KNICKS MOB
Benchwarmer
Our dream is alive and well :gony:
Road to Zion
- Thread starter KNICKS MOB
- Start date
mafra
Legend
December has been quite the ride... 3-game winning streak had team at 7-14... this was followed by a 2-12 stretch... Now, at 9-26, NY is tied with bulls and suns ... who all trail CLE be just a half game.
Race to bottom 3 is looking good at the 35 game mark. Must ensure we procur a top 5 pick AND get best odds possible (for chance to land Zion).
Race to bottom 3 is looking good at the 35 game mark. Must ensure we procur a top 5 pick AND get best odds possible (for chance to land Zion).
mafra
Legend
Hype has been ongoing for years... before High School... it keeps chugging along... I, for one, would love to sign up for it (bust or not)... just to see... what if. It beats the alternative.
mafra
Legend
Jay Z went to PIT to watch Zion... PIT coach had this to say:
?The performance left Capel, who helped recruit Williamson and Barrett to Duke, impressed.
He said the last time he watched an opposing freshman score as easily as Williamson came a decade ago when he was coaching Oklahoma against Texas. The Longhorns had a freshman in early 2007 named Kevin Durant.
Capel remembers looking up and seeing Durant with 20 points halfway through the first half.
"I said [that night], 'There's nothing we can do about this,''' Capel said. "It's kind of the same with Zion. He's very unique. He's very, very unique.''
?The performance left Capel, who helped recruit Williamson and Barrett to Duke, impressed.
He said the last time he watched an opposing freshman score as easily as Williamson came a decade ago when he was coaching Oklahoma against Texas. The Longhorns had a freshman in early 2007 named Kevin Durant.
Capel remembers looking up and seeing Durant with 20 points halfway through the first half.
"I said [that night], 'There's nothing we can do about this,''' Capel said. "It's kind of the same with Zion. He's very unique. He's very, very unique.''
I don't think the kid is the 6'7" he's reported to be, maybe with shoes on and then just barely. A lot of explosive athletes at his size have come to the league but none that I can think of have dominated inside like he does. RJ took 24 shots to get his 26, Zion just 13 to get his 24, Pit couldn't keep him off the glass for his put back dunks or stop him inside. He doesn't even have a great back to the basket game like Okafor had in college but he still manages to dominate down low. Great athlete, speed and leaping ability but they were comparing his motor to Westbrook which may be the best quality the kid has.
mafra
Legend
"I love what those young boys are doing over there," he said. "I love what Zion and RJ [Barrett] and Cam Reddish] and Tre Jones], I love what they're doing. So, [the trip] was a no-brainer. It was easy."
With his 6-foot-7, 285-pound frame and all-around game, Williamson is drawing comparisons to the 6-8, 250-pound James as one of the best prospects ever to be on the NBA's radar.
"What strikes me? His agility and his quickness," James said. "For his size, how strong he is, to be able to move like the way he moves, he's very impressive. I mean, everybody can see the athleticism. That's obviously, that's ridiculous. But the speed and the quickness that he moves [with] at that size is very impressive."
James also lauded Williamson's maturity, especially with how he responded to Scottie Pippen suggesting last month that he sit out the rest of his freshman season to avoid injury and protect his future earning potential with his draft stock already set.
"I can relate in a sense of he's been covered since he was in high school and everybody is trying to compare him to the next this or the next that. But the best thing I've noticed is he seems like a good kid. He seems like he's got his head on straight," James said. "And when they asked him about, you know, guys in our league and people who cover our league talking about, 'If I was Zion Williamson, I would sit out for the rest of the year,' he was like, 'That's [silly]. Why? I'm here to play basketball. I love to play basketball. I'm here at Duke, I'm having fun. These are my friends. I'm having a great time. Why would I sit out?'
"That's the type of s--- that strikes me. Everybody gets so caught up in the game itself. I look at the intangibles. And he seems like he has great intangibles and seems like a great kid."
With his 6-foot-7, 285-pound frame and all-around game, Williamson is drawing comparisons to the 6-8, 250-pound James as one of the best prospects ever to be on the NBA's radar.
"What strikes me? His agility and his quickness," James said. "For his size, how strong he is, to be able to move like the way he moves, he's very impressive. I mean, everybody can see the athleticism. That's obviously, that's ridiculous. But the speed and the quickness that he moves [with] at that size is very impressive."
James also lauded Williamson's maturity, especially with how he responded to Scottie Pippen suggesting last month that he sit out the rest of his freshman season to avoid injury and protect his future earning potential with his draft stock already set.
"I can relate in a sense of he's been covered since he was in high school and everybody is trying to compare him to the next this or the next that. But the best thing I've noticed is he seems like a good kid. He seems like he's got his head on straight," James said. "And when they asked him about, you know, guys in our league and people who cover our league talking about, 'If I was Zion Williamson, I would sit out for the rest of the year,' he was like, 'That's [silly]. Why? I'm here to play basketball. I love to play basketball. I'm here at Duke, I'm having fun. These are my friends. I'm having a great time. Why would I sit out?'
"That's the type of s--- that strikes me. Everybody gets so caught up in the game itself. I look at the intangibles. And he seems like he has great intangibles and seems like a great kid."
