Wake-up call Greene needs By Ryan Day He's gone. Former Syracuse basketball player Donte Greene was selected 28th overall by the Houston Rockets in the 2008 NBA draft on Thursday. (Pause for celebratory fist pump) From henceforth, Donte Greene will be forever known as a former Syracuse basketball player. Personally, I couldn't be more thrilled. Not because I didn't like Donte. I did. Donte is a talker. Stick a microphone or a tape recorder in his face and he'll yap. Reporters love guys like this. Plus, he's a talented basketball player. Most Orange fans choose to forget this. Greene averaged 17.7 points and 7.2 rebounds per game during his freshman campaign. But SU underachieved, and thus a bulk of the blame was cast on this kid's shoulders. Never mind the injuries that depleted the starting lineup. Never mind the lack of a proven veteran or the lack of depth on the bench. Donte caught the wrath of the fan base. Paul Harris didn't catch the wrath, even though he admitted to quitting during a home loss to Villanova. Arinze Onuaku didn't earn the fans' ire, even though he disappeared during a lengthy stretch in the Big East season. Even Scoop Jardine, who was suspended for his involvement with a stolen meal card, wasn't treated with a fraction of the hostility directed toward Greene. So I'm thrilled he's gone, because maybe now the complaining will stop. - Last Thursday, Donte Greene was selected 28th overall by the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2008 NBA Draft. Later that night Greene was traded to the Houston Rockets, where he was officially introduced at a news conference Friday. In pre-draft predictions, Greene was slotted as a possible late-lottery pick. At worst, he'd go in the early 20s. He slipped a bit. And rightly so. Greene isn't going to make an immediate impact. The Rockets have already admitted this. He's a draft pick for the future. Greene needs to fill out his frame and reevaluate his shot selection. Anybody who watched his play in the second half of the college season knows this. So I'm not surprised his stock dropped. He's a slightly immature 20-year-old with off-the-charts athleticism, questionable mental toughness and a wiry frame. That said, I think Greene is a perfect fit in Houston. The Rockets, already a playoff team, are a horrible 3-point shooting team. They shot a paltry 34 percent from long range this past season, with only one player eclipsing the 40-percent mark. I've never asked him directly, but I can safely assume that Donte's favorite thing to do is launch the 3. Put him on the floor with Tracy McGrady, Shane Battier and Yao Ming, and he'll get his shots. But can he convert? Although he set the Syracuse freshman record for 3s in a season (90), Greene shot just 28.6 percent from downtown in Big East play. Donte has the skills, he just needs to be molded. Houston coach Rick Adelman will make this happen. I think it'll be a good thing for Donte to be the low man on the totem pole. He's used to always being the best player, the go-to guy. But in the NBA, he'll blend in, if not disappear all together. The cockiness won't play as a rookie. The number of shots won't be to his liking. He won't even crack the starting lineup. In fact, there'll be some games where he doesn't even take off the warm-ups. And this is a good thing. It may just be the wake-up call Greene and all NBA rookies need. Donte will have a career in the NBA. Will it be all-star caliber? Possibly. First, he has to mature both on and off the court. Second, he has to understand that he won't be in the spotlight. That's something you must earn. Third, he must be receptive to coaching. Higher ups are going to try and change his game and he must listen. The run-and-gun, no-defense style of basketball doesn't fly in the NBA unless you're Gilbert Arenas. And Greene is no Gilbert. Not yet. Finally, he has to realize this is a process. Donte isn't going to win Rookie of the Year. He could be productive with the Rockets, but it won't be for two or more years. If Donte learns what the NBA's about, puts in his time and develops the weaker aspects of his game - defense and low-post moves - he'll be fine. On paper, Houston is a good fit. And on paper, Donte Greene is a heck of a basketball player. But he hasn't earned anything yet. He has to put in the work first. link to the article
lol @ SU blaming a freshman when it was clear they had key injuries and a lot of freshmen on the floor. Lames
having lived in Syracuse for a year, I witnessed the pressure that fan base puts on their Orangemen and how much hero status they enjoy if they're playing well (Hello, Melo?). Donte is going to have a tough time adjusting to being part of a bigger thing than himself, but if he does, then we have a winner. alethios
Very balanced evaluation of Greene from the Syracuse perspective. Like I said before, I don't put much credence into Cuse fans' trashing of the guy, because they basically blamed him for all their problems last year. He definitely (definitely definitely?) didn't help with his 28.6% three-point shooting, but the fact of the matter is that Syracuse was not a threat to do much of anything regardless of how well he performed. As for Greene, all the tools are present in that man to turn into not only an NBA player but also an all-star caliber player, IF he proves himself coachable. That's a big IF of course, but wouldn't you rather it be like that than the other way around, where we drafted an extremely coachable but athletically limited player? With Greene there is a decent chance he can turn into a good defensive player; with a guy like Steve Novak there is none no matter how hard he works. At pick 25 (28), finding a 6"10 SG/SF with NBA-quality length, speed, and shooting, in addition to the potential to be a good defender and ball-handler, is more than you could ask for in most years.
Oh go easy on SU. We're pretty used to having a top notch squad. It isn't easy on us to watch our team struggle. Besides, not everybody blamed Greene. I didn't.
I didn't either. They had a lot of injuries and were forced to go 6 men deep toward the end of the season. Donte will have a great time playing off Tracy and Yao and running with Rafer and Brooks.
28.6% 3pts is very low, lower than Rafer and many others who were condemned for bricking consistently. What about mid-range? If can't make 3pts when open at least he can move a little inside to shoot if he has a good mid range.
because Auburnpub.com is the premiere authority on assessing upcoming nba talent... You can only bash a guys nba potential so much based upon his college career (if you can call one year a career). Adam Morrison and JJ Redick are tearing up the league right?
That was just against the Big East. His overall 3PT% was 34.5%. Everybody says his shot selection was poor so he is likely much better than that if he is not forcing up shots. They also say he has great shooting mechanics and a high release a la Mr. McGrady.
man. don't know much about Donte but all these posts associating him with being future A/S is good to hear
I'm gonna predict that Greene cracks the rotation after two months of the regular season. If our team trainers work with Greene just like they did with Landry last year, and if Greene works as hard as Landry, he's the second coming of Carl at the SF position. BTW Does anyone know exactly how many inches Carl added to his vertical leap last year?
I hope to see him in the Slam DUnk Contest. Btw, who's the last Rocket who participated in the dunk contest?
