Ladies and Gentlemen, your San Antonio Spurs
Center:
Brook Lopez
Age: 24
Height: 7'0
Weight: 260
2010-2011 Stats: 20.4 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.5 bpg, 49% fg
Brook Lopez is one of the best scorers in the league from the center position. He will be a huge asset to this team and can run the pick and roll/ pick and pop beautifully with John Wall. Lopez's biggest weakness is his lack of effort on the glass and on the defensive end. But with Taj Gibson pushing him and Doc coaching him, this shouldn't be a huge concern. The kid is 24 and can still get a lot better.
Power Forward:
Taj Gibson
Age: 27
Height: 6'9
Weight: 225
2011-2012 per 36 minutes stats: 13.6 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 2.3 bpg
Taj is a guy that I feel is extremely underrated and overlooked by many fans. He's unbelievably athletic, and a superb rebounder and defender which is perfect next to Brook. Taj is our workhorse, and will finally get a chance to show how good he can be as a starter on this team.
Small Forward:
Danny Green
Age: 25
Height: 6'6
Weight: 210
2011-2012 per 36 stats: 14.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.4 spg, 1.1 bpg, 44% 3pt
Green has proven this year that he is a fantastic glue guy and great spot up 3-point shooter and defender. He should be a great fit with these guys, as he won't demand the ball but can get open and hit the outside jumper with consistency. He's also a very solid defender and rebounder which should help this team tremendously.
Shooting Guard:
James Harden
Age: 22
Height: 6'5
Weight: 220
2011-2012 per 36 stats: 19.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 4.2 apg, 49% fg, 39% 3pt
James Harden is quickly developing into a superstar. This guy's numbers would be absolutely phenomenal if he wasn't stuck in OKC behind two of the most prolific scorers in the game. Harden really can do it all. He can create, shoot, pass, rebound, defend. He's soon to be an olympic gold medalist and is a great teammate and potential hall of famer. Harden is gonna be the main scorer on this team, and won't have to deal with any Durants or Westbrooks. He'll finally have a chance to show just how good he really is.
Point Guard:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgCtoxRJpDo
John Wall
Age: 21
Height: 6'4
Weight: 195
2011-2012 stats: 16.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 8.0 apg
John Wall gets a lot of unneccessary criticism because he didn't meet people's expectations in his 2nd season. What people neglect to realize is he was playing with a bunch of knuckleheads like Javale McGee, Nick Young, and Andre Blatche, and that locker room was in shambles. The fact remains though that Wall is a tremendous point guard. He's unbelievably big and quick for his position, and can get to the rim at will. And now finally, with a normal supporting cast, and what will surely prove to be a good locker room with Doc in charge, Wall will finally put an end to the doubts and become an all-star before people know it.
Bench:
Drew Gooden
Gooden is 30, and will be called on for some much needed veteran leadership on this team. He's a great scorer off the bench, and with Doc in charge, his defensive effort will greatly improve.
Ramon Sessions
The 26 year old Sessions is a tremendous shooter and pick and roll player who could come in for either Harden or Wall and help run the offense. Once again, he is not know for his defense but that will improve.
Alonzo Gee
A 25 year old athletic wingman, Gee will be counted on for his defense and hard work. He's also very good at driving to the basket and can run the fast break with Wall.
Ian Mahinmi
A solid 25 year old back-up center, Mahinmi can provide a lot of nice inside buckets and is a solid rebounder and hard working defender.
Too lazy to provide pictures for the rest
Deshawn Stevenson:
Will be counted on for veteran leadership and can be used in defensive situations
Jared Sullinger:
Will get limited minutes but is very young and will definitely be a big contributor some day
Fab Melo:
No doubt he's a project, but has the potential to get some minutes as a true defensive post presence
Reggie Williams:
A good spot up shooter that can be used in exactly those situations
Well basically, my philosophy was simple. With the second to last pick in the 1st round, I knew I wasn't getting a LeBron or a Durant, so building an immediate contender wouldn't be an easy thing to do. So I decided to build for the future. Wall is a player who I think has a tremendous amount of potential if he plays with good character guys, and seeing that Harden was available with my 2nd selection, I was estatic to have a backcourt this young and talented. Wall and Harden can dominate together in the upcoming years.
From there it wasn't all that easy. I picked Brook Lopez in the 3rd round to get a guy upfront that can flat out score. I then picked up Taj Gibson, who does everything well that Lopez does poorly. Green I felt was a perfect way to round out the starting 5 with good shooting and defense.
As for my bench (upfront), I always have been a fan of Drew Gooden, he can come in for Lopez and play alongside Gibson to provide some scoring. Melo might also get a few minutes to provide some defensive intensity and Mahinmi will get some solid run as well. Also, expect a few Sullinger appearances.
Gee will be a good athletic role player off the bench, and he and Stevenson will be good defensive replacements for the starting 5 to help for Sessions' lack of defense. Sessions, however, can do a great job running the offense when Harden/Wall is resting.
Basically, my team is built for the future. I have a very young, star studded backcourt with some great young role players and a few veterans. If this team lives up to its expectations, you better watch out 5 years from now.
Also, the fact that Doc Rivers is coaching this team cannot be overlooked. He will make these guys play hard and play defense.
Topic: 2012 CB Draft Southwest Division Press Conferences (Read 51197 times)