Chad Ford Gives Spurs Only A+

[lefty]

There is a reaon Blair wasn't picked higher : his knees

Otherwise, he wouldn't have worn a Spurs hat yesterday

[Cry Havoc]

277 lbs is thin?

Sorry, I thought I had read his statsheet and it said he was 235. My bad.

I still think he lacks the height to play center, but who knows.

[gaKNOW!blee]

let's see we've had Duncan for 12 years and the FO is only now going out and really trying to add talent and build a championship team

thanks FO

if Boston had gotten TD in that Draft, they'd have at least 7 by now

just sayin

That was just stupid...The Spurs have 4 championships and have put plenty of talent around Duncan. Every FO makes mistakes, but the Spurs have done plenty to win this 4, its not just Duncan.

[jjktkk]

Blair is 6'6" and very thin.

As much as you'd like to believe, there is no way he plays 5 against a legit big man in today's NBA. Of course, there aren't many actual post-players left, but even so, he'd get murdered if he has to give up half a foot of height. It's not about his ability, it's the fact that the NBA is simply another level.

However, I could see him being inserted into some small ball lineups at the 5. He gives us some options we didn't have before.

6'6" 270 pounds is very thin?

[robbie380]

There is a reaon Blair wasn't picked higher : his knees

Otherwise, he wouldn't have worn a Spurs hat yesterday

...and the fact that he is only 6'6 in shoes

[coyotes_geek]

...and the fact that he is only 6'6 in shoes

True, but those are only good reasons to not take him in the lottery. There's no way he should have fallen out of the 1st round.

[Spursfan092120]

The guy has a small neck...truth is he has a sick wingspan and plays a LOT bigger than he is...if he destroys Hasheem Thabeet on the boards, he'll be fine as a big.

[Hooks]

According to draftexpress, he's only got 12% body fat at 265lbs, and in the comparisons it says his best case is a Paul Millsap type player and his worst is a Reggie Evans type player, who wouldn't want those types of guys on our team?

1 inch isn't going to make much of a difference (Millsap is only 6'8), and Him being 277 freaken pounds is going to make him hard to post up on. Look at Chuck Hayes, he's 6'6 238 and I'd say he did pretty well in the LA series.


If you've ever played a game of basketball and you've tried posting up against a heavily muscled short guy you know how damn hard it is. It feels like you're going to be flipped over, their center of gravity is really low.


http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Paul-Millsap-299/


Millsap and him basically have he same sort of body, except Blair is built with way more muscle and was dominating on the boards in college.

[urunobili]

Don't worry. The haters will reappear once the FO is forced to cut loose one or two guys out of the Williams, Hairston, Gist trio because they're out of roster spots.

NO one will whine if Williams leave...

[Mugen]

milsap is closer to 6'6" than 6'8".

I think blair has a very good chance to be our paul milsap and that is a damn good find at 37.

even though i think milsap was chosen lower haha

[tp2021]

NO one will whine if Williams leave...

That damn Austin_Toros guy will.

[Cry Havoc]

According to draftexpress, he's only got 12% body fat at 265lbs, and in the comparisons it says his best case is a Paul Millsap type player and his worst is a Reggie Evans type player, who wouldn't want those types of guys on our team?

1 inch isn't going to make much of a difference (Millsap is only 6'8), and Him being 277 freaken pounds is going to make him hard to post up on. Look at Chuck Hayes, he's 6'6 238 and I'd say he did pretty well in the LA series.


If you've ever played a game of basketball and you've tried posting up against a heavily muscled short guy you know how damn hard it is. It feels like you're going to be flipped over, their center of gravity is really low.


http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Paul-Millsap-299/


Millsap and him basically have he same sort of body, except Blair is built with way more muscle and was dominating on the boards in college.

Good post.

There's no reason we can't just matchup against whichever team and put him at C if the other team has a shorter C or is playing small ball, and PF if they're going big. There aren't many power forwards in the league who are going to be able to back him down.

[ploto]

There is a reaon Blair wasn't picked higher : his knees

Otherwise, he wouldn't have worn a Spurs hat yesterday

Remember when people wondered why Splitter had fallen and thought the Spurs knew something no one else did to still pick him? Well, he stayed in Europe anyway and the results of that gamble are still left to be seen.

I can not help but wonder what the Spurs were willing to overlook that everyone else saw- and if it was all about his knees. I mean you can use an early second round pick on a guy with bad knees because it is not even guaranteed. Why did they all pass on him- it's not lke he was some unknown guy whose accomplishmnets had been hidden away.

