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NBA pre-draft camp
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TheGame
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6/3/2007  11:10 AM
This Jordan sounds like the type of player you want running your second unit. Someone who can create easy offense for players who might have trouble creating their own offense. We should definitely consider him if we get additional picks in the second round.
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bigbeast
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6/3/2007  12:29 PM
Joseph Treutlein

After two underwhelming performances in his first games, relative to the level of prospect he is, Daequan Cook finally put things together in his final game, but unfortunately most of the executives and scouts weren’t around to see it. Cook scored the most points in an individual game of any player in the camp, sharing that honor with Coleman Collins, and Cook looked very impressive hitting all nine of his made field goals.

Cook was getting his scoring done mostly from mid and long range today, doing so off a variety of moves, showing how dynamic a scorer he can be when his shot is on. He started off the game by missing a contested 15 footer, but bounced back quickly, hitting on his next three field goal attempts, showing excellent touch and composure from the mid-range. First he went off one dribble into a turnaround, contested jumper from 10 feet out, then he hit two floaters, one from 10 feet and one from five feet in transition, banking it off the glass with perfect touch. As the game went on, Cook extended his range, hitting on two three-pointers, one from 25 feet out with the shot clock winding down and one by pulling up with a hand in his face. He hit on another pull-up shot from 20 feet out as well, to go along with an 18 foot stepback shot off a jabstep that he sold very well. Cook also hit on some other shots from the 15-18 feet range in the game, which is where most of his misses came from as well. One thing to be really impressed with about Cook’s shooting from any range is how effortless he makes it look, making his moves quickly and not being bothered by hands in his face. Shots that would be difficult for other players, Cook converts at a good clip, as he has really good strength on his shot and keeps his mechanics consistent on long-range shots and shots where he’s fading away or pulling up.

Cook didn’t really impact the game in many other ways, but he did make a few nice passes, not forcing the issue with his shot and adjusting in mid-air on a couple of occasions to make a pass out, avoiding a turnover or a poor shot attempt. He had no trouble making entry passes when he did, and also picked up two assists, one on a perfectly thrown alley-oop lob in transition and the other coming on a mini drive-and-dish kickout in transition, making the pass despite being amidst a crowd of defenders.

Cook didn’t get off to a good start at the camp, but he showed here how dynamic a scorer he can be, and how he can do it against this level of competition, so all things considered, his stock probably didn’t fall or rise much, as it’s very commonplace for even the best scorers to have some off days, as Cook did in his first two games. If he chooses to remain in the draft, he’s likely a late first or early second round pick unless someone falls in love with him, and that could be very nice value for some team willing to take their time letting him develop, as with another season or two in college, he could certainly be projected higher in future drafts.

Sounds like Cook finally had a good showing. Still think he needs to go back to school for one more yr.
"Man, who knows with this team." Aguirre.
bigbeast
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6/3/2007  12:40 PM
Heres a glimps of the individual workouts by the lotto-players...

The first three players to work out were Acie Law, Brandan Wright and Spencer Hawes. Law seemed to blend in to a certain extent with the other pre-draft camp guards he was working out with, showing a flat-footed jump-shot that didn’t always fall and fairly limited intensity throughout.

On the other side of the court Spencer Hawes seemed to be taking things quite seriously, looking absolutely phenomenal in the post drills with his gorgeous jump-hook shot and incredibly soft touch off the glass. He’s clearly one of the most fundamentally sound players in the draft. He told us he’d help himself here a few weeks ago when we interviewed him, and if this is any indication of how the drills portions of his NBA private workouts are going to go, he is absolutely right.


Brandan Wright


Next to him, Brandan Wright did not do much to quell most of the fears about him, even if there was only so much you could take away from this setting. He doesn’t appear to have added any weight to his frame since the season ended, and his jump-shot and ball-handling skills were virtually non-existent as we’ve been mentioning all season long. The fact that he was working out in the 3rd gear didn’t really help him out. On the positive side, he did look pretty effortless getting off his feet and ran the floor extremely well. In the post, he also showed great fundamentals, with a beautiful hook-shot and great touch spinning to either shoulder. His arms are freakishly long.

The next workout featured Josh McRoberts, Al Horford and Mike Conley Jr. McRoberts looked pretty nervous and therefore didn’t shoot the ball all that well, at least not anywhere near the way he did when we saw him a few weeks back working out in Santa Monica. Besides that, though, he seems to be in great shape and looked even more athletic than Al Horford getting up and down the floor, executing his moves in the post, and getting off the floor to finish. He’s obviously an extremely smooth and fluid player with solid fundamentals and technique, even if he missed some easy shots that he normally would convert.


