RealGM

There's already a thread about Rubio on the first page, so I'm not going to duplicate it. Let's move on to Thabeet.

The Raps have a chance at #3 pick and Thabeet is going to be in play.

Main College Stats:


Positives:
•He's huge, long arms
•Amazing shot-blocker, explosive leaper
•Good rebounder, with good hands
•Excellent athlete who runs the floor very well
•Developing offensive game -- added a nice turnaround jumper
•Appears to be a fast learner, keeps developing

Negatives:
•Still very raw, especially offensively
•Needs to add strength to his lower body
•Has difficulty holding his position in the block
•Whoever drafts him is going to have to be patient

Topics of discussion:
- Do we even take him?
- Even we do take him, do we trade Bargnani?
- How long will he need to develop into an NBA center?
etc.

If the Raps cpuld get a swingman in a trade, I would really look at trying to draft Thabeet. He would be a solid player behind Bargs and Bosh with his defensive presence.

We need a SG...

If we got 3 we would have to take Harden.

I have a hard time believing he'll be the 3rd best player from this draft class. NBA players love dunking, and I think the general commitment to defense in the NBA is less than what he would've experienced in college, so I feel he'll be hung out to dry on numerous occasions early on in his career. If he can make it past the first few seasons without a major injury or loss of confidence, then I think he can be an impact player. The problem is, the higher he goes the worse off he'll be.

Are his hands really that good?

If they are, then he looks a bit shinier to me. Superior size, good-great hands and work ethic can take guys pretty far in the L.

No. I see him as a small Shawn Bradley.

springbreak wrote:No. I see him as a small Shawn Bradley.

That's the exact negative comparison I was thinking of when I wrote my last post about. That's the fear with this cat, but I don't know if anyone besides Bol was a skinny and gangly as that cat.

Shaazzam wrote:

springbreak wrote:No. I see him as a small Shawn Bradley.

That's the exact negative comparison I was thinking of when I wrote my last post about. That's the fear with this cat, but I don't know if anyone besides Bol was a skinny and gangly as that cat.

I think he is far more coordinated and athletic then Bradley. He is skinny but seems much stronger than he looks. Sort of like Mutombo i guess but i have doubts about his rebounding. If he can become a great rebounder than he is a definite keeper.

If Moving Bosh is a must then Thabeet is the pick at number 3. Rubio is still number 2 though. How is Thabeet's running game?

Thabeet is not a good rebounder. At least not against players 6'9 and up.

No way we take Thabeet. We either go ahead and draft Harden or DeRozan or we trade down. I would love to have the option though.

Thabeet = Olowakandi 2.0.

Slurms McKenzie wrote:We need a SG...

Bottom Line is that Toronto needs more talent over all. It's not the time to concentrate solely on plugging holes. If Thabeet is the BPA wherever toronto is picking then they damn well better take him and sort it out later.

I think the Bradley comparison is pretty good. Whoever said Thabeet is strong, he isn't. He constantly got pushed around by 6'9'' guys at the college level.

Marvin! wrote:

Slurms McKenzie wrote:We need a SG...

Bottom Line is that Toronto needs more talent over all. It's not the time to concentrate solely on plugging holes. If Thabeet is the BPA wherever toronto is picking then they damn well better take him and sort it out later.

The thing is this draft has no definite BPAs other than Griffen and Rubio, so if you are taking a project get yourself DeRozan if you need a SG.

I see Thabeet as a 7'3 version of Sammy Dalembert. Since he is 7'3, there will be many teams coming after him, but if the Raps got #3, we should either trade this pick or pick someone else. I honestly don't think he is the third best player in the draft.

Raw. They say big men take 3 years to develop. This guy is a classic case. He needs to go to a team that can give him tons of minutes without worrying about losing. And he'll foul out of a bunch of games this year.

I wouldn't be happy with him as the 3rd pick.

I'd be very happy with him if he slipped to 9 - but I'd be worried as to why.

I'd love to see a Thabeet / Bargnani front line if we move Bosh for a swing.

We could've had Hasheem lite in Roy Hibbert, if we had hung on to our pick last year. Their final year college stats are eerily similar.

Thing is, Thabeet is a blocking machine... but how often does that skill translate to the professional ranks?

dacrusha wrote:We could've had Hasheem lite in Roy Hibbert, if we had hung on to our pick last year. Their final year college stats are eerily similar.

Thing is, Thabeet is a blocking machine... but how often does that skill translate to the professional ranks?

Hibbert was 8th overall in blk % last season (Link). I'd have to assume that Thabeet would be even better.

My interest in Thabeet pertains only to defense. If he can give us even 75% of Deke, then I'm sold. Problem is, he won't fit in our new run-and-gun offense.