[EricB]

What a shocker, Ploto found something wrong with getting him.


Un ing real.

The Spurs could've drafted Blake Griffen and Stephan Curry and she would've boasted "Well you know, Curry is just an undersized shooting guard, I don't know WHAT they were thinking there..."

Pathetic

[Galileo]

FOX Sports also gave the Spurs the only A+

Draft Grades: Spurs steal the show
http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/9733458?GT1=39002

San Antonio Spurs

Picks: (37th) DeJuan Blair, (51st) Jack McClinton, (53rd) Nando De Colo

Analysis: How do these guys just fall into the Spurs' lap? Blair is a perfect fit alongside Duncan and could start next season. That alone deserves an A. But then you factor in McClinton, a potential Eddie House clone, and De Colo, a brilliant passer with potential, and you have an A+ draft with no first rounders.

Grade: A+

[EricB]

Looks like Fox Sports just copied what Chad Ford said pretty much.

[Agloco]

Blair is 6'6" and very thin.

As much as you'd like to believe, there is no way he plays 5 against a legit big man in today's NBA. Of course, there aren't many actual post-players left, but even so, he'd get murdered if he has to give up half a foot of height. It's not about his ability, it's the fact that the NBA is simply another level.

However, I could see him being inserted into some small ball lineups at the 5. He gives us some options we didn't have before.

[Agloco]

...and the fact that he is only 6'6 in shoes

It's standing reach that matters most. He's got a 8' 10.5" standing reach. Compare this to Blake Griffin who only has an 8' 9" standing reach and you can clearly see how much of a freak of nature this guy is. His wingspan is 7'3" and his weight is 265-270 lb. Those two factors are going to get him a lot of boards in this league.

What a steal. What a steal.

[nadroj117]

If no one noticed, Spurs were the ONLY team that Chad Ford gave an A+ to. Others got A's and A-'s but no other A+. I'm so thrilled, and can't wait for the rest to unfold. Who would have thought going into last night that we would be in this kind of shape, or this happy about 3 2nd round picks?

[Ryvin1]

According to Draftexpress (Average Wingspan/Reach by Height) compiled stats on draftees over the years (I believe the past 8 yrs) players that have a height of 6' 11" have a wingspan of 7' 1.8" so unless he's plans on blocking with his head he should still be to play like a 4/5, which he did quite well in college I don't think his height is a major issue. He was also the heaviest person in the draft.

[wildbill2u]

If the concern about his knees is overblown, the Spurs just got one of the top players in the draft at #37. McClinton looks like another steal too.

I'll give you the knees, but what about his 6'6" height? He's gonna play PF and give up many inches to most of the PFs. In fact, I can't think of any PFs who're 6'6". The only one I can think of is Sir Charles, and he was one of a kind and in a different era. These guys are simply getting bigger every year.

I've heard all the talk about wingspan, but I'm not sure he can counter a 6'10 PF (who also has a pretty damn big wingspan) from just jumping over him for easy jump shots.

That's why he dropped so far. Maybe a no-risk pick at 37, but not necessarily a peerless pick.

[angelbelow]

sweet!!!!!!!!

[TampaDude]

Blair is 6'6" and very thin.

Uh...thin??? You don't watch much college hoops, do ya? Blair is a BEAST! 23 boards against UConn in the NCAA Tourney...TWENTY THREE ING BOARDS!!! Yeah, he's thin...

[oligarchy]

I'll give you the knees, but what about his 6'6" height? He's gonna play PF and give up many inches to most of the PFs. In fact, I can't think of any PFs who're 6'6". The only one I can think of is Sir Charles, and he was one of a kind and in a different era. These guys are simply getting bigger every year.

I've heard all the talk about wingspan, but I'm not sure he can counter a 6'10 PF (who also has a pretty damn big wingspan) from just jumping over him for easy jump shots.

That's why he dropped so far. Maybe a no-risk pick at 37, but not necessarily a peerless pick.

If that 6'10" player has the same vertical and standing reach, how does he just "jump over him for easy jump shots?"

Think.

[Spurs Brazil]

San Antonio Spurs — DeJuan Blair, Jack McClinton(notes), Nando De Colo(notes)
Two guys (one a lottery-level talent) that can help right away? And a man named "Nando De Colo?" Big, productive night for the Spurs, who didn't even have a first-rounder to work with.

Score: 10
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/bal...urn=nba,173096