Gery Awful believes James played well in pre-draft camp

[ChicosBailBonds]

Especially in the third game where he had 7 points, 2 assists and no turnovers.

http://www.journaltimes.com/nucleus/index.php?itemid=13364

[ecompt]

Gery is hoping desperately DJ leaves so that he can rip Crean down the road.

[warriors_mu]

Chad Ford disagrees. He listed a group of players that hurt their stock in Orlando, including James.

"Several underclassmen may have hurt their chances of being drafted. Marquette's Dominic James, Fresno State's Dominic McGuire, Texas A&M's James Jones, Virginia's Sean Singletary, Nevada's Marcelus Kemp, and Clemson's James Mays need to return to school. They didn't play well enough to warrant a first-round selection, and even a second-round selection is questionable for some of them.

That may be a problem for James and McGuire, who are rumored to be unwilling to return to school."

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/draft2007/insider/columns/story?columnist=ford_chad&id=2890945&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab6pos1

[Murffieus]

Well Draft Express has just updated their mock and DJ didn't drop as much as one would have expected judging from media reports. He drooped to the mid 2nd round is all!

Actually, a cumulative total of 6 assists and only one TO wasn't too shaby!

[ecompt]

Mid second-round means no guaranteed money, which means he has only a slim chance of making the roster, which means "hello NBDL," which is what everyone here has been saying all along.

[Murffieus]

Being picked midway in the 2nd round has a very good chance of sticking-----this is usually a team that needs help!

Would then get a chance to prove he belongs !

[ecompt]

Murff...Travis Diener never gets off the bench for a bad team. Steve Novak never gets off the bench for a mediocre team. Why would you think DJ, who is nowhere near the talent Travis or Steve is, would have a chance at sticking?

[The Lens]

Murff...Travis Diener never gets off the bench for a bad team. Steve Novak never gets off the bench for a mediocre team. Why would you think DJ, who is nowhere near the talent Travis or Steve is, would have a chance at sticking?

Travis & Steve don't play b/c they cannot play D.  Dominic is an above average defender and has the quickness to keep a player in front of him.  As much as everyone thinks the NBA is a No D League, you won't play if you're a sieve.  Until Travis and Steve improve their D, they'll sit.'

[ecompt]

As good as a defender as DJ is (and he's nowhere near what Jerel is), he's still going to be 3-4 inches shorter than he guy he's guarding. And every point guard in the NBA is quick.

[Murffieus]

Ecompt-----As Damon points out, TD sits because of his defense----Novak sat because he was a rookie on a talented team and had a coach who has a history of not playing rookies.

DJ on the otherhand can hold his own defensively-----I would draft DJ on the basis that I could change his shot delivery form and make him at least an average shooter----then there is the quickness and the athleticism that SN and TD don't come close to.

As near as I can determine, DJ was 8 assists vs only 1 TO in the four days!

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

I love DJ as much as the next guy (probably more)...

But, if I had to chose between Travis or DJ for a NBA franchise I would chose Travis.

I don't think either player is ever going to be a starter... so you will be looking to get maybe 10min - 15min max from either of them in a game...

Travis gives you:
great shooter
good ball handler
good passer
poor defender (not a lack of effort, he's just not as gifted as other players)

D. James:
Quick enough to defend (still TBD if his size will prevent him from becoming a defender)
Good ball handler
Good passer
poor poor shooting
poor FT shooting
Still TBD if he can get in the lane and be effective like he is in college


If I'm looking to get 10min a game from a guard, I will take Travis because I know what he can do and you know you are going to get a player to can produce offensively. DJ is really an unknown... even if you overhaul his shot...

DJ is an awesome talent, but his game needs work before he can go to the next level. A "hot shooting" DJ is better than most college players in the country... but too often he is "cold" and that greatly limits his effectiveness.

Consistency and shot selection have to be the things that he improves on.

[LCDutchman]

The reality is that Dom James is gone.  Is he ready?  He is not but most of the high school kids drafted in the 90's weren't either.  You can't coach physical tools.  He has them.  Good luck to him.  He was fun to watch.

[ozmetal71]

Physical tools?  What physical tools?

Height...let's see.....ummmm....5'10"...not good

Quickness.... yes, but everyone has that at his position in the NBA

Shooting ability..... yeah, let's not go there

Guys who are 7'0" get drafted based on physical tools, not 5'10" point guards who can't shoot.

If DJ stays in the draft he is making a huge mistake.

