I'm on the Moreland band wagon. Are you?
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K
At first I didn't think he would get playing time with us but now I really don't see how with that shotblocking/activity he would not get playing time, honestly Noel who I am really high on does not look much better if at all than Moreland at this point in time.
This kid could be a massive steal if we can lock him up, that passions and athletic ability will take him places.
Every good project developer wants "Moreland"
This kid could be a massive steal if we can lock him up, that passions and athletic ability will take him places.
Every good project developer wants "Moreland"
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Moreland was pretty average offensive rebounder in college and that usually directly tied to strength. I'm not just talking about obvious guys like Love or Griffin, who will certainly overpower Moreland, but a lot of bench guys...not everyone is Channing Fry, that's for sure.
Looking at b-r.com, it was probably just Summer League, because I remember reading, that he was tried out as SF first.
Looking at b-r.com, it was probably just Summer League, because I remember reading, that he was tried out as SF first.
K
I'm not really worried about Moreland one on one tbh, all the guys that are going to complete destory him will destory 99% of the L one on one regardless. Moreland is that long insanely athletic player who can literally cover 2-4 people on one possession we currently have no one that can do that.
Him getting overpowered is not really a issue, Serge Ibaka gets smashed and overpowered in the post all the time and people still have him in the All NBA defence team. Noah against stronger players get punished (see what Nene and Cousins did to him), Sanders is not the strongest not even close, DeAndrea Jordan is not very strong either compard to a lot of C's., Taj Gbson and Anthony Davis most these guys have a similar build to Eric. These guys are not powerhouses at all and still elite defenders due to quickness, effort timing which Moreland has in spades. Now I'm not saying he's as good as any of those guys but the whole thing he will get overpowered in a non issue when he makes up for it in other areas.
Also after someone else linked the youtube video I had to gif this disgusting block
Him getting overpowered is not really a issue, Serge Ibaka gets smashed and overpowered in the post all the time and people still have him in the All NBA defence team. Noah against stronger players get punished (see what Nene and Cousins did to him), Sanders is not the strongest not even close, DeAndrea Jordan is not very strong either compard to a lot of C's., Taj Gbson and Anthony Davis most these guys have a similar build to Eric. These guys are not powerhouses at all and still elite defenders due to quickness, effort timing which Moreland has in spades. Now I'm not saying he's as good as any of those guys but the whole thing he will get overpowered in a non issue when he makes up for it in other areas.
Also after someone else linked the youtube video I had to gif this disgusting block
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The weight isn't an issue for me. Pretty much all the best defensive bigs in the NBA are around that weight anyway and there's numerous examples throughout NBA history of guys his weight being elite defenders.
The next logical thing to do is to see if he can continue this success in Reno next year and work on his game. Next level up of competition, more sample size for us to get a more clear look at him. There's no reason to send him to the NBA team and just let him sit at the end of the bench. Would much rather see him put up a strong year in Reno and possibly groom him for a rotational spot the following season.
The next logical thing to do is to see if he can continue this success in Reno next year and work on his game. Next level up of competition, more sample size for us to get a more clear look at him. There's no reason to send him to the NBA team and just let him sit at the end of the bench. Would much rather see him put up a strong year in Reno and possibly groom him for a rotational spot the following season.
The best defensive bigs don't weigh 224. Even the guys in that range with potential need another 15lbs at least to be able to hang and bang. And I'm actually not entirely sure with his build he can add it. Just a scrawny build. But this is a summer league invite we're talking about, not a Top 5 pick. To find even a guy without perfect size who not only has the right traits, but actually uses them with enough enthusiasm to be an impact player in SL is just a flat gift.
Maybe we can find some Hollywood doc to lipsuction off 50lbs from Sim's middle and squirt it into Moreland. Then we could come out of SL with 2 promising young bigs.
Maybe we can find some Hollywood doc to lipsuction off 50lbs from Sim's middle and squirt it into Moreland. Then we could come out of SL with 2 promising young bigs.
Here is to hoping Moreland and Oreakhi are in the Kings training camp. Then if that works out then spend time in Reno. Perhaps one of them along with Brooks turn into gems found by the Kings in SL.
It would be nice to have quality contributions from end of the bench players like the Spurs seem to get.
It would be nice to have quality contributions from end of the bench players like the Spurs seem to get.
But that's the thing. Moreland DOES have the same size and build as the other athletic shotblockers in the league like Sanders, Davis, Hendon, Chandler and Camby.
Yeah, it'd be nice to get a full sized defensive center like DeAndre Jordan or Andre Drummond but outside of those two guys all the athletic shotblockers/weak side defenders are about the same size and build.
Now Serge Ibaka has about 20-25 lbs of pure muscle on all the guys I first mentioned and it doesn't help him bang at all. In fact he's routinely abused in the post. Something about that long, lean build just works against being a man defender in the blocks.
That's why a guy like Jason Thompson is valuable. As a change of pace when teams like the Spurs or Grizzlies are playing two physical bugs and you need someone to defend down low.
