Darius Morris Leaning Towards Entering 2011 Draft
The title says it all. This would kill the team if he were to leave early. Lets hope he stays and develops so he can be a lottery pick.
February 22nd, 2011 at 9:07 PM ^
How STUPID of me. I STUPID, STUPID.
February 21st, 2011 at 7:08 PM ^
Unwarranted & Unfounded Speculation
February 21st, 2011 at 8:21 PM ^
He must mean the military draft because Darius Morris cannot play in the NBA. Anyone advising him better shoot straight with him and tell him the truth: he's nowhere near good enough. He has no range (26% 3-point shooter and that's shooting from a line that is two plus feet shorter than the NBA one), below average quickness, average one-on-one moves.
He's doing a nice job of improving as a college player. He needs to stay and graduate because he will not play in the NBA, if he even makes a roster. Europe? Definitely. He can definitely play in one of the European leagues.
Good kid. Good heart. Getting better. Stay in school.
February 21st, 2011 at 9:13 PM ^
MFaninOH, have you been watching all the basketball games? I know you're a hockey guy, and there's a been more than a few Saturday basketball and hockey games that end up that conflicting.
If you have indeed been watching, then perhaps you're celebrating meaningless negs.
Nevertheless, I do not understand how you are not seeing the potential in Mr. Morris' game. Lately, Darius is playing very, very well...
February 21st, 2011 at 11:04 PM ^
I'm not the hockey guy.
February 22nd, 2011 at 3:20 AM ^
And here I was, ready to give you credit for not being a troll...
fool me once MfaninOH, shame on you...
February 22nd, 2011 at 9:44 AM ^
MfaninOH = 
mfan_in_OH = 
February 21st, 2011 at 8:30 PM ^
DM is not even close to jump to the Nba. Keep working on your outside shot, quit hogging the darn BB and maybe after next year , you can bolt. If not be ready to go to the NBDL.
February 21st, 2011 at 8:49 PM ^
Amazing you and MFaninOH posted the exact same thing one post apart. Strange huh?
February 21st, 2011 at 8:47 PM ^
They have Darius leaving too and going 52nd to the Hawks.
Draftexpress.com is still cool with me for the time being, but I don't like that you listed D-Mo as a "trending prospect."
He has no left hand right now, and definitely needs another year or two to develop. He could be a first rounder with one more year, and a lottery pick with 2 more years. Darius would be incredibly foolish to leave school.
February 22nd, 2011 at 12:12 AM ^
He has no left hand right now? Hmm, i'll have to keep an eye on that... But I'll certainly take your word for it, BTN announcer/NBA scout.
February 22nd, 2011 at 10:29 AM ^
I've watched every UM televised hoops game this year. Darius has demonstrated an amazing ability to get to the rack. He is a great player that has undoubtedly elevated our team to a record that most of us thought unattainable when the year began. But there have been countless times that he gets to the rack - often initially going left - but then tries to finish with this right hand when his left hand would be a much better option (e.g., to better shield his body from the defender, to get a better angle to the hoop, to draw a foul w/o getting a shot blocked, etc.). There was a recent game when he *finished* with his left hand, and I literally flew out of my seat with joy. If he learns to finish with his left hand under certain circumstances, he will be unstoppable in the lane. He's already a tremendous player and arguably our best post player (seriously, his moves in the post are better than any of our bigs!), but I firmly believe he can improve in certain areas.
You also undressed a previous poster who claimed that Morris currently does not possess a consistent jump shot. I just don't think he's a consistent threat outside of 15 feet. When you're a sub-30% 3-point shooter, you are not a threat. If he demonstrates an ability to consistently hit the 15-20 foot shot, he will reach hallowed grounds as a PG that few have attained in modern UM hoops lore. He's a great - but still developing - player. And that's what makes his future so bright. If he can augment his current skill set with some additional offensive weapons, we're looking an All-American caliber player.
