Darko criticizes Pietrus, Podkolzine and others

[slinslin]

This is from insider

"Is LeBron really that good?" he asks. He's never actually seen LeBron James play. Serbia gets NBA games and the NCAA Final Four, but LeBron's high school games are out of the question.

"I like Carmelo Anthony," he says. "He's very smooth, and he can light it up."

Darko wants to know if T.J. Ford is too small, whether Chris Kaman is really ready for the pros, and why we have undersized guys like Mike Sweetney and Dwyane Wade rated so high.

He does have a favorite among the group. "I love Kirk Hinrich. He's tough and he can shoot the ball."

He has a harder time with the international players. All the other top international prospects suffer from the same disease. He's much more intrigued by the players he's never played against.

Darko's not impressed with Mickael Pietrus or Victor Khryapa. He swears that Sofaklis Schortsanitis is really only 6-foot-8, and he reserves his harshest judgment for Pavel Podkolzin, whom he played against last year.

"Pavel can't even walk," he says with a grin. "So how can he play in the NBA."

Finally someone calls it like it is instead of trying to be nice towards everybody.

 

[Joe Mama]

I posted that the other day in another thread. Those statements scared me away from Pietrus, and I haven't been excited about that big of Russian guy since Insider talked about his bad ankles and huge buyout.

Joe Mama

 

[Chris_Sanders]

Nothing about Zarko or Pachulia

He would have played against those guys as well.

 

[slinslin]

Sorry I missed that. I would rather not take a gamble on one of those overhyped european players in the first round.

Just look at Tsikitsvilli last year...

 

[Chris_Sanders]

Well everyone knew that Tsikitsvilli would have little impact this year. He was drafted for the future. I think the jury is still out on how good or bad he will be.

I have little expectations with the 17th pick.

 

[sly fly]

The way Dumars was gushing about this guy leaves me wondering if he's actually better right now than LeBron.

I know Paxson would be roasted, toasted, and fried in CLE if he passed up on Lebron, but doing that COULD be the correct move.

I mean, how many 7 footers can play with their back to the basket, can threes, run the floor, and possess a mean streak? And, be only freaking 17???

I'm going with the big guy (even though I've only seen tiny, fraction segments of his game on tape).

LeBron can take his entourage and smack-talking momma to Detroit.

P.S. A frontcourt of Z and Darko in Cleveland would be tough to handle. If not, then I'm sure teams would be willing to give up a lot to get Z.

CLE holds all the trump cards.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

The cavs are taking Lebron, they hold no trump cards......the first pick was made when the lottery was held

So was the second pick when detroit learned they had the rights to Darko.

Denver however is in an interesting position. They have been vocal saying they are willing to trade the pick. If they dont find a suitable deal, they still get Melo. However, I see a lot of interesting things happening draft night.

Here a couple of things that have been mentioned

Indiana's Donnie Walsh has said he holds himself responsible for not putting together a group that completely meshes and is willing to make major changes. A lot of this comes on the heels of rumors that J Onleal recently told Indy management a couple of things he needs changed in order to resign. If all this is true, the draft is the only real possible time to trade and satisfy O'Neal before he can officially be wooed by SA.

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/basketball/cs-0305260142may26,1,461008.column?coll=cs-basketball-print


Miami and Toronto may swap picks. Also Riley is apparently interesting in Abdur Rahim.

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/basketball/cs-0305260142may26,1,461008.column?coll=cs-basketball-print

Chicago is also willing to deal thier #7 pick, since they have such an over abundance of young talent.

New York is always willing to deal its pick.

It should be an interesting draft after the number 1 and 2, but it all starts with Denver.

 

[sly fly]

I didn't say this what what CLE IS going to do.

I said this is what CLE SHOULD do. Or, at least put some rational thought into.

CLE will not go wrong with LeBron. Season tickets, merchandise, national publicity, etc.

I'm just saying that Darko is VERY intriguing.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

Oh I agree. Ever since Darko's name was mentioned months back I have been saying he is probably a better #1 pick. From a basketball standpoint he is my pick.

However you did say that Cleavland holds the trump card, which is not true. Denver actually holds it, since the first to picks are set in stone with their respective teams.

Thats all I was saying

 

[Joe Mama]

Graham, I wouldn't put much stock in anything printed in the Chicago Tribune. I couldn't get my name and password to take, so I didn't actually read those articles or see what they were written by. If it was Sam Smith I wouldn't believe any of it. I believe what he writes about as much as I believe the National Enquirer's articles about four headed babies and real vampires.

That said, I wouldn't be surprised if some of the teams after the top four made trades. Once you get past the top four or five players who doesn't appear to be a huge drop-off in talent all the way to the latter part of the first round.

Joe Mama

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

Of course their were written by Sma Smith!

I am not saying that the article is fully on target, but I have read about Jermaine's supposed demands for the past 2 weeks on many different sites.

