RealGM

Tim Duncan

Athletic freaks with no basketball skills or clue on how to play the game.

Social Lubrication wrote:-= original quote snipped =-



Hakeem Olajuwon

Hakeem Olajuwon = rare exception that dominated in college at a high level

Thugleavy34 wrote:Tim Duncan

Duncan started playing basketball in the 9th grade.

MYoung23 wrote:-= original quote snipped =-
Duncan started playing basketball in the 9th grade.

So did Diop. He actually went to one of the best basketball High Schools in the country, Oak Hill.

So i'm not sure what's the difference between Diops' background & Duncan's.

Duncan played 4 years in college and Diop came straight out of HS ?

I would stay away from:

1. The Classic College Player-
JJ Redick, Adam Morrison, Kevin Love, etc.

2. The unskilled 6'9" freak athlete-
Tyrus Thomas, Stromile Swift, Darius Miles, Chris Wilcox, etc.

3. The Foreigner That Hasn't Even Produced Overseas Yet-
Darko, Saer Sene, Joel Freeland, etc.

I just don't understand why it is so hard to take a guy that has NBA size and athleticism to go along with productivity and/or a skill set. I think scouts confuse "potential" with just being athletic. Most of the time, someone like Tyrus Thomas has lived on being so athletic that they have never had to add a jumpshot to their game. Then, when at the NBA level, it is hard to make that adjustment.

Another big difference when looking at athletic prospects with the "potential" label is size. Taking a Stromile Swift, who was 6'9" 215 out of college, is much different than taking a Dwight Howard who was 7'0" 230 upon entering the league. A 7-footer who is a freak athlete (DeAndre Jordan) is much safer than a guy who is arguably undersized at his position.

As for international players, how hard is it really to just draft a guy that is producing on a good team in a good league (Danilo Gallinari)? Why basically guess on a guy that hasn't even broken into the rotation in a league clearly not at the same level as the NBA (Darko)?