Suns Draft Prospects

[SweetD]

I will try to post links, Photos, Info for possible Draft prospects for are #1 pick 17th overall. Lets not make this a I want this guy thread. I will create another one for that...

 

[SweetD]

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Projected #14 pick

http://www.nbadraft.net/profiles/pavelpodkolzin.htm

Pavel Podkolzin
Birthdate: 1/15/85
NBA Position: Center
Ht: 7-4
Wt: 300
Int Team: Metis Varese
Hometown: Novosibirsk, Russia
Telebasket Profile
Stats

Podkolzine, the guy who had limited playing time in U-16 championships in 2001, who was not good enough for Russian U-18 NT in 2002 and who likely would have been forgotten by Russians has impressed Italians very quickly. Siberian bear from Novosibirsk is a developing big man whose best days are ahead of him. Podkolzine can block shots and rebound. He is in the process of gaining more confidence in his low post moves. Podkolzine is still learning the game, but he's got a lot to offer - starting with his huge frame. Physical and aggressive in the paint, with development he could become a load to defend and tough to score on.

-Mindaugas Veromejus

 

[SweetD]

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Projected #17

Sofoklis Schortsianitis
Birthdate: 6/22/85
NBA Position: Power Forward
Ht: 6-9
Wt: 253
European Team: Iraklis Salonica
Hometown: Kavala, Greece
Telebasket Profile

NBA Comparison: Eddy Curry

Strengths: A Greek Baby Shaq? A super prospect with developing offensive skills. He plays with aggressiveness, intelligence. a solid inside game with post moves, baby hooks, and his shot from the 16-18 feet is excellent. Unselfish player with great agility. He sets up screens extremely well. Has the smooth moves of a forward combined with muscles that allow him to be dominant on the boards. He jumps impetuously for rebounds, both on offense and defense. He can handle the ball well from the one paint to the other. His approach to devloping his game is very mature.

Weaknesses: Inexperience. Must stay focused. Gets into foul trouble easily (mainly due to his passion to play good defense). Needs to work more on his free throws in order not to face problems in the future. Still has a ways to go in terms of development, but with such a strong work ethic, there's no telling how good he can be. Still isn't asked much of because he is playing against much older and more experienced players. He is being nurtured along slowly to best facilitate his skills and potential. (Could be closer to 6-8, but at just 16, he figures to continue to grow.)

Notes: The first thing that comes to mind when watching this kid is that its rare to find a body with such amazing strength and size at the age 16 ( born in June of 1985). Son of a Greek father and a Nigerian mother, Shortsianitis impressed last year Iraklis American player, Tony Farmer ( former Golden State Warriors Forward), who gave him the name “Baby Shaq”, because of his beast-strength and his inside game. Another impressive element of his game is his fighting spirit on defense. He is a quick learner and a pearly character. He will probably be a 7 footer of 280 pounds full of muscles and strength. Sophocles will benefit greatly from the fact that he has competed against professionals in a very tough league from age 15. He has similar game to Eddy Curry of the Chicago Bulls. Right now , he is a "Baby-Shaq" that spends hours upon hours in the gym lifting weights or training both with the youngs and the pro players.

5/23 - Schortsianitis had a 6 page interview in the biggest basketball magazine in Greece, saying that he will most probably enter the 2004 NBA draft.

6/5 - Sofocles Schortsianitis most probably will take part in the Benetton Big Man basketball camp. He was invited , but the thing is that he 'll have to stay with the Cadet's National Team for the European Championship. Alongside this, Schortsianitis is invited to take part to a camp for big men in Miami in the late July-early August, so you ll most probably have the chance to take a closer look at him! Hot Summer for this kid!

-Dimitris Armadoros

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Sofoklis has African blood, his mother is from Cameroon and his father from Greece. His real height is 204 cm, his weight is 120, maybe 130 kilos! He has incredible power, strength and body control, so at the junior level he's an illegal weapon! He can slam the ball after an offensive board or a teammates’ dish, and has confidence underneath to find a solution. He could improve his range, but has decent touch and is able to control the ball in the open court at high speed. He is playing with the majors already with Iraklis Thessaloniki in the Greek League averaging 6.4 minutes and 2.6 points per game.

-Romano Pettiti

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Strengths: Solid athlete who can run the floor very well and possesses above average leaping ability ... Because of his strength he is able to get excellent position on the blocks ... For his size he shows great agility around the basket ... Does a very good job at drawing contact in the lane and more importantly once contact occurs he has the strength and body control to finish ... Has shown the ability to hit the 18-19 foot jumper when needed ... Has soft hands which allow him to catch most passes thrown into the post ... Plays every game with passion and intensity ... A player who is not easily intimidated ... Due to his aggressiveness and size he is a great offensive rebounder ... Is a solid passer for a player his size and age although his decision making is still a work in progress ... On tip-ins and lay-in's he displays soft touch around the basket ... Defensively he has very quick hands capable of intercepting most passes ... Smart defender who will often allow his man to front him once the pass is made and has enough quickness to quickly jump in front for the steal ... Owns a solid work ethicand has the desire to be great not just good ...

