Should We Go After Marcus Fizer?

[DaneB]

He is a PF out of Iowa State and I heard that he averaged like 20 ppg and 10 rbg. He is also a great three point shooter. He may be an answer to our PF slot. What do ya guys think?

[jerinrulz]

Definetely go after Marcus Fizer. The word is that he is undersized. To that I say BS!! This guy has game. I saw him play in the tournament and he is basically the only reason his team even has a chance of getting out of the Sweet16. Hes seriously underrated, but works hard, and has monster game. Never hurts to have those kinds of players on your team.

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KISS The Floor Beneath ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[rocketsfan34]

No.

If you want to take an undersized PF, I would rather take my chances with Porter. Porter may not be as polished as Fizer, but his potential is much greater.

Porter will take some time, but when he starts taking advantage of his massive hops and develop a consistent perimeter game, he will be dominating..

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[Ottomaton]

Comparing Porter to Fizer is comparing apples to oranges. Fizer is an NBA 4, while Porter has to become a 3, or he won't be around long.

I haven't seen more than 2 of Iowa State's games, but my concern with taking him is that he has the same essential problem as Kenny Thomas. If the Rockets take a 4, they need someone who will be able to effectively defend against the taller power forwards.

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[Smokey]

I watched all 11 games of the Big XII tournament and I can say that Marcus Fizer is the best player in the conference. One word answer to your question: Yes

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[CriscoKidd]

We already have our resident KT.

please leave Fizer alone.

unless Fizer is wayyyy better than Kt(don think so)

then get Fize, trade KT.

No, nevermind, just leave Fize alone.

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[RocketSiv]

I wouldn't. His main move is a drop step. He is so much bigger than the average college player that he has no problem getting the points. Also I am tired of the undersized power forward. I am not saying that will cause his demise in the NBA I just want somebody who can guard the power forwards of the NBA today. Basically in the past few years we have had Barkley, Othella, and Kenny Thomas all of whom have had difficult times stopping opposing 4's. However we had the 7 foot Kevin Willis who has the mini arms and he had no problem giving Malone fits.

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[HOOP-T]

WAIT A SEC. He who has not seen Fizer play says negative or indifferent things about his game.

Fizer is the real deal, big (not that tall though), STRONG, explosive, good array of post moves (much much more than the drop step) AND has good shooting range. Hell, he is shooting aroung mid 40% from the arc. Granted, he shoots only about 2 per game. He has dominated everyone he has played for the most part. I love this guy. He plays with emotion, passion, drive, and intensity! Something I have noticed that Terrence Morris lacks.

I pray to see him in the pinstripes in H-Town next year.

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HOOP-T

Hey Shaq, Acme called, and they want their bricks back!

[Clutch]

Didn't heypartner post earlier that a coach of Fizer's didn't believe he was as good as Kenny Thomas?

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[HOOP-T]

Yeah Clutch, he did. I am not sure I agree, but it is a possibility. KT, though, had some rumors going on about him that he was lazy, tended to be out of shape at times, and stood a chance at being overweight or injury prone. I hear nothing of the sort about Fizer....actually, I hear the guy works hard. KT has proven the critics wrong since entering Rudy's system.

Watch Fizer in the tourney. His game will do the talking for him....and me!

[alaskansnowman]

What is this thing about Fizer's coach saying that Kenny Thomas is better than Fizer himself?

First a couple of things...

1.)Just cause you are a good 3 point shoota in college doesn't mean anything because they NBA 3 point arc is a couple of feet behind the college 3 point arc. Seeing as how he only attempts 2 a game from about 18 feet doesn't give me that much confidence in his range.

2.)This guy is just like Kenny Thomas, but he looks... stronger? I also like the fact that he's a hard worker.

3.)Our FRONT LINE SUCKS. Actually, the small forward position is actually quite decent, but it is our big guys that suck. It is our backcourt that is doing all the scoring.
Hakeem-gettin older game by game.
Kenny-needs some more development.
Rogers-hopefully Hakeem has helped him develop SOME sort of post up game
Cato-still raw.

Fizer has a good offensive game and I think he can help our backcourt out so they don't have to do all the scoring. That's the main reason why I think we should try to get him. We need offense in our big guys. With Fizer, and the development of Kenny Thomas(who is showin a lot of potential), and the added development of Cato(he has a decent 17 footer now), and hopefully with some development from Rogers, we'll have a pretty good group of big guyz.

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[gr8-1]

After watching lsu, i would take swift over fizer. but, apparently, swift aint comin out.

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"Don't they get cable in Canada ?" Keith olbermann, after watching hakeem block terry catledge's shot 5 times.

[DFWRocket]

Fizur is easily the best player in the BigXII. He makes Mihms look like Shawn Bradley. He can play against any defense. He's a good defensive player/great shot blocker also.

