I'm looking to get a better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of our 5 young small forwards? I've been trying to read up on them and watch the youtube highlights to get a feel for what we may have, but it doesn't seem very obvious to me. Also, I'm trying to figue out what Joe is doing here. Seems crazy. Here is my tentative understanding (with research to help): Sharpe- DraftExpressProfile: Walter Sharpe, Stats, Comparisons, and Outlook My summary- Pros: he's extremely athletic, has some natural moves on offense, and has jumping quickness (like Amir did). Cons: Can overdribble, and lose poise. On defense, he is currently a liability both mentally and phsyically. This also limits his rebounding. Daye: DraftExpressProfile: Austin Daye, Stats, Comparisons, and Outlook My summary- Pros: he is tall, has a large wingspan ala Prince, is a very good shooter, can create shots for himself, can dribble well for his size, and is a better than average passer. Cons: he is slow (worst in the draft in the combine), he is weak, his frame may not allow for future weight gain, he gets beat off the dribble, finds himself in foul trouble (ala Amir), and has a bit of a Sheed complex with the whining, complaining, sulking, etc. Washington- DraftExpressProfile: Deron Washington, Stats, Comparisons, and Outlook My summary- Pros: athetic, decent all-around offensive player with OK jump shot, good body control, and he finds his way to the rim. Potentially a very good defender, especially by pressuring the ball. Cons: Needs polish, doesn't use his left hand when dribbling, can't defend in the post, has had some attitude issues and has been accused of being selfish at showcase type events. His youtube dunking highlights look pretty sweet. And he supposedly had a good year overseas. Summers- DraftExpressProfile: DaJuan Summers, Stats, Comparisons, and Outlook My summary- Pros: Good athlete, has 3-point range, played PF in college, finishes well, and has good defensive potential. Cons: Poor ball handling, trouble creating, poor passer, poor rebounder, can be passive. Jarebko- DraftExpressProfile: Jonas Jerebko, Stats, Comparisons, and Outlook My summary- Pros: He's tall, he's gaining muscle, he can shoot with range, he plays smart/ mature, and he has good defensive talent. Also, he played in a physical league in Italy... so has some experience. Cons: He can't dribble, he can be too passive, he doesn't create for others and doesn't get to the line. Please add to this however you can. The goal is to figure out what we have and why we have so many. Is Joe so desperate for a backup SF that he's having 5 guys try out for the position throughout the year in the hopes that at least one will break through?
consider that at least one of those is projected to become PF ( Daye?) And not all of them do not develope to NBA roster players anyway. Whatever happens this year, there will be plenty of room in active roster for rookies and plenty of garbage time for showcase.
I'll still take Sammy Mejia at small forward. He will outrebound all these guys mentioned here, defend way better. And he can handle the ball like a point guard. Though small for the position, he is extremely strong. So far, due to an ankle injury, he has not managed to hang on to a roster spot with us. Sammy does have his weaknesses. Like scoring. However, I will take the defense, for a sub, vs someone who can score a bit but can't defend.
Keep in mind that those reviews that I posted are up to a year old and in some cases don't incorporate much more than 1 season of college or 1 showcase event. I don't know how Washington played in Europe for instance. Also, those scouting reports can be pretty generic.
Meija is automatically superior... gotta luv it. Nice contribution Tayshawn. I'll pass on the Twiggy analysis (too easy)... but the Jerebko kid sounds like Kirilenko. I'll take a SWAG that Summers & Jerebko end up being our long term keepers. Should make for an interesting SL this week... we may have to play some SF/PFs at PG. lol
I think Joe D will wait until all of these draft picks have signed before he unleashes the Sammy signing. If the announcement is made now, then these young guys will realize they have no chance for floor time. Perhaps the new Pistons coach will put 5 SF on the court at the same time. The Pistons will invent "Medium Ball".
