[rtbtParticipant]

I repeatedly said that Milicic is a lot better player than we’ve seen up to now. For a variety of reasons, I think everything that could go wrong with his career has. The worst thing that happened was being drafted as an 18 year old by the Detroit Pistons, where he sat on the bench for 3 years while his confidence was shattered.

Those were 3 years he should have been playing somewhere, gaining experience and receiving first class coaching.

And then a combination of Milicic’s poor attitude and coaches, such as D’Antoni, who broke promises to give him an opportunity, were the hallmark of his failed career. But now he’s finally on a team where the promise of giving him that coveted chance to prove he belongs in the NBA is a reality. It’s up to him to show his stuff.

I’m not under the illusion that Milicic is all star quality, but I think he has the potential, at the age of 25, to be a sold starter. He’s a strong, athletic center who can rebound and block shots. JNixon’s summary of him is appropriate:

Darko Milicic- He isn’t going to score a lot, but he’s a good passer and a shot-blocking presence at 7’0" He has great physical ability. Seems like a relatively good fit beside Kevin Love and Mike Beasley, mostly for defensive purposes.

[Michael.S.Participant]

He is a difference maker. He is a good defender, solid rebounder, a good post scorer, and a decent shooter. When he is in the game the offense flows more smoothly, and I think his ability to pass the ball is also helpful in their system… I can recall countless times he has caugh the ball at the free throw line and hit a cutter with a bounce pass for an easy layup

[PlatypusParticipant]

Dont forget he can "pass like Vlade Divac and Chris Webber"

[JNixonParticipant]

He won’t score alot, but he is a good shot-blocker and a very good passer. He’s also a defensive presence with his size down low somewhat.

[mikeyvthedonParticipant]

He is 25, a year younger than LeBron James. He has done very well in international competition, and as people above have highlighted, he is a presence. I always thought he would become a contributor on offense, which has just not happened, but he is a good rebounder and no slouch on D. I really think people are overreacting when they freak out at him getting like, 5-6 mill per year, because with Darko’s size, it could be a steal. Big men always get paid big bucks, look at guys like Brendan Haywood, Erick Dampier, Sam Dalembert, Eddy Curry and Tyson Chandler. All of those guys at one time or another made or still make 8 digit money, and at this point, I would say Darko has upside at least on point with any of those players. He has yet to play up to his potential, he more than likely never will, but if DeSagana Diop is worth a mid-level, or consideration for one, than I think Darko is definitely worth his contract. He will always live in infamy for his being in a top 5 with 4 of the NBA’s top 15 players, but it should not take away the fact that he could still be a contributor in this league and has been given a chance to do so. I still think the Timberwolves will more than likely be one of the worst teams in the league, but I really want to see Darko finally have a chance to get some minutes and possibly do some damage. Hopefully, unlike all of the other times, he finally gets his chance with Minnesota.

[JoeWolf1]

 It’s been a while since you’ve had a Darko post, lol.  But I do agree with what you said, In a lot of the footage of what I saw of him in camp and his 5 assist pre season game I think he has either improved or I failed to recognize his passing ability in the past.  I think he’ll be an 8 pt 8 rb 1.5 blk 2.5 assist guy who plays good D and alters shots and in today’s NBA that lacks a lot of good centers thats pretty good.

[rtbtParticipant]

I’m impressed with all of the logical comments I read above. As for Joe Wolf’s satirical comment, you’re right Joe, it has been a long time. I’m LOL!

Actually my post goes beyond Milicic. I’m a big believer that success in professional sports depends on much more than just one’s physical talent. Some guys will succeed under any system, but for many players, having a successful career depends a lot upon the team and coach. Most of us cannot count the number of times we saw a pro basketball or football player, who did absolutely nothing on one or more teams, get traded to the right team for his style of play and suddenly blossom. Check out Wesley Welker of the Patriots. Do you think Miami would like to have him back?

And then what happens? We ask oursevles why he didn’t succeed on Team A, B, or C. Very often it’s because he was never given a chance to play regularly, which is a huge psychological boost to one’s confidence. Starters play well because they aren’t afraid of coming out if they make a couple of mistakes. Hence, their level of confidence is high.

Many players only perform well if they believe the head coach has confidence in him. And some guys never find the kind of team they need. I believe many professional basketball players have enormous physical talent, they simply need the right situation.

