Ekpe Udoh and Why the Best is Yet to Come

[Jester_]

To think the flack some of us took in the Monroe thread for suggesting Udoh would ever be anything more than a bench player. He needs to work on his man-D, get bigger and work on his post-moves, but he'll be a solid starter by the time he's 26-27.

next year?

Thanks Buzz Killington...

[fluent]

Udoh has been underrated by damn near every warrior fan i've come across. he definitely has the potential to be a starter in this league and a big time difference maker on the defensive end of the floor.

Agreed.

And I know this is a Udoh thread, but Klay Thompson is also going to be a baller. You can see both these guys have some nice potential to be key guys on a winning team. Both were very good draft picks IMO.

[510TWSS]

I like Udoh's offensive confidence getting stronger out there. He definitely looks more comfortable. With that being said, he's going to have to actually start putting up results for me to say he's improved there.

Udoh needs to learn some pump fakes cause he's not the best finisher in traffic. He also has averagish hands as I've seen some easy passes get bobbled in his time here. I don't like that MJ keeps going to Udoh in the post. It's nice to build confidence but he hasn't seen much results there nor is he ever going to be a high volume guy. I'd much rather see MJ use him as the pick n pop guy. Just get Udoh as many opportunistic baskets as we can find him. Asking him to go 1 on 1 is a bit much to ask of him considering his skill set.

Love Udoh defensively. He makes a huge impact there. Wish he'd rebound better though, but as long as he's consistently blocking out, hopefully some improvement comes. Udoh has been a pleasant surprise, however I still view him ideally as a backup like Taj Gibson. Or if we can find a center, he'd have a nice Udonis Haslem like impact from the 4. I could live with that with excellent defense.

[princeofpalace]

Its nice that Udoh is finally becoming a serviceable player. I guess yall view his 6 points/4 boards /2 blocks 46%FG in 24mpg that he average in February as his breakout month. Udoh is a decent backup caliber bigman that can block some shots and play some D but he has a poor all around game and is a very weak rebounder.

During that same month Greg Monroe put up 19 points/11 boards/2.5 assists. Monroe is a very good all around player, his main weakness is his lack of shotblocking but he plays good D and collects steals instead.

Any assertion that Udoh > Monroe is quite frankly strange..... There is nobody outside of GS (and probably only a few GS fans) who would make that claim.

Again, its good that Udoh is finally making a positive contribution but come on, Udoh is more comparable to guys like Gibson/Asik/Davis than he is to a guy like Monroe.

[Jester_]

Its nice that Udoh is finally becoming a serviceable player. I guess yall view his 6 points/4 boards /2 blocks 46%FG in 24mpg that he average in February as his breakout month. Udoh is a decent backup caliber bigman that can block some shots and play some D but he has a poor all around game and is a very weak rebounder.

During that same month Greg Monroe put up 19 points/11 boards/2.5 assists. Monroe is a very good all around player, his main weakness is his lack of shotblocking but he plays good D and collects steals instead.

Any assertion that Udoh > Monroe is quite frankly strange..... There is nobody outside of GS (and probably only a few GS fans) who would make that claim.

Again, its good that Udoh is finally making a positive contribution but come on, Udoh is more comparable to guys like Gibson/Asik/Davis than he is to a guy like Monroe.

It's nice that you like showing up every once in a blue moon to pimp your asset, but don't embarass yourself with a take that suggests you haven't watched a single posession that Udoh's been in.

Udoh can't just "block some shots". He's an elite shotblocker averaging over 3 blocks a game per 36. You're making it sound like he's swatting a few shots here and there, he's easily one of the best shotblockers in the game. He's also averaging the same rate of steals as Monroe.

Udoh is a very weak rebounder? Good god, you really have no idea what you're on about do you. Udoh doesn't have high rebounding numbers because he's usually boxing 2 other guys out. He's got the hands and the strength to rebound when he wants to, not to mention he's being played at center so often since we have no alternative.

The fact that you're spouting crap like Monroe plays "good D" while Udoh can just "block some shots" is painful to read. Udoh is an elite defensive presence, he impacts the game in a very noticeable way from the get-go. Monroe is a crappy defender. His opponents are averaging 20 points and 11 rebounds per 48 against him with a PER of 18.6. And these are only centers. Udoh even guards centers better than Monroe does.

Not to mention, above everything, Udoh leads to wins. When Udoh is on the floor, the team is a +112 on the season, while off the court the team is -140. That's an absolutely insane differential. To compare, Kobe is +82 on the floor and the team is -23 when he's off, Dwight is +100 and -49 respectively.

Monroe? -173 on the floor, Pistons are -78 when he's off.

Please, watch his games and actually learn about the player instead of making these silly blind takes. I'm not sure why you get so insecure and defensive when people say that Udoh's good.

