Who would expect an 18 year old kid to step in to a major college program and avg over 20pts 13 boards and 5 blks the first couple of months? Not Me. Who's to say Eddie isn't special? I think he is! BTW Francis was 21 when he started in the league. Fran needs to check his facts. ------------------
Who knows. What I know is that many believed Griffin was better then Miles in high school. I'm not saying expect KG numbers 3 years from now, but we paid alot to get him, and I expect him to be an excellent player. He's a 6'9" shot-blocking SF. They don't grow on trees. ------------------ "norm, would you like to buy an indian scalp ? This deal isn't gonna make or break me Norm, so don't jerk me around." Harry Carey "Norm, if I had a mohawk scalp, I wouldn't be sitting here talking to you."
Majority was BS, but the only thing that is true, which has been mentioned by many news agencies, is that FRANCIS HAS TO BE LET LOOSE, if he is going to take his game to the next level. He plays way to conservative at times, and everybody knows that he can light it up like Iverson. He will be better than Iverison, because he knows how to pass the ball, especially on a 2 on 1 fast break (which Iverson refused to do during the finals, he only saw himself getting the points). The biggest thing that will help Griffin, is confidence. The confidence that he should have been the #1 pick, that he should be the rookie of the year, that he should be the starting SF. He does not need 15 minutes a game off the bench, or whatever Blinebury was referring to, he needs to think like an all star!!! ------------------
I'll stick with this all season long. 28 mpg 11 ppg 6.5 rpg 2.5 apg 1.5 bpg ------------------ ZeColmeia on stealing: "I did not steal anything. Ive used some of clutchcity player profiles when I first created the draft profile page."
Awww Man! Fran's right, he's right. I'm so depressed. No playoffs yet again. Why does this guy have to be so right. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IT'S ALL OVER, CANCEL THE SEASON!!!! NO PLAYOFFS, NO POINT! THE ROCKETS ARE DONE! I'M CALLING THIS SEASON!!!!!!!!! ------------------ Protrolls.com! "I want to be like Olajon." -Sagana Diop has the right idea... [This message has been edited by ZRB (edited July 03, 2001).]
One thing about KG, I do believe that KG has grown 2 or 3 inches since he came into the league. Remember Griffin is only 19 and it's just as likely that he'll grow a couple or three more inches as it is that he won't. Now picture a 6'11"/7'0" shot blocking small forward. It's a nice picture. ------------------
KG grew only an inch, but KG's frame is so different from Griffin's. Just those long arms and those long legs. Griffin has long arms and long legs, but KG's arms should be on Manute Bol. ------------------ ZeColmeia on stealing: "I did not steal anything. Ive used some of clutchcity player profiles when I first created the draft profile page."
Does he get these quotes from King of the Hill or Jeff Foxworthy? Blowberry sucks! LA is going down. Cato will be on welfare...... ------------------ Reporter asks "How close were you to the victim?" Shorty says,"Real close until the roofies wore off. Then she woke up talking about pressing charges, so I took my tongue out of her ass and left." Shorty - Marlon Wayans "Scary Movie" Go Rockets!!! SS [This message has been edited by Wink3Cat5 (edited July 03, 2001).]
If Griffin only averages 6.5 boards, I will consider it a very disappointing rookie season. ------------------ Protrolls.com! "I want to be like Olajon." -Sagana Diop has the right idea...
ZRB, it's all about 'fit'. If Griffin averages 6.5 rpg, you steal his rebounds (because he's a rookie) and you give them to the veteran Mo Taylor.
If he give 10-15 pts I'll be thrilled. I know he's not going to give us 30 pts. This I know. He rebounds well, blocks shots well and at the 3 he will defend well(with Morris do the same defensively). That is all going into the draft I felt we needed. A defensive SF and help in the frontcourt. We go both with Griffin by himself, then add Terence Morris. Griffin, I feel will be a true PF in his mid to late 20's(as he matures mentally and physically). He will help but I don't expect him to come in here and put up more than KG or Kobe. Who cares what his stats are as long as he helps this team next season. Will he help the Houston Rockets next season? Thats the question that should be answered. If anyone says no... then thats something to argue about..... ------------------
BTW Francis was 21 when he started in the league. Fran needs to check his facts. Actually Francis was 22 when he entered the league. He was born in 1977. I know everywhere has him being born in 1978, but they are wrong. Garnett was far from struggling his first year. His numbers don't reflect the solid last few months where he was putting up good numbers because of increased minutes. He was after all the first high schooler drafted in almost 20 years, so the Wolves took a very cautionary approach by playing him spot minutes during the 1st half of the season. It remains to be seen how good Eddie Griffin can be. A couple of inches would greatly enhance his game, just like Tim Duncan. Griffin just doesn't have that explosive athleticism that makes you drool like Garnett. Don't get me wrong, he is a good athlete, just not a top notch one. Garnett entered the league when he was 19. I feel it is safe to assume that Garnett was farther along on the curve compared to Griffin, even though KG had no college experience. Garnett was SPECIAL! The things people were saying behind close doors would just blow one's mind back then. High schoolers back in 1995 weren't covered as extensively as now. But if you kept your ear to the ground, you heard some heavy rumblings about a kid in Chicago playing against arguably the toughest competition in the nation just DOMINATING. Garnett literally was 2 assists shy of averaging a quadruple double back then, playing against the toughest competition that high school can provide. He was that good. Thus I think it is important that Rocket fans not get their hopes to high about Griffin. He is very talented, no doubt about it. A lot of talented players entered the NBA who had what you would call mediocre at best rookie season. Jamison, Nowitski, Ray Allen (especially compared to what his trade counterpart, Stephon Marbury was doing in his 1st season), Rasheed Wallace, Baron Davis, and so on and so on. These were all players with high pedigrees coming into the league, and all failed to have robust, rookie of the year type numbers. I'm excited as hell about acquiring Eddie. And I'm with NYKRule's line for Eddie. 