Why not Vonleh?

[Vlade4GM]

I like Stauskas, so I can't say I'm that disappointed with the pick, I just think Vonleh was the better and more obvious pick for the Kings. I'm not a big Vonleh believer or anything, but I think he could have completed the Kings' frontcourt with Cousins, by giving them a potential long defender who can block shots and guard 4's, while stretching the offense and allowing Cousins to work down low. I think he'll be a solid role-playing starter like Horace Grant, and that would've been a better fit than Stauskas. The Kings could use shooting, sure, and Stauskas can create a bit, so he's little like how Redick is now, but McLemore still has potential to fill that role. Just would've made a lot more sense to go with Vonleh.

 

[Bricklayer]

I like Stauskas, so I can't say I'm that disappointed with the pick, I just think Vonleh was the better and more obvious pick for the Kings. I'm not a big Vonleh believer or anything, but I think he could have completed the Kings' frontcourt with Cousins, by giving them a potential long defender who can block shots and guard 4's, while stretching the offense and allowing Cousins to work down low. I think he'll be a solid role-playing starter like Horace Grant, and that would've been a better fit than Stauskas. The Kings could use shooting, sure, and Stauskas can create a bit, so he's little like how Redick is now, but McLemore still has potential to fill that role. Just would've made a lot more sense to go with Vonleh.

I am still mystified where this idea that Vonleh was a defender came from. Maybe in comparison to Randle.

 

[dbfish]

This just can't be all...
There HAS to be some sort of roster movement. I mean, good for Stauskas, but he fits a want, not a need.

Still need a SHOT BLOCKER.

 

[Vlade4GM]

I am still mystified where this idea that Vonleh was a defender came from. Maybe in comparison to Randle.

More of a potential defender with his length and ability to get blocks/steals, he has the physical tools to get better (especially if he drops some bulk and improves his mobility.)

 

[SwishKing]

More of a potential defender with his length and ability to get blocks/steals, he has the physical tools to get better (especially if he drops some bulk and improves his mobility.)

Vonleh has zero BBIQ though. He just looks lost out there on the court when he plays defense.

 

[Swaze]

More of a potential defender with his length and ability to get blocks/steals, he has the physical tools to get better (especially if he drops some bulk and improves his mobility.)

Vonleh has more of a potential to be a bust though too. Stauskas is a pretty safe pick (doubtful he'll be a bust) that fills a definite need. Vonleh while there is some high upside.....there is also a lot of downside and he really doesn't do anything that a combination of Thompson and Landry don't already do.

 

[Monster]

I've said it before on here, but Vonleh lacks what a big man needs to succeed. He's unsure of himself at times, doesn't demand the ball, and his defense is suspect. He should have gone back to school to work on his weaknesses. Ton of potential, but i think he may have wasted it in the hopes of making money.

 

[Hallama]

I've said it before on here, but Vonleh lacks what a big man needs to succeed. He's unsure of himself at times, doesn't demand the ball, and his defense is suspect. He should have gone back to school to work on his weaknesses. Ton of potential, but i think he may have wasted it in the hopes of making money.

He really has nice tools. Surprising good ball handler but doesn't really know how to use it yet. Will have a lot of TO's if he's on the perimeter and forced to drive. His physical attributes reminds me of Webber. Hope he is able to harness all of that someday and become a good NBA player. Just hope Stauskas is even better.

 

[Monster]

He really has nice tools. Surprising good ball handler but doesn't really know how to use it yet. Will have a lot of TO's if he's on the perimeter and forced to drive. His physical attributes reminds me of Webber. Hope he is able to harness all of that someday and become a good NBA player. Just hope Stauskas is even better.

I agree. Another year of school would have helped his mind catch up to his body, though. He doesn't have a fraction of Webber's confidence. It needs to be built up. Kids who come out too early bust at a high rate. Hope the hornets bring him along slowly.

 

[Hallama]

I agree. Another year of school would have helped his mind catch up to his body, though. He doesn't have a fraction of Webber's confidence. It needs to be built up. Kids who come out too early bust at a high rate. Hope the hornets bring him along slowly.

