GouldSite

Being a U of L fan, the biggest draft bust that comes to mind is former Cardinals star "Never Nervous" Pervis Ellison, the #1 pick in the 1989 NBA draft to the Sacramento Kings. His NBA career reminded me of Major League III, a movie which was only in the theatres for 2 hours.

I know this isn't the right place to ask it, but I will anyway. KB21, are you a Mississippi State fan/grad? I was down in Birmingham cheering on my Louisville Cardinals during the first two rounds of this year's NCAA tourney. I have to admit, I was cheering against the Bulldogs because I didn't want to play them in the second round. Then Butler knocked Mississippi State off and my Cards next. Looking back at it, I curse myself now for cheering for Butler in the MSU-Butler game. Just thought I'd let you know...

Diesel, take it from a person who's watched Reece Gaines in person every single home game and on television on every single away game (well, some in person) since he arrived at U of L as a young freshman hailing from Wisconsin. Take it also from a person who has also watched Marcus Banks play in a few games on television this year. Gaines is the real deal. Gaines is a sure pick - he has the makings to be a solid, contributing starter at either the 1 or 2 position - and possibly even a superstar. He has everything the Hawks could want - great range, great shot, explosiveness, defensive prowess (especially off-the-ball), athleticism, intensity, leadership, maturity (thanks to his four years as well as having a great family, whom I know personally), intelligence, great court vision, good ball handling, and phenomenal slashing ability. As I outlined in a post I wrote I think a month ago about Gaines, he does have his negatives. But - trust me - the positives far, far outweigh the negatives, all of which can be easily corrected through learning in the pros. Banks, on the other hand, could be the type of player who magically disappears at the bottom of the bench in every game. If we're picking between Banks and Gaines, in my opinion, it would be moronic to choose Banks over Gaines. Trust me, Hawks fans. Reece Gaines would be the precise, perfect type of player the Hawks are looking for to be in the backcourt with J-Ter. And - dare I say it? In two or three seasons, he could turn out to be the Hawks' true leader. I love hearing this rumor and I hope Knight takes it, for the future of the Hawks.

thescout, I believe you're referring to me as the "follower of Gaines" and my post. Anyway, there's no question that, among those three, I'd quickly snatch up Reece Gaines. He is the perfect complement to JT - they could easily switch back-and-forth PG/SG duties. And he's a great player by himself. My previous post outlines that. That having been said, Gaines will be long gone by the #21 pick. There is no way that he will slip past the Magic at #15; Doc Rivers and the team are reportedly enthralled with him. I've heard rumblings that he might even get chosen by the Warriors, Sonics, or even the Wizards in the lottery, but the most likely scenario is that Gaines goes to the Magic. I think Jarvis Hayes will be available for us at #21, and apparently Boris Diaw has done a free-fall (according to ESPN's latest mock draft) and slipped out of the first round. He might be available for our second round pick.

Thanks once again to our phenomenal ex-GM Pete Babcock who gives us even less than nothing to show for this terrible season.

Point taken, KB21. However, I feel that once workouts begin, Reece's stock in the draft will not drop or stay steady - it will rise. Again, this is coming from a biased poster, but I think once Reece is given the chance to prove to teams what he is made of, he will do nothing but impress. There's also another big (pardon the pun) reason why I see Reece going - at the latest - in the mid-1st round. Remember Trenton Hassell? Hassell jumped from being a possible undrafted player before the draft to being picked in the late first round. Why? He was a big, 6'6" point guard that enthralled teams simply because of his size. Yet Reece has something Hassell doesn't have - skills. I just can't see team after team passing up the possibility of having a skilled 6'6" point guard on their squad. As much as I hope Reece goes to the Hawks, I think he'll be picked much before #21. As the title of a Jimmy Buffett song notes, "Only time will tell." -Andrew Gould

