I'm surprised there's not already a thread similar to this one, but wasn't able to find anything...
After watching all 3 games so far, I felt like posting my thoughts (and starting a place for others to post/discuss theirs) of the 5 guys on our summer league team that actually matter...
I want to start with Pendergraph. I have to be honest, he's been a disaster out there when the ball is being fed to him. I'm disappointed because I, at one point, felt like he could be a more physical Carlos Boozer, similar build, similar situation coming out of college, but it would appear, at least thus far, that JP is miles behind that progression arc, and will probably fall far short of Boozer. JP just looks completely hapless out there when the offense is running through him. Luckily for us, it looks like we're not going to need him to be a scorer off the bench, really the only bright spots I've seen from him are as a junkyard dog type player, and frankly I haven't even been that impressed with that part of his game. Defensively, he's not quite a sieve, but he doesn't look confident out there either. I DO think however, that some of all this could be contributed to the fact that he's playing center, not PF.
If I had to grade JP right now, he'd get a D+
Patty Mills, to me has been ALMOST as equally disappointing. While he's had a few more positive moments through 3 games, he's probably had that many, if not more, horrendous moments. If Mills makes the regular season roster, it'll be as an instant energy, score-at-will type player, NOT a pg, and the fact that he's had a reasonable amount of difficulty scoring in the summer league doesn't bode well for his regular season chances in my opinion. He does nothing for me on defense either. I know we're going to need shooting, but as the adage goes, defense doesn't go into slumps. PM, to me, is a much smaller, much crappier version of Jerryd Bayless.
If I had to grade PM right now, he'd get a C-
Luke Babbit hasn't really shown me much in either direction. I've been somewhat underwhelmed with his shot, given that we've heard he's a "shooter", but at the same time, I see a controlled, Brandon Roy type feel to his game, and I've actually been pleasantly surprised by his effort, awareness and active presence on the defensive end. It's extremely early to make too much of a prediction on this kid (anyone remember how awful Travis was in his first 2 summer leagues), but I think it's fair to expect this kid to turn into something of a Matt Harpring type player. I haven't seen/heard many say it, but I think the Blazers will miss Martell's shooting and defense this season, Babbit's certainly not at those levels yet, but hopefully the addition of Matthews can offset that disparity. It's far too early to tell, but I've seen alot of negative comments about him so far. Probably unfair to expect him to contribute alot this season, but I can see how, with the right seasoning and training, he could become a nice player for us.
If I had to grade LB right now, he'd get a C+/B-
Armon Johnson, to me looks like he could end up being a poor-man's Russell Westbrook. His obvious flaw, so far is his jumpshot, but as Travis Outlaw showed us, that can be fixed. I love just about every other aspect of Johnson's game though. He's a smart, physical presence for us on both ends of the court, and I've really been very happy with what I've seen from him so far. Unless he can put in the work to turn himself into a knockdown 3pt shooter, I don't know if he'll ever be a starter next to Roy, but he's exactly what we need in a backup pg: strong on defense, makes good decisions, great court vision that helps him set others up, and the ability to mix vet-level craftiness with surprising quickness and speed to score when needed. I've been very impressed by AJ so far.
If I had to grade AJ right now, he'd get an A-
Dante Cunningham has been everything I expected him to be and more. Just my opinion, but I feel as though Nate wants him to be primarily a 3, and, to me, he's looked good playing outside-in with the ball in his hands. I think the best way to describe Dante is unspectacular. He's not a good enough athlete to become a Gerald Wallace/Tyrus Thomas type high-flier and shot blocker, but Dante just does everything well. I've been especially impressed with the confidence in his handle and perimeter J. To me, there's nothing not to like about DC being our backup 3. Offensively he answers the call every time. Not a ton of range on his jumper yet, but whether he's playing on the perimeter as a 3 or the baseline as an undersized 4, Dante is just ROCK solid. Defensively, he's an extremely smart player and, again, is just downright solid. His ceiling is limited in my opinion, but his floor is so high that he's gonna be a player for us for a long time.
If I had to grade DC right now, he'd get an A
I'm excited to see what Elliot Williams can do as well. By all accounts he'll need some seasoning as well, but apparently he's just an amazing athlete. Obviously his opportunities depend on whether Rudy, Bayless or both are moved this offseason, but I think with some time he could be a great scorer off the bench for us.
