James played horribly against most defenders for the first five games of the series. Pop's strategy was to force James to take long-twos, and for the longest time, Lebron let it happen. Then he had his turning point in Game Six and just abused Diaw. I had a thread about it back in the day. The short of it is that it was a five-man defense focused almost exclusively on Lebron, similar to what they did in 2007. I'm not saying Boris couldn't follow a gameplan, but once Lebron figured out the scheme, Diaw's inability to stay with Lebron on the perimeter negated the fact that James couldn't back Boris down in the post the way he could smaller guys (because back then, Lebron was a PF almost exclusively).
So who would you take between Pokusevski and Avdija? Trying to get a "sense of the room."
The comparison is somewhat inapt because the Spurs have the 11th pick. There's about a 95% chance that Avdija will be gone at 11 and about an 80% chance (albeit it trending down) that Poku will be there at 11 (according to most mock drafts).
But assuming they were both available, who would you take. (I'd take Avdija but Poku is generating so much enthusiasm I'm interested in other opinions.)
I'm not seeing it... LeBron was 11-26 in Game 6 and the Spurs likely grab the le there if not for Manu's uncharacteristically horrible 8 TOs and -21. In 23 minutes, Diaw was +1.
https://www.basketball-reference.com...306180MIA.html
It wouldn’t shock me to see NY pick him at 8. The NBA lottery gods took a giant crap on them by knocking them back two places. One of Poku’s comps is Kristaps, and they pulled the trigger on him a lot higher than the #8 spot where they sit now.
Deni 10 times out of 10. Some players are born winners. Pop called Keldon one. Manu was one. Tim Duncan was one. They know all the little things they have to do to win. Deni has seen the pressure and has beaten it. It takes time for other players to know what to do in those situations. Thats why "playoff experience" is a thing. But when you know how to win like the players I mentioned, it's not as critical.
I think people overrate height, especially how important it is independent from girth. So it doesn't matter to me how Poke's skill are "for a seven-footer". Like who cares? How many dominate seven-foot perimeter players are there? Giannis and KD are close enough to count. When talking about PG and Simmons, you're getting into the 6-9/6-10 range which has a lot of skilled players nowadays. It's not a requirement to be a good perimeter player or PF to be that tall. The advantage is supposed to be how skilled a player is for being a certain position. Like maybe an actualized Poke would be a center who couldn't be guarded by his own position (too skilled) or any lower position (too big). But the thing is, he's not too big. We're talking about him hopefully being a good PF in the league. If he plays there, his perimeter advantages are not nearly as striking. He could theoretically shoot over smaller guys, Dirk style, but Dirk was heafty enough to create space with his back to the basket, which Poke may not be against PFs, and even if he can, that's not really considered to be a good shot anymore.
I'm not saying he won't be good. I'm not a scout (don't even play one on the Internet), and I'm sure he looks good on tape. I am saying that's probably at a level where his physical advantages (height, length, skill for his size) are outweighing the disadvantages (lack of strength, potentially mobility and posture issues). In bigger leagues with more experienced players that may change. And you can expect Poke to get at least a little better, but the NBA is so much better than a Euro youth team that he could get A LOT better and still not be good enough. That's not a reason not to draft him, but it is a reason to be a bit more conservative when looking at his footage. There's a big gap between what a player can do when he's the most talented player on the floor and what he can do when he's not the most talented player on the floor. The same way Metu looks awesome in the d-league but awful with the big club because he's too ambitious for his skill level, Poke may well not be able to do a lot of the perimeter things he's showing now at the NBA level. He may come over and even stick in the league while only having part of his game translate.
James scored 37 points in the next game, with Diaw -18
But yes, the Spurs would've won Game Six if not for like a million things. They had three opportunities to take the lead with under a minute left (thanks to Green making that GOAT defensive play and fouling James on the next possession to lead to a Wade clanker).
Pokemon?
His nickname in Greece was Poku.
Agree Deni 10 times out of 10 the kid has such a high basketball IQ and is so damn smooth and would love to try and go get him in a trade. One thing I like is both him and Poku.. have high B Ball IQ and are very skilled for there position and both seem to have that compe ive spirit you definitely want in a player.
I didn't know he was being discussed that high, but the internet is full of people who make lists for a living. So how/when do you see him fitting in the NBA? (Never mind the Spurs for now.) He's 7' and weighs around 190 lbs. Would you want him to stay lean or put on weight to be able to compete more on the inside as well? I'm not knocking the guy - I can see things to like about him.
I don't know if you remember when Kevin Garnett first got drafted, but he was too light when he arrived and he was still somewhere around 220 lbs - and he had that sort of honey badger personality. He had to get up to around 240 to really get the most out of his talent. Poeltl was somewhere around 240 at the combine, and he had to get stronger before he could compete. Pokusevski is 4 inches taller than Pascal Siakam, and 40 lbs. lighter. The leverage would kill him trying to defend someone like that.