[MilTown]

I don't really see how coming back for one more year will improve DJ's ability to succeed at the next level. In my opinion, TC's system plays to DJ's weaknesses. Next year, he will just expose his faults even more. I think he has the tools to be a NBA back up PG right now, and some day even a starter. I also think the size issue is way overrated. Take a guy like tony parker. He is undersized and can't shoot consistently, but he super quick and can take larger players off the dribble. DJ is just as quick and can do the same. If he works on his ball handling and passing he can be just as good as parker. I think the key for DJ is the team. He needs to be on a team where he can play as a ball handling, distributing, and offense starting PG, not a scorer.

[ozmetal71]

Apparently everyone at the predraft camp disagrees with you.

If we can take the blue and gold glasses off for a second, how many of us can really objectively think that DJ could start at PG for an NBA team?

Again, please do not confuse athletic ability with basketball ability.

TC's system, if anything, should promote DJ as his offenses have always been heavily slanted towards a PG.  DJ was hurt by not having a consistent outside threat this year, but next year we will have better shooters, plus an inside game.

You don't think that working on his jump shot and proving that he can effectively run an offense and lead a team(all three have been exposed in the predraft camp) would help DJ to become a better pro prospect?

If you think that the size issue is overrated, you are mistaken.  How many PG's are DJ's size in the NBA?  Then, after you look at that number, ask yourself how many PGs of his size are in the NBA who cannot shoot free throws or even mid-range jumpers with consistency.

[Pakuni]

I don't really see how coming back for one more year will improve DJ's ability to succeed at the next level. In my opinion, TC's system plays to DJ's weaknesses. Next year, he will just expose his faults even more. I think he has the tools to be a NBA back up PG right now, and some day even a starter. I also think the size issue is way overrated. Take a guy like tony parker. He is undersized and can't shoot consistently, but he super quick and can take larger players off the dribble. DJ is just as quick and can do the same. If he works on his ball handling and passing he can be just as good as parker. I think the key for DJ is the team. He needs to be on a team where he can play as a ball handling, distributing, and offense starting PG, not a scorer.

And therein lies the rub.
It's no lock that, by coming back, DJ is going to improve his stock. History shows that guys hurt themselves by returning as often as they do by coming out too soon. Of course, we all hear the cautionary tales of Kenny Satterfield and Omar Cook, but how often are we reminded that Chris Thomas cost himself millions of dollars by returning to school?

Also, I tend to agree with you about the exaggeration of DJ's weaknesses. Yeah, he's undersized and not a great shooter. The NBA is full of guys like that. But he's an above-average ball-handler and passer, and - contrary to what's being said in this thread - he is quicker than most NBA point guards.

I won't pretend to know that DJ will or won't make it in the NBA, nor can I claim to know whether he'd be making a bad decision by staying in the draft. But there's very little reason to believe his strengths will get any stronger or his weaknesses any less weak by playing another season at Marquette. He'll still be undersized. He'll still be a shaky shooter. And his shooting is no more likely to improve with another year at MU than it would on an NBA bench or in the NBDL or in Europe.

[MarquetteVol]

The difference is that at this point, DJ may not be costing himself anything by coming back to school. Chris Thomas was an anticipated first-round pick early on his collegiate career looking at a guaranteed contract, while DJ has no guarantee that he'll get a dime. It's one thing for DWade to leave early - he had no choice. But DJ would be throwing away a free college degree and a chance to at least leave a legacy on the collegiate level. At this point, he's going to have to work very hard to make a paycheck in the NBA whether it's in a few months or a few years. He's no longer going to be drafted on potential alone. A lot of players disappear to Europe and it can be very hard to come back. At the collegiate level, he'll be given maximum exposure to demonstrate improvement, especially considering the tremendous amount of high-profile games and TV time we've been getting in the Big East. Staying in the draft is simply not a good decision.

[Pakuni]

A lot of players disappear to Europe and it can be very hard to come back. At the collegiate level, he'll be given maximum exposure to demonstrate improvement, especially considering the tremendous amount of high-profile games and TV time we've been getting in the Big East. Staying in the draft is simply not a good decision.

I'm still waiting for someone to explain to me why "disappearing to Europe" is such a God-awful occurrence. True, on average, players in the Euro leagues aren't earning the same as their NBA counterparts. But they are very well paid nonetheless. There are worse things in life than earning $300K+ tax free (teams pay their players' taxes separately in Europe) for playing basketball in Madrid for seven months a year. Why is this such a terrible fate?

