He was already playing in Europe when we drafted him. I may be wrong, but I don't think there is any way for any NBA team to send anyone to Europe. Malick has an agent and makes his own deals in Europe. We (the Rox) simply retain the rights to him over any other NBA team. We sign him or leave him alone, that's it.
Just look at the combine thread, they have two types of verticals no step and maximum, in Europe they list no step, just go to the Euro boards he's tested with a 38 vertical on max. Which is the SAME than young KG and pre-injury Amare had. In the NBA they go by max not not step so if you are going to compare you use the 38 vertical.
Proof? Source? Or is it your own imagination? It's the latter. "Badiane: I am from Senegal. I’ve played (basketball) for five years when I was 14" http://www.nba.com/suns/news/draft03_qa_badiane.html So he's been playing ball at least since 14 - which is roughly the equivalent of a freshman in high school - which is when a lot of his counterparts begin to play organized ball Again, I find it hard to believe that he had never seen a ball before then, and a bit patronizing and racist. Senegal's not a very rich country, but they can afford a basketball hoop or two, and have been fielding international teams for some time. The fact that you people are stretching so hard to make him seem like Hakeem is what amuses me so much, it's been like this for years. Yes, they're both black, yes, they're both from Africa and tall. OTher than that, the similarities end. Actually, I did. They went to the Final 4 that year. IIRC Akeem started slow then came on strong, and was, as was his custom, ferocious on defense and raw on offense -- and accomplished more basketball wise in that one year than Badiane ever has, in my opinion. I don't particularly care about waiting for him or not, it doesn't bother me. In fact I I hope I'm wrong. But I guarantee you he will never be 10% of the player Mutumbo was. Of course ife he's not I see you laying the groundwork for your alibi, which is managment not being able to share in your particular genius for spotting talent, notwithstanding the fact that the guy gets shoved around and vastly outclassed by NBADL borderline talent in summer leagues and is doing nothing in particular in Germany, and that nobody else, foreign or domestic, seems to think much of him either. I proudly admit that I haven't seen him play, and I am fully confident given the evidence that he can't play, and is no more worthy of breathless anticipation than other second round picks like Albert Burditt, Venson Hamilton, Gabe Muoneke or Eric Meek.
Good! I really was concerned. While I don't always agree with them, some of your slams on the badman have been classic!!
You really had a good argument going until your last sentence, "I proudly admit that I haven't seen him play". Yet you and others have been bad mouthing him for 2 years that I have read. Where is this evidence you were given that he can't/won't play? Even the Summer League, where the coaches asked him to rebound and play defense, was not a fair venue to display his skills. More than a few second round picks have become good players. I really hope he pans out because we need him so badly. With our cap problems that is the only way to add the necessary players before Yao's grand kids come to watch the games. If TMac was so anxious to win a championship I think he should re-write his contract (if that is legal) to give us space to hire some quality support, but I ain't holding my breath, he is still working on his second or third hundred million and you know how hard it is to feed your family these days. BTW: In Senegal, I am positive they had a hoop or 2, and their concept of organized basketball was probably somewhat akin to the league ball my daughters played when they were 10-12. The coaches knew next to nothing about the game much less how to coach a remarkable player like Malick. (That was opion, not fact) I think he was 'found' about a year, maybe 2 before that article you linked to. I would be willing to bet that at that time Senegal had nothing close to the level of organization of what we would call college ball. I hope that has changed by now since they have a pretty good national team of which Malick is a memeber if I am not mistaken. IMO it is not racist to be born in a counrty whose passion is soccer and not basketball. I don't think we need to go there.
because he is/was a second round pick, most of whom don't ever make the association; cuttino mobley is the exception that proves the rule. That's a simple fact of life. Even more damaging is that he's been destroyed in summer leagues by low-level talent, a few years after his 'development'. Honestly, the fact that he comes from Africa gives him a phantom allure that he wouldn't have if he came from the states, otherwise he would go the way of Venson Hamilton and Albert Burditt. Forget him, he's over.
What's with all the Korver lovers? This guy really sucks and shoots every time he gets the ball, just like Wally. This guy has no game at all.
I can see this going back and forth for a long time. Your so-called 'evidence' is non-existent based on your own statement that you have never even seen him play. I watched some of those games on TV and even though I understand the coaches requested him to a certain way, I didn't see him destroyed by anybody on a consistent basis. Chris Bosh did school him 3 summers ago according to Dunk, but Bosh has schooled a lot of NBA players. Basing your statements on sweeping generalizations is a serious logic error, and I have come to expect better from you. This discussion has changed from being about Badiane to discussing the way you are burning him at the stake for no good reason and without any idea what you are talking about. It happens every year this time that you and some others come around with groundless arguments and wild statements, why. I don't really care about the other guy who does the same thing, but I have read a lot of your posts and just expect a more cogent argument if you are bounfd to make one. BTW: IMO coming from Africa has almost certainly hurt him more than helped him. If he was from the States, he would probably be in the NBA, but we might still be saying he is a developing player. Let's just drop the Africa thing, it has no bearing on the matter anymore. He is a 22 year old European Player, that got a late start playing basketball compared to American kids, who might have a chance to come to the NBA. The evidence indicates that our management has not given up on him, so why are you so anxious to do so? Added: What difference doe it make what round we drafted him in? That has no bearing on the discussion, what-so-ever. What round was Ben Wallace drafted in?