[HitsterParticipant]

Darko got no playing time at Detroit but at Orlando he showed that he could be a great shot blocking presence even playing alongside Dwight Howard. At Memphis he seemed to regress in his 2nd season and despite the Knicks seeming to be a perfect match soon fell out of favour. At T-Wolves he did almost what he did when he first joined Orlando by showing defensive promise.

If he can get 25 to 30mpg then he can put up 10ppg, 8rpg and 1.5 to 1.8 blocks, he may never be a star that his draft position suggested but he can become a solid starter. I fully agree with rbt that he should have stayed in Europe longer and maybe declared in 2005 or 2006 perhaps.

[joecheck88Participant]

im not a big fan of the argument that sitting on the bench is why he isnt productive. i mean how many players sat on the bench their first few years and wound up being good to great players? jermaine o neal is the only guy i can think of.

point is, if you are good you will play or when you get your chance you will shine. darkos game never translated to star in the nba. thats why he was a bust. he just wasnt a top 2 talent in any draft. that being said, of course i think he can contribute and be solid. he is a mobile 7 footer with a decent jumper.

[stanford hoops]

sitting on the bench isnt why he is who he is. he is who he is because he isnt as talented as people thought. just like kwame brown. big men who were over hyped whos shouldnt have been drafted that high. hes a average at best big man, which isnt bad. all he needs to do is be a big body, rebound a lil, score a lil just like other average bigs before him (jarron collins,daimper on a lower level,greg orstertag)

[JoeWolf1]

wrong button.

[rtbtParticipant]

Milicic may not be a potential all star, but there were good reasons why Joe Dumars selected him so high in the draft. There aren’t too many 7 footers on the planet who can run the court and jump like Milicic. I don’t think it was ever a question of talent. Let me repeat what I said earlier in this post.

In addition to shattering one’s confidence, sitting on the bench for three years is the worst thing that could happen to any teenage basketball player. That’s the point in a young man’s career when he should be playing somewhere, gaining valuable experience, receiving first class coaching, and enhancing his game. 

Milicic lost that golden opportunity so I don’t think he’ll ever reach his potential. But it will be interesting to see how he does in Minnesota where I predict he’ll turn into a very good starting center.

[stanford hoops]

joe dumars didnt know what he was doing when he selected darko that early. if the draft was redone now he still wouldnt go high or even lotto. " There aren’t too many 7 footers on the planet who can run the court and jump like Milicic"- that means nothinbg if you arent that skilled. he can have a 40 inch vert and run a 4.2 but it doesnt matter if he isnt that skilled which he isnt. if he lost confidence by sitting on the bench that lets you know he also is weak mentally. his reality potential was never as high as people made it. you can say every player that isnt a allstar never reached there potential if they can run and jump. he may be a ok starting center with his ceiling being as good as dampier (not when dampier was at his best). he will be a nice big body like orstertag,collins twins, or anyother center who can get you 8-12ppg 8reb a night for there career

[rtbtParticipant]

You can go back to every draft 7 years later using 20/20 hindsight and make crystal clear judgments. Everyone didn’t know before the draft that Chris Bosch and Dwayne Wade would become big stars. I watched both of them in college and knew they would be good in the NBA, but I had no idea that Dwayne Wade would turn into one of the top three players in the entire league. I liked Bosch but never pictured him as one of the top ten players in the NBA.

Anyway back to Milicic. If I remember correctly, Detroit won the NBA championship and didn’t have that many immediate needs. So at the time, selecting an 18 year old 7 footer who could run the court and jump as a potential starting center for the future, didn’t seem like such a far fetched idea.

[stanford hoops]

most people would have told you to pick wade and bosh over darko as well as many other players. darko wasnt even killing it over in europe. he was a overrated euro guy like many before him that most people saw and said "whats the big deal".. bosh was a big who could shot and rebound and score. wade lead a team to the final four while dominating, melo lead his team to the title. it was common sense to pick those guys ahead of darko. fans,tv people, me, were shaking there head when darko was picked. he was part of the now dying euro hyp machine.

dont matter if you dont have immediate needs. when you have players who are proven and clearly better then you pick them even if you have someone at there position.  that was just a dumb pick. it was then and would be now

[Author]

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