NBA Summer League in LV

[dalakhani]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

He is a 10th or 11th man who you pay a touch over minimum, plays 5 or 6 minutes a game, usually padded by blowout minutes, who will play hard and wont bitch at the DNP-CD's.

If he is lucky enough to find a coach/gm that likes him. Sure. he could do that. So could 100 other guys that are in the d league or overseas.

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by dalakhani

If he is lucky enough to find a coach/gm that likes him. Sure. he could do that. So could 100 other guys that are in the d league or overseas.

Not exactly. Finding a good 10-12th is not easy as it seems because they are the guys that you arent paying to play, you are paying them not to play. Very few even semi-talented guys accept that role well. He is talented enough to improve enough to perhaps play limited regular minutes and probably smart enough to accept that role. He is a pretty good athlete and does shoot enough to make him an asset at a low price. Not a valuable asset but an asset. The D-League is full of malcontents and europlayers are too expensive.

[dalakhani]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

Not exactly. Finding a good 10-12th is not easy as it seems because they are the guys that you arent paying to play, you are paying them not to play. Very few even semi-talented guys accept that role well. He is talented enough to improve enough to perhaps play limited regular minutes and probably smart enough to accept that role. He is a pretty good athlete and does shoot enough to make him an asset at a low price. Not a valuable asset but an asset. The D-League is full of malcontents and europlayers are too expensive.

The guys you are talking about usually have a defined role though. Maybe they can play 5-6 minutes of aggressive defense. Maybe they are 7 ft and can give you a couple of fouls or merely be another big body for practice. Maybe its an aging guard that is a good influence on the younger players.

If it is a young guy, like buddinger, he better be someone that has a role he can fit into already for spot minutes or you see light at the end of the tunnel and you think he has talent to develop in a year or two into someone that can play decent minutes. Or he lucks out and finds a coach that just likes him.

Buddinger can't shoot well enough where you would overlook his defensive issues and he cant get his own shot well enough to offset his inconsistency from range. So what does he have to contribute? What similar player can you think of that was successful?

[King Glorious]

This kind of gets back to the whole argument about contested shots versus open shots but with Buddinger, he was one of Arizona's key offensive guys. Defenses paid a lot more attention to him than they will in the NBA and he didn't get the same kind of shots that he will in the NBA. It's not uncommon to see guys that are good shooters to have their percentage go up a little in the NBA because the defense won't be keying on him and he'll get more open looks. Buddinger has played within the offense so far and has taken good shots. In three games, he's 19-30 from the field and 3-6 on three point shots.

Jordan Hill looks like he'll do really well. He absolutely killed Thabeet. Thabeet had no answers for Hill in the post. He got great position and has a real nice turnaround/fallaway. The thing I liked was that he made quick decisions. He didn't shoot so well overall but he got good shots and looked comfortable and he's got some athleticsm. He'll be fine.

[King Glorious]

7/14
NY
I like Jordan Hill. Nice post up game and good athletic ability. Gets good shots. Dominated Thabeet inside and has a decent face up game. Needs some obvious size but he'll be ok in the league. Toney Douglas couldn't throw it in the ocean but I like the way he attacked and led the offense. Looked comfortable out there and his shot will come. Hill had 13-8 (6-14 shooting) and Douglas only had eight but had 11 assists. Shot only 2-13 and 1-4 on 3s.

Memphis
As mentioned Thabeet was dominated by the smaller Hill. He did show a flash of offensive potential with a nice jump hook. Nice rhythm but much too little from him. Totally disappears from the offense. Not agressive enough asking for the ball and not a real factor on the offensive glass. Very disappointing performance. Finished with 6-6 and one block. Marcus Williams wasn't as dazzling as the previous game but was solid with 16 and five assists. Still can't shoot (5-15) but was good at getting into the lane and getting shots. Darrell Arthur was the star for the Grizzlies. He was efficient from the field (8-15) and very aggressive with 22 and six boards.