Al Horford


Al Horford looked a little stiffer than McRoberts in the drills, but was night and day compared with the Duke sophomore off the court. He was extremely relaxed, smiling constantly and playing around with his new teammates (for example Jared Jordan). He’s in the same incredible shape he’s always been in, and did a very nice job shooting the ball with his feet set and executing his post-moves with his back to the basket.

Mike Conley shot the ball very poorly throughout the workout, not looking to have any range at all outside of 16 feet. Expanding his shot to the NBA 3-point line is going to take him quite a bit of time and effort. In terms of his demeanor, he looked very serious and business like, executing the drills crisply and picking up on everything he was told to do almost instantly, as the first player in line. His floater looked terrific and did his quickness getting up and down the floor.

Julian Wright, Rodney Stuckey and Al Thornton were next, and we quickly began to lose interest as the intensity level seemed to level off. Wright seemed to take things very seriously, but he was paired with the big men once they were split up, meaning he was just asked to do things like shoot jump-hooks and turnaround jumpers. Needless to say, there isn’t a lot of value in that. Al Thornton was part of the perimeter players’ drills, but didn’t seem like he wanted to be there at all. He looked lackadaisical in his effort and pretty average in the amount of shots he hit. Stuckey looked a bit better, but not by much.

We skipped the Nick Young and Jason Smith workout for the 2nd half of what turned out to be a terrific ending to the pre-draft camp games between teams 4 and 5, but were told by some scouts that both looked pretty good. Nick Young apparently shot the ball extremely well.


Kevin Durant


Kevin Durant was marched out next with Thaddeus Young. Durant looks as skinny as ever, but he drew were some gasps once the dunking drills kicked off. It’s pretty amazing to see how high above the rim his arms get when he’s elevating for dunks. For some reason he was also given the big man workout drills, so we didn’t get to see any real shooting except on occasion (which he was just so-so at). While he wasn’t screwing around the way some other players here were, it didn’t seem like he really wanted to be here either.

Thaddeus Young seemed to be taking thing a lot more seriously on the other hand, punishing the rim every time he dunked it and showing off his sculpted Corey Maggette esqe-physique. Him shooting jump-hook shots for the remainder of the workout didn’t tell us much more than we already knew.


Greg Oden


Greg Oden, Corey Brewer and Joakim Noah were the last ones to work out. Oden impressed big time with the way he ran the floor and got off the ground dunking the ball, even if he seemed to be sleepwalking as well at times. His shooting and ball-handling looked good for a player his size. At the end of the workout, he insisted on not leaving until he managed to knock down an NBA three. On his third attempt, he finally got one to drop, and promptly turned around towards the crowd with his arms in the air like a prize fighter to celebrate his accomplishment with a big grin.

Joakim Noah ran the floor hard, handled the ball well, shot the ball decently, and seemed to put in a solid effort. Corey Brewer shot the ball better than you might have expected, even though he’s clearly more of a five on five player than someone who is going to shine in this type of setting.



[Edited by - bigbeast on 06-03-2007 12:40 PM]

[Edited by - bigbeast on 06-03-2007 12:40 PM]
"Man, who knows with this team." Aguirre.
BRIGGS
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6/3/2007  4:26 PM
Posted by Andrew:

From Chad's Orlando piece....a Knick trade rumor that reportedly has little chance of happening.

Lots of teams are targeting the Celtics' No. 5 pick. GMs believe that Celts chief Danny Ainge will want a quicker fix to his team than the No. 5 pick can provide.

So far it seems as though the Celtics haven't heard a serious offer. The one that was floating around the gym -- the Knicks' David Lee and Nate Robinson for Gerald Green, Sebastian Telfair and the No. 5 pick -- has no chance of happening.

That's funny. We could've had Gerald Green and now Sebastian Telfair for nothing.
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4949
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6/3/2007  7:09 PM
depends on who dropped the ball or who backed out.
I'll never trust this' team again.
djsunyc
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6/3/2007  8:44 PM
some private workout info courtesy of draft express:
There were some rumors early on that there will be workouts conducted with the top prospects in the draft on the last day of the camp, and that turned out to be true after the first game of the morning. Three to four of the “physical only” players were added to each of the six pre-draft camp teams, and they ran a light 30 minute or so workout doing things like the 3-man weave, the “long legs” outlet pass drill, and the pitch and fill. Other basic fundamental moves were also conducted, such as using a simulated screen to get to the basket off two dribbles, pull-up jumpers and floaters (for guards), and post moves (jump-hooks, drop-steps, turnaround jumpers, etc) for the big men. Opinions here were firmly split as to whether these workouts mean very little, or absolutely nothing at all. No one we talked to thought there was really anything major to be taken away from this at all, but the better teams in the league were at least pleased to be able to get a chance to see the top picks in the draft up close and in person, to evaluate the way they move, the technique they show in the drills, and their body language.

