ESPN Mag: Davis is the next Russell. Maybe.

[FlyGirl]

Jesus, let's not put any pressure on the kid or anything.

Right? Beneath the picture it says...

Bill Russell led the Celtics to 11 titles in 13 years. That's a tall order for Anthony Davis.

People are already laughing at him being compared to KG. I mean granted all players will be compared to somebody. Especially top lottery picks entering the NBA. But why Russell? It's like maybe ESPN is waiting for him to not compare to Russell so they can say "I told you he wouldn't measure up". But hey, when you got guys like Knight and Brown mentioning you in the same breath with Russell, maybe they see something.

[Coughka]

I think this article brings up some very real concerns we as Hornets fans shouldn't dismiss. We have no idea what we are getting from this kid, and the likelihood that he transforms into an unstoppable offensive players is mostly where the hype lays. He has great instincts and I'll agree that he's the best colleigate shot blocker I've ever seen. However we have no idea if those things will translate to the pros, and even if they do there's still questions about his post defense. If he is a franchise changer it will be in a way that we haven't seen in many years. Personally I think guys are too good offensively and the game is officiated to far to the offensives side of the ball for this to happen.

Agreed, his offensive game isn't nearly as far along as his defensive game, but we shouldn't hold that against his offensive game; it's more a measure of how great his defensive ability is (besides post defense, which for him is more a matter of added strength, as instinct and IQ seem to be sky high).

Right now he has slightly above average offensive skills for his height; while he lacks a post game, he has an ever-improving jumpshot, a good stroke from the line that improved throughout the year (always a good sign for a player's possible development of a shooting game), above-average handles (though only size-relative), and terrific agility and touch around the rim, not to mention his leaping ability, both in terms of height and quick burst. I really can envision, realistically, a scenario where he capitalizes on his natural gifts and develops an above-average offensive game in the NBA, but certainly, it's a fairly large concern; let's not forget that just about every prospect ever has had at least one fairly substantial deficiency entering the league.

[Biasvasospasm]

I think, in terms of guys who hold an opinion which is not popular, da ThRONe is pretty well-reasoned. As long as he isn't actively wanting the guy to fail, I don't see the issue. If you don't want to argue with him, don't argue with him.

[Coughka]

Whoops double post.

[nolaslim213]

Right? Beneath the picture it says...

Bill Russell led the Celtics to 11 titles in 13 years. That's a tall order for Anthony Davis.

People are already laughing at him being compared to KG. I mean granted all players will be compared to somebody. Especially top lottery picks entering the NBA. But why Russell? It's like maybe ESPN is waiting for him to not compare to Russell so they can say "I told you he wouldn't measure up". But hey, when you got guys like Knight and Brown mentioning you in the same breath with Russell, maybe they see something.

Yeah... I was pretty taken aback by the fact that those 2 figures were speaking so highly of him. Bobby Knight is one of the greatest coaches of all time. He can recognize talent, and I trust his basketball opinion over just about anyone else in the world.

[Silverfoxx]

Dont wanna add Pressure to AD23, but I watched 85 % of UK games and I forces myself to stop daydreaming about getting him before lottery. Davis was absoulety dominating in College, and made eveyone on his team better. He also was really quick for a big guy, and had a decent jumper. His post game was meh, but he will have time to learn the game. Also they were no true centers in there starting line up, and Davis still dominated as a 6 10 PF.

Davis IMO may only be a bust if he allows himself to do so, but he is too athletically gifted, and the scary thought is he is a hard worker. Based on what games i seen from him, and his gigantic upisde ans dedication to actually get better, Im drinking the Kool-Aid folks!

[FlyGirl]

I think, in terms of guys who hold an opinion which is not popular, da ThRONe is pretty well-reasoned. As long as he isn't actively wanting the guy to fail, I don't see the issue. If you don't want to argue with him, don't argue with him.

Nobody should be arguing at all. Everyone has an opinion. And opinions can be shared without belittling the other person about his/her opinion.

[nolaslim213]

I think, in terms of guys who hold an opinion which is not popular, da ThRONe is pretty well-reasoned. As long as he isn't actively wanting the guy to fail, I don't see the issue. If you don't want to argue with him, don't argue with him.

