Some reality on Gallon...

[elmocarp]

I have noticed that a lot of people seem to think he is going to leave after next season based on the comment he made for a recruiting piece where he said he'd like to be a "one-and-done." I get why that bothered a few people, and I get why it makes people wonder about what he will do after the season. But I think there is a lot more to it than a comment he makes as a high school senior.

First of all, his weight is going to continue to be an issue. I think we should all take a deep breath and prepare for it for the upcoming season. I think its great that he's lost so much weight, but the truth is even if he is all the wat down to 290 as reported, that is still a playing weight of 290. 290! I don't care how skilled a guy is, 290 isn't an appropriate playing weight for anyone who isn't a 7-footer. I say all this for two reasons: first, it may effect his ability to be as productive as his skills should allow him next season. Secondly, the league is very serious about guys with weight issues and they want to see that guys have put those days behind them instead of just dieting for a paycheck.

Also, Tiny is likely going to play a good portion of his minutes at the 5, but he will have to play the 4 in the league. He is very much like Blake in that he is 6'8"-6'9", which puts him at the low end for a power forward. At 290, there is just about no way he would be able to play the four in the league against those athletes. He simply has to keep losing the weight if he wants to make it in the league.

I think that, regardless of his level of productivity as a freshman, Gallon will have a shot to go in the 20-30 range of the drat if he were to come out after this season. That said, I think the chances of him going higher are very small, but the chances of him dropping into the second are pretty strong. I think he chose to play for Capel for a reason, and Capel isn't going to tell his kids to risk their career on the chance to cash in earlier. I really think Tiny plays at least two seasons in Norman.

 

[SoonerNorm]

If Gallon averages 12 PPG and 6 RPG, he will return for another year. If he averages 22 PPG and 12 RPG, he will be gone. It will most likely come down to production.

 

[Krugerfan52]

I hope he stays for a few years, but I do think he will produce big numbers as a frosh. He should be playing big minutes since we don't have any proven post players. Plus he's extremely talented. Put those together and they equal big numbers and a high draft status. Add that to the fact that he said his goal is to get to the NBA (not graduate college) and I don't expect him to be here long.

 

[AdaSooner]

If Gallon averages 12 PPG and 6 RPG, he will return for another year. If he averages 22 PPG and 12 RPG, he will be gone. It will most likely come down to production.

I agree with what Norm said. I also think academics will continue to be a factor. That's not to say Tiny won't work at keeping his grades up. But his decision to jump to the league early, may come down to how serious he is about getting an education? If he is doing well in class, I don't believe he will settle for going in the bottom half of the first round or take a chance on falling into round two. But, if grades are an issue (and I hope they aren't), it would not surprise me to see him come out early, even if he is projected to be drafted in the top 20 to 30 or so.

I'm hoping Tiny will work hard in the classroom as well as the training room and set his sights on being a lottery pick. If he does, I think he will be at OU at least two years, because he will need that much time to get in shape and to refine his skills as a future PF in the NBA.

Elmo is right, Tiny will be a four at the next level. The goods news is, he is a lot more skilled than Blake was as a freshman. He just needs to work on his conditioning and athleticism, and expand his repertoire of post moves.

 

[BigTime]

Good post, elmo. I agree with a lot of what you said. I do think he will put up pretty gaudy numbers though due to the fact that he will be the number 1 scoring option inside, with two good penetrating PGs to give him the ball. I also don't think this draft will be hugely strong (see last year), so that might give him some extra incentive to go pro.

No matter what, I bet Capel recruits this class as if Gallon does go pro. That is why I think we could see a JUCO post man taken.

 

[campbest]

I think Gallon will be at minimum a two-year player....just my opinion.

 

[Sam]

Glen Davis plays the 4 for Boston at 6'9 289 and I doubt he has the quickness of Tiny.

 

[Mr.B!!!]

The reason why many guys are "lottery picks" has nothing to do with how good of basketball players they are. Gallon, while big, nimble, and obviously a talented basketball player, is NOT a supreme athlete and, even with everything he has accomplished to date, is not going to pass the eye-ball test after this season.

Big Baby, Oliver Miller and Tractor Trailer were not lottery picks, in fact, I have a hard time remembering a dominant college post that was kind of, well, fat, that has been drafted that high. He could go 20 and 10 and still the best thing for him to do would be to wait an extra season...

 

[Sam]

Robert Tractor Traylor was the 6 overall pick for the Mavs (who then traded him for Dirk).

 

[Smash Williams]

Glen Davis plays the 4 for Boston at 6'9 289 and I doubt he has the quickness of Tiny.

