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Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

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  • #511
    Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

    I just got through skimming this thread because I cant wait to see what the Pacers do in the draft. And I must say, NaptownSeth’s assessment of T-Will is pretty spot on. I am a DIE-HARD Louisville Cards fan, and not many understand the full T-Will story aside from us die-hards, which leads me to believe that Seth is a Cards fan himself (are ya? Lol).

    Anyway, being someone who has practically watched T-Will play every minute in a Cards uniform because I cant remember the last time I missed a game on TV or watching it on replay, I thought I would offer my two cents on T-Will.

    I’m probably being a homer here (but I’d like to think that I’m thinking rationally), but I believe the Pacers should do everything they can to draft T-will…even if this means that they need to trade down a few spots if their pick is in a “reach position” for T-Will. I hope he is on Larry’s radar, because I fear that his stellar play as of late and in the tourney has drawn the attention of many scouts and GMs. Here’s my breakdown of T-Will:

    Intangibles

    This guy is a leader in the locker room and on the court. He is both a vocal leader and a leader who leads by example, and he is Louisville’s backbone. He is a model citizen, which is a must for a Pacers prospect. He is also incredibly selfless. I am positive that he would much rather set up a teammate for an easy two than nail a 30 ft three or throw down a windmill. Any T-Will follower will tell you the same. Most importantly, he is a tireless worker and EXTREMELY coachable. How coachable? Before this college season, he was a streaky shooter with range that barely extended to the college 3. Coach Pitino asked T-Will to tweak his shooting form and make a few adjustments that Pitino felt were crucial to becoming a good shooter. Now this is normally a preposterous suggestion… nobody is going to mess with his shooting form in the MIDDLE of his senior season. Yet T-Will did not bat an eye. This is a nice segue into the next area of analysis…

    Shooting

    Here are the results of Pitino’s tweaking of T-Will’s shooting:

    First 3 Years: 29.9% 3PT
    Senior Year (First 14 games): 17-58, 29% 3PT
    Senior Year (Last 22 games): 40-87, 46% 3PT

    A few things to consider that make this transformation even more mind-blowing than it already appears. Those last 22 games all but one of Louisville’s Big East regular season schedule, the Big East tournament, and the NCAA tournament (read: stiffest competition on the college level). Also, a good portion of these 3’s are not wide-open looks, but his ability to now just simply rise over a defender with a hand in his face allows him to stroke the ball just the same as if he was wide open. In other words, he can now hit challenged shots, which is something he couldn’t dream of doing in his first three years and is an ability that is crucial on the NBA level. Pitino said a while back that T-Will can be a Ron Artest in that he couldn’t shoot a lick in college, but turned out to be an above average shooter in the pros. Only difference is that T-Will is already showing his improvement before ever getting to the NBA.

    Ball Handling/Passing

    He is an above average ball handler at 6-6 and can get into the lane off the bounce with ease. He has a much easier time going to his right than to his left. Some have suggested that he could play the point in the pros because of his superior court vision and passing. He could definitely get by on his vision and passing alone. He is EASILY the best passing forward in college right now. It’s really not even close. But I would strongly advise against playing T-Will at the point because his handles aren’t at that level and he is still prone to turnovers for stretches at a time. He is best in the point forward role: don’t rely on him to bring the ball up the court, but give him the ball to create in the half-court.

    Defense/Rebounding

    He has excellent hands. Above average on ball defender and plays the passing lanes extremely well...almost Wade-esque, not quite though. He is good for 1.5-2 steals a game in the pros. He is a MONSTER on the glass at 6-6. The best part of watching T-Will play for me is watching him rise up and grabbing rebounds above the rim. This guy spends a lot of time above the rim, whether it’s grabbing a board or throwing down a dunk.

    His glaring weakness: Free-throws. But the way this guy works and improves, I wouldn’t be worried about this at all.

