Can we let him play some games as a Rocket before making that determination. Lets reserve judgement until we actually see him in a Rockets uniform. It's like attempting to divine what Aaron Brooks will do as a player in the NBA - you can't. Unless of course you are Mrs. Cleo. Lots of blanket judgements here. Bleh.
Great video. I like what I see. Sure, he had his bad moments there. But you get a feel of what kind of player he is. I think he fits really well with Adelman's game: good passer, good cutter, good finisher near the basket, running the floor. Like some have pointed out, he should be a good complimentary piece for Yao/Mac. I want to see him hit a jumper. All his scoring is layups.
I can't tell if his game will translate well to the NBA. I think it will, I am convinced it will. But I really couldn't tell if thats going to happen. We have to wait and see. But he is not going to be a star. That I am sure, and I am a BIG Scola fan. I hope he gets to have a little more of an impact than Nocioni. And that would be great for the Rockets. But he is not going to be a star. If you think any other way, you will be dissapointed. If you ask me, we are going to see what he is really capable of in his second season, and I think he is going to be a very good role player giving the Rockets 15-17 pts a game.
I don't know what he'll be. My point was merely that nobody does until we see him play some NBA games. My hope is he puts up 13 pts/7.5 rbs this year and is busier than Jho would have been. I just think there's no telling what end of the spectrum he will end up at this point.
13 pts and 7.5 rbs? The only foreign players that I could find that had those kind of numbers in their first year are: Gasol 17.6 pts, 8.9 rbs Ilgauskas 13.8 pts, 8.8 rbs Yao 13.5 pts, pts 8.2 rbs Kirilenko 10.7 pts, 4.9 rbs Nene 10.5 pts 6.1 rbs Krstic 10 pts, 5.3 rbs And Scola would have to have those numbers in a top NBA team. I think he could get to those kind of numbers in his second season.
With Adelman's offense, T-Mac & Yao's abilities to draw double team, plus Scola's finishing, shooting & passing, Scola will be very capable of 12 pts 6 rebounds 1.5 assists in 26 minutes in his 1st season.
Due to the circumstances Scola will come in not as a 'real' rookie. He's been a pro for a long time compared to many. He will also likely get starters minutes (unless we make another move, which might very well happen). This is a more rare situation. It will be interesting to see him play, but I'll reserve judgement until the 2nd half of the season. I think there's not way for anyone to really predict where he will end up at this point. Preseason will help.
Every player new to the league is a rookie. The other Argentines (Ginobili, Oberto, Nocioni, Herrmann) were also experienced pro players, but none of them had that kind of numbers in their rookie season. International players need time to adapt to the NBA (change of rules, style of play, new country...), some even need a full year to show their true level of play.
I think one of the best examples is Herrmann himself. From the beginning of the season to the middle, he was not a factor in the Bobcat's game plan. However, from February onwards, he started to show his true level of play, culminating in a Rookie of the Month award and a starting place on the Bobcat's team. He even became their second scoring option after Gerald Wallace. I think the trick to determining how soon a player can be successful in the NBA is to gauge his intelligence, determination and work ethic levels. You can be a player from outside the NBA, but if your levels on those 3 factors are high, you are bound to suceed quicker than others. On the other hand, you may have all the athletic ability and raw potential in the world, but it you are lacking in one of them (ala Eddie Griffin and Stromile Swift), you will most likely fail consistently. From what I see, Scola has the intellect, the determination and the work ethic to succeed quicker than not in the NBA.
Look up his video for the 2005-2006 season or thereafter. He actually does a very good job creating his own shot with an assortment of spin moves and up and unders to get himself to the basket. Then when he gets there he can finish with jump hooks, finger rolls, and dunks. If he does have a jump shot, then I think he can be a very very good player especially when he's playing with a team of two superstars.
Erm... what's wrong with what he said? Its common knowledge that all foreign players have an adjustment period.
I am pretty sure that Realjad is going to have the more recent stuff in the next two videos. This was interesting to see how he played when he was more "raw"... spending more time on the court has only improved the natural talent that this guy has, I am sure. Thanks for the effort on creating the videos Realjad. I look forward to the next two.
Here, btw is the boxscore from the semi-final game in Athens: http://www.usabasketball.com/seniormen/2004/04_moly7_box.html
It was great to see how he plays in a game. Sure this is 3 years ago, but at least it shows us that he is human. He will miss his share of shots. I also think that he is still getting better. He was the Spanish league MVP on 2 different occasions. He is widely considered the best Power Forward outside of the NBA. He won the MVP in 2004 and 2006 (I think). He himself thinks that the best is yet to come, he sees himself as a work in progress, by saying that he won't reach his full potential until maybe 29 years of age. I think that the starting job is for him to lose at the beginning of the season; but I fully see him as the starter after the all-star break. Scola after all has been described by numberous sources as the perfect power forward for the Rockets system. A system which will rely on tremendous passing and high efficeint shot selections. If you don't have the shot, pass it to the next guy.
I wasn't comparing him to those folks in terms of skill and output. i was complimenting his reckless, energetic style . . . ala Najera. I think every good team needs a Najera, Hayes, type. The best NBA teams has a significant player in that mold, but the player also has shooting/scoring skills. I would not be surprised at all if Scola becomes a legit NBA starter for years to come.
Key question - Will Scola follow the Argentinian tradition and become a super-duper flopper? I look forward to seeing it.
