Alando Tucker signed to rookie contract

[Nasser22]

Is this the one from Verizon? I thought about signing up but I was afraid of that happening.

Not Verizon...you could just sign up for it on Suns.com. I did it around playoff time. It's okay, I have 300 texts a month and don't even reach 200 so it's not a huge problem.

 

[azirish]

It's the Suns laid back attitude towards him that worries me the most.

I suspect they want to keep the pressure off both guys. Over-selling draftees only sets them up for failure. Just look at all the crap Oden and Durant are getting for one bad outing after being way from 5 on 5 since March and no meaningful prep work.

BTW, I think the real key for both guys will be their defense. If Strawberry proves he can stay in front of guys like Parker, he'll not only make the team but play some. Tucker is a bigger offensive threat, but he'll need to play close to lock down to get onto the court.

My guess is that Weber is working with them a lot on learning to shoot threes. It's a big deal for these guys and they should be shooting about 500 a day until the season starts.

 

[Rich In Bunly Goodness]

I think there are two primary reasons Tucker fell to 29 in the draft, even though he was a first team all american.

1) He is a five year player, and the conventional wisdom says that 18-19 years olds have more up-side potential than 23 year olds. Kerr stated that he didn't agree with the conventional wisdom in this regard.

2) Tucker is a bit of a tweener; he is a power forward in a shooting guard's body. This didn't stop him from being a dynamite college player, but will it stop him from being a dynamite pro?

 

[azirish]

I think there are two primary reasons Tucker fell to 29 in the draft, even though he was a first team all american.

1) He is a five year player, and the conventional wisdom says that 18-19 years olds have more up-side potential than 23 year olds. Kerr stated that he didn't agree with the conventional wisdom in this regard.

2) Tucker is a bit of a tweener; he is a power forward in a shooting guard's body. This didn't stop him from being a dynamite college player, but will it stop him from being a dynamite pro?

BTW, welcome aboard.

The age issue is what had Joshn Howard drop, but there is statisticaly evidence to support it. None the less, John Hollinger's ranking system that puts a heavy discount on older player still listed him as the 23rd best in the draft.

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/draf...r_john&page=ProRater&univLogin02=stateChanged

The "tweener" issue is a bigger problem. Based on his skill set, he's clearly better suited to SF than SG. But there are two things that mitigate it: athleticism and strength. The Suns pay less attention to size than any other team if the guy can play.