2011 Draft Thread

[AzStevenCal]

If the Suns decide to keep Lopez for a few more seasons on a reasonable contract, I think he will develop into an athletic role playing center. He may not be the star the Suns FO envisioned but I think he will develop into a solid player. It is just too early to give up on a 23 year old center who has not put the pieces together. IMO, his mind and body are not yet synchronized. As I view it, the Suns never viewed Robin as a project center which he is. Many centers just develop late.

Now if the Suns can get something of value for him, that is another matter.

I have no problem with keeping him. Mind you, I think it's a waste of a roster spot but I'd hang on to him just for the very off chance that he'll approach his potential. Put a good head on his shoulders and do away with the back problem and there's no reason he couldn't be one of the 6 or 8 best centers in the game. I just don't want to ever see him on the court again until he's shown in practice that he deserves to be out there - not that I have any idea what he currently shows in practice.

Steve

 

[BC867]

A little satire

-- I have no problem with keeping him
---- I think it's a waste of a roster spot
-- Put a good head on his shoulders and do away with the back problem
---- there's no reason he couldn't be
-- one of the 6 or 8 best centers in the game
---- I just don't want to ever see him on the court again
-- until he's shown in practice that he deserves to be out there

That is one entertaining post. But I feel like I've just sat at center court in a tennis match. Back and forth and back and forth. Whiplash!

'Just one question. Which NBA player would be the donor for Robin's head transplant?

Hey y'know, maybe they didn't tell us that Brook and Robin were Siamese twins whose heads were surgically separated, with Brook getting 2/3 of a person's brain and Robin getting 1/3. That would explain a lot.

 

[Mainstreet]

That is one entertaining post. But I feel like I've just sat at center court in a tennis match. Back and forth and back and forth. Whiplash!

'Just one question. Which NBA player would be the donor for Robin's head transplant?

Hey y'know, maybe they didn't tell us that Brook and Robin were Siamese twins whose heads were surgically separated, with Brook getting 2/3 of a person's brain and Robin getting 1/3. That would explain a lot.

However, you left out...

"but I'd hang on to him just for the very off chance that he'll approach his potential."

The above quote is the rationale for the thought put forth by AzStevenCal. This is why I would want to hang on to Lopez as well if he does not have any market value. I think he will improve with time, enough so I believe he will become a satisfactory backup center.

 

[BC867]

This is why I would want to hang on to Lopez as well if he does not have any market value. I think he will improve with time, enough so I believe he will become a satisfactory backup center.

What are your thoughts about Gentry not using Robin at all once he's played his 6 minutes in the second quarter?

Time will tell if that changes now that we have all but been eliminated. Alvin did say that his goal is to finish above .500, so he might keep putting his best players out there.

When you say that you think Robin will improve with time, how much more time would you consider reasonable if you were Coach? Including practice time.

 

[JS22]

This makes no sense, as usual. How is Aaron Brooks NOT better than the crapshoot we could have at pick #23-#25?

I wouldn't try to argue with Slin.

I'm surprised he's gone as long as he has without trying to convince us that Gortat is worse than Lopez. It been at least a month.

 

[JS22]

I have to ask, even though if the answer should be "yes" you probably would say "no"...but here goes anyway...are you insane?

You add to current value (Gortat) to make a better team. You don't trade value for potential if you don't have excess value at that position. The Suns have a good center for the first time in....forever...and you would trade it away. Yikes.

Yeah. The Suns finally have a double double machine and excellent defender at the C position. You don't trade that away for potential.

 

[JS22]

Gortat isn't a world beater. In fact you could 3 centers as good as him in FA this year in Chandler, Oden or Gasol not to mention Nene.

You must be registered for see images

 

[sunsfan88]

However, you left out...



The above quote is the rationale for the thought put forth by AzStevenCal. This is why I would want to hang on to Lopez as well if he does not have any market value. I think he will improve with time, enough so I believe he will become a satisfactory backup center.

I agree with this as well but I think we can package him to get a a guy like Hickson, we should do it.

 

[slinslin]

I wouldn't try to argue with Slin.

I'm surprised he's gone as long as he has without trying to convince us that Gortat is worse than Lopez. It been at least a month.

http://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2...t-in-houston-while-brooks-fails-to-impress-in

Please, Brooks trade has been a disaster.

He sucks and we now have to let him go for nothing or overpay him to keep him although he sucks.

Terrence Jones might just be what we wanted Earl Clark to be.

 

[Covert Rain]

If the Suns decide to keep Lopez for a few more seasons on a reasonable contract, I think he will develop into an athletic role playing center. He may not be the star the Suns FO envisioned but I think he will develop into a solid player. It is just too early to give up on a 23 year old center who has not put the pieces together. IMO, his mind and body are not yet synchronized. As I view it, the Suns never viewed Robin as a project center which he is. Many centers just develop late.

