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If Blair did this in an NBA game, do you think people would start calling the Spurs dirty again?
I think it'd be worth it...
Last edited by migs21; 06-30-2009 at 05:27 AM.
If Blair did this in an NBA game, do you think people would start calling the Spurs dirty again?
I think it'd be worth it...
Damn, that's brutal.
Shortly after acquiring Jefferson, the Spurs saw 6-7, 275-pound bull DeJuan Blair fall to them in the second round of last week's draft. Blair, who fell because of concerns about the lack of anterior cruciate ligaments in his knees, will immediately give the Spurs a rebounding force and a personal body guard for Duncan.
http://www.news-journal.com/sports/c...okscolumn.htmlInteresting way to put it.
I would love to go back to the "dirty and flopping" Spurs..
Blair story remind the Leon Powe Story.
Blair will have last laugh
By Joe Starkey
The more you learn about DeJuan Blair's drop in the NBA Draft five nights ago, the more it makes sense.
But like NBA assistant director of scouting Ryan Blake, I am convinced the San Antonio Spurs scored a major coup by taking Blair as the 37th pick.
Blake's office provides teams with detailed reports on draft prospects. The report on Blair, Pitt's All-America center, included the fact that he'd blown out both anterior cruciate ligaments in high school.
Teams already knew as much but might have been scared off by additional information that surfaced in May. We'll get to that in a minute.
Blake's report also contained the opinion that Blair has a good chance to be an "impact player."
"The guy's the best offensive rebounder we've had (come into the NBA) in 10 years," Blake said Monday. "He eats glass."
Nearly every NBA team spoke with Tony Salesi, Pitt's long-time athletic trainer for men's basketball, about Blair's knees. Salesi told them Blair had experienced almost no difficulties. Blair sat out the Belmont game in November because of swelling, but returned for the next practice and had no additional problems.
Salesi told teams that in addition to the nearly 40 games Blair played each of his two seasons, he participated in about 100 practices, lasting an average of at least 1 1/2 hours.
"That's 140 events per year where he could have had an issue," Salesi said. "He tolerated all that very well. From our perspective, his knees were a concern but never a functional problem."
Once he declared for the draft, Blair aced his initial auditions. The buzz had him going as a lottery pick. But that was before the NBA's pre-draft camp in Chicago in late May, an event similar to the NFL Scouting Combine, where teams scrutinize draft candidates.
This is apparently where Blair's stock took a serious hit.
Blair on Tuesday confirmed that an MRI taken at the pre-draft camp showed the graft — the replacement ACL — in his right knee had "failed," meaning it was either torn or not functioning.
"I wasn't really surprised," Blair said by phone, declining to pinpoint the precise finding on the MRI. "But I'm fine."
So, no additional surgery is planned or required on the knee?
"I'm not touching it," Blair said. "My knee is good."
Salesi said he doesn't think the graft was compromised in the past three months, which means it's likely Blair, 20, played part or most of his Pitt career with a failed graft in his right knee. Pitt didn't do an MRI after its pre-freshman-year tests on Blair, because it had no reason to believe one was necessary.
Without having seen the MRI from Chicago, Salesi believes Blair "may be among the small percentage of people who can function at a high level without a working ACL."
Steelers receiver Hines Ward is one of those people. He doesn't have an ACL or a graft in his left knee.
Blair's agent, Happy Walters, said teams were even more concerned about the possibility of arthritis someday attacking Blair's knees. That is a legitimate concern, but who can predict the onset time? Salesi said Blair's mid-30's is as good a guess as any.
The Spurs are built to win a championship next season. They needed a rebounder and an injection of youth up front. They got both in Blair, who is scheduled to be introduced in San Antonio today and is expected to play for the Spurs' summer-league team in Las Vegas from July 11-19.
"I'm really, really excited," Blair said. "The teams that passed me up, I'm going to have some fun against them."
What I see here is an athletic freak — a 6-foot-7, 275-pound power forward with an impeccable resume (ask Hasheem Thabeet) and a 7-foot-2 wingspan, plus the ability to deliver a crisp outlet pass ( o, Tony Parker), run the floor and rebound like few others.
More than his knees, I believe Blair's NBA future rests on his ability to play passable defense.
Motivation won't be a problem. Blair said he considered changing his number from 45 to 37 as a reminder of where he was drafted, but decided to stick with 45 and focus on the task at hand.
Which is, in a phrase, eating glass and taking names.