You may have seen him play, but I am guessing you never saw him practice. He was extremely raw and made tons of mistakes sometimes getting private side sessions on positioning. Some practices turned to Akeem teaching sessions and would drag to a stall but almost every practice would have the second team beating the first team because it was difficult to get shots off against a guy who could verticle and snatch your three out of mid-air. I don't remember when he started a game as a freshman and only put out 8 points and 6 boards a game or right around those numbers. Mr. Mean (Larry Micheaux for those that were not alive yet) was our starter for the whole season. "Jelly" came off the bench for us but made up for his mistakes with raw athleticism. I think a lot of what makes him what he is today is all that work that was put in with him on the side that freshman season and the experience he gained coming off the bench against American competition. Look, nobody knows what will happen with Badiene. Not many people develope to be the next Akeem or next anybody for that matter. But, if Jelly would have went to europe as a 19 year old and not came downtown to play with us, I don't believe we would have seen his development grow like it did. Hakeem couldn't guard the water cooler when he got there but we taught him positioning, angles, and the rest he made up for with that verticle. I don't confess to being a Badiene fan, but I am pretty damned curious what we could do with him if he gets over here. Don't forget, Dream spent his off seasons getting pounded by Mo at the Y and I don't think this kid is seeing that kind of competition over there and I know for sure, he doesn't see the kind of coaching Guy and Donnie gave him over here. I also know dream would love to get his hands on this kid during the summer and do for the kid what Mo did for him. Still makes me mad we have the apeman tutoring Yao but I think you would have to beat dream off with a board to keep him away from this kid. When dream came back from the off-season with Mo, he was much more polished on offense and we moved mean to power forward. he had a confidence knowing he could stand up to the best the NBA could throw at him knowing there was nobody in college who could put up any resistance to him and he began to dominate.
Coming from africa is the only reason why you're hyping him and not hyping Albert Burditt. What difference does being a second round pick make? It means that he's not as likely to have much impact in the NBA. Which he won't. I guarantee you he will never be a significant NBA player. I guranteee it. But he could become the next Olumide Oyedeji. http://www.clutchfans.net/draft_profile.cfm?Player=21 http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/oyedeol01.html
Nice answer. If he was here, his development curve would definitely be shifted. he is not here because of money. As so elequently stated many times over, we have a lot of money tied up in PF and need to do some house cleaning before being able to make a whole for him. Until then, he needs to stay there. if he comes here and we send him to the D league, we still pay for him.
Is he even playing at all right now? Edit: Nevermind I found a couple things. It sounds like he is improving. http://www.euroleague.net/noticia.jsp?temporada=E05&jornada=6&id=1048 http://www.deutsche-bank-skyliners.de/index_en.html
Another person who obviously never saw dream play as a kid and knows crap about how bad he was skill wise when he got here. Albert who? Reach down between your legs, pull real hard, and you'll here a loud popping sound. that will be your gaurantee coming out of places unknown because you sure aren't making it based on any knowledge. The only thing you have right here is most 2nds don't amount to much and this kid has history and Europe against him so anybody could throw out that crap and feel confident. But he also has an athletic set that can't be taught. the rest of the game can which makes him interesting to people who "know" basketball on this board. if you think Albert has athletic upside, you need to go back to posting in the little mermaid section where your 13000 posts might mean something. Leave the gaurantees to Maytag. Where's Ill-Skillz rebutal, at least he makes it with knowledge.
I was going to reply, but you sucked the words right out of my mouth. I think he hoisted himself up onto his own pitard. However, don't get carried away about Ill-Skillz, his reasoning is as left field as Sam's, he hasn't seen Malick play either except in the summer league which was a controlled environment.
Albert Burditt had plenty of athletic upside, he was a long-armed shot blocker type - just like Badiane. And he has a resume that Badiane did not. Anyway, he didn't make it and spent his career playing in Europe - which is where inferior, non- NBA talents like Burditt and Badiane end up. http://www.solobasket.com/contenido.php?id=9377 Did you read the preview of Olumide Oyedeji? It reads like Badianes; hell if you take out his name and put in Senegal instead of Nigeria - young raw atheltic west African, except he was probably stronger, and he put up more impressive numbers in the German league. What was his NBA career? Not too much. Of course, he only started playing basketball when he was chased by a lion out of the jungle onto a court one day when he was 19, right.... Badiane will follow the same path and never make it in the NBA. This is a fact. I will donate 100$ to the tip jar if he plays in over 82 NBA games in his career. When he doesn't make it, why don't you put your money where your mouth is and do the same. Although I'm not sure if you're even disagreeing, you seem to agree that the chances are against him and are just angry that I bothered to point it out. I don't particularly care if he does or doesn't, but when people in this thread are posting that he would be a top 10 pick this year -- I just laugh my ass off. He's got as much chance of that as does the Professor or Escalade. Although, why am I explaining this to you? You obviously spent your youth scouring the playground courts of Lagos and Dakar, so I defer. Take the bet.
He was third in the ROY voting in Europe. http://www.deutsche-bank-skyliners.de/index_en.html (scroll down)
