Tag Archives: Jabari Parker

LANDING LEBRON

Posted: Jun 19, 2014 by . Filed under Blog Posts, Feature Articles | 17 Comments

Writers note – This story was written before Joel Embiid suffered a right foot injury and it is being evaluated. If the injury is serious, along with his recent back issues, it could change a lot in my plan to “Land LeBron”!

If the Cavaliers are serious about trying to reunite with LeBron James and get him to return to Cleveland as a free agent this off season, there are a number of things they need to do before free agency starts on July 1st to even have a chance of making this happen. I’m not saying it will, I’m saying it would better their chances.

LeBron James photo small 11-27-13

First off, since they don’t have a Pat Riley or Phil Jackson in the front office they need to hire a coach who’s been a winner on the sidelines, played in the NBA and has some cache and a name. Right now none of their reported candidates have that combination.  Tyronn Lue doesn’t. Neither does Alvin Gentry or David Blatt. While there is no proven, championship winning coach available out there, the closest thing to a coach who’s been successful on the sidelines, has played the game and has some “street cred” to go along with his game smarts is Mark Jackson.

That move I believe would get LeBron’s attention while he is on vacation with his family and thinking about his future.  Problem is, according to a story I read from the News-Herald/Morning Journal’s Bob Finnan today, he had a quote from Jackson in the article saying that reports that the Cavs have contacted him are, “Nothing but rumors and speculation.”  If that indeed is the case, and G.M. David Griffin has said they will leave no stone unturned as they search for their next head coach, you have to ask yourself why haven’t the Cavs contacted Mark Jackson?  What are they waiting for, especially if they are thinking about trying to lure LBJ back to C’Town?

Secondly, if you’re not going to make a major trade for Kevin Love, and the only way I do that if I’m the Cavs is if I get Love to sign a contract extension, then you draft center Joel Embiid. Now granted, you have to feel confident that after putting him through all of your medical tests that his back is fine, but if it is, then you go get the “Big” out of Kansas.

Embiid has a ton of upside, and while right now he’s still a little raw on offense, he reportedly impressed the Cavs in his work out by showing off his great foot work and the ability to shoot the basketball from some distance, along with a nice touch around the rim. While his offense is a work in progress and there is evidence there that it will develop, he can make his presence felt in his rookie season with his defense and rebounding. Right away he gives the Cavs a much needed rim protector in blocking shots and altering others. Plus his rebounding would allow the Cavs to get out and run more and get easy baskets in transition.

So if Jackson ended up being your coach and Embiid was the choice as the first overall pick in the draft, you would have your coach who’s got some swag to go along with his winning record in the NBA as your bench boss and you’d have a young legitimate center with a lot of potential and the ability to patrol the paint. On top of that you’d have a fourth year all-star point guard in Kyrie Irving, a third year shooting guard in Dion Waiters, plus some cap space and maneuverability to fill some other spots on your roster through trade or free agency.

 

There have been some reports out there that LeBron and Kyrie don’t get along that well any more, or that James doesn’t want to play with a ball dominate point guard. I say that’s hogwash. After seeing how a lack of point guard play killed the Heat in the NBA Finals against San Antonio this year, I believe LBJ understands the importance of having a top notch point guard in today’s game and would sacrifice being in control of the offense the majority of the time if it meant more wins and less minutes for him as he gets older.

LeBron and Kyrie shake hands at Z jersey Ceremony 3-8-14

While none of what I just wrote would guarantee that LeBron James will decide to opt out of his contract in Miami and come back to Cleveland this off season as a free agent, I believe if the Cavs are serious about bringing James home again, it has to start there. If LeBron is not in their plans, then they can consider hiring a Tyronn Lue or a David Blatt as their inexperienced head coach and fill the small forward hole on their roster by picking either Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker and continue to build for the future with a young squad growing together over time.

But if the Cavaliers want to try and lure LeBron back and win right away, bold moves and chances have to be taken by Dan Gilbert and David Griffin, and hiring Jackson and drafting Embiid would be the place to start!