February 22nd, 2011 at 1:40 PM ^
I think it's ridiculous to say he has no left. He could not have so many assists and so few turnovers without 2 reliable hands. Otherwise opponents could just force him to go left and let the mistakes flow from there. Obviously that doesn't happen. It makes me chuckle when announcers say things like "ohhh, teams are going to catch on that he has no left hand and that'll show up in scouting reports" as if they picked up on some weakness before the other B10 coaches did. You can't force Darius to go left because his first left step is quick enough to beat his defender to the lane, and bad things happen from there for the defense.
And that's really my point in the context of Darius's NBA stock: scouts won't care so much how well he finishes with his left. As long as it's solid enough that he can't be forced to lose vision, lose control, make mistakes, i.e., as long as he has a high assist to TO ratio (he does) he'll be a serviceable NBA guard. Nobody drafts a player like Darius to score 20 ppg. They draft him because he creates a mismatch against smaller guards and can potentially avg 8 apg; his left hand doesn't prevent either from happening, so it isn't the reason Darius needs to come back next season.
I never defended his jumper because I don't think it's that good. That needs more improvement than his LEFFFTTT HANDDjfdsaf
February 22nd, 2011 at 4:03 PM ^
....he just doesn't exploit it around the hoop to finish as much as many of us would like to see him do. He uses his left hand when driving to the hoop and dishing, but tends to shy away from it when shooting near the basket. And there are many situations near the hoop where using your left hand is a much better option. That's all I'm sayin'. I have the same issue with Jordan Morgan. If he could develop a little left-hand mini-hook to complement his game, his offensive prowess would skyrocket. Both are young players, and both can develop these skills over the next year or two.
So maybe I agree with you more than I initially thought. Morris definitely dribbles with his left and goes left to drive and break down the defense. You're right...the dude couldn't average 7 assists per game w/o using his left hand. I think our only disagreement is how much he uses his left to shoot w/in a few feet of the rim.
The bottom line...we all agree that Morris is a great player. Statistically, his season already ranks up there with the elite Wolverine PG's of the past few decades.
Regarding DMo's jumper, you are absolutely correct...you didn't specifically undress someone about that aspect of this game. My bad. I got too passionate w/o double-checking things. But you did post a fairly harsh blanket statement responding to a comment that highlighted his jump shot:
"thanks for the keen basketball insight you regurgitating idiot. watch basketball and stop listening to other people's generic commentary." (In response to <"mature, get stronger, develop his left hand a bit more and get a servicable jump shot.">)
February 21st, 2011 at 9:58 PM ^
I think Darius Morris may go the route of Mateen Cleaves, good college player, but not athletic or skilled enough to excel at the next level. Hope Darius proves me wrong.
February 21st, 2011 at 10:51 PM ^
....He said on the BTN, "Everyone is coming back next year".
So there's that.
February 21st, 2011 at 11:43 PM ^
I really think pro sport exec's look at kids (like Warren and Manny) who enter the draft early even though they're not locks to be drafted as being immature. Most of them probably think, "Sure. Maybe you're ready for the big time. But I'll pass."
If he's a 1st round lock, that's one thing. He's not.
February 22nd, 2011 at 5:52 AM ^
There will be plenty of teams who will give a 6'4" pure point guard a look. Even if he's not viewed as a starter long term, he's the type of guy who can be paired with an undersized SG to form a competent backcourt both offensively and defensively.
If his jumpshot keeps improving he's got a shot at being a legitimate impact player. He's got terrific point guard instincts, is effective scoring inside the 3 point line, and has the size to be a versatile defender. Sure his left hand needs some work, but his handle in general is pretty damned good, and left hand or not he's an effective finisher around the bucket.
February 22nd, 2011 at 7:10 AM ^
Being a 2nd round pick who has to fight to make a team vs sticking around in a league where 8 of 12 teams will lose their top scorer?
He's going to get a lot of national exposure next year if he sticks around, and can easily play his way into a guaranteed contract.
I think his height for a PG and court vision would impress enough needy teams this year that he would, in fact, make an NBA squad, but he can certainly improve his stock by staying at least one more year. Hopefully his relationship with his roommate (Morgan) helps him stay, since Morgan's game will suffer without Morris (hard to find a PG that good at running the pick-and-roll).