1st year player Kenneth Faried was ranked #71 by ESPN in the top 500 players in the league. Faried, a 6'7.5 PF, was the 22nd pick in a relatively weak draft (2011). I like Faried. He's a good player, but he's somewhat one-dimensional. Our rookies, who were drafted higher in a deeper draft, are more skilled than Faried. We have have 2 national champs on our team who were crucial parts of their team's success. Dmo also has a champion pedigree having led his Polish team to their 9th title. I've also heard it said (by Morey I think) that Royce was the best player on the court when Iowa St played Kentucky. I don't know whether or not any of our rookies will match Faried's success. It seems unlikely. Nevertheless, we have 4 skilled and athletic rookies, with terrific measurements, that are capable of significant contributions to this year's team. If former Morehead St. player Kenneth Faried is considered the 71st best player in the NBA after only one season, maybe there's room for optimism that our rooks can put us over the hump (and into the playoffs)? It's at least a divergence of thought from the typical, "He's just a rookie." Meaning: Don't expect much from these guys. They've got a lot to learn etc.
I think people on this board are way to high on our rookies. If 1 out of 5 of our rookies (DMo, Lamb, Jones, White, Machado) becomes a top 100 player after their first year playing we'll be extremely lucky. If 1 out of 5 eventually becomes a top 30 player (i.e. All Star) I'd consider it a great draft. Faried has proven he can compete on an NBA level which the NBA rankings put a heavy emphasis on. For example, Damian Lillard (#6 in this year's draft), who everyone seems to be really high on, is ranked at 211 b/w Brandon Wright and Michael Pietrus.
He's ranked 71 now. He was ranked #331 before last season. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is ranked 128. I think they have Dmo and Jones ranked too high if you consider their summer-league play in comparison to their higher-ranked rookie peers. Incidentally, Von Wafer, who was ranked 341, commented, "Put me up against anybody ranked 65 and up and lets see what happens."
Sry wrong thread About Rookies, I really don't know why Farried is so high rated. He only can dunk and reb, maybe shoot a few hooks but...Look at DMo's post arsenal, 10times better.
J.Lin: 78 K.Martin: 76 Omer Asik: 99 Chandler Parsons: 152 Carlos Delfino: 175 Patrick Patterson: 231 Jeremy Lamb: 267 Shaun Livingston: 280 Royce White: 290 Terrence Jones: 311 Marcus Morris: 318 Toney Douglas: 321 Donatas Motiejunas: 324 Gary Forbes: 349 Jon Brockman: 367 JaJuan Johnson: 388 Courtney F: 471 Greg Smith: 483
LOL@fans who overvalue our rookies. Why shoot when you can dunk? Faried was an elite rebounder/36min last season, only D12, KLove, Camby were better than him. Not bad for a rookie forward.
Every time when I hear a player say that kind of thing, I know exactly why this guy is bouncing around the league. He thinks basketball is a one-on-one sport.
Overvalued here but possibly undervalued elsewhere. Kenneth Faried is a double double caliber player with enough minutes and a decent defender. None of our rookies have proven they can average a double double. Faried is very raw offensively but he can improve and even if he doesn't 10-15 points on high efficiency from dunks, layups, and basic post moves isn't bad along with 10+ boards.
My original point wasn't that our rookies should be ranked higher than Faried, but that we have reason to be optimistic because of how the professionals at ESPN have ranked him (71), Kawhi (95), Shumpert (138), & D.Williams (139). I believe ESPN has undervalued our players. The rookies have high bball IQ's, above-average athleticism, solid measurements, great pedigrees, and are multi-skilled. I expect 3 out of 4 of them will be ranked higher than 225 next season. The hindrance will be playing time.
For all the ones who keep saying that the rookies are overvalued here, don't show up and jump on the bandwagon when things are going good.
Lol we're lucky if even one of our rookies is as good as Faried.. You're crazy if you don't Faried is a baller. Man there's too many homers on our rookies lately..
We'll be happy to be wrong. But saying not to overestimate our rookies doesn't mean we're against them.