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RODA RATINGS – SHOOTING EFFCIENCY FOR TOP COLLEGE PLAYERS

Posted: Jun 17, 2014 by . Filed under Blog Posts, Feature Articles | 16 Comments

When NBA General Managers put a file together on a player they are thinking about selecting in the NBA Draft, they’re looking for any numbers and information that may help them get an edge over their fellow G.M.’s. With that in mind, one of the things I look at, and they may look at is, how efficient is a player when he shoots the ball from the field, from 3-point range and the free throw line.

So I take the different shooting categories and add their percentages together to create an overall shooting efficiency number. Below are two lists. The first is field goal percentage, plus 3-point percentage, plus free throw percentage. The second list is field goal percentage plus free throw percentage.

 

Field Goal Percentage + 3-Point Field Goal Percentage + Free Throw Percentage

1   Doug McDermott       53%FG + 45%(3FG) + 86%FT     =    184

2   Nik Stauskas              47%FG + 44%(3FG) + 82%FT     =     173

3   Noah Vonleh             52%FG + 48%(3FG) + 72%FT     =      172

4   Adreian Payne          50%FG + 42%(3FG) + 79%FT     =     171

Cleanthony Early      49%FG + 38%(3FG) + 84%FT     =     171

Shabazz Napier         43%FG + 41%(3FG) + 87%FT     =      171

7   Kyle Anderson          48%FG + 48%(3FG) + 74%FT     =      170

8   Rodney Hood           46%FG  + 42%(3FG) + 81%FT     =      169

9   DeAndre Daniels      47%FG + 42%(3FG) + 79%FT     =      168

10 Jordan Adams           46%FG + 36%(3FG) + 84%FT     =     166

11 Gary Harris                43%FG + 35%(3FG) + 81%FT     =     159

12 Jabari Parker             47%FG + 36%(3FG) + 75%FT     =     158

13 Glen Robinson III     49%FG + 31%(3FG) + 76%FT     =     156

14 Andrew Wiggins        45%FG + 34%(3FG) + 76%FT     =     155

15 Tyler Ennis                41%FG + 35%(3FG) + 77%FT     =     153

16 Joel Embiid               63%FG + 20%(3FG) + 69%FT     =     152

17 Zach Lavine              44%FG + 38%(3FG) + 69%FT     =     151

18 James Young            41%FG + 35%(3FG) + 71%FT     =     147

19 Marcus Smart          42%Fg + 30%(3FG) + 73%FT      =     145

20 Julius Randle            50%FG + 17%(3FG) + 71%FT     =     138

 

 FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE + FREE THROW PERCENTAGE

1   Doug McDermott       53%FG + 86%FT     =    139

2   Cleanthony Early      49%FG + 84%FT     =     133

3   Joel Embiid                63%FG + 69%FT     =     132

4   Shabazz Napier         43%FG + 87%FT     =     130

Jordan Adams           46%FG + 84%FT     =     130

6   Nik Stauskas              47%FG + 82%FT     =     129

Adreian Payne          50%FG + 79%FT     =      129

8   Rodney Hood            46%FG + 81%Ft     =       127

9   DeAndre Daniels      47%FG + 79%FT     =      126

10 Glen Robinson III     49%FG + 76%FT     =    125

TALKING SPURS CHAMPS, LEBRON A FREE AGENT?, CAVS DRAFT AND HEAD COACH

Posted: Jun 16, 2014 by . Filed under Audio, Podcasts | 15 Comments

FoxSportsOhio.com NBA Beat Writer Sam Amico joined me just hours after the Heat lost to the Spurs in the NBA Finals and we quickly got into what that means for LeBron’s future. Will he opt out and become a Free Agent? If so, could he come back to Clevleand?Who are the Cavs going to take with that number #1 pick and who’s going to be coaching the “Wine and Gold” next year? Listen Here –

Sam Amico Photo

WHAT THE CAVALIERS NEED MOST

Posted: Jun 15, 2014 by . Filed under Blog Posts, Feature Articles | 16 Comments

The Cavs biggest needs this off season via the draft, free agency or trades are very simple, they need a center and they need multiple wing players.

When you look at their roster they’re overloaded at point guard with Kyrie Irving, Jarrett Jack and Matthew Dellavedova.