The first three players to work out were Acie Law, Brandan Wright and Spencer Hawes. Law seemed to blend in to a certain extent with the other pre-draft camp guards he was working out with, showing a flat-footed jump-shot that didn’t always fall and fairly limited intensity throughout.

On the other side of the court Spencer Hawes seemed to be taking things quite seriously, looking absolutely phenomenal in the post drills with his gorgeous jump-hook shot and incredibly soft touch off the glass. He’s clearly one of the most fundamentally sound players in the draft. He told us he’d help himself here a few weeks ago when we interviewed him, and if this is any indication of how the drills portions of his NBA private workouts are going to go, he is absolutely right.

Next to him, Brandan Wright did not do much to quell most of the fears about him, even if there was only so much you could take away from this setting. He doesn’t appear to have added any weight to his frame since the season ended, and his jump-shot and ball-handling skills were virtually non-existent as we’ve been mentioning all season long. The fact that he was working out in the 3rd gear didn’t really help him out. On the positive side, he did look pretty effortless getting off his feet and ran the floor extremely well. In the post, he also showed great fundamentals, with a beautiful hook-shot and great touch spinning to either shoulder. His arms are freakishly long.

The next workout featured Josh McRoberts, Al Horford and Mike Conley Jr. McRoberts looked pretty nervous and therefore didn’t shoot the ball all that well, at least not anywhere near the way he did when we saw him a few weeks back working out in Santa Monica. Besides that, though, he seems to be in great shape and looked even more athletic than Al Horford getting up and down the floor, executing his moves in the post, and getting off the floor to finish. He’s obviously an extremely smooth and fluid player with solid fundamentals and technique, even if he missed some easy shots that he normally would convert.

Al Horford looked a little stiffer than McRoberts in the drills, but was night and day compared with the Duke sophomore off the court. He was extremely relaxed, smiling constantly and playing around with his new teammates (for example Jared Jordan). He’s in the same incredible shape he’s always been in, and did a very nice job shooting the ball with his feet set and executing his post-moves with his back to the basket.

Mike Conley shot the ball very poorly throughout the workout, not looking to have any range at all outside of 16 feet. Expanding his shot to the NBA 3-point line is going to take him quite a bit of time and effort. In terms of his demeanor, he looked very serious and business like, executing the drills crisply and picking up on everything he was told to do almost instantly, as the first player in line. His floater looked terrific and did his quickness getting up and down the floor.

Julian Wright, Rodney Stuckey and Al Thornton were next, and we quickly began to lose interest as the intensity level seemed to level off. Wright seemed to take things very seriously, but he was paired with the big men once they were split up, meaning he was just asked to do things like shoot jump-hooks and turnaround jumpers. Needless to say, there isn’t a lot of value in that. Al Thornton was part of the perimeter players’ drills, but didn’t seem like he wanted to be there at all. He looked lackadaisical in his effort and pretty average in the amount of shots he hit. Stuckey looked a bit better, but not by much.

We skipped the Nick Young and Jason Smith workout for the 2nd half of what turned out to be a terrific ending to the pre-draft camp games between teams 4 and 5, but were told by some scouts that both looked pretty good. Nick Young apparently shot the ball extremely well.

Kevin Durant was marched out next with Thaddeus Young. Durant looks as skinny as ever, but he drew were some gasps once the dunking drills kicked off. It’s pretty amazing to see how high above the rim his arms get when he’s elevating for dunks. For some reason he was also given the big man workout drills, so we didn’t get to see any real shooting except on occasion (which he was just so-so at). While he wasn’t screwing around the way some other players here were, it didn’t seem like he really wanted to be here either.

Thaddeus Young seemed to be taking thing a lot more seriously on the other hand, punishing the rim every time he dunked it and showing off his sculpted Corey Maggette esqe-physique. Him shooting jump-hook shots for the remainder of the workout didn’t tell us much more than we already knew.

Greg Oden, Corey Brewer and Joakim Noah were the last ones to work out. Oden impressed big time with the way he ran the floor and got off the ground dunking the ball, even if he seemed to be sleepwalking as well at times. His shooting and ball-handling looked good for a player his size. At the end of the workout, he insisted on not leaving until he managed to knock down an NBA three. On his third attempt, he finally got one to drop, and promptly turned around towards the crowd with his arms in the air like a prize fighter to celebrate his accomplishment with a big grin.

