Developing players..

[Porckchop]

Seems to be a popular topic on here lately. How many title contenders are where theyre at becuz of developing players?

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

San Antonio I think stands out as the poster child of player development. While they got lucky with Robinson and then Duncan, literally all of their other key role players and stars over the years were middling to low draft picks and free agent pick ups. Tony Parker, for example, had a very pedestrian rookie year and then started to take off from there.

If you look at this season, take Milwaukee. Giannis was a raw prospect drafted by Milwaukee. He didn't do much of anything his first two seasons and now look at him. One could argue that the improvement is 100% due to Giannis' work ethic and physical profile, but it's hard to truly separate the person from the organization and parse out cause and efffect when someone isn't instantly great (like LeBron was). The reality is he's gone from raw prospect to superstar under Milwaukee's watch and has literally gotten better every year. They have also taken Khris Middelton and turned him into one of the premier 3-pt shooters in the league.

[Lipoli390]

San Antonio I think stands out as the poster child of player development. While they got lucky with Robinson and then Duncan, literally all of their other key role players and stars over the years were middling to low draft picks and free agent pick ups. Tony Parker, for example, had a very pedestrian rookie year and then started to take off from there.

If you look at this season, take Milwaukee. Giannis was a raw prospect drafted by Milwaukee. He didn't do much of anything his first two seasons and now look at him. One could argue that the improvement is 100% due to Giannis' work ethic and physical profile, but it's hard to truly separate the person from the organization and parse out cause and efffect when someone isn't instantly great (like LeBron was). The reality is he's gone from raw prospect to superstar under Milwaukee's watch and has literally gotten better every year. They have also taken Khris Middelton and turned him into one of the premier 3-pt shooters in the league.

It's hard to know how much of a player's improvement is attributable to the organization. I think the vast majority of it is the player. And I think the organization's contribution is primarily a combination of sufficient playing time to allow development and a system that suits the player's strengths and helps the player build confidence. The main genius of the Spurs organization isn't player development; it's identifying talent. Tony Parker will end up in the basketball hall-of-fame. Hard to believe he wouldn't have been a perennial all-star if drafted by another organization. Same for Manu.

Having said that, the Spurs have had a head coach who has repeatedly adjusted the team's system to fit his players. And they've shown great patience with their players as they've developed. It's not that Billups wasn't developing with Wolves. I remember McHale at a season ticket holder meeting telling us how impressive he was in practice. It was the Wolves lack of patience and poor decision to let him go in favor of the older, often-injured Brandon. To the extent there is a player development component to an NBA player's success, it's that simple. The development formula? System, playing time and patience - SPP.

But ultimately, the cream will rise and great players will be great no matter where they play. KAT's a good example. He has the talent and the drive to develop his talent. Hence, he's now an elite player having just turned 24 years old. Would Wiggins be a great player if drafted by the Spurs? I doubt it. Actually, I doubt the Spurs would have drafted him if given the chance. They draft guys like Kawhi. It's up to the organization to acquire the talent and then put together the right mix of talent and system for the team to succeed. The failure of the Wolves organization has been the failure to surround KAT with the level and blend of talent needed for team success. I think we're also seeing a failure to fit the system to the personnel.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Don't disagree Lip that the vast majority of development happens due to the player's own work ethic and natural gifts. But yeah, the team can help nurture that development by having a system and, more specifically, a role that helps build confidence and makes the best use of that player's strengths.

[Coolbreeze44]

The uber talented guys will probably succeed regardless of environment. But it's those Danny Green's, Montrezl Harrell's, and Patrick Beverly's that can be found and then developed into good players. It takes good talent eval, and then lots of hard work with position coaches and specialists to develop these players. The Wolves currently have a good developmental coach for guards Looking forward to see who he can raise in the next couple years.

[crazy-canuck [enjin:18955461]]

Spurs in the past.

Raptors right now.

[KG4Ever]

Don't forget Miami: Kendrick Nunn and Duncan Robinson weren't even drafted a year ago and they are key pieces now. Derrick Jones wasn't drafted either and he's in their rotation. Jason Richardson was a second rounder who flourished there. Whiteside was given up for dead and he resurrected his career there. Bam was picked 14th overall and he's a monster now.

[Lipoli390]

Don't disagree Lip that the vast majority of development happens due to the player's own work ethic and natural gifts. But yeah, the team can help nurture that development by having a system and, more specifically, a role that helps build confidence and makes the best use of that player's strengths.

Manu is a great example of an organization/coaching staff finding the right role for a player to maximize his development. Credit Pop also for, in Pop's own words, "letting Manu be Manu" in the way he played. In that sense, the team's role in a player's development involves the good judgment to refrain from trying to make a player into something he's not.

Each player has his own set of unique gifts, strengths and weaknesses. Beyond that, it's important to remember that, by the time these guys get to the NBA, they've been playing basketball in most cases for 15 years. It's rare, for example, that a poor perimeter in college or in European pro ball will become a good perimeter shooter in the NBA. Look at the college stats of the vast majority of NBA players and you'll see their NBA stats are very similar to their college stats across the board, just generally not as good. So for the most part, players are who they are by the time they get to the NBA, although admittedly with room to grow and improve.

The Wolves appear to have good "player development" coaches by reputation. But because I don't put much stock in that, we have to hope that the Wolves front office show a much better eye for talent in the draft and bring in the right type of talent to complement KAT. Then we have to hope that our coaching staff gives their young guys ample playing time and who patience as these young guys develop and implements a system that fits their talents and boosts their confidence.

[thedoper]

McHale with Ndudi.

[Lipoli390]

McHale with Ndudi.

Thanks for reminding me, Doper! As if I wasn't depressed enough about this team.