2011 Draft Prospect: Enes Kanter

[Bruno]

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_82lgqfWDn0M/TSVxv6lRp5I/AAAAAAAAAMs/r63Q2WuWMq0/s1600/enes-kanter.jpg
Height: 6-11
Weight: 261 lbs
Birthday: 05/20/1992
College: Kentucky

DraftExpress (http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Enes-Kanter-5168/)
nbadraft (http://www.nbadraft.net/players/enes-kanter)

[Bruno]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/sam_amick/05/23/predraft.camp.wrap/


Ergul also answered the questions about why Kanter sat down with teams that have picks much lower than Kanter is expected to be taken.[...]

On a meeting with San Antonio (No. 29): "I think coach [Gregg] Popovich has an opinion that really matters. If [Detroit president of basketball operations] Joe Dumars or Pop calls me or [Lakers general manager] Mitch [Kupchak] and asks for an interview, I'm not going to deny that. They may or may not get him, but I will give them their seniority. They are the guys who earned it. It's the same thing with Kevin O'Connor."

[5in10]

I'm really intrigued by this kid. If we could trade up for this guy even by trading TP, then I'm all for it.

[5in10]

I said this somewhere else, but I have serious doubts on Kanter. I'm not saying he can't play, he obviously can, but it isn't good for a player's development to sit out of organized basketball.

If this were a weaker draft I could see Kanter falling to 29 or even the second round. Given the shallow pool though, you gotta think a team will like him just for his size and above average athletic ability.

Wasn't he allowed to practice though? Practice with a team that went to the final 4, and with coach cal has to help his development somewhat.

[k_nguyen93]

Report from Project Spurs saying that he talked with Pop today but according to his agent it has to do more with courtesy towards veteran coaches and general managers. Spurs talked to Favors last year too and it didn't mean anything: http://projectspurs.com/2011-articles/may/spurs-interviewed-kanter.html

[ChuckD]

I said this somewhere else, but I have serious doubts on Kanter. I'm not saying he can't play, he obviously can, but it isn't good for a player's development to sit out of organized basketball.

If this were a weaker draft I could see Kanter falling to 29 or even the second round. Given the shallow pool though, you gotta think a team will like him just for his size and above average athletic ability.

There may NEVER be a weaker draft than this, the clear winner since maybe 2000.

Click on the link to the SI article. It's good reading. There were only 5 players who did 21 minutes on the treadmill test, Kanter and 4 guards. No big man 6'11" or taller in the combine history has ever done that. Not only is he ready to play, he's ready to play major minutes if needed, sort of the Anti-Yao.

[ChuckD]

Mishap on words. I meant if this were a stronger draft or if this wasn't such a weak draft.

He's 6'11", highly skilled, and a highly recruited player for UK. He would have been a top 10 pick in any of the last 10 drafts. Would he have justified that? Who knows, but big men are NEVER undervalued.

[ChuckD]

Maybe if he went the Kyrie Irving route where he showed promise and missed a lot of games, but he hasn't played organized basketball in forever. What he does in pick up games and in 1 on 0 workouts is irrelevant.

So he's rusty. So fucking what? Talent doesn't have a shelf life. If Calipari recruited him, he was better than any American kid available. Calipari gets the cream every year.

[5in10]

So he's rusty. So fucking what? Talent doesn't have a shelf life. If Calipari recruited him, he was better than any American kid available. Calipari gets the cream every year.

Have to agree with this. History say Cals players come in ready to play and possess star power, at least the last couple of drafts. He did dominate sullinger, which is good enough for me.

[ChuckD]

And for the record, the NBA is SO structured that if a player doesn't have practice on the college level of running an offense, there is a slim chance he catches on to the NBA immediately. Sure he is in shape, but what does that mean if he can't play instantly.

He's played Euro club ball. Their coaches coach circles around AmericanHS/AAU coaches. I'll bet he knows AT LEAST as much about basketball theory as any one and done player, and more than most.

And two years? His Nike Hoop Summit coming out was in 2010. He's missed ONE year. C'mon man, you're better than this. Or are you? Jeremy Tyler, the one you're slobbering all over, has essentially missed two years. You don't seem to have a problem with that.

[yavozerb]

I really do believe this kid will be an above average NBA bigman in the years to come..The question is going to be can he be a great NBA big man? International players are always risky and this is no different. The 1 year layoff will have no determining factor on whether this kid develops into a good player or not in my opinion.

[ChuckD]

I'm not "slobbering" over Jeremy Tyler, but when it comes to realistic options for the Spurs at 29, in this draft Tyler has a better chance than Kanter. Now coming down to experience, he played half a season at a low level prep-school and nothing at all in the past year. The year before that he played some kind of Euro-league ball for only a handful of game, which cost his his NCAA eligibility. When it comes to "theory" it's all nice and dandy, but there is no 100% proof that he can go out there and use the coaching he's been given.

Jeremy Tyler on the other hand actually played overseas and went though humbling experiences. Instead of walking around high school and college campuses being the number 1 guy, he went overseas and much like Brandon Jennings before him, did not put up flashy numbers. What playing overseas does teach you however, if fundamentals. Working as a team, not getting caught up in the athletic part of the game like so many young players in the states do.

So, somehow Tyler's overseas experience is more valuable than Kanter's, in spite of the fact that he hardly played and was kicked off his Israeli team, and played year #2 in that basketball hotbed of Japan? WTF? You're doing a serious limbo on this one, PC.

[Bruno]

Kanter has obviously spend 2 years without playing at a good level but he has had some experience before that.

In 08-09, he played some games in turkey and practice with a team that is significantly better than the best NCAA team. He played during the 09 summer with the U18 Turkey team at a level way better than the high school level.

And it's not like the consensus first pick has only played 11 college games...

[JonNOKC]

Phila is right about his one - Kanter has no chance of falling to Spurs at 29 but Tyler should be on the board and would provide a better option than a Lucas Nogueira IMO because Tyler from a physical standpoint can be a contributor faster while still having a fairly high ceiling in terms of potential

[ace3g]

Didn't know where to put this, but he has put up some impressive stats off the bench so far. Looks like losing 50 pounds over the offseason really helped