Yeah, it'd be nice to get a full sized defensive center like DeAndre Jordan or Andre Drummond but outside of those two guys all the athletic shotblockers/weak side defenders are about the same size and build.
Now Serge Ibaka has about 20-25 lbs of pure muscle on all the guys I first mentioned and it doesn't help him bang at all. In fact he's routinely abused in the post. Something about that long, lean build just works against being a man defender in the blocks.
That's why a guy like Jason Thompson is valuable. As a change of pace when teams like the Spurs or Grizzlies are playing two physical bugs and you need someone to defend down low.
Moreland has a similar build to them as schoolkids, but those guys all grew into their bodies a bit as they got effective. Well, Davis hasn't yet. Which actually is one of the reasons why his defense was considerably overrated last year. Give him a bump and he's sitting on his scrawny ass next to the cheerleaders. But he'll get there, he at least has the shoulders to carry some bulk. And bulk = power. But Camby, Sanders, Chandler, they all play/played at 235+ as they settled in. Moreland will need to chow some Ultimate Cheeseburgers to get there himself. At that weight as you noted they still can't deal with real power in the post, but they can at least stay in the paint and battle on the glass.
Not too worried about weight, that can always be increased. Takes 6-8 weeks to notice muscle hypertrophy and weight going up. Not very long at all in the grand scheme of things. He has a legitimate chance of making the team because what he can provide is something we currently don't have on the roster. Even in spot minutes let him go there and create some havoc and aggravate everyone and that would be good enough for me initially. With time, he can do more and perhaps be a noticeable factor off the bench.
Sure, you'd like to see Moreland get bigger/stronger but (1) long lean guys don't ever add the lower body strength they need to hold up against bulldozers in the post and (2) every one of those guys (Camby, Chandler, Sanders, Henson, Davis) came into the league at pretty much the exact same weight as Moreland (and in Henson's case 8 lbs less) and were pretty good per minute rebounders and shot blockers from day one. In fact, Camby was the only one that became a significantly better rebounder (per minute or per game) after a few years in the league.
I think you can argue that a lack of bulk is why none of those guys got heavy minutes early on but again, only Davis and Chandler were significantly younger than Moreland when they were drafted. Just like Camby, Sanders and Henson, Moreland will be 22 to start the season. No reason to think he won't add weight. Frame wise he's got as much potential to add muscle as Davis or Camby.
Hell, Nerlens Noel was only 206 lbs at the combine. His wingspan was 0.25" longer than Morelands and his standing reach was exactly the same and one huge concern was that not only might his lack of bulk limit his effectiveness & increase his injury potential but that he lacked the frame to add significant weight. After a year of rehab Noel says he now weighs 228 lbs with a goal of 235 lbs by the end of summer.
EDIT: According to this article Moreland is already focused on adding weight and is currently at 230 lbs meaning he's already gained 6 lbs since the Combine. Nice.
Being realistic, there's a reason why Camby, Chandler and Davis were top 2 picks, why Sanders and Henson were taking in the middle of the first round and why Moreland went undrafted. He was not a huge prospect coming out of high school and has shown himself to be a limited player with no real offensive game and no huge strides made in his time at OSU. That said, the advantage that Moreland has is that he knows exactly what his role is.
Tyson Chandler came into the league at 18 and wanted to be a Kevin Garnett type player. It took him a number of years before he realized that his job was to run the floor, crash the boards, set screens and patrol the paint. Marcus Camby and Davis also came in as the anointed saviors of the franchises, asked to score, be a leader, anchor the defense etc. Moreland doesn't have nearly that level of responsibility (which is good because offensively he is limited) and he knows that all he has to do is rebound, rotate on D and protect the rim.
I like the kid. I think he has the tools, the mindset and (unlike Whiteside and to a lesser extent Justin Williams) he has the court awareness to be in the right place. Let's see if he can translate things to the next level and how he deals with size in the post but I'm firmly on the bandwagon.
I think you can argue that a lack of bulk is why none of those guys got heavy minutes early on but again, only Davis and Chandler were significantly younger than Moreland when they were drafted. Just like Camby, Sanders and Henson, Moreland will be 22 to start the season. No reason to think he won't add weight. Frame wise he's got as much potential to add muscle as Davis or Camby.
Hell, Nerlens Noel was only 206 lbs at the combine. His wingspan was 0.25" longer than Morelands and his standing reach was exactly the same and one huge concern was that not only might his lack of bulk limit his effectiveness & increase his injury potential but that he lacked the frame to add significant weight. After a year of rehab Noel says he now weighs 228 lbs with a goal of 235 lbs by the end of summer.
EDIT: According to this article Moreland is already focused on adding weight and is currently at 230 lbs meaning he's already gained 6 lbs since the Combine. Nice.
