Free Noa.

[HomoSapien]

Honest question, in the last 25 years has there been a top 12 pick that received DNP-CD through his first ten games?

I ended up looking through the last 25 years of NBA drafts. Noa Essengue is the only player in the previous 25 years to receive 10 straight DNP-CD to start his career. The only. That includes major busts such as Jerome Moiso, Kendrick Brown, Darko, Rafael Arujo, and Luke Jackson. The guys who didn't play in their first 10 games were injured. The closest I found was Taylor Hendricks, who played in his first game and then didn't play again until 20 games into the season.

I'm not sure what conclusion to draw from this. I don't think this points to him being a bust or anything like that. If I were to bet money on it, I actually think he'll end up becoming a good player. Like Doug said, plenty of players miss their entire first season due to injury and still go on to have great careers. The only conclusion I can really draw from this is that it's an incredibly unusual and conservative approach that other coaches haven't employed.

[ShouldaPaidBG]

He moves like young AD but shorter and quicker

[AshyLarrysDiaper]

Noa could be another exception if he has very high skill level. Being 6’10” is huge advantage over most PF today. He will be able to get shot off against smaller 4s and just drive past most centers.

I don’t see reasons to believe he’ll develop a very high skill level given that he doesn’t shoot, pass, or dribble at an NBA level or even on par with most PF lottery prospects. He’ll need to maximize his tools to be a top 50ish player, which to my eye will involve adding burst.

He is 18 years old. You nor I have any real clue about how he will develop. That’s a fact.

Well, his current skillset is a clue. Even by 18 year old standards, I don’t think he has a great baseline for developing above average skill at PF. Obviously he could surprise in that regard.

[Seccci]

Honest question, in the last 25 years has there been a top 12 pick that received DNP-CD through his first ten games?

I ended up looking through the last 25 years of NBA drafts. Noa Essengue is the only player in the previous 25 years to receive 10 straight DNP-CD to start his career. The only. That includes major busts such as Jerome Moiso, Kendrick Brown, Darko, Rafael Arujo, and Luke Jackson. The guys who didn't play in their first 10 games were injured. The closest I found was Taylor Hendricks, who played in his first game and then didn't play again until 20 games into the season.

I'm not sure what conclusion to draw from this. I don't think this points to him being a bust or anything like that. If I were to bet money on it, I actually think he'll end up becoming a good player. Like Doug said, plenty of players miss their entire first season due to injury and still go on to have great careers. The only conclusion I can really draw from this is that it's an incredibly unusual and conservative approach that other coaches haven't employed.

Obviously we don't see him in practice, so hard to say he is better than terry or Philips or pat, but I just can't shake the feeling and believe he would do better than these- they have tenure, they know how to carry themselves on and off the floor, they just bring nothing impactful, even if they shoot well, it's low volume, even if they drive well, it's just a basket here and there.
It's nothing

On the other hand, Matas makes horrid turnovers, but he constantly makes something happen. Giddey same, though he leveled by now to be just impact monster.
From watching Noa, he is from same mold, drive like madman and draw fouls even if the finishing is not amazing, if he catches it behind 3, he launches it, even if the form or speed is not as good yet. I prefer players who make things happen, as over time if the work ethic is there, they will become something.

These Terry's, Phillip's, Pat's amount to nothing, it's a opportunity cost, Donovan keeps playing them and they reward bulls with nothing, it's bizzare honestly

[Michael Jackson]

You specifically cited the fact that he hadn't played in his first 10 games as being something that is significant to his development. Is it? If so, why?

Not because you think its unusual. But materially, why it matters to his development.

Something being unusual often has significance in that there is a reason for the unusual behavior even if you are not certain what it is. Particular if the behavior is uniquely unusual. It just gives credence to the idea that something bad is going on here because often if something bad IS going on then you will see things like that.

That said, I discount that in this case because I believe management is being generally honest about their approach here. I don't think there is a larger concern about his ability level or anything else at this point. I disagree with the approach, but another way to think of it is that literally guys have taken full on gap years of doing nothing because of an injury and still came back and been amazing.

Even if this isn't the best thing to do, it also isn't going to have that meaningful impact one way or the other. He's not off playing rugby or something totally absurd or something. The reality is that as long as he's working hard wherever he is at to improve his game then that's probably 95% of the battle.

Yeah I don't love the approach theoretically but from draft night on he was labeled a project and not something of immediate return and that he was really raw. So this fits with all that was said. Proper approach or not it makes sense.

[Ice Man]

As a side note, Maluach as the 10th pick is getting similar treatment as Noa. He has logged 28 minutes total in 12 games, which works out to 2.3 minutes per game. For development purposes, that's pretty much the same as not playing.

Different teams will take somewhat different approaches, but the bottom line is that prospects like Noa and Maluach (young, skinny, lanky) are likelier to be red-shirted than played.

[Lexluthor]

Im worried when he gets playing time he becomes passive like Patrick and Matas