OKC Waives Garuba

[footey]

Celtics should sign him to roster spot. He's a good future back up power forward.  Sign him, Brad!!

[Celtics2021]

Agreed!  Claim him with Grant’s TPE if you have to!

[konkmv]

Upgrade from grant

[Roy H.]

I haven't watched him play.  But, why the enthusiasm for a guy who hasn't produced a lot and who has been let go by two non-playoff teams?

[Celtics2021]

Upgrade from grant

That’s excessive.  He’s more like Semi when Semi had potential. And since he’s only 21, Garuba still has a lot of potential.

[Celtics2021]

I haven't watched him play.  But, why the enthusiasm for a guy who hasn't produced a lot and who has been let go by two non-playoff teams?

Pros:

Age: He’s 21, doesn’t turn 22 until March.
Size: 6’8” with a 7’3” wingspan and strong
Shooting potential — 37% from 3 for his career.  Very slow release, however.
Defense: Rated the top big defender in his draft two years ago, career block and steal percentages at 3.2 and 2.2% (both above 2 is a very good sign).  Better in a switching scheme than purely protecting the rim (which was not what the Rockets asked of him).
Rebounding: 11 boards per 36 last year
Euro success: EuroLeague Rising Star in 2021 in his age 18-19 season.

Cons:
Interior scoring: Terrible finisher at the rim for his size/strength profile.  Needs to dunk more and use less finesse.
Foul Prone: Foul trouble kept him off the floor at times last year, averaging 5/36.
Turnover Machine: 19.2% turnover rate last year was awful.
Injuries: Missed much of his rookie season because he was hurt

Questions:
Passing:  A Rockets blogger was very high on his passing potential, but we haven’t seen it much in games.
Screens: Didn’t do a good job setting them.  That feels coachable, as he’s got the body to do it right.

There’s a ton to like, and while I get that both the Rockets and Thunder moved on, these are the teams that are so awash with draft picks we’ve always known they’ll have to dump some decent prospects.  I think Garuba is one of those guys.  He’s young, but got caught behind in his development both due to injury and due to roster construction issues, while also maybe being in a system that didn’t maximize his strengths.  But there are a lot of numbers that show he has NBA abilities at both ends of the court, in addition to a physical profile and pre-draft performance that point to potential future success.  I think he’s totally a guy we should let bake in our system for two years as a 14th/15th man and see what happens.

[Vermont Green]

I know nothing about him.  Looking at the stats, it seems that Semi Ojeleye is a decent comp.  There was a point in time that Grant and Semi were about the same.  Grant continued to develop, particularly a 3-point shot, Semi not so much.  Having a young Semi on the bench as your 14th guy isn't the worst thing in the world.

He was with HOU, his 3rd year on his rookie contact ($2.6M) was picked up by HOU in Oct 2022 (per Spotrac),   Then they trade him for nothing to ATL who traded him for nothing to OKC.  Very strange.  At 21, he may be better off playing a season or two in Europe.  I get that both HOU and OKC have a lot of young players already with bunches of upcoming picks, so they have to pare down.  I just have no idea what kind of potential this guy has.  Seems a stretch though to have his own thread.

[mobilija]

I know nothing about him.  Looking at the stats, it seems that Semi Ojeleye is a decent comp.  There was a point in time that Grant and Semi were about the same.  Grant continued to develop, particularly a 3-point shot, Semi not so much.  Having a young Semi on the bench as your 14th guy isn't the worst thing in the world.

He was with HOU, his 3rd year on his rookie contact ($2.6M) was picked up by HOU in Oct 2022 (per Spotrac),   Then they trade him for nothing to ATL who traded him for nothing to OKC.  Very strange.  At 21, he may be better off playing a season or two in Europe.  I get that both HOU and OKC have a lot of young players already with bunches of upcoming picks, so they have to pare down.  I just have no idea what kind of potential this guy has.  Seems a stretch though to have his own thread.

Hahaha, not even good enuff for a thread!

[Goldstar88]

I know nothing about him.  Looking at the stats, it seems that Semi Ojeleye is a decent comp.  There was a point in time that Grant and Semi were about the same.  Grant continued to develop, particularly a 3-point shot, Semi not so much.  Having a young Semi on the bench as your 14th guy isn't the worst thing in the world.

He was with HOU, his 3rd year on his rookie contact ($2.6M) was picked up by HOU in Oct 2022 (per Spotrac),   Then they trade him for nothing to ATL who traded him for nothing to OKC.  Very strange.  At 21, he may be better off playing a season or two in Europe.  I get that both HOU and OKC have a lot of young players already with bunches of upcoming picks, so they have to pare down.  I just have no idea what kind of potential this guy has.  Seems a stretch though to have his own thread.

Hahaha, not even good enuff for a thread!

Yeah, this could have been filed in the “NBA Off-season” thread. Definitely worth mentioning that he was released, but not everything needs it’s own thread.

