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View Full Version : Josh interview at DraftExpress



smittendevil
05-19-2007, 07:04 PM
Link here (http://www.draftexpress.com/viewarticle.php?a=2057)

Has some interesting stuff to say, but also a lot of "I dunnos" haha. I guess there was some speculation that Josh was a bit selfish and maybe didn't get along with the team, but there's some stuff in there that goes against that. Good luck to Josh in the League.

Here's a few excerpts:



Jonathan Givony: How do you think you played from an individual standpoint, considering your talents?

Josh McRoberts: I think I played as well as I could. I played as hard as I could every time out. I put it all out there, I have no regrets about it. It was something that well, the season didn’t go like we had hoped and there’s nothing to do about it now. I mean, I know that no matter what everyone else says, I gave it my best in my time at Duke and that’s something that I can leave happy about.

...

Jonathan Givony: Something we like to ask guys is to do a self evaluation. If you’re sitting in front of a GM, trying to sell him, why you should be drafted over another guy….what do you think are some of your strengths as a player..what separates you from the pack?

Josh McRoberts: I don’t know…I think that’s something that everyone who watched me can decide..I think that I’m going to try to come in and do whatever I can to help the team win, that’s one thing I did at Duke, not being worried about the individual stuff more, I was more worried about trying to help the team win. I think the best thing that I can do at this stage is pass and be active on both ends of the floor.

...

Jonathan Givony: I’m curious about Coach K. He’s known as probably the best in game tactician in the NCAA, but how do you feel like he has prepared you to play at the next level?

Josh McRoberts: I think he prepared me well, really all the guys there prepared me. The biggest thing I got out of my time there was having to come out every day and work hard, and be mature. Also, from my time there I saw how hard I have to work to be where I want to be, to get where I want to be. They teach you how to be a professional. I’m lucky in the sense that I’m going to get to play professional basketball in the NBA. I really don’t know how to say it, but they really helped me to grow up and be more mature person…a better person.

ikiru36
05-21-2007, 02:26 PM
Here's the summary, by Draft Express, of Josh's most recent workout as well (including a little bit on JJ, who was also working out). http://www.draftexpress.com/viewarticle.php?a=2058

[It says that Josh's agent is Bob Myers. Is Myers an associate of Tellem, or did Josh end up signing somewhere different than was earlier reported?]

They pretty well summarize the dilemma with Josh right now, amazing talents and physical abilities while needing to explain his failure to dominate (except in moments and rarely with his scoring) this past year. I hope that he can answer their questions, but not too well, such that he falls to my Warriors at 18! I think he could be a great addition to Nellie's small ball as a big man who loves to run the floor and throw down, while an excellent passer and very solid defender/rebounder. If his shot out to 20' were to return, that'd be even better!

Best to you Josh!!!!!!!! Go Devils!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GTHCGTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jaymf7
05-21-2007, 02:59 PM
This was the biggest takeaway from his otherwise bland interview. I am becoming more convinced that his decision to leave now was out of his own fear of becoming exposed as someone who will never live up to the hype. Seems like a very sad way to go out (as opposed to someone who believes that they accomplished everything they could or who would be a guaranteed lottery pick).

Patrick Yates
05-21-2007, 03:23 PM
I have said this before, but do not be surprised if McBob is a better player in the pros than in college. [I doubt it, but look at Boozer.] Josh will never be a beast in the low post, but a decent team could plug him in and really excell. With his passing, dribbling, and athleticism, he will be very attractive.

Also, given his abilities and his weaknesses, he is tailor made for individual workouts. Teams will see his dribbling, shooting, passing, and athleticism on display. In fact, I rather imagine that McBob's skillset will make many GM's drool. If not for his obvious underachieving at Duke, he would be a lock for the top 10.

He should be a late first round selection to a team like the Mavs, Jazz, Spurs, Bulls, Cavs, etc. Good teams that do not need McBob to stuff a statsheet, merely to play a role. On a scary note, is McBob's game not well suited for the Suns? He might be a serious contender for Rookie of the Year if they drafted him.

But, McBob will decieve some GM/Coach in the middle first round. Keep in mind that most NBA coaches are egomaniacs who think that they are the best coaches in the world. Many of them probably think that Wooden would only be a mediocre to poor coach in the L. The will tell themselves that they can max out McBob's potential, whereas a mere college coach couldn't. There will be talk in the upcomming month along these lines, so I implore this board not to throw a collective hissy fit when some unnamed scout/coach impunes K. Josh will look great so long as no one is guarding him, or if there are only 1-3 other people on the floor. The real Josh will show up in the summer rookie camp, and K will be vindicated. Have patience.

Patrick Yates

phaedrus
05-21-2007, 03:51 PM
From the article:

"He was outstanding in the mid-range drills, and didn’t seem to miss much from the college 3-point line either. His release is fluid and fundamentally sound, and he knocked down shots consistently throughout the workout in a very effortless manner."

Can someone please explain?

Indoor66
05-21-2007, 03:59 PM
No pressure?

ikiru36
05-21-2007, 04:24 PM
This was the biggest takeaway from his otherwise bland interview. I am becoming more convinced that his decision to leave now was out of his own fear of becoming exposed as someone who will never live up to the hype. Seems like a very sad way to go out (as opposed to someone who believes that they accomplished everything they could or who would be a guaranteed lottery pick).

