Vander at the Combine

[Boone]

Right. Blue should have used his head, not his heart. And if that's the best advice Wade could give him... thanks, but no thanks.

Blue has some serious delusions of grandeur.

[AZWarrior]

Blue is no where near quick enough to play the point in the NBA and whatever quickness he has is negated by a quicker point guard playing defense against him. His only advantage over a PG guarding him is shooting over him, and we all know that's not his strongest attribute.

Hater.

[mugrad99]

[LAMUfan]

nice

[Goose]

Looks like he is pretty quick in the lane.

[amen426]

Blue is no where near quick enough to play the point in the NBA and whatever quickness he has is negated by a quicker point guard playing defense against him. His only advantage over a PG guarding him is shooting over him, and we all know that's not his strongest attribute.

Blue finished top 5 in the modified lane agility, lane agility, and sprints tests.

Last two years, only two players finished in the top 6 in each three categories. Marquis Teague and Brandon Knight -- both PGs (and first rd picks).

No ones asking Blue to run an offense - but he certainly has the speed and agility to give a GM hope that he can DEFEND a PG.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

Blue finished top 5 in the modified lane agility, lane agility, and sprints tests.

Last two years, only two players finished in the top 6 in each three categories. Marquis Teague and Brandon Knight -- both PGs (and first rd picks).

No ones asking Blue to run an offense - but he certainly has the speed and agility to give a GM hope that he can DEFEND a PG.

That's actually a good point.

He might be a guy who you draft in the 2nd round and ends up developing into a decent combo defender/role player.

[Goose]

Nobody got the ball up court in transition quicker than Blue did. Several times he got defensive rebound and took ball coast to coast and beat everyone down the court. If Buzz would have allowed him to play point this year it would have helped both the team and Blue. His game is suited to play point in up tempo offense.

[reinko]

Raw #'s make it look like they are all close, but Vander being about 15-17% (huge statistically) faster in this drill than some lotto picks have to pique the interest of some GMs.

[reinko]

Vander is a winner here.

http://nbadraft.net/combine-measurement-analysis-0

[LAMUfan]

those height numbers are interesting, and kinda funny.  Add and inch and round up to get the NBA height (in shoes...whatever).  So I'm 6'4.5", round up, 6'5" and add one, 6'6"... huh.  Makes me feel tall, but also sad that I can't dunk like every player in the league that is much shorter than me 

[amen426]

Vander is a winner here.

http://nbadraft.net/combine-measurement-analysis-0

Love this. NBA Combine results never make or break a prospect. But with such a weak draft class, a strong combine performance can make you stand out in a year where very few players stand out. At the very least, its another selling point he can bring up during team interviews.

[RJax55]

Nobody got the ball up court in transition quicker than Blue did. Several times he got defensive rebound and took ball coast to coast and beat everyone down the court.

No question, Blue can score in a full court setting. But, can be a distributor as well? If his role is to be an energy PG for team (coming off the bench to increase the tempo) , he will not only have to score in transition, but also set-up his teammates. There's no evidence from his MU career that he can be a distributor in the full-court.

[BostonMUaler]

I would argue that Blue in his earlier seasons held the ball and picked up his dribble a lot.
This is right after he is coming from HS as a PG but we all knew his confident issues as well.
I think he has good vision but question his hands, although his jumper did improve immensely this past year....

[nyg]

His workouts numbers for speed, etc. were pretty good, but his shooting on Thursday was horrible.  That may overide the measurements in the draft. 

[77ncaachamps]

His workouts numbers for speed, etc. were pretty good, but his shooting on Thursday was horrible.  That may overide the measurements in the draft. 

True.

But it's now up to Vander to shine in individual and group workouts for the teams.

[Otule's Glass Eye]

That's actually a good point.

He might be a guy who you draft in the 2nd round and ends up developing into a decent combo defender/role player.

AKA Tony Allen (as said in a previous thread). That's actually a great comparison. Limited offensive players and bad poor jump shooters but very solid defenders, if Vander could become another Tony Allen I would consider that a success.

[Otule's Glass Eye]

So, Shabazz first exaggerated his age and now his height.

[77ncaachamps]

Watching Vander and the combine on ESPN3.

Does anyone have the time mark when they start to talk more in depth about him?

[MUSF]

Not surprised. I will stick with my prediction that Vander excels at the combine and definitely gets drafted.

[MUBurrow]

There are some teams at the end of the first that might be interested in a combo defender:
- Knicks particularly are full of slow guards that can't defend anyone, especially depending on how Shumpert is recovering (pablo prigioni anyone?)
- Memphis with Tony Allen being an UFA after this season. If he can slow down Tony Parker and then draw a banged up Wade in the finals, he could be set up for an even bigger payday
- LAC if they trade Bledsoe and don't want to overburden Paul with the toughest defensive matchup on the floor all game
- OKC, but with Thabo on the books for another year, I doubt they go that direction

[Dreadman24]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olRRaIZAcmk

F*** the haters

[Silkk the Shaka]

There are some teams at the end of the first that might be interested in a combo defender:
- Knicks particularly are full of slow guards that can't defend anyone, especially depending on how Shumpert is recovering (pablo prigioni anyone?)
- Memphis with Tony Allen being an UFA after this season. If he can slow down Tony Parker and then draw a banged up Wade in the finals, he could be set up for an even bigger payday
- LAC if they trade Bledsoe and don't want to overburden Paul with the toughest defensive matchup on the floor all game
- OKC, but with Thabo on the books for another year, I doubt they go that direction

I like the Memphis theory, very interesting.  They have made some very shrewd moves since bringing Hollinger aboard, and have brought advanced metrics to the forefront of player personnel decisions.  They won't overpay for Allen, and if they see a guy with Vander's measurables + standout midrange game + defensive reputation + coming from a program that has produced versatile undervalued players good for team chemistry recently in Matthews, Butler and Crowder, they might see Vander as an excellent fit, be that as a first or second round pick.  The Grizz are a hot young team with a good front office, I'd really like to see him end up there.

[wadesworld]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olRRaIZAcmk

F*** the haters

"I'll take the charge."

1 in 3 years, baby.

[Dreadman24]

"I'll take the charge."

1 in 3 years, baby.

He is telling them what they wanna hear. ALL players do that..