BigDaddyG wrote:

mreinman wrote:And I have to give credit to WaltLongmire . He was all over this first on this board. He is the one that got me all excited about him.

You kidding me lol I had KPorzee scouted back in 2014. He screwed me in that year's draft game because he pulled out. I had him going to the Wolves as a young forward to develop and replace KLove. http://ads.slicksports.com/forum/topic.asp?t=47605&page=1

I did a "Case For..." thread on him, so my forum name is linked to him in that way, but yeah, he was a pretty well known talent-defintely not a sleeper type. Scouts in Europe had been on his trail for years. We get to see our domestic players perform in college on a regular basis, and its somewhat annoying to see European players marginalized by some, but there were full games of his team on YouTube to evaluate him if anyone cared to see them, and the guys who know ranked him high.

Glad he pulled out last year. I think Hinkie might have taken him if he had stayed in that draft, and Orlando supposedly liked him.

Briggs did something on him earlier in the year that I remember, although he had doubts about his physical development as we approached the draft, like many did.

I thought he was too thin when I first read about him, but as he moved up on the draft sites, I started watching videos and realized he had a very complete game. When we dropped to #4, I figured he would be in play.

Gaines might have picked KP at #1, but I doubt if Phil would have. Only guy I would have taken over KP is Towns, and I might be proven wrong about that down the line. I think Phil would have taken Towns and OK4 over him, but not Russell. After OK4 was taken I figured we might take KP, Mudiay, Winslow, and possibly Kaminsky, but I was hoping for the Latvian. I was surprised Phil had the guts to take him.

I did my thread on him after listening to the Fran Fraschilla on the radio. I think I was pretty realistic about his game:

He has a lot of upside, but is already a very polished player who played at a high level in a strong league over in Europe.
He can shoot from the outside, has a midrange game, shows some moves in the post, and he can run. He also looks like he has the lateral movement and length to be a fine defender, and for a guy with his length, he has a decent center of gravity. The videos show him boxing out for rebounds, too.
Still has some things to work on besides his body, and I wish he was a better passer, but he is already a good player, and for now, his length should mitigate the problems cause by his lack of bulk.

Folks would be foolish to discount this guy. Briggs has talked about him during the year, but he seems to be highly regarded by guys who look at college players for a living.
There would be an uproar by some if we took him- and (I) expect to get ripped by some, since many are prejudiced toward Euros, but if he comes in with a little more bulk, and shows the things he's shown in Europe, I think the Knicks will give him a more than serious look.

I thought his offense would be ahead of his D, although after we got him, his SL defensive performance made me think differently. I still expected him to have more of an impact on offense.

Prior to SL, I doubt if anyone thought he would be where he is now...I know I didn't, but I was a bit stunned by how well he patrolled the middle as a 5 in SL, and thought it could carry over into the regular season.

Some lessons to be learned:

1) a lot of guys in the media, so called experts, and a great number of folks around here, don't know as much as they think they know...anyone who thinks any player is a sure bet to be good or bad doesn't know what they are talking about. There really is a crapshoot element to the draft, and even the stuff we see from these kids now has to be seen in context.

2) Age alone does not determine physical maturity. There were "younger" players in the draft who are more physically mature than KP. He is still a baby by many standards when you look at his body

3) Many are blinded by the spectacular players and plays, and they're missing a lot of the little things the best players do. Got to see more than highlights to understand what a player can do, and if you watch a game you almost have to ignore everyone else if you are judging a particular player.

4)Piggy-backing on #3...Hard to measure the competitive heart a player has, and I expect a lot of folks have been caught off guard by KPs desire and hustle on the court. For a big goofy Latvian the guy seems to do darn well in those hustle/scrambling plays, sometimes looking like more of a blue collar player than a future superstar (we hope).

Not even 10 games into the season and he is creating a name for himself and getting some national exposure. Good start...hopefully it continues.