    Bottom line, I don’t see anyone else in this draft outside Blake Griffin that I would consider “special.” Even then, I still have my doubts with him. I don’t think anyone can go wrong with T-Will. He will be a 10+ year vet who could very well play in a few all-star games if everything goes right. At worst, he will be a terrific role player.

    Sorry for the long post, I could talk about this guy for days… This is my first "real" post on these boards. Might as well come out with a bang

    Comment

    • #512
      Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

      Originally posted by Naptown_Seth View Post
      Yeah, but because of what Croz said, and what Shade referred to as well. If you can rely on Hibbert to be your on-man post defender and your decent low post offensive guy, then Thabeet gets just what he has in UConn - the freedom to roam. In that role he would hurt people and would help the Pacers.

      But OTOH you can just see how the pros will put him in tough PnR, drag him to the arc with guys like Murphy and just blow his game up in so many ways that it seems like he'll struggle to impact a game other than the 2-3 blocks he'll get. That's a nice number but not if that's all you bring. Then it means you are only impacting 2-3 plays a game and that's not enough for a top 5 guy.
      How do you think Thabeet would do with the likely PFs that we have ( Murphy, Foster, McRoberts or sometimes even Granger )?

      I'm guessing that Murphy would be the primary Frontcourt players that he would likely be paired up with. I'm just wondering how he would complement other players on our team.

      Originally posted by Naptown_Seth View Post
      There was a time I could see this but I no longer think that's true. I think Evans will get looked at. So much depends on what they want to do with the PG situation, and of course Quis. (One thing about T'Will is that he does easily fill the Quis hole)
      How good is TWill's defense? Is he quick enough to guard SGs and strong enough to guard some of the stronger SFs?
      Ash from Army of Darkness: Good...Bad...I'm the guy with the gun.

      Comment

      • #513
        Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

        Originally posted by UncleReg View Post
        Intangibles

        This guy is a leader in the locker room and on the court. He is both a vocal leader and a leader who leads by example, and he is Louisville’s backbone. He is a model citizen, which is a must for a Pacers prospect. He is also incredibly selfless. I am positive that he would much rather set up a teammate for an easy two than nail a 30 ft three or throw down a windmill. Any T-Will follower will tell you the same. Most importantly, he is a tireless worker and EXTREMELY coachable. How coachable? Before this college season, he was a streaky shooter with range that barely extended to the college 3. Coach Pitino asked T-Will to tweak his shooting form and make a few adjustments that Pitino felt were crucial to becoming a good shooter. Now this is normally a preposterous suggestion… nobody is going to mess with his shooting form in the MIDDLE of his senior season. Yet T-Will did not bat an eye. This is a nice segue into the next area of analysis…
        Thanks for the analysis. Both you and Naptown Seth has convinced me that if there is a GF that we have to draft that T-Will would be that guy that I would be interested in.

        You probably have a much better insight into a Louisville player like T-Will then even a BBall columnist like Chad Ford....do you have any idea about what he has mentioned as some "off the court" issues relating to T-Will?

        You mention that he's a model citizen....but has he had any type of trouble or anything that would raise some red flags?

        Also....with how weak this draft is....I would be surprised to see any Team trading up. If T-Will was on the radar of Bird.....I would be happy with drafting him at the 9th to 11th spot ( wherever we fall ). This draft seems like one of those drafts that you really have to do your homework.....where it's entirely possible that some future Starter could be picked anywhere in the 1st round if not the 2nd round.

        BTW.....I didn't realize that T-Will is a Senior.......he's not going to be any more NBA Ready then he is now....especially if he's able to help lead Louisville to Final 4 appearance ( if not Championship ). As alluded to before in another post, I can see Nellie from the Warriors pushing to get a player like T-Will....he fits the mold of the type of player that Nellie likes to have on his team.....a Point-Forward that's a solid perimeter defender and can hit the 3pt shot.

        On top of all that....I just read that he'll just turn 22 when he enters the draft.
        Last edited by CableKC; 03-27-2009, 11:42 PM.
        Ash from Army of Darkness: Good...Bad...I'm the guy with the gun.

