[BasketBalAllanParticipant]

 

Would an ESPN insider mind posting this article?

 

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/insider/columns/story?columnist=thorpe_david&page=RookieStudy11-Griffin&action=upsell&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fnba%2finsider%2fcolumns%2fstory%3fcolumnist%3dthorpe_david%26page%3dRookieStudy11-Griffin

[butidonthavemoney]

It doesn’t work that way. Who do you want to see in particular?

[butidonthavemoney]

Blake Griffin – Amare Stoudemire

In some ways, Griffin already is Stoudemire’s equal and even better in some areas. But Stoudemire is far superior to almost any other bucket-getting big in the world at making perimeter shots.

Griffin is not close to being even average as a shooter beyond 16 feet. How tough would it be to defend Griffin if he were able to make more than 42 percent of his jumpers? (He makes 33 percent now.) Stoudemire has a smooth and consistent shot, and Griffin would do well to emulate those mechanics as closely as he can.

Stoudemire also is one of the best bucket-getters inside. Although Griffin is good in this area, his ceiling is much higher still. He would be wise to watch how Amare uses more fakes, uses better form on his fades, uses more creative "throws" over bigger defenders, and gets lower so he can nimbly dart through traffic and end up at the rim, especially following high screen and rolls.

 

John Wall – Chris Paul

Wall has physical gifts that Paul could only dream of — he’s faster, taller and longer. Imagine Paul, the world’s best point guard, in Wall’s body. Frightening. Which is why the Wizards rook needs to study Paul, who is the master of the "slow is better" dribble game.

Nobody reads the game like Paul, who goes fast only when the moment calls for it, as opposed to Wall, who plays at the same supersonic speed most of the game, which gets him into trouble frequently. Wall has "world’s best point guard" talent, but he’ll need to play a lot more like CP3 to get there.

 

DeMarcus Cousins – Dirk Nowitzki

Dirk may be one of the most misunderstood players in the league. Few players deal with more defensive attention and hard fouls on a nightly basis than Dirk, who also has to produce every night to give his team a chance to win. Yet he’s a phenomenal teammate, a composed athlete and an emotionally charged player who loves to be the go-to guy.

I love that Cousins plays with emotion, as dispassionate players seem too casual. But controlling his emotions is a huge part of Cousins’ development; everything else will be easy to improve after that step is taken.

Watch Dirk play and the word "class" comes to mind (ditto for Tim Duncan and Grant Hill). When we can say the same thing about Cousins, he’ll be a dominant center in this league.

 

Evan Turner – Derrick Rose

Turner will never match Rose’s power, athleticism or quickness with the ball. But he can learn a lot from Rose on how to improve as a shooter. In Rose’s first two seasons, he made just 0.2 3-pointers a game and shot a poor percentage. This season he is making 1.6 a game and has upped his accuracy to 33 percent.

It’s not so much Rose’s form that I want Turner to study, it’s his work ethic. Rose is a killer, constantly tweaking his game and working to improve. And that’s what has helped him through some dry patches of rough play, when he’s come out even better than before.

Turner already has a good midrange game, but must become a better deep threat to get himself more drives, simply because he does not have Rose’s driving/slashing talents. A smooth 3-pointer would make him a far more dangerous playmaker on ball screens.

[goneParticipant]

Turners mechanics are broke to start with but he could develop a pull game but I can never see him being a spot up

[M.GarveyParticipant]

 Can some one please post Hayward

[NbanflguyParticipant]

Gordan Hayward- Arron Afflalo

We all know Afflalo is now considered to be both a top-flight wing defender and an excellent 3-point shooter. He has also added assertiveness to his mix and become better all-around because of it. But do you remember what he was like as a rookie after two years of college? In his first season, he made just 10 3-pointers and had a player efficiency rating of 10.07 and a true shooting percentage below 50.

 

 

Considering that Hayward has already made 19 3s, makes more than 40 percent of his 3s and has a PER of 8.44 (close to Afflalo’s 8.95 PER in his second season), it’s not a leap to think that Hayward can become an Afflalo-type player. He has the agility and length to be an excellent wing defender, once he grows into his body and adds strength.

 

 

He shouldn’t focus on playing up to his lofty draft spot but rather on becoming the best player he can be. Afflalo was a bad player for his first two seasons, but if we did a redraft of the 2007 class, he’d be a surefire lottery pick.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Why wuld cuz model his game after Dirk I dont like that, the last thing I would want to see my 6’11 280 post menace do is star moving to more of a perimeter oriented face up game. He should et down low and grind for those buckets, hit that bank shot, and grind out on defense similar to  Tim Duncan.

Apparently this article was talking about certain traits and not overall skillsets. I wouldve rather them say who each player should model their complete game after.

[SwitzaParticipant]

 Could someone kindly post the article on Paul George.

Greatly Appreciated.

[NbanflguyParticipant]

George- Gerald Wallace

Both George and Wallace have excellent height and length for wing players, and both are top-level athletes. But Wallace flies around the court, creating chaos and making plays above the rim and in the passing lanes. As wing players go, he "beasts" it as well as anyone, while George floats into and out of plays.

 

 

George is still a playmaker on defense despite his casual effort through parts of games. But "beasting" it like Wallace will help him jump up a couple of levels. He’ll be more productive on the glass as well.

[Author]

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