Willie Warren to Test the Waters

Willie Warren is second on my Wish list after Ricky.

If we cant get in the top three by lotto or trade I’d LOVE to have WW at the 8/9 spot.

Big points who can shoot and defend are a nice thing to have.

TD — was the crowd hostile in the video? That was the Texas High School State Champ game.

Willie’s performance when Blake Griffin was out should put him on a lot of radars in the draft.. no question he gets in the top ten. Why would he stay at OKC if he is guaranteed that kind of money.. especially with the future of the Collective Bargaining Agreement so cloudy.

I love Willie Warren’s potential, he was OUTSTANDING when Blake Griffin was out. OUTSTANDING. I was impressed. His ceiling is Gilbert Arenas or a poor-man’s Dwyane Wade IMO but he still has a looooooooooooong way to go and a lot to learn – his tournament performance proved it. His basketball IQ concerns me to be honest.

His upside is huge and he really has All-Star potential (remember what I said in like february). I put him right behind Griffin, Rubio and Harden, and slightly ahead of Tyreke Evans. He could be really really special but he could be a chucker as well.

I think he’s a carbon copy of Eric Gordon…Hopefully we don’t pass on this player again. For the knicks I would take him over Harden. I think between Wilson and Gallinari were covered at Small Forward. Warren would give us a player who can consistently create off the dribble, shoot, and play adequate defense. While he’s not the point guard we need, he would be dynamic in D’Antoni’s hands.

I really like the fact that he was a freshman. He’s like a young Gilbert Arenas IMO, Eric Gordon is a better shooter and more of a one-dimensional scorer. Warren would be a keeper, his ceiling is too high to trade him.

But I’d take Harden over Warren. Intangibles and high basketball IQ.

Warren over Harden for me.

Athleticism, Athleticism, Athleticism
Point Guard, Point Guard, Point Guard

I like the Arenas comparison, however I wouldn’t want Warren playing the scoring point guard role Gilbert does, I’d rather see him play off the ball.

And on the Gordon comparison,

Gordon 07-08: 20.9 ppg 43.3% fg 33.7% 3pg 83.4% ft 2.4 ast 3.6 to

Warren 08-09: 14.6 ppg 47.3% fg 37.2% 3pg 78.1% ft 3.1 ast 2.1 to

Obviously Warren wasn’t able to take as many shots to some guy named Blake, but I think this shows that at the least their shooting ability is on similar levels. I also love the fact that, like Gordon, Warren has the athletic upside to make huge improvements as a pro.

Aside from Griffin, Hill, and Thabeet, I’m not sure there’s a guy I’d rather have for the Knicks over Warren (including Rubio)

I’ve never seen Warren play, so can anybody tell me from what they have actually seen and not read if he actually has any real PG skills or are we talking undersized SG here?

Knicks need a PG in the worst way

Something that concerns me about Warren:
Willy Warren:
FTA- 146
Eric Gordon (07-08):
FTA- 271
George Hill (07-08):
FTA- 245
James Harden (08-09):
FTA- 253
Eric Maynor (08-09):
FTA- 241

I know there are 2 major flaws. 1, none of the guys listed after Warren had a beast in the middle like Griffin, thus they had to penetrate and handle the rock more then Warren. 2, the usage rate is probably different which would skew the results. Also, Warren’s ppg were roughly 2/3rd of what all the players were, which might actually mean he was roughly as agressive as the other players (would have to watch film for validation).

Regardless, I think this says something about a lack of aggresiveness to the hoop and something that I’d keep an eye on when looking at film. In the NBA, you HAVE to agressive to the hoop, settling for jumpshots will turn you into Jamal Crawford. All this is another way of saying I HATE Tyreke Evans

Tyreke Evans:
FTA- 194
3PA- 124 (WITH 28% SHOOTING!!!!!!!!!!!)
I HATE TYREKE EVANS.

Warren definitely has some good point guard skills: excellent handle, good vision. But he doesn’t have much experience at the position. His trademark has always been being a deadly scorer who could- when he feels like it- wow people with his ability to create for others.

I don’t think he’ll be an NBA point guard. Having said that, he does have the tools, and if there is anyone who could help mold him into a point its Mike D’Antoni.

He does have PG skills but he won’t be a pass-first point guard (a la Arenas) unless D’Antoni changes his game. He can play both guard positions, unlike Jerryd Bayless who seems lost between the point guard and the shooting guard spot.

Jeff Teague should not come out this year he is testing the waters as well but there are too many Talented Point Guards in this draft.

i want the knicks nowhere near thabeet. talk about a bust waiting to happen.

Anyone see the article on Van Gundy in the Daily News today? Nothing special, but I didn’t know he hasn’t called a Knicks game yet. Despite how ugly tonight’s game will be I’ll probably tune in just to hear what he has to say.

Harden has all around skill and dominated the Pac 10 as a freshman as well… He actually looked better than OJ Mayo and Westbrook last year… I think his main problem is he isnt surrounded by a great deal of talent and unlike most other players he has to do everything for his team to win… I think he is a poor man’s Brandon Roy and we can use one of those…

And by the way anyone who thinks that Thabeet will be a bust really doesnt understand basketball he has only been playing organized ball for 3 years and he has gotten significantly better year after year… He was a bum his 1st year… I’m extremely impressed with the strides he has made, which means he has more upside than most players because he hasnt played as long and is a very quick learner… On top of that he isnt projected to be anymore than what he is now a rebounder and shotblocker so if he does that how is he a bust… He’s not expected to be Shaq or Hakeem… Lay off the kid, he has grown more in 3 years than any current NCAA player I can think of… He just may not be suited for the Knicks style of play… But with the way he controls the paint and how bad we play D maybe we need to find a way to work him into the system…

Cheick Samb, Saer Sene, DJ Mbenga are also a few other C’s originally from Africa that started late. I wouldn’t put much stock in that “only playing a few years”. Think of how much skill and athleticism is needed to excel in the NBA; very hard to catch up.

The only “late starter” that I can think of that blossomed in at least a very good NBA player is Hakeem, but he was blessed with a great frame, freak athleticism and a great work ethic.

Thabeet gets pushed around by much smaller players in NCAA and he’ll be abused by pro players. Sure he’ll make some nice plays, some highlight reels, but that just means he’ll be a star on YouTube.

I dont remember any of those dudes playing college ball and dominating… They werent All Division 1… They didnt even play in America, you never got a chance to see them play before they were drafted… you cant compare Thabeet to them… He seems alot more like Samuel Dalembert, Theo Ratliff, or even Dikembe… And those guys werent bust….

I think Warren to Gordon is fair, as well as arenas. yes gordon is a big more dynamic of a scorer but not much.

Which is why I still take Gallo…any 6’10 shooters in this draft?

You could pass on gordon and still get a similar type next year around the same slot.