LoL. Actually, Denver might pick Adrien up as they are running out of healthy bodies. Too many bums making too much money (Thabust, Flynn, Hill)!
Local tv station down here in the RGV has Jeff Adrien signing with the Vipers once again. I don't if this is official but that is what reported tonight on the local sports.
Greg Smith will be the next Dwight Howard, I'm excited...imagine a front line with him and Thabeet starting! Seriously I just hope that Smith is better than Adrien for now.
Our old projects went completely bust -Flynn, T-Will, Hill, Thabeet. 4 lottery picks. Our new projects - Morris, Donatas, Parsons, Smith. One lottery, one late 1st, one 2nd rounder, one didnt even get picked. Something tells me our new projects will have a longer and more successful NBA career then our first group of projects.
Summarized some pros/cons from draftexpress: pros: This quantifies the way Smith (6-8 without shoes, 7-2 ½ wingspan, 252 pounds) can routinely snatch the ball out of mid-air and palm it away from his body. While he is not overly quick or explosive, he is a solid and coordinated athlete with above average mobility given his size. Smith receives over 40% of his offensive possessions on post-ups, where he continues to show the same combination of soft hands and basic footwork. His 59.8% 2FG represents how efficient he is as a post scorer. He looks particularly comfortable this season executing a spin move to his left hand. Smith shows improved decision making abilities, however, cutting down on his turnovers and fouls while displaying improved passing and off-the-ball movement. he noticeably improved on the defensive boards on his way to a far more respectable 9.6 rebounds per 40 minutes pace adjusted Offensively, Smith shows an intriguing skill level for a young big man. He does most of his damage inside the paint, often operating with his back to the basket, where he's quite a capable threat. He scored at a nice rate as a freshman, 16.7 points per-40p, got to the free throw line regularly, and was very efficient (58% FG) in his somewhat limited role in a very disjumbled looking Fresno State offense. He showed some at times last season, having the ability to put the ball on the floor a bit and utilizing some basic spin moves to get his shot off with very soft touch. cons: For the most part, however, his skill set has not improved since last season. He must continue to work on expanding his game, primarily getting more comfortable going right and developing more advanced footwork. Furthermore, while he has gotten to the line at a slightly greater rate this season, he is still an abysmal foul shooter to the tune of 54.5% while showing very little potential as a spot-up shooter at this stage. Unfortunately, his motor still runs hot and cold, which leads to periods of ineffectiveness and invisibility on the offensive end. Inconsistency defines Smith's defensive performance, as well. While his size, bulk, and solid mobility should help him stand his ground in the post with relative ease at this level, he struggles with focus. Far too often, his man beats him with a simple fake or countermove and Smith is forced to foul to compensate for his poor effort. On the negative side, Smith struggles with contact and doesn't finish above the rim in traffic very often, as he's not the quickest or most explosive big man you'll find amongst NBA prospects. He's mobile, but does not possess off the charts athleticism. He lacks any type of face-up ability at this point in time, attempting just a handful of jumpers last year and shooting 58.6% from the free throw line. Smith is also not a very good rebounder at this stage, which is a bit disappointing considering his physical attributes and level of competition he plays at in the WAC. He can rebound in and around his area, but seems to lack the quickness and explosiveness to go out and extra possessions on a regular basis. Playing harder and being more physical boxing out, especially on the defensive end, would go a long way in solving this issue. Still nowhere near a finished product at this point, Smith's lack of experience really gets exposed on the defensive end, where he shows poor fundamentals and awareness, and regularly gets taken advantage of, often resulting in foul trouble. He loses his focus and gets beaten off the dribble very easily on the perimeter, and also lets smaller, weaker players post him up and push him around. Unfortunately Smith tends to gives up on plays easily and generally doesn't put very much effort in on the defensive end either, which only compounds the problem, and helps explain his paltry rebounding numbers. Clearly he has very good physical tools, and the potential to be a solid defender down the line, but at this stage, he looks nowhere close to that. http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Greg-Smith-5817/
His draft Xpress profile reads out like he's a very similar post player to Jordan Hill, but with a bigger body, and much better hands. However, inconsistent and not very gifted offensively. Sounds good to me, even if he is as inconsistent as Hill, it sounds like he brings more to the table when guarding bigger post players. Also, having better hands will be a huge improvement over Hill. Not to mention he comes super cheap. I was impressed with Adrien the other day when he finally got to play, but everyone needs to be realistic that he just doesn't have the size to be able to matchup to normal post players night after night. Adrien is a specialty player while someone like Smith has the ability to be affective night in and night out for 10 to 15 minutes on the boards and defense.
Glad we are bring back Smith. Adren is what we need right now, but since you can't get rid of anyone and Adrien is not long term solution, meh. Don't get too worked up over Lin. I admit I haven't seen him play a ton, but from what I have he is a liability defensively. He may try hard, but one crossover and he trips over himself.
His weaknesses sound the same as Hill's though. Poor defensive fundamentals, not enough consistent effort. On top of that Hill has a jump shot and makes more free throws and is probably a better rebounder. The pluses of having Smith on the roster are threefold: 1) Clearly Morey thinks he's a better third-string big than Adrien 2) He's younger than Hill and still has a chance to develop into a good player, whereas Hill probably is what he is at age 24 3) Hill has an expiring contract and will probably be due around $1.5M in free agency from some team. Smith is on a team-friendly three year non-guaranteed deal and will make half that, saving us a bit of money and cap space.
Yes, however it is only coming from draft express. They aren't really professional scouts, but they do see more games then you or I do. I think your right that he's automatic 3rd string material at first, but he's someone that has the ability to take away more minutes from Hill then Adrien would. Given that Adrien is more of a specialty defender. The risk in signing Smith is extremely minimal so he can afford to ride the bench for the rest of the season if needbe. Its more important for trade purposes to get Hill as much PT as possible until the March Deadline. All in all, it was the right move to make. If he can give the same production as Jordan Hill this season and next at the small amount of money he is due then it was the right move.
Gang, don't be surprised if he is signed, introduced, then sent right back down to RGV for seasoning. DD
why would they bother bringing him up if they are going to send him right back to the d league? i dont know how much playing time he is going to get though. mchale is on "you dont get to play unless you bust your butt in practice" mode when it comes to the end of the bench, so hopefully he works hard to earn some PT
