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Desmond Farmer Named D-League Co-Player of Month/Gabe Pruitt Reassigned to Utah Flash

From NBA.com:

Sioux Falls forward Kasib Powell and Rio Grande Valley guard Desmon Farmer were today named NBA Development League co-players of the month for games played in February.

...Farmer led Rio Grande Valley scorers in eight of 11 games played during the month, including two 39-point outings against Los Angeles on Feb. 17, and Fort Wayne on Feb. 26. In 11 games in February, the former Seattle SuperSonic averaged 26.8 points, including 36-of-71 three pointers, while dishing out 4.4 assists and grabbing 3.8 rebounds per game.

Just thought I'd throw this post up in case you were wondering what Des was up to.  While on the topic of the D-League, Gabe Pruitt was reassigned to the Utah Flash this week.  Oh Gabe, what could have been...

ESPN/Scout's Evaluation of Nick Young So Far (Top 50 Rookies)

From ESPN.com:

#19 - Nick Young

December 12, 2007

Solid shooting from such a young guard bodes well for his future.

December 05, 2007

Young is not yet a capable finisher around the rim -- he struggles to create great scoring angles off of dribble-drives. And as a shooter, his mechanics are far from solid -- his balance is very poor on many attempts. But this young man can "throw the ball in," which signals his overall shooting talent. He has a chance to be quite gifted as a scorer.

November 21, 2007

Young is another scorer who is starting to earn rotation minutes. He needs to display some toughness to go along with his talent.

Gabe is currently ranked #35 in the top 50.  Nick started his 2nd game in a row last night but had one of his worst performances of the year.

Gabe Pruitt Rookie Photo Shoot

Some photos from NBA.com:

Gabe's 1st game will be against Nick (Young) and the Wizards on Nov. 2nd. 

Gabe Pruitt Agrees to Deal

 

From the Boston Globe:

The Celtics are happy with the terms of the contract for Pruitt, which is expected to pay $650,000 this upcoming season, $711,517 during the 2008-09 season and $729,005 during the 2009-10 season. The former Southern California star was the 32nd overall pick in this year's draft.

Congrats to Gabe. 

Gabe's Future is Secure

Here's a funny story about Rajon Rondo, the starting PG for Boston:

With Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen in the Boston Celtics’ lineup, one would have to figure that life will become a lot easier for the other two Beantowners on the floor. There are going to be plenty of opportunities for those guys since defenses will be geared to stopping the Big Three.

The Small Two’s tasks are simple enough: defend, stay off the police blotter, and knock down the occasional open jumper. Piece of cake, right?

Not if your name is Rajon Rondo .

There were only two players left in the gym: Rondo and Doc Rivers’s eighth-grade son, Austin. Rondo, his shirt off, had assistant coach Kevin Eastman feed him the ball for 100 jumpers.

With nobody guarding him, Rondo hit 52 of them. Minutes later, Doc’s son duplicated the drill — only he knocked down 70.

Rajon’s shooting woes have been well documented, but to get shown up by an eighth grader is just downright embarrassing.

If the Celts fail to acquire Reggie Miller, don’t be surprised to see Doc’s son taking some of Rondo’s minutes next season.

I'm almost certain I can hit more than 52.  That's straight embarrassing.

Edit:  Welcome Celtics fans!  Due to the interestingly high amount of negative criticism I've received for this post, that was obviously (or maybe not) intended to be in jest, let me make it clear:  I do not truly believe Gabe's future is secure because Rajon Rondo hit 52 out of 100 jumpers in a shootaround.  I understand, despite what some of you would like to believe, that there are other factors that come into play other than your shooting percentage during shootarounds that determines your future in the NBA.  I know this because I've hit better than 52% in shootarounds and am NOT in the NBA. 

And to these same fans that continue to berate me, let me just say that Doc Rivers' son is NOT eligible to play in the NBA next season despite what the writer wrote in the story...   

Young & Pruitt Jerseys Available

Nick's jersey is available to ship now while Gabe's jersey will ship out on July 31st.  Here are the links to each respective store:  Washington Wizards & Boston Celtics.  I'm going with Nick's jersey. 

Gabe Recalls a Friend

Despite all the things going on in Gabe's life, the memory of Ryan Francis is still very much at the forefront:

When he met the media at the Celtics' practice facility Monday, Pruitt was wearing a wristband with Francis' name on it, and he later told a reporter, “I'll never forget him.”

Francis' mother, Paulette, even called Pruitt's mother, Gwen, the night of the draft to wish him luck.

...“He was so young and you expected him to be there for three more years,” Pruitt told the Worcester Telegram & Gazette. “It was kind of awkward. This was supposed to be Ryan Francis' position, so I just tried to do whatever I could to carry his legacy on.”

Amazing how much of a lasting impact Ryan made on his teammates.

Gabe Pruitt - 1st Summer League Game Video

Here's a link to Celtics vs. Portland game in its entirety.  And for those too lazy to watch it, here's my summary:

• Gabe comes in as a SG first and then takes over the PG role when Rondo takes a break. 
• One thing that is apparent early is Gabe's inability to stay in front of Sergio Rodriguez.  I actually think Sergio is vastly underrated and with the right coaching/situation could be a superstar in the league, so it's no surprise to me that he's giving Gabe fits. 
• Gabe has little problem bringing the ball up court against Sergio and Taurean Green.
• I'm going to miss Gabe's signature jumper rolling off picks.  He hit a couple long jumpers and finished with I believe 7 points. 
• You could tell Gabe was amped for the game because he drew 4 fouls in less than 5 minutes of play.  He played overaggressive on the defensive end and made some stupid and unnecessary fouls.  It's to be expected. 

Not the greatest showing, but you could tell Gabe has the ability to be a star player in the league.  I've never been really impressed with Rajon Rondo; he plays hard and can get penetration but his ceiling is considerably lower than Gabe's because he has little offensive game.  I think Gabe has a solid shot at getting significant PT next season. 

Random Picture: Gabe Pruitt

Being introduced:

Gabe will wear #13 because his college number, #34, is currently taken by Boston's franchise player, Paul Pierce.

Thoughts on the NBA Draft

 

Nick Young, Washington Wizards - 1st Rd. 16th Pick

- I personally think Washington will be a great fit for Nick.  I've always felt that Nick needed at least a year of development before stepping into a main role.  If Nick was picked up by Charlotte, I think his development would have been stunted due to greater and more immediate expectations.  Playing under Gilbert Arenas will do wonders in helping Nick hone the weak parts of his game such as moving without the ball and maintaining a high-level of competitiveness the entire game.  Also, like most draftees, Nick needs to improve defensively.  I think Nick has a productive (not superstar) NBA career.   

   

Gabe Pruitt, Boston Celtics - 2nd Rd. 2nd Pick

- I think Gabe will have a tougher time at Boston.  I still can't believe Jay Bilas actually said that SC tried to hide Gabe defensively.  Uh, Gabe was consistently our best defender and he locked down on players like Patrick Beverley (4/13 shooting), D.J. Augustin (1/8 shooting), and Ty Lawson (2/10 shooting) during the tournament - but of course I digress!  My concern for Gabe comes in the fact that he will be expected to play the pure point role behind Rondo.  Gabe has always been a shooter first guard not a set up the offense type guard.  I'm not sure he can thrive dribbling up court and throwing the ball to guys like Ray, Pierce, or Jefferson.  Of course if we can take anything away from Gabe's career at SC, it was his excellent ability to adapt, so I'm not all that concerned.