It's difficult to read (and enjoy) threads about Anthony Davis when he is spewing the same garbage on every single one of them. He is relentless.

I'm cool with disagreement. I think it's a good thing. But there is a time when you just have to drop certain topics. He doesn't understand that.

[Coughka]

Yeah... I was pretty taken aback by the fact that those 2 figures were speaking so highly of him. Bobby Knight is one of the greatest coaches of all time. He can recognize talent, and I trust his basketball opinion over just about anyone else in the world.

Knight is one of the world's biggest hyperbolic speakers ever. In the history of the universe, even predating mankind.

[nikkoewan]

I think, in terms of guys who hold an opinion which is not popular, da ThRONe is pretty well-reasoned. As long as he isn't actively wanting the guy to fail, I don't see the issue. If you don't want to argue with him, don't argue with him.

I agree for the most part. da ThRONe is pretty well-reasoned for the most part. But I've heard some pretty ridiculous stuff from him as well. If I remember correctly, he wanted to trade the #1 pick for the chance to draft Drummond and some other assets that might be helpful. I think that alone is pretty ridiculous don't you say?

[nolaslim213]

Knight is one of the world's biggest hyperbolic speakers ever. In the history of the universe, even predating mankind.

Sure, but that doesn't mean that he doesn't know talent. When he says that Davis is in Russell's category, that means that he could end up being a very special player for us.

[Purple Haze]

Right.

The actual ESPN link says "ESPN Mag Is Anthony Davis a franchise changer or just hyped". Shall I change the title?

Ahh I see.

[da ThRONe]

It's difficult to read (and enjoy) threads about Anthony Davis when he is spewing the same garbage on every single one of them. He is relentless.

I'm cool with disagreement. I think it's a good thing. But there is a time when you just have to drop certain topics. He doesn't understand that.

I could say the same. It's hard to enjoy a Davis thread without any subjective views. What garbage am I spewing? You mean simply disagreeing with the masses? And giving reasons for my concerns?

[Unknown Poster]

Right? Beneath the picture it says...

Bill Russell led the Celtics to 11 titles in 13 years. That's a tall order for Anthony Davis.

People are already laughing at him being compared to KG. I mean granted all players will be compared to somebody. Especially top lottery picks entering the NBA. But why Russell? It's like maybe ESPN is waiting for him to not compare to Russell so they can say "I told you he wouldn't measure up". But hey, when you got guys like Knight and Brown mentioning you in the same breath with Russell, maybe they see something.

It's possible and obviously ESPN or whoever is going to oversell the kid to make for interesting copy because they want people to read it but I'm more reserved on my expectations. He has all the promise in the world but I prefer to wait and see what happens.

[nolaslim213]

I could say the same. It's hard to enjoy a Davis thread without any subjective views. What garbage am I spewing? You mean simply disagreeing with the masses? And giving reasons for my concerns?

The fact that you rate Anthony Davis as the #7 overall prospect in this year's draft says it all to me, and then you say that you don't know if his instincts will translate to the NBA. You kidding me? I'm not trying to hate on you. I just can't understand your position, and for the most part, I don't even comment on your stuff. It's just ridiculously annoying to see you posting the same exact stuff in every thread.

Again, I don't care if you disagree with the masses. If you want to be a contrarian, that's cool with me. But stop pushing your beliefs on everyone. Posting your opinion is great, but re-posting the same opinion 50 times is enough. We get it.

[da ThRONe]

I agree for the most part. da ThRONe is pretty well-reasoned for the most part. But I've heard some pretty ridiculous stuff from him as well. If I remember correctly, he wanted to trade the #1 pick for the chance to draft Drummond and some other assets that might be helpful. I think that alone is pretty ridiculous don't you say?

I'm not sold on Davis. If we could trade down and get a top pick next year not sure how that qualifies as ridiculous? I happen to think Drummond at the center position is not as risky as others believe. I think worse case scenario he's a shot blocking big, with the foot quickness to defend the P&R game, and the strength to handle the few dominate centers in the league. I'm not against trading down and selecting Kidd-Gilchirst or Robinson.