Washington
The established players (Nick Young and Andre Blatche) dominated as expected. Watched Alade Aminu and Tyrese Rice. Not too impressed with either. Aminu was a total non-factor. He scored four and had one board. Rice was a little better with 11 points on 4-9 shooting but didn't shoot the three well (1-4) and for a six-foot point guard, didn't pass too well (one assist).

Cleveland
Danny Green is still going backwards. Off the strong debut, he's not doing much else. He was 0-5 last night and scored only four points. Played decent defense though and that's going to be what gets him in the rotation if he gets there.

Golden State
Anthony Randolph continues to impress. He has the makings to one day be an all-star. He's tall and lanky and reminds you a lot of Lamar Odom. He can rebound and play defense and he can take the ball up the floor. He's a matchup nightmare. He completely dominated again with 42 more points. Didn't offer much on the glass here but you didn't notice it. It's like the lightbulb went off in his head and he sees how good he can be. Stephen Curry continues to struggle hitting shots. He was only 3-15 last night and missed all four threes. On the good side, he continues to show that he can play point guard. He's an excellent passer and his teammates are getting used to his passes. He passes a lot off the dribble and catches people off guard but it's getting better.

Chicago
James Johnson showed a lot of people that he can play. I was very surprised. I thought he had talent but he's better than I thought. He is physically tough and very good at getting the shot he wants. Shot very well from the field (9-13) and even showed a little more range than expected. Finished with 21-8. Taj Gibson was as expected. He's a hard worker on the glass and not too bad on the offensive end. Ran the court pretty well and played solid defense. Finished with 14-12 on 5-11 shooting.

Oklahoma City
James Harden decided to show up last night. Much, much better than his opening game and he looked like he might prove me wrong. Finished with 23-5-5 and shot 9-14 from the field and added a couple of threes. The thing is that he looked like the only pro on the court. Plays with a lot of confidence. Shaun Livingston was also better with 8-4 assists. Might make the team as the backup to Westbrook. BJ Mullen was also much improved. He was much more assertive inside and on the glass. Finished with 10-5 and looks like he could give them some minutes at the center spot this season.

Denver
The debut of Ty Lawson didn't go so well. He's playing with an absolutely horrible team but he didn't look too good. Missed all seven of his shots and only had three assists. The assist numbers can be excused a little cause he plays with guys that can't shoot. But you don't like that he didn't make a shot. Did get to the line eight times and made all eight. He just looked tentative out there. Like he wanted to try to take over but didn't want to step on toes. I expect next game, he takes over more.

SA
Dejuan Blair didn't play and Jack McClinton looked like he didn't either. Nothing to report here.

LA Clippers
Blake Griffin came back down to earth. Still solid but just not spectacular. He scored fine (16 on 7-11 shooting) and added nine rebounds. Struggled again at the line. Even banked one in. With a guy that's going to get fouled a lot, that's a concern at this point. What was most impressive with him tonight was his passing. It's a very underrated part of his game and he's VERY good at it. Continues to show surprising ball handling ability for a guy his size and he easily could have had more than the five assists he was credited with.

New Orleans
Once again, I was impressed with Darren Collison. I just didn't expect this from him. Scored 23 more points and added four assists. Plays with control and takes good shots. Knows he's not a 3pt shooter so doesn't take them. You forget he's so small at times because he has a presence. Marcus Thornton was also solid again. He finished with 19 on 8-17 shooting (3-6 on 3s). Didn't add much else though. Didn't hit the boards and is not a willing passer. But he can get you buckets and that's what the Hornets need is someone else they can go to that can get buckets on their own. Julian Wright was so-so. You'd like to see him take the step that Randolph has taken in Golden St. but it's not there. He played ok but you want a little more than ok at this stage. He's getting by on talent, not on knowing how to play the game.

[dalakhani]

Im glad to hear James Johnson is doing well. that coach at Wake should be shot. That team had some serious talent this year and they just got steadily worse as the season went on.

Johnson has great feet for a guy his size. It was interesting in the game I watched live against the terps, they put him on the smaller Vasquez to shut him down. He also at times was the point on the press.

