Men's Basketball vs UALR

[CajunEXPRESS]

EP is the ultimate point guard, only he has nobody to toss it to. He lacks free throw success, and a long jump shot. Things that he will improve on. He is by todays standards NBA ready because they draft premier players in the first round not on what you are, but what you might become. Second round is what you are now with much less hope of a bigger upside.

Case in mind is the Rivers kid that was drafted by the Pelicans. He was needing some physical maturation,seasoning, and after two seasons it looks like it was a wasted pick.

[SlappyCajun]

Looking at the competition they play against, EP and Long are not NBA eligible......Put them against top teams and they would be bench players.......

Elfrid Payton started for a team that included all NBA players. He shared the back court with a first round pick from Duke. The other lead guard will be a top 5 pick this year. The 4 man is a lottery pick out of Arizona. And, the five man is the number one HS Prospect in the country this year, who will be the number one pick in the NBA draft the following year. But, EP is not an NBA player? Also, go watch the gold medal game against Serbia, and EP was the best player in the second half.

[Parrott]

Josh, what site are you getting that mock draft from? I have to say, I'm shocked to see Payton going 23rd. And Long even being drafted. Guess it speaks to the watered down version that the NBA has become.

NBADraft.net.

From its website: "The team needs are not factored into the mock draft until after the NBA season ends. NBADraft.net has been projecting the NBA draft since 2000. Our projections are based on the opinions of the scouts that work for NBADraft.net, and the NBA and International scouts that we speak with."

DraftExpress.com has Payton as a second-round pick in 2014 (37th overall to Cavs): http://www.draftexpress.com/nba-mock-draft/2014/

More on DraftExpress.com: "Our staff pours through hours of video every year, travels to games and tournaments around the globe, and maintains a constant dialogue with the brightest minds in the business, in order to assemble the most comprehensive pool of information possible. We utilize the most modern scouting tools currently available anywhere in the world, often better than what NBA teams have at their disposal. We have become highly respected in the industry for the attention to detail, consistency, and quality we bring to our work."

Take what you will from that, but those guys aren't sitting in mom's basement and randomly making up mock drafts without input from pro scouts.

[ManAboutTown]

NBADraft.net.

From its website: "The team needs are not factored into the mock draft until after the NBA season ends. NBADraft.net has been projecting the NBA draft since 2000. Our projections are based on the opinions of the scouts that work for NBADraft.net, and the NBA and International scouts that we speak with."

DraftExpress.com has Payton as a second-round pick in 2014 (37th overall to Cavs): http://www.draftexpress.com/nba-mock-draft/2014/

More on DraftExpress.com: "Our staff pours through hours of video every year, travels to games and tournaments around the globe, and maintains a constant dialogue with the brightest minds in the business, in order to assemble the most comprehensive pool of information possible. We utilize the most modern scouting tools currently available anywhere in the world, often better than what NBA teams have at their disposal. We have become highly respected in the industry for the attention to detail, consistency, and quality we bring to our work."

Take what you will from that, but those guys aren't sitting in mom's basement and randomly making up mock drafts without input from pro scouts.

Well that's why I asked. I've never seen you post fly-by-night info. The question was 80% genuine, 20% snark.

Still pleasantly surprised however. I, like many here, have my reservations about his draft status. I know he shined amongst NBA hopefuls, but I put a lot of stock in what I see 2 times a week in a bad conference. Human nature I suppose.

Hope all is well JP.

[duggie85]

Well that's why I asked. I've never seen you post fly-by-night info. The question was 80% genuine, 20% snark.

Still pleasantly surprised however. I, like many here, have my reservations about his draft status. I know he shined amongst NBA hopefuls, but I put a lot of stock in what I see 2 times a week in a bad conference. Human nature I suppose.

Hope all is well JP.

-32nd in the country in ppg (as the 2nd best scorer on his own team)
-15th in the country in apg.
-Averages 6 rpg as a Point Guard.

I'd say he's doing exactly what a good player should do in a bad conference.

http://www.ncaa.com/stats/basketball...individual/140

[CajunHaven]

Why is it always out of the realm of possibility that there are others like Brad Stevens that are just waiting for that opportunity to seize. They just need the green light

At one time he was right under our nose! Paul Johnson

[SlappyCajun]

At one time he was right under our nose! Paul Johnson

Paul, is that you?

[Parrott]

Well that's why I asked. I've never seen you post fly-by-night info. The question was 80% genuine, 20% snark.

Still pleasantly surprised however. I, like many here, have my reservations about his draft status. I know he shined amongst NBA hopefuls, but I put a lot of stock in what I see 2 times a week in a bad conference. Human nature I suppose.

Hope all is well JP.

Not a problem. I'm used to dealing with some snark (both on the job and at home) but did not take offense to your post. I did not intend for my response to be snarky, so my apologies if it came across that way.

In my opinion, Elfrid Payton and Shawn Long are NBA prospects given their current skills, size and potential but are both far from finished products. They still have room to grow in college with remaining eligibility. As others have pointed out, the NBA cares about upside, and both of those guys have plenty of it.

[Just1More]

I like the way things are changing around this joint. In the past, we had players we thought should be NBAers. It took outsiders to tell us we were wrong. Now, we have outsiders telling us we have NBA prospects, and we're trying to deny it.

Neither Elfrid or Shawn are flashy. And neither play with attitude. It makes their otherwise high end talent look unsuspecting. I could care less if others think it's an excuse, but this team is one solid slasher with some size, attitude and athleticism from being a very good starting 5 that would walk right through the SBC and beyond.

[CajunHaven]

If you know Paul then you would know that he would not post that about himself. After all the mediocrity we've had to endure for the (almost) last decade; it needed to be said. During the very short time that he was our recruiting coordinator how about Ross Mouton,Adam James,Bryan Hamilton,Chris Cameron,Dwayne Mitchell,Orien Greene,Tirus Wade,etc. He's never really been acknowledged for any of the success we had at that time. But I know, I was there.

[ManAboutTown]

-32nd in the country in ppg (as the 2nd best scorer on his own team)
-15th in the country in apg.
-Averages 6 rpg as a Point Guard.

I'd say he's doing exactly what a good player should do in a bad conference.

http://www.ncaa.com/stats/basketball...individual/140

While numbers don't lie, they can definitely mislead. I hate to use the "eye test" argument, but, I almost have no choice. And I'm not the only one.

[ManAboutTown]

I like the way things are changing around this joint. In the past, we had players we thought should be NBAers. It took outsiders to tell us we were wrong. Now, we have outsiders telling us we have NBA prospects, and we're trying to deny it.

Neither Elfrid or Shawn are flashy. And neither play with attitude. It makes their otherwise high end talent look unsuspecting. I could care less if others think it's an excuse, but this team is one solid slasher with some size, attitude and athleticism from being a very good starting 5 that would walk right through the SBC and beyond.

Agreed. Hence my optimism about next year. I know Crazy gets annoyed when we use that justification, and I get his point, but we have some talent and athleticism coming in. And I think, just at the right time.