What's new

August 20:Big Match Turkey&Germany-Enes Kanter&Dirk Nowitzki match is starting now:) live Link here

The good news with kanter is that at this point in his career, he's already able to affect the game while he's on the floor. He isn't dominating, but he has an affect on the glass, and actually seems like a solid man defender. After having not played in two years, I'm satisfied with that. As he progresses, and gets stronger, and gets more experience, I think he'll be very solid.
 
The good news with kanter is that at this point in his career, he's already able to affect the game while he's on the floor. He isn't dominating, but he has an affect on the glass, and actually seems like a solid man defender. After having not played in two years, I'm satisfied with that. As he progresses, and gets stronger, and gets more experience, I think he'll be very solid.

Figure he's not going to see a whole lot of action his first years with the jazz so if he's making the most out of his time on his floor is a good sign.
 
My concern with Kanter after seeing few of these friendlies is that he mostly duplicates what big AL does just not as good. So why Jazz drafted him and what plan is for him I am not so sure unless they planning to part with big Al. His screen setting and help defense is bad although man to man defense in the post is pretty good. Other concern I have he has very little lift after grabbing offensive rebounds and most of these putbacks and short jumpers will be swatted away by taller and more athletic NBA defenders. He does have tremendous upper body strength for 19 year old so if he learns how to use it effectively and create more space aka Malone lack of lift will not be as concerning. Also he looks shorter then 6'11, standing next to Koufos or Kaman or Fesenko who are all supposed to be 7 ft tall he looks at least two inches shorter.
Again these games are not great to judge about his offensive overall skills as Turkish team is just horrible so far and is not utilizing Kanter's mid range game at all, I don't remember him taking any 15-18ft jumpers except one miss from ft line vs Ukraine.
I just hope those knee braces means nothing... kind of strange to see 19 year old wearing them.
 
My concern with Kanter after seeing few of these friendlies is that he mostly duplicates what big AL does just not as good.
I dunno. He runs the floor A LOT better than Big Al, boxes out and pursues rebounds better, and seems to have a lot better defensive awareness (I think his team D has been extremely good the last two games). He also seems to not shy away from contact on offense, and ends up drawing a lot of fouls as a result. Obviously, these things may not translate at the NBA level, but I prefer what he brings to the table over what Big Al brings to the table (albeit at an unpolished level). It would be nice to see him get a little more lift on putback attempts- and his combine numbers make it seem as though he could improve in that area- but there's a lot to like.
 
Rebounding will not be on his short list of areas to work on. As for why we drafted him, who would you have drafted at #3 that is an obvious upgrade at the starter position? I believe we drafted BPA and at the very least, got the best asset.
 
i have to admit that at the beginning, i had very high expectations referring to enes kanter. in his first game, you could see that he was nervous and wanted to show everyone what he was able to do. so he was playing like 120 percent and seemed a little bit rusty and uncontrolled. sometimes a little bit disappointing. but we have to agree that this was absolutely normal for someone who hasn't played real organised basketball for two years but he has improved so quickly within a week.

he is one of the best rebounders i have seen, he's good from the freethrow line, he has solid range and some solid moves around the basket. his soft touch is really impressive, too. but what was really above what i expected, is his defense. yesterday for example, he defended the power forward of belgium very well, who is a perimeter oriented face up type of a player. enes is quicker as i expected and he showed that he can guard the perimeter too, if needed. his one on one defense is solid as well. he won't be such a bad defender as boozer, he will become an above average defender in this league. his shot blocking is also underrated. he might not be an excellent leaper and doesn't have the longest arms, but his timing is solid and he will be an average shot blocker in this league. his overall athleticizm and quickness is solid, so he can easily play the power forward position. what sets him appart from other players is his rebounding and his physical play (he always seems like the player who is looking for body contact with his opponent first). there aren't many 19 year old players with such a great combination of body frame, size, strength and high motor. he hustles for every play and looks like he wants to get every single rebound. he is a banger. he has quick hands on the defensive end, too.

