Kanter says he reported to summer league at 293 pounds.

[RaulLopez]

This is nuts from Media day. David Locke was talking to Kanter and started asking him about his abs and the pics on twitter and what brought that all on. In the talk, he says he went to Turkey to see his family and ate a bunch of his moms cooking and sat on the couch. He said he then came to summer league and the Jazz staff freaked out when he weighed in at 293. They were like "What the heck Kanter!" He said he then went and looked in the mirror with his shirt off and did not like what he saw.

He told the coaches not to worry, when he reported to camp he would be in shape. He said he went from 293 pounds to 240 pounds in 2 months. Roughly the first of July to the first of Sept. Locke asked him what he played at last year and he said 270 pounds.

The Jazz should have a much more mobile player than we saw in summer league. And even more mobile than we saw last year. Interesting....

[UTJazzFan_Echo1]

Earl Watson was saying that he's much more explosive this year... said he's been dunking on people during pickup games and has even starting talking some smack. I'm excited to see what he can do now that he's gotten himself in shape because I was somewhat disappointed in his summer league performance.

I worry about him though... he seems to have a good dose of Fesenko in him...

[Fido]

53 pounds in 8 weeks? Right....those numbers don't sound right to me. That's dropping almost 7 pounds per week. That is alot unless you are on The Biggest Loser. What did his mom feed him, straight butter?

[UTJazzFan_Echo1]

53 pounds in 8 weeks? Right....those numbers don't sound right to me. That's dropping almost 7 pounds per week. That is alot unless you are on The Biggest Loser.

He's on a salad and seafood diet now... it's crazy but certainly possible with his build.

Apparently he ate....

Breakfast: A 6 egg omelet, 8 pancakes w/ sugar, whipped cream and a breakfast burrito.
Lunch: A pasta (such as chicken alfredo), a burger and an appetizer of some sort.
For dinner: Kanter ate another burger and some kind of large entree. Finally, dessert.

via Bill Orman of the SLC-trib.

[StocktonShorts]

...he seems to have a good dose of Fesenko in him...

If he's got all the good parts of Fesenko but with smarts and a strong work ethic then he should be one hell of a player.

[HolyToledo]

Im not worried about him bc he has the desire to be great. He will be at least a good NBA starting center if not an allstar. I wish the dead weight in Millsap and Jefferson were gone so that the Favors-Kanter era starts.

[StocktonShorts]

I can see him going from 270 to 240 with a Turkish-home-cooking binge in between.

[Hoops Addict]

Weighing less could make a huge difference. He was a bit slow and lacked hops last year.

This is good news.

[UTJazzFan_Echo1]

...he seems to have a good dose of Fesenko in him...

If he's got all the good parts of Fesenko but with smarts and a strong work ethic then he should be one hell of a player.

Totally agree... I just wonder about his smarts and maturity. His twitter feed this summer certainly wouldn't indicate that he's mature enough to make that next step.

[frothbrain]

the guy looks like a beast from his media day photo.
last year i thought he was a bust because he came into the league looking like your average hefty, unathletic giant.

http://cache4.asset-cache.net/gc/153215 ... b%2bcFROBU

[The59Sound]

...he seems to have a good dose of Fesenko in him...

If he's got all the good parts of Fesenko but with smarts and a strong work ethic then he should be one hell of a player.

Totally agree... I just wonder about his smarts and maturity. His twitter feed this summer certainly wouldn't indicate that he's mature enough to make that next step.

I think you may have a point (though it's tough to tell -- these are 20 year-old kids at the end of the day). His work ethic is clearly much better than Fesenko's, but his comportment is similar. I'm heartened, though, that his on-court personality is quite different from his off-court self. I can't ever remember Fesenko playing as tough or as hard as Kanter did last season.

[gojazzgo]

Seems pretty crazy if he really dropped that much weight that quickly. I hope he isn't giving up too much strength for quickness.

[Paper Face]

From the look of his pics, I don't think he gave up any strength.

[Hoops Addict]

Will playing at about 20 pounds less make Kanter better? Will it make him quicker and give him better jumping ability?

Hell yes right?

Kanter's moves did not work well last year, but in the NBA you just need a little more jumping and skill to make a soso shot into a shot where you have3 the advantage.

I am exited for Kanter....it is highly likely he will improve a significant amount....to what degree, who knows?

[Sparky6string]

Word is Kanter is looking great in camp.

http://weareutahjazz.com/lockedonjazz/2 ... es-kanter/

http://weareutahjazz.com/lockedonjazz/2 ... t-session/

[Hoops Addict]

Kanter’s rode to the NBA is the most unusual. He didn’t play basketball until he was 14 years old and by 19 was the 3rd pick in the NBA. After less than a year of basketball he was averaging 12 pts and 10 rebounds in European U16 championships, the next year he averaged 23 points and 17 rebounds. His performance in the U18 European Championships, averaging 19 points and 16 rebounds including a 35 point and 19 rebound performance against Lithuania and Jonas Valanciunas put him in the spotlight and then his domination of the Nike Hoop Summit rocketed him to the top of draft boards.

However, he didn’t play at all in 2010 and his size has always allowed him to dominate lesser opponents. When he arrived in the NBA he was no longer the biggest or strongest player on the floor and his lack of basketball knowledge was a impediment to his progress.
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Kanter did not play until he was 14....within a year he is very productive in the Euro under 16 league.

Dude is a moose.....has always been the strongest guy, but he is still learning the game.

His agility, good fundementals on jumper, handle, and way he has abused the competition since he was 15.....leads me to think he will continue to improve and get better.

GREAT ARTICLES ON THE LAST POST

[Mefisto]

Kunter is playing fantastic this year, you guys are so lucky with this draft pick.