rubyz2 wrote:Interesting tidbit on the the Sun's interest in Shumpert:

San Diego State small forward Kawhi Leonard was a surprise drop to most, but it did not make the Suns flinch about taking Morris after serious consideration of Georgia Tech point guard Iman Shumpert. The Suns had a deal in the works to trade Robin Lopez for a pick in the 20s to get Shumpert, along with another piece, until New York took Shumpert at No. 17.

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/2011/06/23/20110623phoenix-suns-draft-markieff-morris.html#ixzz1QDjqk4ZJ

CrushAlot wrote:

rubyz2 wrote:Interesting tidbit on the the Sun's interest in Shumpert:

San Diego State small forward Kawhi Leonard was a surprise drop to most, but it did not make the Suns flinch about taking Morris after serious consideration of Georgia Tech point guard Iman Shumpert. The Suns had a deal in the works to trade Robin Lopez for a pick in the 20s to get Shumpert, along with another piece, until New York took Shumpert at No. 17.

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/2011/06/23/20110623phoenix-suns-draft-markieff-morris.html#ixzz1QDjqk4ZJ

I wonder if the Suns would trade Lopez for Shumpert now. I think the Knicks would have to consider it if he is offered.

i would only do it if it were Lopez/Brooks for Shumpert/TD. something along those lines.

I would have rather had Faried, but otherwise I think this was a smart pick at 17.

Gymkata wrote:

SupremeCommander wrote:

Gymkata wrote:

SupremeCommander wrote:I keep saying, I have watched a lot of GT basketball the past couple of seasons. The most concerning aspect of his game isn't seen by the numbers: he's a poor decision maker.

I would rather TD run the point (yikes!) and Shumpert develop as an offguard.

See, that's another reason why I'm not down on the pick. If the Knicks make a run at Paul or D-WIll like we all think, isn't Shumpert still valuable as a defensive weapon? I know that's speculation, but I'd rather deploy him as a Bowen-like defensive specialist on the beast guards of the East and leave the decision-making to a Billups or INSERT STUD PG HERE and the scoring to our two Alpha dogs. If he develops into something more, that's gravy. Regardless, we weren't picking the next John Stockton at 17.

On one hand, that's a more than valid point.

On the other hand, he has shown a penchant for REALLY forcing the issue despite his obvious shortcomings. In this offense, he'll be asked to take his shots. But I don't think he yet understands the difference between good and bad shots. Combine his poor selection and decision making with the work he needs to do with improving his shot in general, he may play his way into Pringels' doghouse early and then who knows what happens

All the articles that are coming out seem to indicate that he will be asked to man the point from time to time as well. I think that would be a huge mistake in Shumpert's development

I suppose the good news is he could be taught shot selection. With STAT and Melo out there, it would be hard for him to jack up garbage. The MDA Doghouse certainly looms, but I hope the wingman drought we have on this team would earn Shumpert some slack (as Walsh mentioned, there are minutes to be had for Shumpert; a rookie forward, not so much).

Let me ask you: from what you've seen from this kid, does he have the tools to be a top-line defender?

the tools? yes--but--I found myself thinking his defensive effort was necessary to make up for his poor offensive performance

Iman Shumpert, first round pick?
June, 23, 2011 Jun 233:51PM ETEmail Print Comments9 By Eamonn BrennanOK, NBA draft. I give up. You win.

For all the faux-confusion I frequently direct at the NBA draft -- especially around Seebpomd time -- typically, I get where NBA general managers are coming from. (Except Timberwolves GM David Kahn. Kahhhnnn!) You're drafting players on potential. You're filling needs. You're stockpiling for the future. All of these things aren't mutually exclusive to selecting productive, successful college basketball players, but those interests don't always align. I get it.

Still, sometimes you look at a mock draft board, and you see Iman Shumpert being projected as a first-round pick ... and the cognitive dissonance is enough to make you dizzy. What on Earth is going on here? Iman Shumpert? Are we talking about the same player?

As of this writing -- which is just a few hours before what should be a wild and wacky NBA draft; no one really seems to know what's going to happen -- ESPN Insider Chad Ford's mock draft lists Shumpert as the No. 20 overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft, a pick that belongs to the Minnesota Timberwolves. (Kahhhhnnn!)

