Monday, March 28, 2005
Chaaarlie
So Charlie Villanueva is discussing with his family whether to enter the draft of not.
Wonder if he'd like any advice from UConn fans, I'm sure they'd be of one mind on this one.
I really think that he isn't ready. He can rebound, and would be able to hold his own against power forwards or big small forwards in that category. He can definitely block shots. Assuming he would play the 4, he's got some nice range.
But the NC State game showed scouts a lot, and what it showed was that Calhoun, who sees this guy every day in practice and has produced consistently good pros, saw him as a liability on defense and would sub him out every chance he got. Then, there's the "conventional wisdom" that Charlie was inconsistent, which was repeated over and over again even when he put together a monster string of games.
All in all, I think Charlie Villanueva could make a decent pro. But clearly he needs to work on two things: his decision making when he has the ball and plans on doing anything other than score, and his defense.
I think another year at UConn would help him immeasurably. He would come back with something to prove, and the potential to lift his stock from a 20th pick to a potential lottery pick. It's even possible he could see some additional time at small forward with the big kid they have coming in. Villanueva, if he could do it, could be a very attractive big small forward in the NBA.
But as a power forward, with the skill set he has right now, I don't see him as more than a Maurice Taylor type. If you're saying, "who?" then maybe that's another reason he should stay.
Let Gay go, take some of his minutes at the 3 to go along with becoming an even better 4, and get taken 10th next year. More money, a better game, and CT will love you if you take them back to the final four.
Wonder if he'd like any advice from UConn fans, I'm sure they'd be of one mind on this one.
I really think that he isn't ready. He can rebound, and would be able to hold his own against power forwards or big small forwards in that category. He can definitely block shots. Assuming he would play the 4, he's got some nice range.
But the NC State game showed scouts a lot, and what it showed was that Calhoun, who sees this guy every day in practice and has produced consistently good pros, saw him as a liability on defense and would sub him out every chance he got. Then, there's the "conventional wisdom" that Charlie was inconsistent, which was repeated over and over again even when he put together a monster string of games.
All in all, I think Charlie Villanueva could make a decent pro. But clearly he needs to work on two things: his decision making when he has the ball and plans on doing anything other than score, and his defense.
I think another year at UConn would help him immeasurably. He would come back with something to prove, and the potential to lift his stock from a 20th pick to a potential lottery pick. It's even possible he could see some additional time at small forward with the big kid they have coming in. Villanueva, if he could do it, could be a very attractive big small forward in the NBA.
But as a power forward, with the skill set he has right now, I don't see him as more than a Maurice Taylor type. If you're saying, "who?" then maybe that's another reason he should stay.
Let Gay go, take some of his minutes at the 3 to go along with becoming an even better 4, and get taken 10th next year. More money, a better game, and CT will love you if you take them back to the final four.
# posted by Darlucky @ 5:09 PM 
