Hawks Picks in Mock Drafts Following the Lottery

[coachx]

For Pondexter I think when a major college player is the star offensive player but is also asked to take the toughest defensive assignments then that should speak volumes. Defense is undervalued.

Pondexture waiting until his senior year to become a scorer. I do like his as a glue piece or bench player.

I would be thrilled with Pondexture b/c we need help with perimeter defense. If J. Anderson and D. James are off the board I'd be very happy with Pondexture.

[KB21]

Pondexture waiting until his senior year to become a scorer. I do like his as a glue piece or bench player.

I would be thrilled with Pondexture b/c we need help with perimeter defense. If J. Anderson and D. James are off the board I'd be very happy with Pondexture.

I'd take Pondexter over Anderson, personaly. Anderson is a better three point shooter, but Anderson doesn't play a lick of defense on the perimeter.

[AHF]

Thanks for the link, looks like Cousins might be a bit on the chubby side at 16% bodyfat. maybe that will stop the theads of wanting to trade Al or Josh for this guy.

He also had the highest standing reach of any player in the draft - including the true 7 footers. I am not sure that his measurements really hurt him - especially if he is interviewing well as the GM said. I am a definite believer in Cousins. He is special.

[AHF]

Ya...........hopefully he does not pull an Eddy Curry. Cousins has so much potential and skill for his size that only he can let go to waist. He much lighter on his feet then Curry ever was but the work ethic and attitude concerns cannot be ignored.

Any man who comes into the biggest job interview of their life unprepared shows they have some issues between the ears. Still, the clay that is there to mold is mouth watering.

Did I miss something in the article. Far from coming in woefully unprepared for his interview, didn't the article give Cousins praise in this department?

one exec said he acquitted himself "far better than I was led to believe" in an interview

[spotatl]

Its a shame- I think Cousins is special and I think that in the right situation (Veteran team where he wasn't "needed") then he could be the top player in this draft.

But on a bad team where the coach needs him more than he needs the coach I do think his weight has potential to explode out of control. When he needs to stay in shape and play the team game for team goals I think he may be fine- but lets say he goes to the Nets and they lose so many games- its easy for me to imagine him checking out. THis very well could be the case where the first team that takes him was "right" but he will only succeed at his second stop.

[lunar]

Hassan Whiteside must have BOMBED the combine because he's slipped to the Hawks in Chad Fords newest mock draft.

24. Atlanta

Hassan Whiteside

Position: C

Height: 7-0

Weight: 227

Age: 20

School: Marshall

Analysis: How can a guy who just measured with a freakish 7-foot-7 wingspan slip this far? The word out of Chicago was that the interviews didn't go so well. And as I wrote in my draft combine wrap-up blog post, I had the chance to sit down with Whiteside and I can understand why.

Whiteside isn't a bad kid, but he's very naive at this point, in a way that reminded me a bit of Tyrus Thomas. Eventually some team will decide the talent is too much to pass on. But I think he did some damage to his stock last week. He can certainly make up for that in workouts ... but he's just created a bigger mountain to climb.

personally i would be ecstatic if he fell to us. the attitude problems sound alot like josh smith to me, but if anyone can tell him the dangers of shooting bad. it's him. coach em up josh!

Ford Mock Draft 3.0

[coachx]

Did I miss something in the article. Far from coming in woefully unprepared for his interview, didn't the article give Cousins praise in this department?

I was refering to his conditioning. Most guys have been working out in anticipation of of the combine. He seems to have been eating cheeseburger on the couch too much.

Other then his work ethic there are no minuses refering to Cousins.

I love his skillset. He is a special talent. Only his own laziness can make him a bust.

[Joker]

Hassan Whiteside must have BOMBED the combine because he's slipped to the Hawks in Chad Fords newest mock draft.

personally i would be ecstatic if he fell to us. the attitude problems sound alot like josh smith to me, but if anyone can tell him the dangers of shooting bad. it's him. coach em up josh!

Ford Mock Draft 3.0

As much as I bashed Smith early on, he was ten times better than Whiteside. Whiteside is a NBDL player for his first two seasons. It's like drafting a minor league baseball player.

[coachx]

I would love it if this mock came true:

http://realgm.com/src_feature/1663/20100525/2010_nba_mock_draft_version_20/

#24 = James Anderson to Hawks - Deadly shooter with better then average athleticism.

