Posted by joec32033:
Pippen was 23ppg and 10rpg, and I don't think Balkman will be the same type of scorer at all, but Pippen didn't even play on the NCAA level. Balkman dominated Noah (a top three pick in 07 and national champ) and others, so I would say Balkman is less of a reach.
Misread, thought it was 28.....even still I don't think he is anywhere near the reach Balkman is. Pippen dominated a lower level conference. AS he should do if he was a real talented player. Balkman didn't.
What's in it for Phoenix to say they were interested? Nothing. Also, you act like we could have bought a pick for $3 million when we have 15 guys with guaranteed deals already and we're learning that Dolan may not even let Zeke spend $7 million to re-sign Jackie.
We have that problem now of being over on the roster spots. What is one more?
I think a lot of people ignore reality in these things. The reality is that drafting Marcus would have created a horrible glut at guard for us, and we would have been dealing from a major position of weakness in trying to unload Francis and/or Marbury.
We already have a glut at PG...Marcus would have given us something we don't have in a distributer PG...
Also, Isiah has one year, and drafting a rookie PG isn't going to win him anything. Marcus is no Chris Paul. I just wish there was a little more realism here at times
Absolutely he isn't Chris Paul, but Isiah has mortgaged what may be a higher return in the draft later on to take a guy that we need to win now who has a much lower ceiling.
For every good summer league game Marcus and Bynum have had, they've had a horrible, atrocious one. Balkman is far more consistent doing what he does and we need what he brings far more.
The flip side to that is Balkman doesn't bring as much to the fgame as either player and the expectation of him are alot lower.
#1) Balkman didn't play in a lower level conference - he played in the SEC in division one. he played in the same division as the national champs and played them well. he dominated a lower level NCAA tournie - the NIT, and won MVP there. I'd say he has a more reliable college resume than Pippen at this point. I'm not saying he'll be better than Pippen, but I do think he'll be able to easily come in and replicate the way he played in college - which, again, is EXACTLY what this team needs.
#2) As far as roster slots - you can't seriously expect a team with 16 players (counting Butler, QWoods and picks 21 and 29) to shell out money for yet another guaranteed deal. It doesn't add up.
#3) Whether Marcus plays differently than Marbury, Crawford, Nate, Francis is immaterial - what matters is that he would be behind them and that we are committed to at least Marbury, Craw and Nate and he wouldn't make sense with their style of play. Marbury and Francis are far too hard to trade to just pick a guy who would be buried behind them and say figure it out later. I'll figure it out for you - it would be a mess, especially when Zeke is on a one year deadline.
#4) I don't really think you can say what Balkman's ceiling is. He clearly didn't play with too much talent at South Carolina, while Marcus played with a ton of first round picks in his career (Gay, Emeka, Charlie, Josh, Hilton, etc) in his college career. Those guys made Marcus look like a genius, and with all that talent Uconn still disappointed this year. Marcus has some major holes in his game, as does Balkman. I still say Balkman fits our team much better.
#5) I disagree that Balkman doesn't bring as much to the game as Marcus. I think you can make a pretty easy case that he brings more than Marcus. Marcus barely plays defense - he gets some steals and that's it (less steals than a guy like Marbury who is berated for his defense). Marcus brings offense, involves others on offense and not much else. Balkman brings offense, instant fastbreak, involves others, can take guys off the dribble, rebound, defend, steal, block shots and brings reckless energy. Again - Balkman brings the things we need in spades. If you get too caught up in draft predictions and blah blah blah and ESPN commentary, you are far more likely to end up with a bust.
I will say this one final time - Balkman fits everything we needed and fills our most glaring hole in the entire roster. How is it up for debate that he was a good pick for us? Please don't say value. The value of the pick will be determined over the next 5-10 years. Determining the value of the pick now means absolutely nothing. Isiah got the guy he wanted. Given his and Suhr's history - I'll take the guy they wanted.
I wasn't expecting the Knicks to draft Lee, prior to the draft but when they called his name, I certainly wasn't displeased. I always liked Lee's game in college and while I wasn't sure how it would translate to the NBA, I felt the Knicks made a great choice by drafting him at the very end of the 1st round.
7/17/2006 2:20 PM