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[rocketsfan34]

Originally posted by alaskansnowman:


Our FRONT LINE SUCKS. Actually, the small forward position is actually quite decent, but it is our big guys that suck.



I think its the other way around...Our big guy's dream, cato, kenny, and rogers are decent and our small forwards that suck. No way a SF rotation of Walt/Bull is quite decent.

Porter is the same height as Fizer but weighs less and is much quicker than Fizer. That's the only reason he's considered to be SF. His game is no different from Fizer.



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[alaskansnowman]

I think its the other way around...Our big guy's dream, cato, kenny, and rogers are decent and our small forwards that suck. No way a SF rotation of Walt/Bull is quite decent.

Actually, don't forget that Shandon also plays the small forward sometimes, as well as Rogers. I mean, think about it. Hakeem is just gonna get sorrier and sorrier, and right now, Cato, Kenny, and Rogers aren't even averaging more than 10 points a game each. <strong>And all Cato, and Rogers do is dunk and lay it in. </strong>Kenny Thomas is the only one who's shown versatility. Granted, I know Cato and Rog are gonna get better, but how much can they really improve in 1 offseason?

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[rocketsfan34]

Who cares if Dream, Cato, Rogers, and Kenny avg like 10 pts and all they do is dunk. Are you trying to tell me a Walt/Bull rotation at SF is better than our big guys?

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[Francis3]

Guys Guys Guys, the rockets need a frontcourt makeover. Out of all the frontline players we have , 2 players I like and think they should stay are Kelvin Cato and Matt Bullard.



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President of the Moochie Norris FAN CLUB

[HOOP-T]

Alaskasnowman,
I agree with most of what you stated, However, the point I was trying to make about his 3 pt. range was not that I wanted him to be out at the NBA arc jacking up threes. My point was that his percentage was good out there, and this means he has good range from 20 ft an in.

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HOOP-T

Hey Shaq, Acme called, and they want their bricks back!

[sir scarvajal]

I agree with Francis3, no rhyme intended. We have no known commodity in the form of a first rate front-line player for years to come. No center, no power forward, no small forward (unless you move SA there), nada. Our best prospects for being adequate starters are KT and Cato. Further, between them we have all three front-line positions covered, so we just get the front court player most likley to star--whether that is Fizer, Porter, or someone else, and have the rest of the guys work around them. My personal hope is that Swift, Woods and Haywood come out and we get one of them or Fizer, as they seem to look like the greatist impact players to me. We absolutely do not turn away from drafting the best impact player front-court player because we may have already a young half-way decent player who best plays his position.


[This message has been edited by sir scarvajal (edited March 22, 2000).]

[heypartner]

No, I did not say the coach of Fizer said Thomas is better.

I said a HS and college scout in Iowa who I've known for quite awhile believes Thomas is faster and possibly taller. His two points were: Thomas has better footwork for the NBA and Thomas never had a player like Tinsley to take some pressure off.

Before you Fizer fans jump on me: I'm one too. I love Fizer. But, I'm very realistic about college stars not excelling for certain reasons in the NBA.

My question: Is Fizer better than Thomas? Is Fizer better than Fortson? I'm a huge Fortson fan, too, and he clearly had a better college career than Fizer (2nd Team All-American Soph, 1st Team as Junior at 21.1pt/9.1rb). Plus, he was 4th leading NBA rebounder last year. You have to take Fortson over Fizer if you have any worries about Fizer's ability to score at not even 6'7". Fortson is an adequate leaper for his size.

You can probably trade your #1 to Boston for Fortson and their #1. You would have to seriously consider that over taking Fizer.

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The farther the Rockets move down the standings, the farther I move down the bleachers.


[This message has been edited by heypartner (edited March 23, 2000).]

[sir scarvajal]

I don't know HP, Fizer looks a lot more like Barkley-esk in ability to me than a Forston or KT does (or even say a Big Nasty or LJ). Granted I haven't seem him a ton, but he seems much more explosive (in terms of a quick & powerful leaping ability that is almost never found in guy that size). If Fizer is one of the trully special athletes around his size like a Barkley, Jevon Kearse or Lawrence Taylor--if I can sample from other sports--he would be well worth a top 3 pick, let alone be available to us at a likely 5-8 or so.

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[heypartner]

Sir,

Fortson didn't get 2nd Teamer his soph year and 1st teamer Jr without comparisons to Barkley. Go to NBA.com and read Fortson's bio if you don't recall. To me, he is identical sounding to Fizer.

I'm willing to bet anyone here that Fizer will be available at the 6th spot. It's your call. Take him or trade for Fortson (the proven commodity). And remember, Pitino is bound to give us more than Fortson if someone to compliment Walker and Pearce is available.

I'm not knocking Fizer....I'm just gun-shy about predicting PFs in college at the 6th spot. I think a trade is safer.

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The farther the Rockets move down the standings, the farther I move down the bleachers.

[This message has been edited by heypartner (edited March 23, 2000).]

