...
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#67 » by babyjax13 » Wed Feb 15, 2012 5:59 am

He doesn't remind me at all of Pau, but I think he will be good.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#68 » by gensu3k1 » Wed Feb 15, 2012 11:19 am

babyjax13 wrote:Leonard is a top three pick in this draft, the only question is, who is number 2? If Drummond doesn't declare I think it comes down to Leonard, Lamb, Robinson and maybe a darkhorse like Jones III, Barnes or Beal.


it's possible he'll play his way into the top 3 but there's way more variance to his draft stock than you think.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#69 » by Kirsten19 » Wed Feb 15, 2012 12:00 pm

He is in the 6th-10th range if u ask me

top 5 are pretty much fixed: Davis, Barnes, Robinson, MGK n Drummond

Leonard is long n athletic, but this is all about potential.......his production is not good enough to secure him a place in top 5. His rebounding n motor is always a concern, especially a player of his size

I rate him higher than PJIII (high bust rate, stuck between 3 n 4, cant play d n bad rebounding for a player of his atleticism n size), Sullinger, Cody Zeller n any other big
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#70 » by Ruzious » Wed Feb 15, 2012 1:56 pm

I'd take either of the Zeller bros over Leonard.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#71 » by Ruzious » Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:01 pm

peachbucket wrote:
Jazzfan12 wrote:
The more I watch him the more I think that Pau Gasol might be closer to his floor than his ceiling as Leonard is more athletic and projects to be much more stronger and physical.


What the hell


Too much? Too soon? I think I'll stick by it anyway... Although I did once think Gerald Green was the 2nd coming of Tracy McGrady based on a highlight reel package and an allstar game...but in all fairness, there was no way I could tell from that that he had the basketball iq of a goat. Rest assured, ive seen all of Leonards games...

You've managed to duplicate your Gerald Green debacle, imo.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#72 » by peachbucket » Wed Feb 15, 2012 6:51 pm

Ruzious wrote:I'd take either of the Zeller bros over Leonard.


I wouldn't take the entire Zeller family for Leonard.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#73 » by Eoghan » Wed Feb 15, 2012 11:06 pm

peachbucket wrote:
Ruzious wrote:I'd take either of the Zeller bros over Leonard.


I wouldn't take the entire Zeller family for Leonard.

This. :lol:

I don't think lack of production will hurt his draft stock much, teams take foreign bigs high based on their potential all the time.

I still think he'll shake out to around 5-10 range though.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#74 » by Superiorblogman » Wed Feb 15, 2012 11:58 pm

I can assure you that the people making the decisions are not as high on this guy as some of you are. He is Koufus and BJ Mullens up and down. If he ever gets it it will be atleast 3 years down the line. A big man should not have to be told to rebound and block shots he does neither at a high level. A so-called high IQ player should not have to be told to not drift to the outside when you are the biggest and in some cases most athletic player on the court. I remember people thinking Whiteside would possibly be a lotto pick then they started picking him apart and he was a 2nd rd draft pick. Leonard will end up in the mid to late 1st rd about where Mullens and Koufus went once teams really go in and see what they are looking at.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#75 » by Blkbrd671 » Thu Feb 16, 2012 2:10 am

Superiorblogman wrote:The guy has bust written all over him. A pure joke.


i see his ceiling as Chandler

Floor BJ mullens
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#76 » by Kirsten19 » Thu Feb 16, 2012 2:22 am

Dr Mufasa wrote:Yeah, it's either him or Lamb at 2 for me. I'm more sold on Lamb but would rather roll the dice a little bit to get a big time PF/C instead of just a perimeter scorer, if that makes sense.

It really does feel like with the history of the draft and high potential Cs and the way Drummond will play the role of the head of British Petroleum if UConn misses the tournament, Leonard should be the guy who goes 2nd. But it seems like there's such a hesitance against sophmores or juniors who aren't putting up dominant stats yet. Long way to go though. Derrick Williams didn't make his jump from "top 10" to the "guaranteed 2nd overall" guy until the middle/end of March according to DX's mock draft history


WOW ...2nd overall pick? Really?
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#77 » by ManualRam » Thu Feb 16, 2012 4:56 am

Superiorblogman wrote:I can assure you that the people making the decisions are not as high on this guy as some of you are. He is Koufus and BJ Mullens up and down. If he ever gets it it will be atleast 3 years down the line. A big man should not have to be told to rebound and block shots he does neither at a high level. A so-called high IQ player should not have to be told to not drift to the outside when you are the biggest and in some cases most athletic player on the court. I remember people thinking Whiteside would possibly be a lotto pick then they started picking him apart and he was a 2nd rd draft pick. Leonard will end up in the mid to late 1st rd about where Mullens and Koufus went once teams really go in and see what they are looking at.


