http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=2403280 Report: Aldridge leaving, Barnes staying at Texas The Texas Longhorns will reportedly be without one of their leading scorers next season. LaMarcus Aldridge, whose sophomore season ended with a disappointing performance in Texas' overtime loss to LSU in the NCAA Tournament's Elite Eight, has told teammates and the Longhorns coaching staff he will enter the NBA draft, three sources told The Dallas Morning News. Aldridge is projected as a possible high first-round pick in the NBA draft -- and ranks at No. 3 on ESPN Insider Chad Ford's Top 100 -- but declined to discuss his future after Texas' loss. Aldridge's 26-point, 13-rebound performance against West Virginia in the Sweet Sixteen had scouts buzzing that he had solidified his place as a potential No. 1 pick in the draft, according to Ford. But his 2-for-14 performance against LSU had scouts backing off a little bit. The 6-10 forward averaged 15.0 points and 9.2 rebounds a game during the regular season. In related news, Longhorns coach Rick Barnes will remain at Texas, despite reports the North Carolina State had targeted Barnes in its coaching search, the Morning News also reported. Barnes' annual base salary will increase from $1.3 million to $1.8 million, and he will receive a $125,000 bonus if Texas reaches the NCAA Tournament, according to the newspaper. In 2006, the Longhorns won a school-record 30 games, and earned a share of the Big 12 regular season title.
good the more players that declare the better the rockets have to pick from. now that roberts guy has to come out from duke.
Just need McRoberts to declare and Noah to change his mind, and for Orlando and Boston or Minny to pass us by and we're golden.
now that i looked at a mock draft i think i would be happy with any of these players aldridge morrison rudy gay brandon roy ********** maybe tyrus thomas i would think if we can drop to the 7th pick one of those guys should hopefully drop. although its a long long time until the draft and a lot of things could change.
Au contraire. Noah would actually be my number one choice. I love his non-stop motor. At worst, AT WORST he would be a taller, quicker, more athletic, better handling and passing Chuck Hayes. But he's not even in the draft right now. So there's no point in debating it yet. Roy would be my next choice, but I would be pretty happy with Aldridge, Thomas, Gay, Morrison, maybe McRoberts, and maybe even Bargnani.
You couldn't pass on Aldridge if the ping pong balls fall our way, but, how do you handle the minutes at PF since we have commited money to Swift and Howard. Could he play C to back up Yao? And who do you play at SG?
I stilll don't get how Aldridge is ranked so high ... Granted I only watched about 5-6 UT games this year, but it seemed like every game I saw he was far from stellar and he played with no aggression or made dumb fouls and sat on the bench the rest of the game. He definitely looks like he can be a player and maybe I missed his best games, but I am not seeing where this top 5 stuff is coming from.
He actually reminds me of a better Channing Frye with a little more bulk and potential to be a better rebounder.
The two most talented players in this draft are Aldridge and Gay. That being said, both of these guys have been questioned for not having the requisite "stuff" to be stars in this league. If either had Noah's aggression and motor, they'd be sure things and go 1-2 easily. That being said, I don't see how the Rockets could pass on Aldridge if he fell to them, simply due to him being a local player and having so much potential. That doesn't necessarily mean they should draft him though.
oh ok, i was a bit confused i did not know that he had stated that he was going back to school. to be honest i havent seen him play too much.
Swift can easily be dealt. He's on a cheap deal that is short, even though he hasn't played all that well, some teams will convey him just because of his athleticism and cheap contract. If not, move Swift to backup Yao.
he has been inconsistent and that is the knock with him, but he is also only a soph and he would probably need a couple years in the NBA to gain consistency. however, when he is on he is stellar. his mid/short range shot is money and he has great hands around the basket and he is a great finisher. he looks like he could develop juwan range with better consistency. plus he plays good man defense and he is very long. i would love to have lamarcus in houston but he will need time to gain the consistency and work the dumb fouls out of his game.
Aldridge did have the tendency to pickup some dumb fouls but you can really see this kid's potential in his good games. He's a good rebounder, blocker, and has a nice touch around the basket, he also has a nice mid-range jumper. I think we've only seen the tip of the iceberg from Aldridge. He's only a sophopmore who missed the majority of his freshman season.
The good thing is that he has an excellent work ethic. I think the odds are good that he will become a really great star in the NBA for many years.
Aldridge and Gay both look like the next Stromile Swift to me. They've got the talent, but they just don't seem to care very much.
At least these guys have talent. Swift has none. In fact, Rudy Gay is more skilled than Stro will ever dream of being. Aldridge shows flashes of having a serious low post game. I "guarantee" both will be better than Stro but it remains to be see if either works hard enough to become a bonafide NBA star. Gay has the potential to sizzle in the NBA but I think he's soft.
If anyone should be getting compared to Stromile, it's Tyrus Thomas. Stromile wasn't always as lackadaisical as he is today. When he had a little fire to him, back at LSU, he played almost exactly like Thomas, even down to their dimensions (about 6'9" 220). Gay and Aldridge are worlds more talented in that they both have basketball skills and are great shooters for their positions. All people question is their "fire" but I attribute some of their incapabilities to the lack of playmakers on their team. Gay had Marcus Williams, but that was about it. Meanwhile Aldridge didn't really even have a true point guard. Naturally both will also have toughen up if they want to be stars.
I don't have a link but I read a story recently about how hard LaMarcus has worked to come back from his injury and that he was in the gym every waking hour working on his game and adding the skyhook. I think I read it in The Statesman when I was in Austin around March 10, so it could have been a fluff peice, but it made him sound like a dedicated, hard worker.
