DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum Cavs Get #1 & #4....

Quote:

---

Leonard for me, great work ethic and has great potential

---

Like I've said before, I don't get the love for Leonard ... and I'm FROM San Diego!

Sure he would quietly put up 20-10s in college, and people would say he's athletic and a good defender ... but the few times I've seen this guy play, he didn't look like a game-changing NBA player at all. For all the talk about his athleticism, he doesn't seem to be able to beat a lot of people off the dribble or create his own shots the way Kemba Walker or Jimmer Fredette could. he wasn't much of a high-percentage shooter from mid-range/3pt range either. For all the talk of his defense, it seemed like SDSU would give up 30 or 40 points performances to guys like Walker or Fredette whenever they played him. Granted, they played Guard and he's a small forward ... you'd think they'd use his "amazing athleticism and defense" to lock down guys like that.

On offense, at no point would he get the ball and you would think ... "look out! Khawi has the ball!" He would quietly get his points through good ball movement/teamwork and offensive put-backs. He was a good rebounder, but at 6'7 225, is that going to translate well over to the pros?

People said all year that SDSU didn't deserve a top ranking because they didn't play anyone ... but then after the season, they say Kawhi is a Top 4 pick because he put up these awesome stats? Which is it?

I just see the guy play and don't see anything special. For all the talk of his "defense and high motor", I can just see him getting abused by guys like Lebron, Paul Peirce, Durant, etc.

Quote:

---

Where do we go at 4 if this goes

Irving
Williams
Kanter

Leonard SF 6'7"
Knight SG 6'3"

---

Quote:

---

Where do we go at 4 if this goes

Irving
Williams
Kanter

Leonard SF 6'7"
Knight SG 6'3"

---

Quote:

---

Where do we go at 4 if this goes

Irving
Williams
Kanter

Leonard SF 6'7"
Knight SG 6'3"

---

Quote:

---

For all the talk of his "defense and high motor", I can just see him getting abused by guys like Lebron, Paul Peirce, Durant, etc.

---

Quote:

---

The Bobcats are rumored to want to package their 2 first rounders and move up (9 and 19), I'd certainly consider it.

---

Quote:

---

All that said, and having been a Kawhi-defender in the past, I wouldn't pick him in the top4 of this draft.

---

Quote:

---

Irving, who will have to answer too many questions about James.

“I’m not 6-8, I’m not a high-flier, and my name isn’t LeBron,” he said, in anticipation.

He is a pure point guard, though, in a sport riding a wave of blessed little men. If there were any doubts as to where he will be taking his talents, Gilbert came over for hugs with the Irvings after his sons, Nick and 13-year-old Grant, were given Kyrie’s autograph.

---

Quote:

---

Worst part about getting #1 pick means we won't be getting Kemba Walker.

---

Quote:

---

UCLA small forward Tyler Honeycutt said he tried to "show some personality" and keep the mood light, but the player projected anywhere from the mid/late-first or second round was stumped by a question that came during his interview with Cleveland.

"They asked who you would choose if I had to pick between your girlfriend and your dog," said Honeycutt, who met with seven teams on Thursday, including the Cavs (Nos. 1 and 4, plus two second-round picks), Philadelphia (No. 16, one second-round pick) and the Lakers (four second-round picks). "I just didn't even answer. I said I couldn't answer that. It's too hard to pick."



Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/wr...l#ixzz1MttgSLVx

---

Quote:

---

The Los Angeles Lakers are taking a deliberate approach to their search for a successor to Phil Jackson, but NBA coaching sources told ESPN.com the team has added Mike Brown to its list of candidates.

The former Cleveland Cavaliers coach, now working as an analyst for ESPN, is expected to interview "soon" with the Lakers, sources say.

Brown would become the fourth known candidate for the job, along with former Houston Rockets coach Rick Adelman, ex-Los Angeles Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy and Lakers assistant coach Brian Shaw, who is regarded as the only serious in-house contender to replace Jackson.

---

Quote:

---

Brooks seems to use a lot of the same moves as Kobe, but he's not nearly as athletic. I can see a lot of those shots getting swatted in the NBA.

---

Quote:

---

The basketball industry came out in full force over the past few days in Chicago, as 54 of the top prospects in the 2011 draft assembled to be poked, prodded and questioned in preparation (or in hopes) of hearing their name called by NBA commissioner David Stern in Newark, N.J. on June 23.

No five-on-five competition is played at the predraft combine. Instead, this gathering is about measurements, thorough medical examinations, athletic testing, team and media interview sessions, and meetings with NBPA and rookie transition program.

Players also conducted light drills - ball-handling , shooting, footwork and transition - in lieu of five-on-five play. That seemed to annoy the huge contingent of talent evaluators more than any question marks about a player's long-term NBA potential. It didn't take long for the sarcastic barbs from scouts, a largely cynical group, to come out.