he had 7 points and 8 rebounds in 14 minutes yesterday and today, he had 12 points and 4 rebounds in 13 minutes. the sky is really the limit for this guy. his offense and defense are all above average for his age and his rebounding is on an elite level. he has the tools, the willingness and the work ethic to become an elite big man in this league. for sure, there is much room to improve because he is so young, but he has great tools do deal with. i believe in a future around him and favors. those two will be a deadly duo in three years. he reminds me a lot of a bigger and more physical, thougher version of al horford. he and favors have the pontential to become 20-10 players in this league, imo. i'm very optimistic about our future as a jazz fan. it's going to be great, we just need some patience.

remember the guys saying he is a bust. this guy plays for a turkish team that has a horrible coach and horrible guards and enes also does not get the playing time he deserves. he easily has been the most impressive player for the turkish national team again after yesterday. for having not played two years and still putting solid numbers in a short period of time is impressive. my rating is a B- for what i have seen of him so far. and i'm happy we have drafted enes kanter. the draft night and the deron williams trade will turn out great in three years, you guys will see. enes can come in right away and average 10 rebounds in his rookie season, but we don't have much playing time left for him with our big man rotation. he is a hard worker and quick learner so i expect like 6 points and 6 boards in his rookie season, the year after like 10 points and 7 boards, the year after 13 points and 8 boards, the year after 16 points and 9 boards, the year after like 18 and 10. you will see, he will become better and better each year with the potential to become a 20-10 player one day.
 
who would you have drafted at #3 that is an obvious upgrade at the starter position?
Kanter's more of a 4 than a 5, and, despite my post above, somewhat duplicates Big Al. JV is a prototypical 5, and has HUGE defensive potential. For whatever reason, despite his gaudy per-minute numbers in Europe the last few years (in U-18 tourneys, in the Euroleague, etc.), JV wasn't in the conversation at #3, but he would have made a lot of sense. If the Jazz FO view Favors as #1 on the 4/5 depth chart moving forward, however, Kanter perhaps is a better fit.
 
I still have two big concerns with Kanter:

1. Can he pass the basketball? I'm not sure I've seen him pass the ball once after receiving the ball in the post.

2. Although he's very willing to set screens, he doesn't always do a very good job. He should spend some time working with Omer Asik, who has been absolutely amazing in PnR situations these last two games. Very fun to watch.

I didn't see this game, but if the biggest concern we have for our newly-turned 19-year-old not-even-rookie (on national team with bad coaching) are passing and setting good screens and he's STILL producing like he is, then we have a lot to be excited about.

I know you have to be wary about extrapolating production from limited minutes, but holy crap.

That said, my biggest complaint with Jefferson has been his absence of anything resembling a passing game. So hopefully these two problems are just symptomatic of his lack of knowledge of the system they're running (or lack thereof?) and general lack of experience on the court. I think it would be fair to say that is the case at this stage.
 
Kanter's more of a 4 than a 5, and, despite my post above, somewhat duplicates Big Al. JV is a prototypical 5, and has HUGE defensive potential. For whatever reason, despite his gaudy per-minute numbers in Europe the last few years (in U-18 tourneys, in the Euroleague, etc.), JV wasn't in the conversation at #3, but he would have made a lot of sense. If the Jazz FO view Favors as #1 on the 4/5 depth chart moving forward, however, Kanter perhaps is a better fit.

JV has really the better defensive potential, but enes has the potential to become the better overall player, and especially offensively. i do believe that with favors coming from the weak side, both, kanter and favors will be solid defenders in this league. kanter's defense is somewhat underrated by many imo. he can guard the perimeter a little bit, too. he has quick hands on the defensive end, holds his ground, plays solid one on one defense and will become a better help and team defender. he has been an average shot blocker as well, more due to his timing than his athleticizm. his overall athleticizm is solid and he is extremly quick for a player his size and runs the floor like a deer. while he might not be an elite athlete, i think his overall athleticizm and quickness are average to slightly above average. who would you rather have? a favors-kanter duo looks more intriguing to me than a favors-JV duo. and i do believe that with his hard working, willingness and high motor, as you can see, he has solid defensive awareness. he really puts much effort in. he's a quick learner. i do believe that he won't be a bad defender and he will not just be an average defender. he will be a solid defender or at least an average to slightly above average defender. but that's the worst case, i don't see this happening. his team and help defense will improve with time as well...
 
