Q&A with 3 Shades of Blue
With all this talk of Memphis possibly liking Hasheem Thabeet, I thought it might get some insight from somebody that knows that team better than anyone. So I asked Chip Crain from 3 Shades of Blue a few questions.
1. Simple question: Hasheem Thabeet or Ricky Rubio?
Chip: That isn’t even a question. Thabeet is a nice big man and you can’t teach size but no one believes this player will become anything more than a defensive stopper in the middle. Rubio could be an all-star and a crowd pleasing player as well. If Memphis publicly contemplates taking Thabeet it would most likely be an attempt to get Oklahoma City to buy the 2nd pick for the 3rd pick and another asset. Oklahoma City would be making a mistake taking Thabeet over Rubio in my opinion however. If Memphis moves down to 3rd and Rubio and Griffin are gone I doubt Thabeet would be the player they take at three anyway. James Harden, DeJuan Blair, Tyreke Evans and others have more upside in the NBA the way I look at it than Thabeet. Thabeet is another Roy Hibbert to me.
2.What makes you want Rubio, when Memphis already has Mike Conley? Conley was the fourth overall pick just two years ago and played better in the second half of the season. If Memphis takes Rubio, are the Grizzlies basically giving up on a top five pick just in his third year?
Chip: Every team needs more than one point guard. Rubio is 18 and will take time to adjust to a new country and a new brand of basketball. If Rubio can beat out Conley for the starting role then moves can be made further down the line. Besides, you don’t draft for need. You take the best player available. Drafting for need causes teams to do really dumb things. Sam Bowie instead of Michael Jordan springs to mind as an example. Read more…
