Porzingis Draft Workout Video

After seeing this video, I am going to have to be convinced why the Lakers should draft Okafor over Porzingis. 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Fjzdm1pSqjk

looks like a young Pau Gasol only with an outside shot.

or

Bargani

either way, they both went #3 or higher in their drafts, IIR correctly.

This guy is obviously a good talent, but hi-lite videos really do not show a 'complete' player. Looks like he can shoot when unguarded.

Remember there was a debate a short time ago about Curry being the best shooter in the NBA, well this guy puts Curry to shame as he not only does not EVER miss (in this video at least) but his shots never even touch the rim. All swishes!

He's obviously a good shooter.  Wow, he didn't miss a single shot.  For the entire video!  I especially enjoyed the demonstrations of his defensive sequences, his ability to slash through heavy defensive traffic, and his enormous rebounding skill.

Sam

There's plenty of YouTube videos of him playing during games for all of you wise a**es to watch....
:-)

He's a limited player in some ways but he's good at what he does, and this workout was catered to his strengths. As long as a team uses him in a role that caters to the skills displayed in that video, he can be a very very good player.

Just don't ask him to be a point forward and a man defense specialist.

TJ,

Why whatever do you mean?  Just a few expressions of pleasure.  And perhaps ancillary commentaries on the fallacy of depending on videos, even in this day-and-age, to present more than selective snippets of the entire story.

Sam

sam wrote:TJ,

Why whatever do you mean?  Just a few expressions of pleasure.  And perhaps ancillary commentaries on the fallacy of depending on videos, even in this day-and-age, to present more than selective snippets of the entire story.

Sam

Sam,

I do value your sense of humor and I did get your video reference. 
Touché.....

When I hear scouts saying he is the best player in the draft, I definitely listen. 
I also like Okafor, but his outside shot is not smooth at all. 
Okafor has struggles at the FT line too. 
But Okafor could be a dominant inside player. 
I know Porzingis and randle are both PF's but I think they need to take the best player available since they have so many holes in their roster.

rambone wrote:He's a limited player in some ways but he's good at what he does, and this workout was catered to his strengths. As long as a team uses him in a role that caters to the skills displayed in that video, he can be a very very good player.

Just don't ask him to be a point forward and a man defense specialist.

Almost every player not named Lebron James or Kevin Durant has limitations. 
I think Porzingis is the closest version of Durant as a 19 year old since Durant entered the draft.

TJ,

Interesting comparison with Durant.  There seems no question that Porzingis is the fastest mover in the draft.  Among other things, it'll be interesting to see how that affects possible trade activity.  For example, if my new best friend, Phil Jackson, (humor alert) was considering trading away the #4 slot, if Porzingis shuffles the deck, might Phil be more amenable to keeping the pick?

The plot thickens!

And thank god someone values my sense of humor.  You wouldn't believe the number of times I get perplexed, or even outraged, responses from people who have taken me seriously.  A long time ago on BDC and more recently on this board, I recommended that people just assume everything I say is an attempt at humor until it becomes obvious that's not true.

Sam

tjmakz wrote:

sam wrote:TJ,

Why whatever do you mean?  Just a few expressions of pleasure.  And perhaps ancillary commentaries on the fallacy of depending on videos, even in this day-and-age, to present more than selective snippets of the entire story.

Sam

Sam,

I do value your sense of humor and I did get your video reference. 
Touché.....

When I hear scouts saying he is the best player in the draft, I definitely listen. 
I also like Okafor, but his outside shot is not smooth at all. 
Okafor has struggles at the FT line too. 
But Okafor could be a dominant inside player. 
I know Porzingis and randle are both PF's but I think they need to take the best player available since they have so many holes in their roster.

agreed they could use everything, but since they have Randle, would you go for a center type or wing or PG with the 2nd pick?

Sam,

I don't think Jeanie's bed buddy would trade away number 4. 
Maybe if Towns, Okafor and Porzingis are taken. 

Your sense of humor is a good thing. 
So, when you are chatting about the 50's and 60's Celtics, that is just your sense of humor. Right? :-)

cowens/oldschool wrote:

tjmakz wrote:

sam wrote:TJ,

Why whatever do you mean?  Just a few expressions of pleasure.  And perhaps ancillary commentaries on the fallacy of depending on videos, even in this day-and-age, to present more than selective snippets of the entire story.

