I will be the first to admit that I have never watched a Euroleague game and know nothing about European basketball. But this makes no sense to me. NBA franchises spend vast amounts of money on things like player psychological profiles, medical training staffs, and fancy locker rooms. Teams like the Rockets, Mavs, and Celtics have employees devoted only to analyzing players in hopes of finding diamonds in the rough. I read an article yesterday about how the team was installing cameras around the court to provide more in-depth video footage for the team to study. My point is this: If NBA franchises are willing to shell out money for such marginal advantages, do you really think that if there were an untapped pool of such superior players that no team would have discovered it and tapped into it by now? Or look at it from the other perspective. If the Euroleagues were stocked with Blake Griffin-caliber talents, why would these players uniformly choose to toil in obscurity rather than depart for the fame, riches, and endorsements of the NBA? I think a far more likely explanation is that most Euroleague players, like most American college players, just don't have the talent and athleticism to make it in the NBA.
You see the same thing in college. Kyle Singler, JJ Reddick, Tyler Hansbrough.. incredible college players whose games don't translate to the NBA as well. I'm sure these 'international fans' see these "great Euro players" and are dumbfounded why the 25 year old MVP of the team doesn't get drafted while the 17 year old starting PG does. Not everyone's game translates to the NBA level and it's the scouts job to find those who can make the transition.
You have never in your life seen a Euroleague game and you admit it. That is the ACTUAL explanation. You don't know what you are talking about, yet you think that you do. Try actually watching the Euroleague before you form opinions on it.
There are no 17 year old starting point guards in the Euroleague. Your posts are good for nothing but laughs.
By all means, enlighten me. If Ricky Rubio, Jan Vesely, and Donatas Motiejunas are merely average NBA prospects by Euroleague standards, why would GMs spend high lottery picks drafting them instead of their more-talented counterparts? If the Euroleague has numerous superstar-caliber talents, you don't think at least one NBA GM would have figured this out and absolutely cleaned up in the draft? And even if such players were unknown to NBA GMs, the odds of which are vanishingly small in the Information Age, why wouldn't the players' agents make every effort to bring their clients to the league's attention so they could reap much larger commissions from salaries and endorsements? If the situation is as you describe it, players, GMs, and agents would all have to be acting immensely against their own self-interest. Please tell me, how is such an unsustainable situation sustained?
I decided to pass on our good friend's rant to Jonathan Givony, owner of DraftExpress.com. On whether or not OHMSS's DX.com being clueless and not watching prospects play in person rant had any truth to it: On whether or not OHMSS's star PG of the future could make a good NBA player: Make of this information what you will.
Once again, you prove you don't know anything about European basketball. First of all, Rubio played in the Eurocup when he was 17, not the Euroleague. Two completely different leagues. Secondly, even now at age 20, Rubio is the 4th best point guard on his team. He never plays in crunch time, he hardly ever finishes a game, unless his team is way ahead, and he never runs the offense in any important game, or moment. In fact, he is almost always on the bench at that time. In any important game or moment of the season he is the 4th string point guard of his team. Of course, someone who has never in his life seen a Euroleague game like you, likes to come here and talk smack to others that have like he is some kind of expert and legend in his own mind. You are really good for a laugh.
First, if you want to have a serious discussion then reading comprehension 101 and stop twisting my words and manipulating what I write. I already explained it in this thread. And I never said Vesely was an average NBA prospect. He is easily the best player available in the draft. Rubio is barely even a mediocre player in Euroleague. As for NBA GMs, coaches, etc. have you ever talked to any? You seem to think they are smart people. Most of them are complete morons.
He is a liar and a fraud. Pass that on to him. It can easily be proven that he is making up most of his draft reports on European players.
What up witih the quadruple post, man? Do you NOT have anything else to do but criticize others' posts because they have not seen many European games? They are just providing their own $0.02, albeit with limited knowledge. That's what forums are for: to speculate and discuss with whatever knowledge you have. Your brash and perjorative style of posting is better suited for the Debate and Discussion section. Please go there....
