Mike Conley to Declare

[VF21]

I still think that Petrie will pick what he sees as the best available safest bet type player and it might well end up being a swingman type player.

As long as we get a good young prospect, regardless of the position, I will be happy. I don't want us to go big just for the sake of going big and let a stud "small" slide past us.

I don't think there's a definitive "stud small" that will be available at that point. Petrie and the Maloofs have said they're going to be aggressive. I think and hope that means they'll do what it takes to see about getting a value player for the PF position. The first step is to try and do it through the draft, because if we've learned nothing else this year it should be that simply calling someone a power forward doesn't make them a power forward.

Brick actually beat me to it...

Oops.

Well, the award has to go back in the cupboard then. KF administrative personnel are ineligible.

 

[BMiller52]

Difference in Conley and Cleaves is that Mateen had 4 years at MSU, and was the captain from his Sophomore season onwards; there really was no talent on that MSU squad in his early years. Conley became the leader of OSU as a freshman on the #1 ranked team in the country. Big difference in the potential of a Freshman and that of a Senior coming out of college.

Of course, I know what you're saying that we'd be better off with a big. My only contention is that Conley would be a solid pick at #10, better than picking an unathletic skilled big like Hawes who has limited upside and doesn't fix anything on this team.

Exactly. Of course we'd be better off with a big man that has star potential like Wright or maybe even Jianlin. We'd be better off with a shotblocker like Hibbert/Horford. But where we'll be picking, we'll probably be stuck with Conley, Splitter, or Hawes. And out of those 3 I would pick Conley 10 out of 10 times because Splitter/Hawes don't have star potential and they don't get us a shotblocker.

 

[ParniValjak]

I don't think there's a definitive "stud small" that will be available at that point. Petrie and the Maloofs have said they're going to be aggressive. I think and hope that means they'll do what it takes to see about getting a value player for the PF position. The first step is to try and do it through the draft, because if we've learned nothing else this year it should be that simply calling someone a power forward doesn't make them a power forward.





Oops.

Well, the award has to go back in the cupboard then. KF administrative personnel are ineligible.

They said they will be aggresive and I expect that BUT draft is only half the job. Well not even half. I think they were saying more about being aggresive in trades. In draft you can't really be aggresive. If the player you really like is there they you will pick him. If not, they you move onto the next best.

The only way they can get a legitimate PF in this draft is if we get a top 3 pick, or we trade up. Chances of one of those things happening are pretty slim.

 

[walker60]

Exactly. Of course we'd be better off with a big man that has star potential like Wright or maybe even Jianlin. We'd be better off with a shotblocker like Hibbert/Horford. But where we'll be picking, we'll probably be stuck with Conley, Splitter, or Hawes. And out of those 3 I would pick Conley 10 out of 10 times because Splitter/Hawes don't have star potential and they don't get us a shotblocker.

I can't let you get away with calling Hibbert and Horford shot blockers while saying Hawes and Splitter are not. Hawes as a freshmen blocked 1.7 shots, not too far behing Hibbert's junior year and actually better than Horford's.

Not sure what Splitter's stats are but here is what Chad Ford has to say about him:
"He's an excellent rebounder and shot blocker."

http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?playerId=18838&draftyear=2007

 

[ParniValjak]

I can't let you get away with calling Hibbert and Horford shot blockers while saying Hawes and Splitter are not. Hawes as a freshmen blocked 1.7 shots, not too far behing Hibbert's junior year and actually better than Horford's.

Not sure what Splitter's stats are but here is what Chad Ford has to say about him:
"He's an excellent rebounder and shot blocker."

http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?playerId=18838&draftyear=2007

Well, I have seen a 5 games of Splitter while I was in Europe for 4 months and he is not exactly an excellent shot blocker. In fact I would say he would be an average shot blocker.

 

[walker60]

Well, I have seen a 5 games of Splitter while I was in Europe for 4 months and he is not exactly an excellent shot blocker. In fact I would say he would be an average shot blocker.

I see, but he's still a shotblocker. Better than anything we have!

 

[Bricklayer]

I think Splitter really is more PJ Brown/Pollard as far as shotblocking -- good overall defender, willing and capable of blocking a shot, but not focused on it or intimidating in that aspect. He can't be the defensive intimidatror/anchor back there, but could be a capable wingman type if you somehow got him a main stud.