# 53 - Ndiaye - Raw shot blockling specialist

Edited May 27, 2010 by coachx

[MVP23]

I think Jordan Crawford. There is no sense in drafting a PG. Teague wasn't great, but he showed flashes. Craw...Jordan...can play SF and SG. Maybe he can grow another inch. I would take him.

[coachx]

I wonder if U.S. talent will be scared to workout vs. Kevin Seraphin ?

He is one of those guys who could go 10 or 30.

Edited May 27, 2010 by coachx

[Sothron]

I'm still hoping we land Anderson. That guy can flat out shoot and we'll need someone to replace Crawford's role on the bench once Craw starts after Joe leaves.

[gtmike]

I'd love to see some statistics on the correlation between draft measurements and later NBA performance. Remember Durant and the stir created when he couldn't bench 185 once? If OKC comes calling, I might be persuaded to give up our 12x185 bencher Marvin, but they would have to throw in somebody stronger, too, to make it even.

[BudBall]

Im also interested in Sherron Collins in the 2nd Round, from the reports he played exceptionally well on defense and lost a lot of that baby fat he had. Hassan Whiteside is a bust waiting to happen, and 220 pounds at 7 feet? Thats a long term project folks.

Edited May 28, 2010 by AliznotaCenter

[jezmund]

Im also interested in Sherron Collins in the 2nd Round, from the reports he played exceptionally well on defense and lost a lot of that baby fat he had. Hassan Whiteside is a bust waiting to happen, and 220 pounds at 7 feet? Thats a long term project folks.

I'd be ecstatic if Collins falls to us in the 2nd.

[coachx]

I'd take Pondexter over Anderson, personaly. Anderson is a better three point shooter, but Anderson doesn't play a lick of defense on the perimeter.

What worries me about Pondexture is he that he did not even show up at the combine to get officially measured. That is a major worry for a SF who is only listed at 6'6'' his main question mark is his true size..

I hope he is man enough to workout vs. his peers.

Its 1 thing for a top 10 pick to pull this but for a guy fighting to get in the 1st round it tells me his agent is hiding a 6'5'' height or something.

if you have nothing to hide then why are you hiding ?

Edited May 29, 2010 by coachx

[KB21]

After reading Michael Cunningham's blog interview with David Pendergraft, Atlanta's Assistant GM, I am thinking that they will definitely be targeting either a big or a shooter. I think David is correct when he says that the guys who are the best shooters that may be available at that pick don't play a lick of defense. We will have to hope that they can coach those shooters to defend. As far as bigs go, I highly doubt we will see a true seven foot center at our pick. Solomon Alabi may be a possibility, but I think he's extremely raw and needs to gain weight and strength.

I also agree that this player will likely play in the NBDL for a year before being ready to make a contribution on this team. Despite the likelyhood of that, I would still like to see them show a little more confidence in their scouting ability. Don't come out and say that we likely won't get a contributor at that pick. Go into this thinking that you can find someone under a rock that can become a contributor.

[txsting]

Am I crazy for wanting us to just draft the best PG available? Anyone that has a good BBIQ and can distribute the ball would really help maximize Horford and Marvin in Year Zero A.W.

I'm with you for this reason. Even picking at #24, we would probably be the second team to go PG (after John Wall). You telling me, with 2nd pick of PGs, we can't find a player in all of the NCAA? There are a few out there, we just need to uncover them. This is where the scouts make their money. Maybe the guy from Kentucky that played 2 guard? I dunno, but I'd be bringing in a bunch of them for workouts and interviews.

[txsting]

I'm still hoping we land Anderson. That guy can flat out shoot and we'll need someone to replace Crawford's role on the bench once Craw starts after Joe leaves.

Anderson's game is reminiscent of JJ's, to be quite honest. He was once considered a higher prospect then where people are slotting him now. He'd be a good, good pick.

[coachx]

I'm with you for this reason. Even picking at #24, we would probably be the second team to go PG (after John Wall). You telling me, with 2nd pick of PGs, we can't find a player in all of the NCAA? There are a few out there, we just need to uncover them. This is where the scouts make their money. Maybe the guy from Kentucky that played 2 guard? I dunno, but I'd be bringing in a bunch of them for workouts and interviews.

Bledsoe is very comparable to Teague.

Is there a PG better then Teague available at #24 ?

That is the question the talent evaluators must answer.

Edited June 2, 2010 by coachx