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I have to agree with Bill on this. DA has repeatedly gotten value that far exceeds where he drafts. He's made mistakes but not that many. Banks was early in his drafting career. Green was a slider that we hadn't really scouted. And Oriene Greene was a promise he knew he shouldn't have made. That's it.

Pretty much every other pick has vastly exceeded the expected value. Rondo and Perk are starters on a championship team where the nominal expection would be a role player to a rotation player. Powe and Gomes look to be starters where the nominal expectation would be no second contract. Even TA looks to exceed expectations given his multiple injuries. He looks to recover into a rotation player.

Baby, Pruitt Giddens and Walker are to soon to tell. But they look like they could develope into at least rotation players, which would vastly exceed nominal expectations.

Finally, DA has shown an ability to trade these assests into star assests. One would think now that we are indeed champions again, it would be easier in that the stars would like to play on a team that can win it all.

If you look at the pefformance numbers for their draft class Rondo was top five and Powe was top ten. That's astoundingly good for a #21 and a #47 pick.

As a rule of thumb every time DA drafts, substantial value is added to the Celtics roster. Even his mistakes add value in that he learns from them. This draft is not different. Both Giddens and Walker have a non-trivial chance, even a substantial chance of turning into a top ten prospect for their draft class. That's value.

MyInsatiableOne wrote:^^I agree with you Pete, I think he certainly has the potential to be that. But I think a lot of people on here get their hopes up way too high too soon (Gerald Green, anyone?)

yes, a lot of peopletend to get overexcited by potential, but lets not class these guys with gerald. its a compliment to gerald and an insult to both giddens and walker. if it weren't for injuries (walker) and character concerns (giddens) were talking about legit lottery prospects. and by legit i mean guys who were well know, well scouted, big time in HS and NCAA, not late risers without much hard evidence of ability like a darko or a gerald

^^Agreed, but I am so burned out from all the **** "potential" and "upside" **** talk we heard the last 3-4 **** years before this season. What it came down to is potential does not = talent, so I'll be wary of these guys until I see them contribute consistently at the pro level...

I have read a lot about Walker being extremely competitive and being a film junkie. I don't think we will be seeing Gerald Green II. If he fails it wont be because of lack of effort on his part.

^^I certainly hope. I'm just going to be a bit wary, though, having been burned by Kedrick. Gerald, Banks, etc...

MyInsatiableOne wrote:^^I certainly hope. I'm just going to be a bit wary, though, having been burned by Kedrick. Gerald, Banks, etc...

I hear you. The three you mentioned have one thing in common. Maturity issues. I have not read anything negative about him is this regard. And he does come across as loving the game in the interviews I have seen.

I hear you. The three you mentioned have one thing in common. Maturity issues. I have not read anything negative about him is this regard. And he does come across as loving the game in the interviews I have seen.

True but as Ainge admitted just the other day maturity is just one of the issues that can ruin a prospect. Some prospects are incredibly mature but not very talented basketball players..

GuyClinch wrote:

I hear you. The three you mentioned have one thing in common. Maturity issues. I have not read anything negative about him is this regard. And he does come across as loving the game in the interviews I have seen.

True but as Ainge admitted just the other day maturity is just one of the issues that can ruin a prospect. Some prospects are incredibly mature but not very talented basketball players..

Exactly....

Did Bill Walker really pee in a towel during a game?

^^^ I heard he did. But it was so he didn't have to leave the court...as his team needed him. In otherwords it not a sign of bad character but good character.

GuyClinch wrote:^^^ I heard he did. But it was so he didn't have to leave the court...as his team needed him. In otherwords it not a sign of bad character but good character.

Damn! That's dedication! I thought Pierce playing after a) hurting his knee, b) getting his teeth knocked out, and c) getting **** stabbed was heart. But for a guy to let his bladder go because his team needed him...that's CELTIC PRIDE!

Seriously, I hope to God that Tommy and Mike bring this story up, or ask him about it. Priceless.

Athanacropolis wrote:Did Bill Walker really pee in a towel during a game?

Dude, that's nasty. Piss in a **** empty water bottle but a towel? Gross...

I think one thing about drafting lower-risk 'sure thing' guys who might not have HR potential does is create tradeable assets. At the very least, when these guys display their abilities they become trading chips for proven stars. Look at Ryan Gomes, for example. While certainly Al Jefferson, a lottery pick, was the centerpiece, I don't think Minny would've wanted to do that deal without Ryan. He turned out to be their 2nd-most consistent player during the season and I think the TWolves would be glad to have him back for this year and into the future.

A year or two from now, players like BBD and Powe and (hopefully) Giddens/Walker can give us a spark off the bench or as a role-playing starter, and if need be, a quality, cheap trading asset.

You know I think Bill Walker could be like Bonzi Wells... I see that as best case scernerio. The good Bonzi who was tearing it up with the Rockets in the playoffs 2 years ago. Maybe Bill is more athletic ...

Walker, just doing his thing...

We can all laugh about pissing into a towel, but the real dedication was in evidence last week when, according to Scott Souza, Bill Walker was back at Healthpoint, shooting jumpers, working up a sweat--a mere two weeks after knee surgery! That's dedication! Apparently, he's been fixture at Healthpoint. Souza reported that he was also noticeably more ripped than he was during the introductory press conference, and that he was actually looking like a mini-Lebron in terms of his pro-ready body. Nice.

ryaningf wrote:We can all laugh about pissing into a towel, but the real dedication was in evidence last week when, according to Scott Souza, Bill Walker was back at Healthpoint, shooting jumpers, working up a sweat--a mere two weeks after knee surgery! That's dedication! Apparently, he's been fixture at Healthpoint. Souza reported that he was also noticeably more ripped than he was during the introductory press conference, and that he was actually looking like a mini-Lebron in terms of his pro-ready body. Nice.

That is good news. Lets hope he doesn't push it and have a setback. When you combine his athletic skills with his competitive nature I think he is going to be something special in a short time.

I have to admit that I didn't really know anything about Walker until I just watched the K-State vs USC tournament game. I have to say that he is a physical specimen for his age and as some compare him to James it isn't far off with where Labron was physically at that age. I have to say though that watching his game, although just for the first time, that his game reminds me of Corey Maggette. If we can get that type of game out of him we will be looking pretty good down the road.

Things I got out of this game:

Is a good defender, both individually and team wise

Has a decent jumper out to the college three point line

Good vision of the court, passing, driving to the rim with good ball handling, but doesn't force his game.

Walker can guard both SF and SG as he played defense well on Mayo when he was on him, so he can be versatile for us. He is also a good rebounder and is very strong, and I can see this kid earning some minutes during the season at some point once he gets the defensive rotation down. Like I said, he looked very good overall on the defensive end and also looked good on offense playing under control and not forcing his game.

^^^ FWIW I don't think you can know too much until a guy signs and plays against legit NBA competition. So many guys look good against sub-par players and then suck in the NBA.

Don't know if it's been said or not (since I'm not going to dig through 15 pages of towel-piss talk) but I hope Walker absolutely rocks for us and I hope they give him #8. This way, my old 'Toine jersey is relevant again.