***Golden State Warriors 2010-2011 Offseason Thread***
- Thread starter Joey
- Start date
got this from a warriors forum..
hey Warrior fans. I'm a diehard Baylor fan and I wanted to tell you what you are getting in Ekpe Udoh. I watched every second of every game that he played this past year. I think you will be extremely pleased with this pick.
There is a story that sums up what Ekpe is all about that took place in his transfer year from Michigan to Baylor. Ekpe was usually the first guy in the gym and the last one to turn the lights out. There was a blow-up in the weight room between a coach and a player. The player threw a fit and started throwing weights off the racks and emptied all the weights. While everyone left the weight room, Ekpe quietly went around and put all the weights back up. Just a little thing, but it demonstrates the kind of character he has. He leads by example. And this is contagious to a team in a positive way.
On the basketball court:
Pros:
Understanding of the game is outstanding. He sees the whole court and is always thinking one or two plays ahead.
Great passer from the post and also from the top of the key.
He handles the ball very well. Baylor used him a lot to attack the basket from the top of the key. They also used him to break the press and he was very effective in this role- usually finding the weakness in the press and attacking it with his passing or dribbling.
Solid rebounder- he will not overpower people with his strength. He is also not a terrific leaper. But he is very long and knows how to use his length to be in good position to get rebounds.
Terrific shot blocker. He doesn't block shots like Dwight Howard. He usually just gets a small piece of a shot. He has great understanding of how to bother shooters. He is extremely disruptive on defense. Perhaps the greatest example of this is Baylor's defensive FG percentage. Before Ekpe, Baylor had a reputation of being a poor defensive team. Ekpe helped improve Baylor's defensive FG % by around 6% from 44% to 38%.
He's clutch- for example his best games were in the NCAA tourney when Baylor needed it the most. He had a strong game against good bigs for Duke. Ekpe had 18 pts; 10 rebounds; 6 assists; 5 blocks; 1 turnover against Duke in the Elite 8 game.
Professionalism- he's a lunch pail guy. This is more important in the NBA. He doesn't take nights/plays off. He keeps his emotions in check for the most part. But he just grinds it out day by day.
Post moves- great footwork. Can finish with either hand. Very patient to get the best shot. Certainly nowhere near as strong as Tim Duncan, but he will remind you of Tim Duncan in the way that he is not in a hurry. He works until he gets the right shot opportunity or until he can set up a teammate for an easy shot.
Cons:
Strength- he struggled in the post against top tier talent. During the stretch of games, he often had trouble finishing. In fairness to him, he worked so hard on defense and was double teamed so often that he just didn't have enough gas in the tank at the end of tough games. This won't be an issue in the pros as much because he's not a guy that will be drawing double teams.
Closing out on shooters on the perimeter. I often felt like he gave too much space to 3 point shooters when he played on the baseline in Baylor's match-up zone. He is an excellent man to man defender and did a much better job staying close to shooters in M-2-M. It was almost like in the zone, he felt like his job was to deny everything 18 feet and in and allowed shooters too much space in the corners.
Athleticism- as stated earlier. He's not a great athlete, but he's the type of player you expect to see on the Boston Celtics or Utah Jazz. He'll drive opponents crazy because they will think they should be dominating him athletically, but he's too smart and too skilled to be embarrassed by a more athletic opponent.
I would be glad to answer any questions. Congrats- you got an outstanding player and human being.
hey Warrior fans. I'm a diehard Baylor fan and I wanted to tell you what you are getting in Ekpe Udoh. I watched every second of every game that he played this past year. I think you will be extremely pleased with this pick.
There is a story that sums up what Ekpe is all about that took place in his transfer year from Michigan to Baylor. Ekpe was usually the first guy in the gym and the last one to turn the lights out. There was a blow-up in the weight room between a coach and a player. The player threw a fit and started throwing weights off the racks and emptied all the weights. While everyone left the weight room, Ekpe quietly went around and put all the weights back up. Just a little thing, but it demonstrates the kind of character he has. He leads by example. And this is contagious to a team in a positive way.
On the basketball court:
Pros:
Understanding of the game is outstanding. He sees the whole court and is always thinking one or two plays ahead.
Great passer from the post and also from the top of the key.
He handles the ball very well. Baylor used him a lot to attack the basket from the top of the key. They also used him to break the press and he was very effective in this role- usually finding the weakness in the press and attacking it with his passing or dribbling.
Solid rebounder- he will not overpower people with his strength. He is also not a terrific leaper. But he is very long and knows how to use his length to be in good position to get rebounds.
Terrific shot blocker. He doesn't block shots like Dwight Howard. He usually just gets a small piece of a shot. He has great understanding of how to bother shooters. He is extremely disruptive on defense. Perhaps the greatest example of this is Baylor's defensive FG percentage. Before Ekpe, Baylor had a reputation of being a poor defensive team. Ekpe helped improve Baylor's defensive FG % by around 6% from 44% to 38%.
