The Grizzlies held a six-player draft workout at FedExForum this morning featuring one contender for the #5 pick — LSU forward Anthony Randolph — one strong contender for the #28 pick — Western Kentucky guard Courtney Lee — and one figure of infamy for a lot of Memphis basketball fans — Kansas forward Darrell Arthur, who throttled the University of Memphis in the college national championship game this spring. Asked after this morning’s workout when he last watched a replay of the title game, Arthur responded, “Last night.”
Filling out the lineup today were Vanderbilt shooter Shan Foster, Rhode Island swingman Will Daniels, and Bradley guard Jeremy Crouch. Before I break down how these players looked, a few notes:
The Grizzlies saw 24 players work out in Oakland last weekend in a massive, multi-team session but, more notably, held a couple of individual workouts with top prospects Danilo Gallinari and Brook Lopez. Gallinari, by all accounts, looked like a big-time player, a tested competitor with guard skills at 6’10”. Lopez apparently came across as a mammoth presence with good hands and respectable athleticism. The word on Lopez is he’s probably locked in to playing the center position exclusively at the next level. With Darko Milicic under contract for two more seasons and the prospects of Marc Gasol coming over next season looking better, you have to wonder whether this lack of versatility would exclude him from serious consideration at #5.
Those weekend workout now brings the number of #5 contenders who haven’t worked out for the Grizzlies to 3 — O.J. Mayo, Eric Gordon, and Russell Westbrook. (I don’t consider Jerryd Bayless a viable option, for a variety of reasons.) Contrary to a DraftExpress.com report that Mayo is avoiding lottery teams not in major-media markets, the scuttle around FedExForum today was that the Grizzlies would travel to Chicago this weekend for a workout in which Mayo would perform for the teams drafting 3-5 (Minnesota, Seattle, Memphis).
Gordon and Westbrook on the other hand, are still stalling on scheduling a Memphis workout, and there’s some thought that they could be angling at falling to the major media markets (New York and Los Angeles) picking directly behind the Grizzlies, though there’s also a chance that Gordon, in particular, could go #4 to Seattle.
Now, on to today’s workout:
Anthony Randolph: Randolph was the feature attraction today, but probably didn’t help himself. The skinny teenager from LSU has an intriguing combination of length, skill, and athleticism, all which were on display. You could see the potential, but also plenty of red flags.
Randolph’s focus and effort flagged throughout the workout. Occasionally he would bear down and flash an extra gear athletically that no one else in the gym could match, but more often he seemed to be coasting. In live, three-on-three drills, Randolph seemed to be holding the ball a lot. He did make some nice passes, so it was hard to determine whether Randolph was exhibiting patience or slow reaction. Either way, he was looking to fit in and set up teammates more than he was looking to dominate. Randolph also seemed to tire easily.
His shooting was erratic and all upper-body: His feat barely left the floor on “jump” shots. That said, he shot pretty well in a mid-range drill and showed enough form and production in a long-range drill to suggest he can develop into a three-point threat at the next level.
Randolph is clearly a work in progress, but those raw physical tools and advanced ball skills still tantalize: He seems to have the ability to be a dynamic combo forward, but after today I’d say he a little further away than I initially thought and also has more downside risk than I believed. I'm guessing his stock has dropped a little bit as a contender at #5
Courtney Lee: Lee had the most impressive workout of the day and probably the second most impressive the Grizzlies have seen, after Kevin Love. Lee has the reputation as mediocre athlete by NBA standards, but he looked pretty decent today: Good handle and hops, solid explosiveness, excellent stamina. He finished shots around the basket and also defended shots at the rim well.
His shooting was textbook: — He rose straight up, got great extension, released at the apex of his jump, followed through, and made probably 75% of his shots across the hour-and-a-half workout. Most impressively, his form never wavered. Almost every shot looked the same and he got the same extension on his shot at the end of the workout as he did at the beginning.
My biggest question about Lee was size: I didn’t think he looked taller than 6’4”, but a team insider said Lee measured at 6’5” in shoes today.
Prediction: Lee is drafted higher than Chris Douglas-Roberts.
To temper things slightly, this is a four-year college guy. He should have his game together. I imagine Troy Bell probably had a great draft workout too. But Lee looked awfully good today. I’ll be surprised if he’s still on the board at #28.
Darrell Arthur: Arthur was exactly what I expected: Solid but not spectacular across the board. He showed well in every facet of the workout, including handling and shooting the ball very well for a power forward. Draft stock-wise, he’s a tweener — not good enough for #5 and with no chance of slipping beyond the mid-first round. I think he can be a decent NBA starter.
The Rest: Shan Foster confirmed that he’s a poor athlete by NBA standards, unable to dunk the ball at the end of a lay-up drill. He did shoot the ball very well. He’ll have to be a shooting specialist if he’s able to make it in the NBA. Will Daniels seemed to be a rugged athlete at 6’8”, but I didn’t see the skill level of a first-round pick. Jeremy Crouch looked the way I imagine I would have if I’d ever worked out with my (Division III) college team: He made a few plays but was generally overmatched.
The Tayshaun comp makes some sense just based on the way Randolph looks, but Prince is a true small-forward in the NBA.
I'm convinced Randolph will be a combo forward more in the Lamar Odom/Shawn Marion mode -- the prototype "Phoenix 4," basically. I think he'll ultimately spend more time at power forward over the course of his career than small forward -- much more time.
He'll be more of a shot-blocker and rebounder than Prince, but probably not the same level of perimeter defender or three-point shooter.
I guess if he were to completely pan out, you could think of him as a hybrid of Prince and Chris Bosh.