Players you think will become Stars

[Rip32]

i forgot to add Jason Maxiell....he may only be 6'7 but he plays much bigger. Finishes around the rim with power, extremelly athletic, quick, fast. A matchup nightmare. And he's a fairly decent defender which is a good start to superstardom.

I dont know about Maxiel being a "star" but I think he can be an elite 6th man. He can come into a game in the 2nd quarter and by the end of the game finish up with 8pts 7rebs. Right now he's like Corliss Wiliamson, only he plays D and hopeefully once playoffs come, he wont be like Scoreliss.


I think Andrew Bynum is gonna be a star. Once he gets some bulk and finds himself a go-to post move he could be a very good center, even in the Western Conference.

[Nick]

Mark my words - Thaddeus Young.

He is a young athletic freak wing player, but what sets him apart is his brains and work ethic. I think this combination will see him be very successful. I hope he declares for this year's draft.

[nets4life]

does anyone know when players start declaring themselves for the nba draft? or is there no set date?

[Bruce]

Mark my words - Thaddeus Young.

He is a young athletic freak wing player, but what sets him apart is his brains and work ethic. I think this combination will see him be very successful. I hope he declares for this year's draft.

wow, I hope he does not end up being the next darvin ham.

[---]

Nick, I also think Thaddeus will be a great player. I would say an Iguodala/Paul Pierce type.

To alot of people, right now it will seem he is nothing more than a great scorer, athlete and a decent ballhandler. He hasn't even been the best freshmen on his team this season - that goes to Javaris Crittenton. I do think that Thaddeus should stay another year in college though, he was regarded as a top 5 draft pick before the college season started and dropped way down to the mid 20's but lately has risen back up to about the mid first round. If he stays another year and really impresses, then he could go very high in the draft. I wouldn't be surprised if he went top 10 this year though, maybe as high as 6 because many NBA teams will see his somewhat disappointing first college season as him adjusting to the game and not being as polish as he needs to be. His potential is extremely high though.

I hope he pans out.

[Nick]

I don't know what you're saying with this:

To alot of people, right now it will seem he is nothing more than a great scorer, athlete and a decent ballhandler.

He is not a great scorer or decent ball handler. In fact, ball handling is his glaring weakness and you can't be much a great (perimeter) scorer without a handle.

It's kind of hard to say what kind of player he will be at this stage, as you can only count on the fact that he will improve a lot from what he is now. I don't see him as a Paul Pierce type. You make it sound as if he is greatly skilled. At this stage he has no handle and doesn't create his own shots. His strengths are more focused towards scoring easy baskets inside (even though he plays on the perimeter in college) and off the break. Right now i am basing my high hopes off potential alone. I'm assuming his skill set will improve greatly over time with hard work.

In the end i think he will be a great combo forward sort of player. DraftExpress mentioned in the same mould as Antwan Jamison, and i suppose that sounds about right.

[---]

From what I have seen he has a great handle, but he is a bit to flashy with it. It didn't seem to me he was a fundamental type ballhandler, and thats his downfall in the ballhandling department. I have seen him make some incredible crossovers both in HS and college, but he does get sloppy. I know you said he "doesn't" create his own shots but there are no doubts he can. The guy has been great at creating his own shots all through HS and college, and has done a great job doing it. Scoring wise, 14 PPG off 11 shots per in my opinion shows what he is capable of as a scorer. He is great down low, one of the best outside shooters in the college game, the only thing I don't like what I see is his mid range game in terms of shooting. He shoots close to 50%, I think its obvious his strength is scoring.

As for the Antawn Jamison comparison, I don't think it fits. He can't rebound like Antawn and probably never will. What is Jamison, 6-10 or something? He still grabs 10 boards a night. Thaddeus is 6-9 (well, 6-8.5) and barely grabs 5 boards despite his athleticism.

I think he will be very similar to Paul Pierce, but not as much of a playmaker. A SG/SF with a good all round game with scoring as his strength, especially if he can get that mid range game down.

[Nick]

I have seen him make some incredible crossovers both in HS and college, but he does get sloppy.

What player on earth can't do a crossover? If you've seen the same footage as me, he did do some nifty crossovers. That doesn't make his handle reliable though. They're highlights. His dribble with his left hand is not there, and defenders pick up on that, which limits him.

The guy has been great at creating his own shots all through HS and college, and has done a great job doing it.

He could create his own shots against high school compeitition, but that's high school. He can't all that well against college.

Scoring wise, 14 PPG off 11 shots per in my opinion shows what he is capable of as a scorer.

Eh? How is not being able to get to the free throw line show what he is capable of as a scorer? He's scoring 14PPG off 11 shots. That's a bad thing because he's getting to the line only 2 times a game.

[---]

What player on earth can't do a crossover? If you've seen the same footage as me, he did do some nifty crossovers. That doesn't make his handle reliable though. They're highlights. His dribble with his left hand is not there, and defenders pick up on that, which limits him.

Thats what I mean, he has good ballhandling skills, but they are not practical. He can make some flashy moves but his fundamental ballhandling is something that needs work. His dribble with his left hand is not there? You do realize he is left handed don't you? I will agree his off hand is very weak. I don't think I have seen him drive down the lane with his right hand in any game I have watched without causing a turnover.

He could create his own shots against high school compeitition, but that's high school. He can't all that well against college.

From everything that I have seen, one of his strengths is his ability to create his own shot. He can almost always get his shot off due to his length and speed. Length and speed somewhat compensates for lack of fundamental ballhandling in terms of trying to get your shot off, and he uses that to his advantage.

Eh? How is not being able to get to the free throw line show what he is capable of as a scorer? He's scoring 14PPG off 11 shots. That's a bad thing because he's getting to the line only 2 times a game.

The FT problem stems from his ballhandling problem. Since he isn't confident using he right hand, he can't drive to the hoop. The only ways he is getting to the hoop is:

A) Cutting and receiving a pass

B) Driving in using his left hand

"A" isn't all that common due to the slow pace GT plays at. They aren't a fast breaking team and being in a half court set and taking plenty of timeoff the clock doesn't exactly help off ball slashers.

"B" won't happen very much at all. This is because the defender knows he doesn't like to dribble using his off hand and will just force him to use his right. Problem solved for the defence.

So, he doesn't get to the line because first you have to get to the hoop, which he doesn't do a whole lot. Another reason is because he stays outside and launches perimeter jumpers all game long, because he can't do much else at the moment. If he develops that right hand to the point where he can keep the defence honest in terms of his ability to go either way, he can be a very good player. While he is a very capable outside shooter, its wasting half of his game - his athleticism and his length. He needs to drive the ball in more and finish. He's capable of doing that, but its that off hand thats causing the problem in my opinion.