Hey SoCal KnicksFan

finestrg

Rotation player
Just wanna get your personal take on USC PF/C Nikola Vucevic. I take it from your handle that you're either a big USC guy or you live in that neck of the woods..Either way, I figure you many have seen him more than most and might have some perspective..

I think I've seen him more but I definitely remember twice this past season -- once early on where he looked very good, dominant, and another time at the end of the season against VCU where he wasn't too much of a factor (a lot of that had to do with a VCU gameplan focused on making it hard for him to even get the ball and then when he did, they swarmed him and forced him to give it up). I know he measured out bigger than expected, he can rebound and score it in a variety of ways inside & out...The questions I have are these: does his rebounding at 10+ a game translate over to the NBA? Will he run the court well enough to play at the fast pace D'Antoni prefers? How's the personality? I get the feeling he's got a little edge to him -- are there any immaturity issues we need to know about (he's not some hot-head, is he?) or is he just an intense competitor with some fire in his belly...Most important -- will he play enough defense in close around the basket (seems to get lost at times defensively and not go all out). Are any of these things problems at the next level or non-issues?

We've got the big void in the middle and I like him for us, just curious about these couple of areas...If anyone else has a good read on him, please, by all means chime in & give us your take.
 
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