Rookie impressions thread: PRESEASON/REGULAR SEASON

[InFlames]

Glad to see McLemore doing so well. Him and Oladipo have definitely been the most impressive rookies of the bunch so far. He was my second favorite before the draft after Noel. It is ridiculous that he fell to 7th in this draft.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeBGoGq5tWY[/youtube]

Smoothest J in the league besides Ray Allen? Hot damn.

Yep his shot is beautiful.

[ManualRam]

Glad to see McLemore doing so well. Him and Oladipo have definitely been the most impressive rookies of the bunch so far. He was my second favorite before the draft after Noel. It is ridiculous that he fell to 7th in this draft.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeBGoGq5tWY[/youtube]

best play of that vid is ~:15. mclemore needs to learn how to attack closeouts and drive under control. that would be a much needed added dimension to his game.

[dabadguy]

Some top rookie stats from the preseason so far - (Pooh to all the teams who don't have preseason stats on their websites)

Oladipo:
13.2 pts/6.2 rbs/4.8 asts/3.1 TOs on 41.8 FG%/22.7 3PT%/78.3 FT% in 25.8 minutes per game

McLemore:
12.6 pts/3.2 rbs/0.8 asts/1.6 TOs on 49.0 FG%/40.9 3PT%/66.7 FT% in 23.8 minutes per game

Bennett:
10.6 pts/6.6 rbs/0.4 asts/3.2 TOs on 36.2 FG%/35.3 3PT%/65.0 FT% in 22.0 minutes per game

Dem shooting stats for BMac (except FTs).
Dat overall game from Oladipo

Bennett...3PT range is decent.

Ben's free throw shooting is probably an aberration. He shot 89% from the FT line in college and takes all of the technical FTs whenever he has a chance. It doesn't help that he doesn't get to the FT line much though.

He'll probably be in the 50/40/90 club one day.

he will never shoot 50% from the field lol.

[KF10]

he will never shoot 50% from the field lol.

Why not?

If McLemore becomes an elite shooter (he is on the right path), his 3PT% will easily hover above 40%. Other than 3PT shots, dude will get easy buckets due to his off the ball movement and cuts to the basket. Of those shots, he will shoot a very high percentage. Average everything out, 50% FG is not out of the question imo.

[ComboGuardCity]

I really liked ben coming in. Seems like a nice kid. Hope he succeeds.

[KF10]

I really liked ben coming in. Seems like a nice kid. Hope he succeeds.

How's KCP? Looking at his preseason stats, he is having a very rough time. But as you know, preseason stats can mean next to nothing.

What do you expect from him this season?

[SOUL]

http://instagram.com/p/fvL06nHETx/

Oladipo dancing.

[tranjSAIC]

If McLemore gets the starting SG job, dude is going to be a thorn to Oladipo for ROY imo.

The problem with McLemore is if his shot isn't falling, he doesn't do much else.

[KF10]

If McLemore gets the starting SG job, dude is going to be a thorn to Oladipo for ROY imo.

The problem with McLemore is if his shot isn't falling, he doesn't do much else.

He is still a floor spacer, you can't leave him open despite his shot not falling imo.

His off the ball movement and cuts to the basket are still valuable on offense. Opposing defenses will be scrambled when you have an excellent off the ball mover like Ben. It tends to leave openings in the defenses.

While he is no where near Oladipo's defensive impact, McLemore has been hustling his butt off on the defensive end throughout pre-season. Coach Malone (a defensive-hard ass) is impressed by this. He never quits on plays, he has at least, two fast break blocks and his lateral defense has been decent against offensive players.

That said, there will be nights for him his overall game may be lacking. His ball handling and playmaking are still a work in progress, so in that sense, I agree with you.

[KF10]

http://instagram.com/p/fvL06nHETx/

Oladipo dancing.

haha nice but he ain't topping this:

[Cruel_Ruin]

If McLemore gets the starting SG job, dude is going to be a thorn to Oladipo for ROY imo.

The problem with McLemore is if his shot isn't falling, he doesn't do much else.

