Absolutely!! What else we got to talk about this off-season? Our team is at home while a guy whose biggest shot in basketball was never done in front of a paid audience plays GM (assistant now) and decides the future of our team. Nothing to be scared of!!! Funny to see a few of the ex-players and scouts who are kind enough to post here get ragged on about who they think we should draft or state their opinion. You can tell from their posts which ones they are. Even funnier to see them get defensive when a driveway baller calls them out. Classic.
Unfortunately with exceptions of a few superstars, you can't name most of the guys that were picked in front of them becasue they were busts or had marginal careers. In a day in which most kids learn to dunk and dribble before they think about the art of shooting, shooters are at a premium and most teams don't have one so they play the athletic game. If you play a low post game, you have to have a shooter (or two) to stretch the defense. If you have no low post game like Dallas, you run with athletes or in their case their "post" player can spread the floor. If you want to trade off Yao and run a motion type offense based on athletes to create opportunities for other players that is one thing. If you are going to base the offense on a low post threat, you must have a shooter (who can shoot and not the ones we have now) to space the floor for that offense to work. No amount of athletes can make a low post offense work unless they can also shoot.
DD, I must admit that earlier on in the thread I was in total support of drafting Redick. It still makes sense and I still think it would help our team. However, Im starting to get the feeling that the BEST case scenario (while staying put in our selections) would be to pick up Novak at 32. He is 6'10, and can shoot lights out. Not as good as Redick even though his % is better (Redick took many more shots). It would then be possible to pick up a Brewer with the 8 pick. The sole reason I have gotten so into Brewer is because of reading his interview with DraftExpress. Most all of these guys in the draft have all the talent they need to be very good players. Yet it is the motivated players with a good head on their shoulders (they are becoming a rarity) that become very good players.. Brewer sounds like he has that and is willing to work to become a Josh Howard type. I know this team needs shooters more than anything, but I argue that it is harder to find great athletes WITH motivation and will to get better than it is to find a good shooter. And I truely believe that Novak will be a very good player in this league as well. (he can flat out shoot)... Long post, but my recent change in Brewer over Redick at the 8 spot is only validated assuming we have a shot to land Novak at the 32.
Good points, but athleticism and shooting are not mutually exclusive. Carney has been described as having excellent shooting mechanics and while not the shooter Redick is, he can shoot. Redick worked at becoming a good shooter and Carney can get better with practice. Carney can be special with his off the chart athleticism and size and give us outside shooting. That said Carney does have question marks so the Rox have to do their homework on his motivation and competitiveness.
I think it comes down to: A: Taking the known commodity that probably will not improve by that much - Redick B: Taking a player who may have a higher upside - Carney etc The problem is that once you get into the NBA and start making all that money, a good many players get lazy, they don't work on their game, and are just happy to be there. What you have to find are the Tmac's and Yao type of work ethic, where they want to improve, Cuttino had it too...... Redick has it, not sure the others do, I would be happy with Brewer if he has that motivation as well. I just think that you do not become a consensus College player of the year by accident, and I can not remember the last time a player that won that honor was a bust in the NBA. Link to Naismith winners Last 12 years winners 1995 - Joe Smith, Maryland 1996 - Marcus Camby, UMass 1997 - Tim Duncan, Wake Forest 1998 - Antawn Jamison, North Carolina 1999 - Elton Brand, Duke 2000 - Kenyon Martin, Cincinnati 2001 - Shane Battier, Duke 2002 - Jason Williams, Duke 2003 - T. J. Ford, Texas 2004 - Jameer Nelson, Saint Joseph's 2005 - Andrew Bogut, Utah 2006 - J. J. Redick, Duke I would be happy with all of these at the number 8 pick. DD
I understand your reasoning. But there is a big difference between Novak and J.J. Even though he is 6'10", Novak is going to struggle to get his shot off in the NBA because he is going to be guarded by longer, taller, more athletic players and his range isn't as far out as JJ's. For people that think JJ cannot get his own shot off, you've got another thing coming. He is going to get his shot off. And I understand the interest in Brewer. I'll take him if nothing else is there. I will even understand if we take him or even Carney over Redick. I will trust that if CD takes one of those 2 guys that they have proven that they are going to be a player, because J.J. is going to be a player.
