Giddens is going to be a good one

[lantinm]

I'm watching the Flash/Arsenal game tonight (on Futurecast) and Giddens really has impressed me.  This is the 4th time I've watched him play this year, and he seems to do everything well.

- He's got 7 assists at the half and could have nine (as two of his passes went through the hands of Koufos and Almond, respectively).

- He's also blocked three shots and has a steal

- What impresses me the most, is his ability to let the game come to him.  He doesn't seem that concerned with scoring 25-30 points a game, and he really gets after it on the boards.


Look, J.R. still has a ways to go in order to crack our rotation, but his skill-set is first-rate, and he's going to be fun to watch.  Having said that, I really hope Danny holds on to him.

[lantinm]

Oh, and on a funny note, Kedrick Brown is 6 for 19.....AT THE HALF! 

[nickagneta]

Just how much stock can anyone put into judging how performance in the NBDL translate to talent and how that talent translates into a pro game? Patrick O'Bryant had 17 PPG, 10 RPG and 3.5 Blocks per game in 8 games there in 2008. The guy doesn't belong in the NBA and probably will be playing in Europe before to long. I've heard more than one person rave about how good Giddens has looked in the NBDL but I just can't equate NBDL success with NBA ability.

Kasib Powell, Randy Livingston, Kareem Ried, Marcus Fizer. Do you know who these guys are? They are the last 4 MVPs for the NBDL. Where are they now??

I won't declare Giddens an NBA player just yet but neither will I say he's a failure. We don't know either way and no amount of him throwing up great stats in the D-League is going to change that for me. 

[Tai]

Just how much stock can anyone put into judging how performance in the NBDL translate to talent and how that talent translates into a pro game? Patrick O'Bryant had 17 PPG, 10 RPG and 3.5 Blocks per game in 8 games there in 2008. The guy doesn't belong in the NBA and probably will be playing in Europe before to long. I've heard more than one person rave about how good Giddens has looked in the NBDL but I just can't equate NBDL success with NBA ability.

Kasib Powell, Randy Livingston, Kareem Ried, Marcus Fizer. Do you know who these guys are? They are the last 4 MVPs for the NBDL. Where are they now??

I won't declare Giddens an NBA player just yet but neither will I say he's a failure. We don't know either way and no amount of him throwing up great stats in the D-League is going to change that for me. 

Agreed. If you're an online gamer like me, you may understand this scenario:

It's like thinking that just because I go own in a public server for any given game (let's assume it's a FPS like Quake 3 Arena or Soldier of Fortune 2), that I can go into a competitive tourney for that same game and kick butt.

It doesn't work that way. You have to prove yourself against the real competition consistently, too. Giddens hasn't done that yet, but he'll get his chance.

[lantinm]

Just how much stock can anyone put into judging how performance in the NBDL translate to talent and how that talent translates into a pro game? Patrick O'Bryant had 17 PPG, 10 RPG and 3.5 Blocks per game in 8 games there in 2008. The guy doesn't belong in the NBA and probably will be playing in Europe before to long. I've heard more than one person rave about how good Giddens has looked in the NBDL but I just can't equate NBDL success with NBA ability.

Kasib Powell, Randy Livingston, Kareem Ried, Marcus Fizer. Do you know who these guys are? They are the last 4 MVPs for the NBDL. Where are they now??

I won't declare Giddens an NBA player just yet but neither will I say he's a failure. We don't know either way and no amount of him throwing up great stats in the D-League is going to change that for me. 

I know who Livingston, Fizer, Reid, and Powell are, and I understand the point that you are trying to make.  All I'm saying is that Giddens has a solid all-around game, and his stats in the NBDL seem to back it up.  I also saw him play a few times in college, and these same skills were on display then too.  Since he hasn't been able to crack the rotay, I'm using his NBDL stats as a mini-barometer as to what he can do. 

[CoachBo]

Just how much stock can anyone put into judging how performance in the NBDL translate to talent and how that talent translates into a pro game? Patrick O'Bryant had 17 PPG, 10 RPG and 3.5 Blocks per game in 8 games there in 2008. The guy doesn't belong in the NBA and probably will be playing in Europe before to long. I've heard more than one person rave about how good Giddens has looked in the NBDL but I just can't equate NBDL success with NBA ability.

