Rookie and Sophmore Watch

[SDC]

good for mcdo for following his instincts on chriss. the public consensus was bender at #4.

ainge knew his apprentice wanted quese, so he shot himself in the foot by choosing jaylen brown. chriss would have been ideal for celtics' own pace and space.

[Flagrant Fowl]

I was strongly against Chriss when we drafted him, but he looks to be doing much better than I anticipated.

I was against him at #4 because I watch a lot of P12 hoops and he didn't seem like a player worth taking that high in the draft. Lorenzo Romar is a good, but not a great coach, so maybe getting into an environment where he can focus on basketball 24/7 with world class players will bring the best out of him.

He's still got a long way to go, and I think we're going to see a lot of growing pains in this first year.

[ShelC]

Chriss might end up being the exception to the rule...guys who start playing basketball late in high school, don't overwhelm in college but display "flashes", show athleticism but not a lot of basketball acumen. You're more likely to get a StroSwift, Tyrus Thomas, Earl Clark, Jordan Hill than a legit basketball talent. Hopefully Chriss keeps improving and can really hone in on and polish the natural skills he seems to have.

[Mori Chu]

Really happy and pleasantly surprised with Chriss so far. The athleticism is obviously top notch, but what I love is that he just knows where to put his body. He gets into good position and moves his feet well. I'm really encouraged so far. Like Aztec said, I tend to underrate "athletic" players by assuming that they won't have high BB IQ. Will be glad to be wrong about him if he keeps this up.

[O_Gardino]

Chriss might end up being the exception to the rule...guys who start playing basketball late in high school, don't overwhelm in college but display "flashes", show athleticism but not a lot of basketball acumen. You're more likely to get a StroSwift, Tyrus Thomas, Earl Clark, Jordan Hill than a legit basketball talent. Hopefully Chriss keeps improving and can really hone in on and polish the natural skills he seems to have.

I thought he started playing as a freshman. But, yeah, after 5 years of BBall, if he just now starts boxing out, I will be pleasantly surprised.

[ShelC]

You're right. He started in high school. Better but still not great.

[In2ition]

Didn't Rodman start playing after high school? And if I remember right, Amare started playing basketball a little later than most NBA players.

[ShelC]

Again, these are exceptions. Rodman grew to be 6-8 after high school. And Amar'e was a physical freak who was very raw coming out. He improved his jumper early on, but had no feel for post offense or general defense and wasn't a great passer (usually a indicator of bball IQ).

[In2ition]

Again, these are exceptions. Rodman grew to be 6-8 after high school. And Amar'e was a physical freak who was very raw coming out. He improved his jumper early on, but had no feel for post offense or general defense and wasn't a great passer (usually a indicator of bball IQ).

Oh, I agree with all of this. I just wanted to join the discussion.
BTW, I thought that Amare's BballIQ was greatly improving, but his microfracture surgery cut his peak years and career too short.

[LazarusLong]

Hakeem Olajuwon started playing basketball when he was 15. Before then, he'd been a top soccer goalie.
A coach from Nigeria's national team saw the young 6-8 goalie (at 15) and figured he might make a good basketball player ...

[Superbone]

Hakeem Olajuwon started playing basketball when he was 15. Before then, he'd been a top soccer goalie.
A coach from Nigeria's national team saw the young 6-8 goalie (at 15) and figured he might make a good basketball player ...

He was right.

[JCSunsfan]

Hakeem Olajuwon started playing basketball when he was 15. Before then, he'd been a top soccer goalie.
A coach from Nigeria's national team saw the young 6-8 goalie (at 15) and figured he might make a good basketball player ...

He was right.

That's the thing. A player might start a sport late, but if they are an athlete in another sport, the mentality often translates. For instance, a goalie has to be aware all the time. He directs the defense from the box, has to think angles, and has to be able to respond very quickly. All those things translate well to an NBA center.

Chriss was a quarterback (and can still throw the ball a mile), that's a heady, quick thinking, instinctive position. It should translate well to basketball.

[Cap]

Chriss was a quarterback (and can still throw the ball a mile), that's a heady, quick thinking, instinctive position. It should translate well to basketball.

As long as he remembers that he still has to play when the other team has the ball.

[O_Gardino]

McD's line is that they were impressed with Chriss' growth over the course of the season last year. He's not just an thlete because he made so much improvement in one ncaa season. I hope he got this one right.

Fingers crossed that we got another exception.

[In2ition]

Quarterback is the toughest position to play in probably the toughest team sport to play. He can throw it 60 yards, like Aaron Rogers. I saw a sophomore in hs throw from the behind the 50 yard line, aim for the cross bar on the goal post and hit it on Sunday afternoon.

[Wally_West]

Not goof to lie, I thought Chriss was going to be a trainwreck of a prospect but he has been impressive so far. I'm glad to be wrong, and hopefully he can develope into something special.

[JCSunsfan]

Chriss was a quarterback (and can still throw the ball a mile), that's a heady, quick thinking, instinctive position. It should translate well to basketball.

As long as he remembers that he still has to play when the other team has the ball.

Touche.

[JCSunsfan]

Bender is showing signs of developing too. I love his D.

[ShelC]

Bender's going to be fine. It's just an adjustment period for him. At no point while watching him have a I thought he doesn't belong on the court.

[JCSunsfan]

Bender's going to be fine. It's just an adjustment period for him. At no point while watching him have a I thought he doesn't belong on the court.

I agree. You see it.