While their shooting guards really aren’t shooting guards, they feel they have a young pair in Waiters and Sergey Karasev.  Waiters to me is a point guard, or at least what I call a “Ball Guard”. He needs the ball in his hands in order to be effective and that really doesn’t mesh well when he and Kyrie Irving are on the floor together. The Cavs may be willing to try one more season to see if Irving and Waiters can create chemistry on the floor together, but then again remember; David Griffin didn’t draft either one of them so he may be willing to pull the trigger on a trade of one or the other.  But for now let’s say Waiters stays.

Tristan Thompson and Anthony Bennett are their power forwards, while neither one of those guys excite meet, at least they have what is considered a starter on this team, in Thompson. So again that takes us back to small forward and center positions.

Anderson Varejao could be the team’s starting center if need be, but there’s the possibility they could trade him this off season. But if they do keep him, he’s really not a true center, he’s more of a power forward.  Tyler Zeller is a nice back-up center, but nothing more and Spencer Hawes is a free agent and he’s not your typical center either.  Hawes is a stretch 5, who prefers to play away from the basket and gives you no defensive presence around the rim at all, as well as no toughness.  So depending on what he’s asking for, the Cavs may not resign him.

After watching Luo Deng struggle to stay healthy all season and with all the NBA miles he’s put on his body, I have no desire to bring him back as the starting small forward, especially for what he’s going to be commanding in free agency dollars. Alonzo Gee is nothing more than the 8th, 9th or 10th player on this team.

So as David Griffin and Dan Gilbert prepare for the June 26th NBA Draft, they must decide where they are going to get their center and small forwards(plural) from. That’s what makes this draft so interesting and important. “G and G” have a chance to fill one of those major needs with the first overall pick and possibly another with the 33rd overall pick. If not there, then in free agency or with a major trade.

Joel Embiid would plug the hole at center and be an immediate upgrade defensively, athletically and physically. He’s a little raw on offense, but that’s because he’s only played basketball for about four years and considering his lack of experience, he has shown great improvement in his offensive game. However with Embiid it all comes down to the health of his back. If he cleared all the Cavs medical tests then I believe they should, and will take him number #1 overall. If his back did not pass the medical exams, then it comes down to Jabari Parker and Andrew Wiggins in the draft.

Parker is the more ready to play right now of the two both physically and mentally. His offensive game is more well-rounded and his outside shot is better at this point than Wiggins. However Wiggins in my opinion, has a higher ceiling and athletically and defensively he blows Parker out of the water. On top of that, Wiggins will still score the basketball from the wing position, just maybe not as consistently as Parker.

But luckily for the Cavs their biggest needs in the draft coincide with the best players in this draft. Meaning they really can’t wrong with whomever they pick. I would have gladly taken anyone of these three before the draft lottery, so they truly are in a win-win-win situation.  Now will one of the top three picks separate himself from the others eventually, probably, but you’re still going to get what many believe is an all-star caliber player no matter who you take.

My order of preference is Embiid first, but only if 100% healthy. Wiggins second because of defense and more upside and Parker third because unlike the other two, he’s more of just an offensive player.

Is it out of the realm of possibility that the Cavs maybe use the number #1 pick and a player to make a trade for an already established all-star caliber player? No it’s not, but I believe it’s unlikely considering the talent and potential that each of the top three picks possess.

So once the Cavs do make their selection with that first overall pick, that should tell us what direction they’re headed in as far as free agency and that’s when things could get even more interesting than the draft, depending on what you know who does in Miami.

MY BIO AND SCOUTING REPORT ON JABARI PARKER

Posted: Jun 13, 2014 by . Filed under Blog Posts, Feature Articles | 16 Comments

Jabari Parker

Small Forward – 6’9 – 241lbs – Age – 19 – Duke – FR

Reach – 8’11.5 – Wingspan – 6’11.75 Max Vert – ??

Season Averages: 19.1 PPG – 8.7 RPG – 1.2 APG – 47%FG – 36%(3FG) -75%FT

Draft Projection – Top 3 for sure, could go number #1 overall

Jabari Parker

Strengths

Most advanced offensively and physically of the top three freshmen being considered for the top pick in the draft. He’s a “Pick, Plug and Play” guy right away.