Sam

Sam,

I do value your sense of humor and I did get your video reference. 
Touché.....

When I hear scouts saying he is the best player in the draft, I definitely listen. 
I also like Okafor, but his outside shot is not smooth at all. 
Okafor has struggles at the FT line too. 
But Okafor could be a dominant inside player. 
I know Porzingis and randle are both PF's but I think they need to take the best player available since they have so many holes in their roster.

agreed they could use everything, but since they have Randle, would you go for a center type or wing or PG with the 2nd pick?

Very good point. 
Ideally a center. 
There's no Pg's worthy of the number 2 pick in my opinion. 
I think they are going to roll the dice with Clarkson for now. 
I think LA should take a Center, then make a max offer to Tobias Harris to play SF. 
There's no way Kawai Leonard, jimmy butler or Draymond Green don't get matched by their current teams. I think Tobias Harris might be let go if a team offers him the max.

Agreed I would go for a center too.

Tobias Harris? don't know enough about him, which tells me I wonder if hes really worth max money? is he better than Jeff Green?

cowens/oldschool wrote:Agreed I would go for a center too.

Tobias Harris? don't know enough about him, which tells me I wonder if hes really worth max money? is he better than Jeff Green?

I think Kobe woul strangle Jeff Green out of frustration. 
Yes he's better than Green. 
Just 23 years old. 
A max contract this summer won't look too bad once the salary cap skyrockets next year and year after. 
I see Tobias as a consistent 18/6/3 guy. 
Not an all star but solid like Chandler Parsons.

is that worth a max contract? a KG, Kobe, Joe Johnson contract?

tjmakz wrote:

cowens/oldschool wrote:Agreed I would go for a center too.

Tobias Harris? don't know enough about him, which tells me I wonder if hes really worth max money? is he better than Jeff Green?

I think Kobe woul strangle Jeff Green out of frustration. 
Yes he's better than Green. 
Just 23 years old. 
A max contract this summer won't look too bad once the salary cap skyrockets next year and year after. 
I see Tobias as a consistent 18/6/3 guy. 
Not an all star but solid like Chandler Parsons.

I know the feeling, I want to strangle Green and Ainge for wasting 4-5 years of my time by acquiring him.

Myles Turner workout at the same place:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLGeP0L6-CY


they make everyone look GREAT!

not that both players are NOT likely top draft picks, but wow neither one can miss a shot!!!

LMAO.

some more workout chatter, here from the Pacers where Kaminsky and Turner played each other for a bit.

http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/nba/pacers/2015/06/14/kaminsky-turner-battle-pacers-workout/71224720/





Frank Kaminsky and Myles Turner show mutual respect.

The frontcourt players with different résumés – Kaminsky, the accomplished 7-foot-1 offensive-minded player who stayed four years in college, and Turner, the 19-year-old who could become a versatile defender in the NBA – offered admiration about the other after participating in the Indiana Pacers' sixth pre-draft workout Sunday morning.

Kaminsky on Turner: "He's tough. Obviously, a very good shot blocker. He's young, he's active."

Turner on Kaminsky: "I see why he's the college Player of the Year."

Nice words coming from players who are in direct competition for the same jobs.

The NBA draft will be held June 25 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, and soon enough Kaminsky and Turner will have worked out for many of the same teams in the lottery (first through 14th picks).







INDIANAPOLIS STAR

NBA mock drafts: Does Turner-Kaminsky battle mean anything to Pacers?


Kaminsky has completed three auditions (including No. 14 Phoenix and No. 10 Miami) and has three remaining (No. 4 New York, No. 6 Sacramento and No. 8 Detroit). Turner, who racked up the miles over the weekend with workouts in Las Vegas and Salt Lake City before arriving in Indianapolis, also has scheduled stops in Phoenix, Miami and New York as well as Charlotte. And of course, there was Sunday – their first head-to-head meeting while trying to impress the Pacers, who hold the No. 11 pick.

"It's competition," Turner said. "Frank's a great player but I feel like I'm a good player as well, so I just want to show what I got."

During the 3-on-3 portion of the workout, Kaminsky and Turner played on separate teams, which allowed the Pacers' basketball operations staff, who crowded the stands inside the Bankers Life Fieldhouse practice gymnasium, to evaluate the matchup.