 

[Vlade4GM]

i can see it too, but anytime theres someone of gasols caliber on the trade block, you go for it and see what you have to give up for it. theres a difference between that, and having your pick of the kiddies. between yi or hawes, hawes fits their need better. course, this is biased/wishful thinking on my part. like some of the rest here, id rather reach a little bit for a big on potential and wait next year for the supposed guard oriented draft.

Yea, but Jianlian has 2 way potential. Hawes, not so much.

 

[Vlade4GM]

Very good comparison actually, and their college stats are somewhat similar, shooting wise and they have similar games.

I don't see it as a ringing endorsement of Conley. Andre Miller's been a solid player, but nowhere near a star. And, of course, I'm sure people said Andre Miller would learn how to shoot when he got into the league, and that hasn't happened.

Well I'm sure if he improved his shot he could've been a star, just because Miller didn't doesn't mean Conley won't it all matters about the shot mechanics and work ethic. He never learned how to shoot well and he's been a solid pg for awhile now.

 

[Vlade4GM]

I can't let you get away with calling Hibbert and Horford shot blockers while saying Hawes and Splitter are not. Hawes as a freshmen blocked 1.7 shots, not too far behing Hibbert's junior year and actually better than Horford's.

Not sure what Splitter's stats are but here is what Chad Ford has to say about him:
"He's an excellent rebounder and shot blocker."

http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?playerId=18838&draftyear=2007

blocking shots in college and blocking shots in the NBA are two different things. He's got nice length, but doesn't have very good hops.

Chad Ford is an idiot, Splitter is not a good shot blocker and so far he has not been that great of a rebounder.

 

[fnordius]

blocking shots in college and blocking shots in the NBA are two different things.

They are, but Splitter never went to college, he went pro when he was 18, which makes it a little different.

 

[Vlade4GM]

They are, but Splitter never went to college, he went pro when he was 18, which makes it a little different.

I was talking about Hawes, sorry for not specifying.

 

[Kingster]

You could have said the exact same thing about Mateen Cleaves after MSU won the championship.

Stats are important. They're not everything, but they're important.

BTW, here's the old NBADraft.net profile for Mateen Cleaves:

NBA Comparison: Mo Cheeks

Strengths: Consumate leader/floor general. A winner. Plays for one thing- winning it all. Great strength, toughness. Great point skills. Hits shots when it counts.

Weaknesses: Has had some off the court distractions but nothing drastic. Ugly shot, needs to work on mechanics.

I'm not saying Conley = Cleaves, but still, success in college doesn't really count for much in the NBA. http://nbadraft.net/profiles/mateencleaves.htm

I'm interested in his quickness. One web page rated him a 10 on a scale of 10 in the quicks department. If true, that impresses me. But when I saw him his quickness didn't jump off the screen. I wonder how they measure quickness, anyway. With speed they can use a stopwatch. Can they do the same with quickness?

 

[nbrans]

I'm interested in his quickness. One web page rated him a 10 on a scale of 10 in the quicks department. If true, that impresses me. But when I saw him his quickness didn't jump off the screen. I wonder how they measure quickness, anyway. With speed they can use a stopwatch. Can they do the same with quickness?

There's a speed test in the pre-draft camp that supposedly measures quickness, it's a lane agility drill, and there's a 3/4 court sprint. But this is one of those things that probably depends on how you look at it.

I feel the same way as you -- he's quick, but I didn't ever have a "wow" moment with him in term of his quickness in the way I did when I saw TJ Ford and Brevin Knight play in college -- Brevin in college still is the quickest player I've ever seen. And I really feel like he'd need to be seriously blowing people off the floor in college, because the point guards in the NBA are the quickest in the world.

 

[walker60]

There's a speed test in the pre-draft camp that supposedly measures quickness, it's a lane agility drill, and there's a 3/4 court sprint. But this is one of those things that probably depends on how you look at it.

I feel the same way as you -- he's quick, but I didn't ever have a "wow" moment with him in term of his quickness in the way I did when I saw TJ Ford and Brevin Knight play in college -- Brevin in college still is the quickest player I've ever seen. And I really feel like he'd need to be seriously blowing people off the floor in college, because the point guards in the NBA are the quickest in the world.

Those guys are really small though. Conley is bigger and a more capable defender despite the fact that he isn't quite as quick as those guys. He is still a very quick player.