Novak is a 3/4. J.J. is a 2. Novak is struggling in 1 on 1 workouts with other potential draftees. J.J. is thriving. Novak is a good shooter, but he's not going to be able to free himself up like J.J. He's not going to be able to run into the paint and rub off his defender in all the traffic in congested areas like J.J. And he doesn't have J.J.'s range. Novak is going to be constantly going against defenders that are athletic and 6'7' to 7' tall. He's not quick enough to take the bigger guys off the dribble. He'll be a great shooter on the pick and pop or the spot up 3 if they leave him open. But he cannot create his own shot. J.J. can, contrary to what people here think.
To be honest this thread is so huge it has been all I can do to keep up it...I stand corrected. I am sold on JJ but it is cool, I remember people having doubts when we drafted Yao, heck the draft is a gamble, I just hope we pick the best player that is on the board when we pick. Also, thank you for the congrates, we are so proud. http://everyonesconnected.com/Photos3/Profile/000389/P0389094_0000041.jpg
DaDakota, how would you feel if the rockets drafted brewer, yet signed (F/A) mike james to be that player that spreads the court? edit: oh, and that naismith list is quite impressive and a very compelling reason to look @ drafting jj @ 8. that said, joe smith was/is a bust.
can't say i disagree with your logic. i've posted before (in diff. threads) that i wouldn't go with redick @ #8 if there are longer, more athletic players that can shoot well on the board. if not, take redick. dude can flat out shoot. not for a season, but for every season he has played. that won't change in the nba.
Agreed. LIke I said, I want the Rockets to go w/ the best player available. If they feel JJ is the bpa at #8 (or wherever we pick) then I'll welcome the pick. But IMHO, I think there might be some better talent available at #8, especially if Shelden Williams or O' Bryant find their way into the Top 7.
Joe Smith still was a good NBA player for many years. However, you can look at tons of people drafted for their "upside" (cough Cough) Nachbar, Tshizi, and the league is littered with their failures. I just feel if you are the College player of the year, you can flat out play the game. And the Rockets needs players who know how to play the game, have a good work ethic and can shoot. JJ = Check, check, check ! DD
Consider me one of the guys who'd prefer Brewer but wouldn't be totally pissed if we drafted Redick...i think he'd fit fine. We'd have a small back-court but still bigger than last season.
Me too, both is considerable upgrade to Rockets' roster. If we draft Redick, I just hope he can hold his ground against the elite SG in the league and make us proud.
I am not saying you're wrong but when JJ comes to the NBA, he won't be the golden boy anymore. He won't be the first option as he was at Duke, he won't get the number of shots, set plays or screens in the NBA and he is going to have to prove that he can play defense before he'll ever be a starter. The last Dukie Jay Williams who was drafted #2 had a tough time making the transition to the pros and his first season was inconclusive. So you had a heralded Duke PG in JW who got drafted just behind Yao who struggled his first season in the pro's, who is to say it won't happen to JJ.
I read a draft report or two on Novak - I think we that if we need somebody like him, we can re-sign Scott Padgett. Incidentally, I found some interesting draft reports when I googled Scott Padgett and draft report. This first onehas a few interesting comments on the key members of the 1999 draft. You have to highlight the text to view the bottom half where Scott resides. Highlights - did you know that Steve Francis averaged a little less than 5 free throw attempts per game in college? (2 less than Redick) And Brand only averaged something a little over 2 bpg? (Much less than Shelden) Fascinating reading - many key players in the current NBA were in this draft. For pure humor, cnnsi compares Scott to someone you'll have to read to find out. I can't bring myself to spoil it. Anyway, I just wanted some perspective. I also got to compare him to the last unathletic shooter who came out of Duke, Trajan Langdon. TJ didn't do well in draft camps, slipped into the 2nd round, and washed out of the NBA through Cleveland. However, I hope the key difference is that TJ was not a focus of Duke's offense, was never the man on that team, and shot 3 fewer free throw attempts a game. JJ would also be coming into a much more favorable situation on the Rockets. I really don't know. I'm confident that Shelden would be a safe pick and bolster our frontcourt for years to come - the paint would truly be a no-fly zone for other teams. However, I'm seduced by the quick and accurate shooting of JJ and the spacing he would provide our offense. Hate JVG all you want, but when we make our shots, we are dominant.
