Reply With Quote
Well, well, well...
If it aint Old McDonald!
(Pretty slick how he lets ST, 48MOH, and DX do his legwork)
Edit: There are links to the info threads on every name McDonald lists in the Draft Prospect Thread Index in the Think Tank.
http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=124690
The Casspi question
By Jeff McDonald
The NBA draft is still nearly a month away. For everybody except the Lakers, Cavaliers, Magic and maybe the Nuggets, it's not too early to start looking ahead to June 25.
For the Spurs, much of the early speculation — emphasis on the word early — has surrounded a 20-year-old Israeli named Omri Casspi.
Casspi, a 6-foot-8 small forward, isn't exactly a household name in the Alamo City. Draft wonks, and certainly those in the Spurs front office, know exactly who he is. Casspi has been playing in the Euroleague since he was 17, most recently with Maccabi Tel Aviv. He has been on the Spurs radar for about as long.
He is a decent 3-point shooter (shooting nearly 40 percent for Maccabi Tel Aviv last season), in the mold of Utah's Matt Harpring. One of the Spurs' goals this offseason is to begin to get younger on the wing, and Casspi — still not old enough to drink legally in the United States — certainly fills the bill there.
Unlike other European prospects the Spurs have taken in recent drafts (see Splitter, Tiago), Casspi reportedly is bedazzled with the prospect of playing in the NBA, and would likely take a financial hit to make that dream come true.
So, what's to keep Casspi from taking a call from the Spurs on draft day? There are two intertwined factors.
No. 1 — There are rumors that Casspi will withdraw from the draft if he's not guaranteed to be a first round pick. At the pre-draft combine in Chicago earlier this week, he didn't exactly deny that rumor. At this point, Casspi is projected as a late first-round, early second-round selection.
No. 2 — The Spurs have no first-round pick this season, having dealt theirs (No. 25 overall) to Seattle/Oklahoma City in February 2008 as part of the Kurt Thomas deal. The Spurs do have three second-round picks (Nos. 37, 51 and 53).
Don't be surprised to see the Spurs try to trade into the bottom of the first round, if they think they have a shot at Casspi. That is one storyline worth watching on draft day.
Casspi, meanwhile, hasn't scheduled a private workout with the Spurs, and it remains uncertain that he would. He probably doesn't have to. The Spurs have been scouting Casspi for so long, they know all there is to know about him.
However, there is a long and growing list of prospects who have worked out or are believed to have worked out for the Spurs. Among them:
PG — Nic Wise of Arizona, Ben Woodside of North Dakota State, Kyle McAlarney of Notre Dame, Jeremy Pargo of Gonzaga, Donald Sloan of Texas A&M, Curtis Jerrells of Baylor and Nick Calathes of Florida.
SG — Dionte Christmas of Temple, Dwyane Collins of Miami, Alex Ruoff of West Virginia, Greivis Vasquez of Maryland, Va., Jermaine Taylor from Central Florida and Courtney Fells from North Carolina State.
SF/PF: Tyler Smith of Tennesee, Robert Dozier of Memphis and Leo Lyons from Missouri.
(I posted this in the Casspi thread in the Think Tank too:
http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=124926 )
Last edited by duncan228; 05-30-2009 at 01:48 AM.
Well, well, well...
If it aint Old McDonald!
(Pretty slick how he lets ST, 48MOH, and DX do his legwork
it would be nice to get sam young and omri cassipi this draft
I am very impressed with Leo Lyons.
Is there a concensus as to who is better -- Casspi or Claver? It seems some analysts think Claver may have more long range potential.
+1(Pretty slick how he lets ST, 48MOH, and DX do his legwork
The list of 16 workouts he gave is the exact same list than the one on 48MOH.
The Harpring comparison clearly come from DX.
A beat writer should be a guy who brings some info to fans. McDonald is just picking some info on internet (without crediting its sources). I've been quiet on the McDonald bashing but he clearly deserves it when he writes things
like that.
Hmmm. Wonder what took so long.
If Casspi gets a first-round guarantee, that could only spell bad news for the Spurs. Not just because they don't have a first-round pick, but because it would mean they will have known, legitimate compe ion, for Casspi's services. Also, there is the additional possibility that some team could reach and take him much earlier that anyone expects.
It's become very apparent again that the price the Spurs paid for KT (1st round pick) was absolutely too steep. It's ironic that, while the Spurs may have felt this pick was expendable back then, they certainly need it now.
If, in fact, the Spurs do have a legitimate shot at him, I'd be very curious to see whether the Spurs are willing to do WHATEVER is necessary in order to procure his services.
Somehow I get the feeling that Portland and Houston know this and will be watching this situation. , they've probably read this article.
What impressed you about him? I read that he has average basketball IQ and struggles with the most basic elements of playing defense.
Must be RC Buford doing a favor for another Aggie.
Neither Lyons nor Sloan were at the Combine.
Stop talking about Casspi, you'll jinx us. I thought Batum was ours until the Rockets swooped in and snatched him.
All this talk about Casspi makes me think that he isn't the target, but just another smokescreen. Who knows. With Pop and company you never know if they meant to draft who they pick or if another team swooped in and took their desired target. We will just have to wait and see.
no fukn , i hate teams that leech others hard scouting reports, fkn rockets and portland.
seriously whoever is reported to be heavily scouted by the spurs, better not be a another hoax bs mind games spurs FO is playing again, then go out in the middle of nowhere to draft a player never heard of....
ard and Morey would just draft this guy for the sake of ing us up as they did with Batum...:
His hustle, his ability to make things happen, his full court press ball pressure, and his obvious impact on an over-achieving Missouri team in the NCAA tournament. He definitely raised their level of play...as did DeMarre Carroll. I actually like both of these players and I'm not really a Mizzou fan.
Last edited by Solid D; 05-31-2009 at 12:10 AM.
I don't know if we can get both.
if we trade for a first round and cassipi slips in the second round like projected in could happen
the minute other teams find out that the spurs are strongly interested in casspi, one of the other teams will draft him.
Y'all must be new here. If he's being reported in the E-N as a target then the Spurs have moved on.
Looks like Houston showed love to Sam Young too. It's nearly impossible to get both since they all seem to be drafted in the first round. In fact, I would be totally sacroficed if the Spurs get either of them.
Last edited by spursbird; 05-31-2009 at 08:23 AM.
Good interview on Casspi here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7opOAH7iARM
1) Talks about his strengths and does not mention defense at all.
2) Talks about who is planning on interviewing him and where he can see himself going
3) Flat out says that San Antonio is interested with 37 (at the 1:47 mark)
By the way, he talks about 10 (Milwaukee) 19(Atlanta) 20 (Utah) and 22 (Dallas) as either setting up interviews are having interest in him.
The Spurs will no doubt have to move up into the first to grab him. He will not be there at 37.
They're going to have to move up to get either Casspi or Young. But will they?
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
