First off Randolph Morris and Luke Jackson were both at the workouts today. They are not going to be part of the Las Vegas team barring injury. Both players wanted to show the coaching staff how they are playing. I didn't get to talk to Morris (he was still shooting when I had to leave) but Jackson told me he hopes to be back tomorrow because he feels he is a good fit on the team and would like to be invited back to training camp. As a former top 10 lottery pick, Jackson has struggled in his career but he showed today he can still hit the long ball when open. I don't know if he will be invited to training camp however.
Mike Conley is still looking big like I reported after the draft night party. He also looks far more in control at the point than either Crittenton or Mayo. Mayo isn't going to light up the league as a rookie judging from what I saw today but he is going to be very solid and has no fear taking big shots. Playing with a shot clock in the scrimmage it seemed Mayo searched for the ball and took most of the shots at the buzzer. He didn't make a lot but I loved seeing him want the ball in those situations. He also made some excellent passes. He just struggled with ball control when running the point. To me he seems like a more natural shooting guard who can play some point guard instead of a natural point guard who can play the 2.
P J Tucker was very energetic and made his presence felt but looked very short to play the 4 and too limited to play the 3. He is a great player but not a great NBA athlete in other words. Ebi Ere really made an impression on me. He looks to have true NBA range, is comfortable playing the physical game and has all the tools neccessary to make it in the league. I don't know if that will translate to real game action but he was raising eyebrows this afternoon. Malick Badiene was more impressive offensively than I expected but still needs to put on some muscle weight. He is probably best served waiting overseas another year or two and try to develop more strength. Brent Petway is a good defensive player and while I didn't get to see him dunk the ball he has some serious hops. Unfortunately his offensive game is no where near NBA caliber. I doubt he will be invited to camp.
Aaron Pettway is off the team because of injury but no one seemed to concerned about that. One member of the staff joked 'Poor Aaron, we hardly knew you.' Replacing his spot is Brian Butch from Wisconsin. Maintaining one of the worst kept secrets in the league, another insider with the team mentioned he was going to the airport when he left. I wonder what he was going to be doing there?
Darrell Arthur showed everything that has been written about him today. He got a surprising amount of boards but disappeared at other times. Maybe he is just feeling his way around instead of trying to impose himself on the action or maybe the rumors about his motivation are true. I don't know yet but he definately didn't look like someone ready to replace Hakim in the starting lineup yet. Also disappointing was Javaris Crittenton who really had trouble running the point.
For an excellent recap of the morning workout I suggest you read Chris Herrington's blog or Ron Tillery's recap in the CA.
Chip you are doing a great job on covering the Grizz. I really appreciate all the work you're putting in.
ReplyDeleteConley is definately going to have a Rudy Gay-type breakout year this season. If he's so much more muscular, and hasn't lost his deceptive speed and quickness, I think the second coming of Tony Parker will be in a Grizzlies uniform in a season or two.
ReplyDeleteI also think Mayo and Crittenton are best suited to play shooting guard, so, if that's how it plays out, we have our 2-guard position set for a really, really long time (unless of course we trade J-Crit.)
Also, how could Randolph Morris not make this team, let alone the summer league roster? Is it that we are just thinking about signing Morris and not trying him out? I think he could definately be on the team. He would be really cheap and he is still very young. I hope we at least give him a look.
Okay. I was not impressed with JCritt at the 2 either so I don't know if I would say we are set at the guard spot yet. JCritt seemed out of control trying to force the issue instead of letting the game come to him. I was hoping to see more maturity from him but it just wasn't there. Of course it was day 1 of the summer league and everything was a bit disjointed so don't read too much into this.
ReplyDeleteRandolph Mooris looked out of shape and is touring several NBA teams doing workouts looking for a job just like Luke Jackson. The summer league team isn't really something he is gearing toward. I just wonder why he would want teams see him in such poor shape. I suppose he figured we were so weak in the middle that he could get a job pretty easily. I really don't know. As I said he was still shooting when I left.
Yes Chip.
ReplyDeleteGreat job.
Your coverage is very thorough and much appreciated.