Posterize's Pro Prospects

[Posterize246]

Tell me about it man, wish I'd utilized the DVR a lot more. I just can't get into the scouting portion until I have some understanding of where Indy'll draft. Do look forward to Nivins, Brown, and Summers (especially him, seems like Jeff Green 2.0) though. Don't have much knowledge of potential 2nd rounders. Some Dante Cunningham thoughts'd be cool, think he'll be able to be a rotational 4?

I forgot about Cunningham he'll definitely be added to the list. Once he's able to handle the ball more he'll be a 3, he can guard them it's just the offense that needs work as a SF. I think he did the best job of anybody guarding Kevin Durant 2 years ago.

What guys have Indiana worked out? Sixers workout process seems to be so slow. We worked out Terrence Williams, Ty Lawson, Stefon Jackson, Jodie Meeks, and Toney Douglas. Then a solo workout for Marcus Thornton. I'm wondering when the rest of the guys are scheduled.

edit: we're working out Christmas, Collison, McClinton, and Ellington today

[InspiredLebowski]

I forgot about Cunningham he'll definitely be added to the list. Once he's able to handle the ball more he'll be a 3, he can guard them it's just the offense that needs work as a SF. I think he did the best job of anybody guarding Kevin Durant 2 years ago.

What guys have Indiana worked out? Sixers workout process seems to be so slow. We worked out Terrence Williams, Ty Lawson, Stefon Jackson, Jodie Meeks, and Toney Douglas. Then a solo workout for Marcus Thornton. I'm wondering when the rest of the guys are scheduled.

edit: we're working out Christmas, Collison, McClinton, and Ellington today

Save Blair and Hansbrough, so many of the "bigs" in this draft seem to be tweeners. I know the league's going that way, but just a bit upsetting in the purist's point of view.

Indy's worked out: Tyrell Biggs, Jeff Adrien, Alfred Aboya, Sam Young, Brett Winkelman (yes, that's a real person), Ahmad Nivins, Taj Gibson, DeMarre Carroll, Budinger, KC Rivers, Marcus Landry, James Johnson, Luke Zeller (Hoosier state shoutout I guess). Can't find the list of upcoming workouts but I know Maynor and T-Will are on it. Were at the Eurocamp as well, assumedly looking at Jennings.

[Posterize246]

Save Blair and Hansbrough, so many of the "bigs" in this draft seem to be tweeners. I know the league's going that way, but just a bit upsetting in the purist's point of view.

Indy's worked out: Tyrell Biggs, Jeff Adrien, Alfred Aboya, Sam Young, Brett Winkelman (yes, that's a real person), Ahmad Nivins, Taj Gibson, DeMarre Carroll, Budinger, KC Rivers, Marcus Landry, James Johnson, Luke Zeller (Hoosier state shoutout I guess). Can't find the list of upcoming workouts but I know Maynor and T-Will are on it. Were at the Eurocamp as well, assumedly looking at Jennings.

I'm a big Nivins fan (though I hate St. Joe's) and think he has a spot in this league. He's freakin huge, Dwight Howard's size but no where near the athleticism. Great conditioning though, played every minute of every game pretty much and if he was more assertive would have been a first round pick. He'll probably be my next post.


edit: I found this from when the Pacers worked him out.

[InspiredLebowski]

I'm a big Nivins fan (though I hate St. Joe's) and think he has a spot in this league. He's freakin huge, Dwight Howard's size but no where near the athleticism. Great conditioning though, played every minute of every game pretty much and if he was more assertive would have been a first round pick. He'll probably be my next post.


edit: I found this from when the Pacers worked him out.

Nice, I'll look forward to it. Think he'll be there at #52? We all know this draft is weak on elite talent, but there's value all over the place. Looks to be a pretty strong 2nd round class. I really expect Indy to be a big mover on draft day. I expect Ford to be moved, maybe in combination with #13 to move down and acquire a real PF.

[Grinder]

I'm a big Nivins fan (though I hate St. Joe's) and think he has a spot in this league. He's freakin huge, Dwight Howard's size but no where near the athleticism. Great conditioning though, played every minute of every game pretty much and if he was more assertive would have been a first round pick. He'll probably be my next post.


edit: I found this from when the Pacers worked him out.

yeah, i really like nivins game as well. hes got an nba ready body already and i think hes got a lot of potential down the line as pick and pop guy in the mold of carlos boozer/brandon bass.

excuse the poor punctuation, im writing this from my blackberry

[Posterize246]

Ahmad Nivins, PF, St. Joseph's University

Nivins is a very big body with a wide frame who takes up a lot of space in the paint. He's listed at 6'9” 242 lbs but that needs a bit of an update. He's grown taller and I'd say he's up around 255 lbs by now, just a large man with a Dwight Howard type body. Has a very NBA-ready body. He left SJU as one of the top players in history, ranking 1st in FG%, 3rd in scoring, and 6th in rebounding. He had a senior season in which he was the A-10 player of the year ahead of other draft candidates Derrick Brown, Dionte Christmas, BJ Raymond, and Aaron Jackson. Anybody looking to point to how he was in the A-10 and that helped his stats can look to his competition vs. tournament teams; 14 pts/13 rbs/2 blks/1 stl @ Dexter Pittman and Texas, 16 pts/8 rebs/2 blks @ Villanova, 12 pts/13 rebs/1 stl/1 blk @ Dayton, 21 pts/6 rebs/1 blk vs. Temple, 17 pts/16 rebs/1 stl @ Temple, 21 pts/14 rebs/5 stls @ Temple, and 24 pts/8 rebs/1 blk vs. Xavier. (yes, they played Temple 3 times) Being a 4-year player has helped Ahmad grow into an NBA prospect as he wasn't assumed to be before. Very humble kid.

