[blackflash234Participant]

Coming out of West Virginia, Joe Alexander had a pretty promising career going into the NBA. What happened? I want to understand. Was it the fact that he wasn’t a hard worker. Did he have maturity problems? Did he have learning problems? What was it. I want to understand.

[OldSkoolBasketballParticipant]

isn’t it only his 2nd year?

[whiteflashParticipant]

I’ve wondered this as well. He’s a freak athlete and word is he’s also a hard worker. Coming out he had some questions, but nothing that would seem to project him as a bust. But, did ya’ll see the Orlando game the other night? He looked like a giant 5 year old who just sucked down 10 red bulls. He put up a couple of airballs and had 4 fouls in 6 minutes. I don’t know what’s going on but he needs to get his mind and game back on track or he’ll be out of the league next year.

[scoutguruParticipant]

Had no position. He is what we call the ultimate tweener. To little to play the 4 position in the nba. To slow, not good enough of lateral quickness to keep up with the 3’s in the nba. And hasn’t been able to knock down shots with any sort of regularity. He also doesn’t have any advance dribble moves to beat 3’s off the dribble at this level. Despite all that though, I thought he’d be an energy guy and a tough guy, who’d be able to get minutes in Scott Skilles system based on just being a hard worker. So I guess maybe it was a lack of effort or commitment that has caused the organization to give up on him. They declined this guy’s third year option meaning he’s an unrestricted free agent after his 2nd season, he was the 8th pick in the draft! Thats crazy ! But I always thought he was way over drafted, was more of a guy who shouda been taken in like the mid teens to mid 20’s. But he “blew” scouts away in workouts with his vertical leaping ability. But he lacked a lot of skills offensively that people were just blinded by for some reason and were more concerned with him being able to hit his head on the rim in an empty gym. I hope this guy finds a team that probably could use his skills, cause he should be in our league, with his kind of body and athletic ability.

[RUDEBOY]

Not many players get their contract renounce after only their 1st season..But Yeah he has been playing Reckless since he joined the Bulls..lol..I guess he’s trying too hard..Dude has talent..If you watch him when he was at West Virginia and watched him since he’s been a pro..It looks like 2 different players..I think he should go overseas for a year..To get a fresh start, get his mind right and get use to the fast pace of pro ball..I think the only way he gets a training camp invite is if he plays well and consistent in the Summer League..

[The8thDeadlySinParticipant]

He would have been fine if he would have gone late like he was supposed to. I think that with the Bucks, they didnt develop him. I wish he had gone to the Suns, Knicks, Warriors, Lakers, or the Celtics. I think he could have had some impact on those teams. Look for him to sign with a team and get to play some next year.

[llperez]

you knew it wasn’t a good sign when prior to his second season, the bucks declined to exercise their third year option. They gave up on a top 10 pick after one year and now he is gone. Teams don’t just bail on guys after one year unless they are certain he is a bust or there are some behind the scenes issues with him that didn’t sit well with the team. And to think how the 2008 draft was so solid and they passed on Brook Lopez.

[marcusfizer21Participant]

I would give this kid a chance… Yes, he’s a freak athlete that can still improve with training… It’s never too late when you’re a second year pro… I am saying this because he’s with Chicago now… I’d like to think that he can still work on his game… People have been saying how he worked hard to achieve his goal, let’s see what he can do next season should the Bulls resign him for a tender offer…. He has been expressing that he wants to be back with the Bulls… I’d like to see him smack his talent to other people’s faces (esp. the Bucks)…

[mykemyke44Participant]

I used to play AAU with him, the kid has immense talent! He isnt quite a shooter yet, but with his work ethic i think he will be. The boy is a freakish athlete, and with CONFIDENCE he can grab 8-10 rbs a night. He reminds me of a skinny Tom Chambers. He is already 2 years into his NBA career, there isnt much time left so he has to start working on the J and getting stronger. Hed be great on a good team as practice meat and possibly work his way into the lineup (Shannon Brown). Hes a quiet guy but he does work hard!

[whiteflashParticipant]

??? Tom Chambers was skinny, and didn’t Alexander have to go to a prep academy for a 5th year of HS ball ’cause he was getting NO offers?

[HueBoND 2001Participant]

He needs playing time, Looking at David Lee I feel like he can be just as good. Play him at the 4 alot of guys are putting in good work. He doesnt need to much muscle and david lee is the perfect combo of smarts and athletic ability being more than height and brawn….

Play the guy or waste his career like stromile swift, gerald green, pops mensah bonsu, sean williams ‘

The list is long of athletic players who just dont get the play to develop because there isnt that much time, the learning curve is much higher for a super athletic player. There use to just getting where they want to be, NBA is more about schemes and angles..than your athleticism can go through there…

Only a couple make it with just athleticsm one a couple that comes to mind Josh Smith, Amare Stoudemire but they were in the right system and STEVE NASH doesnt hurt either

[bkballerParticipant]

all i know is he could not get minutes last night on a Bulls team missing their 4 main players in a game where players like pargo, law, richard, brown and warrick got significant minutes.

[rtbtParticipant]

The Bucks knew from day one that Alexander was a project. But for whatever reason, they gave up on him early. I suspect part of the reason was the surprising development and performance of Ersan Ilyasova, who’s about the same size and plays a similar game. It’s possible that Milwaukee management felt they didn’t need two guys who play almost identical games.

The other point I want to make is some people above said Alexander played 2 years and he hasn’t yet produced. That may be technically correct but it’s not accurate. He was injured virtually the entire 2009-2010 season and barely played. His total minutes probably don’t even add up to one 48 minute game. In fact, if you go back to his rookie season with Milwaukee, you’ll see that he rarely played.

So any assessments of how Alexander’s performed so far are pretty much meaningless. I don’t know if Joe Alexander will be successful in the NBA, but I’m fairly confident it’s far too early to make a final assessment.

[whiteflashParticipant]

Also, stop calling him skinny. The guy tested as the best overall athlete at the NBA combine, which included 20+ reps at 185lbs in the bench. Yes, 185 is different than 225 but for a 6’8″ guy with long arms that’s pretty damn impressive. He’s not skinny.

[Mr.Knick 32Participant]

Also, that Tom Chambers comparison was downright foolish

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGavLNemp8Q

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