Youtube snippets consolidated. Jonas Jerebko- solid athlete, shot is Bargnani-esque in its release.... YouTube - Jonas Jerebko Interview (interview) YouTube - Reebok Eurocamp: Jonas Jerebko 3pt shooting (his jumper (13-19 from international 3-point land) YouTube - Jonas Jerebko (warm-up dunk... looks easy) From this, it looks like he has a relatively quick release, but shoots without elevation. Almost a little bit of a fade too, which he may have to cut out to get NBA range. For such a decent shooter, he seems to get physical too. Looks like the kind of frame that could continue to bulk up under Kander. Walter Sharpe- "can we start over" YouTube - Walter Sharpe - 2008 NBA Draft Pick (full college highlights) YouTube - Detroit Pistons: Walter Sharpe (interview) Really rough start to his interview. Seems like a space cadet or at least a little attention deficit problem. Doesn't seem to have a clear thought process. We all saw flashes of brilliance last year in his extremely limited play. The highlights here show similar talent, but with more straight forward plays. Who knows how much he progressed last year behind the scenes. Deron Washington- the crazy dunker YouTube - DERON WASHINGTON JUMPS OVER GREG PAULUS TWICE!!! (jumping over dudes) YouTube - Deron Washington Jumps Over Danny Green With A Poster Dunk! (jumping over another dude) YouTube - Deron Washington 360 between the legs (great dunk) YouTube - Deron Washington dunk mix (shows his athleticism really well) This guy looks like an energy player/ athlete and a half. Crazy aggression. Just the fact that he has completely jumped over defenders multiple times gives you a hint to his personality. Supposedly he has a jump shot too and can play D. He must have some limitations or he would have gone sooner. I would really like to know how his last year went and what he improved in his game. Looks like a fan favorite in the making. DaJuan Summers- Mr. Versatile YouTube - NBA draft prospect DaJuan Summers' college highlights 2009 (looks like a good combination between athleticism and shooting ability) YouTube - NBA Draft Watch 2009 - DaJuan Summers (showing some power in these clips... does the Lebron cradle on a drive... some tough finishes). YouTube - DaJuan Summers NBA predraft combine interview (interview... I like his personality, seems like he'll be hardworking and aggressive.) Almost looks like he has SG capabilities and a point forward personality. Sounds like a mature kid. Looks like he can hit shots on the move in the course of a game (vs. a set shooter like Jerebko). Austin Daye- YouTube - Daye making big impression at Gonzaga (coming out of high school) YouTube - Austin Daye Draft Combine Interview (draft day interview... says he can handle the ball better than his rep... because he played the 4 in college and couldn't show it all the time.) 6'11" with shoes on and 194 lbs... 6'10.5" without shoes according to him. There obviously must be some serious talent here to make up for all of the glaring physical weakness. If we didn't pick him, somebody else would have. Not sure I see it yet, but looking forward to it. He doesn't look that frail in action, but he's wearing the big t-shirt under the jersey. He has all the in between shots that you only have if you are a natural scorer. Personality-wise, he also seems very solid and clear headed. I also think that I remember him saying that Tayshaun and Nowitski are his favorite 2 players.
Maybe those articles are old because JD said all these guys are good chemistry guys. Or at least they will get the chance to be.
personally i'm expecting us to run some type of voltron offense where the swingmen we have combine to form one supremely powerful entity
Last little rundown here. I'm still trying to realistically adjust my own expections for these guys. Also, I just find 5 guys behind Tay very confusing, so trying to differentiate them. Deron Washington- 59th pick in 2008 draft Born: 12/12/85 Age: 23 Height: 6'7" Weight: 210 College: Virginia Tech (4 years) Europe: 1 year in Israel (Hapoel Holon) NBA Comparison: Rodney Carney/James White Austin Daye- 15th pick in 2009 draft Born: 6/5/88 Age: 21 Height: 6'10.5" Weight: 194 College: Gonzaga (2 years) NBA Comparison: Brian Cook/Marcus Williams DaJuan Summers- 35th pick in 2009 draft Born: 1/24/88 Age: 21 Height: 6'8" Weight: 243 College: Georgetown (2 years) NBA Comparison: Caron Butler/Wilson Chandler Jonas Jerebko- 39th pick in 2009 draft Born: 3/2/87 Age: 22 Height: 6'8.25" Weight: 232 College: None Europe: Borås Basket (2005-06) Plannja Basket (2006-07) Angelico Biella (2007-09) NBA Comparison: Thabo Sefolosha Walter Sharpe- 32nd pick in 2008 draft (by SEA and traded to DET) Born: 7/16/86 Age: 22 Height: 6'9" Weight: 235 College: UAB NBA Comparison: Eric Floyd
Great thread TaS. Thanks a bunch. Looking at all this, it looks like Jarebko is the one that is most ready to contribute, and I really like the atleticism of Washington. Daye is also intriguing and after he puts on some weight he can create a lot of matchup problems at the 3 with that length.
