Posted by Finestrg:

To me he's a shorter version of Charles Oakley minus the perimeter touch Oak managed to come up with late in his career but with better post offense.

Also, NBAdraft.net talks about his "gregarious" personality and it's true, you can see it - plays tougher than anyone while also maintaining a positive attitude throughout the game. Reminds me a little of Larry Johnson's demeanor on the court when he was still playing. On a few occasions last night after being called for a foul, he engaged the refs but in a good way, ultimately smiling & nodding his head in agreement at some of the calls made against him. Saw the same thing from Pitt's little leftly SG Jermaine Dixon too. That type of maturity is refreshing and it's a nice reflection on coach Dixon - you don't have to fight the refs tooth and nail every single time you get called for a foul like a Nate Robinson does. That's how you do it - these Pittsburgh kids just get it. You see it in college baseball players all the time because a majority of them are coached the right way - after striking out, they run back to the dugout w/o saying a peep to the umpire... Blair also gave a nice quick interview after the game with Jay Bilas. He expressed confidence while also being gracious in that he gave his teammates a lot of the credit - talked about how he and Sam Young pick each other up all the time. I like this kid a lot.


[Edited by - finestrg on 02-17-2009 1:48 PM]

Posted by sebstar:

Posted by fishmike:

when Spoon came into the league many thought he would be the next Barkley,

did fish just say he wanted to "spoon" barkley? please take that ish to the off-topic forum you perv...

Posted by djsunyc:

Posted by sebstar:

Posted by fishmike:

when Spoon came into the league many thought he would be the next Barkley,

did fish just say he wanted to "spoon" barkley? please take that ish to the off-topic forum you perv...

Not that there is anything wrong with that.

Posted by Finestrg:

Posted by Finestrg:

To me he's a shorter version of Charles Oakley minus the perimeter touch Oak managed to come up with late in his career but with better post offense.

Also, NBAdraft.net talks about his "gregarious" personality and it's true, you can see it - plays tougher than anyone while also maintaining a positive attitude throughout the game. Reminds me a little of Larry Johnson's demeanor on the court when he was still playing. On a few occasions last night after being called for a foul, he engaged the refs but in a good way, ultimately smiling & nodding his head in agreement at some of the calls made against him. Saw the same thing from Pitt's little leftly SG Jermaine Dixon too. That type of maturity is refreshing and it's a nice reflection on coach Dixon - you don't have to fight the refs tooth and nail every single time you get called for a foul like a Nate Robinson does. That's how you do it - these Pittsburgh kids just get it. You see it in college baseball players all the time because a majority of them are coached the right way - after striking out, they run back to the dugout w/o saying a peep to the umpire... Blair also gave a nice quick interview after the game with Jay Bilas. He expressed confidence while also being gracious in that he gave his teammates a lot of the credit - talked about how he and Sam Young pick each other up all the time. I like this kid a lot.


[Edited by - finestrg on 02-17-2009 1:48 PM]

I agree, that's why playing in college is so valuable to these guys. Even the guys that are physically able to play in the NBA, the college experience and playing for great coaches really helps their mental development. If you scream at a ref when Dixon or Calhoun or Coach K(by the way F coach K) or any of the other greats, they are going to destroy you. Players learn this for 1,2,3 hopefully 4 years. By the time they get to the NBA they have learned the habit of focusing on the game and winning instead of whining about the refs.

As for Nate. I don't think it would matter who he played for. His personality is different and he is never going to control his approach. He may tone it down as he matures, but he won't completely get rid of that "fire". It's both good and bad.

Posted by sebstar:

Posted by Bippity10:

Posted by sebstar:

Damn Briggs, are you going to really sit there and act like your boo, Thabeet, didnt just get manhandled last night? And on top of that you jump on the nuts of the cat that did your mancrush so dirty. Do you have no shame?

Man, when Blair gave Thabeet that Ricky Steamboat armdrag to the floor, I lost it. That was one of the gulliest things I have seen on a Basketball court, since Chris Childs gave Kobe that two-piece and a biscuit. Thabeet was food last night, and Blair came packed with forks, knives, and a bib.

So what the hell is going to happen to Thabeet when he gets to the league? With his narrow shoulders, two left feet, and his lack of gumption, we're probably looking at a watered down version of Theo Ratliff.