Haha, why are you guys even entertaining OHMSS responses at this point!? :grin: Anyways, if there is anyone who follows UNC closely, can you tell what the heck is happening with Harrison Barnes? The guy is falling down every mock draft I've seen ... his even at the 13th pick on draftexpress!
He had a slow start to the year which has caused his value to plummet. Remember, he was the first freshman pre-season All-American in history. So when he struggled out of the gate, his stock fell because of the expectations levied on him. I still expect him to be a top five pick. He's gotten A LOT better as the season progressed. He's hit MULTIPLE clutch shots, including game-winners and shots-that-would-be-GW-had-other-team-not-scored-right-after (Texas game). Simply put, the man is clutch. Defensively, he appears to be able to hold his own as well. He was matched up with Kyle Singler, last year's Final Four most outstanding player, in the two Duke-Carolina games. Barnes is a true FR and Singler is a senior; Singler shot 3-17 and and 3-14 in the two games he was matched up with Barnes 1-on-1. Where he still needs to improve is his shot selection. He's struggled somewhat adjusting to Roy's off-the-ball offense; he appears a lot more comfortable when the offense is running through him (like it probably would in the NBA). He still settles for way too many outside jumpshots; there's nobody in the gym that could stop him from driving, so you'd like to see him take it to the rack more. In the two games against Duke, he shot a combined 5 FTA. Simply put, the man needs to take the ball to the rack more. I don't know if he'd be an instant star next year, but it's clear the kid has incredible talent. He will be damn good in another two-three years. I think he should be Morey's #1 target in the draft.
Lucas "Bebe" Nogueira He probably won't declare for this years NBA draft, but if he did. He would definitely be worth the Orlando pick (if the Suns miss the playoffs) or the Clippers 2nd round pick. His contract with his Brazilian team has 3 more years, but he is so young that it would not be much of an issue letting him progress with that team. However, I'm sure he is already on every team's radar and wish list if declares for the draft this year or next.
Do you follow UNC ball, LTF? I've only seen a couple of games, but John Henson looks like he's got star potential if he can put some weight on. If we can't get Barnes he'd be a hell of a consolation prize.
Yeah, I'm the resident UNC homer. I went to school there for a few years in undergrad, so at least I'm not the huge bandwagoning type. John Henson is really intriguing. I wasn't a big fan of Ed Davis' pro potential because he never really took over games -- when he got the ball in the post, he was often looking to get rid of it instead of making the move. What I failed to see was the other side.. Ed Davis could make for a good defensive big. John Henson is incredibly skinny.. so much that I wonder if he wears a tee-shirt under his jersey to hide how rail thin he is. The biggest concern with him is he just doesn't have the body weight to be able to contribute right away. Really, he could use more time in college getting stronger and learning more of the fundamentals. He is an elite shotblocker... and I can't emphasize elite enough. As a freshman he was getting 1.6 blocks/game in 16mpg. As a sophomore now, he's getting 3.1 blocks/game in 25.5mpg. Not only is he tall, but he's incredibly long which helps him block shots. He really reminds me of Anthony Randolph a lot, just without as much polish as Randolph has. Henson is an average to below-average shooter from anything beyond five feet. I think 25% from downtown is the highest he's shot -- so he's definitely not a SF. You have to look at him as a skinny PF that can block shots and board. Most of his rebounding appears to be because of his length, rather than any great box-out skills. Still, he's grabbing close to ten boards a game so it isn't like he's a poor rebounder either. His future in the NBA probably depends on his ability to carve out a niche on the defensive side of the ball. He's a great shotblocker, both on his man and from the weakside -- but he's going to have to prove that when he's playing against men in the NBA. I wouldn't expect him to be play right away, no matter who drafts him. There is a lot for him to learn, but he's improved a lot in just over a year.. so there's no question that he could keep improving his game and put it all together one day. Off the court, he appears to be a great kid with a love for the game. You can tell that by just watching him on the court.. he really loves the game. Hopefully that translates into him working hard off-the-court to get better; I don't have any inside knowledge of his work ethic, but I do know that he's a heck of a lot better as a sophomore than he was starting off as a freshman.