Thoughts? Are you seeing things that I'm not?
After watching all 3 games so far, I felt like posting my thoughts (and starting a place for others to post/discuss theirs) of the 5 guys on our summer league team that actually matter...
I want to start with Pendergraph. I have to be honest, he's been a disaster out there when the ball is being fed to him. I'm disappointed because I, at one point, felt like he could be a more physical Carlos Boozer, similar build, similar situation coming out of college, but it would appear, at least thus far, that JP is miles behind that progression arc, and will probably fall far short of Boozer. JP just looks completely hapless out there when the offense is running through him. Luckily for us, it looks like we're not going to need him to be a scorer off the bench, really the only bright spots I've seen from him are as a junkyard dog type player, and frankly I haven't even been that impressed with that part of his game. Defensively, he's not quite a sieve, but he doesn't look confident out there either. I DO think however, that some of all this could be contributed to the fact that he's playing center, not PF.
If I had to grade JP right now, he'd get a D+
Patty Mills, to me has been ALMOST as equally disappointing. While he's had a few more positive moments through 3 games, he's probably had that many, if not more, horrendous moments. If Mills makes the regular season roster, it'll be as an instant energy, score-at-will type player, NOT a pg, and the fact that he's had a reasonable amount of difficulty scoring in the summer league doesn't bode well for his regular season chances in my opinion. He does nothing for me on defense either. I know we're going to need shooting, but as the adage goes, defense doesn't go into slumps. PM, to me, is a much smaller, much crappier version of Jerryd Bayless.
If I had to grade PM right now, he'd get a C-
Luke Babbit hasn't really shown me much in either direction. I've been somewhat underwhelmed with his shot, given that we've heard he's a "shooter", but at the same time, I see a controlled, Brandon Roy type feel to his game, and I've actually been pleasantly surprised by his effort, awareness and active presence on the defensive end. It's extremely early to make too much of a prediction on this kid (anyone remember how awful Travis was in his first 2 summer leagues), but I think it's fair to expect this kid to turn into something of a Matt Harpring type player. I haven't seen/heard many say it, but I think the Blazers will miss Martell's shooting and defense this season, Babbit's certainly not at those levels yet, but hopefully the addition of Matthews can offset that disparity. It's far too early to tell, but I've seen alot of negative comments about him so far. Probably unfair to expect him to contribute alot this season, but I can see how, with the right seasoning and training, he could become a nice player for us.
If I had to grade LB right now, he'd get a C+/B-
Armon Johnson, to me looks like he could end up being a poor-man's Russell Westbrook. His obvious flaw, so far is his jumpshot, but as Travis Outlaw showed us, that can be fixed. I love just about every other aspect of Johnson's game though. He's a smart, physical presence for us on both ends of the court, and I've really been very happy with what I've seen from him so far. Unless he can put in the work to turn himself into a knockdown 3pt shooter, I don't know if he'll ever be a starter next to Roy, but he's exactly what we need in a backup pg: strong on defense, makes good decisions, great court vision that helps him set others up, and the ability to mix vet-level craftiness with surprising quickness and speed to score when needed. I've been very impressed by AJ so far.
If I had to grade AJ right now, he'd get an A-
Dante Cunningham has been everything I expected him to be and more. Just my opinion, but I feel as though Nate wants him to be primarily a 3, and, to me, he's looked good playing outside-in with the ball in his hands. I think the best way to describe Dante is unspectacular. He's not a good enough athlete to become a Gerald Wallace/Tyrus Thomas type high-flier and shot blocker, but Dante just does everything well. I've been especially impressed with the confidence in his handle and perimeter J. To me, there's nothing not to like about DC being our backup 3. Offensively he answers the call every time. Not a ton of range on his jumper yet, but whether he's playing on the perimeter as a 3 or the baseline as an undersized 4, Dante is just ROCK solid. Defensively, he's an extremely smart player and, again, is just downright solid. His ceiling is limited in my opinion, but his floor is so high that he's gonna be a player for us for a long time.
If I had to grade DC right now, he'd get an A
I'm excited to see what Elliot Williams can do as well. By all accounts he'll need some seasoning as well, but apparently he's just an amazing athlete. Obviously his opportunities depend on whether Rudy, Bayless or both are moved this offseason, but I think with some time he could be a great scorer off the bench for us.
Thoughts? Are you seeing things that I'm not?
