David Thorpe: Sullinger "Most impressive of the Summer"

[j804]

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/celtics/post/_/id/4696602/rookie-watch-sullinger-ready-for-rotation

[Snakehead]

Very cool.  Keep working Sully, pick up the defense, and get on the boards.  The rest will come.

[cdif911]

I'm down with that assessment

[GreenFaith1819]

Boy wait until Rondo, KG, Paul, Bass etc get a hold of him.

If he's playing THIS well with rookies, then imagine how he will fit in with starters in various lineups.

Can't wait until Oct 30. Won't be surprised if he's contributing in that game, too.

[JHTruth]

I think "solid" describes Sully to a tee. I don't think he'll ever make an all-star game or score more than about 10-12 a game if that, but he'll pull down some boards and make some nice passes and not make mistakes that hurt the team.

I think he will help our team this year..

[Neurotic Guy]

He seems to have that unique feel for the rim and how to get the ball there -- like when Al Jefferson came on board -- though without Al's sleek/agile frame.  Love that he has great hands.
 
Maybe sort of an Al/Baby combo -- 'Big-Al-Baby'?.

[JHTruth]

He seems to have that unique feel for the rim and how to get the ball there -- like when Al Jefferson came on board -- though without Al's sleek/agile frame.  Love that he has great hands.
 
Maybe sort of an Al/Baby combo -- 'Big-Al-Baby'?.

Al had great post moves already coming in. Sully has shown none of the ability to do the damage inside Al could. He has shown a prayer hook shot that's it.

But he does have good hands I'll give him that.

I see him as a poor man's BBD with better rebounding..

[Finkelskyhook]

Is Thorpe trying to win the steven i smith sound-alike contest?

I like Sullinger and think ultimately he'll be a steal.  He had a lot of solid moments in those 3 weeks.  

His shooting percentage was roughly the same as his weight, for God's sake.  He's light years from being ready to be an every day player.

Most impressive of the summer?  Delusional.

[Neurotic Guy]

He seems to have that unique feel for the rim and how to get the ball there -- like when Al Jefferson came on board -- though without Al's sleek/agile frame.  Love that he has great hands.
 
Maybe sort of an Al/Baby combo -- 'Big-Al-Baby'?.

Al had great post moves already coming in. Sully has shown none of the ability to do the damage inside Al could. He has shown a prayer hook shot that's it.

But he does have good hands I'll give him that.

I see him as a poor man's BBD with better rebounding..

I didn't see every game, but what I saw was better than 'a prayer hook'.  Agreed -- not where Al was, but he smells the hoop and I saw him find creative ways to get it there.

[snively]

That 35% shooting was disappointing.  Couldn't convert consistently in the paint whether it was off of a post move or an offensive board and his long-range heaves were pretty far off. 

The hands/rebounding/passing/defensive intelligence were all fantastic though. 

[spinz]

Definitely feels like the C's got the biggest steal of the draft.

[GreenFaith1819]

Is Thorpe trying to win the steven i smith sound-alike contest?

I like Sullinger and think ultimately he'll be a steal.  He had a lot of solid moments in those 3 weeks.  

His shooting percentage was roughly the same as his weight, for God's sake.  He's light years from being ready to be an every day player.

Most impressive of the summer?  Delusional.

I'm trying to temper my expectations of him, too.

But with that being said, you don't think him playing, in stretches, with a lineup of Rondo-Lee-Paul-Jared-KG won't make him (and his team) better?

He's a smart player. I think he will fit in quite nicely, even early. I certainly don't see him starting right away, but as the season wears on I can see him getting some significant PT.

[slamtheking]

I can understand this evaluation if it's based on where he was drafted.  He looks like he understands the game and should be a contributor.  I'm not expecting anything this year with this team but definitely next year.

[snively]

He seems to have that unique feel for the rim and how to get the ball there -- like when Al Jefferson came on board -- though without Al's sleek/agile frame.  Love that he has great hands.
 
Maybe sort of an Al/Baby combo -- 'Big-Al-Baby'?.

Al had great post moves already coming in. Sully has shown none of the ability to do the damage inside Al could. He has shown a prayer hook shot that's it.

But he does have good hands I'll give him that.

I see him as a poor man's BBD with better rebounding..

Poor man's BBD in which categories: a lesser finisher, defender, shooter?

I think poor man's Kevin Love is a better comparison. Similar weaknesses - mediocre size/length, slow, unathletic, heavily reliant on positioning and touch not power and grace in the post, dependent on drawing fouls to maintain efficiency.  Similar though lesser strengths: tremendous awareness/intelligence, great rebounding instincts, strong ball skills, a strong knack for drawing fouls, good FT%, good shooting form.

I'm not confident he'll ever match Love's rebounding #s or 3-pt shooting, but a rookie-year Kevin Love might be a reasonable plateau for Sully.  11 & 9 as a 6th man type.

[Lightskinsmurf]

If he can play good defense i want him in the starting lineup and move bass to the bench. Rebounding is our biggest problem now that we have our bench fixed and the kid can rebound.