2007-08 D-League Draft/Season Preview , Austin Toros roster

[T Park]

We oughtta have a draft chat tonight while this goes on.

Shoot, were not doin anything else

[LEN BIAS 4EVER]

Can't write off Williams yet. I bet he feels stupid having left the cozy confines of a U of Arizona program were he would have learned some D this season w/ Kevin O'neil back on the staff.

I was never impressed with Watson at Tenn but with his summer league showing i guess it's very possible.

I would rather have Jamaal Tatum myself and see if he can turn into a point guard. That dud plays w/ some serious intensity.

I would take a chance on Wendell White out of UNLV... he played great in the NCAA's

What happened to Ron Lewis out of Ohio St. ?? I thought he could shoot pretty well.

[timvp]

With the first pick, I want the Toros to go with either Kevin Kruger or Eddie Gill. Those two players are pass first point guards who would be very good in terms of helping the development of everyone on the team. I'd probably rate Kruger a tad higher just because he has some future potential, although Gill isn't a bad emergency point guard to have in the pipeline. Gill is basically a Jacque Vaughn clone.

Other than getting the point guard, I'd like the Toros to land one of the seven footers in the draft. Just pick one of those big 7-foot, 300 pound stiffs to let Mahinmi play some power forward instead of having to play center all the time. Examples would be Shagari Alleyne, John Bunch, Brad Stricker and Marcus Campbell.

Aleksandar Ugrinoski would be an interesting pick. He's a 19-year-old Croatian who hasn't even declared for the NBA draft yet. Might be good to draft him and then check to see if he's worth a second round NBA flier at some point.

Interesting Prospects
Kedrick Brown - Still young enough to live up to his promise.
Keith Closs - Comedy factor.
Schea Cotton - Solid veteran scrub.
Jason Ellis - Good name.
Darvin Ham - Hey if he wants to play in the D-League, why not? Good leader, at least.
Isma'il Muhammad - Not very good at basketball but one of the best dunkers ever.
Kevin Pittsnogle - Not a bad player to put next to Mahinmi.
Jamaal Tatum - As long as he's not the main point guard, he'd be a good pick.

Players To Avoid
Jamison Brewer - Ballhog and sucks.
Adam Harrington - Ballhog, sucks and crybaby.
Jason Klotz - Please no homer picks.
Jelani McCoy - He's good but lazy. Bad influence for Mahinmi.
CJ Watson - No court vision.
Robert Whaley - Good player, locker room nightmare.

[T Park]

Kedrick Brown - Still young enough to live up to his promise

Is that the same Kedrick Brown formerly of the Celtics?

[T Park]

Did Anthony Goldwire finally give up the ghost and retire?

[timvp]

Is that the same Kedrick Brown formerly of the Celtics?

Correct.

[Bruno]

I will be curious to see what kind of players Austin will draft : nba prospect for Spurs or good D-League players to win games ?
It will be too interesting to see if they use a high draft pick on a PG. It could be a hint about where will Washington plays this year.

[timvp]

Isma'il Muhammad could fill the James White void.

Isma'il Muhammad!

[LEN BIAS 4EVER]

Shea cotton WOW remember the hype on him.


Kendrick Brown is still young enough to make it back to the league.

I would imagine Krueger would be gone by time the Toros pick.

[Darkwaters]

With the first pick, I want the Toros to go with either Kevin Kruger or Eddie Gill. Those two players are pass first point guards who would be very good in terms of helping the development of everyone on the team. I'd probably rate Kruger a tad higher just because he has some future potential, although Gill isn't a bad emergency point guard to have in the pipeline. Gill is basically a Jacque Vaughn clone.

Other than getting the point guard, I'd like the Toros to land one of the seven footers in the draft. Just pick one of those big 7-foot, 300 pound stiffs to let Mahinmi play some power forward instead of having to play center all the time. Examples would be Shagari Alleyne, John Bunch, Brad Stricker and Marcus Campbell.

Aleksandar Ugrinoski would be an interesting pick. He's a 19-year-old Croatian who hasn't even declared for the NBA draft yet. Might be good to draft him and then check to see if he's worth a second round NBA flier at some point.

Interesting Prospects
Kedrick Brown - Still young enough to live up to his promise.
Keith Closs - Comedy factor.
Schea Cotton - Solid veteran scrub.
Jason Ellis - Good name.
Darvin Ham - Hey if he wants to play in the D-League, why not? Good leader, at least.
Isma'il Muhammad - Not very good at basketball but one of the best dunkers ever.
Kevin Pittsnogle - Not a bad player to put next to Mahinmi.
Jamaal Tatum - As long as he's not the main point guard, he'd be a good pick.