        Comment

        • #514
          Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

          Nice post, Unclereg. Keep it coming .
          2012 PD ABA Fantasy Keeper League Champion, sports.ws

          2011 PD ABA Fantasy Keeper League Champion, sports.ws

          2006 PD ABA Fantasy League runner up, sports.ws

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          • #515
            Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

            My sister lives in L-ville, and my NBA-following friends down there are all over the TWill and have been all season.

            What I can't figure is why he'd be there at #10 in a weak draft. Will he move up? Big guards who can play the point don't exactly grow on trees... why would he be so low if he's NBA ready? Saying we could trade down from the #10 seems odd to me.
            This space for rent.

            Comment

            • #516
              Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

              Originally posted by CableKC View Post
              You probably have a much better insight into a Louisville player like T-Will then even a BBall columnist like Chad Ford....do you have any idea about what he has mentioned as some "off the court" issues relating to T-Will?

              You mention that he's a model citizen....but has he had any type of trouble or anything that would raise some red flags?
              WOW. Chad Ford has some TERRIBLE sources. I have no clue where he couldve come up with that other than being misinformed. The one and only "incident" he has had off the court was when he was suspended for one game by Pitino due to academic reasons his freshman year. Otherwise there is no dirt on this kid other than he buys too many shoes (he has like 150+ pairs of shoes in his colletion).

              And you don't have to believe me. Just look at his record. Pitino is the kind of coach that will suspend you for a game if you show up to a team meeting 10 minutes late. In T-Will's four-year career at U of L he has only missed one game, that one game he sat out his freshman year. So if he had any other problems than the one I referred to, we wouldve known...

              In short, attitude is that LAST thing you have to worry about with this kid.

              Comment

              • #517
                Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

                Originally posted by Anthem View Post
                My sister lives in L-ville, and my NBA-following friends down there are all over the TWill and have been all season.

                What I can't figure is why he'd be there at #10 in a weak draft. Will he move up? Big guards who can play the point don't exactly grow on trees... why would he be so low if he's NBA ready? Saying we could trade down from the #10 seems odd to me.
                Dont get me wrong, I believe that he is definitely worth a #10 pick. It's just that I'm looking at all these mock drafts that have him going in the 20's. If GMs are thinking that way, then I think we can do what we did last year when trading for Rush and pick up a tiny bit of extra value to go along with T-Will. But like another poster said, teams will probably not be trading up this year, and T-Will's stock has been sky-rocketing so much (and it will only go higher in workouts because he is a top 5 athlete in the NBA right now) that he should be taken in the lottery.

                Comment

                • #518
                  Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

                  we crucially need a wing player at this point. no quizy, JJ(possible), MD(at this point where who knows). Were left with BR DG SG. we need to add something to that.......Terrance Williams....Would be really good for this team he could help us in so many ways.

                  Comment

                  • #519
                    Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

                    Originally posted by UncleReg View Post
                    WOW. Chad Ford has some TERRIBLE sources. I have no clue where he couldve come up with that other than being misinformed. The one and only "incident" he has had off the court was when he was suspended for one game by Pitino due to academic reasons his freshman year. Otherwise there is no dirt on this kid other than he buys too many shoes (he has like 150+ pairs of shoes in his colletion).

                    And you don't have to believe me. Just look at his record. Pitino is the kind of coach that will suspend you for a game if you show up to a team meeting 10 minutes late. In T-Will's four-year career at U of L he has only missed one game, that one game he sat out his freshman year. So if he had any other problems than the one I referred to, we wouldve known...

                    In short, attitude is that LAST thing you have to worry about with this kid.
                    Thanks for the info ( again ). I'm just curious.....not that many of us here don't value your opinion regarding TWill.....it's invaluable to get some insight into a player like him......but what made you decide to post on PD about him?

                    Believe me, I value your opinion regarding him....if anything....it only strengthens the support that NapTown Seth has been giving to T-Will.
                    Ash from Army of Darkness: Good...Bad...I'm the guy with the gun.