Joakim Noah ran the floor hard, handled the ball well, shot the ball decently, and seemed to put in a solid effort. Corey Brewer shot the ball better than you might have expected, even though he’s clearly more of a five on five player than someone who is going to shine in this type of setting.
EnySpree
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6/3/2007  10:33 PM
"David Lee and Nate Robinson for Gerald Green, Sebastian Telfair and the No. 5 pick"

The knicks could get al Horton at 5. Gerald green is gonna be somebody soon. At the 2 or the 3 though? Sab is an idiot hoodlum, but everyone needs a second chance, 3rd, 4th.....

I would be sweating with my finger on the trigger with this one.
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joec32033
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6/5/2007  7:40 AM
Posted by EnySpree:

"David Lee and Nate Robinson for Gerald Green, Sebastian Telfair and the No. 5 pick"

The knicks could get al Horton at 5. Gerald green is gonna be somebody soon. At the 2 or the 3 though? Sab is an idiot hoodlum, but everyone needs a second chance, 3rd, 4th.....

I would be sweating with my finger on the trigger with this one.

I agree with you Eny, this deal is too tipped in the Knicks favor. Jeeze, Nate and Lee aren't even enough to just get the 5th pick, IMO.
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6/5/2007  9:35 AM
http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2007/06/greg_oden_is_a_freak_of_nature.html

Greg Oden is a freak of nature (updated)
Posted by Jason Quick June 04, 2007 11:24AM

The Oregonian has secured the official weights, measurements and testing results from the Orlando predraft camp, and wait until you get a load of the freak of nature called Greg Oden.

For starters, his numbers blow Kevin Durant out of the water.

There are several startling revelations in the numbers, and the one that immediately pops out is the bench press. Players were rated on how many times they could bench press 185 pounds. Oden didn't attempt the bench press in order to prevent an injury to his right wrist, which has recently recovered from injury.

But get this: Only one player was unable to bench press 185 even once - Kevin Durant.

There is more.

Oden is faster than Durant in the 3/4-court sprint, quicker in the lane-agility drill, and has better numbers in the running and standing vertical leaps. And, Oden has a mind-boggling 7.8 body-fat percentage ... most big men are north of the 12 percent range. For instance, other top-rated big men such as Washington's Spencer Hawes (13.0), Duke's Josh McRoberts (13.7) and Pitt's Aaron Gray (10.8) don't compare.

Let's get to the specifics.

Oden is 6-foot-11 without shoes, 7-feet with shoes.

He weighs 257 pounds.

His wingspan is 7 feet, 4.25 inches (fourth best in the draft). His standing reach is 9 feet, 4 inches (the highest of anyone in the draft). His standing vertical is 32 inches, his running vertical 34 inches.

The lane agility drill, where a player runs through cones alternating between running backward, sideways and forward, is 11.67 seconds. And his 3/4 court sprint was 3.27 seconds.

The thing that jumps out is Oden's speed and agility.

We all know Oregon's Aaron Brooks is fast. Brooks finished the 3/4 court sprint in 3.2 seconds. Oden was 3.27 seconds. Durant, meanwhile, finished in 3.45.

Oden's 11.67 in the agility drill speaks volumes to the footwork so many scouts rave about. Durant did the same drill in 12.33.

Durant's specifics are as follows:

Height: 6-foot-9 without shoes, 6-foot-10.25 with shoes. Weight: 215.

Wing span: 7-foot-4.75 (second longest in the draft - Maryland's Ekene Ibekwe is 7-6). Standing reach: 9-2.

Body fat: 6.6. Standing vertical jump: 26.0 inches; running vertical jump, 33.5 inches. Lane agility: 12.33 seconds and 3/4 court sprint, 3.45 seconds.

Portland general manager Kevin Pritchard declined to comment on the numbers, in part because he had just received them himself.

But really, there is no need for comment. The numbers speak volumes.
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6/6/2007  9:15 AM
The more you read about trade scenarios--the more important you realize the draft process is. It doesnt necessarily mean you have to keep every guy you draft--but what it does --if you execute well--it gives you assets that can help get you that player you may need to get you to the next level. Maybe the biog flaw of the 90s was the knicks inability to draft well or their view that it didnt relly matter--imho. IT has done a good job here and my hope is that IT can continue on that path. The MLE has not worked out well for us--so the drafting proces has become our lifeline to get better.
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playa2
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6/6/2007  11:56 AM
Kevin Durant the all world all around great collegite basketball player is the only player at the pre-draft camp that .can't bench 185 lbs.

