I think everyone is seriously underrating Sasha's ability to lock down defend. He'll be guarding Carmelo tonight which will be a good indicator of what lateral movement he still has.
Do you really think that? Based on what?
http://www.82games.com/1011/10BOS9.HTMPlease refer to his opponent counterpart's production. You will see that he is not too good against SF types.
I saw a lot of Cleveland games over the last ten years. I saw nothing that makes me think he is an elite defender. I think this is fan created rumor. I do not recall him ever bothering or containing Pierce.
Aleksandar Pavlovic — Buducnost (Serbia & Montenegro)
Height: 6-7 Weight: 210 Last season's stats: 9.6 ppg, 2.4 rpg
By Todd Plitt, USA TODAY
Notes: An early entry. ... Averaged 10.1 points on 60% shooting in the Yugoslavian League.
OVERVIEW: Pavlovic has played for Buducnost in his native Serbia for the last three seasons. He played well in Euroleague competition, averaging 9.6 points and shooting 54 percent from the floor. Pavlovic shot just under 29% on his 3-point attempts last season. Pavlovic played on two Yugoslavian championship teams with Buducnost in 2001-02. Pavlovic played at the 2002 European under-20 championships and has also been a member of the Serbian under-20 national team. Pavlovic is a product of Buducnost's very successful junior program.
LIKELY DRAFT POSITION: First round. Pavlovic is one of those guys who could go anywhere in the draft. Boston (16, 20) is one team that has been routinely linked to him. Atlanta (21), Minnesota (26), New Jersey (22), San Antonio (28) and Seattle (14) are in the mix as well.
COMPARATIVE UPSIDE: Richard Jefferson, Desmond Mason COMPARATIVE DOWNSIDE: Ron Mercer, Tariq Abdul-Wahad
ROLE PROJECTION: Key reserve.
POSITIVES: Pavlovic is a good athlete with terrific ability to score going to the basket. He takes his man off the dribble and has the ability to elevate over the top of traffic to garner looks. With an excellent mid-range game and the ability to finish, Pavlovic can score points in an up-tempo setting.
SHORTCOMINGS: Pavlovic needs to learn how to play defense. His shot is streaky and he often loses sight of the team, focusing instead on creating scoring opportunities for himself. If Pavlovic is going to play guard in the NBA, he needs to have to develop his long-range shooting skills and become more aware of his teammates. At forward, Pavlovic has decent size, but he is on the soft side and does not show the toughness required to play in the frontcourt. Consequently, Pavlovic looks like a man without a position at this stage in his career.
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING: "Pavlovic is pretty athletic, good hops, pretty good hands. He's not a consistent shooter, more on the streaky side. He could slip into the first round." — Phoenix Suns international scout Tim Shea
Kirk Penney — Wisconsin
That is Sasha 's draft report. Not exactly saying he is a good defender. Would you like me to post his performances against good SF. His offensive strengths never manifested. He averages less then 6 PPG for his career. I 've watched him for years and I do not see the defensive prowess you mentioned. I see it in say a Tony Allen but I see none of that in Pavlovic. I see some in Bradly but none in Sasha. The Toronto outscored and outrebounded the last game your aware of ?
I think he has the size to bother SG on defense. But he won't have the size to bother Melo. If we rely on him to guard the Melo's and LeBron's of the world then we are in a world of hurt.
I think House would be an option for replacing Bradley whose shooting is less than stellar. Pietrus, I hope can put Sasha deep on the bench where he belongs. I will be rooting for Sasha today but stats and history are not in his favor to perform well.
