Re: We're not the only ones after Tskalidis

[Joe Hironaka <j.hironaka@unesco.org>]

Josh Farber wrote:

>
> It sounds by this article like the Cavs really want this guy.  If we are looking to pick him, we may not be able to since the projected lottery has the Cavs picking 8th with us picking 11th.
>
>
>
> The article says he may be picked before pick #8
>
> Sorry if someone else posted this before!
>
> Josh
>
> http://ohio.com/bj/sports/indians/docs/012348.htm
>
> >>>>>>Cavs prospects
>
> Repeat this name after me: Iakovis Tskalidis.
>
> OK, don't repeat it, unless you happen to be Russian; then you have a chance to say it right.
>
> But Iakovis Tskalidis just might become the Cavs' top draft pick next month. Cleveland is slated to select No. 8, unless something remarkable happens at the NBA draft lottery for non-playoff teams next Sunday.
>
> ``Tskalidis may not be there at No. 8,'' Cavs general manager Jim Paxson said.
>
> That's because he's 7-foot-2, and he's healthy. But get this, the 22-year-old averaged only 10 points and eight rebounds playing pro ball in Greece this year. Are you saying that a guy who averaged only 10 points and eight rebounds in Greece is a lock for the lottery?
>
> ``Yes,'' Paxson said. ``He has a chance to get bigger, add muscle. He's not as skilled as Z (Zydrunas Ilgauskas), but he does have talent. And let's face it, there's not a lot of big men -- or even much depth -- in this draft.''    <<<<<

I say Boo hoo if Tsak goes that high. It sure sounds like Paxson is already spinning the local media to make his draft day selection seem less out-of-the-blue.

I'm trying hard to think what Tsak's maximum upside is down the road. A Sabonis/Divac? No, Tsak is an embarrasment to the passing game judging by his stats this year in Greece (over 3 turnovers per assist, just 0.7 assists per game). How about Ilgauskus? Apparently Paxson
doesn't think he's that athletic. How about Stojko Vrankovic? No, the scouting reports say he doesn't block the shots you'd expect from his size.

In the end, Vitaly Potapenko put up the same scoring and rebounding stats in fewer minutes than Tsakalidis, and the NBA is not quite the same as the Greek pro leagues (understatement of the year). Probably the biggest challenge this guy could hope to ever face at his
level is a head-to-head showdown against Frederick "Edel" Weis (the NY Knicks flunkee) in a European competition.

Unless Tsak has the same game face and attitude as Vitaly, I'll have a hard time believing he could start or even get meaningful minutes right away with the Boston Celtics.  I trust Wallace to scout the guy very closely and if the Celtics pick the guy, I'll know it was an
informed decision (what with so much at stake).

Without any shadow of doubt, we can IMO get a quality scoring wing player at #11. It's hard right now to guess which of the prospects will be a star and which ones will fail, but it kind of reminds of the year that both Reggie Miller and Reggie Lewis were available in the
mid to late teens. Morris Peterson reminds me very much of Reggie Lewis in how his floaters always seem to float onto the net. And based on what I've seen, I'd rather have Quentin Richardson at swingman than have an entire roster of Adrian Griffins in various shapes and
sizes (and I love Adrian "Old School" Griffin).

I'll admit Quentin Richardson could easily turn into a massive bust at shooting guard, but I do think he has a very clean and accurate 3-point shot release and his ferocious boardwork, timing and positioning inside are better at the college level than any player in a
decade. I definitely think this guy can be an NBA forward in the Adrian Dantley/Mark Aguire mold.

The other big name guards, I haven't really seen.

My personal hunch is that Pitino will grab NYC pointguard Erick Barkley for basically the same reasons he fell in love with Chauncey Billups's game.  I think this will come to pass unless some player currently ranked in the top five miraculously falls down to us, as
happened with Paul Pierce.

Joe

p.s. It would be nice if Mike Jarvis accepted MJ's overtures and became the coach of the Wiz.  Jarvis used to coach at Cambridge Ringe and Latin highschool into the early 1980s. He also has-- without doubt-- the thickest and most authentic Boston townie accent any black
man has ever had.

****