Fab Melo
Have watched how he played or are you just going by stats?
For me he played decent. He showed that he can play defense, he showed that he is a very nice shoot blocker. He is giving the effort, I've seen him diving for the ball. He also showed some flashes on offense. It to early to judge him for his stats. Watch the game and then write something.
I think most people were under the impression it may take a few years for him to develop. Even defensively because he played in that zone. He looks solid as a defender. I don't think he will see more than 10mpg this year. A lot of KG and Sullinger I think.
Keep in mind that NBA Summer League is primarily meant to evaluate players strengths and weaknesses before team camp, as well as find any hidden "gems". Lets not make Hasheem Thabeet comparisons just yet. After all, Thabeet was drafted 2nd overall, and Melo was drafted 22nd.
Although he was drafted #2 overall, Hasheem Thabeet isn't good even for a player drafted in the 20s. I don't see an NBA player when I see Fab Melo and he's 2.5 inches shorter than Thabeet who isn't a rotation player in this league.
Perhaps Hassan Whiteside is the best comparison to Fab Melo and he isn't a rotation player in the NBA either. Why? Not skilled enough. The same people who are pumping Fab Melo were pumping Hassan Whiteside as a "lottery pick" in 2010 and he ended up being drafted in the second round where he belonged. It's worth noting that Fab Melo is less skilled than Hassan Whiteside. Ouch. It's also worth nothing that Fab Melo has a shorter wingspan. The probability exists that Boston has made a first round mistake.
I happen to think Boston should have drafted 6'11" Festus Ezeli if they wanted a C. Not a great offensive player, but stronger and more skilled than Feb Melo who's looking more and more like a dubious prospect at best.
One of the biggest Hassan Whiteside criticisms was that he wanted to play away from the hoop. He was a 7 foot player setting for 18 footers and shooting fade aways, despite not hitting a large percentage of them. It's one thing to try to play like KG when you are KG, but it's another when you're a career sub 50% FT shooter.
I don't really see similarities in the style of play of Whiteside and Melo. I don't think you can throw anyone under the bus after 3 or 4 summer league games.
Guys can be rotation bigs without being skilled on offense. Omer Asik was a very highly touted free agent and I've never seen him shoot a jump shot. The NBA is filled with specialists and a large portion of them are defensive oriented bigs who take up space, block a few shots, and discourage players from coming into the lane. Guys have made 10 year careers and won titles doing just that.
If Melo can give the Celtics 5 points 5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game by year 2 or 3 then I think he warrants the pick he was drafted at. Last year was his first season since high school in which he was playing regular minutes and he'll certainly have some growing pains, but all in all if you have 2 picks in the 20's and you pick a safe guy projected in the lottery who fell and a roll the dice on a 7 footer, you're picking will IMO.
The NBA will always have a market for centers and with KG aging and O'Neal gone, then why not pick a 7 footer who shows some promise? I've never been that high on Fab as anything more than a rotation big, but look at the kind of attention rotation bigs have been getting this off-season. They are in short supply, KG can teach Melo a lot during his 3 year extension.
Hassan Whiteside, Hasheem Thabeet, Johan Petro, Sare Sene, Desagana Diop and Cole Aldridge weren't drafted to score points either. Of these, only Petro and Diop have received meaningful minutes. All were favorites of this board. All were drafted to "just play D."
It's not enough.
Celtics could have drafted a better prospect at #22. Festus Ezeli was a better, stronger and more skilled C prospect. There were skilled rotation forwards and guards available.
Fab Melo's actual height, average wingspan and mediocre strength are nothing special compared to other C prospects with his limited skill-set that have failed to make an impact in the NBA. As a prospect, Fab Melo compares less favorably to Hassan Whiteside, Hasheem Thabeet, Johan Petro, Desagana Diop, Saer Sene and Cole Aldridge.
Fab Melo in Orlando (5 games):
1.8 points 4.8 rebounds 1.0 blocks 28.6% from the field 50% from the line.
Best case: Johan Petro/Hassan Whiteside
Worst case: A much shorter Hasheem Thabeet
I watch the games. That's why I've been a big supporter of Miles Plumlee in spite of his stats. I knew what that guy can do, regardless of what his college stats said.
I know how you work and stats are king, but it's way too early to jump to conclusions. This this will make sense to you, take a gander.
Festus had 3 points 5 rebounds and 3 steals on 1-3 shooting and 1-2 from the foul stripe last night.
Fab Melo had 5 points 10 rebounds (4 offensive) and 2 steals on 2-5 shooting and 1-2 from the line.
In their college careers Melo was also a better FT shooter and shot better clips from the feild as well. Why again is Festus a more skilled offensive player? Neither one is very good, but you're painting a false picture of Festus being some sort of offensive prospect.
Could still turn it around, but doesn't look like an NBA player so far...
Averaging 1 point on 22% from the field through 4 summer league games.
A shorter Hasheem Thabeet or better?
What do you think?