Weaknesses: Has a bad habit of picking up quick fouls due to over aggressiveness when guarding his man ... Needs to work on recognizing double teams better as he is often slow to react to them ... Fundamentally he is a little behind in his development as he has had to play out of position for his team ... Offensively he still has a tendency to rely too much on his back to the basket power game instead of concentrating on face up skills ... Height is inflated, although Shortsianitis is listed by "some" at 6-11, he looks to be between 6-8 ½ to 6-9 ½ ... Despite his ability to draw contact in the lane, his below average free throw shooting inhibits him from taking full advantage of his opportunities ... While he has range on his jumper, he lacks consistency ... Tends to put the ball on the floor rather than immediately going up with the ball after receiving it in the post ... Although a solid rebounder he is still learning how to get rebounds out of position although with added game experience this should be less of an issue ... Defensively he is not a great shot blocker as he is still learning defensive footwork and timing ...

 

[SweetD]

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Projected #19

Nick Collison
Birthdate: 10/26/80
NBA Position: Power Forward
College: Kansas
Class: Senior
Ht: 6-9
Wt: 250
Hometown: Iowa Falls, Iowa
High School: Iowa Falls
Team Site Profile 2002 Stats


NBA Comparison:

Strengths: Solid, unbelievably consistent. Very heady player with excellent athleticism. Very good post skills, adept at positioning for rebounds and using a drop step in the post. No white man's disease, he can really get off the ground. Great versatility for a 4. Extremely gifted passer with a super court sense. Understands the game and has a great work ethic. Team player.

Weaknesses: Size and strength is good, but must continue to develop. The NBA is a huge leap in terms of size and strength at the 4 position.

Has bulked up considerably in his time at Kansas. Very skilled post player with excellent offensive skills and agility. Just needs strength and toughness and he'll be one of the top PF prospects in college. Touch is uncanny for a bigman.

 

[SweetD]

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Projected #16-20

Zarko Cabarkapa
Birthdate: 5/21/81
NBA Position: SF/PF
Ht: 6-11
Wt: 220
European Team: KK Buducnost
Hometown: Zrenjanin, Serbia
Euroleague Profile
Telebasket Profile Stats

Strengths : A versatile Power Forward with sensational fundamentals. Can also play either in C or cause headaches when used at SF. Very intelligent with great understanding of the game. Has a wingspan of a 7'1" man. He's a great talent with a good work ethic. Showed great improvement over the last 3 years. Has gained a bunch of experience that has resulted in maturity and given birth to leadership skills. Has tremendous ball-handling skills combined with quickness, great reflexes and court sense. Creates his own shots using his point-guard-like ball-handling skills, has a nice, hard to block, jump-shot with a quick release. Penetrates smoothly into the paint from both sides either finishing with a lay-up or finding the open man with an assist, even when faced with a double team. Great agility that causes problems against bigger bodies. He outruns his opponents. Very impressive in the open court, goes with great energy to the basket. He's not afraid of "traffic" in the paint. Puts up high percentages in shooting. He can shoot facing the basket, he can post up against smaller bodies, and can kill opponents with a long range shot... Defensively he is close to solid. He is keen on stealing balls and grabbing offensive rebounds for garbage points.

Weaknesses : Classic Yugoslavian basketball body... Has to put on 25 pounds so to gain more space in the paint. Needs to work on his upper body to handle the strength of NBA players. He's not an overpowering rebounder nor a shot blocker. His hook shot needs polish.

Notes: (Pronounced Tsab-'ar-kapa)

-Dimitris Armadoros

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Strengths: When facing the basket, he shows an assortment of perimeter skills ... For a player his size, he is extremely mobile showing the ability to run the floor with ease ... Wonderful set shooter who when given enough time, can drain the three point shot with regularity ... Possesses good movement without the ball which enables him to set-up for open jumpers ... When he does drive to the basket he is a dangerous set-up man for low post scorers to get easy looks ... Versatile player who can create mismatches with his ability to shoot the ball ... Shows excellent ball handling skills which allow him to bring the ball up or create fast break opportunities ... Has enough dribbling skills to drive past defenders ...Shows above average court vision for his size ... When his feet are set he has the ability to make the mid-range jumper ... Unselfish player who sees double teams well and reacts quickly ... Possess a solid work ethic that should continue to develop his potential ...Has the physical tools to be a competent defender such as long arms and decently quick hands ...

