Welcome A.J. Griffin

[marco102]

Hawks draft party.

 

[JayBirdHawk]

When is the Introductory presser and announcement of the jersey Number....seems a little delayed compared to past years, no? Or am I imagining things?.

[marco102]

Just now, JayBirdHawk said:

When is the Introductory presser and announcement of the jersey Number....seems a little delayed compared to past years, no? Or am I imagining things?.

Yeah, normally it's the next day.  

Maybe he is getting traded. 

[Bonkers]

29 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

When is the Introductory presser and announcement of the jersey Number....seems a little delayed compared to past years, no? Or am I imagining things?.

https://twitter.com/BTRowland/status/1540788007912873986

[Hawkmoor]

I'm trying to find someone to compare him to. He moves very well for a guard his size and can get to his spots. This just might turn into a very good pick if he can ever get into the rotation.

[Bonkers]

10 minutes ago, Hawkmoor said:

I'm trying to find someone to compare him to. He moves very well for a guard his size and can get to his spots. This just might turn into a very good pick if he can ever get into the rotation.

His favorite player is Jimmy Butler and that's kinda who he plays like except he can shoot a lot better

 

At Duke he was asked to be more of a shooter but he can do more than that

[AtLaS]

I'm really hoping he gets his athleticism back, he looks a mile slower at Duke than his HS footage.  He was also getting a solid 6-10" higher on dunks in HS.  

Since he is only 18 I am confident he will.  It's rare to lose that much pop at such a young age without major injuries.  If he gets it back, he's top 5 draft talent.  

[Spud2nique]

38 minutes ago, Hawkmoor said:

I'm trying to find someone to compare him to. He moves very well for a guard his size and can get to his spots. This just might turn into a very good pick if he can ever get into the rotation.

@MaceCase said Martell. I haven’t thought of a better on yet myself.

[Spud2nique]

1 hour ago, JayBirdHawk said:

When is the Introductory presser and announcement of the jersey Number....seems a little delayed compared to past years, no? Or am I imagining things?.

You know what’s gonna happen right Burd? It’s my year.

Hawks underachieve

Warriors Celts finals

and both my boys OO and AJ shipped out via trades.

 

That would be a fitting end to and awful year.

[NBASupes]

43 minutes ago, Hawkmoor said:

I'm trying to find someone to compare him to. He moves very well for a guard his size and can get to his spots. This just might turn into a very good pick if he can ever get into the rotation.

Almost feel like if he doesn't get his twitch back, gains about 15 to 20 pounds, he could be a small ball 4 who can guard big wings and 4s like P.J. Tucker but he has to significantly development as a defender. Offensively, almost like Mashburn. 

If he can drop about 10 pounds and play at 215, gain his twitch back, he could be a mashup of Devin Booker and Iso Joe with shades of Michael Redd. 

[Hawkmoor]

1 hour ago, Bonkers said:

His favorite player is Jimmy Butler and that's kinda who he plays like except he can shoot a lot better

 

At Duke he was asked to be more of a shooter but he can do more than that

I can see that.  Their build and intermediate game are very similar.  You pointed out that he can shoot better than Butler.  I agree.  Another player that has a similar build is Wesley Matthews ( built the direct opposite of his dad that played for the Hawks, Wes Matthews).  

[Hawkmoor]

43 minutes ago, Spud2nique said:

@MaceCase said Martell. I haven’t thought of a better on yet myself.

I don't even remember Martell.  Would have to look him up.

[Hawkmoor]

16 minutes ago, NBASupes said:

Almost feel like if he doesn't get his twitch back, gains about 15 to 20 pounds, he could be a small ball 4 who can guard big wings and 4s like P.J. Tucker but he has to significantly development as a defender. Offensively, almost like Mashburn. 

If he can drop about 10 pounds and play at 215, gain his twitch back, he could be a mashup of Devin Booker and Iso Joe with shades of Michael Redd. 

His weight bothers me also.  The guy has a big frame, so his weight is gonna have to be watched.  Like you said, he might grow into having to guard bigger guys.  We are jumping ahead though. He might stick at the 2 guard.

[NBASupes]

20 minutes ago, NBASupes said:

Almost feel like if he doesn't get his twitch back, gains about 15 to 20 pounds, he could be a small ball 4 who can guard big wings and 4s like P.J. Tucker but he has to significantly development as a defender. Offensively, almost like Mashburn. 

If he can drop about 10 pounds and play at 215, gain his twitch back, he could be a mashup of Devin Booker and Iso Joe with shades of Michael Redd. 

Like Book, his shooting touch is world class out of college. He doesn't have Book's first step or quickness at all. 

