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The following images and text are from carrbk00@wfu.edu (THANKS!! webmaster speed)....I had the privilege of attending the Big Man Camp in Hawaii today and
was able to observe Bender, Foster, Big Al, and Austin as they
participated in drills. Overall, I was pretty impressed. Of the Pacers,
guess who was the best shooter....Rick Carlisle (aka the NBA logo).
He had a pretty good 
touch and nice form, although a little kid took him to school once when
they played one on one.
As we have heard from numerous sources, Foster was not only fast for a
big guy, but extremely quick as well. He is very athletic, has a pretty
good handle, and can jump out of the gym as well. He has a decent jump
shot, but his shot gets a little too quick if you know what I mean and
is somewhat inconsistent. That seemed to be a major theme with him.
Everything he did was really quick, which can be bad at times. The
coaches had to pull him aside quite a bit as well as make him go though
the drills a couple of extra times, since his fakes were too fast and
thus unbelievible. He is a project, but with some training he will be
effective in the post and will be a tenacious rebounder as well.
After personally watching Austin for about three hours
today, I say we
keep him. I have a feeling he could be a player in this league. He has
an enthusiasm that he can bring to this team, rebounds with a vengeance
(at least on the offensive end), and has a deadly shot for a big man,
which I noticed was LACKING big time in the rest of the forwards and
centers at this camp. Austin is also more athletic and stronger than I
thought he was and I believe he could hold his own at the power forward
spot if he needed to. In fact, that is where he might be most
comfortable, since he is probably not quick enough to guard most of the
small forwards in the league. I think we should keep him and play him if
we can. In the very least, it would boost his trade value. At the most,
we gain a 15-20 point per game scorer (with significant minutes).
The first couple of shots I saw Harrington take, he bricked
them off of 
the rim even though he had superb form. I thought, "Oh Damn. The guy
can't shoot even though he has been working at it." I don't respect a
player at all that is really athletic but can't shoot. They're a dime a
dozen. Then, I watched him make like 8 or 9 in a row from the college
three point line and like 9 out of 10 from the elbows of the key. That
was more like it. I was extremely impressed not only with his shooting
(after watching him awhile), but with his ball handling skills as well.
AL is very adept at creating space to get a shot for himself (something
the Pacers definitely need) and has very good post moves. He is also a
player I wouldn't mind seeing at the power forward spot as well. He is
certainly athletic and muscular enough to play that spot. He could be
the low post force we are looking for (albeit in a few years). He still
has some work to do (I don't know how strong he is on defense), but I
Bender is as amazing as all reports indicate. He can jump
out of gym. He 
can can handle the ball. He also has a sweet jumper from the outside,
even though I'm not crazy about his form. At least it is consistent.
Even his misses usually went in and out of the basket. He seemed as good
if not better than Al at creating his own shot and could use either hand
when taking it to the hole. He definitely needs to work on his strength,
as he was really skinny, but he has all the necessary tools to be a star
in this league. He is the complete package we are looking for. He is one
player I would not want to see at the power forward position, due to his
lack of strength, unless he were guarding someone like Camby. By the
way, he meets or exceeds EVERY aspect of Camby: ballhandling, shooting,
athleticism, etc. His best position (IMO) is at small forward. He might
not be able to keep in step with some of the quicker small forwards in
the league, but his size and athleticism should make up for that.
Remember also, these small forwards will have to guard him on the other
end of the court as well. This kid is going to be something special.
I wasn't able to observe these players on defense, which is the most
important aspect of the game, so I cannot report on this yet. I will
probably go to watch them again tomorrow, so I may add to this. Are
there any questions so far? Anything you want me to focus on? Let me
know.
I again attended the camp today.
