A closer look at Enes Kanter

[Jezzar]

LOL. Kanter has not proven anything yet.

Yes, though you have to agree that he has massively more talent than Batista.

If Batista was a lottery pick, than yes, that would mean there is something going on about Kanter's style of play. However, whenever you point out the failures of an undrafted prospect to strengthen your argument against a top 5 prospect, that argument is destined to fail.

If you feel like Valanciunas will be the better player, fine, you are entitled to your own opinion.

 

[pr26]

As soon as the pre-draft combine kicked off, this board was all "fap fap fap KANTER IS THE NEXT BEST CENTER EVARRR. JONAS WHO? NO WAY!".

Then recent mocks has JV at 4 and everyone talked themselves into him by tearing down Kanter. At the end of the day I lean more towards JV simply because I love his potential and his motor, but you have to be stoked that we will probably have our pick between the two. It doesn't always have to be "player y is better and player x sucks". Either player is going to be a great piece for this franchise moving forward imo.

 

[Smooth]

Since when is Kanter "unathletic"? He might not be a great athlete but he's not a terrible one either... I mean he dunked one step inside the free-throw line, that takes some athleticism to do...

His no-step vertical was 26 and his max vert was 32.5... Guess what Javale McGee's was? 27 and 32.5.. Or DeAndre Jordan? 26 & 30.5..

Regarding his arm length: his wingspan really doesn't matter since wingspan is more of a measure for perimeter players..

His standing reach isn't freakish but it's not short either... It's 0.5" shorter than Tyson Chandler's and Marcin Gortat's, it's on par Tiago Splitter, and it's bigger than Nene's....

Kanter is being unfairly labeled here so I thought I'd clear it up a bit.. He'll never be a freakish athlete but he'll be fine... Not many centers have his bulk when coming into the league and some have trouble ever getting to the point he's at now.. So think about that too...

 

[Rocky Plateau]

Kanter is a below the rim player. I didn't think there's any arguing that. Saying he's a better athlete than average won't change that.

IMO, you don't win championships with Centers who are undersized and can't protect the rim.

 

[Funkmastabuck]

Since when is Kanter "unathletic"? He might not be a great athlete but he's not a terrible one either... I mean he dunked one step inside the free-throw line, that takes some athleticism to do...

His no-step vertical was 26 and his max vert was 32.5... Guess what Javale McGee's was? 27 and 32.5.. Or DeAndre Jordan? 26 & 30.5..

Regarding his arm length: his wingspan really doesn't matter since wingspan is more of a measure for perimeter players..

His standing reach isn't freakish but it's not short either... It's 0.5" shorter than Tyson Chandler's and Marcin Gortat's, it's on par Tiago Splitter, and it's bigger than Nene's....

Kanter is being unfairly labeled here so I thought I'd clear it up a bit.. He'll never be a freakish athlete but he'll be fine... Not many centers have his bulk when coming into the league and some have trouble ever getting to the point he's at now.. So think about that too...

Smooth,

Who invited facts to this party? C'mon man!

But seriously, I agree. I think as soon as a player is attributed with having certain positives, the things not mentioned suddenly are seen as negatives. Just cause people don't call Kanter a freak athlete doesn't mean he doesn't have adequate athleticism for the position.

 

[Double O]

As soon as the pre-draft combine kicked off, this board was all "fap fap fap KANTER IS THE NEXT BEST CENTER EVARRR. JONAS WHO? NO WAY!".

Then recent mocks has JV at 4 and everyone talked themselves into him by tearing down Kanter. At the end of the day I lean more towards JV simply because I love his potential and his motor, but you have to be stoked that we will probably have our pick between the two. It doesn't always have to be "player y is better and player x sucks". Either player is going to be a great piece for this franchise moving forward imo.

^^^ This.

Such a good point, and I think a lot of us really overlook this fact. We're so engulfed in who we're gonna take at #4 that we feel we need to justify who's better so we can feel comfortable with the pick, and that comes at the expense of ripping down said prospect. In reality, PR's right! Either way we go, we're going to get one hell of a player!

 

[mcfly]

I have been wondering if the lane agility test and the 3/4 sprint mean anything when it comes to big men. People are saying Kanter is not that athletic yet he bested the likes of Cousins, Carmelo, Stuckey, and Tyrus Thomas in the lane agility test, and Derozen, Deng, Gay, and Tyson Chandler in the sprint. Why does it feel like Kanter has the tools to be an elite player? I am not saying I think he will be elite, but I could see why someone would think that if they were judging him solely on measurables.