Hey everyone. Some people from the old ESPN Hawks board and the RealGM board might remember me posting a long while back. I've stopped posting but never stopped lurking. Despite the woeful times for the Hawks, I've never stopped rooting for them as well as keeping up with them. That's the beauty of DirecTV's NBA League Pass. Anyway, to the subject at hand. I don't actually know Reece one-on-one; I've only met and spoke with him for a few minutes once (I've spoken to his mother more than him). However, as a native of Louisville and as a die-hard Louisville Cardinals fan, I've been going to EVERY single home basketball game (as well as football, but basketball is my love) since I was a baby. The only team I cheer for with more veracity than the Hawks are my beloved Cards. I've watched Reece mature these past four years from an unsure, turnover-prone freshman into an amazing shooting guard and then into a confident, spectacular point guard with great court vision and basketball knowledge. Reece has had the sensational opportunity to be coached two years a piece by two of the best college basketball coaches of all-time: first Denny Crum, and then Rick Pitino. Crum taught Reece the basics of playing basketball at the next level. Pitino refined Reece's skills and improved them to the next level, turning him into a bonafide star. Yes, I am biased, for I truly love Reece - as an 18 year-old, Reece is truly my all-time favorite Cardinal that I can remember (DeJuan Wheat and LaBradford Smith round out my top three, for anyone who knows them or cares to know). But it really does shock me when I read all the draft reports and read that Reece isn't going to go in the lottery and that he will not be the first senior selected in the draft. To me, there's no better senior with more upside and potential in the NBA than Reece Gaines. I'm not sure whether he'll turn out to be a star in the pros, but he will be a solid role-player; in my mind, he'll definitely turn out to be the #2 or #3 go-to-guy on any team once he gets the hang of the league. Let me list his positives: +He can play point guard or shooting guard with equally amazing skill. If needed, he can be a pure point guard (Pitino's forced him to do that at times this year) or he can be a scoring, slashing point guard. If he plays at shooting guard, he can do so with point guard tendencies. He's an awesome player at either the 1 or 2 position; he'll do whatever the team needs. +His size. He can be a 6'6" point guard in this league. He will create severe matchup problems, especially if paired with a tall shooting guard. Or the shooting guard can be short. Whatever position he is playing, he is an extremely strong kid with a great size for either the 1 or 2 spot. He will succeed where Jamal Crawford has, for the most part, failed. +He is EXTREMELY coachable. Heck, he's had to deal with a major, major coaching change (when Crum left U of L, the kids could do pretty much whatever they wanted - when Pitino came in, the kids basically went into lockdown). He follows every order, listens to everything the coach says, and tries to improve however he can. +He plays to win. Reece has taken over and controlled more games than I can remember. The one that comes to mind most was the U of L - Marquette game in Wisconsin this year where Reece sealed off his phenomenal effort by winning the game on a last-second three-pointer from 27, yes, 27, feet out. He is extremely emotional, which can be a bad thing at times, but he has a super heart and gives his all in EVERY single game, no matter if he's playing against archrival UK or bottom feeder East Carolina. +He's a class act. You hear of seniors in college who, as soon as their seasons are over, quit school and focus on getting ready for the draft. Not Reece. After the heartwrenching loss to Butler in the 2nd round of the tourney (I should know the feeling, I was in Birmingham for the game), Reece went back with the team and finished up getting his diploma. And he will graduate this year. Not only that, however, I cannot remember one time where he has been disciplined by Crum or Pitino for behavioral, academic, or other reasons. He's a super nice guy (this I know from meeting and talking with him as well as with his mom) who is also quiet and pretty shy. He's not an egotistical giant nor is he a menace to a community. He's just a great kid. +Anyone worried about his shooting range? Don't be. Reece regularly shot (and made, mind you) threes from 25 feet away. He can shoot and make them from half-court. Give him the ball wherever on the court; he'll make the shot. +His on-the-ball defense, under the Pitino, has improved to the part where he is tenacious. +Reece's ball-handling skills are among the best I've seen for someone his size. He slashes to the hoop on will and simply can't be stopped. This year, his assist-to-turnover ratio was 1.7. Just great. +Finally, he's a team leader. He proved so this year as well as last year. He makes every player around him better. I guess I could keep listing off positive after positive, but let me list the few negatives that come to mind about Reece: -His off-the-ball defense is the worst part about his defense. He has made great strides under Pitino (who has constantly singled this out as one of Reece's greatest problems), but right now, his off-the-ball defense is probably mediocre to possibly a little above par. He needs to get better in this area. -Reece can sometimes let his emotions carry him away and it has a negative effect on the way he plays. Like I said earlier, sometimes emotions can be a good thing, other times, it can be a bad thing. For Reece, there are definitely times when he needs to keep his emotions in check. -Yes, sometimes he is too unselfish, but other times, he is just the opposite. This year, there were times when Reece would try and do too much himself rather than to let the play develop and execute it as the point guard; suffice it to say that there are times that he is impatient. This is when he commits his turnovers - when he becomes impatient and tries to pull too many streetball moves. -He is somewhat like Shareef in his leadership qualities. He definitely is the leader of the team, but he doesn't speak up as much as he should. Reece has been guilty of this a few times (not frequently, but at times). To be a true leader in the NBA, Reece will have to learn to become even more vocal than he is right now. -Reece may be able to hit a shot from any place on the court, but his shot selection can become questionable at times. This mostly occurs when he becomes impatient or emotional (in a negative way). Again, rather than letting a play develop, he'll launch a shot from 25 feet out. He may make this shot, but it's not smart to take. By keeping his emotions in check, this can be easily remedied. Those are really the only negatives that come to mind when talking about Reece. The thing to keep in mind, however, is that these negatives can easily be overcome by somebody like Reece. With good coaching, Reece can easily surpass these problems and become an even better player. I don't know what team, in their right mind, wouldn't want to have Reece. He just has so many positives, so many great intangibles, and so much upside. He will add so much to any team he plays with. As for the Hawks, he'd be perfect. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if, assuming he was drafted by the Hawks, he started at the 2 spot alongside J-Ter after a few games. And, yes, he could easily share the point responsibilities with J-Ter. J-Ter could stick to being a scoring point guard and Reece could be a shooting guard with point guard tendencies. It'd be a spectacular backcourt that would only get better with time. Being a Hawks fan, I'd love to see Reece wear the #22 jersey for Atlanta. But will Reece be around for the #21 pick? I honestly don't think so. He may be projected right now to go around mid-to-late first round, but I think once individual workouts begin and teams and their GMs see him play his game, his stock will steadily rise to the point where he ends up being picked in the mid-to-late lottery (most likely late). Teams will just see how extremely skilled he is and how he does employs these skills with relative ease. Teams will see how, thanks to Pitino, he is in phenomenal shape. I want Reece to go to the Hawks, but I think he deserves to go much higher than #21. Again, I'm biased, but I truly believe this. Phew, that was a long scouting report on Reece Gaines. But, again, as my favorite Cardinal, I know almost everything about him and am probably in one of the best positions to give a scouting report on him. I hope everyone finds this helpful. Here's to the Hawks striking gold in the lottery and landing either the #3, #2, or, miracously, the #1 pick. And here's to Reece being selected in the lottery, as he so deserves. GO HAWKS and GO CARDS! -Andrew Gould