Knicks · Chad Ford's First Mock (page 1)

"Analysis: GM Donnie Walsh may have made the biggest mistake of his career when he passed on a number of terrific, young but unproven point guards in 2009 so he could draft Jordan Hill. Brandon Jennings, Ty Lawson and Jrue Holiday -- and even Darren Collison, Eric Maynor and Jeff Teague -- each appears to be on his way to a long NBA career. Don't expect the Knicks to make the same mistake again.

They've been looking long and hard at Selby for a while, thinking he'd thrive in Mike D'Antoni's system, which allows guards much more freedom than they get at Kansas. Selby has lottery talent, but a shaky résumé. It may be a risk taking him this high, but he has a very high upside."

NOTE: Ford has Chris Singleton going 12 to Utah, Kenneth Faried going 15 to the Pacers, Markieff Morris going 16 to the 76ers.

Guys still on the board included Marshon Brooks, Klay Thompson, Reggie Jackson, Jordan Williams, Darius Morris, and Trey Thompkins.

Positives:
-Athletic guard who attacks
-NBA body
-Has deep range on his jumper
-Excels as a slasher
-Agressive defender

Negatives:
-Isn't a pure point guard
-A bit inconsistent on his jump shot
-Can get selfish
-Poor shot selection
-Struggled as a freshman for KU

Notes
Averaged 28 ppg, 7 rpg and 7 apg for Lake Clifton High School in Baltimore, MD.

from ESPN:
Selby was, in a word, awesome in the workouts I saw in Vegas. At Kansas, Selby looked wild, out of control and oddly unathletic. He struggled to create space from himself and made a number of bad decisions with the ball and in his shot selection.

In Vegas he once again resembled the superstar we saw in high school. He was explosive athletically, got to the basket at will and shot the ball very well from range.

In 3-on-3 games, the UCLA Bruins' Malcolm Lee -- a terrific perimeter defender -- struggled to stay in front of Selby, who finished above the rim with a number of impressive dunks. Selby showed off an impressive floater and has the ability to create space with his crossover and then step back and nail the J. He really resembled Golden State Warriors guard Monta Ellis.

So how could Selby be so good here and so mediocre at Kansas? ESPN Insider David Thorpe had an excellent post concerning Selby in late January that sums up the thinking from a scout's perspective.

Selby had some answers of his own. He missed the first nine games of the season serving an NCAA suspension for taking illegal benefits as a high school player. By the time he was able to play, Kansas had a tight rotation that Selby would have to fit into. Also, the style of play wasn't a great fit for Selby. He is at his best initiating the offense and creating off the dribble. At Kansas, he was often asked to get the ball up the floor, dump it to one of the Morris twins and then spot up in the corner.

Finally, a midseason ankle injury caused Selby to miss three games at a critical juncture of the season. When he returned, he wasn't the same. He lost much of his quickness and was ineffective for the rest of the year. With point guard Tyshawn Taylor returning to school and Elijah Robinson the point guard in waiting, Selby decided he'd be better served jumping to the NBA.

Few scouts doubt the talent. But that's not the only issue with Selby. Teams have off-the-court questions about him that play into their concerns. They've heard Selby is selfish, comes from a tough background, and wasn't popular with the other players at Kansas.

Selby defends himself. "I'm a loving kid, really I am," Selby said. "I grew up in Baltimore. Life was tough. I had to learn how to be tough. But I'm not a bad kid. I chose basketball instead of the street. Basketball was my way to escape all of that. I won't do anything to jeopardize that. Basketball saved my life. I love the game and I'm a loving kid."

That was echoed in the gym in Vegas. I asked 12 of the prospects working out which player had impressed them the most over the past few weeks. Every one that I spoke with named Selby.

I've been doing this for a long time, and after watching what Selby did in the gym the past two days, I think he could be the biggest riser in the draft if he works out well against his obvious competition -- BYU's Jimmer Fredette, Boston College's Reggie Jackson, Michigan's Darius Morris and Hofstra's Charles Jenkins. Selby's landing in the lottery isn't out of the question if he outplays those players in workouts.

I'm not sure if he's a point guard -- he doesn't see the floor particularly well yet, and his decision-making can be questionable -- and at 6-foot-2 he is undersized for the 2. But his quickness and ability to create his own shot come at a premium right now in the NBA, and few can do it better than Selby.

second in the league in scoring last year, i fail to see how more scoring is going to help them get better.

I like the Hofstra kid also.. but this looks very solid.

Lets face it, the Knicks are really phucked after the Melo trade. They need some luck and getting a player who falls because of various reasons but turns out to be a stud is their saving grace, like a Danny Granger scenario

We have lots of needs, a center being the first need. Our draft choice will depend on who we can sign or get a committment from before then. If we can get Dalembert, then drafting a PG would fit nicely.

