[beard20Participant]

What do you all think about him? He is after coming up with a ton of huge blocks tonight. I no his a little old but i think he has alot of potential and can for sure work his way into next years draft.

[Hi its BenParticipant]

 lol he’s like 25 isn’t he? 

[beard20Participant]

Hah yeah i think so , maybe 26 even

[bennydabullParticipant]

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/mensbasketball/acc/2011-03-24-bernard-james-florida-state_N.htm

[butidonthavemoney]

He’s only two months younger than LeBron James…

I like James a lot, and he’s a great shotblocker. Still, he lacks the offensive awareness to be a good NBA role-player. He’ll be a nice D-Leaguer.

[TRC1991Participant]

he looks horrifically lost on O, is far too old to make an impact but hes a damn good shot blocker..think of a quieter more mature less skiled version of Sean Williams

[abcdefghijklParticipant]

He is long and lanky which helps him to block shots on D, but on O he looks a little uncoordinated and he has a tough time finishing around the basket. 

[mikeyvthedonParticipant]

Great story, and I like him as a player a lot. He has great instincts as a shot blocker and has that rare combo of size and athleticism. You can see that he started playing later in life though, and still seems like a draft prospect even at the age of 26. I think that is probably the reason he ends up with a pro career, but more than likely outside of the NBA. He shows flashes of being a great role guy, but the age factor is definitely something you have to take into account, because by his third year he is already going to be 30, how many good years can you get out of him? 

[BothTeamsPlayedHardParticipant]

"because by his third year he is already going to be 30, how many good years can you get out of him?"

You mean like Luis Scola, Jamario Moon, and what will most likely be the case for Tiago Splitter?

Not every draft pick is taken with the expressed purpose of finding a star. Some guys are taken to fill a role for a few years. There are a number of reasons to like James. The obvious is the excellent length he has and solid strength. He can block shots, rebound, and stay within his limitations on offense. Don’t pay too much attention to the numbers, because FSU has a number of active rebounders. The shot goes up, only one guy can come down with it. Now, here is the interesting part, James got cut from his high school team, and not in the Jordan way where he was JV. He did not play organized basketball until he was in the Air Force, which means he has not had a great amount of coaching in his life. Just because he is 26, it does not mean he can’t learn to shoot properly. If anything, the years he had to mature in the Air Force have made him more receptive to instruction than he would have been in high school or as a traditionally-aged college student. Certainly some of the stories written about how he ended up in the military sent that vibe. The other part of this is that it isn’t like he is 26 and has been playing where his body has taken the abuse of high level athletics.

[mikeyvthedonParticipant]

You do have a point, and believe I took it into consideration when saying I thought he could be a nice role player. Plus, I think you have read my multiple posts I have made on draft picks being taken to fill a role rather than find a star, but maybe you missed them over the past few days. But, this guy started really playing ball in 2003. He never played competitive in HS, as he did not play after he was cut from his freshman team, which is honestly too bad. But come on, Splitter, Scola and Moon were on the grind for YEARS in the pros before they came to the NBA my friend. This is not exactly this case with Bernard James. Do I think he could be a potential NBA player? Absolutely, but he has not had the amount of competitive basketball repetitions at his age as those players you named, in the least.

Yes, his body probably is in better condition than most his age and probably has nowhere near the wear and tear of most 26 year olds, but he is going to be a flat out NBA rookie, whereas Moon, Scola and Splitter all were seasoned pros to an extent. I still think he can learn certain aspects, but when you reach a certain age, your ability to recover gets slower, even with the fact that he has not gone through the grind when he was younger. He will more than likely stay at FSU and get his degree, which will make him another year older before going in the NBA. I think he is a pro player, I think he could be an NBA player, but what do you think his chances are of being a high draft pick? I think they are pretty slim personally, and age does play a factor. Not to mention, if you draft him, you probably realize you need to wait a while for him to really develop into a regular contributor.

Also, Scola and Splitter were drafted at a much younger age than when they played in the league. They had been playing pro basketball since a very young age, and Splitter is still younger than Bernard James and was a force in European and International play. If you do get 6 good years out of him, that would be completely worth it, that is after all the average career span, but is their not more of a risk in drafting a 27 year old player over a 19-20 year old? That was just my point. I like Bernard James a lot man, and think he is going to make money playing basketball, but I do not know whether that will be in the NBA or Europe. I love certain aspects of him and am sure he has drive and maturity, but age has to play a part in where he is drafted. Probably not whether he plays in the league, but where he is drafted.

[goat27Participant]

 He did shoot 66% from the field this year.  If he can make some frees throws, I think he could be drafted next year.  I mean, Ryan Reid (who I’m a big fan of) got drafted last year. Ryan Reid!

[BothTeamsPlayedHardParticipant]

“but is their not more of a risk in drafting a 27 year old player over a 19-20 year old?”

There is more risk with the picks that are going to be building blocks for bad teams. If the average NBA career is between three and five years, and the realistic desire of a second round pick is to find an average player who they have for cheap, then I do not believe teams should be overly concerned with whether those years are of a guy who is 20-25 or 27-32. If I was a team and could see a guy who is a solidly built 6’10 guy with long arms and good athleticism, it would not deter me from using a second round pick if he was a little bit older. It certainly would not impact whether I would invite him into a training camp. I don’t think a team can ever find enough big men. Look at the furor over Mozgov, they don’t have to be all that good to generate interest.

Just earlier this month there was an article about Mitch Kupchak going on a scouting trip to Spain and being impressed with Gustavo Ayón.

http://www.pasesycortes.com/index.php/noticias/436/el-gerente-general-de-los-la-lakers-impresionado-con-gustavo-ayon.html

He is a guy who isn’t a huge prospect and is 25 years old, but he is around 6′ 9 or 6′ 10. A easily signed (read: cheap) big man who shows any ability on either end is always worth a look.

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