Daily Thunder.com

if you look at this link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlxuwqFpvSo
it shows Serge Ibaka in a dunk contest. His feet hit the ground barely after he dunks, he definitely got a 9'3" standing reach

Sanders is interesting.

Speaking of Sanders and a 9'3'' standing reach, well, that's what SB Nation's Bullets Forever blog lists for him too...

http://www.bulletsforever.com/2010/5/5/1457551/201...

Larry Sanders is a physical freak. He stands 6’10" in shoes and he has a 7’7" wingspan an a 9-foot, 3-inch standing reach). Let me let that sink in. That's almost unbelievable. He can stretch out his arms and his hands would be in different zip codes. Georghe Muresan had a wingspan of 7'10", but he was 7'7" tall.

Larry Sanders at 21 and Solomon Alabi at 26 would be great! Imagine our front line then!!

Nothing wrong with sustainable as the goal but time is opportunity and slow is not a virtue in itself and not always necessary.

Keith: "My greatest fear is that the team assumes individual development will solve all ills, and thus no moves need be made... But if we aren’t shooting for someone who can up the ante from good to contender, then it’s hard to say the FO is really doing its job."

I agree.

What might happen is that they do the former this summer and the latter next summer.

I'd rather go for it sooner but "sustainable" Sam is driving the bus.

If they want a center the odds are pretty good that one or more will still be available when they get their first pick. It may not be the one they really want but they can get one. If they are willing to trade their pick and something else maybe they could move up and get one of the guys they prefer more but that is always a longshot.

http://tinyurl.com/29c9gez

Joakim Noah is at least an inch, possibly two inches, taller than Serge and their arms seem about the same length.. maybe Serge's are longer by an inch or two. And Noah's reach was measured at 8'10".

Looking at this photo and Serge in general I think he's at best 9' standing reach.

@Kev

There was some concern about Serge's age when he was discovered. Papers from his neck of the woods aren't always very reliable. If Serge really is only 20 he should fill out a bit more naturally.

Add to that a 9'3" reach (I'm skeptical) and he's probably no worse off than someone like Noah physically. Probably even better off.

Are there any photos of Serge and Durant side by side with their arms lowered or raised? Durant's reach is 9'2" so it'd be easy to see whether Serge is in that ball park.

having a great frame to add weight is irrelevant if he isnt interested in putting on weight . . .

@Big G

It's not a certainty that he will improve to the degree you expect. Progression isn't linear...

I will say this again he is only 20 and has good rebound rate now. He has a great frame to add weight. He a none stop motor. The best case scenario is that Iabaka develops because he is the he least expensive if he does down the line. So our best option is for Iabaka to become a good player and he gives us no reason to believe that he won't.

If Serge's standing reach is indeed 9'3" (I still question this, it's longer than Durant who is a freak) then that is center length and all he'd have to do is gain a few pounds to become a guy who takes up space in the middle (what we need).

@Big G

It's not so much guarding centers as much as it is getting rebounds and keeping his man off the boards. Serge isn't good at boxing out and even if he's long, he's still a little bit slight.

I didn't want Alabi earlier in the year when I thought we'd be picking in the mid to late teens and had a shot at Hassan Whiteside or Ekpe Udoh. At the spots we'll be picking, though, Alabi seems like a pretty good value.

I think it's VERY likely okc drafts alabi at 21.

@James

I don't mean to come off condescending, but I just think that website is amateur. I just don't think it's reasonable.

However, if they're right and Alabi does fall to late first round, I'd LOVE to take him there.

