I'mWithDan
"Straight Cash Homie"
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2010
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Although I'm not skeptical about the 26th pick....
With respect to KPJ - and leaving his game and that awful FT% out of it - I think college is a much better venue for a young guy's maturation than the NBA. Having all that money, the much greater degree of freedom, the groupies, etc., that inevitably come with an NBA gig....Just kind of scary. "He's heading to the NBA because he wasn't good at handling college" doesn't sound like a great plan.
I don't love him as a player but I did get a few interesting tidbits on him this week. I have a few friends in scouting and more than one sourced comments to me a few days after the Cavs took him. 2 teams actually thought his off-court issues were largely overblown, which I was kind of surprised to hear.
They described him as a bit of an introvert, kind of eccentric, he has a personality that isn't that of a traditional college freshman basketball star. He's not a huge partier, he can be quieter at times and both teams used the word "sensitive" in their description......not as a negative but as a positive. It's a really unique profile for someone who grew up in a such a rough area.
Both teams that liked him thought Cleveland was a nice landing spot.....just system fit and personality fit wise. Beilein is not a wallflower but he is a master at managing personalities and understanding what each player needs. Some need tough love and some don't, both thought it was really important Porter gets the firmer, thoughtful encouragement / development Beilein is great at but not the harsher, short leash types some other NBA teams employ throughout their bench.
I still have lower expectations but it was at least encouraging to hear that two other teams thought the player / franchise / coach match was good for him.