Insider Info (ESPN) Update pg.11(Best F.A. remaining)

[ball junkie 277]

Wow...the Turk bashers are out in full force, lol...all because of stupid ole' Ric Bucher...

[Drain-O 369]

Kberto: I admit that was not my finest hour in internet message board comedy.

 

Junkie: Regardless of whether you want him back or not do you really see Turk as being the number one free agent on the market right now. That is what most of us were basing our comments on plus Bucher's gushing analysis that was written by his agent him.

[ball junkie 277]

This is not an insider piece...I know a lot of you love and respect David Thorpe of ESPN...since we are talking about Turk here thought some of you would be interested in his comments about Hedo:

 

quote:

King of the Pick and Roll

 

"Hedo Turkoglu is the best pick and roll small forward in the league, after LeBron James," says Thorpe. "So the conversation starts there. His ability to handle, penetrate, shoot, change speeds, be crafty and unpredictable -- all with excellent size and length -- that's a killer combination."

 

Thorpe cautions, however, that he does not believe Turkoglu would thrive in any system. "He's a little bit like Lamar Odom. The game comes so easy to him, and he's so talented, that sometimes he loses focus. Stan Van Gundy handled that really well. He was very smart. He ran a ton of side pick and rolls for Turkoglu, which forced him to lock in. People criticized Van Gundy for that, saying he should have gotten the ball to Dwight Howard more ... but a lot of those side pick and rolls ended in dunks for Dwight Howard. If you just stuck him on a team as complimentary player, and expect him to hit some open shots, then I don't think he would be nearly as productive. But when you keep Turkoglu engaged, he's a very special small forward.

 

"Turkoglu may have been the third or fourth best player on the Magic this season. But he played better than that, because of how the team forced him to be playmaker, which is what he does best. Now, his sense of urgency still wavered some. But in the playoffs, his focus was just about always there, and that's a huge part of the reason the Magic made it so far."

 

As a defender, Thorpe says Turkoglu is underrated. "He has length and feel. He's a coordinated athlete. He's also really tall and long. I don't think of him as winning the battle on grit, but it's not like there are a lot of times you watch a Magic game and think Turkoglu's getting killed! When he's engaged, I'd certainly say he's a net positive for your defense.

 

Probably won't happen now but I'd love to have Hedo back...

 

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/tru...-in-Free-Agency.html

[NittanyBuc 757]

quote:

As a defender, Thorpe says Turkoglu is underrated. "He has length and feel. He's a coordinated athlete. He's also really tall and long. I don't think of him as winning the battle on grit, but it's not like there are a lot of times you watch a Magic game and think Turkoglu's getting killed! When he's engaged, I'd certainly say he's a net positive for your defense.

 

i love this guy's sarcasm

[Emory889 353]

quote:

Originally posted by jecMagicMan:

quote:

His game: Playmaking forward who is as close to LeBron James as any 30-year-old in the league can be.

 

 

Oh my freakin god Bucher.

 

Jesus, I may have to move Bucher ahead of Chad Ford in my ESPN idiot rankings.

[Captain Hi-Top 791]

quote:

Drawbacks

 

Though Turkoglu remains productive his production did drop this year. His field goal percentage went from 45.6% to 41.3%. His three-point shooting dropped 44 points. His points per game dropped 2.7. His effective field goal percentage dropped 46 points and his true shooting percentage dropped 35. His PER went down three points even. It's not like you're catching him peaking. The Blazers' current offense will do one thing for him: give him a steady diet of completely open three-point shots. While he should feast on those, you're not exactly maximizing his skills with that system. In order to do that you have to move him around and give him the ball. Even with his assist number hovering around 5 per game I'm not sure you want another guy to give the ball to, especially if you're bringing in a new point guard as well.

 

Turkoglu draws fouls, which is a huge plus, but he's not a huge threat off the dribble. 80% of his shots are jumpers. His effective field goal percentage off of those last season was 35.6%. That's not great. Nicolas Batum has a good chance of being twice the penetration threat within two years while being able to post comparable three-point percentages. Martell Webster can do the three-point part right now.

 

Turkoglu averaged 3 turnovers per game two years ago and 2.6 this year. The Blazers don't want miscues from their small forward position.

 

 

 

From Dave at The Blazer's Edge. His high points for Hedo are in the link, as well as the rest of his thoughts.

[Vellassco 0]

posting full drawbacks and giving just link for benefits.

 

are you trying to get painkiller with that?

[Miller4Prez64 1]

quote:

Originally posted by emory889:

quote:

Originally posted by jecMagicMan:

quote:

His game: Playmaking forward who is as close to LeBron James as any 30-year-old in the league can be.

 

 

Oh my freakin god Bucher.

 

Jesus, I may have to move Bucher ahead of Chad Ford in my ESPN idiot rankings.

 

It's unreal how overrated he's become since the ECF. "Analysts" keep giving him qualities he doesn't have. I've read things like Hedo is great in the post and Hedo can create his own shot. He's been a great assest these last two years but lord, people are making him out to be a superstar with an all around game.

[Vellassco 0]

quote:

Originally posted by Miller4Prez64:

quote:

Originally posted by emory889:

quote:

Originally posted by jecMagicMan:

quote:

His game: Playmaking forward who is as close to LeBron James as any 30-year-old in the league can be.

 

 

Oh my freakin god Bucher.

 

Jesus, I may have to move Bucher ahead of Chad Ford in my ESPN idiot rankings.

 

It's unreal how overrated he's become since the ECF. "Analysts" keep giving him qualities he doesn't have. I've read things like Hedo is great in the post and Hedo can create his own shot. He's been a great assest these last two years but lord, people are making him out to be a superstar with an all around game.

 

y do you all feel uncomfotable to hear that? it gives you better hand on S&Ts, rite? so?

[magic_hoopsfan 0]

This is hysterical...

 

I knew that forum had quite a big number of hedo haters but did not expect that they were all lining up to make their hatred come out at the same time..!

[Miller4Prez64 1]

quote:

Originally posted by magic_hoopsfan:

This is hysterical...

 

I knew that forum had quite a big number of hedo haters but did not expect that they were all lining up to make their hatred come out at the same time..!

 

There is just as many people like you here to drop down on their knees and open wide for Hedo.

[Secretly Space Jesus 670]

quote:

Originally posted by magic_hoopsfan:

This is hysterical...

 

I knew that forum had quite a big number of hedo haters but did not expect that they were all lining up to make their hatred come out at the same time..!

 

So in your opinion, there is literally no gap whatsoever between "Thinking Hedo Turkoglu isn't the best FA available" and "Hedo hater"?

 

Follow up question: do you think Dwight Howard is the greatest center in the history of the solar system, or are you actively plotting his murder?

 

Keep in mind, if it isn't 100% choice A, it's choice B by default.