http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/blog?name=nba_draft&id=6338710
I'll paraphrase since it's Insider. Don't want anyone on this board pissed at me.
Talks about the decline of the tournament and how many GM's don't bother to go anymore. Said Landry Fields and Wes are the two best players to come out of it in recent years. Jimmy is the focus of his actual analysis. Says virtually every scout he talked to named him as the clear best in the tournament. "While Butler doesn't necessarily shine in any one area, he's one of those all-around players who scouts think could be in the mold of a Matthews or Fields. That should bode well for Butler's chances as a second-round pick."
Quote from: drewm88 on April 12, 2011, 03:33:57 PM
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/blog?name=nba_draft&id=6338710
I'll paraphrase since it's Insider. Don't want anyone on this board pissed at me.
Talks about the decline of the tournament and how many GM's don't bother to go anymore. Said Landry Fields and Wes are the two best players to come out of it in recent years. Jimmy is the focus of his actual analysis. Says virtually every scout he talked to named him as the clear best in the tournament. "While Butler doesn't necessarily shine in any one area, he's one of those all-around players who scouts think could be in the mold of a Matthews or Fields. That should bode well for Butler's chances as a second-round pick."
Interesting, though I'd venture to guess that if NBA teams knew then what they know now, it's unlikely either Wes or Fields gets out of the first round.
Sounds like this tourney really helped JFB's stock and may have pushed him over the edge into getting drafted. In the long run though I really don't think this helps his career in the NBA since second round picks contracts aren't guaranteed. I think Wes showed the value in going undrafted rather than being picked in the late second roudn (where JFB ultimately looks like he'll end up). Now Jimmy has to go whether he is drafted and I think his game is going to be very niche in the NBA. He may be better off having the flexibility to try and play on to a team which has a specific role which he can fill.
I think the potential lock out will also help Butler as it seems to keep some sure fire first rounders from declaring this year.
Quote from: drewm88 on April 12, 2011, 03:33:57 PM
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/blog?name=nba_draft&id=6338710
I'll paraphrase since it's Insider. Don't want anyone on this board pissed at me.
The only forum's content that's off limits is Scout.
Quote from: bilsu on April 12, 2011, 05:14:59 PM
I think the potential lock out will also help Butler as it seems to keep some sure fire first rounders from declaring this year.
Agreed. As those projected 1st rounders return to school (or play overseas), the movement of JFB from 2nd round to late 1st gets better everyday.
I think that a guy like Landry Fields shows that once you get past the cherished guys in the first round that teams are willing to build around, its all about situation. I'm not trying to bash a guy like Fields or especially Wes, but there are a ton of guys that could do what Landry Fields does. His biggest contribution was pulling down 6-7 rpg. Thats not hard to do in a Dantoni system if you play hard. Particularly considering that he runs up and down the floor and had Amare and later Melo playing the 4 and sometimes 5, neither of whom have any interest of getting rebounds. Considering how many possessions Dantoni aims for each game, you could throw a ton of guys out there to crash the boards - theres no one else down there.
I will say that guys like Fields, Wes, and JFB who have versatile, well rounded games are the best guys to take advantage of these types of niche gaps. If you are just a scorer, etc, you might not have the wherewithall to be a great rebounder, defender, etc and then you never see the floor enough to get more minutes and have your team try to showcase the other aspects of your game.
Quote from: AWegrzyn17 on April 12, 2011, 04:05:14 PM
In the long run though I really don't think this helps his career in the NBA since second round picks contracts aren't guaranteed.
Tell that to Lance Stephenson and the Pacers, who took Stephenson with the 40th pick in last years draft. Lance got 4 year contract - first 2 years guaranteed, with the 3rd and 4th year club options.
It's all part of negotiating. Yes, MOST 2nd round contracts aren't guaranteed, but certainly not all.
Quote from: lurch91 on April 13, 2011, 09:59:36 AM
Tell that to Lance Stephenson and the Pacers, who took Stephenson with the 40th pick in last years draft. Lance got 4 year contract - first 2 years guaranteed, with the 3rd and 4th year club options.
It's all part of negotiating. Yes, MOST 2nd round contracts aren't guaranteed, but certainly not all.