Markji wrote:Seems he has a lot of potential but he has very little playing experience. I wouldn't expect him to get much playing time next year but he could develop for the following year when Billups contract is over. Billups could help develop Selby.

We have lots of needs, a center being the first need. Our draft choice will depend on who we can sign or get a committment from before then. If we can get Dalembert, then drafting a PG would fit nicely.

draft is the last thursday in june. knicks can't talk to FAs before july 1. so the draft will be entirely removed from any knowledge of the free agent market unfortunately.

BigSm00th wrote:

Markji wrote:Seems he has a lot of potential but he has very little playing experience. I wouldn't expect him to get much playing time next year but he could develop for the following year when Billups contract is over. Billups could help develop Selby.

We have lots of needs, a center being the first need. Our draft choice will depend on who we can sign or get a committment from before then. If we can get Dalembert, then drafting a PG would fit nicely.

draft is the last thursday in june. knicks can't talk to FAs before july 1. so the draft will be entirely removed from any knowledge of the free agent market unfortunately.

fishmike wrote:finally a write up with some good information. Thanks for posting big

I like the Hofstra kid also.. but this looks very solid.

Lets face it, the Knicks are really phucked after the Melo trade. They need some luck and getting a player who falls because of various reasons but turns out to be a stud is their saving grace, like a Danny Granger scenario

you ask, big smooth delivers:

Jenkins 6'3" 220 from QUEENS NY.

last year averaged 23 ppg 5 apg 42% from 3 for hofstra. played all 4 years.

from ESPN:
Jenkins can really put the ball in the basket. He's averaging 23 ppg and 4.7 assists per game. He is shooting 47 percent from 3 and 57 percent from the field and averaging an amazing 1.70 points per shot. Like Walker and Fredette, he's a tough player who won't back down from anyone. And like Walker, scouts think he's two or three inches short for his position and doesn't possess elite athleticism.

I spoke with a number of NBA scouts about him this weekend, and the consensus continues to evolve. Last time I checked, in November, scouts saw him as a possible late-second-round pick. That's changed. More scouting and perhaps a bit more open-mindedness now has a few scouts conceding that he could sneak into the first round.

"You combine his toughness, shooting ability and efficiency, and I think you can find a spot for a guy like that in the league," one NBA scout said. "The first time I saw him this year, I told my GM he's a maybe. Now I think we have to bring him in. We need guys who can score, and he's as lethal as any guard in the country."

BigSm00th wrote:

fishmike wrote:finally a write up with some good information. Thanks for posting big

I like the Hofstra kid also.. but this looks very solid.

Lets face it, the Knicks are really phucked after the Melo trade. They need some luck and getting a player who falls because of various reasons but turns out to be a stud is their saving grace, like a Danny Granger scenario

you ask, big smooth delivers:

Jenkins 6'3" 220 from QUEENS NY.

last year averaged 23 ppg 5 apg 42% from 3 for hofstra. played all 4 years.

from ESPN:
Jenkins can really put the ball in the basket. He's averaging 23 ppg and 4.7 assists per game. He is shooting 47 percent from 3 and 57 percent from the field and averaging an amazing 1.70 points per shot. Like Walker and Fredette, he's a tough player who won't back down from anyone. And like Walker, scouts think he's two or three inches short for his position and doesn't possess elite athleticism.

I spoke with a number of NBA scouts about him this weekend, and the consensus continues to evolve. Last time I checked, in November, scouts saw him as a possible late-second-round pick. That's changed. More scouting and perhaps a bit more open-mindedness now has a few scouts conceding that he could sneak into the first round.

"You combine his toughness, shooting ability and efficiency, and I think you can find a spot for a guy like that in the league," one NBA scout said. "The first time I saw him this year, I told my GM he's a maybe. Now I think we have to bring him in. We need guys who can score, and he's as lethal as any guard in the country."

Scouts projecting him as a PG or SG?

martin wrote:

BigSm00th wrote:

fishmike wrote:finally a write up with some good information. Thanks for posting big

I like the Hofstra kid also.. but this looks very solid.

Lets face it, the Knicks are really phucked after the Melo trade. They need some luck and getting a player who falls because of various reasons but turns out to be a stud is their saving grace, like a Danny Granger scenario

you ask, big smooth delivers:

Jenkins 6'3" 220 from QUEENS NY.

last year averaged 23 ppg 5 apg 42% from 3 for hofstra. played all 4 years.

from ESPN:
Jenkins can really put the ball in the basket. He's averaging 23 ppg and 4.7 assists per game. He is shooting 47 percent from 3 and 57 percent from the field and averaging an amazing 1.70 points per shot. Like Walker and Fredette, he's a tough player who won't back down from anyone. And like Walker, scouts think he's two or three inches short for his position and doesn't possess elite athleticism.

