Sam- Doesn't change the fact they were 2nd round picks. I cheated. What about guys who went and played other minor leagues like Mark Blount? Does a guy like Stephen Jackson count? Adrian Griffin? Brad Miller? Peja Drobnjak? Marc Jackson?
First, Manu was a second round pick in 99 before int'l players really began to dominate the draft. He'd be a top 10 pick today. I'm sure Okur would go much higher today than he did back in 2001 too, didn't his turkish contract have something to do with it? Mentioning them as second round picks along with Badiane just shows how far Badiane has to go. The better comparison to Badiane is Olumide Ouyideje or Soumaila Samake. Who? Exactly
If Boki didn't have a catchy/cute nickname like "Boki", would his cult following be so large? What if his nickname was "Pigbutt" I can't see anybody putting "GIVE PIGBUTT MINUTES!!!!" in their signature....
Looking from another angle, without much basketball resume but still was selected in the NBA draft shows the potential in this kid. Badiane was a legit draft choice among the league, not just CD's personal fancy. Maybe Badiane was hyped up a little, but he's being hyped up by scouts who saw him play, not some armchair scouts who decide things based on inadequite info.
Well, if Francis didn't have a catchy/cute nickname like "Wink", would his cult following be so large? What if his nickname is "Peanut Brain" I can't see anybody putting Francis as high as he is now
Wink? Nah nobody calls him that no more. I thought from reading the game threads that his nickname was: $#@%^&!! Francis
Actually that is a really bad comparison. I don't see too many people that use his nickname wink. i never call him wink in chat or on the bbs. I either can him SF or stevie franchise. but never wink.
Sam...I just wonder...have you ever seen Badiane play? I wouldn't make a speculation like that before he has even played a single game in the NBA. Also, how in the world can you rule out the possibility that the kid can improve and become at least a decent NBA player?
The main thing that caught my attention of Malick was how quick he was able to react on the rebounds. He can jump very quick and recover. He also keeps the ball above his head on the boards. He uses both hands really *GRABS* the ball. He's no softy under the rim, that's for sure...but.... His offensive game? Hmmm, not so good. He missed a lot of 15ft shots on the Rockets tryouts videos they had posted. And really he hasn't done much overseas (offensively). So, he's really just a "rebounding bruiser." At least, so far.
Nope, I haven't seen him play....and that's why I'd be absolutely shocked if he got more than a cup of coffee at the NBA level. Go back and read the pre-draft previews of Olumide Oyideji http://www.clutchfans.net/draft_profile.cfm?Player=21 Sound familiar? Replace "Oyedeji" with "Badiane" and "Nigeria" with "Senegal" and you can run that as a preview of Malick. Hell, Oyedeji at least got PT and put up good numbers in the German league, something Badiane hasn't done. As for his NBA career Oyideji has played in about 90 games the last few seasons, averaging 1-2. Keon Clark? Darius Miles? That's closer to Darius Rucker and Wesley Clark's career averages. I can't think of a less analogous situation. Thanks for making my point.
To be fair, Oyedeji is one lazzy-ass mother******. Badiane is apparently not. Apparently is reffering to the previews and reports we read at the beginning of the season AFTER he joined the Rockets and BEFORE he went to Germany.