[Celtics2021]

I know nothing about him.  Looking at the stats, it seems that Semi Ojeleye is a decent comp.  There was a point in time that Grant and Semi were about the same.  Grant continued to develop, particularly a 3-point shot, Semi not so much.  Having a young Semi on the bench as your 14th guy isn't the worst thing in the world.

He was with HOU, his 3rd year on his rookie contact ($2.6M) was picked up by HOU in Oct 2022 (per Spotrac),   Then they trade him for nothing to ATL who traded him for nothing to OKC.  Very strange.  At 21, he may be better off playing a season or two in Europe.  I get that both HOU and OKC have a lot of young players already with bunches of upcoming picks, so they have to pare down.  I just have no idea what kind of potential this guy has.  Seems a stretch though to have his own thread.

Hahaha, not even good enuff for a thread!

Yeah, this could have been filed in the “NBA Off-season” thread. Definitely worth mentioning that he was released, but not everything needs it’s own thread.

Garuba is thread worthy for those who’ve been paying attention to him.  I think Houston, Atlanta, and OKC all screwed up on this one.  And the Celtics will have too if they don’t make a real effort to bring him in.  He’s probably not a future star, but he can be a rotation big with starter potential in a season or so, and it would be good for the C’s to have him on the roster for cheap and his Early Bird rights when that happens.  Mark my words, he winds up in Miami and has an impact while he’s there.

[Vermont Green]

I know nothing about him.  Looking at the stats, it seems that Semi Ojeleye is a decent comp.  There was a point in time that Grant and Semi were about the same.  Grant continued to develop, particularly a 3-point shot, Semi not so much.  Having a young Semi on the bench as your 14th guy isn't the worst thing in the world.

He was with HOU, his 3rd year on his rookie contact ($2.6M) was picked up by HOU in Oct 2022 (per Spotrac),   Then they trade him for nothing to ATL who traded him for nothing to OKC.  Very strange.  At 21, he may be better off playing a season or two in Europe.  I get that both HOU and OKC have a lot of young players already with bunches of upcoming picks, so they have to pare down.  I just have no idea what kind of potential this guy has.  Seems a stretch though to have his own thread.

Hahaha, not even good enuff for a thread!

Yeah, this could have been filed in the “NBA Off-season” thread. Definitely worth mentioning that he was released, but not everything needs it’s own thread.

Garuba is thread worthy for those who’ve been paying attention to him.  I think Houston, Atlanta, and OKC all screwed up on this one.  And the Celtics will have too if they don’t make a real effort to bring him in.  He’s probably not a future star, but he can be a rotation big with starter potential in a season or so, and it would be good for the C’s to have him on the roster for cheap and his Early Bird rights when that happens.  Mark my words, he winds up in Miami and has an impact while he’s there.

Words duly marked.   

I am not against it.  As I said, even if he is "only" Semi Ojeleye, right now, nothing wrong with having that at the end of your bench on a cheap contract.  And if you are right about his ceiling, all the better.  I am not sure there is a better bench PF we are going to get from the FA scrapheap.

And I was only kidding about the thread.  Maybe he will see this and how interested Celtics fans are, and he will want to come to the Celtics.

[footey]

I know nothing about him.  Looking at the stats, it seems that Semi Ojeleye is a decent comp.  There was a point in time that Grant and Semi were about the same.  Grant continued to develop, particularly a 3-point shot, Semi not so much.  Having a young Semi on the bench as your 14th guy isn't the worst thing in the world.

He was with HOU, his 3rd year on his rookie contact ($2.6M) was picked up by HOU in Oct 2022 (per Spotrac),   Then they trade him for nothing to ATL who traded him for nothing to OKC.  Very strange.  At 21, he may be better off playing a season or two in Europe.  I get that both HOU and OKC have a lot of young players already with bunches of upcoming picks, so they have to pare down.  I just have no idea what kind of potential this guy has.  Seems a stretch though to have his own thread.

Hahaha, not even good enuff for a thread!

Yeah, this could have been filed in the “NBA Off-season” thread. Definitely worth mentioning that he was released, but not everything needs it’s own thread.

Garuba is thread worthy for those who’ve been paying attention to him.  I think Houston, Atlanta, and OKC all screwed up on this one.  And the Celtics will have too if they don’t make a real effort to bring him in.  He’s probably not a future star, but he can be a rotation big with starter potential in a season or so, and it would be good for the C’s to have him on the roster for cheap and his Early Bird rights when that happens.  Mark my words, he winds up in Miami and has an impact while he’s there.

Words duly marked.   

I am not against it.  As I said, even if he is "only" Semi Ojeleye, right now, nothing wrong with having that at the end of your bench on a cheap contract.  And if you are right about his ceiling, all the better.  I am not sure there is a better bench PF we are going to get from the FA scrapheap.

And I was only kidding about the thread.  Maybe he will see this and how interested Celtics fans are, and he will want to come to the Celtics.

Apology accepted.

[goCeltics]

Can they claim him using the Grant trade exception?

[Celtics2021]

Can they claim him using the Grant trade exception?

Yes.

[gouki88]

Would love Garuba. He’s a solid young player. Good defender