Drafting on Potential Part 2

Let me start out by saying that I wasn’t very clear in Part 1 about my stance on the particular guys I picked out. By me talking about those guys I didn’t necessarily mean that they shouldn’t have gotten drafted where they did or that if they did get drafted that it was a reach (though some were definitely a reach.) I do however think that most of those guys were drafted for their upside/potential, not for what they could actually bring to the table immediately. My definition of potential is not a guy that has shown no ability whatsoever and then turns into a beast in the pro’s, but rather a guy that many see as one who can’t make it in the pro’s or even one who many think can make it in the pro’s but still hasn’t fully developed yet (Jamarcus Russell.)

A few more clarifying points that were brought to my attention by TBrown:

1. No I would not have drafted Robert Meachem with the #9 overall pick. My simple point there was that I think he is a better true WR that can also help with special teams, whereas I believe Ginn is a better true special teamer that can be a decent WR. I would have not taken a WR at #9 (based on the WR’s in this draft), I would have taken Patrick Willis. Keep in mind Dwayne Bowe was taken #23 overall also. I simply said Meachem because of his speed and ability to make plays on special teams as well, which is obviously what the Dolphins were going after.

2. Joe Flacco- In my Flacco commentary I said something about how at Delaware he proved nothing except how accurate he was. That was very poorly phrased because I meant he proved a lot especially how accurate he was/is. I love Flacco and he has proven to be a very good quarterback. My reasoning for putting him in the list was because he played for The University of Delaware and didn’t face the competition that a Matt Ryan, Brian Brohm, or a Chad Henne did. Obviously the Ravens made the right choice at that pick.

3. I would have taken Jamarcus #1 overall just like the Raiders. He had (maybe still has) huge upside. I see nothing wrong with the Raiders pick there. Maybe he could have come in and contributed immediately, who knows. No one ever will because he’s another guy that held out of training camp which only hurt him obviously. I will say that I don’t blame the team around him for his lack of success. I would gladly like to build a team with McFadden, Michael Bush, Zach Miller, and their young WR’s.


Ok now moving on to my NBA portion of this blog. I’m sure some of you will disagree with me about this part as well but we’ll see. Like I did before in the NFL section, I picked out a few guys from the 2007-2009 NBA drafts to talk about that I think were drafted mainly on potential/upside than they were for actual skill set. Let me also say that just because I list these guys doesn’t mean that I don’t like them or think they’ll turn out to be good NBA players.

2009 NBA Draft

Earl Clark- #14 overall- If anything I was a little surprised Clark dropped to #14. Clark seriously considered entering the draft after his sophomore year but held off. He averaged 15 ppg and 9rpg his junior year. Many people think he has huge upside and I definitely agree. Anytime a 6’9 guy can play the 2,3, and 4 spot he’s ok in my book. I can see him being a less athletic Shawn Marion in the Suns’ system.



Austin Daye- #15 overall- Austin Daye proved nothing to me in college except that he was super tall and super skinny. I feel like Nate Robinson would own Daye in the post. Once again though, its hard to turn down a 6’11 guy that can play the 3, 4, and 5 (if he beefs up) positions. He’s not a great rebounder probably because of his lack of weight and is an inconsistent scorer. Daye did play well however in the summer league.

See also: Jordan Hill

2008 NBA Draft

Danilo Gallinari- #6 overall- Gallinari is a 6’9, 220 pound sg/sf. Of course there were the comparisons to Dirk because apparently any sg/sf that comes from overseas and is above 6’9 is the next Dirk. Gallinari only got in 28 games last year and averaged 6ppg. Gallinari is apparently dominating in training camp and is fully healthy. Gallinari is a pick I have a problem with. Look at the 2008 NBA Draft board. There are plenty of guys I would have taken over him.

Javale McGee- #18 overall- McGee is a 7 footer that is pretty thin. He played two years of college and during his soph year he averaged 14ppg and 7rpg for The University of Nevada. McGee is definitely a project because of how thin he is and undeveloped he is in the post. McGee had a solid first year however averaging 6.5 ppg and 4 rpg. The young fella got a decent amount of playing time due to the Wizards’ whole starting lineup being injured for the majority of the year. McGee looks to be like he will turn into a good pick for the Wizards.



See also: Jason Thompson, Anthony Randolph

2007 NBA Draft

Yi Jianlian- #6 overall- Jianlian was supposed to impact the league just like Yao did. Jianlian is 7’0 and has decent weight on him. The Bucks only spent one year on him and then traded him to the Nets. Jianlian’s stats really haven’t been horrible (9 ppg, 5 rpg, 34% 3pt), but definitely not worthy of the #6 pick. This is another situation where the Bucks were hoping Jianlian would turn out like Yao or Dirk and have a huge upside but he didn’t. I’m sure the Bucks would have been happy if he even turned out to be the next Peja.



Javaris Crittenton- #19 overall- 14ppg, 6rpg, 4apg in his only year in college. At the time I loved this pick for the Lakers. Honestly I still think it was the right pick. Crittenton didn’t have the best individual pre-draft workouts but he was pretty dominant as a freshman in college and the Lakers needed a point guard. Crittenon is one of the main examples of why I love the NFL draft rule (3 years removed from high school) and hate the NBA rule (one year removed from high school.) Crittenton’s career is far from over though. He played well down the stretch with the Wizards last year and is still only 21. He is crazy athletic and is a true scorer, maybe he can live up to the hype if he catches on with the right team.



See also: Brandan Wright