 

Like Iso Joe is a tough shot maker and understand angles and uses his body to get separation. Doesn't have Joe's playmaking skills and his lateral mobility. He's more slow footed. 

 

Like Michael Redd, is a powerful athlete who uses his powerful frame and strength to get in position to score and finish strong. 

 

Edited June 25, 2022 by NBASupes

[NBASupes]

I honestly think AJ should be in the 215 range to maximize his strengths like Michael Redd did but Griffin is far more talented than Redd but they are similar athletes and Redd had to drop 10-15 pounds when he entered the NBA. 

[RandomFan]

If you are what you can defend I don't think we'll be seeing much, if any, of him at the 2. He'll be a 3, small ball 4. 

[NBASupes]

11 minutes ago, RandomFan said:

If you are what you can defend I don't think we'll be seeing much, if any, of him at the 2. He'll be a 3, small ball 4. 

Right now, the only players he can defend are small ball 4s and big wings and if those small ball 4s and big wings have movement skills, he's getting cooked. So right now, he can't really guard anybody. Big wings aren't that common in today's NBA although everyone wants em and small ball 4s are generally movement guys outside of C. Wood who is athletic af. 

He has to improve his flexibility, get his HS twitch back, and lose weight. Then he has to learn defense. Sam Vecenie was saying some real things that he missed all of Duke's preseason and summer practices with injuries. Not getting experience in the scheme defensively could have really hurt him. That said, the lateral movements have to get better as well as just his feel defensively. His instincts is actually solid but that's about it at this stage. 

If he can improve defensively to Gary Trent Jr level, he could be solid on D. He has the body and the length but the lateral movements will likely always be an issue. It was an issue for Redd throughout his NBA career. 

Edited June 25, 2022 by NBASupes

[gurpilo]

I think he could play some SG, although might be more of a SF. He has some ball-handling and playmaking on him, his shooting is good and he tries on defense although he is not performing yet. I think he has all the tools to be a rotation guy this year, he is a quality wing. With his strength I think he might be able to defend SG, as Joe Johnson did, I think he could be a good compliment to Hunter.

Poor man Jimmy Butler or Desmond Bane might be good comparisons.

[NBASupes]

25 minutes ago, gurpilo said:

I think he could play some SG, although might be more of a SF. He has some ball-handling and playmaking on him, his shooting is good and he tries on defense although he is not performing yet. I think he has all the tools to be a rotation guy this year, he is a quality wing. With his strength I think he might be able to defend SG, as Joe Johnson did, I think he could be a good compliment to Hunter.

Poor man Jimmy Butler or Desmond Bane might be good comparisons.

He is clearly a 3 right now based on his college tape. His defense is too shit to be a 3 in this league. Teams want defensive versatility from 3s and 4s on defense, he has some potential for versatility at the 4 defensively but none at the 3 unless it's big wings only. His best bet is lose weight, improve flex, get his twitch back from HS, and long term transition to the 2. He's gonna have to be more of a playmaker to make the move to the 2 long term. 

He 6'6-6'7 with a 7ft wingspan so he's optimal as a 2 whereas he's undersized height wise for a modern 3. He does have defensive small ball 4 potential but he has to put on a lot more weight for that. 20 pounds or more.  I don't see Jimmy Butler in his game. As far as Bane, he's way more skilled but Bane has a clean game like Agbaji. Griffin plays like a freshman, his game is FAR from clean. 

Edited June 25, 2022 by NBASupes

[RandomFan]

There are a lot of players that are behind on fundamentals on both sides of the ball, due to all the missed time from the Covid pandemic. Griffin is just missing a lot of reps and development on defense. There are two questions with him: 

1) Is he ever going to recover any measure of quickness and explosion that he seems to have lost due to multiple injuries + weight gain. And we should know that answer fairly early in his career, probably no later than by the end of his rookie year. He absolutely has the athletic ability to turn into not just an average on-ball defender but a really good defender; or at least he had that athletic ability in the past. Getting it back...or not, is a huge part of his future worth.  

2) Will he develop off-ball team defensive skills now that he will finally be getting good reps and instruction. This is what kept JJ out of the rotation last year, and with how far behind Griffin is I would not be at all surprised by a repeat of that situation with him. 

 

HIs ability to be a good on-ball defender is almost completely dependant on answering question #1. And this will go a long way toward determining his ceiling in the NBA. 

Question #2 will determine how long it takes for him to establish himself as a rotation player...or not.

Kyle Korver was an atrocious on-ball defender, but he stayed in the league for a looooong time because he knew how to play off-ball team defense. I'm in no way comparing Griffin to Korver, just using him to point out how important team defense is, and how you don't have to be an exceptional athlete to be good at it. 

 

Edited June 25, 2022 by RandomFan