Kasib Powell, Randy Livingston, Kareem Ried, Marcus Fizer. Do you know who these guys are? They are the last 4 MVPs for the NBDL. Where are they now??

I won't declare Giddens an NBA player just yet but neither will I say he's a failure. We don't know either way and no amount of him throwing up great stats in the D-League is going to change that for me. 

True. I really don't put a lot of stock into the NBDL.

And I hope Danny stops putting stock in it, too. The correlations aren't there.

[Tr1boy]

giddens has rondo like energy and i love that about him. He is tireless plus has some above average skills to go with it.

Next year there is no way he is playing in the nbdl and its pretty certain tony allen is a goner. Its good ainge has insurance on allen because his career is pretty much done.

He will suprise many i'm confident.

I'm curious how a lineup in a couple of years  (pending that the big three leave or become bench guys) will do against the league

Perk
Davis
Walker
Giddens
Rondo

[bucknersrevenge]

Just how much stock can anyone put into judging how performance in the NBDL translate to talent and how that talent translates into a pro game? Patrick O'Bryant had 17 PPG, 10 RPG and 3.5 Blocks per game in 8 games there in 2008. The guy doesn't belong in the NBA and probably will be playing in Europe before to long. I've heard more than one person rave about how good Giddens has looked in the NBDL but I just can't equate NBDL success with NBA ability.

Kasib Powell, Randy Livingston, Kareem Ried, Marcus Fizer. Do you know who these guys are? They are the last 4 MVPs for the NBDL. Where are they now??

I won't declare Giddens an NBA player just yet but neither will I say he's a failure. We don't know either way and no amount of him throwing up great stats in the D-League is going to change that for me. 

Yet if he was averaging just 2 points and a 1 reb in D-League I doubt you'd be saying "who cares about stats??". Fact is, he's doing what he's supposed to do at that level. He's had no shot at the NBA level. But if he stays patient he'll get his turn next year.

I see sometimes on this blog people wanting to bail on this case in favor of everyone's wunderkind Bill Walker but those people are sleeping if they don't think JR won't be able to do something here.

[jdpapa3]

It's not always about stats. It's if the skillset will translate to the NBA. It's why those MVP's don't get contracts. JR, from my point of view, has the talent to decently fill a stat sheet in an NBA game. Scoring isn't his best attribute, but he is a jack of all trades. Rotation player in the league soon, IMO.

[BillfromBoston]

Just how much stock can anyone put into judging how performance in the NBDL translate to talent and how that talent translates into a pro game? Patrick O'Bryant had 17 PPG, 10 RPG and 3.5 Blocks per game in 8 games there in 2008. The guy doesn't belong in the NBA and probably will be playing in Europe before to long. I've heard more than one person rave about how good Giddens has looked in the NBDL but I just can't equate NBDL success with NBA ability.

Kasib Powell, Randy Livingston, Kareem Ried, Marcus Fizer. Do you know who these guys are? They are the last 4 MVPs for the NBDL. Where are they now??

I won't declare Giddens an NBA player just yet but neither will I say he's a failure. We don't know either way and no amount of him throwing up great stats in the D-League is going to change that for me. 

You gotta use a little more common sense and perspective when viewing the D-League - the 4 MVPs you listed all had many years of pro experience by the time they reached that level of performance.

You can't blanket all the D-leaguers into the same group - a rookie performing at a high level is much more impressive than a 6th or 7th year pro doing the same - experience counts on all levels.

As for O'bryant, he was allowed to play through all his poor defensive mistakes - stick him in an NBA game for 35 minutes on average and he's got the talent to score, rebound, and block shots - what he can't do is play team defense or make smart reads offensively.

The D-League is highly valued by the NBA as a training ground for young players and a place for slower developers to play against higher level competition. It is a higher talent pool than college, but less cohesive than college or pro leagues because of its transient nature.

What Giddens has done has been very impressive for a rookie - he's also doing it on both ends of the court, which is rare down there.

Most important for him, he is a more self-confident and assertive version of himself in a peer environment, not getting caught up trying to impress and avoid stepping on toes.

If and when Giddens can bring the same on-court mental approach to the NBA level that he displays with Utah, he'll become a quality NBA player.

[LarBrd33]

Giddens will be a household name in the Dleague before everything is said and done.

