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Coal Aldrich

larryselbows

larryselbows

Banned
Is it just me, or was Greg Ostertag frustrating as a player because he couldn't catch the ball and messed up doing relatively simple basketball tasks. However, he was really good at clogging the lane and frankly, without him, we would not have made the NBA finals in '97 and '98.

Now with Aldrich, I think you have a player that brings a skill that is necessary for a strong NBA basketball team; shot blocking. Unlike Ostertag though, he can catch and seems to be fairly good at timing the ball. Also, he displays some decent coordination.

Do I think that he is going to be an NBA superstar? Definitely NOT. Do I think that he can alleviate some serious flaws on the Jazz? Most likely, yes. At #9 I think Aldrich would be a great pick, especially when you think about how much better the Jazz would have been in '97 and '98 had Otag been able to do the simple tasks that Aldrich can.
 
Aldrich is legit. Dude's going to be an effective starting center in the NBA for a long time.
 
I have seen a lot of dissing of Aldrich, comments about his size and being an Ostertag clone.

I agree that Ostertag was really really good at a couple of things, and really bad at a couple of others. Every player has flaws, but they also have strengths, and he was really good at protecting the hoop, clogging the lane, defending inside, etc.

If Aldrich is almost as good as Tag at those things, and significantly better offensively, (which is the impression that I get from the scouting reports) then he would be a real asset to the Jazz, and bring significant improvement pretty quickly.

The questions, however are about his true size, and if he really can defend the paint almost as well as Tag did. While we all have our opinions, that is the job of the Jazz basketball people, and the purpose of the workouts.

I am really curious about what the JAZZ FO folks really think after the workouts (not just the media statements). We will likely have to wait until draft day to get a feel for that.
 
Aldrich is an awesome pick if the Jazz keep Boozer. But if they don't... meh. Wouldn't be disappointed at best in that situation.
 
I miss the drama Tag brought, every night, ya know? Cussin at Sloan on the bench, throwin a Coke can at Sloan's head in the locker room when he's givin a talk, alla dat! If this guy can give us that kinda drama, he would be worth the pick for the entertainment value alone, doncha think?
 
Yes to Aldrich. He at least has the most potential to be what we are lacking. I like a lot of the sg and sf's but we need a big defender. If he fails at filling the spot then at least we tried. I would hate to draft a Babbit type that turns into a bust as well. I am here in Reno and watched Babbit play many times this year and was not that impressed. I know he has skills (and would take him at 15-25 range) but I would bet on Aldrich before I bet on Babbit. Bigs are just more valuable.
 
I wouldn't mind getting Aldrich in the teens or late first round. But not at #9. You would hope that @ #9 you would be able to find a starter that could end up being a star. Not a Joel Chris Phzilla/Troy Murphy type career role/bench player.
 
I can understand only two concerns about Aldrich that a lot of people have on this board: his shooting form and his limited upside. Anything else just misinformation or stereotypes, IMO. Just because he doesn't have the potential to be a perennial all-star doesn't make him a bad pick. It would take quite a bit of luck to land a perennial all-star at the 9th pick anyways.

He's underrated offensively (very efficient, almost never takes a bad shot) and for a guy his size, he has very good mobility. By far the biggest myth (strictly based on stereotyping) on here about him is that he is just like Ostertag, but his mobility is MUCH better than Ostertag's ever was. Anybody that's watched both of the play and not going off stereotypes would know that comparison isn't accurate. He's not a project and the most NBA ready big man in the draft. He's mature, so he's not going to take as much adjusting to the NBA level as a Whiteside or Monroe, and will be a force in the paint defensively on the NBA level. Any team in the league could use more of that...especially the Jazz. He seems like a smart pick at #9 if he's there to me...
 
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