he is not koufous or mullens up and down. and no he does not have to be told to rebound or block shots. he gets 8 boards a game in 30 minutes, which is solid and he leads the big 10 in blocked shots with over 2 a game.

what separates leonard from those 2 are his better physical tools and his willingness to work down low with his back to the basket, which is a rarity for 7+ft'ers with his level of athleticism. he's a more intelligent prospect than mullens and is far more athletic than kosta koufos.

and no he doesnt drift out to the perimeter. not only is it his responsibility to post down low, but if he cant receive the ball, he is the primary screen setter, both for off the ball curls and setting ball screens for PnR. he cant sit on the block and set screens, can he?

whiteside got picked where he did because he was a dumb player with no offensive game.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#78 » by Superiorblogman » Thu Feb 16, 2012 7:48 am

ManualRam wrote:
Superiorblogman wrote:I can assure you that the people making the decisions are not as high on this guy as some of you are. He is Koufus and BJ Mullens up and down. If he ever gets it it will be atleast 3 years down the line. A big man should not have to be told to rebound and block shots he does neither at a high level. A so-called high IQ player should not have to be told to not drift to the outside when you are the biggest and in some cases most athletic player on the court. I remember people thinking Whiteside would possibly be a lotto pick then they started picking him apart and he was a 2nd rd draft pick. Leonard will end up in the mid to late 1st rd about where Mullens and Koufus went once teams really go in and see what they are looking at.


he is not koufous or mullens up and down. and no he does not have to be told to rebound or block shots. he gets 8 boards a game in 30 minutes, which is solid and he leads the big 10 in blocked shots with over 2 a game.

what separates leonard from those 2 are his better physical tools and his willingness to work down low with his back to the basket, which is a rarity for 7+ft'ers with his level of athleticism. he's a more intelligent prospect than mullens and is far more athletic than kosta koufos.

and no he doesnt drift out to the perimeter. not only is it his responsibility to post down low, but if he cant receive the ball, he is the primary screen setter, both for off the ball curls and setting ball screens for PnR. he cant sit on the block and set screens, can he?

whiteside got picked where he did because he was a dumb player with no offensive game.


If he did not have to be told to get rebounds and block shots why didn't he do it last year? He did nothing with the minutes he got last year.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#79 » by ManualRam » Thu Feb 16, 2012 8:23 am

Superiorblogman wrote:
ManualRam wrote:
Superiorblogman wrote:I can assure you that the people making the decisions are not as high on this guy as some of you are. He is Koufus and BJ Mullens up and down. If he ever gets it it will be atleast 3 years down the line. A big man should not have to be told to rebound and block shots he does neither at a high level. A so-called high IQ player should not have to be told to not drift to the outside when you are the biggest and in some cases most athletic player on the court. I remember people thinking Whiteside would possibly be a lotto pick then they started picking him apart and he was a 2nd rd draft pick. Leonard will end up in the mid to late 1st rd about where Mullens and Koufus went once teams really go in and see what they are looking at.


he is not koufous or mullens up and down. and no he does not have to be told to rebound or block shots. he gets 8 boards a game in 30 minutes, which is solid and he leads the big 10 in blocked shots with over 2 a game.

what separates leonard from those 2 are his better physical tools and his willingness to work down low with his back to the basket, which is a rarity for 7+ft'ers with his level of athleticism. he's a more intelligent prospect than mullens and is far more athletic than kosta koufos.

and no he doesnt drift out to the perimeter. not only is it his responsibility to post down low, but if he cant receive the ball, he is the primary screen setter, both for off the ball curls and setting ball screens for PnR. he cant sit on the block and set screens, can he?

whiteside got picked where he did because he was a dumb player with no offensive game.


If he did not have to be told to get rebounds and block shots why didn't he do it last year? He did nothing with the minutes he got last year.


i explained this in the other thread. he wasnt physically ready to play and was behind seniors on a team that doesnt lean on freshmen. he did what most raw young bigs should do. he got physically ready, improved his skills and learned about the big man game before he was thrown into the fire.

leonard has great size, is athletic and he's shown REAL translatable skill. what also makes him such an intriguing prospect was his ability to make such a significant leap physically and in ability in less than a yr. it shows that he has the work ethic and that he's quick study, IOW, his learning curve is steep.
it's anybody's guess what drummond's learning curve is, but his in-season progress isnt a good sign.
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Re: Meyers Leonard Watch....Top 5 bound in 2012? 

Post#80 » by gensu3k1 » Thu Feb 16, 2012 8:37 am

The athletic tools are there in spades, but he's rough around the edges. He's somewhat robotic, his passes are kind of bizarre at times, he seems to pinch his jumpers instead of following through...

There are plenty of centers who were drafted in even rawer form and worked out, but he isn't a "can't miss" prospect here.
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