[princeofpalace]

2 can play this BS stats game

Udohs opponents average 19 points/13 boards per 48 and a 15.6 Per
Udoh averages 9 points/9 boards per 48 with a 8.7 PER


While Monroes opponents may average 19/11 PER 48
Monroe averages 24 and 14 per 48 with a PER of 24.

So no. Udoh does not guard Centers nearly as well as Monroe does, nor does he play C nearly as well does. Your whole post, quite frankly, is funny. Udoh gets killed by his oppenents when he plays C. Whereas Monroe out produces his opponents. Your argument is a fail.

[Jester_]

2 can play this BS stats game

Udohs opponents average 19 points/13 boards per 48 and a 15.6 Per
Udoh averages 9 points/9 boards per 48 with a 8.7 PER


While Monroes opponents may average 19/11 PER 48
Monroe averages 24 and 14 per 48 with a PER of 24.

So no. Udoh does not guard Centers nearly as well as Monroe does, nor does he play C nearly as well does. Your whole post, quite frankly, is funny. Udoh gets killed by his oppenents when he plays C. Whereas Monroe out produces his opponents. Your argument is a fail.

Good god, you completely missed the point didn't you? My point is that Udoh, as a power forward defends centers equally or better than Monroe. And the fact that you knitpicked that statistic out of everything I pointed out to argue "nuh-uh, Monroe defends centers better!!!" is hilarious.

I also like how you forgot to include Monroe's opponent PER of 18.7. I also like how you forgot to mention Udoh averages 17 points and 10 rebounds per 48 while playing his natural position (albeit at a low efficiency).

Again, watch some games before making dumb takes. And if you're going to use stats, don't cherry-pick.

[FNQ]

So no. Udoh does not guard Centers nearly as well as Monroe does, nor does he play C nearly as well does. Your whole post, quite frankly, is funny.

Hardcore fail.

[FNQ]

2 can play this BS stats game

Udohs opponents average 19 points/13 boards per 48 and a 15.6 Per
Udoh averages 9 points/9 boards per 48 with a 8.7 PER


While Monroes opponents may average 19/11 PER 48
Monroe averages 24 and 14 per 48 with a PER of 24.

So no. Udoh does not guard Centers nearly as well as Monroe does, nor does he play C nearly as well does. Your whole post, quite frankly, is funny. Udoh gets killed by his oppenents when he plays C. Whereas Monroe out produces his opponents. Your argument is a fail.

Good god, you completely missed the point didn't you? My point is that Udoh, as a power forward defends centers equally or better than Monroe. And the fact that you knitpicked that statistic out of everything I pointed out to argue "nuh-uh, Monroe defends centers better!!!" is hilarious.

I also like how you forgot to include Monroe's opponent PER of 18.7. I also like how you forgot to mention Udoh averages 17 points and 10 rebounds per 48 while playing his natural position (albeit at a low efficiency).

Again, watch some games before making dumb takes. And if you're going to use stats, don't cherry-pick.

Yup... also of course leaving out that Monroe's man @ C shoots .571, whereas Udoh's is around .513. And that doesnt even entail the help defense, which is necessary @ C in today's NBA. When DET stops living a lie and puts a real C next to Monroe, then they'll be using him in a winning way... as of now he's just like any other PF you put at C. Aesthetically pleasing, but no real substance. He's like that plastic blow up doll Heidi from MTV

[old rem]

Curious - what were his block numbers for Baylor?

He was as I recall, at least top 10 if not top 5. His top 10 slot was about good Blocks + Reb and some abilities as a scorer both at the rim and with a mid range J. Jackson...like Smart...sees the world as all about guards. Lee...came with his own game...plug + play. The STAFF needs to have some idea of what to do with all the other 4/5 options and gradually...Udoh is getting to be more than a shot blocking one trick pony.

[old rem]

There are 30 teams. Potentially 60-90 slots for real centers but there's just a handful of C's who are the full spectrum...the Olajuwon/Shaq/Ewing types. Some are guys more typically seen as a PF, some are defense guys...sort of between Ostertag and Mutumbo...if not quite that effective. Some are full size...but more scorer than D or rebounds. All in all...Udoh is mostly a C here....rarely ever played PF alongside a bigger C such as Beans or Kwame.

The reality is that damn few RIPE centers are there in the draft. GSw has been sloppy and negligent in the whole process of draft-develop-deploy.

[BROWN]

How bad is his injury? This really sucks.

[Frank Mulely]

The reality is that damn few RIPE centers are there in the draft. GSw has been sloppy and negligent in the whole process of draft-develop-deploy.

Yah but Warriors have passed up guys like Hibbert and Monroe. Its not like there hasn't been the opportunity to draft a competent center. The opportunity will come again, but, per president Obama, clearly the Warriors suck at player evaluation.