The "maximum exposure" argument is overstated. Every NBA team has scouts in Europe. Some have multiple scouts. If DJ, or any other player, is lighting it up over there, teams will know about it. NBA franchises do not need ESPN to see whether players demonstrate improvement.

Lastly, it remains a false assumption that DJ will improve his stock by returning to MU. As has been repeated here over and over and over, his weaknesses are size and shooting. We already know he's not getting any taller. Will his shooting get better? To the extent that everyone is going to forget his sophomore season, I doubt it. And the new, extended three-point line will, in all likelihood, hurt his shooting numbers, not help them.

For selfish reasons, I hope he stays. But I won't claim to know what is and what is not a good decision for him.

[Niv Berkowitz]

Pakuni,

You're accurate on being able to make a good living in Europe playing ball. Nobody questions that. But, if DJ's dream - as he's said - is to play in the NBA, he'd be better off w/another year of college under his belt then rolling the dice, hopping to a) get picked and b) make the team. If he wants to make money, fine, but who's to even say he'd be successful in Europe either? Again, look at his physical abilities.

Quick
Explosive leaper
Questionable decision maker
Lack of consistent jumper (something you could say about a lot of players these days, but still)
Lack of size
Prone to injury/cramping (not a huge deal, but it doesn't help)

Compile all of that info about DJ and stack it against other successful point guards. He's not exactly cream rising to the top. He's in the frothy middle w/a ton of other guys. Also, lets say he goes this year and gets an NBDL contract via second round pick. Well, next year's PG crop is better than this years (as of now..projected). What guarantees does he have of going this year in round 2, then seeing the team that took a flyer on him draft another PG next year? Look at Diener in Orlando after they drafted/traded for PGs the year after they picked him.

And comparing Novak to James is ridiculous. Novak has a much better shot at having a 10-15 career in the NBA just based on his shooting ability alone. Shooters like him aren't a dime a dozen. Short, undersized, inconsistent shooting PGs are. It's the sad truth.

I love DJ and hope he's successful in whatever he does. But, I think he's wrong if he goes pro. Come back, get another year of exposure, lead your team to some kind of postseason win (or four), and then see what happens. If he comes back and has a bad season, he'd still be no worse off than he is now, at least as far as NBDL and Europe opportunities go. 

[77ncaachamps]

I would enjoy watching DJ play at the next level.

But my hometown doesn't have an NBDL team!

 

[ozmetal71]

You mean that you won't be going to Dakota, Arkansas, or Sioux Falls?  For shame.

I am trying to feel bad for DJ, but sometimes one has to fall before one can learn to get up. 

He's hurting the team by staying in the draft.  I hope for his sake that he doesn't hire an agent and that he comes to his senses.

[Coobeys Oil Depot]

You mean that you won't be going to Dakota, Arkansas, or Sioux Falls?  For shame.

I am trying to feel bad for DJ, but sometimes one has to fall before one can learn to get up. 

He's hurting the team by staying in the draft.  I hope for his sake that he doesn't hire an agent and that he comes to his senses.

Writing that James is hurting the team is a stretch IMO. "Testing the waters" has become commonplace in today's college game. We've been lucky that only one player has been in this position under Crean and he was a no-brainer so there wasn't a back and forth like there is this summer with James. There are programs that deal with this year in and year out and some of them seem to do pretty damn well regardless of what happens.

Everyone knew this was coming. It didn't take anyone by surprise either on the inside or outside the program. Just don't see how it hurts the team. Hell, we don't even have a true team yet because the new players aren't working out with the returning players and Blackledge remains in limbo. Truthfully, the former does more to hurt the team then James working out for NBA teams and the latter creates more of a headache and could be a bigger black eye.

I think MU fans think only of his poor play and that clouds their thinking as to the damage it may or may not be doing to the program. In reality, I highly doubt people will blame a 3 game losing streak in January on James testing the waters in June.

[Niv Berkowitz]

I don't think he has to take into account whether he's hurting the team. It's about whether he's hurting himself by going pro. Players like him have to worry about themselves, not the team.

[muarmy81]

In reality, I highly doubt people will blame a 3 game losing streak in January on James testing the waters in June.

Have you read some of the things posted on this forum?

[ecompt]

With all due respect, Murff, if NBA teams thought they could work with DJ and make him an adequate perimeter shooter, he would be a first-round pick, no?