[Purple Haze]

I'm not sold on Davis. If we could trade down and get a top pick next year not sure how that qualifies as ridiculous? I happen to think Drummond at the center position is not as risky as others believe. I think worse case scenario he's a shot blocking big, with the foot quickness to defend the P&R game, and the strength to handle the few dominate centers in the league. I'm not against trading down and selecting Kidd-Gilchirst or Robinson.

Because you would be passing up on probably the biggest prospect since Lebron and be laughed at forever?

[BallSoHard]

I think this article brings up some very real concerns we as Hornets fans shouldn't dismiss. We have no idea what we are getting from this kid, and the likelihood that he transforms into an unstoppable offensive players is mostly where the hype lays. He has great instincts and I'll agree that he's the best colleigate shot blocker I've ever seen. However we have no idea if those things will translate to the pros, and even if they do there's still questions about his post defense. If he is a franchise changer it will be in a way that we haven't seen in many years. Personally I think guys are too good offensively and the game is officiated to far to the offensives side of the ball for this to happen.

Didn't you say we should take Drummond over Davis ?

[da ThRONe]

The fact that you rate Anthony Davis as the #7 overall prospect in this year's draft says it all to me, and then you say that you don't know if his instincts will translate to the NBA. You kidding me? I'm not trying to hate on you. I just can't understand your position, and for the most part, I don't even comment on your stuff. It's just ridiculously annoying to see you posting the same exact stuff in every thread.

Again, I don't care if you disagree with the masses. If you want to be a contrarian, that's cool with me. But stop pushing your beliefs on everyone. Posting your opinion is great, but re-posting the same opinion 50 times is enough. We get it.

LOL but everybody else posting the samething is ok just not when I do it?

If we had to wait for anything thing new to say about Davis we wouldn't talk about him at all. Yet there continue to be threads about him. You can't have it both ways.

As far as my rankings it is what it is. You want to use it to discredit me that's your business but I stand behind it.

[BallSoHard]

Right? Beneath the picture it says...

Bill Russell led the Celtics to 11 titles in 13 years. That's a tall order for Anthony Davis.

People are already laughing at him being compared to KG. I mean granted all players will be compared to somebody. Especially top lottery picks entering the NBA. But why Russell? It's like maybe ESPN is waiting for him to not compare to Russell so they can say "I told you he wouldn't measure up". But hey, when you got guys like Knight and Brown mentioning you in the same breath with Russell, maybe they see something.

I think the comparison comes from his defensive dominance more than anything. He controlled the college game Without havin to score.

[Kurgan]

I'm not sold on Davis. If we could trade down and get a top pick next year not sure how that qualifies as ridiculous? I happen to think Drummond at the center position is not as risky as others believe. I think worse case scenario he's a shot blocking big, with the foot quickness to defend the P&R game, and the strength to handle the few dominate centers in the league. I'm not against trading down and selecting Kidd-Gilchirst or Robinson.

Gesùggiuseppeemmaria..

Yeah, couldn't think of anything else. Drummond is the safe bet while davis is not? Goodness me.

[da ThRONe]

Because you would be passing up on probably the biggest prospect since Lebron and be laughed at forever?

AD is not even close to LeBron as a prospect that IMO is way off. However I'm not calling anybody out or insulting anybody who think so. It's your opinion.

[nolaslim213]

LOL but everybody else posting the samething is ok just not when I do it?

If we had to wait for anything thing new to say about Davis we wouldn't talk about him at all. Yet there continue to be threads about him. You can't have it both ways.

As far as my rankings it is what it is. You want to use it to discredit me that's your business but I stand behind it.

You have to understand that you are in the extreme minority. In fact, I don't know one person in the country that would agree with you that trading out of the #1 pick is the best option. Seriously....

When 99% of the posters on this board agree about something, we are going to talk about it. That is a completely different situation from what you are doing. It's not hypocritical.

[da ThRONe]

Gesùggiuseppeemmaria..

Yeah, couldn't think of anything else. Drummond is the safe bet while davis is not? Goodness me.

Once again showing soooo much maturity reading something that's not even there. I never said Drummond was the safer pick. I said I don't think Davis is as safe as most and likewise I don't think Drummond as as risky as most. Nowhere in that is it said that Drummond is safer than Davis.

[BallSoHard]

Also to build on what slim said, we not only agree on Davis were downright excited about him and I think vigilant about correcting anyone who tries to rain on our parade.