Players To Avoid
Jamison Brewer - Ballhog and sucks.
Adam Harrington - Ballhog, sucks and crybaby.
Jason Klotz - Please no homer picks.
Jelani McCoy - He's good but lazy. Bad influence for Mahinmi.
CJ Watson - No court vision.
Robert Whaley - Good player, locker room nightmare.

I think you made some good points. The Toros do need a quality pass-first PG. I remember how horrible our summer league team was because of a lack of ball movement. We need a point that will push our young players to grow...not push them out of the way while they jack up poor shots.

I also like the idea of the Toros purusing a big 7 footer. But the Toros have a lot of PFs on the roster so far that are probably too small to play center and too slow to play on the wing. Mahinmi might have to play center just to divy out the minutes well.

Is Adam Harrington really that bad? I don't know much about him except what I saw in the link. He looks to be a quality shooter and the Spurs need to find one of those to replace some of the geriatric members of the wing. I didn't know how legit the concerns were about his at ude. Oh well...

I couldn't find much information on Ugrinowski except what you stated. I know quite a bit about his situation but nothing about his skill-set. If hes a talented PG then he'd probably be a unique pick. I suppose we'll see whether the CIA Spurs are passing on their traits to their farm team.

How many players can the Toros carry on a team?

Can Paulino not play any PG? Didn't he man the point at Texas because Boobie couldn't do it?

[ChumpDumper]

I also like the idea of the Toros purusing a big 7 footer. But the Toros have a lot of PFs on the roster so far that are probably too small to play center and too slow to play on the wing. Mahinmi might have to play center just to divy out the minutes well.

Fuqua started at center most of last season, though he's pretty inconsistent -- it was silly bringing Loren Woods off the bench in retospect. There weren't enough slots to keep Marcus Campbell, but I wouldn't mind seeing him drafted again. Pittsnogle would be a very nice complement to the listed big men on offense -- kind of a poor man's Bonner -- but he would do nothing to toughen them up the way Campbell would.

Overall, these rule changes are pretty positive and give D-League and NBA teams more flexibility in using the former for actual development.

[Darkwaters]

Theres a D-League draft preview on NBAtv in about 5 minutes. Might be worth watching.

[T Park]

any way to watch this online?

Legally? post it here

illegally? PM me

[FirebatMIV]

PICK TEAM SELECTION
1 Colorado 14ers Eddie Gill
2 Dakota Wizards Carlos Powell
3 Albuquerque Thunderbirds Darvin Ham
4 Idaho Stampede Jamaal Tatum
5 Rio Grande Valley Vipers C.J. Watson
6 Sioux Falls Skyforce Nik Caner-Medley
7 Fort Wayne Mad Ants Larry Turner
8 Los Angeles D-Fenders Jelani McCoy
9 Anaheim Arsenal Kedrick Brown
10 Utah Flash Kevin Kruger
11 Tulsa 66ers Glen McGowan
12 Austin Toros Kevin Pittsnogle
13 Bakersfield Jam Forfeit
14 Iowa Energy Dwayne Mitc


Draft so far

http://www.nba.com/dleague/news/dleague_draft_07.html

[timvp]

Nice pick. Both point guards I wanted were off the board. Pittsnogle is a good compliment to Mahinmi and if he could ever get in shape, he possibly has NBA potential. That's more than you can say for 97% of the players in this draft.

[FirebatMIV]

The Toros have their PG with Carldell Johnson out of Alabama-Brigham in the 2nd round.

[timvp]

Squeaky Johnson was a solid pick. Perhaps it indicates that they aren't counting on a point guard to come from elsewhere, namely Darius Washington.

[LEN BIAS 4EVER]

Wow that PG was conference usa defensive player of the year and first all-conference as a senior.

[timvp]

Squeaky was a step down from Gill and Kruger but of the point guards available, he's the one I would have gone with. He's short but he actually can see the court and should have problem getting the ball to Mahinmi.

[Darkwaters]

Pittsnogle and Squeaky? Not bad. A playmaking PG and a 3 point shooting big with NBA potential. I liked Pittsnogle at WV.

Way to go Toros.

[timvp]

Marty Blake is old but I like his enthusiasm for basketball. I'm surprised the NBA doesn't use him more as far as being a talent scout spokesman.

[timvp]

Schea Cotton and Isma'il Muhammad still on the board

Oh and that Croatian.

[Darkwaters]

Schea Cotton and Isma'il Muhammad still on the board

Oh and that Croatian.

No, the croatian is already gone. I think second round.

[timvp]

The Croatian was taken by Utah.

[timvp]

No, the croatian is already gone. I think second round.

The 19-year-old Croatian was just taken by Utah in the third.