I liked what I saw. He played his role well and you can tell he is very coachable. He does the right things. He has Shane Battier / PJ Tucker / Luc Mbah a Moute potential. But he's going to take time and definitely has work to do on his offensive game.
You can find those players all over the place, we have Tate already. It is not a wasted pick, he is just at best a role player, and right now we are looking for difference makers..... Role players like him are a dime a dozen. DD
Curious, who would you have taken instead of him? I can think of maybe 2 players but at the time of the draft I wasn't thinking about them. Would love to get others thoughts
jury is still out on garuba. it takes more than 1-2 years to determine if a player is a bust/miss pick. I am satisfied with Stone's drafting ability to far
Again, the odds of us immediately hitting on all four first round draft picks who were all under 20 was astronomical. Be happy we hit on three and give Garuba some time.
Role players may be a dime a dozen, but guys who do what he does are not. I think he's got a higher BBIQ than tate, and remember he's only 20. It's really not fair to compare a 26 year old to a 20 year old. Where was Tate when he was 20? There's room on this team right now. It's way to early to define his future as not being a difference maker. PJ Tucker is a role player AND a difference maker - and he's not a dime a dozen.
Are they really a dime a dozen? I didn't see the game today so I'm just joining the thread (cause I miss being in the conversation). But are Shane Battier and PJ Tucker really a dime a dozen? Are we putting Tate in the same class as Battier and Tucker? I guess my question is: is he more 19 yo Tucker or Tate? If he's Tucker then let's go! If the's Tate I say meh. Though I like Tate but to your point, you only need so many Tates. I'm ambivalent, but he's so young I say give him time. Man I hope he becomes a Battier/Tucker! Unless we already have one!
Are you expecting a #23 pick to be a difference maker? It would be pretty good if he turns out to be a solid rotation player. Good defensive players like Battier, Tucker, and Mbah a Moute in their prime are very valuable.
How did you get that out of what I wrote? Put another way, all I said was that we have three guys that clearly belong in the NBA and one who might get there at some point. That's a great draft. There was nothing about future championships.
Not a chance in hell his BBall IQ is higher than Tate's...come on..... He is a 6'8" undersized PF who can set a decent screen. The ONLY thing he does well is defend 1v1, the rest he is just not aware enough, his rolling is soft, his screens are meh, and his recovery from the weakside is sporadic.... You can find those guys anywhere - just nothing special about him. @Easy - no at 23, they are more than likely to miss - I am not upset about the pick etc, and he may very well develop but I doubt it is in Houston - he is just not as good as any of the bigs we just signed....he is just meh..... DD
I haven't seen anything great about Garuba either. But if it's between him and Tate, I don't think it is as clear cut as you think. Tate is clearly better now. But at 27, he has no upside. What you see is what you get. If Garuba is undersized, Tate is mini-sized at 6'5. And Garuba at least has a long wingspan. And Tate can't shoot from outside. So basically you can't play him with another can't-shoot big man. This is why I am a bit worried about having Sengun and Tate in the starting lineup together. Maybe KJ Martin is a better fit. Garuba is not very good at this point. But he has youth on his side. I'd give him at least another healthy year to see if he can offer anything. If not, no big deal.
Hard to judge at 20, the difference in bbiq between a 20 year old and a 26 year old in the NBA is usually night and day. Always interesting to see people draw such sweeping conclusions when you need to see a player tested against NBA talent 20-30 games at least 10 minutes per contest to gauge genuine upside. I think Silas should give him a chance and see what he can (or can't) do.
Honestly if that is your only measurement of successes then what could they have done (we know you don't like tanking) that could have won them a championship?
Recent practice drills from Garuba. I hate to harp on conditioning, but he still doesn't look to be in great shape. The belly fat especially is something he's never going to be playable in the NBA with (he's not Luka or Harden to get away with it). Hoping by the end of the FIBA season he's worked himself into better shape and then training camp takes him the rest of the way into game shape.