Being realistic, there's a reason why Camby, Chandler and Davis were top 2 picks, why Sanders and Henson were taking in the middle of the first round and why Moreland went undrafted. He was not a huge prospect coming out of high school and has shown himself to be a limited player with no real offensive game and no huge strides made in his time at OSU. That said, the advantage that Moreland has is that he knows exactly what his role is.
Tyson Chandler came into the league at 18 and wanted to be a Kevin Garnett type player. It took him a number of years before he realized that his job was to run the floor, crash the boards, set screens and patrol the paint. Marcus Camby and Davis also came in as the anointed saviors of the franchises, asked to score, be a leader, anchor the defense etc. Moreland doesn't have nearly that level of responsibility (which is good because offensively he is limited) and he knows that all he has to do is rebound, rotate on D and protect the rim.
I like the kid. I think he has the tools, the mindset and (unlike Whiteside and to a lesser extent Justin Williams) he has the court awareness to be in the right place. Let's see if he can translate things to the next level and how he deals with size in the post but I'm firmly on the bandwagon.
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Speaking of building muscle, what players like Moreland, Sanders, Henson, Chandler, Davis, etc. have in common is their body types. They are ectomorphs. By definition; a person with a lean and delicate body build or in other words, a hard gainer. They have long arms & legs and will be difficult to gain a lot of mass on the chest and arms. However, they can gain significant weight on their shoulders and back. They also need to eat more than the other two body types because they excessively burn calories at a more rapid pace due to their slight frame. I'm an ectomorph myself so I would know, with the proper nutrition and weight room training, Moreland is more than capable of adding 10-15 pounds because he has so much more room left to fill out his weak muscle areas, especially the legs.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/07/20/6569940/kings-take-a-long-look-at-moreland.html
Some good stuff here. Sign him asap
Some good stuff here. Sign him asap
The best defensive bigs don't weigh 224. Even the guys in that range with potential need another 15lbs at least to be able to hang and bang. And I'm actually not entirely sure with his build he can add it. Just a scrawny build. But this is a summer league invite we're talking about, not a Top 5 pick. To find even a guy without perfect size who not only has the right traits, but actually uses them with enough enthusiasm to be an impact player in SL is just a flat gift.
Maybe we can find some Hollywood doc to lipsuction off 50lbs from Sim's middle and squirt it into Moreland. Then we could come out of SL with 2 promising young bigs.
Maybe we can find some Hollywood doc to lipsuction off 50lbs from Sim's middle and squirt it into Moreland. Then we could come out of SL with 2 promising young bigs.
Ibaka, Davis, Non-crazy version of Larry Sanders, Joakim Noah, Tyson Chandler are all within 10 pounds of that. If you made a top 10 defensive bigs list, you're probably going to find all those guys on it. Basically, the big physical beasts in the NBA are Cuz, Drummond, DeAndre Jordan, Bogut, Howard, and Marc Gasol. All of whom, it would be Cuz's responsibility to guard. He needs to get stronger certainly, but a good year of strength and conditioning down in Reno and I think he'd be able to hang with any PF in the NBA not named Kevin Love on the low-block. And Love kills everyone, so that's kind of a meh issue.
I like what someone said though that if we drafted Moreland in the top 10, we'd be thrilled with how he's playing thus far in SL and probably getting ready to slot him in next to Cuz soon enough. The benefit we have is Moreland was as you said, a gift, and we can take our time developing him in Reno and not need an immediate return off him.
This is interesting, hadn't thought about this:
https://twitter.com/EricPincus/status/491276833074061312
We didn't offer Collison the entire MLE - we kept a slice so that we could offer a rookie a deal that is longer than two years (the minimum contract exception allows for only two years). Thus we could do a deal with Moreland with unguaranteed money for three years, then have full Bird Rights to keep him around if he earns his keep.
https://twitter.com/EricPincus/status/491276833074061312
We didn't offer Collison the entire MLE - we kept a slice so that we could offer a rookie a deal that is longer than two years (the minimum contract exception allows for only two years). Thus we could do a deal with Moreland with unguaranteed money for three years, then have full Bird Rights to keep him around if he earns his keep.
I don't want Moreland to add too much weight. Part of the reason he's been so effective in summer league is that he's very mobile. He's beating guards down the court and hustling his way to rebounds which are out of his area. Sure he's going to need to get stronger in his lower body to hold position in the post, but we don't need to make him into something he's not either. His mobility is probably his greatest asset right now. He doesn't have dominant size or length but he can beat guys to spots. Like any rookie he's going to be able to work on his body once he gets into a professional working environment with a full-time trainer and state of the art weight room. I'm not really worried about it. Like most rookies he'll be a little bit outclassed this season physically, but over a couple years he'll catch up.
Jeeze Brick,
For years and years you've complained about us not having a shot blocker on the roster....Now we finally may have found a legit shot blocking prospect, and he's too skinny for you!
Just no pleasing some people....
For years and years you've complained about us not having a shot blocker on the roster....Now we finally may have found a legit shot blocking prospect, and he's too skinny for you!
Just no pleasing some people....