Yeah, unlike Webber Vonleh grew quite a bit and had SF skills coming out of HS. Webber was just a beast, and back in his day, no coach would let him do anything but hang around the rim - which is what Webber did at Michigan.

 

[CurseOfTheSalmons]

payton is dominating in summer league today...

 

[King Baller]

I've said it before on here, but Vonleh lacks what a big man needs to succeed. He's unsure of himself at times, doesn't demand the ball, and his defense is suspect. He should have gone back to school to work on his weaknesses. Ton of potential, but i think he may have wasted it in the hopes of making money.

I hear this a lot. What prevents Vonleh from working on his weaknesses in the NBA? He has the best coaching, training staff and players to practice against.

What prevents a player from getting better once he gets the NBA money?

 

[King Baller]

payton is dominating in summer league today...

I watched part of the game. Elfrid was killing it. he looked so comfortable at the 1 in his second NBA game. I hope Staukas makes us forget Pete passing on EP.

 

[Monster]

I hear this a lot. What prevents Vonleh from working on his weaknesses in the NBA? He has the best coaching, training staff and players to practice against.

What prevents a player from getting better once he gets the NBA money?

Because his weaknesses are mental, not physical. It's like having an amazing lead man in a rock band that gets stage fright. Sure, he's got the skill, but until he conquers his mental issues, you keep the pressure and spotlight off him. A bad performance could shatter him.

physical issues can be corrected in the nba, but mental issues are tricky. Too much talent in his body to pass up, so for his sake, i hope he starts well and keeps going until his confidence and aggressiveness improve. I like the guy, just not for a team that will need him as much as we do.

 

[Bricklayer]

I watched part of the game. Elfrid was killing it. he looked so comfortable at the 1 in his second NBA game. I hope Staukas makes us forget Pete passing on EP.

Well we'll have to see with Payton. He looked like garbage last game. We'll have to see if this was a blurb/matchup thing or him adjusting.

Of course at least he's had a good game, Smart and Gordon have done little to answer their potential critics thus far.

 

[King Baller]

Well we'll have to see with Payton. He looked like garbage last game. We'll have to see if this was a blurb/matchup thing or him adjusting.

Of course at least he's had a good game, Smart and Gordon have done little to answer their potential critics thus far.

Payton did have a shaky first game. he had trouble bringing the ball up the court. I kept having flashbacks of Jimmer

 

[randymoss1881]

We don't need another low IQ player who can't guard the pick and roll. And here's the worst part about this overrated prospect 59.3% that is a joke. Randle was at 70% and we complained he wouldn't finish at the rim in the pros.

 

[Tetsujin]

He really has nice tools. Surprising good ball handler but doesn't really know how to use it yet. Will have a lot of TO's if he's on the perimeter and forced to drive. His physical attributes reminds me of Webber. Hope he is able to harness all of that someday and become a good NBA player. Just hope Stauskas is even better.

Uhhh no. Webber used his physical tools along with his unparalleled ability to see the game like a point guard, and put up better (if unspectacular) defensive numbers than Vonleh ever will. In Vonleh's case, he (a) doesn't actually use that athleticism all that often and (b) lacks Webber's basketball IQ. In other words, he plays like C-Webb post-knee injury if C-Webb was smashed in the head and forced to play with a serious concussion.

 

[CurseOfTheSalmons]

I watched part of the game. Elfrid was killing it. he looked so comfortable at the 1 in his second NBA game. I hope Staukas makes us forget Pete passing on EP.

what i want to know is how the heck my post ended up in this thread. i could have sworn i put it in one of the nik stauskas threads.

 

[SwishKing]

We don't need another low IQ player who can't guard the pick and roll. And here's the worst part about this overrated prospect 59.3% that is a joke. Randle was at 70% and we complained he wouldn't finish at the rim in the pros.

Yeah, Vonleh's tools are a little overrated as well. He's got great length, but his vert is nothing special, which is why he struggled to finish at the rim in college.