That's momentous news for Shumpert, who seemed certain to go low in the second round (or even undrafted) when he decided to forgo his senior season at Georgia Tech and enter the draft this spring. It's also difficult to fathom. Ford's reasoning (read: the reasoning of the NBA general managers who Chad talks to about these things) goes like this:

The Wolves added some serious offensive pop with the arrival of Ricky Rubio and, in this mock, Derrick Williams. Shumpert would give them a major defensive presence in their backcourt. While he's not the most offensively gifted player in the draft, his ability to guard both backcourt positions, combined with his elite athleticism, make him an interesting choice at No. 20.

I suppose I can understand that reasoning. Shumpert is a solid, versatile defender. Fair enough.

Still, there are a handful of other solid, versatile defenders out there, and they happen to be players -- Nolan Smith, Shelvin Mack, Tyler Honeycutt, Jimmy Butler, E'Twaun Moore, even DeAndre Liggins! -- who are also a) able to play offense and b) likely to be available in the second round, via trade, or as undrafted free agents. All of those players experienced much greater levels of success in college than Shumpert did. All of them actively made their teams better, which is not something we could always say for the Georgia Tech guard.

In his defense, Shumpert did improve during his junior season, and his 25.7 percent assist rate was encouraging. But it's hard not to feel like Shumpert is the beneficiary of that age-old draft red herring: workouts. Shumpert tested well at the draft combine. Scouts were impressed by his athleticism in individual sessions. "Hey, he jumps higher than we thought. Maybe he's not so bad after all!" The problem -- and college hoops fans already know this -- is that Shumpert has always been a great athlete. He's always "tested well." Between the lines, though, he's never played up to potential. He's never shot the ball well. He's never been an effective distributor. With Shumpert at the helm -- and this isn't entirely his fault; Paul Hewitt shares this blame, too -- Georgia Tech's offense has often looked downright lost.

At the risk of sounding like an old, stodgy baseball writer, winning does matter. Shumpert's career record at Georgia Tech? 48-50. Twenty-three of those wins came in 2010, when Derrick Favors, last year's No. 3 overall pick, patrolled the paint next to 2010 second round pick Gani Lawal. And the Yellow Jackets were still pretty mediocre.

Anyway, this isn't meant to pick on Shumpert. Honestly, if he goes first round tonight, good for him. No, this post is for the NBA scouts and general managers who overlook three years of reliable data and game footage and hastily ignore it for the chance to give an elite athlete a guaranteed first-round contract. It's as valid here as it is when a team selects a foreign prospect thanks to a few exciting shots over the outstretched arms of steel folding chairs. Yes, this is a weak draft, and yes, there's something to be said for filling a need ... but really? Iman Shumpert? A first round pick?

Somebody hold me. The NBA draft is always wild, and the Timberwolves are the Timberwolves (Kahhhhhnn!) but if Shumpert is a first round pick, then tonight can't possibly be anything less than totally insane. Frankly, I can't wait.

http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/32281/iman-shumpert-first-round-pick

Why Does Walsh say he is a very good shooter?? Everyone beleives in Walsh right??? So just put your faith in Walsh and wait and see.

nixluva wrote:

Papabear wrote:Papabear Says

All of these picks are a gamble. Remember Hill?? That was a Walsh pick and D'Antoni refused to play him. Remember Randolph 6Ft 11 inches ?? D"Antoni refused to play him also. The only thing that is different now is that D'Antoni's Butt is on the line. He don't have to play any of the young guys. The only thing is that his ass better be winning games and Melo and Amare and Billups better not get worn out or else Mike D's butt will be gone.

Iman was a D'Antoni pick! Hill was a D'Antoni pick! All this old crap about Mike refusing to play guys is so ridiculous. You play if you do the things the coach wants. D'Antoni doesn't demand much, but if you don't give effort you'll end up in his doghouse and deservedly so.

Iman will have every opportunity to succeed. They will give him clear direction on his role and how to play a more efficient style of ball. They'll minimize his weaknesses and play to his strengths.

