lipoli390 wrote:Good points for discussion, FNG. I'll take a first shot.
1. Nowell: I'm actually one of the bigger Beasley fans on this message board. I had my eye one him as a potential acquisition when he was in Denver and I was really happy with the deal that brought him here. I was also reluctant to deal him this offseason. He's a bona fide elite 3-point shooter, but unlike many elite 3-point shooters he's also a terrific athlete who can run the floor, finish above the rim and rebound his position. He also has some real dog in him, although perhaps a little too much when guns are around. :) At age 24 without extensive playing time thus far in his NBA career, I still see untapped upside. So it's hard for me to see Nowell as a net improvement over Beasley. However, Nowell has two things that appear to be missing from Beasley's game - lead guard skills and defensive chops. Nowell also seems to have more of a mid-range game and an all-around more versatile offensive game compared to Beasley. So it's certainly possible that Nowell could end up a better true 2-way SG. As Q has noted, Nowell still has a lot to prove. But count me among those who think that he'll succeed. And if he develops into the player I expect him to become, then I could get comfortable moving Beasley this upcoming season or next offseason.
2. Knight. I just haven't seen enough of Knight to feel confident about speculating on his potential. But based on his college stats and the videos I've watched of him, I'm really impressed by what he brings to the table. I'm pretty high on Vanderbilt and think he's just scratching the surface of his potential. So I'm not prepared to predict that Knight will overtake Vanderbilt as KAT's front-court mate. However, there's enough there in Knight's game that suggests it's not inconceivable. And knowing that Monster might be reading this, I'll point out that Knight's standing reach is 3 inches greater than Vanderbilt's. Need I say more?
I need to see more but I get the sense Knight is also stronger in his base than Vanderbilt. Of course Vanderbilt's appeal is how he can guard perimeter players. Then there is the MASSIVE difference in how their shots look. Regardless it's nice to have a couple guys with some potential and at this point we don't have to choose.
I got excited when I saw J Culver on the summer league roster because if there is one player who needs confidence and has never played in Summer League its Jarrett Culver. Unfortunately, it was wasn't Jarret. He needs to get minutes somewhere against lesser competition to build back his confidence and maybe restore some value.
KG4Ever wrote:I got excited when I saw J Culver on the summer league roster because if there is one player who needs confidence and has never played in Summer League its Jarrett Culver. Unfortunately, it was wasn't Jarret. He needs to get minutes somewhere against lesser competition to build back his confidence and maybe restore some value.
kekgeek1 wrote:Of the 5 players Rosas has drafted since taking over in 2019, NONE of them have played a single minute of NBA Summer League:
? Jarrett Culver (contract stuff)
? Jaylen Nowell (injury)
? Anthony Edwards (no '20 SL)
? Jaden McDaniels (no '20 SL)
? Leandro Bolmaro (no '20 SL)
Saw this tweet what I thought was interesting
Ok, I'm way down on Rosas these days, but I'm not blaming him for any of these no-shows...even the Culver one. And in Gersson's defense, not one of his 2021 draft picks will miss summer league!
kekgeek1 wrote:Of the 5 players Rosas has drafted since taking over in 2019, NONE of them have played a single minute of NBA Summer League:
? Jarrett Culver (contract stuff)
? Jaylen Nowell (injury)
? Anthony Edwards (no '20 SL)
? Jaden McDaniels (no '20 SL)
? Leandro Bolmaro (no '20 SL)
Saw this tweet what I thought was interesting
Ok, I'm way down on Rosas these days, but I'm not blaming him for any of these no-shows...even the Culver one. And in Gersson's defense, not one of his 2021 draft picks will miss summer league!
Rosas was 1 step ahead of that situation. Genius!!!
Main things I'm looking for as it relates to the Wolves summer league team:
- Nathan Knight is actually the guy I'm watching the closest. Specifically his defense. Is he jumpy or does he stay grounded? How well does he move his feet? Is he easily knocked off his position? Does he control the defensive glass? We desperately need a big man that combines interior size, strength, and toughness with the ability to not get burned on switches against smaller players. Summer League will only tell us so much, but defensive discipline is something we should be able to detect at any level of play. For starters, don't freakin' fall down and end up flat on your back half the time!
- Does McDaniels show a skill-set that goes beyond catch and shoot and one-dribble pull ups? The big thing with him is putting it on the floor and getting to the hoop or finding the open guy. If he shows signs of success off the bounce, then he may grow into a lot more than a 3 & D player for us.
- How does Jaylen Nowell look running the point? We currently have a gaping hole at backup PG right now. I'd like to see how he organizes the offense and gets guys the ball. Plus hopefully when he misses shots, he at least hits the rim! That'd be progress.
I'm not expecting much from Wright, Wooten, and the rest of the guys, but hoping someone else really opens my eyes.
Last game I watched was the Suns vs Jazz. It seemed like there was a lot of height/length compared to other teams.
Dakota Mathias...one week you are practicing and playing with some of the best players in the willed on the Olympic team and another week you are playing in Vegas Summer league... lol
This game was brutal offensively although there was also some good D being played. I'm convinced every one of us may have had a chance to grab 3-5 rebound in this one.
3 and D sestina for the Jazz took a three and it hit the back of the rim bounces up like 7 feet and dropped in. The Suns got a quick outlet to a guy who looked to have an uncontested basket but Sestina had a massive block that went way off the backboard and the Jazz raced back on offense Sestina tailed the play and hit another 3. That was about half of the scoring in this game. Lol
Jalen Smith the 10th overall pick in 2020 for the Suns...ok we have to give them the benefit of the doubt on their picks now right? I guess he did not look good. He is long but that's about it. He clumsily feel to the floor a couple times and I thought a Utah Big was going to end him (they had some big guys) a couple of times. Yea he had 15 rebounds but that's not impressive since what there were like 200 rebounds in this game? His shot which was part of his appeal didn't look good. I personally thought there were bette to layers on the board when they picked him at 10 but we will see.
