NBA Chat With Yannis 9/23/11

Join senior NCAA and NBA analyst Yannis Koutroupis for his weekly chat at 11am EST on 9/23/11! As always basketball questions from all levels are welcomed.

  1. Jhayee

    Ronnie Brewer,Kyle Korver.BOBCATS 1ST DRAFT PICK FOR O.J. Mayo,Shane Battier,Sam Young…

    TNX.

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      Welcome everyone to this week’s chat! It’s disappointing that there has still been such little movement on the Collective Bargaining Agreement front, but at least we’re roughly six weeks away from the start of college basketball. Time now for some questions, though.

      I see the Grizzlies saying no to this one. Basically, they give up the three best players in this deal based on what you think of Young. Even if you’re not a fan, Battier and Mayo are clearly the best two in it. Just not enough from Charlotte’s end to make this an intriguing deal for Memphis.

  2. devonte wilson

    robin lopez to the knicks for 3 million dollars and a second round pick? is that enough or should the knicks give up more but consider that the suns have gortat and he’s getting most of the minutes any way and robin is in the dog house for 1.not contributing and 2.cant stay healthy enough but the there maybe reasons the knicks make this trade for 1. they need size and robin would give them that 2. he can contribute if he can get healthy 3. he’s young so maybe the knicks are taking a big risk on a guy that really didnt live up to the hype but he’s young and has time to develop.

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      Well, the Knicks are in a position where they can take a big man like Lopez and just hope that he thrives in the system and by being surrounded by so much talent. He hasn’t been overly productive in his career up to this point, but it is clear that he can play and be a contributor. Everything just needs to come together for him: being healthy, in the right situation with the right teammates and consistent minutes. With that said, though, I don’t see the Suns giving him up without getting some kind of talent in return. They don’t think that badly of him to where they would be willing to give him up for just cash and a future second round pick. That’s just too Sarverish…

  3. devonte wilson

    whats your best guess on where jamal crawford will end up when free agency starts?

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      Great question. A bit tough to answer without know what the salary cap figure is going to be like. Because of all the uncertainty, I would feel most comfortable with saying that he finds a way to work something out with Atlanta just because I think they understand how vital he is to their team. The idea of him in Denver is quite intriguing to me, though, and obviously they have a big need for him and his offense after losing Chandler and Smith to China.

  4. devonte wilson

    everybody talks about how the knicks need a bigman but dont we also need some one to back-up amare and carmelo (quality back-ups) ronny turiaf and bill walker arent enough so who can we sign or trade for that would sense and give us some production

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      Good point Devonte, but it’s easier to find backups for Amar’e and Carmelo than it is to find a quality starting center in this league. So, there’s no doubt which one is more of a pressing need. Their starting center is going to play 25-35 minutes a night odds are. Amar’e and Carmelo’s backup will be lucky to see 15 minutes on a good night.

  5. Alex

    hey do you remember rick carlisle during the Finals saying he was ‘sick of lebron james and wanted to talk about the purity of the game’? it seems like a lot of other coaches and players felt the same–it seems like outside of media manipulated fans, no actually believes lebron is a good defender or a top nba player.

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      I can guarantee you right now there isn’t a coach in the league who would classify LeBron as anything other than a future Hall of Famer and a top three player in the league right now. Rick probably got asked about LeBron and his struggles 500 times in the Finals. I can understand him wanting to talk about his team and the way that they were performing rather than someone’s issues who he has no idea about. Those questions were better suited for Spoelstra than him. But to try to read into that too much and over analyze it to meaning that Carlisle doesn’t think he’s a good defender or top NBA players is simply ludicrous. Hopefully you let this comment from a media member influence your thoughts and change them, because believing that LeBron isn’t a good defender or top NBA player is laughable and simply wrong.

  6. Robert

    I think Rondo was the leader of the C’s in the past 2 years!When should the C’s start to trade the big 3?

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      Maybe in terms of production, but I still think that this was the big three’s team when you look at leadership and who guys in the locker room looked towards. That’s going to change over the next year or so. The team will, or should, be built around his strengths. As far as breaking up the big three, based on what Allen and Garnett did for this franchise I can see them just playing the year out and letting them retire as Celtics. It’s the right thing to do. However, if a great deal comes along Ainge may not have a choice but to break them up. It depends on his standpoint on having cap space for the 2012 offseason.

  7. Anthonyk

    Who would u rather build a team around lebron, D.Rose, or Dhoward? And why?

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      This is a really hard question for me to answer because my preference has always been to build from inside then out. From that standpoint I really want to take Dwight Howard because he’s so far ahead of everyone else at his position with really no equal. However, I’ve seen LeBron do more with less than anyone in the league. All-around there isn’t a more threatening and capable player around. Yes, he failed to win it all last year with a great supporting cast, but that’s the guy I want to start my franchise with. LeBron’s presence guarantees playoffs, no matter how lackluster the supporting cast is in my opinion.