1. How well do Harrington & Foster defend the post? &
2. How well do Bender & Croshere defend people off of the dribble? &
3. Does Bender get pushed around by everybody? &
4. Can Foster guard quicker players?
They really haven't started learning how to play defense as of yet,
though they did get a chance to play a little one on one. The camp has
mainly focused on the offensive aspect of the game thus far. In the one
on one games, though, Croshere was matched up with
Antwan Jamison, Big Al was matched up with Shawn Marion,
Foster was matched up with Jeremy Eaton, and Bender was
matched up with Mad Dog Madsen. I took several pictures of
these match-ups and I have to admit I was nervous at first when
Croshere was matched up with Jamison, a very prolific scorer out
of the ACC, but I have to say he more than held his own against
this scoring machine. He stayed right there with him and always had a hand in his face when he
shot. This was surprising considering how quick Jamison is. I guess this gives us hope that
Croshere can play at small forward. Al did a fairly good job of
guarding 
Marion, who is extremely athletic and can jump out of the gym. He did
what I would have done and that is give him the jump shot, since he is
really quick but isn't especially the greatest shooter. When Marion did
drive, though, Al had some difficulty keeping up at times. I think he
relies on his jumping ability rather than moving his feet when he plays
defense. I wasn't really able to focus on the Foster match-up that much,
since there was always action on the court. There were three groups of
players (chosen at random) and there were Pacers in each group, making
it hard to focus on just one. Foster appeared to be a very agile
defender and he plays with loads of energy. He is by far the
most energetic in the camp. Sometimes he tries too hard, though.
Bender also did a fairly good job of defending Madsen. Madsen is one
of those guys who will kill you with hustle and determination and he
uses his body well. It was a good test for Bender, since some question
his ability to guard the stronger players. Bender was definitely quick
enough to stay with Madsen and keep
a hand in his face, but he reaches
quite a bit instead of moving his feet (which seems typical of these
younger players. I guess they have to adjust to the size and speed of
the NBA). When Madsen started to use his brute force to come inside on
Bender, that is where he had some difficulty. In fact, Madsen actually
dunked on Bender, getting OOH's and AAH's from the crowd. He definitely
needs to work on his strength. Until then, he should play exclusively at
small forward and nowhere near the center position as some suggest.
5. Has well does Al do @ rebounding?
They haven't focused on rebounding at all yet, so I cannot answer on
that. He certainly appears strong enough and athletic enough to do so,
but I don't know how well he boxes out. Hopefully this will be addressed
in future camp sessions.
6 .Can Croshere create his own shot? &
7. Has Croshere developed a mid-range game? Last season it was either a
lay-up or a three. I got to watch Croshere go to work against Jamison on the offensive end
as well and was fairly impressed. He was actually quite good at getting
a good shot off against Jamison. In some cases, Jamison wasn't able to
even get a hand in his face and he actually fell down after a crossover
by Croshere. He was also able to get a couple of dunks in as well.
Croshere is able to do this on offense due to his excellent handle for a
big man and the development of a stutter step, pull back, fadeaway jump
shot. It is comparable to Sprewell's marquee shot. He isn't quite as
consistent with it as Spree, but every shot was on target and not to the
left or right, so I guess that is a good sign. Last year I have to admit
I didn't really notice he only took three pointers or lay-ups, but that
is what this camp is for. I guess he wants to develop that part of his
game. Well, now he can definitely get open, but it's a matter of making
the shot. With some work at this, I feel he will be a vital part of the
Pacers' offense in the years to come. That is, if he is still around.
Watching him again today strengthened my opinion that we should keep
him.
7. Can Bender score with his back to the basket?
Yes he can score with his back to the basket, but not
as well as when he
creates his own shot. I was very impressed with his ballhandling skills too. In
fact, all of the Pacers seemed to have very good control of the ball at all times,
even Foster. Bender was matched up with Mad Dog, who is a tenacious
defender and definitely uses his muscle to his advantage, but Bender did very
well against him. I got to see the 6'11'' Bender dribble (like a guard)
through his legs, around his back, and he had a nice spin move
as well.
He also has a nice little baby hook shot and can go with either hand. It
is unstoppable. He was also able to create A LOT of space between him
and his defender, but that didn't really matter since he leaps so much
higher than everyone else when he takes his shot. The future is bright!
Now the bad news. Bender injured himself at the camp today. I think he
broke his legJUST KIDDING. He was in fact injured, but it was somewhat
minor. I'm not sure what the cause was or even when it happened, but he
did sit out the rest of the day. I noticed that he was walking around
with ease and without a limp, though. It can't be serious. Sorry if I
gave any of you a heart attack, but I couldn't resist.