I spoke with a number of NBA scouts about him this weekend, and the consensus continues to evolve. Last time I checked, in November, scouts saw him as a possible late-second-round pick. That's changed. More scouting and perhaps a bit more open-mindedness now has a few scouts conceding that he could sneak into the first round.

"You combine his toughness, shooting ability and efficiency, and I think you can find a spot for a guy like that in the league," one NBA scout said. "The first time I saw him this year, I told my GM he's a maybe. Now I think we have to bring him in. We need guys who can score, and he's as lethal as any guard in the country."

Scouts projecting him as a PG or SG?

i think a good NBA comparison is ben gordon. similar build and playing style, more of a slasher but same mindset.

http://blogs.hoopshype.com/blogs/videos/...

Selby had some answers of his own. He missed the first nine games of the season serving an NCAA suspension for taking illegal benefits as a high school player. By the time he was able to play, Kansas had a tight rotation that Selby would have to fit into. Also, the style of play wasn't a great fit for Selby. He is at his best initiating the offense and creating off the dribble. At Kansas, he was often asked to get the ball up the floor, dump it to one of the Morris twins and then spot up in the corner.

So he is not a good fit with Amare and Melo.

NYKBocker wrote:

Selby had some answers of his own. He missed the first nine games of the season serving an NCAA suspension for taking illegal benefits as a high school player. By the time he was able to play, Kansas had a tight rotation that Selby would have to fit into. Also, the style of play wasn't a great fit for Selby. He is at his best initiating the offense and creating off the dribble. At Kansas, he was often asked to get the ball up the floor, dump it to one of the Morris twins and then spot up in the corner.

So he is not a good fit with Amare and Melo.

His comparison is Monta Ellis don't know much about this kid although I did notice some of the things mentioned in his profile during the Tourney. Funny thing is when we had a slight chance to get Ellis from the interest in David Lee and his opposition to playing with Curry early on not many thought he'd be a good match with Amar'e and figured his salary hurt the 2011 campaign. Although production wise and salary comparison to Melo you could say it's a clear wash. We've since added Melo and somehow we can fit a Monta Ellis type talent on this roster now.....lol

I'd prefer someone like Mack as a lead guard, but at this point we can barely be choosy on talent as long as needs are addressed.

Big first, then point guard, then shooting guard in that order

newyorknewyork wrote:If we go for a PG, we need a pass first pick and roll PG that can make everyone else better and run the Pick and Roll to perfection with Amare for the first 3 quarters. Then allow Melo to dominate in the 4th.

agreed. i like darius morris more than jenkins. jenkins could be good but i think morris ability to do everything well and his game of looking to set guys up fits better.

BigSm00th wrote:

newyorknewyork wrote:If we go for a PG, we need a pass first pick and roll PG that can make everyone else better and run the Pick and Roll to perfection with Amare for the first 3 quarters. Then allow Melo to dominate in the 4th.

agreed. i like darius morris more than jenkins. jenkins could be good but i think morris ability to do everything well and his game of looking to set guys up fits better.

Yeah, I agree. Jenkins seemed tough in the few games I saw him, but I never got the indication that he was a point guard. He kinda reminded me of Speedy Claxton, a Hofstra guy who had to carry a lot of the offensive responsibility. I think Darius at his worst is Eric Snow, which wouldn't be bad for our team.

Josh Selby – 6-2 PG, Kansas
Once Selby came back from his early season suspension he had the world of college basketball buzzing by scoring 21, 18 and 18 points in three of his first four games with the team. All wins. What he did after those games left everyone puzzled. He basically became a spot-up shooter and played a very limited role in the Jayhawks’ season. Selby just did not fit into the “team” system. In 26 games, he managed to have more assists than turnovers only 10 times all season and more than five assists in only three games.

That’s the thing about Selby – and most athletes these days – if you confide them to a box, they will shut down and lose effectiveness. Selby is built to play in a system that allows freedom. His ability to score in the open court and one-on-one is the best in this entire class. Nobody can match the skill of Selby in that setting, but when asked to run offense and sacrifice shots, he can look lost. Luckily the NBA is structured to let guards create offense and rewards players for athletic prowess. In that role, Selby can get wherever he wants. He’ll thrive in a bench role, immediately providing instant offense to any stagnant team. Down the road, he could be a 20+ PPG scorer and every defender’s nightmare.

http://dimemag.com/2011/05/transition-ga...