Now if the Suns can get something of value for him, that is another matter.

How can someone develop into an "athletic" player? Either they are or they are not. Lopez plays below the rim like no 7 footer I have seen in a long time. He is one of the worst rebounding centers in the NBA. I think it's safe to say he will never be "athletic". He underachieved in college on the boards and still hasn't materialized in the NBA on the boards. Lopez is what he is.

I can't think of one example of a center who wasn't a very good rebounder in college, all of the sudden learned to be more athletic and become a good rebounder in the NBA. I have seen guys get better at jump shooting or FT and on very rare occasions improve slightly defensively.

Now factor in that Robin seems to be downright nonexistent defensively too often. I could see Robin possibly improve offensively which is exactly what the Suns said they would need to do with him. What they didn't plan on was him being a below average defender. They probably thought they could coach him up to be a better rebounder too which was a pipe dream.

Amare was one of the most athletic big men this team has ever seen and the Suns couldn't coach him up to be a better rebounder. There is zero reason to believe they could do it for Robin.

Bank this. Robin will never be a consistently good rebounder in this league. You can give up on that. I could care less if the Suns trade this guy. He will never be a solid role player either IMO but wouldn't object to them keeping him around a while longer to see if he AT LEAST becomes that. Having said that.....I wouldn't mind seeing Siler get Lopez's minutes for the rest of the season to see what he can do. I think the Suns need to continue looking for a solid backup to Gortat.

 

[elindholm]

Please, Brooks trade has been a disaster.

You need to see what the Suns get for him this summer before making that assessment. Brooks appears to be a poor fit in Phoenix, but as an asset, he's worth far more than Dragic and the #20-whatever pick. I think there's an excellent chance that the Suns will wait and see what kind of offer Brooks gets as an RFA, then work out a trade to bring something back.

 

[Mainstreet]

What are your thoughts about Gentry not using Robin at all once he's played his 6 minutes in the second quarter?

Time will tell if that changes now that we have all but been eliminated. Alvin did say that his goal is to finish above .500, so he might keep putting his best players out there.

When you say that you think Robin will improve with time, how much more time would you consider reasonable if you were Coach? Including practice time.

If I were the Suns coach and I could keep Robin Lopez near the end of the bench for another couple years to develop, I would do so. As I have said earlier, I don't think Lopez' mind and body are in sync. He just turned 23. I do think it will come together in time if the Suns don't give up on him. Now if you ask me if the Suns can trade Lopez and get some value... I grab it.

 

[overseascardfan]

Getting a young PF by maybe using Nash in a trade and drafting a PG in the draft is probably the best plan going forward. I would love to pull off a deal with TOR to acquire Ed Davis & somehow get Bayless but I doubt we trade Steve to TOR. Right now re-engaging with UTA to get Milsap and drafting a PG seems like a more possible situation. Hopefully Knight's stock drops him to us and he learns from Nash next year and takes over in 2013.

 

[Mainstreet]

How can someone develop into an "athletic" player? Either they are or they are not. Lopez plays below the rim like no 7 footer I have seen in a long time. He is one of the worst rebounding centers in the NBA. I think it's safe to say he will never be "athletic". He underachieved in college on the boards and still hasn't materialized in the NBA on the boards. Lopez is what he is.

Your point about Robin not being a good rebounder is well taken. However, I do think he can get better. I'd settle for Lopez to become an average rebounder, a shot blocker and an inside defender. IMO he has the tools for this. The essence of my post is that Robin has the chance to develop into a much better player with time and I would rather see it happen on the Suns roster than on another team's roster.

The other point I like to make is that I view Robin as athletic. He may not yet know how to apply his athleticism but he has it. He has decent speed, mobility, hops and can run the floor. As I view it, Robin has not been able to translate this consistently to real time play on the court. It's almost like his mind and body are not yet synchronized. Will it happen? I can't be sure but I think there is an even chance he will be able to put it together in a couple seasons to be at least a decent backup center. And there is always the potential for more upside. I'd rather keep Lopez on a reasonable contract than give him away.

Again, if Robin has some trade value that can help get the Suns another player that can help the team more, I'm all for it.

 

[Cheesebeef]

He has decent speed, mobility, hops and can run the floor. /QUOTE]

i've never evidence of any of the above.

 

[Cheesewater]

He has decent speed, mobility, hops and can run the floor.

i've never evidence of any of the above.

Hey now!

 

[Cheesebeef]

Hey now!

lol... i was going to write there was only one time I ever even remember thinking for a second that Lopez had any kind of athleticism and it was this play. probably because i remember seeing it and saying "whoa! i've never seen anything like that from him"... and then never did again.