Jax Raging Bile Duct :Is JG around today? I just read Thorpe’s blurb on our guy Solomon Alabi, and he even compares him to Serge Ibaka, just like JG did months ago. In fact, it’s almost word for word; “He reminds me in many ways of Serge Ibaka. He’s not as athletic as Ibaka but is taller and longer.”
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/blog?name=nba_draft...
Solomon Alabi, sophomore, C, Florida State
Alabi has the rep of a raw player on offense, yet he’s 22 years old and led his team in scoring while also leading all starters in field goal percentage (53.4) and free throw percentage (79.4) this past season. To be sure, he’s far from a polished player, but considering his late arrival to the sport, the improvement has been considerable. Scouts always wanted him to be more dominant on the offensive end in college. But the pro game is far better for him, with much more open area in the lane and players who are far more gifted at post feeds.
Will Alabi command double teams? Not initially, and probably never. But he’s good enough to score as a fourth or fifth option on a post feed, and he’ll be one of the few centers who can play late in games as a defensive presence without sacrificing free throw shooting. For teams in the playoff hunt, that is gold.
Alabi is such a gifted defensive center that he projects as a rotation player immediately (limited minutes early, but steadily increasing), although he still has lots of room to grow and develop. He reminds me in many ways of Serge Ibaka. He’s not as athletic as Ibaka but is taller and longer. Both guys are the rare energy guys who also bring a palpable positive spirit to any room they walk into. FSU finished in the top 10 in defensive field goal percentage the past two seasons, including first in the nation this past season, and Alabi anchored that unit. It’s hard not to bring your best when playing alongside someone like Ibaka or Alabi.

NBAdraft.net released a new mock today and has him going 29.

http://www.nbadraft.net/2010mock_draft

This Ibaka Is not strong enough to guard centers is ridiculous. Name me
7 dominant centers who can score in the NBA that are not over thirty.
The 2 Or 3 you can name no one can guard them anyway.Watch the games
he played against the Lakers and Spurs. He did a good job against two
of the best low post player in the NBA. Yea you will point out he made
some mistakes show Tim Duncan and Shaq as 20 year old players one on one defense .Remember Shag on the Dream. Only 3or 4 teams will have and advantage over us if he doesn't get any stronger or any better very unlikely. I would rather have a 7 footer who caw play. Two of the one you all name all the time are sitting at home in Dallas the 2 seed with home court. Name me someone with the heart and spirit Ibaka showed as a 20 year old rookie 3 years into playing indoors then I will take him. Name me some tall loser who have not won anything with there team I will pass.

Is JG around today? I just read Thorpe's blurb on our guy Solomon Alabi, and he even compares him to Serge Ibaka, just like JG did months ago. In fact, it's almost word for word; "He reminds me in many ways of Serge Ibaka. He's not as athletic as Ibaka but is taller and longer."

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/blog?name=nba_draft...

Solomon Alabi, sophomore, C, Florida State

Alabi has the rep of a raw player on offense, yet he's 22 years old and led his team in scoring while also leading all starters in field goal percentage (53.4) and free throw percentage (79.4) this past season. To be sure, he's far from a polished player, but considering his late arrival to the sport, the improvement has been considerable. Scouts always wanted him to be more dominant on the offensive end in college. But the pro game is far better for him, with much more open area in the lane and players who are far more gifted at post feeds.

Will Alabi command double teams? Not initially, and probably never. But he's good enough to score as a fourth or fifth option on a post feed, and he'll be one of the few centers who can play late in games as a defensive presence without sacrificing free throw shooting. For teams in the playoff hunt, that is gold.

Alabi is such a gifted defensive center that he projects as a rotation player immediately (limited minutes early, but steadily increasing), although he still has lots of room to grow and develop. He reminds me in many ways of Serge Ibaka. He's not as athletic as Ibaka but is taller and longer. Both guys are the rare energy guys who also bring a palpable positive spirit to any room they walk into. FSU finished in the top 10 in defensive field goal percentage the past two seasons, including first in the nation this past season, and Alabi anchored that unit. It's hard not to bring your best when playing alongside someone like Ibaka or Alabi.

Keith :@JamesBig Z really can’t play much defense anymore. He’s always been kind of slow, but now he’s practically glued to the floor. There’s a reason Cleveland signed a 40 year old Shaq. He’s an offensive center like Krstic who plays sound fundamental defense, but is woefully lacking athletically to actually be a strong defender.
Przybilla would be a great pickup, though obviously the injury might scare us away. I know Justin has said if before, but if we just want a defensive specialist who can really clean up the defensive boards, we should take Dalembert off Philly’s hands. He was the third best defensive rebounder in the league last year (right ahead of Przybilla) and has always made his living defensively.
What we need is a big man who can be a legitimate second or third option on offense. If we assume Westbrook can start finishing at the rim, we only need a third option. If we assume Westbrook will always be a relatively inefficient scorer, then we need to bring in a second option. But that just leads us right back to Bosh, Lee, or Love/Jefferson.

