Vesely is 6'11" and is listed as 240 by Draft Express and 230 by NBAdraft. If he really is 215 like you say then it still does not matter. He is very likely to play SF when he comes to the NBA but his athleticism is not going to be as great in the NBA as it is in Europe and as he gets older and gains weight he will likely transition to the PF position. Certainly he may be the exception but most players his size make the transition at some point in their careers.
Still, being more of a skilled SF at this stage of his career is not a bad thing by NBA standards. At this point, Dirk Nowitzki was a SF and played that position exclusively his first season with the Mavs. Playing Vesely his first couple seasons at the SF position would be better than having a player like Bargnani for Toronto who was immediately being put at the Center position and hurting his team therefore at that position. If the Rockets are lucky enough to get Vesely to drop to the 14th pick then he would be one of the more solid picks in the draft despite even being a young Euro. I would worry lastly about what position he would play and worry first about his potential in the league, his fit with the current team and future team, and what special talents he brings to the table. His versatility (from what we can see on scouting reports), and size seems to be perfect for the Rockets at the SF or PF position. Add in his scoring ability, some mental toughness, and defensive abilities, and you have yourself a versatile player who can guard many different positions.
He will be the most athletic player in the NBA the instant he signs with any NBA team. His athletic advantage won't drop even a micro spec by coming to the NBA, because he will be more athletic than every single NBA player. And as I said, he as much a PF as Durant is. So when Durant becomes a PF then the same should be true for Vesely. I am not saying he cannot play at PF because he can and already does at times now in Euroleague. What I am saying is that any NBA coach that plays him at PF is an epic moron.
Just to clarify here - Vesely will be the most athletic player in the NBA and IMO he is the best player in this draft as of right now. His talent is off the charts and he could be a really great defensive player at SF. He is a Blake Griffin level highlight machine and that will certainly also sell tickets. However, he does not have much scoring ability. His offensive game is quite weak for the Euroleague level. His offense is basically dunking, occasionally hitting a wide open jumper, and sometimes posting up smaller SFs, or facing up bigger PFs. His offensive game is developing and is getting better all the time. But for the Euroleague level, at this point in time, his offensive game is without any question well below average at that level.
Most athletic player in the NBA? I've never heard of him or seen him play but that's a bold statement if I ever heard one. Your description of his game makes him sound like a Nic Batum plus a couple inches. Is that accurate?
LOL at your first sentence. Nothing else to say about that. And Crash already explained to you why Vesely was listed as power forward PROSPECT in NBA, because he can possibly play one in future. He gave you example of Dirk making this kind of transition. And nba.com is not the only “foolish” website that projects Vesely as 3 or 4 in NBA. And they actually give reason for this uncertainty like his lack of lateral quickness. Not OHMMMS assertion that "Vesely cannot be PF because KD cannot be PF." Oh, okay.
lol, I like DragonGirl. OHMMSSS is just a butt hurt V Span fan boy. I was hoping the Rockets would get lucky and have Jan Vesely fall to #14, until he starting riding his jock, extremely hard.
I agree with that.. but there IS a chance, so there's nothing wrong with debating prospects in the top 7. Now pay up your bet!
This kid is a more realistic gamble at #38 than trying to trade up by giving away important pieces of your team.
Reggie Johnson seems like a good gamble. I watched him many times, but I still didn't see that "Blake Griffin level highlight machine".
Vessely≠ Randolph, and if he did it would indeed be a bad thing. Randolph lacks a few things that make Vessely such a good player -- most prominent among them are intensity, playing with ferocity, great team defense. Vessely is a bigger, longer and better Kirilinko I think. Also, one of the cool things to think about with Vessely is that you would have someone who could guard Durant for the rest of Durant's career. Being in the Western conference, that's nothing to sneeze at. I'm not sure what Houston's scouting is telling them, but if the Rockets can get Biyombo and Vessely (hell, Biyombo OR Vessely) it would make every team that comes to play them uncomfortable to do so -- not because they would be so great necessarily, but because there would be so many unexpected block, viscious dunks and physical intense play.