Thanks for the read, duncan. I never knew Hines Ward had the same problem that Blair does. That's comforting to know. Its also encouraging to know that he is the best offensive rebounder to come out of college b-ball in the last decade. That single fact alone makes him a steal at 37.
Good Character - Check
Good Rebounder - Check and then some
Young - Check, only a sop re
Potential - Check
Work Ethic - Check
Team Player - Check
Hasheem Thabeet Owner - Check, haha had to put that one in
We got almost everything we need in a Duncan successor. Woo!
Slow down there.
Let me clear it up. Blair has the potential to be almost everything we need in a Duncan successor.
Know this.. Blair might not have a long and successful career that Duncan had.
We're expecting him to be at worst a Reggie Evans.
Comparison to Duncan? Please.
I understand that. What I want from him to be IMO a succesful Duncan successor is to be elite in his prime. Not have such a long and successful career as Duncan. No one I know can do that. Duncan is the best PF of all time, for crying out loud.
Via Spurs twitter:
Getting ready to have presser for @dejaun45 at the prac fac. http://twitpic.com/8zgef
Yeah, RC introduced Blair today a couple hours ago. I'm guessing Spurs.com will have the video shortly.
Blair, Gist and Mahinmi all on the practice court for the first time today
Some of you guys need to slow down...yes Blair was a steal and according to the experts a Top 20 or Top 15 talent but they have been wrong before. Yes, he was a great college player but look at Adam Morrison, Sean May, JJ Re , etc.
I think we need to wait and see how he does in a faster, bigger, and more athletic NBA game before we pencil him in as a starter or as a solid contributor to next season's team. Not to mention before we start believing that he can be a great all-star player in years to come like some of u guys are already doing.
Rebounding translates better than shooting.
I think Blair being an all star in his career will be near impossible because he won't score on a regular basis, but I believe in his prime he could be a solid starter that can be brought into any team and contribute right away. His rebounding is way off the charts not to have at least some success in the league.
That is true, Millsap led the NCAA in rebounding and turned out well for Utah...dont get me wrong I hope Blair can do what Millsap did Im just saying some of u guys are being way too optimistic. We honestly have no idea how his transition from college ball to the NBA will go. I mean to have people label him as a TD succesor or even close to one before he plays a single game is completely ridiculous. Let's give him time before we get our hopes up so high.
In my opinion, in the best case scenario Blair can be what Millsap is for Utah or what Jason Maxiell is for Detroit. I dont see him as an all-star.
I'd be ecstatic if Blair gives the Spurs 5 and 5 next season. I'd be even more ecstatic if Blair could ever become as good as Malik Rose was in his prime.
No no no. Who said this? Someone made a comment on draft night that "people" were saying Blair was the next D-Rob. Who are these people?
So there is something wrong with being exciting about getting lottery level talent at #37 and being hopeful of what he might bring?
First post of this page.
So there is something wrong with being exciting about getting lottery level talent at #37 and being hopeful of what he might bring?
There's nothing wrong with that, Im simply saying we need to be realistic. He's a steal and was a great college player but lets not label him as a future all-star or even as a shoe-in big contributor for next season just yet.
They aired the press-conference live on 760.Yeah, RC introduced Blair today a couple hours ago. I'm guessing Spurs.com will have the video shortly.
Blair, Gist and Mahinmi all on the practice court for the first time today
A couple of things that stould out to me:
R.C. and Pop want the questions about his knees to cease. R.C. went out of his way to make that known, even cutting DeJuan off a little bit after he answered the first knee question. Good move, imo.
Secondly, They believe they're going to get the 4 they need in free-agency. R.C. was quick to say he wouldn't get into specifics, but you could kind of read between the lines...
And Finally...
DeJuan Blair is an "ass-kicking-4."(R.C.'s words.
R.C. never thought that the "ass-kicking-4" hole could have ever been filled in the draft at 37, so he did admit Blair's addition changed the urgency of finding another big lessen; at least to some extent.
DeJuan "A.K.-4(5)" Blair?
Does Blair's joining the team make Hairston a better fit for the roster than Gist? Gist is also an undersized 4 with a similar skill set to Blair's. Am I wrong to think that Hairston has a better chance to make it as a SF than Gist?
Blair should have no impact whatsoever on Gist and Haiston.
Hairston's a 2/3 at this level and Gist is a 4/3.
My bad, I read that wrong.
Last edited by Blackjack; 07-01-2009 at 07:30 PM. Reason: reading comprehension
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