Thabeet just went down about 5 lottery slots easily with this performance. Blair needs to get on Youtube and drop an ether part 2, that was just brutal.

I think GM's are enamored with his potential more than they are with his current performance, so I don't think his stock went down at all. I do however think that he should stay 4 years(even though he won't). He faced a man in this game, and this man made this college kid look like a college kid. At least at this point Thabeet is not ready for it. That being said Thabeet has improved so much in the past 3 years I don't think any NBA scout is remotely worried about him. Even if the only thing he improves in the next 10 years is his strength, he's still going to anchor your defense for a while.

Remember doggy, Thabeet is 22. Time is working against him, at this point, if you're going to position him as a long term prospect.

Thabeet will be a very good NBA player and many teams wish they could get him. Blair's an NBA player but I have seen plenty of NBA 7 footers get schooled by well built undersized 4s in college ball in my day--guys not half as good as blair. They did a terrible job as a team to disrupt deep targets set up by Blair and on the other side magnificent job playing a high low defense to prevent the ball being entered at the same position Blair was getting it. I think that you have to send a second man on a guy like Blair and send him quick. I don't think he is a good passer but if he has you on his hip at point blank range--he can simply separate using strength and his long arms. It's not enough to play him straight up in college

Posted by sebstar:

Posted by Bippity10:

Posted by sebstar:

Damn Briggs, are you going to really sit there and act like your boo, Thabeet, didnt just get manhandled last night? And on top of that you jump on the nuts of the cat that did your mancrush so dirty. Do you have no shame?

Man, when Blair gave Thabeet that Ricky Steamboat armdrag to the floor, I lost it. That was one of the gulliest things I have seen on a Basketball court, since Chris Childs gave Kobe that two-piece and a biscuit. Thabeet was food last night, and Blair came packed with forks, knives, and a bib.

So what the hell is going to happen to Thabeet when he gets to the league? With his narrow shoulders, two left feet, and his lack of gumption, we're probably looking at a watered down version of Theo Ratliff.

Thabeet just went down about 5 lottery slots easily with this performance. Blair needs to get on Youtube and drop an ether part 2, that was just brutal.

I think GM's are enamored with his potential more than they are with his current performance, so I don't think his stock went down at all. I do however think that he should stay 4 years(even though he won't). He faced a man in this game, and this man made this college kid look like a college kid. At least at this point Thabeet is not ready for it. That being said Thabeet has improved so much in the past 3 years I don't think any NBA scout is remotely worried about him. Even if the only thing he improves in the next 10 years is his strength, he's still going to anchor your defense for a while.

Remember doggy, Thabeet is 22. Time is working against him, at this point, if you're going to position him as a long term prospect.

22 is only old because guys like Lebron and KG etc have made it seem old. But 22 is still young and it's amazingly young for a guy that only has what 6 years of basketball? If you followed him from his beginnings at Uconn you would see an amazing level of improvement in 3 years. More improvement than any Uconn player that I can remember and Calhoun has said the same. No reason to suspect that he won't develop more. As a matter of fact I will guarantee it. That being said, I go back to my original statement. This isn't George Muresan we are talking about. He can play despite his short comings, and his defensive presence is so unique that he's going to help someone somewhere. I won't declare him a star at this point, but there is no doubt he can help immensely even if he never improves his offensive game. Long range shooters and shot blockers are hard to come by and have extreme value even if they don't turn into Kareem or Wilt or Ray Allen.

Ok then Bippity, if you're an NBA GM with a pick 1-4 do you select Thabeet when you have just received solid evidence that he is a major project at best?

At 22, his learning curve cannot be too great. You have to bank on him improving a lot.

You might learn something about Thabeet's character and toughness when he faces Pitt and Blair again in March. A statement game for Thabeet.

Posted by MX25:

I hope Blair stays in school another year. I think Blair and Dante Taylor would be an amazing, unguardable combo down low.

I wouldnt stay--this draft is somewhat shaky--would you risk injury? His appeal is hot now. Unless his family is wealthy where he can put off getting a guaranteed 3-5mm -- I would tell him go if I was the coach. You have to have the players best interests first. If he can afford to stay and wants to stay--than that is another matter.