I know you have to be wary about extrapolating production from limited minutes, but holy crap.

That said, my biggest complaint with Jefferson has been his absence of anything resembling a passing game. So hopefully these two problems are just symptomatic of his lack of knowledge of the system they're running (or lack thereof?) and general lack of experience on the court. I think it would be fair to say that is the case at this stage.
It's hard to gauge at this point, since Turkey seems dead set against passing the ball to their big men (the offense should be run through Asik and Kanter, judging from these last two games). It may not be a concern, but I don't remember him passing even once on offense these two games.

He was terrific today though, all around. The best player for Turkey, playing against some pretty solid bigs (Dirk, Kaman, etc.).
 
I didn't see this game, but if the biggest concern we have for our newly-turned 19-year-old not-even-rookie (on national team with bad coaching) are passing and setting good screens and he's STILL producing like he is, then we have a lot to be excited about.

I know you have to be wary about extrapolating production from limited minutes, but holy crap.

That said, my biggest complaint with Jefferson has been his absence of anything resembling a passing game. So hopefully these two problems are just symptomatic of his lack of knowledge of the system they're running (or lack thereof?) and general lack of experience on the court. I think it would be fair to say that is the case at this stage.

i completely agree. kanter is a solid passer, i have been following him. but sometimes he doesn't seem to pass the ball because he has often been the first offensive option on the younger national teams. and now, he wants to show something and prove something. with this bad guards enes has to play with, he doesn't receive the ball often and scores more with offensive rebound putbacks. and if he gets the ball once, for sure he wants to go one on one, thats absolutely normal and that's why he doesn't pass the ball all the time. and with this screens and so on. come on, this guy just turned 19 years old, he will learn. he is a hard worker and a quick learner. passing and setting screens won't be a problem, as you might have seen, he has improved very much, also in those aspects during the last few games... he will not have problems passing out of double teams and so on... you will see...
 
I feel much more comfortable with his passing becoming formidable than him ever becoming a shot-blocking type center. Solid-D, but not shot a big shot blocker ... which I think is overrated anyway.
 
kanter's defense is somewhat underrated by many imo. he can guard the perimeter a little bit, too. he has quick hands on the defensive end, holds his ground, plays solid one on one defense and will become a better help and team defender. he has been an average shot blocker as well, more due to his timing than his athleticizm.
I thought he was terrific defensively the last two games (I was unable to watch the previous games). Judging from posts from those earlier games, however, I'm guessing his team D has improved dramatically, as he seemed to rotate very well against6 Germany and Belgium (stopping a couple easy buckets in the process). And yes, yesterday he defended a lot out on the perimeter (with Semih Erden inside for some strange reason), and did an admirable job. He may be the best rebounder on the Jazz right now, as well. And he does a good job getting back and picking up his man, which, if he continues to do so in the NBA, will be a nice change from Boozer, Memo and AJ. His Turkish teammates didn't return the favor at one point in today's game when, after Kanter saved the ball to Germany trying to get an offensive rebound going out of bounds, Kanter's man sprinted down court unimpeded for an easy layup (it looked like Jazz basketball). He'll never be a shot blocker, but so what?
 
I forget where I saw them but Kanter's passing numbers have always been horrific. Worse than Jefferson's if I'm not mistaken. Granted, I guess everyone's point here is that that could be the result of playing for a bunch of hacks but it's still a concern. Isn't Millsap's assist per touches number (or whatever that stat is) bad too?
 
I'm not sure if it's been posted yet, but here are his combined stats v. Belgium and Germany:

27:27 Minutes
6-12 FG
7-9 FT
19 Points
12 Rebounds (5-7-12)
0 Assists
1 Steal
0 Blocks
2 Turnovers
2 PF (7 Fouls Drawn)
 
Isn't Millsap's assist per touches number (or whatever that stat is) bad too?
A misconception championed by Pearl, among others. Millsap's passing (both via stats and the ol' eye test) has been fine the last two seasons IIRC.
 
Top