Weaknesses: Defensively he lacks many of the basic skills such as anticipation and intensity ... Needs to improve on gaining lateral quickness defensively as quick players can trouble him ... Would greatly benefit by adding more weight and strength to his upper body ... While he has great height he is not much of a rebounder due in part to him often being out of position and lacking body strength ... Settles too often for shooting from the outside instead of driving to the basket ... Back to the basket skills are still in their developmental stages ... Ball protection should be worked on as he has a tendency to be turnover prone ... Not a big fan of physical contact ... Can become frustrated when contact occurs ... Doesn't always use his height to his advantage when played by smaller defenders ... Not a very efficient shooter off the dribble which could be due to the fact that he doesn't get good separation from his defenders ... Although, with improved foot speed he could greatly improve in this aspect ...

 

[SweetD]

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Zaur Pachulia
Birthdate: 1984
NBA Position: Center
Ht: 6-10
Wt: 240
Hometown: Georgia
European Team: Ulker Spor Kulubu Istanbul
Tele Basket Profile
Euroleague Profile 2002 Stats




Also known as "Zaza". He is big, pretty athletic for his size and has a good knack for shot blocking. His body hasn't totally developed yet and he sometimes looks very awkward on the floor. The next two years in his development are crucial, he has to become a better offensive post threat and keep working on his foot work. Could easily become another Georgian who makes it to the L if he will develops as expected. Raw but talented bigman. A player to keep an eye on. Moves well. Already has a lot of strength. Rebounds well. Has a lot to learn fundamentally. Has good agility and at 18 is already considered an NBA prospect. Another Georgian wonder, you would think they grow on trees there. Strong player, with surprisingly good mobility for his height and weight. He's a fundamentally sound player, does everything solid but nothing especially well, but his ballhandling skills are very solid for his size. Was pretty dominant in Junior competitions with his combination of height and weight, but has yet to prove himself in Senior competition.

Notes: Many sources list Pachulia being born in 1984. However there is speculation that he may actually be born in 1982.

 

[SweetD]

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Brian Cook
Birthdate: 12/4/80
NBA Position: Power Forward
College: Illinois
Class: Senior
Ht: 6-10
Wt: 240
Hometown: Lincoln, IL
High School: Lincoln
Team Site Profile 2002 Stats

NBA Comparison: Stacey King

Strengths: Creates mismatches with his versatility as he has the ability to play both forward spots ... Shows solid post footwork when getting the ball on the block ... Prefers to catch the ball in the high post where his face up game is most effective ... Has the ability to make the 18 foot jumper with some regularity ... Great finisher around the basket where he is able to make difficult shots due to his long arms and soft touch ... Shows solid mobility for a player his size as he can run the court with ease ... Although not a spectacular rebounder but when motivated he can be a solid presence underneath the glass ... Great free throw shooter at his position ... Has a solid grasp of the fundamental aspect of the game ... Shows above average ball handling for his size ... Owns a great turnaround jump shot from 14 feet from the basket ... Does a good job of recognizing double teams ... Solid passer when he receives the ball in the high post ... Keeps the ball high after the post entry feed ...

Weaknesses: His desire is one big question mark, how badly does he want to improve? ... Athletically Cook lacks the explosive leaping ability needed to be an effective shot blocker ... Shot selection could stand improvement as he can settle for taking the perimeter jumper ... Although he has improved his back to the basket moves, he is still in need of development ... Needs to work on consistently taking opposing defenders off the dribble ... Lack of ball protection skills create a fair amount of turnovers ... Has the looks of a tweener in that he is without a true position in the NBA ... Can go through moments where his doesn't display much aggressiveness although he has improved this year ... Struggles at times when guarded by a physical defender ... Has 3-point range on his jumper but clearly can become too infatuated with firing from the top of the key ... Would benefit with adding 10-15 more pounds of muscle to his body if he is too play power forward ... Mental toughness leaves a little to be desired ... Defensively Cook must improve on playing better positional defense ... Can be foul prone from time to time ... Has problems getting the ball in the post as he doesn't always work to get good position ...

-Matthew Maurer
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Strengths: Good offensive player. Excellent agility at 6-10. Very good shooter out to 3 point range.. Decent at running the floor.. Post game is developing.. Perimeter game is limited to shooting..

Weaknesses: Lacks agressiveness. Needs to mature both physically and mentally. Lacks explosiveness.Must develop overall game, defense, toughness, post offense.

Notes: Can spot up out to college three. Bread and butter is developing his post game. With more strength and aggressiveness, should develop into a great PF. Very good agility in the post. Can pass well, but not going to take players off the dribble. With added mental toughness, can be very good.

 

[arthurracoon]

I like Pavel just because he's 7-4.

We need another BIG man