Any Interest In This Guy?

live and die in LA · by **live and die in LA** on Tue Jun 13, 2006 5:45 pm

Renaldo Balkman
6 foot 8 208 pounds
small forward

from nbadraft.net
"NBA Comparison: Dennis Rodman

Strengths: Long, wiry athletic forward with great energy level ... Excellent rebounder who hits the glass hard ... A potential defensive stropper type of player ... Tremendous defender with the versatility to guard on the perimeter and in the post: His great foot speed gives him the quickness to defend quick forwards and guards, and his wiry strength and long arms give him the ability to defend inside ... Shows solid ball handling ability for a forward ... Also has good vision passing the ball ... Very quick hands and feet help on both ends of the floor ... Broad shoulders and long arms give him an ideal basketball physique ... Shows great body control around the basket and the ability to absorb contact and stay balanced ...

Weaknesses: Raw offensive player, averaged under 10 ppg in his junior season ... Lacks any real range on his shot ... Needs to add around 15-20 pounds of muscle to go inside and rebound with the same effectiveness ... Turnover prone, needs to become better at protecting the ball off the dribble, and cut down on turnovers ... Shot just over 50% from the free throw line ... Has a good shooting form, he just needs repetition in practice and better focus to improve upon his free throw shooting ..."

Using our first rounder on this guy would definitely be a bit of a reach, but i would like if we got him at 51. he could replace deveans spot at small forward.

rydjorker121 · by **rydjorker121** on Tue Jun 13, 2006 5:58 pm

Yeah, he's an extremely late bloomer and a high-riser in the draft (sort of like Jose Juan Barea a couple of months before). Honestly, I didn't even know his name much until a couple of weeks ago, when he simply stood out in the predraft camps. He was supposedly a top sixth man with South Carolina this year, filling up the stat sheet with some scoring, some rebounding, some stealing, some shotblocking. But what makes him really stand out is the intensity he plays with--he's willing to fill his role doing all the little things for the team, and he has nice physical attributes as well. I still question his jumpshot (or lack thereof) and general offensive game, and there could be a case of overhype here as he really has a PF game in a SF body. But of course, he could very well find a niche a la Udonis Haslem.

Many thought that Balkman would have little chance of being drafted before this camp, and thought that he should really return for his senior year. However, after standing out, he's now considered a lock to be drafted and probably somewhere in the mid to late 2nd round. If someone really likes him perhaps the early 2nd round.

Crispy · by **Crispy** on Wed Jun 14, 2006 11:39 am

nbadraft.net overhypes a lot of the players. they say rudy gay is a scottie pippen and morrison is a larry bird. if balkman had the skills of a dennis rodman, hed be a top 10 pick. rodman avg. 16-17 rebs in his prime

Any Interest In This Guy?

Any Interest In This Guy?

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