Hudson can play (or not... Hudson waived)

[ScoobyDoo]

I liked what I saw in the Toronto game. Decent shot, decent passing ( couple bad turnovers that he could have avoided..) but overall ok on apssing. And I really liked his D.

By next year, I think he could be a regualr back up for Rondo.

However, if it's possible, I'd start feeding him minutes this season. He strikes me as a guy who, if his confidence gets up, could be a Sam Cassell type in the sense that even though he's a rookie he'd step up to that big shot when it presented itself in an important game.

I think he's mentally tough enough that he could contribute this year...if given the minutes now by Doc.

If not this year, then next year for sure. 

[Chris]

I think its possible, but its really tough to tell.  He clearly has some skills, but he also made some incredibly questionable decisions yesterday.  Its not just the turnovers, but the driving into double teams, and things like that.  He does not seem to completely understand what he is doing with the ball right now.  Now, that could be a function of not playing, but right now, it is just tough to tell.  I want to see him have a good game, where he runs the offense more efficiently before making any pronouncements for his future...because right now, I think he is as likely as anyone to be cut.

[moiso]

He seems pretty confident in his scoring, not so much in running the offense and distributing.  He seems the most able to fill a role out of the 3 young guys in my opinion.  Maybe he'll never be a real point guard, but he should be able to play Eddie House style, and put some points on the board.

[RAcker]

I think its possible, but its really tough to tell.  He clearly has some skills, but he also made some incredibly questionable decisions yesterday.  Its not just the turnovers, but the driving into double teams, and things like that.  He does not seem to completely understand what he is doing with the ball right now.  Now, that could be a function of not playing, but right now, it is just tough to tell.  I want to see him have a good game, where he runs the offense more efficiently before making any pronouncements for his future...because right now, I think he is as likely as anyone to be cut.

I agree with you, Chris.  Lester is skilled without a doubt, however, we don't see how he grasps things in practice in terms of running the team.  Doc has to know Lester's progress a lot better than any of us fans I would think.

[Drucci]

It was just one game but I agree that I felt really good about Lester, and I would love to see Doc give him consequent minutes during the following games. Lester is the only "kid" (I know, older than Rondo and Perk) on our bench that plays with confidence when he is on the floor. He doesn't hesitate when he shoots or drives to the basket and that's how he must play (I wish JR would do the same).

I agree his passes are a bit shaky but the more minutes he will get, the more he will learn so I'm all for giving him some playing time.

[ScoobyDoo]

Yeah, pretty much agreed. It is hard to tell still but he shows promise. I particularly think he can help us on D, pretty good defender and he works hard at it. I like that.

He can score, no problem, when the shot is there for him.

A few of his turnovers were pretty bad I agree. However, I balance those with a very nice look to Eddie on the break and also a very nice drop pass in the lane to Shelden. Those two were very nicely done.

I'd try him a little. If his confidence gets up we could have something this year with him. Maybe he grows more as he plays.

If not this year, I feel pretty good he might be a nice back up come next season.

[Chris]

It was just one game but I agree that I felt really good about Lester, and I would love to see Doc give him consequent minutes during the following games. Lester is the only "kid" (I know, older than Rondo and Perk) on our bench that plays with confidence when he is on the floor. He doesn't hesitate when he shoots or drives to the basket and that's how he must play (I wish JR would do the same).

I agree his passes are a bit shaky but the more minutes he will get, the more he will learn so I'm all for giving him some playing time.

The thing is, I don't think he was very confident at all.  He had one nice drive (which happened right after that terrible pass, and after Doc had already sent Tony to the table to get him out of the game), but the rest of the time, he looked very tentative.  There were several times where he had open shots that he passed up, and he seemed like he was concentrating too much on getting the ball to other guys, and not enough on just playing basketball. 

[dark_lord]

I liked what I saw in the Toronto game. Decent shot, decent passing ( couple bad turnovers that he could have avoided..) but overall ok on apssing. And I really liked his D.

By next year, I think he could be a regualr back up for Rondo.

However, if it's possible, I'd start feeding him minutes this season. He strikes me as a guy who, if his confidence gets up, could be a Sam Cassell type in the sense that even though he's a rookie he'd step up to that big shot when it presented itself in an important game.

I think he's mentally tough enough that he could contribute this year...if given the minutes now by Doc.