28 mpg 11 ppg 6.5 rpg 2.5 apg 1.5 bpg I would be happy with that. On a separate note, I was thinking about some guys in recent years that dominated the college scene as a freshman. Elton Brand is the first that comes into mind. During the 1997-1998 season, Elton Brand had about a 3 week stretch right before he season ending industry where he was absolutely the man. That might have been the best stretch by any player that year. He was exuding his dominance so well, that Duke started to creep as a serious darkhorse to win the national championship. The other guy that comes to mind is Mike Bibby. It is hard to top a freshman PG coming in and leading his team to the national championship. Quentin Richardson was pretty spectacular his freshmen season with leading the nation in rebounding. That's pretty much all the guys I can think of in recent memory. ------------------
I would be happy with 10-12 points and 6.5 rebounds a game. I don't think some people realize just how good a shotblocker he really is. He's got the timing down in regards to blocking shots, and playing with Samuel Dalembert, who took away possible blocked shot opportunities from him, makes his 4 plus blocks a game even more impressive. His ability to change shots is going to help this team even if it doesn't show up in the boxscore. ------------------ The Smurfs were Communists [This message has been edited by tacoma park legend (edited July 03, 2001).]
TPL, I agree with you that Eddie has a special talent for shot blocking. But I'm not sure how much of a shot blocking presence he can be playing on the perimeter at the 3 spot. Until he grows into his natural position at the 4, I'm not sure his shot blocking total will be truly reflective of his talent. ------------------
Da Man, I would probably have that same worry too if the league still had man to man defense, but with the zone, I see him being just as effective since he'll be able to roam pretty freely along the baseline for weakside blocks. I also think it depends on where Rudy plays him, because I don't think you can afford to put a shotblocker like Griffin on the perimeter. With the zone, I see him playing the area from the free throw line extended to the baseline, which should allow him to play good weakside help defense. ------------------ The Smurfs were Communists
He is way off base and misses several key points: first, point guard (Francis' situation) is much harder to step into at a pro level than front line. Expect Griffin to start very soon if not imediately, and contribute immediately. His rebounding and shot blocking will transfer to NBA quickly. Offensive production and overall defense will follow in short order. If FB wanted to get our attention...he did. A lot of times I agree with him but this time his "stock" approach misses the mark. And what the hell am I doing up at this hour??
If you expect a 19 year old to come into the league and dominate immediately, your expectations are way too high. And what's funny is you expect all of this and you didn't even see the guy in college! ------------------ EDDIE, EDDIE, EDDIE!!! Draftsource.net-- the premier source for draft info. Profiles, rankings, mock drafts, and more! The Mo Taylor Fan Site
Living in New Jersey, I've seen about 10 of Eddie Griffin's games. The thing I don't like about him is you don't even notice when he is out on the floor. Superstars like KG, Wallace, and Francis show emotion and you can tell they are on the floor always talking to teammates. Griffin is so mellow on the court. That you can't even tell he's there most of the times. Griffin seems to lack the competitive fire to succeed at the next level. If it was possible to succeed on talent only then Kelvin Cato would be racking up 3 boards. Someone really needs to tell him to get fired up before games. Who better than Mr. 33 T's? ------------------ ZeColmeia on stealing: "I did not steal anything. Ive used some of clutchcity player profiles when I first created the draft profile page." [This message has been edited by NYKRule (edited July 03, 2001).]
The thing I don't like about him is you don't even notice when he is out on the floor. Superstars like KG, Wallace, and Francis show emotion and you can tell they are on the floor always talking to teammates. Griffin seems to lack the competitive fire to succeed at the next level. There's a superstar greater than all 3 of those guys that people said the same thing about coming into the NBA... what was his name again? It seems like it was Tim Duncan. ------------------ EDDIE, EDDIE, EDDIE!!! Draftsource.net-- the premier source for draft info. Profiles, rankings, mock drafts, and more! The Mo Taylor Fan Site
Duncan has 4 inches on Griffin, there's no way he's going to play as good as Duncan, ever. 7 foot 1 Centers don't need to show emotion (Duncan will be a center once he gets out of SA or Robinson retires). They have a height advantage and can dominate on that alone if they set their mind to it. Griffin could be as good as Wallace, but he's not going to be with the emotion he brings to the court. Oh yeah and Garnett is better than Duncan. ------------------ ZeColmeia on stealing: "I did not steal anything. Ive used some of clutchcity player profiles when I first created the draft profile page." [This message has been edited by NYKRule (edited July 03, 2001).]