 

[KCOTT]

Leave it to Smooth to always put things in proper perspective - with facts of all things, too.

 

[Jezzar]

Since when is Kanter "unathletic"? He might not be a great athlete but he's not a terrible one either... I mean he dunked one step inside the free-throw line, that takes some athleticism to do...

His no-step vertical was 26 and his max vert was 32.5... Guess what Javale McGee's was? 27 and 32.5.. Or DeAndre Jordan? 26 & 30.5..

Regarding his arm length: his wingspan really doesn't matter since wingspan is more of a measure for perimeter players..

His standing reach isn't freakish but it's not short either... It's 0.5" shorter than Tyson Chandler's and Marcin Gortat's, it's on par Tiago Splitter, and it's bigger than Nene's....

Kanter is being unfairly labeled here so I thought I'd clear it up a bit.. He'll never be a freakish athlete but he'll be fine... Not many centers have his bulk when coming into the league and some have trouble ever getting to the point he's at now.. So think about that too...

Smooth comes to the rescue.

[video=youtube;jO6clOC_9Dw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jO6clOC_9Dw[/video]

In which alternate universe this is considered "unathletic"?

 

[Nightperson]

Kanter and Irving !

 

[Green Lantern]

Smooth,

Who invited facts to this party? C'mon man!

But seriously, I agree. I think as soon as a player is attributed with having certain positives, the things not mentioned suddenly are seen as negatives. Just cause people don't call Kanter a freak athlete doesn't mean he doesn't have adequate athleticism for the position.

This is how I look at it..while I haven't seen these two play ,I've read up on them..but neither is established and they both are different..it's all how the Cavs evaluate them,which fits better ,which one they project to have greater impact.Plus the fact which one is better than the current crop of centers we have.
Oh and which one is available @ 4..my underlying worry is that whichever one the Cavs pick ,the unselected one will blow up and be a allstar..:chuckles:

 

[SteelSmack]

I really get the feeling that we'll draft Kanter, but then trade him to someone a little later that will draft Jonas V for us. Of course they'll also give us a little something extra since we locked down Kanter for them.

 

[Jon]

That's the average for all center prospects. We all know the center position has become extremely watered-down in the NBA. If you look back at the top 10 center prospects over the past decade, I challenge you to find anyone with a standing reach that is lower than Kanter's (9'1.5"). Why pick an undersized, unathletic center with the #4 pick in the entire draft??

In terms of standing reach, Kanter is within an inch (+/-) of Kaman, Okafor, Bogut, Chandler, Aldridge, Brand, Jefferson, Bosh, Nene, Anthony Randolph, Greg Monroe, and Amare. Some of those guys have a much more impressive no step vertical, however, so a lot depends whether you're happy with a positional defender who will contest and block shots with his length and hold his ground in the paint - or with a guy who contests shots by getting off the ground. I don't believe we have any evidence on how high Jonas can jump, but I don't think he's considered very athletic either.

Anyway, the whole problem with this draft is the lack of elite players with the measurables, performance, and skill you'd like to see.

Every selection (beyond Irving) IMO is going to involve trading off one desirable trait for another, or a known for an unknown.

If Kanter can score in the NBA like he's done at other levels and starts putting up 30 & 15's, the Cavs would find a way to compliment him on D.

 

[Douglar]

the Cavs would find a way to compliment him on D.

Varejao is the exact kind of forward to pair with Kanter--

But seeing as how Varejao will be into his 30's when Kanter gets to 25, you might want a player like Valanciunas to pair with Kanter.

 

[Lee]

I am not sure Kanter is really a center. I think his game compares more to a Boozer or Love type player. A skilled pf but average athlete. I think if we draft Kanter we might still need an athletic type center. I think the Cavs feel the same way which is why they have been switching their focus to Jonas. Kanter could create a bigger log jam at pf until trades can be made and still leaves a whole at center. That said if jonas ends up a bust and Kanter ends up a fringe all star, you would want Kanter even if it creates the log jam.

My point? I hope the Cavs have fallen in love with Jonas (if true) because they think he will be the better player, not because he is more of a true center and want to avoid a log jam. Early lottery picks should always be about bpa not position. I am not 100% against Knight and Irving. I think Dallas proved that we could play 6'3-6'4 pg's together in the same backcourt. Especially when both can shoot.