AboveLegit Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 I think most would agree that he has a good chance of going in the top 5, I think a lot of teams will look at the recent success of guys with a similar build such as DeJuan Blair, Kevin Love, Glen Davis, Paul Milsap, etc. He dominated against Illinois, scoring 27 points, 16 rebounds, and 3 blocks. But for some reason, I'm not sold on him... I think he's benefiting from playing in the Big Ten, and as recent history proves to us, they do not exactly perform well early in their careers. I see a lot of Evan Turner in him, a guy who is great in college, but average in the NBA (as of now). He has a high IQ, is a great post presence, and will probably be a good rebounder at the next level with his 7'1 wingspan. But I question his ability on defense at the NBA level. What's his true potential? Do you see him living up to the hype in the NBA? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flash Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 I think he's going to be great. I think he'll start off slow like Love did for the first 2 years of his career and gradually come on and become a real force in this league. He's a special talent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 They are playing purdue at 9 tonight if you guys want to get a good look at him on espn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Built Ford Tough Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 What's his true potential? Do you see him living up to the hype in the NBA? More skilled, less athletic version of Paul Millsap is what I see him as. Not an All-Star, but a solid double double guy who is a reliable starting power forward and 3rd option type of guy. As for him living up to the hype in the NBA, I don't see why not considering he doesn't really have much NBA hype to begin with. He started off the season as an after thought to guys like Harrison Barnes, Perry Jones, Kyrie Irving, Josh Selby, Brandon Knight and Enes Kanter. He was, if I recall, projected as a late lottery pick before the season started and has only recently moved his way up the draft board due to his great play so far. Even then, I still don't think people are really hyping him up too much. Most see him as what I mentioned above and I don't see why he can't live up to that kind of expectations. Also, a main reason for people talking about him is because so many of the other highly touted Freshman are struggling. Barnes has been awful, Knight has shown no point guard instincts, Irving is hurt, Jones has been solid, but unspectacular and Selby missed the beginning chunk of the season. Outside of Terrence Jones (and Irving when he was healthy), no Freshman really played like they were expected to, so with Sullinger meeting, and perhaps exceeding, those expectations, it is natural that he gets talked about more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owner Real Deal Posted January 27, 2011 Owner Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 BFT covered everything I would've wanted to say, but keep in mind that people saw Blake Griffin as that player that "just dominated smaller college opposition." While Sullinger isn't going to be compared to Griffin (they aren't the same player), he can put in work and polish his game to be NBA-ready by the time November 2011 rolls in (assuming he declares). The potential is definitely there. If his work ethic follows, the transition will be a success. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Built Ford Tough Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 BFT covered everything I would've wanted to say, but keep in mind that people saw Blake Griffin as that player that "just dominated smaller college opposition." While Sullinger isn't going to be compared to Griffin (they aren't the same player), he can put in work and polish his game to be NBA-ready by the time November 2011 rolls in (assuming he declares). The potential is definitely there. If his work ethic follows, the transition will be a success. The thing that made people think so little (for lack of a better word) of Griffin was because he didn't really show too much of his skill level in college because he was so much stronger and more athletic than the competition. He really did just bully his way around the paint in college (at least from what I remember), so people didn't think he was as skilled as he has shown himself to be in the NBA thus far. With Sullinger, it is basically the opposite. People don't think that he really has the athletic tools and size to compete with NBA caliber bigs. I don't think anybody questions his skill level, but they are concerned whether or not he will be able to adapt to the more athletic bigs that he will go against every night in the pros. Similar scenarios though, no doubt about it. I never really thought of that before but they are very similar with just the roles reversed basically. I actually think that Sullinger can become a very good low post player if he is able to find a way to nulify the physical disadvantages that he will have in the NBA. I didn't like him as a pro prospect coming out of high school all that much but he has definitely opened my eyes so far this year and has made me re-think my stance on him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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