Solid athlete, not great, but is a good effort guy and a high character kid with a high basketball IQ.

Can score it inside and out with an array of moves and also passes the ball well because of his understanding of the game. So he possesses a complete all-around game on offense.

Can shoot it all over the court. Nice jumper with good range.
His rebounding and handle are above average.

Is a small forward but should be able to play some power forward as well depending on match ups and as he gets older and stronger.

Weaknesses

Below average defensive player especially on the perimeter because of slow foot speed. His pick n roll defense needs a ton of work and that’s a big part of the NBA game.

As knowledgeable as he is on offense, his defensive knowledge and understanding of team defense is not good and must improve.

Needs to get in better shape for the NBA game which is more up tempo than he’s used to on both offense and defense. This will also help him with his lift on jumpers and finishing at the rim.

Thinks offense first and at times that can hurt him. Will have to learn that just because he’s open doesn’t mean it’s a good shot in the NBA.

Had problems on offense against long, lengthy and aggressive defenders which he will face more of in the NBA.

Some think he might be a tweener. Too slow to play and guard the 3’s and not big enough to bang with the 4’s.
Roda Thoughts:

If you’re looking for a player to help you right away offensively, to score you point and potential and a higher ceiling aren’t your main concerns, then Parker is your guy over Joel Embiid and Andrew Wiggins. Parker scores in a variety of ways and his body is ready for the day-to-day NBA pounding, although he must watch his weight and get in better shape. If you have a rim protector or your squad plays solid team defense, then you’ll be able to hide Parker, whose biggest weakness is his defense. Parker is a Top 3 pick and if Embiid’s back doesn’t check out to the Cavs liking and owner Dan Gilbert’s patience is wearing thin of not making the playoffs, I could see the Cavs taking Parker over Wiggins because they want to win right away and Parker fills a major offensive void at the small forward position. Parker has been compared to Paul Pierce and Carmelo Anthony, so below are all three of their numbers from their freshman years in college.

FRESHAMN STATS IN COLLEGE:
Parker –     6’9-240-2014–  19.1ppg – 8.7rpg – 1.2apg – 47.3%fg – 35.8%(3fg) – 74.8%ft

Anthony – 6’8-230-2003–  22.2ppg– 10rpg– 2.2apg – 45.3%fg – 33.7%(3fg)– 70.6%ft

Pierce –    6’6-230-1996-     11.9ppg – 5.3rpg – 1.8apg – 41.9%ft – 30.4%(3fg) – 60.6%ft

RODA RANKINGS – TOP 5 PLAYERS AT EACH POSITION FOR THE 2014 NBA DRAFT

Posted: Jun 11, 2014 by . Filed under Blog Posts, Feature Articles | 91 Comments

Top 5 Point Guards

1 DANTE EXUM                  6’6 – 195 – Australia

2 MARCUS SMART             6’4 – 220 – Oklahoma St.

3 TYLER ENNIS                  6’2 – 181 – Syracuse

4 ELFRID PAYTON              6’4 – 185 – Louisiana Layayette

5 SHABAZZ NAPIER           6’1 – 185 – UCONN

 

Top 5 Shooting Guards

1 JAMES YOUNG                6’6 – 215 – Kentucky

2 NIK STAUSKAS                6’6 – 205 – Michigan

3 GARY HARRIS                 6’4 – 210 – Michigan St.

4 ZACH LaVINE                  6’5 – 181 – UCLA

5 P.J. HAIRSTON                6’4 – 228 – North Carolina/NBA D-League

 

Top 5 Small Forwards

1 ANDREW WIGGINS        6’8 – 200 – Kansas

2 JABARI PARKER              6’9 – 241 – Duke

3 RODNEY HOOD              6’8 – 210 – Duke

4 DOUG McDERMOTT       6’8 – 220 – Creighton

5 DARIO SARIC                  6’10 – 235 – Croatia

 

