Dion has canceled his remaining predraft stuff

[CuseTroop]

"Rapters GM denies promising Dion Waiters he'd draft him; says another team already has"

 

[scottynguyen]

"Rapters GM denies promising Dion Waiters he'd draft him; says another team already has"

Sounds like PHX is the second suspect. Though Colangelo could just be full of crap.

 

[Whitey23]

"Rapters GM denies promising Dion Waiters he'd draft him; says another team already has"

@chrislittmann
Bryan Colangelo on with @ESPNAndyKatz - "I think it's safe to say there is a promise to Dion. Unfortunately it's not with us in Toronto."

@RealJayWilliams
Great move by agent (Rob Pelinka) by shutting down all of Dion Waiters' scheduled workouts. Keeps an element of mystery & increases chatter

 

[scottynguyen]

Unrelated to Dion, has there been any word on how Kris has done, or have the SF's not really done much yet? What's the word on his measurements, how he's performed, etc?

He worked out with the SFs yesterday. I heard Fraschilla speak about him briefly, said his stock has slowly declined since his sophomore season. Went on to talk about how seniors can be at a disadvantage in drafts, the more looks you get from scouts, the more they tend to pick apart your game and focus on the negatives rather than the positives.

 

[samspann]

What did Wesley Matthews do at Marquette that Paul Harris didn't do at SU? They were practically the same player at the collegiate level. Now one has a $30 mill contract and the other plays in the Philippines.

I have no answer for this rhetorical question but it shows how much of a crap shoot the NBA is for these fringe players. Landing in the right situation is so crucial to long-term success.

Also Chad Ford tweeted last night that the Blazers, Raptors and Suns were all suspects for giving Dion the guarantee.

Seriously? Other than both being 6'5", what is similar about them? How do you figure they were the same player at the college level, unless you're strictly talking about PPG. Which if that's the case, then Jimmer > K. Irving

 

[jekelish]

Seriously? Other than both being 6'5", what is similar about them? How do you figure they were the same player at the college level, unless you're strictly talking about PPG. Which if that's the case, then Jimmer > K. Irving

Both being 6-5? Only one of them is 6-5, and it sure ain't Paul Harris. Dude was lucky if he was 6-3.

 

[kirbivore]

Get it in writing. (See Green, Donte)

Sent from my Vortex using Tapatalk 2

No lottery team was thinking of drafting him.

 

[NFGenROC]

Seriously? Other than both being 6'5", what is similar about them? How do you figure they were the same player at the college level, unless you're strictly talking about PPG. Which if that's the case, then Jimmer > K. Irving

Did you watch Wesley Matthews @ Marquette? He was an undersized two guard playing out of position, bad 3 point shooter, bad passer, and constantly out of control when going to the hoop. How is that dissimilar to Paul Harris? Their stat lines are almost identical except for Harris being the better rebounder.

I was just using the Matthews/Harris comparison as an example of how mediocre players can succeed in the NBA if give the right situation. Look how John Lucas III has carved out a nice career in Chicago. Point being is that Moqui's suspicions regarding Dion's ability to succeed at the next level are very legitimate. Some of you act like he is a sure thing, which he is far from.

 

[moqui]

I respect your opinion Moqui, but I really think that he brings a lot to the table. If Wesley Matthews can be a very good pro, no reason Dion can't.

There are several things:

Matthews is bigger than Dion and can defend both wing positions; he draws fouls and he is an efficient 3 point shooter, which are the two most efficient ways to score in the NBA and its crucial for 2 guards to be able to do one or the other. I'm not sure why, but Dion did not draw many fouls for a guy who has a rep for attacking the rim. Dion was just an OK shooter from 3 at the college distance, I wouldn't think he'll be able to hit around 40% from the NBA distance, and his ability to defend is questionable.

Curiously, I think the higher Dion gets drafter, the worse off he is. He could probably be valuable as an energy guy coming off the bench for a playoff team, but on a lottery team he is going to to play a lot of minutes, maybe even start, and will have higher expectations going against him. IMO, at this point the best thing for him would be to get picked by a lottery team and then spun off to a playoff team as part of a draft day deal

 

[PauliePeppas]

Did you watch Wesley Matthews @ Marquette? He was an undersized two guard playing out of position, bad 3 point shooter, bad passer, and constantly out of control when going to the hoop. How is that dissimilar to Paul Harris? Their stat lines are almost identical except for Harris being the better rebounder.

