On 11/08/03 vs Houston, Steve Hunter drop 15 pts, had 9 reb w/ 2 blk shots for 32 minutes of playing time. The kid has potential or even have a great talent that no coach have ever exploit. regardless it's just one game, I will still give this kid a shot!!!
What a gold mine! ... For Hunter. They could have signed me for that cash and cut me with a gentleman's agreement that I'd keep the owner's car clean and gased up. That would be a bonus over what they got for Hunter. Not the worst backup but there are still better out there, such as Clark.
You guys are expecting too much. We have no minutes at PF. We have 15 minutes, probabl less, at C. Please...enlighten me... Who can we get that will settle for those 13-15 minutes, and be cheap as well? We need shotblocking, this kid brings it. He's got good height, and decent size. All he needs to do is block a shot in 13 minutes, make half his shots, and grab a decent amount of rebounds. He's done that for the past 2 seasons, he sure as hell can do it on our team.
Man... for a minute there... I thought I read "Orlando is Cuttino Hunting..." "Don't they already have CUTTINO?" was my next line... never mind...
Don't expect too much from this guy. According to Francis, one Yao Ming can handle three Steve Hunter. http://sports.sina.com.cn/k/2004-07-28/11001029253.shtml (A very interesting interview by Francis).
There is no good reason not to sign a 7 foot shot blocker for cheap. Especially one that dropped 15, 9, & 2 on us last year.
Thank you, AstroRocket and Sane, if you all don't think this guy can be of at least "Cato quality," if not better, backing up Yao Ming you're crazy. He's 23 people, he has time to grow under Yao and max out his potential, plus, and most importantly, he's going to be had for dirt cheap (relatively for this crazy offseason)! Trust me, this is a steal for us if CD pulls the trigger! 15+ mins p/g!!! This is perfect IMO...
Do you guys know ANYTHING about this guy, other than what you've seen on a few boxscores? We need someone that can give us 15-18 GOOD minutes a night. Not someone that can just waste space on the court while Yao's resting. Someone who will actually DO something! All Hunter will do is walk in, commit a few dumb fouls, muff good passes, and jump every time someone shows him a ball fake. He has a bad attitude and hasn't shown the work ethic required to become a decent player in this league. Give me Mutombo. Give me Rebraca. Hell, give me Ervin "Not so Magic" Johnson. Someone that has shown they can at least play in this league. Those of you how think that Hunter would make a good backup are the same people who last year thought Amaechi would be a contributor to the team.
Hunter is basically a poor man's Cato...he'd be alright for 4-6 rpg and 2-3 blocks/game, but dont expect any offensive ability...he's be a nice signing if we could get him for cheap....
Not sure who thought he was going to do something other than drink tea on the bench, but it sure the hell wasn't me. Besides, I could care less about box scores, I'm concerned about potential. And Hunter has plenty of it, same as Gaines. I'll remember you said you'd rather have EJ than who ever we end up landing. CD, you really have to sign him now! P.S. And anyone who disagrees with me probably thought that trading for TMac was a bad idea!
I truely believe we need two big men added to our roster before the season starts. 1. A big bodied guy that can play(foul) the Shaq's and Divac's of the league while Yao is taking a breather. 2. A young quicker athletic guy that can rebound and block shots basically someone to play defense while Yao is taking a breather. I believe that the young athletic guy will get the majority of backup C minutes, so he needs to be the better of the two. The other guy can be Bateer or the like for the minimum. Either way they both have to be cheap and Hunter could be perfect. Its not like we have to sign him for 6 years or something. Just give him a three year cheap contract and wait till next season or the right trade comes along to pick up something better. Bottom line is we need two more big bodies and the pickings are getting slim. P.S. I still don't like the idea of filling our roster from the worst team in the league.
I agree. Yao seems to get in ALOT of foul trouble and it would be nice to have a couple of decent big bodies that can go out there and spare some time and/or fouls.
Juwan and MoT can play center sparingly against probably 75% of the league starters. MoT played some 5 last season!!! If Hunter has any upside, and it sounds like he does, then we should grab him at a cheap price. It's a no brainer. It ain't like our options are vast. It's unlikely we're winning the championship next season. Pick him up and see if he blooms under JVG. Nothing else, 7 footers have trade value even if they are crap.
Give me Mutombo. Give me Rebraca. Hell, give me Ervin "Not so Magic" Johnson. Someone that has shown they can at least play in this league. Those of you how think that Hunter would make a good backup are the same people who last year thought Amaechi would be a contributor to the team. Did you even read this board last year or are you making a blanket statement because some people are disagreeing with you? Because, if you had read the board last year you would know that most people HATED the Amaechi signing. I hate when people decide to put words in someone's mouth when they disagree with them. For the record, no, many of the same people who want Hunter didn't also think that Amaechi would contribute to the team. The guy is 23 years old. Jesus, how many times do we have to see a player who suddenly blossoms to realize that players can actually get better! Hunter is coming along decently, especially considering he was hampered by a serious injury that he is recovered from. Considering the fact that guy got the injury after his first year in the league common sense says, yeah he's going to struggle as he learns the league. You can't judge a guy after 2 or 3 years in the league when part of that time is spent rehabbing an injury and then learning the game. Take a look at Cato, the guy was considered a waste and instead of going after a guy with NBA experience "just because", the Rockets developed Cato. Heck, to say the guy would come in and just commit a foul is stupid in its own right considering he only commits just under 2 fouls per game, just like every other young guy. To say he doesn't have a work ethic is ridiculous as well considering he busted his butt to come back from a major injury. Oh my god he jumps during head fakes and commits dumb fouls. I've never heard of a 22 year old 3rd year player that does that! in 13 minutes of action per game for the Magic, Hunter shot 53% from the field and averaged 3 ppg, 3 rpg and 1.2 bpg. Raise the rpg a little bit to about 5 per game and he's the perfect back-up as far as I'm concerned. And it rip him for not having a work ethic and this and that is ignoring the fact he is a 22 year old with only one year of college experience. On a side note, Jermaine O'Neal's numbers when he was 22 years old? 12.5 mpg, 3.9 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 0.8 bpg, and 48% from the field. And he didn't have to battle back from serious injuries. That's why I hate when people trash on a young player like Hunter and then trash on people who want him. It's not like the guy is self-destructing, he is still a kid and is still learning. Worth the gamble in my eyes.
God this is damn frustrating. Seems like EVERY TEAM IN THE FREAKING LEAGUE is making more moves but us. Arrrrgh. Hehe, just venting.
Why is he worth the gamble in your eyes, but not the Cavaliers who ARE PAYING HIM OVER $1,000,000 NOT TO PLAY? If he had the potential that you think he has, why wouldn't the Cav's keep him if they are paying him anyway? Big freaking deal he scored 15 points on us last year, Yao was tired that night, I'm sure. If you look back through the years, I'm sure a lot of scrubs scored 15 points at one time or another in thier career. That said, I really don't know much about the kid, I just know in a league that is practically devoid of quality 7 footers, you don't pay a 7 footer a million not to play if he has any upside at all. j