                    Comment

                    • #520
                      Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

                      Originally posted by Anthem View Post
                      My sister lives in L-ville, and my NBA-following friends down there are all over the TWill and have been all season.

                      What I can't figure is why he'd be there at #10 in a weak draft. Will he move up? Big guards who can play the point don't exactly grow on trees... why would he be so low if he's NBA ready? Saying we could trade down from the #10 seems odd to me.
                      Donnie Nelson is probably drafting before us.

                      Comment

                      • #521
                        Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

                        Originally posted by CableKC View Post
                        How good is TWill's defense? Is he quick enough to guard SGs and strong enough to guard some of the stronger SFs?
                        I'm pretty sure that he's considered to be one of the best, if not the best, wing defender in college basketball.
                        "A man with no belly has no appetite for life."

                        - Salman Rushdie

                        Comment

                        • #522
                          Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

                          Originally posted by UncleReg View Post
                          WOW. Chad Ford has some TERRIBLE sources. I have no clue where he couldve come up with that other than being misinformed.
                          Ford has said his sources are scouts and NBA front office types. He added they sometimes tell him things that aren't true to try and influence his rankings.

                          Comment

                          • #523
                            Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

                            Originally posted by CableKC View Post
                            but what made you decide to post on PD about him?

                            I'm a huge Pacers fan as well. Seeing all the talk about T-Will from Pacers fans made me want to jump in.

                            Comment

                            • #524
                              Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

                              Originally posted by Jonathan View Post
                              Donnie Nelson is probably drafting before us.
                              Most likely, but they already have to many wings.

                              Comment

                              • #525
                                Re: Official 2009 NBA Draft Recruiting Center

                                First, sincere thanks to all who share specific insights; they help transform PD from "mere" entertainment to strategic information, which I believe is the essence of our commonality of interest (in addition to the Pacers and basketball in general).

                                I'm as eager as anyone for the team to draft a potential star and the prospect of selecting T-Will in the draft brings out a few issues worth discussion:

                                1) Say that the Pacers are given three "points" in the draft, where a role player is worth one point; a starter, two; and a future all-star, three. (Hall-of-famers are worth four, sorry.) Would you vote for the team -- as currently constructed -- to pick (only) a future all-star? Even if it means having a worse record next year? Even if the team can acquire an immediate veteran starter (e.g., Tyson Chandler) by trading its pick?

                                2) Taking UncleReg's input as gospel, I wonder if T-Will's potential fit with the team may come down to assessing the times/conditions when he can play the point. If the ultimate answer is "Well, he plays the point like Quis plays the point," then ... what's the point? We'll have strengthened our 2-3 rotation at the expense of ignoring what most of us agree are our two biggest areas of need: PF & PG. (Personally, I believe getting an athletic backup center to groom is a close third.) However, in a perfect world, new Pacer T-Will would develop into a big PG -- a la Chauncey Billups, perhaps -- which then leads to another juicy issue ...

                                3) ... namely, how will JOB adjust/alter his orientation to accommodate a revised roster that suggests a more controlled half-court offense? I recall Larry stating some time ago that he wants a team that can play any style. In turn, a number of you have criticized our style as promoting entertainment at the expense of playoff worthiness. Fine. Imagine, then, a year from now, the team preparing for the playoffs. Hibbert's at C, Murphy's at PF, and Foster's backing both up. Granger's at SF, Rush is at SG, and Dunleavy (performing well, but in limited minutes) is backing them up. And at PG, Ford is sharing the starting position with Jack, who still slides over to SG on occasion, and T-Will is developing nicely, often used when the opponent features a big PG. Are you comfortable with such a squad playing fast during the season and slower in the playoffs? (I invite analysis, not griping.) Why or why not?


                                "He’s no shrinking violet when it comes to that kind of stuff."

                                - Rick Carlisle on how Kevin Pritchard responds to needed roster changes.

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