It would be nice to get an offensive option at center but I've come to the conclusion that it isn't happening. You can get an offensive option but you'll be paying much more and getting less size/defense and more expense. So I've kind of come to the conclusion that hopefully we can get a defensive presence at center and get the offense from other positions and save the money. There just aren't very many 7 footers that can score and defend in this league. Dalembert would be fine with me. He just seems a little goofy to me, like you don't know what you'll get from night to night.

@James
Big Z really can't play much defense anymore. He's always been kind of slow, but now he's practically glued to the floor. There's a reason Cleveland signed a 40 year old Shaq. He's an offensive center like Krstic who plays sound fundamental defense, but is woefully lacking athletically to actually be a strong defender.

Przybilla would be a great pickup, though obviously the injury might scare us away. I know Justin has said if before, but if we just want a defensive specialist who can really clean up the defensive boards, we should take Dalembert off Philly's hands. He was the third best defensive rebounder in the league last year (right ahead of Przybilla) and has always made his living defensively.

What we need is a big man who can be a legitimate second or third option on offense. If we assume Westbrook can start finishing at the rim, we only need a third option. If we assume Westbrook will always be a relatively inefficient scorer, then we need to bring in a second option. But that just leads us right back to Bosh, Lee, or Love/Jefferson.

f5alcon :@Jamesprzybilla wont opt out after his injury

Pryzbilla should be fine by the time training camp starts if I'm not mistaken? With the Blazers signing Camby he's their 3rd center. I guess he can be the backup 4? I wouldn't be surprised to see him opt out.

@James
przybilla wont opt out after his injury

Too old to... start? or play 10-15 minutes of defense only when we really need him? Remember, we will have Nenad too.

AC :Why isn’t anyone talking about this perfect free agent for us? BIG Z. We keep him around for size, and for matchups, and for mentoring. He liked the small town of Cleveland, but he has to feel under used after this season. He allows Serge to play some minutes at center, but when/if the big boys give Serge trouble, he would be there to lay down his 7′3″ body and experience to stop them.
Also, he seems like a good guy.

He's too old.

DXL :The Lakers are the longest/biggest team in the league and the Thunder were not overwhelmed inside. With Serge playing 25 minutes a game they had a big enough frontline to compete.
They lost the series because Green, Harden and the other role players couldn’t hit open shots on the road to take pressure off of Durant and Westbrook.
It’s a tired record but I’ll play it again: Ibaka’s as tall and long as the a lot of quality starting NBA centers: Al Horford, Emeka Okafor, Nene, Kendrick Perkins, Al Jefferson, Chuck Hayes, David Lee, Anderson Varejao. I think he compares well with a mobile 7-footer who was considered “too small” his first couple of years in the league: Ibaka has a 5 inch advantage in standing reach (9′3″ to 8′10″) over Joakim Noah, and he looks about 10 pounds heavier. There are advantages to having a fleet-footed athlete at the center position.

This.

I would rather sign a big center (Pryzbilla maybe) and play Ibaka at the 4 but Ibaka's length and athleticism will allow him to play center in this league. Was that 7 blocks he had in game 2?

Why isn't anyone talking about this perfect free agent for us? BIG Z. We keep him around for size, and for matchups, and for mentoring. He liked the small town of Cleveland, but he has to feel under used after this season. He allows Serge to play some minutes at center, but when/if the big boys give Serge trouble, he would be there to lay down his 7'3" body and experience to stop them.

Also, he seems like a good guy.

kev :We have enough fours – unless it’s a really good scorer (like Lee) we dont need another one . . . we have Ibaka and Collison (even DJ White) . . .
we need a LEGITIMATE center . . .

Did you watch the playoff series? Bynum overpowered Krstic everytime Krstic was in a one on one situation with him. The ONLY post man on our team that held his own defensively was Ibaka. He kind of got dunked once but it was because he was helping off on a guard that beat one of our guards and the ball was dumped into Bynum on the help.

http://www.nbadraft.net/node/1113

Serge measured at the Reebok Eurocamp in June 2008 (along with many other top prospects like Donatas Motiejunas and Jan Vesely so these are legit measurements). 6'10" and quarter in shoes, 228 pounds, 9'3" standing reach, 7'3" wingspan, and a 33 inch vertical leap (not the exxagerated 40 inches or more). Serge has very long arms, he looks like a PF when he's just standing around but on those putback dunks he looks like a condor.