Strengths: Stat-stuffing athlete with ideal size for either guard position ... Stands 6'5.5" in shoes with a wingspan of 6'9.5" ... Extremely athletic ... Explosive leaping ability, recorded a 42" vertical leap at the NBA Draft Combine ... Very fast in the open-court, able to pull down a rebound and go coast-to-coast in a matter of seconds ... Very strong for a point guard ... Uses his strength well on both offense and defense ... Scary in transition ... Excellent slasher ... Defenders practically bounce off him when he drives in the paint ... Able to finish in spectacular fashion at the rim, displaying fantastic hang-time and body-control ... A capable, though unsteady, playmaker ... Has good drive-and-dish potential at the next level ... A tenacious defensive player that works very hard to shut his man down... With his length and athleticism he could guard any of the 1-3 positions in the NBA ... Has "lock-down defender" potential ...

also here are their stats for their last year in school:

spree:
17.8ppg 5.2rpg 2.0apg 1.8steals

shumpert:
17.3ppg 5.8rpg 3.9apg 2.7steals

i'm not saying shumpert will be sprewell, but i get a similar feel for him when i see shumpert play - the ability to crash to the rim using his size over smaller guards, the break away speed in transition where it seems like he's dunking all alone, the physical style of play, etc. it makes me hopeful

crzymdups wrote:also, look at this draft profile for shumpert. i feel like his strengths are the exact ones latrell sprewell entered the league with. im not saying he'll be sprewell, but if he could even be a spree type, this will have been a great pick. people thought spree might be a PG when he came out of college, too. the bold parts sound exactly like spree to me.

Strengths: Stat-stuffing athlete with ideal size for either guard position ... Stands 6'5.5" in shoes with a wingspan of 6'9.5" ... Extremely athletic ... Explosive leaping ability, recorded a 42" vertical leap at the NBA Draft Combine ... Very fast in the open-court, able to pull down a rebound and go coast-to-coast in a matter of seconds ... Very strong for a point guard ... Uses his strength well on both offense and defense ... Scary in transition ... Excellent slasher ... Defenders practically bounce off him when he drives in the paint ... Able to finish in spectacular fashion at the rim, displaying fantastic hang-time and body-control ... A capable, though unsteady, playmaker ... Has good drive-and-dish potential at the next level ... A tenacious defensive player that works very hard to shut his man down... With his length and athleticism he could guard any of the 1-3 positions in the NBA ... Has "lock-down defender" potential ...

also here are their stats for their last year in school:

spree:
17.8ppg 5.2rpg 2.0apg 1.8steals

shumpert:
17.3ppg 5.8rpg 3.9apg 2.7steals

i'm not saying shumpert will be sprewell, but i get a similar feel for him when i see shumpert play - the ability to crash to the rim using his size over smaller guards, the break away speed in transition where it seems like he's dunking all alone, the physical style of play, etc. it makes me hopeful

People were sleeping on this kid and I think he was a victim of being on a team with the wrong coaching. That happens to a lot of kids. They could be so much better if they had the right direction.

CrushAlot wrote:

Paladin55 wrote:I said this when listing the 10 guys I wanted: Has the capacity to be a steal or a bust at #17.

His defensive ability makes it possible for him to have a role in a rotation, even if he is never a star, and his jump shooting is below average, but if someone drafted after him really shines- such as Faried or Singleton- he will always be compared to those guys, and may be seen as a bust if he never goes beyond being a 20MPG rotation guy.

On the other hand if he can really play the D they think he can play, turns out to be a capable jump shooter, finishes on the break with a few breathtaking jams each game, and is able to give you 16-18 PPG, 4-5 APG, 2 SPG, 6 RPG, he is going to make a lot of Knicks fans very happy.

He talked about how hard the academic program is at Georgia Tech and how he thinks now that he is out of school that he will have extra time to improve his jump shot. My brother-in-law is a very bright guy and was a huge Kenny Anderson fan growing up. He got into Tech and chose it partially because of Anderson. He almost flunked out and ended up transfering out after his freshman year so there maybe a lot of truth to what he is saying about the academic work load. My brother-in-law did have a class with Travis Best and he said he didn't come very often.

GREAT POINT! People tend to forget that it has a lot to do with the school you go to and the coaching staff too. You know they hired a new coach since he left and I don't think the coach he had was that good. His old coach Paul Hewitt has a career losing record. Who knows how that impacted the kid.

Now he can focus on his profession and perhaps that's why his shooting improved. He had time to concentrate on his game and this could turn out to be us getting a steal with this kid!!!