"Cone A1 is digging in deep on those shooters," cracked one. "I want those four hours of my life back," demanded another.

This is the tug-of-war that goes on each year between NBA teams and agents as one side tries to learn as much as it can about prospects while their representatives try to do whatever they can to avoid hurting their clients' draft stock.

This year, teams got the last laugh as a number of full-contact competitive one-on-one and two-on-two drills were conducted on the final day, "snuck in," says one agent.

COMBINE WINNERS

USC's Nikola Vucevic may have helped himself the most, both on and off the court. The native of Montenegro measured out a hair under 7 feet in shoes and 260 pounds, with a gigantic 7-4 ½ wingspan and 9-4 ½ standing reach. On the court, he showed a high skill-level in the drills. Teams that are picking in the latter portion of the first half who are desperate for size will be thinking seriously about him.

"He carries himself like an NBA player," one general manager told us. "We're going to have to look back at what he did in the Pac-10 and reevaluate him. He's a lot better than I thought."

Providence's Marshon Brooks was another hot name among scouts. The senior wing player did not win very many games in the Big East this past season, but was one of the best scorers in college basketball, even scoring 52 points in one contest against Notre Dame.

"Marshon Brooks has surprised me," an assistant GM said. "He can get his shot off whenever he wants, and his wingspan is ridiculous."

Brooks isn't the tallest shooting guard in this draft at 6-4 ¼ without shoes, but his 7-1 wingspan is one of the longest ever measured at the combine at his position, earning him comparisons to Nick Young(notes), another long-armed pure scorer. He's risen up many teams' draft boards and has a good chance of going in the first round.

One player who might end up being drafted simply by walking through the doors is 19-year-old Jeremy Tyler, who spent the last two years in Israel and Japan. Tyler is a physical specimen at 6-10 ½ in shoes with a 7-5 wingspan and 9-2 ½ standing reach.

"He certainly passes the airport test," an assistant GM told us after the camp. "I don't know how much basketball he knows how to play, but he looks the part, and in a setting like this, that's half the battle."

Some teams think he might get drafted as high as the late first round.

(To see who else measured out well, see our NBA combine measurement analysis.)

INTERNATIONAL MEN OF MYSTERY

While this crop of prospects leaves a lot to be desired in terms of star power, seeing how the pecking order of international prospects unfolds might be the most interesting storyline of the draft.

There are five international players - all 6-9 or taller - who are expected to be selected in the lottery a. How they rank in terms of NBA potential is one huge source of debate amongst talent evaluators, but how much is known about their situations off the court will ultimately decide where they're selected.

While only one of them, Enes Kanter, was actually in Chicago, the rest were constantly being discussed.

The main topic: Jonas Valanciunas of Lithuania. He is considered by most teams to be the most intriguing of the bunch. At 6-11, with a reported 7-6 wingspan and a Joakim Noah(notes)-type motor, he's the type of prospect NBA teams have a difficult time getting their hands on outside of the draft. He has repeatedly indicated his desire to move to the NBA and only the NBA, which separates him from the Ricky Rubios and Fran Vazquezes of the world.

Seeing solid playing time for a BC Lietuvos Rytas team that made the top 16 of the Euroleague, and leading the competition in rebounding per minute, he's been seen by everyone. For him, it's his buyout, or lack thereof, that has teams worried.

Rytas has taken a major step forward in resolving the buyout issue in recent days by hiring a European lawyer with significant experience in NBA buyout negotiations. According to sources with knowledge of the situation, Rytas will attempt to structure the buyout on a sliding scale depending on where he gets picked, and are willing to be flexible with Valanciunas on when he can leave the team in case of an NBA lockout, even giving him the opportunity to stay with the team until he signs his rookie contract.

If his buyout situation will be resolved in a timely fashion, look for Valanciunas to be drafted somewhere between Nos. 3 and 8 overall. He's ahead of Enes Kanter on both Cleveland and Toronto's boards according to reports and has huge fans in Detroit's front office as well.

Valanciunas has three more years on his contract after this current season, with no buyout option. His American agent Leon Rose of CAA has been negotiating with the team for the better part of the year Most of the dispute revolves around when the buyout will be paid. The team, which is in serious financial trouble, wants the money now, not when he joins the NBA. It's asking for a percentage of Valanciunas' rookie contract. An agreement could have already been reached some time ago but the team has sent mixed messages.

Most expect a deal to be struck no more than a week before the draft. Valanciunas falling in the draft will only hurt Rytas' cause as not only will it lose significant respect from fans and constituents in basketball-crazy Lithuania, but it'll also hurt its chances of landing the next great young local prospect with NBA aspirations. Furthermore, being drafted lower results in a smaller contract.

---