While this is a potentially valid reading of Josh's not playing in camps, unless there has been a change, most players who are already in lottery consideration do not play at these camps. This is often because in doing so, they risk more through injury or having weaknesses exposed than they can likely gain by performing well. While it may be indicative of some fear, it is also generally the shrewd business move if your agent is already hearing talk of a lottery guarantee from some teams.

Personally, as a fan, I love when players I'm interested in play at these camps because it is fun to have the opportunity to read more about them and how they are stacking up against the competition. But.... even if he were the most confident and driven player, Josh still might be wise not to play in these camps, if only for fear of injury since many players are trying to make a name for themselves there and likely go after the bigger name players every chance they get.

PY, I'm not sure what you are referring to re: Coach K being vindicated. I personally hope that Josh does well and, if so, K can feel really good about that. It sounds as if the staff has continued to work with him since his announcement and I appreciate the (stated by Josh anyways) fact that he has continued to go to classes and finished out his semester in apparent good standing. If Josh didn't reach his eventual potential this past year, that certainly is more parsimoniously explained by his recovery from the prior summer's back surgery coupled with his youth (still developing physically and, perhaps, emotionally as well), rather than that Duke did anything wrong. The kid was a chronologically young sophomore, recovering from injury, in a challenging and high visibility leadership position, and still managed second-team All-ACC honors (which statistically speaking he genuinely deserved).

There is little question that, at this point, Josh will look his best in a controlled workout format. Nevertheless, this past year alone, he could put together a pretty darned good highlight film showing what he is capable of on the court against serious competition. He could also put quite a film together of his disappearing rather completely (and oh so frustratingly) at times despite clearly being the most talented player on the court.

Is he missing some essential character trait to succeed or was it mostly his youth, coupled with the challenges he was facing? The jury remains out, but he spoke very highly of the Duke program in that interview (despite being mildly baited to "blame" Duke) so I'll continue to root for him and lean towards the issue being the latter. And if it's the former, well, that's unfortunate and I'm glad he still mentions caring about getting his degree someday (which he also needn't do at this point). All frustrations as a fan of the 06-07 team aside, I wish Josh the best and should he succeed that'll be a positive for Duke in my book.

Go Josh!!!!!!!!!!!!! Go Devils!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GTHCGTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

P.S. I agree that a team like the Suns or the Warriors might be a particularly good fit for Josh. Any team with a more wide open style is ideal, at least until (if it was youth/injury related) he develops greater lower-body strength and a willingness to bang a bit more.

phaedrus
05-21-2007, 05:28 PM
do you mean defensive pressure or mental pressure? if the former, josh rarely dealt with it from farther than 15 feet. if the latter, i still don't see how it could have affected his actual shooting stroke, even if it hurt his shooting percentage. having watch josh play at least 50 games for duke, i can hardly even imagine him taking mid-range jumpshots off the dribble or smoothly nailing threes.

IMO josh's hesitancy to shoot 12-18 footers is what really kept him from being the dominant offensive player we all hoped for, not a lack of a post game (which i never expected from him).

crote
05-22-2007, 09:10 AM
On a scary note, is McBob's game not well suited for the Suns? He might be a serious contender for Rookie of the Year if they drafted him.

I was thinking the exact same thing. McBob on the Suns could be a whole lot of fun. And it's not much of a stretch to believe Josh could fall to Phoenix at 24.

keithg
05-22-2007, 09:23 AM
Phoenix Suns? ROY? I doubt Josh would see the floor, in his first two years, except for some spot minutes!

Patrick Yates
05-22-2007, 10:59 AM
You are correct sir, only not so much.

On a really bad team, McBob would be forced to play, but not much because he would be ineffective.

On some good teams, Mavs, Bulls, Pistons, he likewise would not earn much PT due to superior bigs ahead of him.

The Suns are perfect for McBob's talents, and as a team they shy away from the very things that are McBob's weaknesses.

The Suns are a run and fun team that plays poor defense, aside from shot blocking. Many of thier points come in transition. Thier PG is probably one of the best players in the league, and is an assist (allyoop) machine.

On this team Josh would get to run, jump, dribble, and make spectacular passes. He would not be required to hit many jumpers, or to exhibit any refined post moves. Best of all, with Amare down low, McBob would be discouraged from going down low to get in AS's way. In fact, running the high low would be a killer.

I can think of few Teams/Players that are better fits, in the short term (excluding Durant and Oden with anybody, at least in the long term). My point regarding ROY was that this is the only team that McBob would get significant run with, and he would have many highlight reel plays on a team that was in serious contention for the NBA title. Worthy or not, he might win the ROY, because Durant, Oden, et all are all but guaranteed to toil on poor teams next year. Unless Chicago somehow gets Oden, but even then they will bring him along slowly, higlighting McBob's run to Roy. Seriously, JM to the Suns means a run at ROY, anywhere else and he is a minor role player at best.

Patrick Yates

ps. As far as my "K gets vindicated" I was perhaps unclear. In these workouts, McBob will look great. This will lead to unnamed insiders whispering that K was the reason JM didn't excell in college, because K misused him, couldn't motivate him, wasn't focussed on college ball, whatever. Unless JM falls to the suns, McBob will be exposed, and K will be vindicated with regards to these anonymous insiders, not towards Josh.