Expert Opinions on Walker and Giddens

by Seth on Feb 18, 2010 6:45 PM EST

Hey everybody. Seth here from Posting and Toasting, SBN's bastard child/Knicks blog. I'd like to write a post introducing Knick fans to J.R. Giddens and Bill Walker (I think we pretty much know what we're getting with Eddie House). I saw plenty of Walker in college, but I'm really not too familiar with how they've fared at the professional level.

I'd love to hear what you have to say about these guys- their games, their characters, their idiosyncrasies- and include those thoughts in my post, since y'all are the experts. I'd appreciate any and all thoughts in the comments.

Thanks in advance!

P.S. Enjoy Nate Robinson. Seriously. He's a hell of a guy and a supremely talented player.

Be respectful and keep it clean. Thanks.

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Comments

Haha your guess is as good as ours! They can warm a bench real well!

by chuckslammin on Feb 18, 2010 6:48 PM EST reply actions

Walker is an explosive player and doesn't back down for anyone. Giddens seems to be all about hustle and D.

I predict Walker will turn out to be the better of the two players. Doc refused to give either of them any significant playing time so I have no idea how they would fare if given consistent meaningful minutes over a long period of time.

by rrc589 on Feb 18, 2010 6:55 PM EST reply actions

I rarely saw either player

do anything that demanded they receive more minutes. Walker has great athleticism, but never showed he could shoot well enough to keep opponents honest. He also didn’t seem to know where to be on either offence or defence. Giddens has a great wing-span, but also didn’t seem to be able to shoot and played with no self-belief. I actually think Giddens could last longer because I could see some defensive potential in that long frame, but he has to be able to hit the open jumper as well or he’s too much of a liability offensively.

by Celticsbloke on Feb 18, 2010 8:15 PM EST up reply actions

Walker has some great athleticism. Whether he ever capitalizes on it is anyone's guess.

But you’re basically guaranteed one highlight dunk if you give him any reasonable amount of time.

USG

by Ben Buchanan on Feb 18, 2010 6:57 PM EST reply actions

they are not nba rotation players.... its that simple

by jbuell719 on Feb 18, 2010 7:05 PM EST reply actions

D'Antoni will probably play Walker more (speed)

Knicks will play these guys more than Doc did here.
Look at the Grizzlies they are playing Lester Hudson, and he was seen as more expandable than Giddens or Walker.

by Snowball on Feb 18, 2010 7:33 PM EST reply actions

The fans on this blog have never met an Ainge draft choice they wouldn’t hyperbolize to the stars.

With that said, Walker has enough potential to mature into a decent rotational player. He’s wickedly immature, and should have stayed in school, but he’s got athletic ability and some degree of basketball intelligence. He could be an 9th or 10th man off the bench some day.

Giddens will be out of the NBA within two years – nothing there. Never will be a rotational player for anyone.

by CoachBo on Feb 18, 2010 7:47 PM EST reply actions

Basically theyre athletic

Bill Walker- He’s probably the more talented one. He can get to the basket and he is developing a decent jumper. He is a hard nosed defender and won’t back down from stars.

J.R Giddens- This guy has a crazy verticle leap, which makes him a great rebounder for only 6’5. He is frantic on D, which isnt a bad thing, he can also dunk with the best of them and has an okay jumper.

by Zak B on Feb 18, 2010 7:48 PM EST reply actions

Don't listen to these guys. Walker and Giddens were price pawns and nothing more

Don’t expect big games. Don’t expect big plays. Whatever they give you, be grateful. They’ll be playing in Europe next season, because they really don’t have the talent to make it here. It’s not that Doc just didn’t want to play them. they weren’t talented, so they didn’t play. Period.

by KY Celts fan on Feb 18, 2010 7:48 PM EST reply actions

and enjoy House

I’ve been saying all season that we would be perfect for D’Antoni’s offense. He’ll be good for you guys.

by KY Celts fan on Feb 18, 2010 7:51 PM EST reply actions

*he, not we

by KY Celts fan on Feb 18, 2010 7:52 PM EST up reply actions

Im so dissapointed we gave up two great prospects

for a 3 month rental of nate robinson.

i was always dieing for bill walker to play, he looked like the next paul pierce when i saw him at Celtics Camp this summer. great dunker also…

i cant believe we lost them….and we wanted to get younger?

well heres to this year! banner 18 is still coming!

by WikedCeltsFan7 on Feb 18, 2010 8:25 PM EST reply actions

What is wrong with you people?

These guys are roles players at best!

D’Antoni might be able to squeeze something out them with his offensive driven style, but Joe Johnson?

I will eat humble pie if JR or Billy ever do anything worth re-signing.

by chuckslammin on Feb 18, 2010 8:54 PM EST up reply actions

"Great prospects"

You have really low standards if you consider them great prospects. It isn’t clear that they will ever be NBA quality players. Perhaps they will.

Next Paul Pierce? Why? They games coming out of college aren’t similar. This is like the comparison someone made to Joe Johnson. Why? Just because he was a former prospect who was traded? And why are you comparing them to guys drafted much higher? No one considers them to be of the same caliber except a few wide-eyed fans.

Those two are dime a dozen prospects that rosters are littered with.

by guava_wrench on Feb 19, 2010 1:49 PM EST up reply actions

Billy has the potential to be an explosive role guy, he can play the 3 and run the break, and finish STRONG. His shooting supposedly improved but we wouldn’t know because he hasn’t played. I loved him in college and i hope you guys enjoy him…

I really wish we sent Shelden instead.

by jesse_stoneham on Feb 18, 2010 9:19 PM EST reply actions

They're okay.

Both are very athletic. Quick, with hops.

Giddens’ main problem is a lack of confidence. He is very tentative when he has the ball, often passing up open jumpers or clear driving lanes in favour of nuetral passes. This has led everyone to believe he is a horrible jumpshooter, when he was very good (and very cluitch) at his college. He is a good defender, better as a man defender than a team defender though. He is an elite-level rebounder (pulled down 13 in one preseason game in 20 minutes) from the 2-spot, due to his athleticism and hustle.

Walker is slightly better offensively, but is not a great jumpshooter. He is good at driving in though – for him, confidence is not a problem. He has had incidents when he’s stood up to/not backed down from T-Mac (on youtube) and LBJ (I think). Tries on the defensive end, but not very good.

I think the main problem with both players is basketball IQ. They have some skills, as evidenced by their ownage in the D-league. Giddens’ IQ is better, but he also has a lack of confidence on the big stage. In the D-league, Giddens was playing 20-5-5 ball and his team won the trophy (he was in the running for both league and finals MVP)

I don’t know if you’ll find any use for them at the Knicks. They don’t gun, but they do run. In all likelihood, they will get more playing time than they did here, and that coupled with a change of scenery may help one or both breakout as NBA players.

by rav123 on Feb 18, 2010 9:30 PM EST reply actions