Jack Is Back To Talk NBA Draft

It is always great to talk with Raptor Broadcaster Jack Armstrong. I had the chance to chat with him about the upcoming NBA Draft. Jack beyond his duties with the Raptors still works in United States covering the NCAA. He has in that role been able to watch many NCAA players. Among them one of the players the Raptors looked at in workouts today. Raptors a NCAA rivalary center stage. Syracuse and Georgtown are long time Big East rivals and Donte Greene and Roy Hibbert were stars for the respective schools. Greene is a freshman that entered the draft early and Hibbert is of course a rare senior. I think the most famous freshman coming out of Syracuse is of course Carmelo Anthony. Donte Greene is not as NBA ready as Carmelo was. Jack Armstrong who covered both said that Donte is not as devloped from a body stand point and a game stand point. Many feel that Greene can be the Raptors answer at the small forward spot to be that driving slashing small forward that the Raptors need. Armstrong thinks that Greene has the potiental to be that and sees him as a player with skills. But if you are expecting another Carmelo Anthony you will not be getting him at this point.  He is a solid shooter and has range. Many are excited about what Greene can become looking down the road. The key word that is said about Greene is potential. Draft Express sees Greene currently as the the 14th pick in the draft and he has been a guy that based on his potential has been climbing up mock draft boards. Here is a breakdown of Greene from draft express:

Strengths:

• Size
• Frame
• Fluidity
• Perimeter shooting ability
• NBA range
• Ability to elevate/create separation/get shot off
• Pull-up jumper
• Pick and pop potential
• Budding/basic back to basket game
• Overall skill-level

 

Weaknesses:

• Poor wingspan
• Stuck between 3 and 4
• Lateral quickness to defend NBA SFs?
• Shot-selection
• Toughness
• Ball-handling skills
• Left hand
• Defensive intensity
• Consistent effort
• Project

 

For the complete break down of Greene on Draft Express Click Here.

Jack feels that Greene can grow into being a successful player at the NBA LEVEL. I respect Jack’s opinion and he has seen this guy with his own eyes. But it will not come without work on his part and the team that selects him. He has some tools that will serve him well in the NBA. The fact he is a solid shooter should serve him well. Morris Peterson was a solid shooter and has made a pretty good career out of that. Is he a superstar in this league of course not. But if a guy can make shots and do it consistantly he will always find a way on a NBA Roster. Donte Greene has potential to be more than that but ultimately if he can make shots along the way to reaching his potiental it can only help him.

The draft itself has become a big deal and gets bigger and bigger each year. This year on Raptors T.V you could have watched coverage from the draft camp in Orlando. The NFL Combine is given complete coverage these days. It has got to the point of insanity. In the end Jack Armstong thinks it is all about finding players that fit systems. He used a classic example of 2 All-stars in Utah John Stockton and Karl Malone. The fit the system in Utah and were able to have brilliant careers in the NBA. It is up to teams to find the players that can match the system. Players have general strengths and weaknesses like you read above. The successful teams are able to maxiumize  the strengths and improve the weak points.  The Organization as whole, Scouting, Management and Coaching.

It has been my belief that as a whole it gets focused on far to much what players can’t do. But if teams have quality people they can improve that. In talking with Jack I mentioned the fact of how I find it unfair that guys that stay in school do not get the respect that once held. He suggested that it is easier to find the flaws in these players because they have a larger number of games to look at. The fact that we live in a world of people that make a living at covering nothing but the draft prospects. It is a much different type of world and it has a direct impact on the draft compared to years ago.