Nivins has a great skill set for a big man. He's worked extremely hard on his post moves and now has a great jump hook which is impossible to block because of the big body mass he has. Has great footwork in back to the basket situations. In fact, I can't think of a big in the draft with better post footwork. Hook shots over both his left and right shoulder, short turnaround jumpers from 10 feet in, and excellent drop step power moves are all a part of his game. He's got great touch from 15 feet and his jumpshot rarely misses. Could be a good pick n' pop player. He's very smart with his choice of shots and rarely takes a forced shot or bonehead shot. You can see that in his high FG% which has never dipped below 61%. The only problem is he doesn't shoot it enough which I'll get to later.

Ahmad has a chance to be a good rebounder at the NBA level. He's very strong and his body is so huge and takes up so much space. He's got very long arms and broad shoulders and he's a tough box out. If he was an NBA starter he would be a 9+ rebound player given the minutes. His strength is offensive rebounding and he's second only to DeJuan Blair in that department, though that doesn't mean he's in Blair's level at this. Doesn't project to be a great shot blocker at the next level because he doesn't get off the ground quick enough, but does have great length to where he will block a few. Could be a valuable post defender because of his size/strength/length.

What held Nivins back a little was his aggressiveness. His averages of 39.3 mpg|19.2 ppg|11.8 rpg|1.8 bpg|61.2 fg% are very impressive but the stat that stands out is that he only averaged 10.4 shot attempts per game. In past years he had taken a back seat to Pat Calathes as far as scoring, and after Pat's graduation Ahmad had the load on him. It was almost as if he was unaware of just how good of a player he was. It's shocking that a conference player of the year could be 3rd on his own team in shot attempts.

Also holding him back will be his athleticism. Though he has incredible conditioning and can get up in down the floor terrific for a player his size, he lacks in moving side to side and could have trouble defending the “new” NBA PF off the dribble (those Josh Smith types). He also doesn't have great hops or explosion off the ground. Overall he could be a decent role player in the NBA, somebody to come in and provide solid rebounding ability along with a good offensive post presence. I've heard that the SA Spurs, who own the 53rd pick in the draft, have shown interest.

NBA comparison: A bigger, stronger Alan Henderson
Stock: 40th-Undrafted

[InspiredLebowski]

Playing 39+ minutes a game and only averaging 2.2 fouls, is pretty impressive. What's up with 2.7 TOs while, what looks like, not touching the ball a ton on offense? Struggle with the double team?

[Posterize246]

Playing 39+ minutes a game and only averaging 2.2 fouls, is pretty impressive. What's up with 2.7 TOs while, what looks like, not touching the ball a ton on offense? Struggle with the double team?

Yes, struggles with the double team. But wouldn't expect him to be double teamed in the NBA anyway. And the limited fouls comes from his stance. When a player goes up for a shot he rarely jumps but rather sticks his arms straight up (I mentioned how long his arms are) and makes it a difficult shot for them. Rarely bites on pump fakes and keeps his feet grounded.




You see a lot of that stance from Ahmad. If he was more assertive he could have been a 24 point guy as a senior. What I didn't mention is that he does a good job of getting to the free throw line, and knocks them down with regularity.

[23ajay]

willams is a good athlete but is not consistent he is probably not a lottery pick in the draft he is a mid first rounder

[Posterize246]

Earl Clark, F, Louisville


Clark is one of the most versatile players, along with James Johnson, in the '09 draft. Another guy who can become just a complete stat stuffer giving you points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. I've always wondered...how can a guy gain nearly 2 inches when he puts on shoes? Was Clark wearing some Spice Girls platforms to the combine? Either way, Clark jumps from a solid 6'8.5 to 6'10 1/2

[Kebab Stall]

I'm sure you know that Clark (along with Blair) is my favourite player in this draft, so I was really looking forward to this.

[QUOTE=Posterize246]Earl Clark, F, Louisville


Clark is one of the most versatile players, along with James Johnson, in the '09 draft. Another guy who can become just a complete stat stuffer giving you points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. I've always wondered...how can a guy gain nearly 2 inches when he puts on shoes? Was Clark wearing some Spice Girls platforms to the combine? Either way, Clark jumps from a solid 6'8.5 to 6'10 1/2

[Posterize246]

I talked a lot about Steph Curry and Eric Maynor having great floaters in the lane, and I believe Tony Parker is the best in the league at that shot. But damn after watching these playoffs Rafer Alston is damn good at it.

[Posterize246]

Hasheem Thabeet, C, UConn

Was an instant prospect the moment he stepped onto the Uconn campus simply because of his great size. Measured an outstanding 7' 2.5” at the draft with a 7'6 wingspan and a crazy 9'5” standing reach. I'm curious why Hasheem didn't participate in the lane agility, bench rep,

[Posterize246]

any specific guy I should do next?

[Da KO King]

I've never been high on Eric Maynor and have no real explanation for it. Every time I watch him all I think is "marginal prospect, not worth the time" and I keep it moving. I hope he can prove me wrong.

With Earl Clark my biggest complaint is he has no "big dawg" in him. Clark is perfectly content with fitting in and playing a role. While that attitude guarantees he will be, at worst, a long time productive role player (think Derrick McKey and Detlef Schrempf) or also guarantees he will never reach his full potential (a Dirk Nowitzki type who shoot over or goes past every defender you place on him).


Edit: Dan Issel might be a better comparison of what I think Clark's full potential could be.