I'm not exactly foreseeing JFB having a lot of negotiating power on his side
FWIW, the OP did a good job paraphrasing, but here's the relevant 2 paragraphs:
"The best players to play in the PIT in the last couple of years have been Landry Fields and Wesley Matthews. Fields didn't stand out in the tournament (he averaged just 13 ppg), was not invited to the NBA predraft camp in Chicago and slipped into the second round. Matthews had a bit of a better showing at the PIT but went undrafted. However, Fields is having an excellent rookie season for the Knicks and Matthews played well enough to get a huge deal from Portland last summer -- I'm not sure if that's a bigger indictment on the camp or NBA scouts who attended it.
This year, there weren't many standouts according to several scouts who attended the event. However, a few players got multiple mentions. Virtually every NBA scout I spoke to had Marquette's Jimmy Butler as the clear player of the tournament. While Butler doesn't necessarily shine in any one area, he's one of those all-around players who scouts think could be in the mold of a Matthews or Fields. That should bode well for Butler's chances as a second-round pick."
A decade ago, the Portsmouth Invitational was packed with every GM and NBA scout in the league. Regularly a few players there would sneak into the first round and many others would be taken in the second.
Over the past five years, however, the tournament has been in serious decline. The senior-only tournament is seen as a last-ditch effort to get noticed by agents and virtually all of the top seniors left skip it.
A huge number of seniors opted not to come this year, including Jimmer Fredette, Kenneth Faried, Nolan Smith, Justin Harper, JaJuan Johnson, Kyle Singler, Charles Jenkins, Keith Benson, Norris Cole, Demetri McCamey, Marshon Brooks, Jon Leuer, E'Twaun Moore, Jamie Skeen, Chandler Parsons and Jacob Pullen.
Lately NBA personnel have been following their lead. While scouts still come out in force, fewer GMs are attending the event and most of those that do come leave halfway into the event to get out to Portland for the Nike Hoop Summit.
The best players to play in the PIT in the last couple of years have been Landry Fields and Wesley Matthews. Fields didn't stand out in the tournament (he averaged just 13 ppg), was not invited to the NBA predraft camp in Chicago and slipped into the second round. Matthews had a bit of a better showing at the PIT but went undrafted. However, Fields is having an excellent rookie season for the Knicks and Matthews played well enough to get a huge deal from Portland last summer -- I'm not sure if that's a bigger indictment on the camp or NBA scouts who attended it.
This year, there weren't many standouts according to several scouts who attended the event. However, a few players got multiple mentions. Virtually every NBA scout I spoke to had Marquette's Jimmy Butler as the clear player of the tournament. While Butler doesn't necessarily shine in any one area, he's one of those all-around players who scouts think could be in the mold of a Matthews or Fields. That should bode well for Butler's chances as a second-round pick.
Florida's Vernon Macklin, College of Charleston's Andrew Goudelock, Illinois' Mike Davis, Washington's Matthew Bryan-Amaning and Villanova's Corey Stokes all drew praise as well.
What's Next?
With the Nike Hoop Summit and Portsmouth Invitational over, what's next before the NBA draft? Plenty.
College players have until April 24 to declare for the draft. We currently have 27 underclassmen declaring -- most notably Duke's Kyrie Irving and Kansas' Marcus Morris and Markieff Morris. A couple of top prospects, including Ohio State's Jared Sullinger, Baylor's Perry Jones and UNC's John Henson, have said they are returning to school, weakening the draft considerably. We're still waiting to hear from several big prospects like North Carolina's Harrison Barnes and Arizona's Derrick Williams. Here's a look at who is currently In and Out of the draft.
A number of NBA scouts and executives will head to Barcelona for the Euroleague Final Four on May 6. One potential lottery prospect, Nikola Mirotic, will be playing there. Mirotic plays a solid supporting role for Real Madrid and teams should get a good chance to see him up close one more time before the draft. If he plays well, he could join Enes Kanter, Jonas Valanciunas, Jan Vesely, Donatas Montiejunas and Bismack Biyombo in the lottery. The NBA hasn't been this Euro-crazy in just under a decade.
On May 8, college players will have to decide whether to stay in the draft or return to school. The NCAA instituted the new deadline last year, giving players a very small window to test their draft stock. A host of NBA teams are in the process of setting up a group workout for the weekend of April 29 to workout underclassmen who are testing the waters.
The draft lottery is set to take place Tuesday, May 17. Two days later, the predraft camp will be held in Chicago at Tim Grover's A.T.T.A.C.K. Athletics gym.