 

[Cheesewater]

lol... i was going to write there was only one time I ever even remember thinking for a second that Lopez had any kind of athleticism and it was this play. probably because i remember seeing it and saying "whoa! i've never seen anything like that from him"... and then never did again.

LOL. Yeah it took me a while to find that clip. Sad....

 

[Mainstreet]

I've seen Lopez do some nice dunks off pick and rolls. He has the tools. Too bad he cannot put it together. He sort of reminds me of a player just learning the game of basketball and does not understand all the fundamentals and nuances of the game. Again he need to do some weight training and put on some more pounds so he does not get moved around by opposing players.

 

[BC867]

Your point about Robin not being a good rebounder is well taken. However, I do think he can get better.

I see the box score shows that Lopez had only one rebound in over 17 minutes vs. the Spurs today.

I wasn't able to watch the game. Was there a reason for that? And it looks like a good portion of his extended minutes would have been again their bench players.

It seems the more chances Robin gets, the worse he gets. He can put up some points, but that's about it. With those attributes at backup Center, that can result in lot of losses.

There is a classic philosophy in all sports. Once you demote a player (unless he is in the final stages of his career), it is best to give him a fresh start with a new team.

Lopez needs a checkup-from-the-neck-up. Playing six minutes in second quarters (when victories matter), after having been the team's starter for most of the season, destroys confidence and hurts the team.

Mark Reynolds with the D'backs was a prime example. Despite his HR power, his Major League record strikeouts season after season, inconsistent fielding and low batting average were hurting the team. And he was traded.

 

[Covert Rain]

However, I do think he can get better. I'd settle for Lopez to become an average rebounder, a shot blocker and an inside defender. IMO he has the tools for this. The essence of my post is that Robin has the chance to develop into a much better player with time and I would rather see it happen on the Suns roster than on another team's roster.

Why though? It doesn't happen in the NBA. Why do you think this is even possible?

The other point I like to make is that I view Robin as athletic. He may not yet know how to apply his athleticism but he has it. He has decent speed, mobility, hops and can run the floor. As I view it, Robin has not been able to translate this consistently to real time play on the court. It's almost like his mind and body are not yet synchronized. Will it happen? I can't be sure but I think there is an even chance he will be able to put it together in a couple seasons to be at least a decent backup center. And there is always the potential for more upside. I'd rather keep Lopez on a reasonable contract than give him away.

Are we watching the same player? Robin is what I would call one of those "practice" guys. You know the guys that look good with nobody in their face, a break away or in practice. However, put the guy in traffic or around other players and everything disappears. I don't see him as very athletic at all. He has average speed, practically no side to side mobility (this is why he appears clumsy half the time) and he has NO hops. He barely gets any lift at all under the rim at all the majority of the time when rebounding or playing around the rim. When you see Robin dunk his elevation isn't sky high above the rim...especially in traffic he barely gets up there at all.

 

[Ronin]

http://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2...t-in-houston-while-brooks-fails-to-impress-in

Goran Dragic Killing It (Not Really)

Yeah I stopped reading after this mumbo jumbo...

 

[sunsfan88]

I've seen Lopez do some nice dunks off pick and rolls. He has the tools. Too bad he cannot put it together. He sort of reminds me of a player just learning the game of basketball and does not understand all the fundamentals and nuances of the game. Again he need to do some weight training and put on some more pounds so he does not get moved around by opposing players.

Yea this is the only play I actually liked from Lopez.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6YooA0VdtE

 

[JCSunsfan]

My vote for the non-lottery pick in this years draft who is most likely to become an all-star----Kenneth Faried.

This kid plays with Lou Amundsons motor, but with more athletic ability. I so much want the Suns to draft him, because I want to watch him on a nightly basis.

 

[slinslin]

Biamack Biyombo 18 years old 6'9 7'7 wingspan. Basically same standing reach as a 7 footer like Darko.

He had 12 points 11 rebounds 10 blocks against the USA highschool team in the hoops summit. Scouts say he moves like a cat and is athletic. Only concern is if 18 is his real age because he looks older and is from Congo. (Lebron, Oden) looked twice their age as well..
Scouts say he is Ben Wallace right now.

Though I guess he will go within the top 5 like Nene did unless the age accusations are true.

This draft might be the strongest international draft ever which is probably why some people say it is going to be weak because they don't know anything about these international players.

Kanter, Biyombo, Valanciunas, Motiejunas, Veseley there you have 5 players already who should definitely go in the lottery. Mirotic also could and who knows what happens to players like Nogueira before the draft when teams see them in workouts.