[King Glorious]

7/15

New York
Jordan Hill wasn't great but again looked solid. He scored another 14 on 6-14 shooting. Looked a little lost on the defense end though but that's going to come. Toney Douglas still isn't hitting shots but looks like he's playing well. He only hit 1-6 and missed all three from long range but he gave 10 assists and continues to make good decisions with the ball and running the offense.

Detroit
OK so I'll admit it. I thought Austin Daye would be a bust. He's shocked me. He was very strong again with 27 and 13 boards. He's just always in the right place and around the ball. I don't like seeing guys that are 6'11" shooting threes (1-4) but he was 8-13 on the rest of his shots. He's got a lot of talent.

Milwaukee
Joe Alexander looks so much more comfortable now than he did in the beginning. He scored 18 and had five boards here. Brandon Jennings didn't shoot so great (4-10 for 14 points) but where he continues to impress is in his ability to get where he wants and get defenders on their heels and delivering good passes. He had nine more assists. Meeks did what has become the norm for him. Nothing spectacular but shot well (6-12) and played well within his ability to get his 16 points.

Chicago
James Johnson came down some from his first game. Didn't shoot nearly as well and I kinda feel like he settles for the long shot too often. Still, not too bad. Only shot 4-15 (0-4 on 3s) but fought his way to 16 points. Taj Gibson was very effecient with 12-8 but I didn't like the fact that he couldn't get to the line more. Didn't show much diversity to his offensive game.

Toronto
DeRozan had another solid game. He's so much like OJ Mayo in the fact that they just look like they are so much better than everyone else on the court, like he could score 20 in his sleep. Had another 20 here on 9-16 shooting and continues to give the impression that he'll be a solid pro. Quincy Douby didn't shoot so well but found a way to 16 points and continues to show he's ready to make someone's roster and contribute this year.

Phoenix
Earl Clark played in this game and had a pretty good outing. Only shot 5-12 and kinda forced things a little but was aggressive on both ends and had 13 and 12 boards. Gragic still can't shoot. Was only 1-6 from the field and missed some open shots pretty bad. Did pass the ball pretty decent but it's not looking promising for this guy seeing the court much for the Suns this year. Zabian Dowdell shot horribly. Looked like he was a little overconfident after the good first game and took some bad shots. Missed all three from long range and was only 3-12 overall for seven points.

Sacramento
Tyreke Evans didn't start and had a limited role because of what I think is a finger injury. Only scored five with six boards and three assists but he's already established his ability.

Portland
I really like Dante Cunningham. He has a nice variety in his offensive game. Scored 22 and had five boards and shot decently (8-20). He will be a good backup player behind Aldridge in Portland. Uses his size very well. Jerryd Bayless looked like he was just going through the motions. Unlike a guy like DeRozan, who acts like he's better than everyone else and is playing like it, Bayless acts like he is too but needs to work harder to get the same production. He's got ability but I just question his desire.

Houston
Much of the same as we've been seeing from the two players I've been watching. Budinger is solid. Like Meeks, he knows his limits and his range and is playing very well. Scored 17 on 6-8 shooting (including 2-2 on 3s) and is going to be a solid pro player. Joey Dorsey again didn't give you much on offense but is strong on defense. Is a lot stronger on the defensive block that I thought and hits the glass hard. Only had nine points but added 11 more boards.

Denver
Ty Lawson again struggled with his shot and didn't impress at all but this time, I'm not blaming his teammates. He wasn't as tentative but wasn't aggressive enough when the opportunities opened up. Only hit 1-8 and missed his only try from three. Added four assists but just didn't look like he's an NBA contributer. I am waiting for more because I know he's better than what he's shown.

Washington
Tyrese Rice and Alade Aminu look like wasted draft choices. Neither is giving the team anything and look overmatched and really, scared out there. Rice scored only three points (on a halfcourt buzzer shot) and had two assists. Aminu took one shot (missed) and didn't score and only had one rebound. Just nothing.