Top 5 Power Forwards

1 NOAH VONLEH              6’10 – 245 – Indiana

2 JULIUS RANDLE               6’9 – 240 – Kentucky

3 AARON GORDON           6’9 – 225 – Arizona

4 ADREIAN PAYNE             6’10 – 240 – Michigan St.

5 CLINT CAPELA                 6’10 – 210 – Switzerland

 

Top 5 Centers

1 JOEL EMBIID                   7’1 – 255 – Kansas

2 JUSUF NURKIC                6’11 – 280 – Bosnia

3 MITCH McGARY             6’10 – 285 – Michigan

4 WALTER TAVARES          7’2 – 265 – Spain

5 ARTEM KLIMENKO         7’1 – 228 – Russia

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RODA REPORT – ANSWERING YOUR TWEETS ABOUT THE CAVS

Posted: Jun 10, 2014 by . Filed under Audio, Podcasts | 285 Comments

Thanks to all the Twitches who tweeted questions about Mark Price and the Cavs to me @TheKennyRoda on Twitter. Here is the Podcast answering some of those questions.

Mark Price Video Photo

MY 2014 NBA MOCK DRAFT 1.0

Posted: Jun 10, 2014 by . Filed under Blog Posts, Feature Articles | 80 Comments

My approach to a mock draft is to take into consideration what a team’s biggest need is, gather information from as many sources as possible as to what they’re hearing the team might do and then factor in my ratings of the individual players. So it’s a combination of what I think the team should do and what I’m hearing the team might do. It’s not the greatest formula in the world, but then again this is just a mock draft. So if eight of my picks end up matching what the actual draft ends up being, I’ll be thrilled. With that said, here is the first of what will be two mock drafts. One today and then one on draft day, June 26th.

 

1st ROUND

1  Cleveland – JOEL EMBIID – Center – Kansas – 7’1 -255                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Embiid is the pick for the Cavaliers only IF he passes all of the medical tests on his back. If he does, he is the perfect “FIT” for Kyrie Irving and the Cavs defense. He’ll be able to play “Pick n Roll” on offense and be the rim protector the Cavs so desperately need. Plus he may have the most upside of any player in this draft. If he does not pass all the medical tests or there are any red flags, I would then have the Cavs select Andrew Wiggins first overall.