  8. shad

    Should the Jazz try and reduce their logjam at the four? Maybe Paul Milsap for Marcus Thornton and a filler?

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      He’s the one who has to go, I think. Jefferson’s got a big contract, plus I’m hesitant to trade him based on his ability to play both the power forward and center position. He can play with Kanter and Favors, something I’m not sure that Millsap could do as effectively. There would be a solid amount of interest in him around the league, he’s very well respected.

  9. Victor

    which draft is gonna be more loaded, 2003 draft or next years draft. Weird having three top players on the same Miami team.

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      Yeah, it’s crazy how that all worked out. Who would have seen that happening back then. As for your question, I’m going to have to go with the 2003 draft just because they’ve already had eight years in the league and are well accomplished. Who knows what is going to have happen with the 2012 class, they could all end up being busts as far as we know. It’s just too early to put them in that kind of elite class, especially since all of the freshmen who make it so intriguing have yet to play a game yet.

  10. Dong of Dayton

    Hey Yannis,

    What do you think of Gerald Henderson for next year? Jackson is gone, he played pretty well the last month of the year. Is he a breakout candidate?

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      He’s someone to keep an eye on. I think he’ll have the opportunity to breakout, but I’m not going to bank on him myself. I haven’t seen enough in the time that he has gotten to make confident that this is going to be his year. I like him as a solid role player, but based on your question I think you’re expecting a little more.

  11. matt

    Can my raps trade Bargnani 4 something. He’s all offense.He only shoots. i like bigs who rebound, defend, help defend,etc. Valanciunas, ed davis + amir johnson r all better players.he needs to be on an established team. who is a good trade partner?

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      There will certainly be some teams interested in him who could use his offense. The problem is that the Raptors believe in him and while they may be frustrated with his shortcomings, there’s a legitimate fear there that eventually things are going to click and he’s going to be one of the league’s toughest players to match up with offensively while being serviceable enough in the other aspects of the game. Until Valanciunas is in a Raptors’ jersey tearing it up and demanding more time, I would hold onto him in anything other than a great deal.

  12. Maurice

    May i please have your top 10 college SG NBA draft prospects thank You

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      Bradley Beal, Austin Rivers, Jeremy Lamb, William Buford, Darius Johnson-Odom, John Jenkins, Doron Lamb, Will Barton, Reggie Bullock and Seth Curry in no particular order.

  13. drew

    If you were Adlemena what changes would you make? Who stays? Who goes and with who goes who do you look to bring in?
    Thanks

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      I just get the feeling that Adelman will hate Darko, so he could end up being the first casualty. Although, he could get a chance based on how much Adelman likes big men who know how to pass the ball, and Darko is somewhat skilled at that. They really need someone with more of a back-to-the-basket game at that position, though. I would want to keep the cap space in tact and just allow players to have more freedom than they had under Rambis. There is some good pieces here, I really feel like Adelman is the guy to put them all together and get way more out of them.

  14. matt

    do u think my raps should trade DeRozan?

  15. matt

    DeRozan,Bargnani, and Ed Davis r the only players on my raps with trade value. Thing are looking bad :(

  16. matt

    Valanciunas is the best player on my raps. Nice to see a big who doesn’t chuck up shots, plays with heart for the team, loves to rebound, defend and is clever. He is the anti-bargnani

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      Technically, he’s not on the Raptors yet and won’t be until next year.

  17. Steve

    What’s up Yannis? What are your thoughts on Tobias Harris? I was a little suprised the Bucks passed up on Marshon Brooks, and others to pick him. Does he remind you of any current or former players? What’s his ceiling?

    • Yannis Koutroupis

      This is going to be my last one everyone. Thanks for stopping by and sorry I couldn’t get to all of the questions. I’ll be back at my regular time next week.

      I like Tobias’ game because he’s mature, efficient and level headed. I can see how Skiles fell in love with him over a volume shooter like Brooks who doesn’t really play his style of basketball. As far as his ceiling, I think it really depends on what position he ends up playing. I can see him being more effective at the three than the four based on his size, but if he can’t defend out on the perimeter Skiles isn’t going to play him there.

  18. Alex Kennedy

    I like the additions of Kemba Walker, Bismack Biyombo and Corey Maggette, but I wouldn’t put any money on them. They’re losing a leader in Stephen Jackson and will be relying heavily on rookies, which is very tough to do after a lockout. I don’t think they’ll be the worst team in the East, but I’m not placing a bet on it.