 

[LPKingsFan]

what i want to know is how the heck my post ended up in this thread. i could have sworn i put it in one of the nik stauskas threads.

I think the mods created this thread out of Vonleh related discussion in the Stauskas thread.

 

[roasthawg]

I never saw Vonleh as a big upgrade over JT... he was the one guy I was really hoping went before our pick. Looks like the Kings were hoping for the same thing. What I wonder is what we would've done if Randle had fallen instead of Vonleh?

 

[Letsgokings13]

Didnt he want to transition to being a small forward? he doesnt like being down low and i dont think that bodes well

 

[beb0p]

Vonleh is guy who needs at least 2-3 years to get to where we think he will be - and that is a low usage hustling role player. The problem is that 1) we need someone now and 2) the potential is not worth the wait imo.

All along I thought the SG from Michigan was underrated while the PF from Indiana was overrated. I'd pick Stauskas 10 times out of 10 simply because Stauskas is the better player.

I think the more interesting debate is Stauskas vs Payton. I consider Stauskas the better player right now and the better fit with the team, but Payton has the potential.
.

 

[Gilles]

Didnt he want to transition to being a small forward? he doesnt like being down low and i dont think that bodes well

One thing Vonleh showed for sure is that he likes to bang.
Stauskas is much closer to realizing his potential and being able to contribute, plus he looks to the FO like their fetish, Klay Thompson, so it feels like writing was on the wall. Nik must prove to be a pure shooter to pan out though.

 

[LPKingsFan]

For me, it was more about Stauskas vs. Payton than Vonleh. Vonleh seemed to be the ideal PF for this team on paper, but it doesn't seem to actually play out that way on the court. Funny enough, I remember watching a Indiana/Michigan game earlier this year very closely to check out Vonleh, but I came away far more impressed with Stauskas.

 

[Glenn]

For me, it was more about Stauskas vs. Payton than Vonleh. Vonleh seemed to be the ideal PF for this team on paper, but it doesn't seem to actually play out that way on the court. Funny enough, I remember watching a Indiana/Michigan game earlier this year very closely to check out Vonleh, but I came away far more impressed with Stauskas.

Vonleh is good at just about everything but not great at anything. He needs to improve and there is no guarantee that he will. Stauskas has a pretty mature game already. He needs to work on defense and probably a few little things not clearly evident to us or maybe just to me. Stauskas has very little risk attached to him but Vonleh, on a team that needs a defensive monster, may fail at that.

 

[Gary]

I had said that I wanted a guy that could rebound and block shots if we went big, but I was willing to take a chance on Randle since he was such a stud down low and an excellent rebounder. I thought about it a bit and from what I could remember, I don't believe we gave up all that many second chance points. I could be wrong, but i think we gave up the 4rd fewest (without looking) 2nd chance points? So I didn't think we needed Randle. I thought about Vonleh and he just screamed bust. An athletic guy like him with long arms and he cannot block a ton of shots? Also not as good of a rebounder as his frame suggests (although I do think he'll be fine in the NBA for what's needed at PF). No thanks.

 

[jcwkings]

I think the FO had it right at Stauskas or Payton. I personally would have gone Payton, his ceiling is higher but Stauskas seems like a fine pick, you need shooting in this league and we had none last year. Vonleh just has bust written all over him, and he was a project to boot, you won't see the best of him for 4 or 5 seasons.

 

[twslam07]

I think the FO had it right at Stauskas or Payton. I personally would have gone Payton, his ceiling is higher but Stauskas seems like a fine pick, you need shooting in this league and we had none last year. Vonleh just has bust written all over him, and he was a project to boot, you won't see the best of him for 4 or 5 seasons.

I think the same can be said for McLemore, but yet people are ready to give up on his potential after one season. If you want to move him in a deal for some vets to try and win now, fine. But you don't give up on a kid with his size, athleticism, and raw shooting ability because he under performed in his first year (under performed might be an understatement).