2  Milwaukee – JABARI PARKER – Small Forward – Duke – 6’9 – 241

3  Philadelphia – ANDREW WIGGINS – Small Forward – Kansas – 6’8 – 200

4  Orlando – DANTE EXUM – Point Guard – Australia – 6’6 – 195

5  Utah – NOAH VONLEH – Power Forward – Indiana – 6’10 – 245

6  Boston – AARON GORDON – Power Forward – Arizona – 6’9 – 225

7  LA Lakers – JULIUS RANDLE – Power Forward – Kentucky – 6’9 -240

8  Sacramento – MARCUS SMART – Point Guard – Oklahoma St. – 6’4 – 220

9  Charlotte – DOUG McDERMOTT – Small Forward – Creighton – 6’8 – 220

10 Philadelphia – NIK STAUSKAS – Shooting Guard – Michigan – 6’6 – 205

11 Denver – JAMES YOUNG – Shooting Guard – Kentucky – 6’6 – 215

12 Orlando – GARY HARRIS – Shooting Guard – Michigan St. – 6’4 – 210

13 Minnesota – RODNEY HOOD – Small Forward – Duke – 6’8 – 210

14 Phoenix – ADREIAN PAYNE – Power Forward – Michigan St. – 6’10 – 240

15 Atlanta – ZACH LaVINE – Shooting Guard – UCLA – 6’5 – 181

16 Chicago – TYLER ENNIS – Point Guard – Syracuse – 6’2 – 181

17 Boston – P.J. HAIRSTON – Shooting Guard – UNC/ NBA D-League – 6’4 – 228

18 Phoenix – DARIO SARIC – Small Forward – Croatia – 6’10 -235

19 Chicago –  CLEANTHONY EARLY – Small Forward – Wichita St. – 6’7 – 210

20 Toronto – CLINT CAPELA – Power Forward – Switzerland – 6’10 – 210

21 Oklahoma City – ELFRID PAYTON – Point Guard – Louisiana Lafayette – 6’4 – 185

22 Memphis – T.J. WARREN – Small Forward – North Carolina St. – 6’8 – 220

23 Utah – KYLE ANDERSON – Small Forward – UCLA – 6’9 – 230

24 Charlotte – JERAMI GRANT – Small Forward – Syracuse – 6’8 – 215

25 Houston –  GLEN ROBINSON III – Small Forward – Michigan – 6’7 – 212

26 Miami – JUSUF NURKIC – Center – Bosnia – 6’11 – 280

27 Phoenix –  C.J. WILCOX – Shooting Guard – Washington – 6’6 – 195

28 LA Clippers – K.J. McDANIELS – Small Forward – Clemson – 6’6 – 200

29 Oklahoma City – JARNELL STOKES – Power Forward – Tennessee – 6’8 – 260

30 San Antonio – KRISTAPS PORZINGIS – Power Forward – Latvia – 7’0 – 220

2nd ROUND

33 Cleveland – JORDAN ADAMS – Shooting Guard – UCLA – 6’5 – 210                                                                                                                                                                                                       If the Cavs take Embiid number #1 overall, they will look here to take the best wing player available and that could be Adams if he is still on the board.

 

COLLEGE COMPARISON’S – THE FRESHMAN YEARS – THE 2014 POTENTIAL TOP 3 PICKS

Posted: Jun 4, 2014 by . Filed under Blog Posts, Feature Articles | 16 Comments

It’s not quite as good as Saved By The Bell: The College Years with C’Town’s own Bob GolicSaved By The Bell - The CollegeYears

But as the June 26th NBA Draft gets closer here’s some more info to process as you and the Cavs try to decide who should be the #1 overall pick. Each of the Top 3 candidates have been compared to some current or former NBA stars, so I went back to all of their freshman years in college to see how their stats stack up against one another.

JOEL EMBIID

Joel Embiid photo - Courtesy of USA Today

Joel Embiid –  7’1-255-2014 – 11.2ppg  –  8.1rpg  –  2.6blk  –  62%fg  –   20%(3fg)  –  68%ft

H.Olajuwon – 7’0-255-1982 –   8.3ppg    –  6.2rpg  –  2.5blk  –  61%fg  –   0%(3fg)  –  56%ft

T. Duncan –6’11-248-1994 –  9.8ppg    –  9.6rpg  –  3.8blk  –   54%fg  –  100%(3fg) –  74%ft

 

 

ANDREW WIGGINS

AP FORT HAYS ST KANSAS BASKETBALL S BKC T25 KS

A. Wiggins – 6’8–200–2014 – 17ppg – 6rpg – 1.5apg  – 44.8%fg – 34.1%(3fg) – 77.5%ft

M. Jordan –   6’6–195-1982 – 13.5ppg – 4.4rpg – 1.8apg – 53.4%fg – 0%(3fg) – 72.2%ft

Sidney Moncrief -6’3-180-1976 –12.6ppg – 7.6rpg – 2.1apg – 66.5%fg – 0%(3fg)– 72.7%ft

 

 

JABARI PARKER

Jabari Parker Photo 1

 

J. Parker – 6’9-240-2014 – 19.1ppg – 8.7rpg – 1.2apg  – 47.3%fg – 35.8%(3fg) – 74.8%ft

Melo Anthony – 6’8-230-2003–22.2ppg–10rpg– 2.2apg – 45.3%fg – 33.7%(3fg)– 70.6%ft

Paul Pierce – 6’6-230-1996 – 11.9ppg – 5.3rpg – 1.8apg – 41.9%ft – 30.4%(3fg) – 60.6%ft

(Photos courtesy of USA Today, StandingOSports.com and Zagsblog.com) 

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I TALK EMBIID, WIGGINS AND PARKER WITH JOE KOTOCH FROM PROBASKETBALLDRAFT.COM

Posted: Jun 3, 2014 by . Filed under Audio, Podcasts | 109 Comments

ProBasketballDraft.com’s Joe Kotoch and I break down the three prospects the Cavs are considering for the number #1 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft.

David Griffin 2014 NBA Draft Lottery Photo