[Bankshot]

Just how much stock can anyone put into judging how performance in the NBDL translate to talent and how that talent translates into a pro game? Patrick O'Bryant had 17 PPG, 10 RPG and 3.5 Blocks per game in 8 games there in 2008. The guy doesn't belong in the NBA and probably will be playing in Europe before to long. I've heard more than one person rave about how good Giddens has looked in the NBDL but I just can't equate NBDL success with NBA ability.

Kasib Powell, Randy Livingston, Kareem Ried, Marcus Fizer. Do you know who these guys are? They are the last 4 MVPs for the NBDL. Where are they now??

I won't declare Giddens an NBA player just yet but neither will I say he's a failure. We don't know either way and no amount of him throwing up great stats in the D-League is going to change that for me. 

Yet if he was averaging just 2 points and a 1 reb in D-League I doubt you'd be saying "who cares about stats??". Fact is, he's doing what he's supposed to do at that level. He's had no shot at the NBA level. But if he stays patient he'll get his turn next year.

I see sometimes on this blog people wanting to bail on this case in favor of everyone's wunderkind Bill Walker but those people are sleeping if they don't think JR won't be able to do something here.

Not only that.  I don't remember too many people on this board having a problem translating Bill Walker's numbers in the Dleague to what he might be able to do in the NBA (even though Giddens was putting up similar numbers at the same time), but now what Giddens does in the Dleague should be dismissed.

[moiso]

I always thought that Giddens size/skill set would translate better in the NBA than Walker's.  But apparently Giddens has the hyperactive Tony Allen type brain, whereas the game seems a little slower to Walker.

[nickagneta]

Just how much stock can anyone put into judging how performance in the NBDL translate to talent and how that talent translates into a pro game? Patrick O'Bryant had 17 PPG, 10 RPG and 3.5 Blocks per game in 8 games there in 2008. The guy doesn't belong in the NBA and probably will be playing in Europe before to long. I've heard more than one person rave about how good Giddens has looked in the NBDL but I just can't equate NBDL success with NBA ability.

Kasib Powell, Randy Livingston, Kareem Ried, Marcus Fizer. Do you know who these guys are? They are the last 4 MVPs for the NBDL. Where are they now??

I won't declare Giddens an NBA player just yet but neither will I say he's a failure. We don't know either way and no amount of him throwing up great stats in the D-League is going to change that for me. 

Yet if he was averaging just 2 points and a 1 reb in D-League I doubt you'd be saying "who cares about stats??". Fact is, he's doing what he's supposed to do at that level. He's had no shot at the NBA level. But if he stays patient he'll get his turn next year.

I see sometimes on this blog people wanting to bail on this case in favor of everyone's wunderkind Bill Walker but those people are sleeping if they don't think JR won't be able to do something here.

Not only that.  I don't remember too many people on this board having a problem translating Bill Walker's numbers in the Dleague to what he might be able to do in the NBA (even though Giddens was putting up similar numbers at the same time), but now what Giddens does in the Dleague should be dismissed.

Actually in my case, you are both wrong. If you want to go browse through all of posts and search where I ever quoted D-League stats quotes to prove a point, go ahead. I don't even quote NCAA Division I stats to prove a point on a prospect. I just believe absolutely none of those stats relate and translate into an accurate assessment of what is to be expected from a player in the pros.

The  OP obviouslt watched the games and could scout his progress if he has that type of basketball knowledge and ability and copuld give us an assessment of what he viewed as an idea of how well Giddens had been playing. I just don't think using his stats there as proof is a good way of assessing that player. Lots of players that will never sniff a starting NBA rotation put up phenomenal stats in the D-League and in Division I basketball. It doesn't mean the skill set is there.

I think BillfromBoston's post said it best:

"The D-League is highly valued by the NBA as a training ground for young players and a place for slower developers to play against higher level competition."

But what Danny and other talent evaluators are looking at is the players one on one defensive skills, their under the basket footwork, their ability to box out, their recognition of seeing the open man and making that pass, their shooting form, their shooting range, their ability to set the pick, their ability to finish, their reaction times, their basketball knowledge....things of that nature. I seriously doubt if they care what those players stats are. That was my point.

[cordobes]

Statistical productivity in the D-League is completely irrelevant. Completely different game, very low level.

That said, I liked some stuff that Giddens displayed in the games I watched.