On one play, Kaminsky caught a pass on the right block with the 6-11 Turner defending. Kaminsky tried to back him down then face up for the close-range attempt, but Turner, who averaged 2.62 blocks per game during his Big 12 Freshman of the Year season, swatted the shot. On another play, this time with Kaminsky on defense, he knocked away an entry pass intended for Turner. After the turnover, his team regained possession and the ball returned to Kaminsky, who stretched beyond the right arc for an open 3-pointer.







NBA draft prospect Myles Turner (back) guards Frank Kaminsky (front) during an Indiana Pacers pre-draft work out, Sunday, June 14, 2015, at Banker's Life Field House, Indianapolis. (Photo: Jenna Watson / The Star)

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The end of the 3-on-3 run offered only a picture of the workout – there were plenty of missed shots and passes that did not reach targets from both teams. So, it's no surprise that the players do not view the competition as holding great value.

"This is still just a workout. I'm trying to best Myles and best Trey Lyles as much as I can, but at the end of the day, we're all just working out here to try to get better," Kaminsky said. In separate workouts, Kaminsky and Turner have matched up against Lyles, another potential lottery pick. "No one wants to get hurt out here."

"We're all just trying to compete as hard as we can and go at each other, but at the same time, it is just a workout."

After all, these workouts are as much about showcasing skills than anything else. While training over the past two months, Kaminsky has studied video of Dirk Nowitzki – the NBA player he most would like to emulate – and broke out one of those familiar one-legged step back jumpers during the 3-on-3 action. However, the shot missed.







INDIANAPOLIS STAR

Insider: Frank Kaminsky targeting Pacers as destination


Turner has spent his days training in Las Vegas and building up strength and remolding his running mechanics. Besides attempting to display his improved motion in running the floor, Turner, the only teenager of the six-player group, wanted to show his ability to be vocal and take instruction.

Immediately following the workout, Turner walked over to assistant Nate McMillan on the left block and asked about a specific command the coach had given earlier. Later, Turner moved to the right block and sought similar advice from coach Frank Vogel.

"I think teams know what I'm capable of, they've been watching me since high school and they just kind of want to see me be coached by the coaches, take in what they have to say and just play," said Turner, then explained why he sought out McMillan. "I wanted to make sure I acknowledged the fact that he was trying to show me something. You want to learn in all these workouts as well."

Call Star reporter Candace Buckner at (317) 444-6121. Follow her on Twitter: @CandaceDBuckner.

kdp,

Most basketball videos are designed to entertain, not so much to inform.  They are carefully edited to omit what the editors consider less interesting and to feature what the editors think are more interesting.  Even a lot of videos that purport to be game videos, the great majority of each possession is likely to be deleted with only the "payoff" portion of plays being shown.

Videos can be useful to display selected skills of individual players.  To demonstrate styles of play, teamwork, and defense, they are often quite insufficient.

Sam

especially "workouts" and the associated videos from a for profit workout site in Las Vegas, I would say.

LOL, these all look like commercials to me. I'm not sure how much info can be gleaned from any of them, but such is the game that gets played in the last two weeks before the draft.

Probably more than anything else, we have to listen to the comments from the scouts/team officials who see these players.

I know with Porzingis, a couple of scouts have said he is the best player in the draft.
I wonder if those comments are based on seeing him in person last Friday or based on seeing him other times too?

TJ,

Team officials must observe a lot of conventions that are seldom "top-of-mind" with fans.  Fans often take what's often a pretty naive view in lending credence to public statements of team officials because fans are not privy to the huge number of variables that must be observed by team officials in their behavior.

But, in reality—at least as it pertains to players in line to be drafted—it would be bad politics for the public statements of team representatives to play anything but nice nice in commenting on players.  And it's not as much because of the players as because of the agents.  Agents (at least the more prominent ones) wield immense power in today's NBA.  Even the matter of what teams a given player will deign to work out for has become a sort of crap shoot of its own.  An agent can be as opportunistic as a general manager in finding ways to help or hurt a given team over time.

It simply doesn't pay to get on an agent's bad side (although all sides look bad to me) if you're a team representative, so you'd better develop your own brand of public relations-speak if you want to last in the league.

When Kerr recently said, "I lied" about his comments concerning starting Iggy, his admission was simply the articulation of what is widespread practice.  And the really sad thing is that such a large portion of media types, who should be close enough to the game to know how much duplicity exists, gleefully seize upon such spurious comments to gain readers while never, themselves, being susceptible to accusations of bending the truth.

Sam 

Sam