Almond reminds me of Franciso Garica, good shooters and scorers in long frames. Not sure why their stock isn't/wasn't higher.
i dont seem him as an all star type, but he should be a very good player. morris almond compared himself to rip hamilton in that he moves well without the ball and uses screens well. of course, he has more range than rip, but isnt as devoted to defense. he should be a solid player. he does need to work on defense and his ball handling, but he's a smart player with a very good work ethic, and that's what separates him from alot of players.
The knock on Almond is quickness. Getting shots off against MEM, "overrated" Carney, SMU, etc is not the same as getting a shot off against the best SG's in the WC. All players in the 20+ range admittedly have flaws. What justification can you (or anyone having seen him with frequency) provide to justify Almond @ 26 over the best available big given Hayes, Novak and Reed are all the Rockets have at PF? Or for that matter, someone like Marcus Williams who played against a much higher level of competition?
Gentlemen, good points made by all... I mentioned names like Rip Hamilton and Allan Houston only to give you an idea of his game. I would be wary of comparing him to those guys just yet, but yes, I do believe he could be in the ilk of those guys. I agree that we have a pressing need at PF, but if what I am reading is true and we are trying to win now, we cant wait for an underclassman big man to develop. And how many times does a big man come in and contribute their first year. Even Dwight Howard and Emeka Okafor struggled their rookie seasons. Morris would come in and provide instant offense. Our Rockets need shooting. We can run Chuck Hayes and a FA acquisition out there along with the team we have now and have Morris come in as the 6th or 7th man...I would think we could provide some matchup difficulties.
Fine. Big men take longer to develop. TMac and Snyder play SG, Mike James does spot minutes at SG and Wells will have made his decision before the draft. There just won't be enough time unless the drafting team can play him or is drop dead certain he can get a shot off against NBA talent. IMHO, JJ Redick is questionable in the category. That's why I asked for a deeper analysis.
Deeper analysis huh...more than what you can read at every major draft website out there? Alright, I will try... Positives: Morris is a dead on spot up shooter from 18-22 ft. Morris 6-6 and 215 lbs and strong both lower body and in his upper body. Morris can post up and hit fade aways and jump over shorter SGs. His mid range game is an ode to the old days when players shot the ball one handed like our junior high coaches taught us to do. He knows how to utilize his body to create space and to draw fouls. He can outmuscle weaker guards. He has shown the ability to go to his left and right with equal confidence for a jumper. He can rebound well due to his leaping ability and strength. He moves extremely well without the ball. Negatives: He cant take a step towards the basket while dribbling and create space. He doesn't always see the court well as evidenced by his poor assist to turnover rate. His foot speed is not great in the sense of his first step. Thats all I can think of for negatives. Seriously...He played with a Rice team which probably doesn't even have a player who can make it in Europe, much less an NBDL player and yet, he led Rice to the semifinals of the C-USA tournament and a .500 record last year. Also, see his clutch shooting against Central Florida in the C-USA tournament. Game winning 25 footer while falling away and the clock hitting 0:00 He scored 40 on Vanderbilt. He averaged 25+ points within a conference which by RPI was in the top 6 in the nation. Morris can average 12 points a game next year on 6-8 shots a game. Bonzi is a head case. I would not count on that guy for anything. Plus he is only here for another year if that. TMac plays the SF position in reality. Kirk Snyder? Give me a break...talk about overrated coming out of a small conference. I saw Kirk play for Nevada against Rice and those who know, know that Jason McKrieth (Rice) was a better player on the court that day. You want Mike James at 6-2 guarding Shooting guards? Instead of trying to fit people who dont fit into those positions, why not draft a guy who can do it and who can fit in perfectly? Here is the depth chart for me: PG - Rafer, Mike James, SG - TMac, Morris Almond, Kirk Snyder SF - Shane Battier, Bonzi Wells, Morris PF - Chuck Hayes, Free agent etc... C - Yao, Dikembe
morris will be able to play both SG and SF. snyder will be the odd man out. he cant do anything except dunk and pretend to play defense. he looks like he gives full effort...but he doesnt fool me. he sucks. i think mike james will stay at PG and will not spend much time at SG...more of a PG that can score and create.
Thanks. The "draft sites" are good, but they don't have the depth like someone that has watched first hand for a long time.
Mo-Al seems predestined to be prepicked ere #26. If there is to be a Morris Almond sighting in Toy Shop home gear then the Rox may need to get Lakes' choice?
Even if the Rockets get Almond I would prefer to trade Head along with Battier for a better PF if that's possible. No need to give him up for Cook. We need defense,rebounding,and quickness from a 4. All Cook does is shoot. If we keep Almond our shooting will improve.
i think we can keep everything and just sign anderson verajao(sp) yao/deke anderson/hayes battier/almond tmac/head/almond rafer/james something like that. could always trade sura/snyder/vspan in a package for another player.
If the Cavs don't match a potential MLE offer it could work out. We would need an extra banger. I don't like the idea of accumulating old players but signing P.J.Brown for the LLE might be helpful to some extent. He showed that he has some game left in him against the Pistons. Unfortunately our trading assets are limited.
morris would be a good draft pick for the rockets. he really doesn't need to be a good passer when he has t-mac with him and, if the offense is up tempo. He is not a point guard. could be a steal...
I would hapilly take morris he will develop a quiker first step and sooner or later be able to make his own shot he will be the steal of the draft even if people criticize him for being from c-usa...
Gater, sorry, I re-read my question to you and it came across sounding obtuse and condescending. My apologies.... Its nice to see Rocket fans taking notice of Mo. He is such a great guy and I want him to go as high as possible for his sake. But since I am a Rocket fan, I want him to stay in Houston and show off his skills... Go Rice! Beat UNC! (in baseball, not basketball)
