165bows wrote:Somewhere I read in one of those 'draft prediction' type modeling blogs an interesting bit about weight. It was counter-intuitive, but the finding was that for two players with similar statistical production, the one that weighed more tended to be the better prospect long-term. It's counter-intuitive because we tend to think of heavier as slow/fat, but if that is not the case (ie, if the bigger/stronger player is just as fast/skilled/able whatever as a lighter player), being strong and heavy is a good thing.
totally agree, have thought this for a long time when it comes to big men that weight and strength is just as important as height. i think people underestimate how physical the nba game is on the inside, these guys aren't just tall they are also stacked. if you look at the great big men in the history of the league they were all super strong. the ralph sampson body type is not a recipe for longevity and effectiveness.
the downside is occasionally you get a sully who can't get his weight under control. but most guys are motivated by millions of dollars if not sheer competitiveness to keep it under control during their playing days.
yabs in particular doesn't seem like he has conditioning or verticality issues, despite carrying quite a load.