Semih Erden Watch

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He can always be first off the bench…..giving high fives that is. I mean he’s not really expected to give major minutes anyway.

hey but what do I know…. I mean any guy who can pull down 4 HUGE rebounds in 19 minutes playing that dominationg Ivory Coast team must be one awesome player.

The Ivory coast boys are ranked just two slots below Latvia in the FIBA worl rankings at #40 …… yep he is a great pick-up

and Erden was very good. His stats do not tell the story. Centers are the strength of the Russian team, and Erden outplayed outplayed (by a little) Mozgov ( who just signed 4yr./$8MM contract with Knicks) and (definitely) Kaun. I would rate this game a solid B+ for Erden.

His defense and rebounding (He got several tips, and rebounds that were nullified by unrelated fouls, etc.) were, in the words of the (knowledgeable) announcer, “outstanding.” He has an NBA-tall frame that can add MUCH more muscle—unlike Omer Asik.

Offensively, all he was asked to do was catch the ball near the rim and stuff it or lay it in. He did that much more efficiently than Perk, and looks like he will be an 80% foul shooter, also waaaay better than Perk. His one attempt to sink a hook from out on the floor was not pretty. He turned 24 yesterday (nice timing, Jeff).

Negatives: his hands are good but not great (“butterfingers” is a gross overstatement); he had a few mental lapses (what rookie-level player doesn’t?); there is reason to question his offensive game.

But everyone who is dissing him will eat their words. He can’t out-compete the Jolly Green Giant this season, but anyone who thinks he can’t be a solid, solid part of the post-lockout year lineup … just aren’t watching the games. Especially Master Po.

he’s here becasue he can run teh floor and can play good defense. he’s long and can block shots, cut off passing lanes. i dont expect him to be great but i do think he can be a pretty good backup center although probably a few years from now.

getting to work with a good big man coach could do wonders for this kid, being around KG, jermaine, perkins and shaq could also do wonders for him if he gets the chance.

take a look at these summer league highlights and you’ll see why he’s here: defense

http://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play?&p=semih+erden+youtube&vid=141555859721&dt=1198915200&l=18&turl=http%3A%2F%2Fts2.mm.bing.net%2Fvideos%2Fthumbnail.aspx%3Fq%3D141555859721%26id%3Dfabff1b52c75f32bc602d57367cbbce1%26bid%3D7crTO59t5IpRyA%26bn%3DThumb%26index%3Dch1%26url%3Dhttp%253a%252f%252fwww.youtube.com%252fwatch%253fv%253dPIzL2kx3reE&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DPIzL2kx3reE&tit=semih+erden&sigr=11ae9j6ra&newfp=1

none of the bigs got a fair look, because Lafayette was a ball-hog. Parakhouski was about to clock Lafayette at one point. But this is all in other threads.

Greece v. Turkey (only saw 2nd half): Erden gets a solid B. He went 10/2. He was the anti-Shortshanidis (SP.) When he was in the game, Greece stopped scoring. One negative: starting to think he isn’t an out-of-area rebounder. But my basic opinion stays the same.

Po, don’t be clownin’ on my Semi. ;-)

1st Half grade: C. The whole team was flat; Semi looked mediocre at best.

2nd half grade: solid B+/A. Semi comes alive to end at 10/6 with a beautiful block, and some fine defensive play.

Negative: PJ Ramos (7’4") is the first guy who Semi hasn’t been able to dominate physically. He was able to front him Semi-successfully, though.

Positive: Semi gets fouled a lot, and he makes his free throws at a high rate. That is a consistent feature of his play.

The game was a slaughter (of China) within the first 10 minutes. Semih went 18/12 with 3 assists and at least 2 blocks. He seemed to thrive in extended garbage time, which in a way is good because that’s when his minutes are likely to come next season.

Positives: Semih is a very good shot blocker, it is becoming clear. Also he made some very nice interior passes. He played extended minutes at the same time as Asik, with Semih at PF, and he demonstrated, as in past games from time to time, that he has the speed to get out and defend the perimeter.

Negatives: on the offensive end, Semih is a dynamite finisher around the rim, but get him a few steps away, where he has to make different kinds of plays, and he is ineffective. Kinda like Dwight Howard. While he doesn’t make many mistakes, when he does it’s often a doozy. He basically wins the Blooper of the Game award 4 nights out of 5. He is quite bad ball handing out on the floor: he thinks he’s Pete Maravich, but he isn’t (although he did take it coast-to-coast once against China and throw down a wicked left-hand slam. But that ain’t gonna work in the NBA.

Semih went 10/6 during the preliminary round. I’m totally bullish on him. When he bulks up and learns to focus better, he’s going to be one of the better backup PF/Cs in the league for a long time.

Question: Can he bulk up enough to get to where he can defend Howard 1 on 1?

NBA Comparison: Dale Davis.

1st half: Semih comes in and France stops scoring, remaining stuck at 12-14. Semih goes 3/2, but basically plays solid defense. France gets nothing at the hoop.

When Semih goes out, France is immediately at the hoop, but forgets to play defense itself, and game is a blowout by halftime. Grade: B+, he did what he had to do to help his team win.

2nd half: unlike China game where Semih shines in garbage time, he doesn’t do much. Turkey goes to him several times on offense, out on the floor, and it yields turnovers. He has difficulty rebounding in traffic. Grade: C.