He's a good rebounder, he defends, he's a threat to go backdoor for a cut or a lob, and he doesn't disrupt the offense. Plus you can't leave him open, he's viable to erupt at any time.

[KillMonger]

Both Mclemore and Oladipo will be great players in their own right, they both look pretty good so far but being rookies they obviously have things to work on. That being said the foundation these guys have are solid, Bennett as well but i don't get why he's so big though? I know about the shoulder thing but was it bad enough to stop him from hitting the treadmill?

[tranjSAIC]

Both Mclemore and Oladipo will be great players in their own right, they both look pretty good so far but being rookies they obviously have things to work on. That being said the foundation these guys have are solid, Bennett as well but i don't get why he's so big though? I know about the shoulder thing but was it bad enough to stop him from hitting the treadmill?

If only you could combine oladipos all around game with macs shooting , that would be one sick player. Would he be the best SG in the league?

[nicnac215]

Both Mclemore and Oladipo will be great players in their own right, they both look pretty good so far but being rookies they obviously have things to work on. That being said the foundation these guys have are solid, Bennett as well but i don't get why he's so big though? I know about the shoulder thing but was it bad enough to stop him from hitting the treadmill?

If only you could combine oladipos all around game with macs shooting , that would be one sick player. Would he be the best SG in the league?

Would develop into the best easily.

[qianlong]

Bmac shot is so quick and effortless


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[RnB]

Benny Macs jumper is the closest reincarnation of Ray-Ray's form I can remember a player having. It's a beat slower but damn that form is close to perfect.

[hoophabit]

I really liked ben coming in. Seems like a nice kid. Hope he succeeds.

How's KCP? Looking at his preseason stats, he is having a very rough time. But as you know, preseason stats can mean next to nothing.

What do you expect from him this season?

KCP has had a tough start with his shooting, although his FT shooting has been good. He did the same thing at summer league and later seemed to find his rhythm. He's a good defender, and has had some pretty impressive rebounding efforts for a 2. The comic circus of injury and ailment with the Piston guards has made it hard for the entire team to find much of a rhythm. It has given KCP more minutes than he might have expected. As far as expectations, I still expect him to find a way to the rotation. Historically a good shooter, I expect he'll work this out as he adjusts to the speed of the game and the longer three point line. The fact that he has shown himself to be able to rebound and defend at this level is most encouraging. The Piston guard situation is such that he'll get opportunities. I don't know what to tell you in terms of scoring expectations as roles really aren't defined as yet. If he's a guard off the bench, maybe 6-10 pts depending on how his shot comes around. He's the only natural 2 on the team, so you HOPE at some point he comes on and seizes the opportunity.

[Brapman]

KCP will be just fine. As he settles in and the game slows down for him, he'll improve his shot selection. Billups was saying that right now he plays the game at full-speed, no change of pace, and that that will change over time. But here's the thing about him - the kid is a great athlete - (extremely fast and agile), excellent size and good length for his position, with great hands and great feet, and he loves to play D and rebound. He will be a fine shooter, and when his game comes together, he's pretty much the prototype player the Pistons want and need at SG with the rest of that loaded lineup. He's also a quiet kid who just plays. The Pistons love him and his attitude.

The Pistons are in a funny position. They need to get their whole team settled in and learning to play together. It's helter-skelter out there right now since their main guards are injured and the team is so new to each other. Most likely, KCP has been impacted by that and that's delayed him settling down his own play on offense.

I'll bet he turns out to be one of the best players from his draft class. It just might take awhile this season for him to settle in and earn significant PT as the Pistons main priority is to settle the whole team. Hard for a rookie to fit into that right away.

[Big_C_KU]

Benny Macs jumper is the closest reincarnation of Ray-Ray's form I can remember a player having. It's a beat slower but damn that form is close to perfect.

Its still a fairly quick shot. Ben is definitely going to be one of the elite shooters in the league. If he is just a shooter then he could still probably average around 15 ppg for a career. He's already showing some signs of an improved handle but still not much driving yet. If he ever becomes a better slasher then he could become a 20 point scorer though.

[dan2314]

KCP is basically tony allen on defense. plays so hard. averaging about 7 rebounds a game too.