I was just using the Matthews/Harris comparison as an example of how mediocre players can succeed in the NBA if give the right situation. Look how John Lucas III has carved out a nice career in Chicago. Point being is that Moqui's suspicions regarding Dion's ability to succeed at the next level are very legitimate. Some of you act like he is a sure thing, which he is far from.

Wild thing is, harris probably makes the team over matthews in utah if he didnt get hurt. Sloan loved him

 

[samspann]

Did you watch Wesley Matthews @ Marquette? He was an undersized two guard playing out of position, bad 3 point shooter, bad passer, and constantly out of control when going to the hoop. How is that dissimilar to Paul Harris? Their stat lines are almost identical except for Harris being the better rebounder.

I was just using the Matthews/Harris comparison as an example of how mediocre players can succeed in the NBA if give the right situation. Look how John Lucas III has carved out a nice career in Chicago. Point being is that Moqui's suspicions regarding Dion's ability to succeed at the next level are very legitimate. Some of you act like he is a sure thing, which he is far from.

Not sure how he was an undersized 2 guard at 6'5". His senior year he scored 18 ppg and was 37% from 3, and the last thing I would ever have called him was out of control. You sure you're not thinking of Jerel Mcneal? He was an undersizsed 2 guard and often out of control.

Funny thing about Wes Matthews, is that their freshman year all anyone talked about was Dominic James and McNeal. Matthews did nothing memborable at all. But I read going into the season that Matthews was by far the best NBA prospect on the team. Looks like whoever wrote that knew what they were talking about.

You are right in that part of the deal is just getting the chance, and also having the right mindset. Guys like Lucas and Jason Hart knew they were career backups and stuck with it. A lot of players would rather get PT and the chance at more money by going to Europe.

 

[Knicks411]

I think maybe Moqui meant Matthews was playing the 3 and was out of position?

 

[cliftonparksufan]

There are several things:

Matthews is bigger than Dion and can defend both wing positions; he draws fouls and he is an efficient 3 point shooter, which are the two most efficient ways to score in the NBA and its crucial for 2 guards to be able to do one or the other. I'm not sure why, but Dion did not draw many fouls for a guy who has a rep for attacking the rim. Dion was just an OK shooter from 3 at the college distance, I wouldn't think he'll be able to hit around 40% from the NBA distance, and his ability to defend is questionable.

Curiously, I think the higher Dion gets drafter, the worse off he is. He could probably be valuable as an energy guy coming off the bench for a playoff team, but on a lottery team he is going to to play a lot of minutes, maybe even start, and will have higher expectations going against him. IMO, at this point the best thing for him would be to get picked by a lottery team and then spun off to a playoff team as part of a draft day deal

I agree with what you say about where Dion gets drafted. Look at Jonny and Wes Johnson. Talk about weak drafts, but neither one is carrying the load for their NBA teams. Not a great thing for where they were drafted and Jonny's been on three or four teams already. But in the NBA it's all about potential and many feel that Dion has a huge upside.

Plus, the reason I used Wes Matthews as a comparison for Dion is that you need to look at his stats at Marquette. Statistically he was not a very good shooter until he was a senior and that was one reason he didn't get drafted. He lucked out in that he was given an opportunity due to injuries in Utah, made the most of it and then Portland signed him to a crazy offer sheet. Utah wasn't and couldn't afford to match it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wesley_Matthews

 

[arbitragegls]

watching ESPNU right now...NBA Draft Combine...Dion was one of headlines with time discussing in first 3 minutes. Fran Frachella (sp) said he has a supposed promise from a mid to end round lottery pick. He said he could go to that team or traded to another--promise included Waiter not to work out with any teams going forward. Fran said he is the best guard in the draft...wow!

 

[realorange]

watching ESPNU right now...NBA Draft Combine...Dion was one of headlines with time discussing in first 3 minutes. Fran Frachella (sp) said he has a supposed promise from a mid to end round lottery pick. He said he could go to that team or traded to another--promise included Waiter not to work out with any teams going forward. Fran said he is the best guard in the draft...wow!

Fran has stated since early this year that Dion will be a better player in the NBA than in college.