He's clutch- for example his best games were in the NCAA tourney when Baylor needed it the most. He had a strong game against good bigs for Duke. Ekpe had 18 pts; 10 rebounds; 6 assists; 5 blocks; 1 turnover against Duke in the Elite 8 game.
Professionalism- he's a lunch pail guy. This is more important in the NBA. He doesn't take nights/plays off. He keeps his emotions in check for the most part. But he just grinds it out day by day.
Post moves- great footwork. Can finish with either hand. Very patient to get the best shot. Certainly nowhere near as strong as Tim Duncan, but he will remind you of Tim Duncan in the way that he is not in a hurry. He works until he gets the right shot opportunity or until he can set up a teammate for an easy shot.
Cons:
Strength- he struggled in the post against top tier talent. During the stretch of games, he often had trouble finishing. In fairness to him, he worked so hard on defense and was double teamed so often that he just didn't have enough gas in the tank at the end of tough games. This won't be an issue in the pros as much because he's not a guy that will be drawing double teams.
Closing out on shooters on the perimeter. I often felt like he gave too much space to 3 point shooters when he played on the baseline in Baylor's match-up zone. He is an excellent man to man defender and did a much better job staying close to shooters in M-2-M. It was almost like in the zone, he felt like his job was to deny everything 18 feet and in and allowed shooters too much space in the corners.
Athleticism- as stated earlier. He's not a great athlete, but he's the type of player you expect to see on the Boston Celtics or Utah Jazz. He'll drive opponents crazy because they will think they should be dominating him athletically, but he's too smart and too skilled to be embarrassed by a more athletic opponent.
I would be glad to answer any questions. Congrats- you got an outstanding player and human being.
Marc J. Spears: Cousins excited about going to Sacramento, and had no interest in being a Warrior.
League sources said the Golden State Warriors are trying to move center Andris Biedrins. The Warriors already shipped the remaining three years and $31 million of Corey Maggette’s contract to the Milwaukee Bucks and wouldn’t mind moving Biedrins’ deal, which has four years and $36 million left.
Jonathan Givony: Also heard that GS has a trade offer on the table to move Gadzuric and Biedrins to Denver for Kenyon Martin. Can't be done till August 22nd.
League sources said the Golden State Warriors are trying to move center Andris Biedrins. The Warriors already shipped the remaining three years and $31 million of Corey Maggette’s contract to the Milwaukee Bucks and wouldn’t mind moving Biedrins’ deal, which has four years and $36 million left.
Jonathan Givony: Also heard that GS has a trade offer on the table to move Gadzuric and Biedrins to Denver for Kenyon Martin. Can't be done till August 22nd.
That post from that fan got me lightweight juiced....A good character, smart, defensive, rebounding shot blocker.....
Thats good Cousins didnt want to bring his bad attitude this way....He can go to the open arms of the most fair weather fans in California....And maybe the world for that matter......Sac's been struggling and always has hella empty seats, except for when Kobe or Lebron come...LOL....
They had the rookie of the year playing for them...But since they didnt have a winning record and werent being hyped by local news and national media...The fans said fuck em.....On the other hand Oracle sold out almost every game, even with a struggling team....We are the best fans in the NBA point fuckin blank......
In 2003 when Sac was hot...Thier were fans all over northern California...Now those motherfuckers are few and far between......Enjoy yourself De Mark ass....
Thats good Cousins didnt want to bring his bad attitude this way....He can go to the open arms of the most fair weather fans in California....And maybe the world for that matter......Sac's been struggling and always has hella empty seats, except for when Kobe or Lebron come...LOL....
They had the rookie of the year playing for them...But since they didnt have a winning record and werent being hyped by local news and national media...The fans said fuck em.....On the other hand Oracle sold out almost every game, even with a struggling team....We are the best fans in the NBA point fuckin blank......
In 2003 when Sac was hot...Thier were fans all over northern California...Now those motherfuckers are few and far between......Enjoy yourself De Mark ass....
Quick Scenario... I know everybody is talking about the Warriors and the fact that they are looking for new ownership. I got a big what if.... Whoever buys this team is gonna want to distance themselves from the negative image and horrible past history that the Golden State Warriors have. With the amount of money one of these perspective buyers is going to spend, is it far reaching to think that to rid them selves of the old way people think of this franchise, they may demand a new stadium or actually move the Warriors out of Oakland altogther? Is that something that yall have thought about? If things don't straighten out soon, I could see this team being uprooted to give this franchise a fresh start.
I thought about that too, but the fact that we sell out every game damn near, regardless of poor record or not, plus we sell lots of merchandise, leads me to think that the new ownership will keep the team in the Bay.
Maybe if anything, moving from Oak to SF. But I think this team generates too much money for the next owner to move them out of the Bay.
Maybe if anything, moving from Oak to SF. But I think this team generates too much money for the next owner to move them out of the Bay.