When is the draft lottery? obviously it doesnt affect us directly, but some lower team moving up a lot could change who goes where

@DXL

Where are you getting 9'3" from?

The Lakers are the longest/biggest team in the league and the Thunder were not overwhelmed inside. With Serge playing 25 minutes a game they had a big enough frontline to compete.

They lost the series because Green, Harden and the other role players couldn't hit open shots on the road to take pressure off of Durant and Westbrook.

It's a tired record but I'll play it again: Ibaka's as tall and long as the a lot of quality starting NBA centers: Al Horford, Emeka Okafor, Nene, Kendrick Perkins, Al Jefferson, Chuck Hayes, David Lee, Anderson Varejao. I think he compares well with a mobile 7-footer who was considered "too small" his first couple of years in the league: Ibaka has a 5 inch advantage in standing reach (9'3" to 8'10") over Joakim Noah, and he looks about 10 pounds heavier. There are advantages to having a fleet-footed athlete at the center position.

@DizzyDai
if they owe us something can we have duncan instead,lol.

Keith :@kevI think that’s something a lot of people have trouble wrapping their heads around. 50 wins is NEVER guaranteed. We played well enough to win all 50 legitimately, but we also would be remiss not to admit some level of luck all season (playing several teams without their best players, ridiculous health). If we want to win 50+ next year, we need to be more than what we were last year. We can’t pretend that being so good so quick didn’t help us from game to game against teams expecting something less (at least for the first half of the season).

forgot about the part about teams missing their star players - we had a good run of that happening . . .

nice call . . .

@kev
yeah he does, so it would be a sign and trade with an extension, but with nash getting old, phoenix might try and get some rebuilding pieces instead of nothing. I mean you are probably right that he isnt moving but of the players capable of opting out and getting more money, he is one of them.

justin :I’m convinced Ian Mahimni will find his way onto our roster somehow. He’s a Sam Presti find.

I'd be fine with that. Don't the Spurs owe Presti something for finding Tony Parker anyway?

@kev
I think that's something a lot of people have trouble wrapping their heads around. 50 wins is NEVER guaranteed. We played well enough to win all 50 legitimately, but we also would be remiss not to admit some level of luck all season (playing several teams without their best players, ridiculous health). If we want to win 50+ next year, we need to be more than what we were last year. We can't pretend that being so good so quick didn't help us from game to game against teams expecting something less (at least for the first half of the season).

"Jeff Green? Running the danger of being overrated, and the postseason (32.9 percent shooting) thankfully revealed his faults. Perhaps now the Thunder can relegate him to a role worthy of his abilities. Not to be cruel, but this isn't a person that should be taking shots away from Durant."

HOPE SO.

Huh. Interesting. From Hollinger's chat:

MC Welk: Who should Jazz draft at #9: size or a swingman?

John Hollinger: Three words: Best player available. That's the strategy that nearly always works best. Utah also has to look at trading the pick, perhaps in a salary dump with Okur.

Sammy :Some good nuggets in Kelly Dwyer’s postmortem for the Thunder season:http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/pos...
And, no, I don’t know what he’s talking about when he starts going on about the CBA/cap stuff; that paragraph is pretty incoherent.
The key quote for Thunder fans and expectations as the team goes forward:

The rotation? It succeeds, as is, if it remembers what got it to the first 45 wins of the season. This is a defensively-minded team that relies on Durant to finish games; and the Thunder lost a bit of that edge down the stretch of the regular season. Understandable – they’re young – but that sort of loss of identity cannot re-establish itself to start 2010-11, or the Thunder will dig itself a hole that it will not be able to crawl out of if it wants to make the playoffs. The West is that good.
Act like your GM, Thunder fans, and go slow. 2009-10 wasn’t a fluke, but a mere approximation of the squad’s 2009-10 win total (even with a free agent addition) should be a sufficient accomplishment in 2010-11. You’ll hear all sorts of TV types pin this team as a championship dark horse to enter next season, as if they’re in on some secret and all the Thunder’s postseason games weren’t nationally televised, but you’ll have to ignore that, and stay humble.

with all the good "luck" we had with injuries, I would be cool with us winning exactly fifty again next year . . .

f5alcon :@kevsarver is looking to cut costs and amare lives in miami in the offseason, if miami offered him the max i could see him going. But that is the only place aside from phoenix that amare would go.