He has a 7'5 wingspan though.

Body strength doesn’t allow him to finish after contact … Despite being such a dominate offensive force, Durant can go through stretches of games where he appears fatigued and won’t demand the ball … Gets pushed out rather easily on rebounds due to his body strength .

AOLSPORTS:


Walk into the weight room of any high school with a decent sports program, and you'll see a few beefy offensive lineman/shot putter types who can bench press 315 pounds and a lot of tight end/power forward/catcher types who can bench press 225 pounds.
You'll also see a lot of skinny teenagers who can't bench press anything close to that. But most of those skinny teenagers aren't about to become superstar pro athletes.

Kevin Durant is about to become a superstar pro athlete, but he turned in a performance typical of a skinny teenager at the Orlando pre-draft camp. Jason Quick reports that Durant was the only prospect in Orlando who couldn't bench 185 pounds even once. That means at almost any gym in the country, the average accountant or lawyer or computer programmer who lifts weights a few times a week after work is stronger than the likely No. 2 pick in the NBA draft.

Combine Durant's poor showing with the phenomenal athleticism of Greg Oden, and it's easy to see why Oden is the clear choice of the NBA scouts even though Durant was the college Player of the Year. But Durant also has a ridiculous wingspan of just under 7-foot-5, which is Shawn Bradley territory. Guys with long arms always have more functional strength than bench press strength. Durant's meager bench press is more a curiosity than an indictment.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

On another note in a different era, Mr finga roll himself "George the iceman Gervin" probably could lift 185 lbs either, but in his era he probably didn't have too. LOL

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6/6/2007  3:54 PM
Prospects Try To Raise Their Game For Knicks
by Tom Kertes


EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ, June 6, 2007 -- Following the second Knicks-Nets collective NBA Draft workout, New Jersey GM Ed Stefanski called Stephane Lasme “an interesting character” -- and the rail-thin forward is all of that. For starters, even while coming from a scant basketball background -- he’s originally from Gabon -- the 6-8 Lasme finished his senior season at UMass as one of only two players in the nation to rank in the Top 25 in three statistical categories.

The other guy? Consensus No. 1 pick, not to mention consensus future super-duper to end all super-duper-s, Greg Oden.

The real rouser is Lasme’s shot blocking (5.1 per game, second in the nation), a rare and unique skill much-needed by the Knicks. And the 215-pound Lasme -- no post monster, he -- was doing this as a FORWARD. “I just try to be where the ball is,” he said, extremely soft-spoken. “I’m HUNTING for it. I have a knack, I guess. It comes naturally. To tell you the truth, I never actually worked at it.”

Though Lasme was also an elite rebounder (9.5 pg., 20th in the nation) and field goal shooter (61.1 per cent, 13th) in college, he’s well aware that the rest of his game, still raw, must develop to a NBA level. “Obviously, I’ve got a lot of things to work on,” he smiled. “I need to improve my offensive game a little bit more, also my perimeter defense. I’ve got to knock down the mid-range shot and just improve my range. But I’m patient with it.”

Question is, will NBA teams be patient with a late-developing talent who’s already 24 years old? “I’m not too worried about that. My point is, so I’m a bit more mature than anybody else. Obviously, I know better what’s right and what’s wrong compared to the regular kids that come out of school.”

‘’I work hard,” he added. ‘’I can do anything. I will do anything you tell me to do. I don’t mind doing the dirty job. I think I got that across today.’’

Fellow big Brandon Wallace, a 6-9 forward out of South Carolina known mainly for his board work, was also elated with his workout. “Isiah Thomas told me ‘good job’, and that he liked what he saw,’’ he said, smile miles wide. “I think I showed some things that I can do that people may not have known about me previously.”

“Shooting and handling the ball,” added Wallace. “The system at school would not allow me to display those things. But I think I did pretty well today.”

“Renaldo (ex-teammate Balkman) is my best friend,” Wallace said. “He told me on the phone ‘don’t be nervous. And each time, just show them different things.’ So that’s what I did.”

As smallish point guards from even more smallish schools, the other two workout participants -- 5-11 DaShaun Wood from Wright State and Albany’s 6-1 Jamar Wilson – couldn’t help but be just a LITTLE nervous. “Playing in front of Isiah Thomas, who is my idol, and in the same gym Jason Kidd plays…” Wilson shook his head in wonderment. “That’s just unbelievable. That’s awesome.”

“Still, especially for guys like us from lesser known places, you’ve just got to grab hold of it when you get the opportunity. You’ve got to raise your game to another level. Really, that’s all you can do.”
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