Some even went as far as saying he wanted Artest out, which I dont really believe. However his disgust with Tinsley I can understand.

The article was actually about AI on the olympic team, there were just some snippets at the bottom about other things.


"The Pacers' Al Harrington and Jamal Tinsley are there for the taking. So is Austin Croshere, but we've known that. Pacers President Donnie Walsh said he hasn't done a good enough job of meshing his team's talent and wants to make major changes.

"Sometimes, you've got to sit there and say, `I want to be mad at the coach, I want to be mad at the players, but the fact is, I've got to get mad at myself,'" Walsh said.

He also said "it's time for [Jonathan Bender] to play" and that Tinsley needs to work on "his body, his shooting, his ability to get to the goal.""


That is the snippet about Indy.

I cannot remember where I read about Denver, but I read it yesterday and again earlier today on different sites. As soon as I see it again I will post it.

 

[cly2tw]

Anybody familiar with Dwyne Wade? Can he be better than Mobley and Wells? I am quite intrigued.

 

[SirStefan32]

Wade really impressed me. He can shoot, he can handle the ball, he can take it to the hoop, but I still think he is just a better version of Tony Delk. He is not really a PG, and is too short to be a 2.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

LOL the day after I cannot find the articles about Denver willing to trade their pick this is posted on Insider

Rumors: Is Denver Melo on Anthony?
By Chad Ford
NBA Insider
Send an Email to Chad Ford Tuesday, May 27
Updated: May 27
9:44 AM ET


By now we know the Cavs will select LeBron James with the first pick in the NBA Draft and the Pistons will select Darko Milicic at No. 2. That means the Nuggets will select Carmelo Anthony with the third pick, right?


Umm ... let's not get ahead of ourselves. James is a godsend to Cleveland in every way imaginable. Darko eventually will give the Pistons the low-post scorer they've coveted for years. Both players are obvious fits, and both teams have been high on them for months. In other words, don't expect the Cavs or Pistons to trade these guys away, unless names like Kevin Garnett or Kobe Bryant are thrown around.

The Nuggets, on the other hand, have a mini-dilemma at No. 3. They like Carmelo. They think he's definitely the best player left on the board. It's just that he isn't James or Milicic (both are rated much higher on the draft board), and he's not an ideal fit in their system. The Nuggets already have two young small forwards for whom they have high hopes, Nikoloz Tskitishvili and Rodney White. Although Carmelo may have more upside, and certainly more star power, with so many other holes on the Nuggets, it isn't a slam dunk he'll land in Denver.

That poses an interesting dilemma for Kiki Vandeweghe & Co. Do they take Carmelo, like everyone expects, or do they listen to trade offers for him? Several teams later in the lottery are much higher on Carmelo and might be willing to offer a lottery pick and a young star in return.

Who's interested? Try just about everyone who missed out on one of the top three spots of the lottery. The Raptors, Heat, Bulls, Wizards, Grizzlies and the T-Wolves appear to be the most eager players if a Carmelo sweepstakes develops.

Could the Nuggets actually make out better by trading away the chance to land Anthony?

In most circumstances, the answer is no. The Raptors have little to offer, unless they're ready to dump Vince Carter (they aren't). The Heat are in the same position, unless they're willing to jettison Caron Butler (they aren't, either). And the T-Wolves probably would love to find a way to swap Wally Szczerbiak for Anthony, but with Szczerbiak's new extension kicking in this year, forget about it.

The Bulls, Wizards and Grizzlies, on the other hand, have some interesting assets to offer.

We start with the Bulls because frankly, they have the most ammunition. Would an offer of Jay Williams or Jamal Crawford and the No. 7 pick pique the Nuggets' interest? Denver is very high on French two guard Mickael Pietrus. In one swoop, the Nuggets could give their backcourt a major, major upgrade. If you're the Bulls, the trade makes a lot of sense. They need to thin out their backcourt, and they really need a versatile small forward.

Losing Williams or Crawford (sources say new GM John Paxson is higher on Crawford) won't be the end of the world, and there isn't another small forward available at No. 7 with nearly the upside of Carmelo. They've been drafting in the lottery for the past five years, but they've never been able to land an elite talent like Carmelo ... until now?

The Wizards don't have as much ammunition, but they do have a former No. 1 pick and the No. 10 pick in this year's lottery. If the team continues to clear house post-MJ, expect it to at least entertain the idea of trading Kwame Brown. If Brown is really as good as some people in the league think, it could be hard for Kiki to pass up the chance to grab another 7-footer and a lottery pick. Pietrus could still be on the board (though the Bulls are high on him) at No. 10. Add Gilbert Arenas to the mix, and the Nuggets are rolling again.

Jerry West has been very vocal about his feeling that Anthony, not Darko, should be the No. 2 pick. Is he willing to put his roster where his mouth is? Kiki wouldn't pass on the chance to swap the No. 3 pick for Pau Gasol. Just exactly how much does Mr. West actually like Anthony? It's food for thought.