My latest at silverscreenandroll.com. Just a few more days! The 2015 NBA Draft is just around the corner and the rumor mill is shifting into overdrive. Finding the truth in the midst of all the misinformation can be like trying to get Nick Young to swim with dolphins, but the one thing we keep hearing from many different sources is that Kristaps Porzingis has the chance to be a very, very good player. While it's possible that some teams are overstating their interest in order to throw off their competition, the fact that so many sources are saying the same thing is telling. When there is this much smoke there has to be at least a little fire. Porzingis, who originally hails from Latvia and comes from a basketball family, has been playing professionally overseas for years in spite of being just 19 years old. He hasn't been playing in just any league either, he's employed by Sevilla in the Spanish ACB League, which is considered by many to be the second-best league in the world. It's easy to see why so many teams are excited about him. He's a legit 7-footer with a silky smooth jumper, three point range, and a wingspan that makes Mr. Fantastic jealous. His ceiling would have him as some type of monstrous Dirk-Pau hybrid with a dab of Kirilenko thrown in for good measure. He has the shooting ability to step out to the three-point line and the length to challenge shots at the rim, providing the kind of versatility that teams love. IF PORZINGIS WERE PLAYING AT DUKE OR KANSAS, I THINK HE WOULD BE THE TOUGHEST COMPETITION FOR TOWNS FOR THE NO. 1 OVERALL PICK- CHAD FORD Porzingis faces a few challenges though, with the main one being that he isn't the first guy to come into the draft as a tall European who can shoot, and quite a few of his contemporaries have failed in the NBA. The fear of another European bust has led to him being called horrible things like "Bargnani" and "Darko". It will be up to Kristaps to prove these ugly stereotypes wrong. Fortunately, Porzingis has a few things that the busts of the past never did: athleticism and passion. For a player his size he gets off the floor surprisingly well, and all reports indicate that he eats, sleeps, and breathes basketball. It's what he was raised on and what he loves. It's because of his tantalizing combination of size, skill, and drive that Porzingis is rocketing up draft boards, with some suggesting that he could go as high as 2nd overall to the Lakers. Adding credibility to this notion is the fact that Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak and VP of Basketball Operations Jim Buss traveled to Las Vegas to see him workout before 150 NBA executives, then followed that up by bringing the young Latvian to Los Angeles for a private workout just a few days later. However, the idea that he could be picked 2nd in the draft just doesn't have the ring of truth to it. He is talented, and he may end up being a very good player but he is all wrong for the Lakers. In spite of all his upside, the risks that come with drafting him outweigh the reward. While most point to prior international busts to justify their skepticism, it's not smart to dismiss him simply because of other European players who flamed out. That's not only a dangerous generalization but also overlooks the growing number of Euros who have found success in the NBA. Players like Nikoloz Tskitishvili and Jan Vesely aren't reason enough to scare away the Lakers, who took risks when they selected unproven centerAndrew Bynum and a teenager named Kobe Bryant. Other concerns are not so easily swept aside though, with the most ominous one being his thin build. Even in the Spanish league he was frequently bullied in the post by shorter but stronger players. This negatively impacted not only his rebounding (just 4.1 per game in 21 minutes), but also made it difficult for him to be effective in the post. Porzingis scored most of his points off of face ups and by coming off screens for jumpers, taking advantage of being guarded by slow-footed centers and power forwards. In the NBA he will face athletes who will be able to close out on him faster, and for now teams will have the option of guarding him with small forwards because he lacks the post game to punish them inside. He shoots lights out in one-on-none workouts, and we have seen him bury jumpers in Spain, but those shots will be much for difficult when he has a hand in his face. With the right match ups he can be dangerous, but he's going to need time to learn how to find space in the NBA as well as build up his body so he can handle post play. Please read the rest HERE!
Great read, man! I still haven't seen any Pau in Porzingis though... I see a more athletic version of Dirk, but Pau is a post game genius and I don't think Porzingis will effectively post people up in the NBA. I think he's a good fit for New York but I don't know if they have the balls to pull the trigger after sitting through the reign of Bargnani over there.
