I'm with bbhollic here. Bryant lacks the lateral movement to play in the NBA and I'm not sure you can teach that. You can work hard to improve it, but it'll never be what other players already have. I do like his long range shooting and I do like his desire to get out and run, but how are you going to run on a team when your big man doesn't have that love of going to get the ball. An old Pau Gasol would run circles around this guy. If this was a weak draft, I'd say why not, but there's too much depth to take him at 45. Maybe invite him to camp if he slides out. A big man should be thinking, "shot went up? My ball! My ball!" not "run run run".
What are you talking about nice footwork? Dude approaches the post like Hakeem. Quick move the moment you feel them on your back and go towards the basket. Dude reminds me more of Olajuwon than even Embiid. Especially because he wasn't doing it just once, it was over and over. I don't think his game translates well to what the Rockets do, but I could see him working really well on the Lakers or Timberpups. I'll have my eye on the guy, but I don't think he'll wear an "R". Nice find. Edit: I think I've changed my mind. I'd draft him at 45. I think we need a 3 and a 5 and he's probably a 3/4.
Holy... his shot looks EXactly the same each and every time it goes up. His mechanics are so precise. No wonder he shot such a high percentage. Worth a look for sure. I don't like his height, but that could be erased by witnessing a few rebounds and game winners. Pure shooter.
Cameron Oliver is probably my favorite for one our 2nd's in this draft. He has everything you can ask for from a PF in todays NBA. He can shoot 3's at a high percentage and clip. He's a solid finisher at the rim. He's a good defensive rebounder and shot blocker. He's strong and wide at 240, looks like he'll be able to guard 4's and even some 5's in the post comfortably, he has quick feet to guard most bigs and even some 3's on the perimeter, contest shots and closes gaps well. 7'1 wingspan, 40 inch vert. He's a little short, but a legit 6'7 barefoot which is enough height given his strength and athletecism. Just about to turn 21 as a 2nd year player, has room for growth. Most 2nd rounders this year are 3-4 year players at 22+ years old. Almost every single knock against him, to me screams bad coaching. If he was coached and utilized properly I think he'd likely be a lottery pick right now. The scouting reports say "low IQ", but really it looks like poor coaching. Poor shot selection, takes contested/off balanced shots, doesn't shoot well off the dribble, takes too many mid range shots, forces the issue instead of passing, not very good at creating off the dribble. Bad body stances and positioning on defense. Sounds like he doesn't need the ball in his hands on offense, sounds like he's not being utilized correctly, he's being scrutinized for things that he won't have to worry about much at the next level offensively as he won't be the star of his team or a offensive creator. In our system for example, he would just spot up on the 3pt line, do pick and rolls with Harden, and cut to the basket occasionally. No ball handling, no creating, no post ups, no mid range shots. Just wide open set 3's and finishing in the paint off the roll/cut - both which he excels at. So right now heading into the NBA he just really needs a good system, coaching and experience. The right offensive system will solve most of his perceived problems, outside of that his shot mechanics could be improved, his range can be extended some, his defensive positioning and techniques could be improved, all with simple coaching. So if he has the work ethic, and is put in the proper offensive system, with the right coaches to help develop him, he should thrive because he has all the physical tools and skills to be a very versatile and talented player in the NBA. I would compare his upside to a modern Serge Ibaka.
Spoiler Yes we could indeed use a PF who can shoot 3's, finish in the paint, block shots and get defensive rebounds.
Yeah, me too. The guys coming out of South Carolina know D. Artis reminds me of Cedric Ceballos with better shooting. Don't know if he'll ever play D.
Being a Gamecocks fan I would love to see the Rockets draft Thornwell. He is kind of a PJ Tucker type player. Not afraid to get physical, embraces the tough moments and has some scoring ability. He is well rounded. Only knock is he is not really explosive.
Really like his game a lot. But I will be somewhat disappointed if we draft him because it will mean we didn't draft Frank Mason. Mason has that ball handling/distributing/playmaking ability that puts him in a different class. Thornwell is a scorer/finisher more than a table setter and playmaker. He'd be a nice low cost replacement or backup for a guy like Gordon or Lou. But in my opinion we desperately need to add a guy like Mason that can shoot, defend, and create and dish. I view Mason and his varied skill set as an ideal fit for our rotation. I will be disappointed if we pass on any opportunity to acquire him. He's worthy of the pick we traded to the Lakers for Lou. And he's a better player than Lou. I don't expect anybody to agree with what I've just written. But I'm putting it out here. If we don't get Mason and he was available for us to get we will be able to look back at a tremendous wasted opportunity.
True, but you ignore our desperate need of a poor defender and mediocre rebounder who relies on his reach. Good position during a rebound is WAY overrated. Ask Rodman.
He's Montrezl 2.0 in both strengths and weaknesses. I'm not saying I don't like Harrell but we've already got him. Why draft him again when what we really need is more size and more rebounding? Good rebounders in college translate when they have good fundamentals. They drop in production if they rely on athleticism. Chuck and Harden are/were good rebounders with very little athleticism. But they use what they have. Oliver looks like he wants to just jump higher than everyone to get the rebound, but the NBA is full of leapers. Patrick Patterson is the perfect example: great rebounder around inferior athletes, but very mediocre in the NBA. But you know how it is, Nick. I'm just one person with an opinion. I could be wrong, I just don't think that I'm wrong here.
I disagree, Harrell's biggest weaknesses are defensive rebounding and 3pt shooting, those are literally Olivers 2 biggest strengths as a prospect. Oliver is a significantly better defensive rebounder then Harrell or Patterson was in college, he's also a significantly better shot blocker, and significantly better 3pt shooter as well. Spoiler is their college stats. Spoiler Defensive rebounds (per 40 minutes pace adjusted across all seasons played) Patterson - 6.0 Harrell - 6.2 Oliver - 8.6 Shot blocking (per 40 pace adjusted across all seasons played) Patterson - 1.8 Harrell - 1.6 Oliver - 3.2 3pt shooting (makes per game / percentage across all seasons played) Patterson - 0.3 / .370% Harrell - 0.1 / .250% Oliver - 1.5 / .365% Patterson and Harrell were really good offensive rebounders in college, that's why they had high rebounding totals. They outclassed the opponents on the offensive boards, but were always mediocre/poor defensive rebounders. Oliver was also a very good offensive rebounder his freshman year but he developed his 3pt shot more, therefor started playing on the perimeter more and got less offensive rebounds his sophomore year. Make no mistake, Oliver is a good defensive rebounder, 8.5 defensive rebounds (per 40 adjusted) for a PF in college is very good. Another point I will make about Oliver's rebounding, is that he's wide with big shoulder, to me he plays stronger then his weight (at 240 thats saying something). I think he won't have a problem boxing out NBA 4's, In college he mostly went against centers. I'm optimistic that he might be able to effectively play small ball center as well, but I haven't seen go against NBA quality bigs yet.
His weak side help is amazing. His ability to block shots is great, but he's really weak on the block. The Spurs would eat a player like him alive. I want players that love the game and I just don't see that love out there. That's why I like Damyean, Thornwell, Wiley, Mason and Bolden so much. They all talk about the game with love and passion and the same could be said of what you see on the court. Oliver just seems to lose focus sometimes. I will illustrate this in an unprofound and unconvincing way. The look of Damyean, Thornwell, Wiley, Mason and Bolden playing basketball: The look of Oliver:
I personally believe you can't teach effort and that's what worries me about him. Watch this over and over. I'm not sure he does one thing I'd want him to do:
Come on dude, I take my time to put average all of their stats and you reply with a dog face talking about how you think he doesn't love the game enough?...
