Thoughts on Trey Burke
Let him fall straight to the Pistons!
Gonna Hate!
The best college players don't always make the best pro players. Since 1992, 9/20 Naismith award winners have made an all-star game. One of those was Jameer Nelson... -__- The physical knocks on Burke are legit. However, we've all seen that measurables aren't the most reliable tool when predicting success of draft picks (in any sport) either.
There's a big diference between college and the NBA and one of the key factors are the athletes involved. You don't have to have everything to be successful in the NBA, but teams are always going to draft that athletic upside over the college production.
Jameer Nelson has been a legitimate NBA point guard, and has had a decent career. He was stuck with glory-hog, ball-hog, and all around pig Dwight Howard as his main option for eight years, and has still managed 12.6 and 5.2 for his career.
This year, after Howard got both his coach and GM fired before getting yet another coach fired in LA less than six months later, Nelson's numbers went up to 14.7 and 7.4. I'm sure Burke wouldn't mind having nine solid years in the NBA, as Nelson has had.
12 and 5 a game isn't bad, for an average NBA starter. A 9 year career is an accomplishment. But, do you think those are the numbers of an all star?
He was enormously successful in college as a non-prototypical PG (at least by NBA standards), so of course it's going to generate attention. That's the price he pays for the success he had in college: additional scrutiny. People are also a lot more critical of LeBron James when he has an off game (or an off half, as the case may be) than they are of guys on the bench.
Predicting the success of a player on the next level is all guess work in my opinion. Thats why these pro teams go through all the nonsense during combines just to draft a bunch of busts high and let someone else land the gems in the later rounds. It's almost impossible to predict off measurables or previous success.
Let the haters hate... Trey is one helluva player.
Being a sickly individual right now, all I've done this morning is watch ESPN's coverage of the NBA finals aka LeBron's block. I can't help but ponder the alternate reality where Trey's block on Siva is called correctly, leading to a come-from-behind win for Michigan, one where that play becomes THE play of the year. Every other block would instantly be compared to Trey's, including LeBron's most recent.
Sadly, all I can do is ponder...
does not equate to good defense. It could mean that the player gambled too much on defense trying to go for the ball.
Trey isn't a great defensive PG, but he can improve on it in the next level
They are nearly the same size with Burke actually being a little bigger. Both left after their sophomore season. Iverson averaged 22.9 and was Big East defensive POY. Burke averaged 18.6 last year and was national POY.
Iversons ppg is higher because he too 200 more shots over the same 2 years. % wise they ar almost the same. Iverson became a ME guy or got worse about it in the NBA. I hope that doesn't happen to Trey.
The book is writen on AI. No help. No supporting cast (in his prime) he dragged the 6ers to the Finals by himself and won a game on the Lakers' home floor. Insanely competitive, very athletic, but a real chucker.
If he had any real help in Philly they could've made some noise in the Finals
The question we'll never have the answer to is could Iverson have gotten a supporting cast involved? I'm not so sure he would have been happy giving the ball up even if it meant more team success. But just a guess, we didn't see him with another good player until he was in Denver with Anthony and by then he was well past his prime.
To Iverson's are you?
I know who I'd rather have play for Michigan, but in the NBA there isn't much comparison.
Trey's calm demeanor reminds me a lot of Joe Dumars when he played. Unflappable. Steady. A true leader. Traits any team could use at the point. I'm really hoping the Pistons nab him! He will only get better in the coming years!