If not this year, then next year for sure. 

so he can go from not playing at all, to a backup pg role?!?  i dont see it.  this post seems reminiscent of gabe pruit posts.  as always, i will root for him and hope for the best, but theres no way u can make a statement like that with confidence.

[Fafnir]

It was just one game but I agree that I felt really good about Lester, and I would love to see Doc give him consequent minutes during the following games. Lester is the only "kid" (I know, older than Rondo and Perk) on our bench that plays with confidence when he is on the floor. He doesn't hesitate when he shoots or drives to the basket and that's how he must play (I wish JR would do the same).

I agree his passes are a bit shaky but the more minutes he will get, the more he will learn so I'm all for giving him some playing time.

The thing is, I don't think he was very confident at all.  He had one nice drive (which happened right after that terrible pass, and after Doc had already sent Tony to the table to get him out of the game), but the rest of the time, he looked very tentative.  There were several times where he had open shots that he passed up, and he seemed like he was concentrating too much on getting the ball to other guys, and not enough on just playing basketball. 

I think he doesn't have a handle of how to run a team, or even how he should function when he's out there. He has the tools to be a backup in the league, but I'm not sure he has the floor vision.

[ManUp]

I think he's ready to play just not the point guard position. He could end up being sometihing like House with a bit more size & handle, much better defense, but less effective from 3. I bet Hudson would do great if he got to play off the ball.

[pearljammer10]

Id like to see him get more play time as well... Especially with no true back up point. If it doesnt work out, then keep him on the bench.

[Tr1boy]

a perfect type of player he will become would be Jarrett Jack imo. A guy who never be a natural pg but can give you 5-6 assist given proper playing time and 10 pts while given you an honest effort on the court. Next season unless house accepts a cut from what he is making now , hudson will be our eddie house with better dribbling skills.

Even though i'm not confident or accepted his pg abilities yet i'm dead confident that he will play hard, and has unteachable offensive skills.

[Edgar]

good thing when yuou have 10 players to say the least ahead of a young guy is that he have to fight for it
and look and get the better of his chances, and do it hard during workouts and try to learn the game
almost everything that did NOT happend with jamarios and gerals....yes i said that ..well marcuses...and oriens... and joes..and...oh well....of the world


pst pst... mr. point guy granger is in that cat too...hes just very very good scoring...

[ScoobyDoo]

Yes, he can go from not playing to back up point guard. It's not a difficult concept to comprehend.
It's kind of like:

1. Perkins going from nowehre to being a starting NBA center. Hudson, at this point as a rookie point/off guard, is far superior to what Perkins was as a rookie center/PF. By a long shot.

2. It's like Rondo going from barely playing his first year to starting his second season

3. It's like Al Jefferson being hopeless his first 1-2 years to putting up 20 a night now.

It's called progression. I'm not looking at his game now, what he's producing at this minute. I'm looking at where I think he will go based off little successes he is having now. Like all young players, they show you little flashes of ewhat they can do that over time either become consistent or not. I'm betting money that Hudson will be one of those who "will become consistent" mostly because I like his mental toughness. he's dialed in.

#1, unlike Pruitt, this kid is a very hard nosed, tough, gritty little defender. That alone is going to get him on the court. And it should. He's already a better defender than E House.

#2, it is clear by his history in college and by what little we've seen of him, that he can light it up. Additionally, he's not afraid to "take the shot" at all. That is very important and also underscores his mental toughness. Given open shots this guy will hurt you and we need that at the back up point.

#3, for all the complaints about his dribbling, he hasn't had it stolen much and doesn't seem to have much trouble initiating the offense. His turnovers are more on bad passess.

#4, But regarding passing, he also had a few very nice looks to E House and Shelden that offset the other passing mistakes a bit. So you can see his potential to be a decent passer in those instances.

He needs to work on his understanding of how to run a team and continue to imporve his dribbling and passing. But I can see him progessing to playing a back up point guard role. I said possibly towards the end of this season and if not this season then by next. I didn't say today or tomorrow.

Is it fair to say that "sometimes" players progess and grow?

[scoop]

It's difficult for me to have a very defined opinion on Hudson. He has to play some more, hopefully they'll send him back to the D-League later on. So far he seems to have a solid shot with good range and a subpar lateral quickness.

There's a bit of revisionism about Pruitt though. Wasn't he a fan favourite till the very end? I bet that what some people are saying about Hudson it's more or less the same they said about Pruitt a few months ago. It's always this way with young 3rd stringers.