His passing and decision making has certainly improved. He can move well without the ball too and finish at the basket. His shooting mechanics didn't look good,even though he made quite a few of them. Another year in Europe shouldn't hurt,but he is not likely to get much better. I think he will be better than VSpan,if he plays in the NBA.
One thing to note is that he's already 24 years old, 25 when the season starts. So there's less upside from here on out than your typical prospect. I still think his floor is a backup combo guard, and his ceiling is a Lowry/Dragic level shooting PG. But his game is already fairly refined for someone who hasn't played in the NBA yet.
Didnt Morey already say he wasnt coming over this year? Boy, if we could resign Dragic and bring Llull over as his backup...
Thanks guys. Do those highlights make him look a little better than he is? Yeah, probably. That's what highlights tend to do. To be honest I didn't watch that many Madrid games this year, so the scouting report I can give you is based on a relatively small sample size. Llull played the majority of his minutes at PG this year, however he is not what you'd call a pure PG. He's a PG with scoring instincts. A combo guard (say 75% PG, 25% SG) in a point guard's body if you will. In the NBA he will have pretty much exclusively play the point due to his size/frame. He's more effective with the ball than without the ball. He's not a guy you call off-ball-screens for. He's a decent set shooter, but not a spot-up sniper by any means. Pretty good shooter when stepping into his shot off the bounce. He's got great end-to-end speed and excels in transition. He plays with a lot of intensity and is very active on defense. He's got quick reactions and gets his hands on a lot of balls. Good at playing the passing lanes and anticipating passes. He is very similar to Dragic, in that he's pretty much always getting up on the ball handler. However Llull doesn't quite possess the lateral quickness, strength or wingspan that Dragic does, so he's not able to quite recover from unfavorable angles like Dragic does. Llull will have to learn how and when to play more sound defense (in the NBA). He uses the pick&roll looking to score, which is good, though he can get out of control at times. Always looking to attack the basket. Relentless at it. Pretty good at drawing fouls and finishing at and around the basket. Could become a more effective (pick&roll) player if he learns how to change speeds better. Has gotten better at it, but still too often plays at one speed (full steam ahead). Good feel for the game, but not great PG instincts. Good ball handler. Takes care of the ball for the most part. Can run basic PG sets. Confident in his abilities. Not afraid to go at it in the clutch. Gets himself and his teammates fired up. Seems like a good teammate/locker room guy. I don't think he plays like Nash, Jimmer or Manu, but I can't think of a really good comparison myself either. I think he has some Darrel Armstrong in him. Some Lou Williams. The song is "Lupe Fiasco feat. Matthew Santos - Shining Down".
yeah call me crazy, but i'm not really huge on his mechanics and furthermore don't see him translating to the NBA very well (if he even ever comes).
Give me a freaking break with the mechanics, are we bringing him over to repair cars? He is an established 24 yr old player who has demonstrated to be a very good shooter, we're not talking about a 19 yr old MKG here. I truly see him as starting caliber PG in the NBA but if we sign Dragic long term I don't see that working out with us so I hope there's a GM out there who likes him as much as I do. In any case, I hate that the odds of him making or not making the jump seem to be at 50/50 right now.
yeah and Vassilis Spanoulis was an established player over there too. psh gtfo talking about starting caliber PG. none of us have seen him play in person.
Because shooting mechanics are language or league specific, so the form he uses in Spain will not "translate" to the NBA, right?. I've taken your point to heart, I booked us 23 flights to go and see players in person lest we dare to give opinions before that happens.
Llul has to play in the NBA before i believe the hype. This kid isnt Rubio or he would have been drafted higher than the 2nd round Remmeber VSpan, and Juan Carlos Navarro I still prefer American guards over European ones.
Just had to chime in -- love your video work, HMMMHMM. This is a great one... love the stuff you've done for Llull and Motiejunas.