I thought Amare had a "player option" for 17 million . . .

obviously, how deep Phoenix goes in the playoffs is a factor . . .

Some good nuggets in Kelly Dwyer's postmortem for the Thunder season:
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/pos...

And, no, I don't know what he's talking about when he starts going on about the CBA/cap stuff; that paragraph is pretty incoherent.

The key quote for Thunder fans and expectations as the team goes forward:
The rotation? It succeeds, as is, if it remembers what got it to the first 45 wins of the season. This is a defensively-minded team that relies on Durant to finish games; and the Thunder lost a bit of that edge down the stretch of the regular season. Understandable - they're young - but that sort of loss of identity cannot re-establish itself to start 2010-11, or the Thunder will dig itself a hole that it will not be able to crawl out of if it wants to make the playoffs. The West is that good.

Act like your GM, Thunder fans, and go slow. 2009-10 wasn't a fluke, but a mere approximation of the squad's 2009-10 win total (even with a free agent addition) should be a sufficient accomplishment in 2010-11. You'll hear all sorts of TV types pin this team as a championship dark horse to enter next season, as if they're in on some secret and all the Thunder's postseason games weren't nationally televised, but you'll have to ignore that, and stay humble.

I think James Harden and Serge Ibaka could improve a lot but they would have to be put into the starting lineup for it to really matter.

It's important to get another big body.. if we're keeping Green and he's playing PF we need another big guy.

My greatest fear is that the team assumes individual development will solve all ills, and thus no moves need be made. This year was a perfect storm of player development and developing a team identity. Now that we have that defensive identity in place, win-loss improvements are much smaller from individual development. How much better can Durant honestly be? Perhaps he hits 50-40-90 next year, but that really isn't much different than where he is now. Westbrook maybe finishes better around the rim, but teams already played him as if he could anyway. Green hasn't improved to any degree to warrant pondering. Harden perhaps becomes a better shooter, but still is unlikely to start in the "let's not rock the boat" mentality. Ibaka maybe takes over the center spot, but let's face it, he's not built to be a center and has said before he doesn't want to bulk up to play there.

If we want to be more than just a heartwarming story who "might make noise" in the playoffs, Presti and Brooks both need to accept that there is a lot more room for improvement than just sitting and waiting for guys to hopefully develop. In all likelihood, we won't land Bosh, or Lee, or even Jefferson. But if we aren't shooting for someone who can up the ante from good to contender, then it's hard to say the FO is really doing its job.

@DXL
It has been shown perhaps millions of times throughout the season that our lack of traditional, bruising bigs is a huge hole in our lineup. Right now it is the difference between being a good team (playoffs in the West) and being a contender (expected to get a high seed and go deep).

Mahinmi has enough size to get away with playing center.. I think he's got 15-20 pounds on Serge.

Mahinmi fouls more than Collison or Ibaka, but he has a lot of potential on the defensive end at center. He also finishes well inside.. finishes strong.

@kev
sarver is looking to cut costs and amare lives in miami in the offseason, if miami offered him the max i could see him going. But that is the only place aside from phoenix that amare would go.

@Keith
Interesting, I didn't know Mahinmi was a Presti acquisition. I'm higher on Mahinmi's upside than, say, BJ Mullens'.

f5alcon :Frye has a better chance of leaving if amare leaves, that kinda means the team is blowing up and better to get out.

Amare isnt going anywhere . . .

We have enough fours - unless it's a really good scorer (like Lee) we dont need another one . . . we have Ibaka and Collison (even DJ White) . . .

we need a LEGITIMATE center . . .

Frye has a better chance of leaving if amare leaves, that kinda means the team is blowing up and better to get out.