Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Who I Like

OK. I've complained about the Jazz' drafting of inept big men to the point of silliness. Now, for a little sunshine peeking through those clouds :) Here are some guys that I would like to see in a Jazz uniform next season. Note: I limited my choices to players with a reasonable chance of falling to number 23 in the draft (sorry Joe Alexander and Brandon Rush). Thus, I'm only talking about players picked later than number 18 in ESPN insider (and possible mormon?) Chad Ford's mock draft.

1. Robin Lopez, Stanford, C. (Projected: 20) You may be asking yourself, "What's the difference between the Jazz' current lesser-half-of-Stanford-twin-center-duo and the modern lesser-half-of-Stanford-twin-center-duo?" There are two differences: (1) Robin actually likes basketball and is athletic; (2) Robin is dating Michelle Wie! Similarities between Collins and Lopez: they both love Mariah Carey and Disney movies.



2. Chase Budinger, Arizona, SG. (Projected: 21) Super-athletic, sweet shooter, tall, white: why, this guy screams Jazzman (except for the athlete part). The knock on him is that he's a little passive and doesn't dominate like he should, but in the pros he wouldn't need to. He'd be like Kyle Korver with more dunks and less Jesus.


3. Mario Chalmers, Kansas, PG/SG. (Projected: 22) I love tough, rugged defenders on the perimeter, something the Jazz haven't had since . . . . .


4. Nicholas Batum, France, SF. (Projected: 25) What's not to love about a super skinny Frenchman? Screw small ball, the Jazz could throw him on the court with Kirilenko and play thin ball. He seems like a Kirilenko-type risk: athletic foreigner with endless arms, great hops, and a shaky jumpshot. I'd take that risk again.



5. Bill Walker, Kansas St, SF. (Projected: 29) He would have been a high lotto pick right out of high school, but hurt his knee in college and now everyone is afraid of him. He would really increase our athleticism and scoring ability, although Jerry would make him shave the braids.

7 comments:

Tucker McCann said...

Two interesting insights from this post:

1) Chad Ford is MORMON (!?). I never knew this. He seems to have a close connection to BYU-Hawaii.

2) Chad Ford has a law degree (!?) I also never knew this. He must be living right, because his "law" job is way cooler than my "law" job.

Pasty Gangsta said...

Is this true?

"Ford surprised many people in the NBA and numerous Insider readers last summer when he announced that he was leaving the basketball world to take a position as an assistant professor of international cultural studies for BYU-Hawaii."

No disrespect meant to Kofoed11's partial alma mater, but I think I'd rather cover the NBA for ESPN than be an assistant professor at BYU-Hawaii.

Orlando said...

Can't you do both? I mean Chad Ford basically does NBA draft stuff, which takes up about 2 months of the year (conveniently when school is out). Can't you get an intern to scout out the future international big men that will be ineffective in the NBA during the year, chillax in Waikiki and then go to a few combines in June? Seems doable.

Anonymous said...

What are your thoughts on Ryan Anderson, (F, California)?

I'd really love to see him on the Jazz. Though defense isn't exactly his calling card.

UtesFan89
The Utah Jazz

Orlando said...

Anderson is an interesting guy - very under the radar. He seems like a poor man's Memo. Anyway, I don't know how he'd crack the Jazz, considering they have zero roster slots after the first rounder is taken.

Draft Guru said...

I've seen Anderson play a lot. He's really good. Definitely under-the-radar. He was easily Cal's best player last season (not Hardin). He can really shoot from the perimeter and rebound. With the Jazz, I don't know where you put him. He's not very explosive or athletic, and his defense is a big concern (our team's biggest problem at the big positions). The Jazz could always use more shooting but we're kind of stacked at the forward position. I'd compare him to Austin Croshere during his "peak" days.

Pasty Gangsta said...

Again, my problem with Anderson (and I've watched Cal a lot 'cause I'm an alum and live in the Bay Area) is that he and Hardin combined still produced an absolutely craptacular Bears team. There is something suspect with guys who allegedly have a lot of talent but can't lead their team to any semblance of respectability. Also agree with the other comments that he doesn't fit in with the Jazz.