Our friends at Golden State of Mind uncovered a nugget of information in ESPN the Magazine[p. 124...3 Seconds]:
To get Andris Biedrins help inside, the Warriors have looked into stealing Hakim Warrick from Memphis for struggling center Patrick O'Bryant. Good luck with that.
Now it seems that most Golden State fans have a high opinion of the Grizzlies forward. In reality he has improved upon his production from last season, he is just doing it in fewer minutes so it appears that his numbers are down. Hakim Warrick has really improved his jumpshot out to about 18 feet and rarely goes into the spin cycle in the post that got him in trouble a lot last season. However, Hakim is still a blackhole. He only has 2 assists in 150 minutes vs. 9 turnovers. In the right situation, Hakim would be a good finisher and the Warriors would probably be a team in which he would thrive as he will be able to sneak around and take advantage of mismatches.
On the other side of the coin, Patrick O'Bryant is virtually an unknown to me. I liked him coming out of college but getting browbeat in the league can seriously hamper a players development. The Grizzlies are already rehabilitating Darko and two confidence projects might be one to many. O'Bryant has not shown anything in the league (I have never seen him play). He seems to foul to much to even stay on the court (13.2 fouls per 48). Add to that, he is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.
As a Grizz fan, I would not like this swap. I have no doubts that Hakim is not in the long range plans of Coach Iavaroni but I would expect a better return. I would prefer to get a small forward to back up Rudy.
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4 comments:
from a Warriors point of view, I could see how Hak might fit in there...and it has nothing to do with offense, but rather the fact that Hakim is most comfortable playing zone defense (b/c of his 4 years for the Big Orange) and Nelly plays zone more than any other coach in the NBA.
I have to admit if the Grizz traded Hakim for O'Bryant I would die laughing. PMI has made such a stink about him not being good enough and how he would prefer to have Aaron Grey (although neither of us think either player is that good).
Hakim is playing as good as ever. He was especially good against Dallas. Agree, he just needs minutes.
Hard to comment on Bryant. But it's good that the deep Grizz bench is getting noticed.
Hak will never be a 20-10 guy but he could be a 16-6 guy in the right system. He's money from the top of the key this season. If he keeps expanding his range he could be a very dangerous offensive player. But agree it's hard to see a future for him with the Grizz.
As a Warriors' fan, I can personally say that Patrick O'Bryant is a long-term project. He can already block shots at an NBA level, is a tremendously smart passer for a 7-footer, and has deceptive range (extending out to about 18 feet). Admittedly, he has a lot of trouble rebounding against wider competition. The Chef (as we in the Warriors Nation have nicknamed him) is a mere 250 pounds with a standing reach of 9'6". Suffice to say, he gets pushed around rather easily.
He's definitely back-up worthy, though. As long as he stays out of foul trouble, O'Bryant alters a lot of shots when he's on the floor. Even the shots he can't get to seem to fly offline due to his insane reach. Offensive players miss lay-ups looking for him.
All things considered, I'd say Hakim Warrick is a far better player than him and we would be getting a flat-out steal in the trade. If the Grizzlies have any common sense, they won't sell their athletic 4 for so cheap.
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