The NCAA based on the rules of players having to play at least a year in order to be eligable to enter the draft. Jack said this makes the idea of the student athlete get thrown out the window. Chris Bosh played only one year at Georgia Tech and Anthony one year with Syracuse prior to this rule that eliminated H.S players from the draft.  Now you get guys like Durant and Oden were forced into playing at Texas and Ohio State.  Donte Greene is one and done at Syracuse this year and the list is growing. I am old enough to recall a guy like Patrick Ewing playing for the Georgetown Hoyas. He played there and grew as a player to the point he was in part the base of why the NBA Draft Lottery was created. It was rare to see players not have at least 3 years of school before entering the draft was considered. It allowed NCAA Fans to get know these players. I have learned through my talking about the draft the level of passion these fans have. They deserve better.  The answer in the future could and perhaps should be the NBDL. Here in Canada we have minor hockey and some of those players are already property of NHL teams. If a kid has no desire to go to school and is in need of turning his skill at basketball into money why should we stop him from that. Some of these players in the NBA come from poor economic backgrounds and I can understand and appreicate the desire for them to earn a payday that will help their families improve their lives.  College Basketball generates huge dollars and these kids do not see a dime of it beyond a paid education. Charles Barkley once said that College Basketball and Football were the last form of legal slavary in the United States. That might be a bit of an extreme way to put it but there is a problem.

Jack Armstong suggests that you can point to sports agents as part of the reason why we see these kids making the jump at the earliest point possible. Agents see it as a way to increase the amount of cash not only the athlete will make by having a longer career. It also means they will make a percentage of that. It makes the whole draft process a lot harder for teams. You are having to sometimes take a risk on potential and hope it turns into something. Boston Celtics had lots of those potential type players and it took Danny Angie finally saying that he had to cash that into something proven. Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen later the Celtics are NBA Champions. Jack Armstrong mentioned that and he is right. The key goes back to what he said about where organizations are at and what the goals of the franchise are at the time. Can you afford to wait for a player to grow. Many fans grow frustrated with the growth process very fast. Andrea Bargnani can be the classic example of that in Raptorland. In the end in every draft there will be hits and misses and they are not always clear right away. People change and grow and learn. I am in my thirties and hopefully have learned a few things since my twenties. Growth happens for different people at different times. The draft is always going to be an educated guessing game and no matter how much coverage you read or think you know, Noboby is right all the time in the end you just need to be right more times than you are wrong.

So what about today and the draft workouts in Toronto. How important was it that the Raptors had 3 of the guys pegged in mock drafts to be Raptors in for a visit. Well Jack Armstrong said to me that it is a part of the puzzle. It will give you a chance to evaluate a player not only as a player but as a person. But it is only one part of what is a collection of things. He also suggested that ultimately as much as I might want to think the fact that Greene and Hibbert are here at the same time isn’t that big a factor. Each will be evaluated the same as if they had came on different days. Still the rivalary has to help get the juices flowing a little bit for these guys. After all Syracuse and Georgetown are bitter rivals. But this is more about the jersey you are going to wear rather than the one you wore last season.

Do the Toronto Raptors have a better idea of who they are going to select after today? Yes they likely do have a better idea. But one phone ringing on draft night can change all of that. You never know what may happen on draft night and that is why a team that current holds only one pick at number 17 takes the time to evaluate as many players as they can.  Bryan Colangelo said on the subject of the draft that you are not just evaluating players for this draft but for future beyond it. Should a player become part of a trade in the future or not be drafted and go off to another league and develop, you have established an idea of him as a player and person and have a more informed opinion to work from. If you want to hear and know more on the draft go to Raptors Draft Central @ Raptors.com

Few things in sports happen by chance. It is the teams that work harder that always have a leg up. That is what I try to do with this blog, I work hard and do what I can to make it better each day. But no matter how hard I work it would not be as good without people like Jack Armstrong being so kind with taking time from their busy schedules to reach out to not just me but you the readers of the Dino Nation Blog. I never lose sight of the fact. We are lucky to have people like him invest his time. Just like I am lucky to have you all invest your time in reading this blog each day.

The draft is serious business for NBA teams. But it also can and should be fun for fans.  So if you are a Raptor Fan, a Hoya fan, Syracuse fan or just a basketball fan, it doesn’t matter to me as long as you love basketball you are invited to the Dino Nation Blog Draft Party next Thursday.  Just click on that Next Thursday @ 6:45 and come join Myself and Mark the writer of the Raptors Core and experience the draft with us. We hope to proivde info and fun to your draft experience.

Tags: Bryan Colangelo, Carmelo Anthony, Danny Angie, Dino Nation Blog Draft Party, Donte Greene, Hoyas, NBA DRAFT 08, NCAA, Patrick Ewing, Roy Hibbert, Syracuse