David Aldridge ranks the PGs

[Rastapopoulos]

I've always liked David Aldridge, and there's some good reading here. Tyreke Evans gets some raves:

Nonetheless, Evans is considered too good to pass up. And to make sure, I called up a pretty good point guard in his day -- Rod Strickland, an assistant to Calipari at Memphis who is now with Calipari at Kentucky. If anyone would know about playing the point in the NBA, it's Strickland -- still, in my view, the greatest player ever who never played in an NBA All-Star Game.

"He's very unselfish," Strickland said of Evans. "He'll do the work. He will work on the jump shot and get better. He's strong. His arms are ridiculous. He'll come up and all of a sudden he's reversing the ball. You put it in front fo him and he'll rip it on you. He's got those Dennis Johnson arms. He's a basketball dude. He'll get in the gym and work. He's never ever going to be a problem."

Also Flynn:

Flynn is the guy my top 10 scout would take at the point.

"He's got that bounce for a little guy," the scout said. "He's got real big time competitive fire. They played mostly zone, so you wouldn't really see him strap up [defensively]. He'll go in there and bang it on you. I thnk in our league, especially if you're a little guy, if you've got bounce, it gives you an edge, like T.J. Ford. Flynn's got the bounce and the J. He's not bad running a team. Flynn'll be all right in terms of managing a game. He's got a pretty good [basketball] I.Q. He's not clueless."

Says a Central Division GM: "A guy like Jonny Flynn, he can come in and play today. He's a nice kid but he's tough as nails. In Chicago, he tested off the charts with his vertical and his two foot jump and his strength testing. He's a little fireplug."

 

[Nikolokolus]

You hate Bayless as a point guard but you like Evans? Please explain.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

You hate Bayless as a point guard but you like Evans? Please explain.

1. How do you know I like Evans? I report, you decide.
2. And as a matter of fact, I don't really like Evans as a PG, although he certainly has a better case coming out of college than Bayless did. When Evans was switched to the point, Memphis went on a huge tear. Did Bayless play much PG in college? And his team was stacked but sucked. Evans is actually kind of the opposite of Bayless - Bayless is a short 2G, Evans is a big PG (with, to complete the disanalogy, a ridiculously long wingspan). Evans can't shoot and Bayless at least seemed able to shoot in college.

Hope that helps.

 

[Nikolokolus]

You said you always liked David Aldridge and then went on to mention how many raves Evans got ... so why go to all the trouble of posting this if you don't have some interest? Hope that helps.

 

[Reep]

Another interesting quote:

A Pacific Division scout: "My contention on Stephen Curry is that he would be best suited playing with a big, ballhandling guard.

Know anyone that fits that description?

 

[andalusian]

Another interesting quote:



Know anyone that fits that description?

Joe Johnson?

J/K, J/K

 

[RickyRubio]

Another interesting quote:



Know anyone that fits that description?

Nate Robinson.

 

[Reep]

Nate Robinson.

True, they did say big, not long or tall.

 

[LittleAlex]

Chauncy Billups.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

More fuel for my "Tyreke Evans obsession":

Things got exponentially more interesting in the one-on-one competition (taking turns playing D, staying on if you scored, etc). It was here that Evans established himself as the class of the group. Probably somewhat unfair to pit him against smaller, true point guards as he had at least three inches and twenty pounds on everyone, but I suppose those guys are going to have to get used to that type of matchup at the next level.

Anyway, Tyreke was dominant.

Refusing to simply muscle his way to the hoop (which he did handily a few times), he scored in a half a dozen different ways. Pull-ups on the wing, runners, balanced fade-aways, and a particularly spectacular jab-step and crossover that sent Flynn (without question the best defender of the group) reeling. His jumper needs work but I wouldn't call it a weakness, and he'll definitely hit enough to force defenders to respect it.

Lawson and Flynn played about how I expected them to. Controlled the ball well, took high percentage shots and occasionally switched gears to get to the rim. Both appear ready to play significant minutes in the league, but I'm not sure I can see either developing into a star. If forced to choose today I'd take Flynn based on his defense and freakish athleticism (40-inch vertical, as measured at the combine).

Holiday was the most dissapointing player of the group, by far. He played with low energy, struggled during a lot of the offensive drills and generally appeared unhappy and out of place. I know he's got some talent but I can't figure out why he was ever mentioned in the top five of so many mock drafts. Maybe he was just tired, it is a Friday.

Nice stuff about Flynn's defense, too. Surprising about Holiday, but this is just one workout.