8. Can Foster score facing the basket?
Yes, he can score facing the basket and that seems to be his strong 
suit. I saw him nail several shots beyond the college three point line,
but his shot is kind of flat, his follow through is not very strong, and
he seems to rushing it to me. If he could just calm down, at least on
the offensive end, I think he can be a decent scorer in this league. He
is also very good at taking it to the hoop with authority, as I saw him
get several dunks over his defender. He does need to work on his
strength, though, if he wants to play the center or power forward
position. I see a lot of potential.
9. Who has the biggest shot at contributing right away.
I see an enormous amount of potential in these guys in the near future,
but out of all of these guys, I honestly don't see anyone contributing
right away (at least in a major way). Bender is too skinny and will foul
quite a bit at first, Foster needs to get stronger and tone it down a
tad, Harrington needs to work on his defense and jump shot, and Croshere
has to get a mid-range jumper and play better defense. I can, however,
see these guys contributing to the team in smaller roles. I think that
Croshere will have the biggest of these somewhat small
impacts, since he can shoot very well and hustles like a maniac.
I love how he goes after rebounds with reckless abandon. The
same goes with Foster. He DEFINITELY will bring some
enthusiasm that was sorely missing last year when he
comes off of the bench. I look to see the Pacers playing with a lot more
heart next year. Enthusiasm is contagious. Bender
and
Harrington will likely see less minutes than either of these
players at first, but will likely become the players we build
around in the future (duh). Our frontcourt is going to be
amazing. I like these four guys because of their versatility. Each
player can or will be able to play at least 2 positions. Bender will play at small forward, but will be
able to play power forward or center in the future. Foster can play either at the
power forward, but will be able to play at the center position and even
some small forward with his quickness. Croshere can play at small or
power forward. Harrington can play at small or power forward, but IMO
could even play shooting guard and center if he grows some. Then, throw
Jalen into the mix, who can play point guard, shooting guard, and small
forward. And, everybody can handle the ball. In a few years, when this
team gels and these guys learn their roles better, they will be a force
to be reckoned with.
Yes, Shawn Bradley and Leon Smith were there. Shawn Bradley
is fairly 
impressive when he isn't tripping over himself. He made every other
player look tiny. If he is able to get inside position, just put the
points up on the board. His defenders looked hopeless against him when
he was in the lane. You could see it on their faces. He was matched up
with Todd MacCullouch (who wasn't nearly as impressive as he was against
Timmy D in the Olympic games, Truth). Todd had a hard time getting even
a shot off against his long arms. One on one, it is virtually impossible
to score on Bradley without using brute force. A number of people
question Leon's work ethic and he seemed to make it easier to do so when
he failed to show up to the camp for the first day. He actually showed
up today. He is very impressive physically. He looks like a 6'11'' guard
with extremely long arms and is very athletic. His heart just doesn't
seem to be in the game, though. His shot isn't the greatest and he was
very lackadaisical during the drills. When he tried, though, he was very
impressive. I don't know if he has a love for the game, which I deem
very important.
Regarding a guy that really impressed me:
Nobody REALLY impressed me, but if I had to pick one guy, it would be
Adonal Foyle. I like him because he can play at either the four or five
spot, is very well-muscled, and is extremely good on defense. I was
impressed with how well he moved his feet on defense for such a big guy
and with his shot blocking skills. He was also the fastest of the
centers at the camp when they ran drills, winning by a large margin
every time (Bradley was the slowest). The Pacers could really use this
guy. He is someone who can guard the Larry Johnsons of the league, since
he is in that same mold. He doesn't have the shooting touch of LJ,
though. That is one thing I would like to see him improve on. His
mid-range jumper is very weak, but he takes it to the hole very well. On
a side note, our group of Pacers also did very well in the sprinting
drills. Croshere and Harrington finished in the top three of the small
forwards every time and Foster was usually first for the power forwards.
We can definitely go up tempo with these guys.
Side notes: Brad Miller is well polished offensively, but he is not the
best defender. He made Kelvin Cato look like Hakeem. If I had to compare
Miller to someone in the NBA, it would be Andrew DeClerq. He was a good
pick up for the Hornets, but he has some work to do before he sees
significant playing time.