Unfortunately Fiz is not tanking and with DSJ, DJ in the starting lineup and Kadeem, MRob and Jenkins coming off the bench they may win some games. Here's hoping Fiz continues to tinker and has a never ending combination of lineups that include Mudiay and Nits so we can have the best shot at Zion.
NicksKnicks
Rotation player
We will win a few more but not enough to ruin our chances at Mt. Zion. Although this is the Knicks...
The Mavs got rid of DJ and Wes because ending contract players performance are not TANKING the season to become a low price FA in the offseason. The Mavs 2019 draft pick are protected for the 5th pick.
NO Pelicans would like to TANK the season for a early pick but their super star player AD is not TANKING.
The Knicks front office hired an inexperience head coach (Fizdale-18) to TANK-TANK the 2018-19 season having a roster full of young-core players. The Knicks had to BUY-OUT two veteran players (Noah & Kanter) who refuse to go along with TANKING the Knicks season. The Knicks may still have a big problem TANKING the remainder of the season after the All-Star weekend. The Knicks had to add a young high IQ play-maker Kadeem Allen from the G.League when Mudiay & Frank got injured. PG Allen has showed to be a compliment to the Knick team having a 2-Way performance at the PG spot. The young PG Allen has been playing well looking to be sign to a NBA contract in the upcoming off-season. The Knicks TANKNG problem lies in having a well rounded Play-Maker and a veteran experience leader D.Andre Jordan in the rotation, plus adding the two combo-guards off the injured list to perform in the rotation after the All-Star break will be Mudiay and our 20 yr old defensive-depth player Frank to provide stops in the lineup alongside DJ, Vonleh, and rookie MitchRob.
I?ve been thinking a lot about this lately. I?m wondering where the cutoff is going to be where you?re no longer in the conversation for the ?elite? prospects. To me, it almost seems like this draft will only have 2 ?elite? guys (Zion and Ja). Picks 3 though 7 or 8 could be a blur of several possible guys. Wondering if a top euro prospect like Doncic or KP is going to become known.
mafra
Legend
RJ is a pretty solid prospect... kid from IU is hit or miss, same with UNC prospect (Little). Bol Bol is interesting...
?International prospects Adam Mokoka (France) and Yovel Zoosman (Israel) are starting to create some buzz. Luka Samanic (Croatia) is inching closer to the first round as well.?
?2019 NBA Draft: Meet Sekou Doumbouya, the possible lottery pick expected to be the first international player drafted.
"The kid is growing, probably going to stand at 6-9, 6-10 in a few months, and he's the perfect NBA player who can play the 2, the 3, the 4," said his agent Bouna Ndiaye, who has been involved with the drafting of a bevvy of talented prospects ranging from Nicolas Batum to Rudy Gobert, Evan Fournier to Clint Capela -- the list goes on.
"This is probably the most exciting player I have ever gotten into my hands," Ndiaye said.
Doumbouya is no ordinary teenager. His schedule is as grueling as that of a CEO, his work ethic unmatched, and his raw potential and talent to boot makes him one of the most unique players to come out of France in years.?
?International prospects Adam Mokoka (France) and Yovel Zoosman (Israel) are starting to create some buzz. Luka Samanic (Croatia) is inching closer to the first round as well.?
?2019 NBA Draft: Meet Sekou Doumbouya, the possible lottery pick expected to be the first international player drafted.
"The kid is growing, probably going to stand at 6-9, 6-10 in a few months, and he's the perfect NBA player who can play the 2, the 3, the 4," said his agent Bouna Ndiaye, who has been involved with the drafting of a bevvy of talented prospects ranging from Nicolas Batum to Rudy Gobert, Evan Fournier to Clint Capela -- the list goes on.
"This is probably the most exciting player I have ever gotten into my hands," Ndiaye said.
Doumbouya is no ordinary teenager. His schedule is as grueling as that of a CEO, his work ethic unmatched, and his raw potential and talent to boot makes him one of the most unique players to come out of France in years.?
jimkcchief88
All Star
No more Frenchies please
Thank you for the info, mafra. I'm not necessarily wondering about the emerging euro players for us to draft them, but more interested in them as players who could potentially expand the "elite" player pool in the draft as targets for other teams. Doncic being in last year's draft gave tremendous value to the 3rd pick. If teams had been more aware of him, KP being in the 2015 draft should have given high value to the 4th pick.
If we get screwed with the ping pong balls, which we will because we always do, I'm trying to see what value there is going to be for the picks outside of the top 2 (Zion and Ja).
Yeah, this guy Sekou Doumbouya looks like the wildcard foreign prospect in this year's draft. There are a couple sites I read where people think he could climb to a top 3 pick. He doesn't turn 19 until December. 6'9" 220 pounds with a 6'11" wingspan. Despite his size, he looks like he moves and plays like a guard. From the highlights I saw on YouTube, he looks explosive in transition and looks like he can be a playmaker. At the same time, he has a post-up game, rebounds well, and can play defense, including protect the rim.
You nailed it, mafra, This is the guy to watch in the 2019 NBA draft. I don't want him for us, but I hope he creates high level buzz as a high upside prospect and maybe helps stretch the value of the top picks in the draft.
You nailed it, mafra, This is the guy to watch in the 2019 NBA draft. I don't want him for us, but I hope he creates high level buzz as a high upside prospect and maybe helps stretch the value of the top picks in the draft.