Like I said, I don't hate him, and you guys have piqued my interest. I don't see how Pokusevski could survive without putting on 30 lbs. or so, minimum. That's a lot, and it would almost have to change the role he would play. I'm just trying to picture him putting on that much bulk without pharmaceutical help, or a couple of years of hard work. I think someone like Saddiq Bey could get minutes on this team in his rookie season. Or Tyler Bey for that matter.
I don’t think Metu dominated G League in fact I think Eubanks pretty much out performed him most of the time for a guy not even drafted. Metu did show flashes but his issue he always played “ME” team ball he definitely did not like to pass not sure if he was told but came across as someone who thought he was much better then what he was.
So you're talking about excess height, not height in general. Because if you were talking about height in general, Bryn Forbes' lack of height isn't doing him any favors. In regards to Poku's excess height and the skills in tandem with his height, I agree it doesnt matter when you're speaking exclusively about offense. On the defensive end, it's a different story and something we've discussed in great lengths already. Length is important for team defense, not so much in 1 on 1 defense. Length looks like it helps Poku as evidenced by the block and steal rates (though I'm not convinced as you that it will easily translate).
If Poku was a regular 6'8" player, I would still be impressed and would still be under consideration in my tier 2 list. That's based off from what I've witnessed from his play (albeit in lower league, as you said). I don't think it's worth it to be 100% dismissive of his play due to that fact, but the eye test simply shows a player who has talent. He has a slight similarity with how I evaluated Nicolas Claxton last year.
I agree with some posters regarding the concern of his weight and ability to put on weight with those narrow shoulders but Kevin Garnett and Kevin Durant where both around 216 pds when they where drafted and both where a year older then Poku. If I am selecting him it’s with the understanding he will not weigh over 244 pds just not going to happen and probably would not want that much weight for him to carry. I think I would try to get him to add 5 to 10 pds of muscle a year would be good for him and yeah he good juice up but I would avoid that at his age due to long term causes with tendons and muscle tears. As someone mentioned at 18 most kids are really skinny he needs a year or two before you start adding a lot of weight on his knees and ankles.
Metu was awful his first year in the gleague. He was 4th or 5th on the team in rebounding.
If you’re looking for a player who will play minutes next year, those are your guys.
Just FYI, year one minutes aren’t the be all and end all. Gobert was thin, spent time in the gleague, and averaged 2.3p/3.4r/0.9 balks in 45 games and started 0. He’s now an AllNBA player.
You can play it safe and get a ready to go rotation player for a non playoff team, or you can swing for the fences. You could strike out, or maybe, just maybe, you could hit a home run.
if poku had a different body type it would be really tough one. But for now and probably for 2-3yrs deni looks better and is already ready to play 20+ mpg
Deni....it's not even close.
He actually seems to have bulked up a little in the most recent photos. I wouldn't be surprised if he was 210 lbs now... admittedly, that's still thin, but nothing like the many photos of him online at 17/18 when he weighed 195.
Super long term project for a team who doesn't need immediate contribution. If we are going for The Process, maybe he's on the board round 2
don't forget Pop's legendary all-bench line ups
He won’t be. He has the chops to be a top 5 player in this draft, and teams aren’t as dumb as they used to be. He won’t get past Dallas at 17, and could be gone at 8 to NY as a Kristaps replacement.
I like Saddiq Bey as a high floor, low ceiling 3 and D guy. Pokusevski is definitely a high risk-high Reward kind of guy. He could never see a minute in the NBA, or he could be a top 5 player for years to come. I wouldn't be mad if the Spurs take the chance. In fact, I would like them to.
Regarding the weight issue, yeah, I would like him to bulk up a bit, but not that much, tbh. I fear that if he fills up too much he will lose that movement and coordination that makes him unique.
I don't get this thread.
It's a twig boy that looks good against scrub Eurotrash. The best argument is that Giannis had similar stats and size at that age and that Giannis and Kawhi took monumental steps in their development.
The last two years of this board has been nothing but ing and moaning about how we need a properly sized, 2-way wing who can contribute immediately. A lot of people that KJ is not the proper size AND we've drafted how many tall, twiggy "multi-faceted", white big men from all over the globe the last 15 years and how many really panned out or even made it over seas?
Giannis is a unicorn simply being black and coming to the NBA from inferior eurotrash leagues and succeeding. I can't think of any other Euroleague players of African descent that have come from over there and achieved at his level.
Not a Scola thread, but considering OP has this dude rated in a range equal to a 's girth, this is a frivolous waste of a pick. We're a borderline playoff team coming up on some cap flexibility in a fairly open season next year.
Succeed. No need to stash and pray for a skinny, twiggy kid who happens to be white to come where there is no need or space for him right now. We aren't unloading Aldridge and Poodle knows "the system", so even if Twiggy McEurotrash makes the roster, he's still riding pine and getting stints in the development league.
Can't disagree with any of that. Still, I'd like to hear how a couple of you see him being used - say in his third season. I think Garnett would have struggled his whole career if he hadn't gotten up to 240 lbs. For this kid, that's a 50 lb. upgrade. A 7-foot perimeter guy would be a real unicorn.
I'd love to see a 7-footer with real passing skills, just to help the team get the damn ball inbounded.
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