[rocketsfan34]

I'm willing to bet some team will be suckered into nabbing him top 5. I really don't think he's worth that high as he's undersized.

I'll get a prime scouting report him as he plays UCLA today. I'll see if he's really what everyone claims as the best player after Martin.

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[sir scarvajal]

I'll certainly keep an open mind tonight, Fizer will be playing against good competion down low. Like I said I haven't seen him that much, maybe he isn't as explosive as I am thinking. Should be very interesting to watch. As far as Forston, I am not saying some didn't claim he had Barkley-esk athleticism, but I never did see it in him. Every time I have seen him to me he looks more like the ox type (Corliss, Mason, Oakley) than the strong & athletic bouncy type (Barkley, LJ, Witherspoon, the latter of whom obviously weren't as good as cracked up to be though in LJ's case I think injuries were a big part of him losing his athleticsm).

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[heypartner]

yeah...i should retract from saying Fortson has NBA athleticism. He doesn't. In college, he was a monster to handle though, and an excellent shot blocker. He still is a monster in the block.

Anyhow, I'm certainly keeping an open eye on Fizer as well. Shortness doesn't bother me. I just don't see how too many are going to have KTs footwork. This isn't football. You must dribble and dance, not just drive straight at Mourning/Mutombo/Shaq/Duncan/Garnet/etc, although that threat does help.

What I told RF34 was, I have made miserable predictions of PFs from college in the past (I think many have), so, since I want a PF, I tend to just want to trade the pick for a proven commodity.

If he is very explosive like plenty say, take him...he will have tremendous trade value after his first year or will replace KT. Either way Fizer or KT should produce a star out of themselves or trading them early.

I think Swift and Martin are safer bets, and probably one HSer (I say just from recent history).

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The farther the Rockets move down the standings, the farther I move down the bleachers.

[sir scarvajal]

So what did ya'll think of Fizer???

He wasn't quite as explosive as I was thinking. But I was very impressed with his court awareness, ball handling and team attitude. One thing to think about he was playing againt Moiso who is a very good all-around player and Gadzuric, the latter of him is a strong 6' 11' 255 lbs or so guy. Moiso and Gadzuric couldn't push Fizer an inch. To me Fizer looks a lot like a hybrid of Big Nasty and the Chuckster. He looks more athletic than Williamson (& he was better range though we didn't see it), has terrific body control for a guy his size, though I am not ready to put him in Charles defy human laws athletic class yet.

One thing I am thinking, do ya'll see any reason why Fizer couldn't be a very good pro 3. Corlis makes an adequate 3 who poses some match-up problems, but Fizer has better shooting and athleticism so maybe he could pose similar match-up problems for the other teams yet be a little less exploitable by the quicker 3s and could occasionally set up the offense. Didn't Barkley start the league as a 3, maybe we have been thinking of Fizer for the wrong position????


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[Moe]

I thought Fizer had a very, very nice all around game. What stood out to me was his ball handling and touch. He looked strong and played good defense, although long PF's will be able to post up and shoot over him. Long PF's can post up and shoot over most anybody. Moiso was able to do this a few times, but on the other hand, Moiso couldn't stop Fizer. He showed very good energy. I think he could play some 3, but primarily will be a 4. If the Rockets get the 1st pick, he would be my vote.

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[DaneB]

The thing I really like about Fizer is how buff he is, and he reminds me of a younger Dale Davis. The thing about Fizer is he will be a really good rebounder and provides our team with that sort of low presence on the defensive and offensive end that we really need. I also think that he would compliment Francis really well.

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[rocketsfan34]

I didn't exactly get to see Fizer's game cuz they were running a zone. However I have to admit Tinsley did a superb job of setting up Fizer underneath at point blank range.

I could see Fizer was having trouble with height, same like Barkley. However, I feel he should extend his game and add some perimeter arsenal moves. Everyone of his scores was 5 feet away from the basket which shows his post up dominance. He had a chance to shoot a open 3 for example, instead took it inside and posted up. At least it shows he understands what he's better at doing. At least he won't be jacking up bad shots. http://bbs.clutchcity.net/ubb/biggrin.gif I like his basketball smarts.

I'm still against having Fizer and Kenny on the same team. Just don't like two undersized PFs rotation.

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[oomp]

The thing I like most about Fizer is team play. Going into the Big XII he was the most hyped player from I State. In the Tournement when teams keyed on him, he helped his fellow cyclones burn them at almost every position. I actually hoped that Iowa State didn't get this far so that he would stay a secret for the Rockets to steal...................

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[sir scarvajal]

I would love to have a another problem like Barkley's lack of heigth if we got we got the rest of his package with it.

Personally, I wouldn't think twice about adding another short forward if it happened to be Fizer. I think he is a class above any front line player we now have on our team and I would make the other guys worry about finding PT, or if need be, trading them. Not being quite the player Fizer is is far from insult.

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