From what little I've seen of Tiny, I don't think he is as quick as Big Baby. While it's not something I would argue strongly, I have a hard time believing that Big Baby is any less athletic than Tiny. Davis was an athletic big in college despite playing well above 290 lbs. I've heard everything up to 340 lbs or so as far as his college weight.

However, I do think it is a really good comparison, and it really supports elmo's argument. Big Baby was a heavy PF with guard skills and was expected by many to be a one-and-done player, but he ended up as a 2nd round pick after two years of college because he was dogged by questions about his size and conditioning in spite of being a very productive player. I also think it's unlikely that Tiny will be anything more than a late first round pick unless he continues to drop a lot of weight. Right now Tiny is athletic for someone who is 290 lbs, but he isn't athletic compared to NBA PFs.

 

[NickZepp]

Robert Tractor Traylor was the 6 overall pick for the Mavs (who then traded him for Dirk).

I think the Warriors made that trade if I'm not mistaken. That was a brilliant deal.

It's hard to tell were guys like Gallon are going to be in the NBA. Blake is an athletic freak and plays bigger than he is because of that. I'm not sure if Gallon is at that level of athlete and if he's that good a player. But if he's more like the Glenn Davis or Oliver Miller type he'll be here 2 or 3 years, maybe all 4.

 

[coacht]

I think the Warriors made that trade if I'm not mistaken. That was a brilliant deal.

I think it was the Bucks, but either way it was a great trade for the Mavs.

 

[Mr.B!!!]

Awesome to be wrong!!! Hooray for me!

 

[Seymore Cox]

Sometimes it doesn't depend on a kids production but on his support system. If he has alot of people in his ear with bad info, he may make a bad decision. Not everyone has the support system of WW and Blake.

 

[j2d2]

Lots of good points on both sides. I was surprised by ABD's op[inion that Tiny is more skilled than Blake . I think Tiny has a bigger learning experience coming in the Big XII than he thinks. Much bigger. We all are thinking we'll run this year. Where does that leave him? Trailing the guards, I'd guess, at least during the second part of each half. Upon further review, I'm guessing that he'll be here two years. Pure gut feeling.

 

[McG78]

The NBA draft is primarily about potential. NBA teams don't care how productive you were as a college player (e.g., Hansborough) or what school you went to (though it probably helps to get a few looks). They care about one thing: your potential.

So let's look at Tiny potential. He is very large but still has a lot of quickness. NBA teams look at this as a plus. Let him mature (in or out of college) physically and hit the weight room and he will be great because he has shown that he can play at 290+. NBA teams will say if we can trade 20 lbs of fat for 20 lbs of muscle we're in business. What NBA teams worry about is getting a guy whose body can't support the extra weight (become injury prone or loses his quickness or can't play an entire season getting banged against).

Tiny's footwork both on the block and outside are way ahead of most post players. While some of this can be taught, teams will feel like he is more ready to work on his game because they won't spend a lot of time working on footwork. (According to my sources Longar Longar heard this a lot when he was visiting teams)

Another plus is Tiny's range. He has shown the ability to shoot the ball consistently from outside.

In short, Tiny has a lot of potential.

Tiny's negatives right now are that he still has some fat to lose/muscle to gain, hasn't shown that he has more than a couple of inside post moves, and relies to heavily on a step back three rather than forcing the action with an aggressive move to the basket.

This season NBA scouts will look to see if he Tiny shows dedication to being more physically fit, whether he shows his desire to improve other aspects of his game, and whether he is more aggressive going to the basket. If he shows these things, he will be a very high draft pick. If he shows them and performs on the court, he will be one of the top picks.

 

[atlantasooner]

I think the Post Players Class of 2009 and the overall talent of the 2009 class will likely send Gallon back for another year.
Favors
Cousin
Sidney
are all likely one and done and all ahead of Gallon in rankings mainly due to being taller and no weight issues.
However, the Class of 2010 has so few big men and far less talent, that a second year in even better shape Gallon can be an Elton Brand like top 3 pick.
2011 draft looks very favorable for a returning Gallon who is say 6-9,270 and has worked on his game for two years.
I think radically improving his draft status will be message that Capel uses.
And he will have two clear examples in Blake and hopefully WW to prove his point.

 

[thebigabd]

OU in 2010-2011 looks a lot better if Tiny Gallon doesnt leave after one year!

I hope he stays...

 

[AdaSooner]

Lots of good points on both sides. I was surprised by ABD's op[inion that Tiny is more skilled than Blake . I think Tiny has a bigger learning experience coming in the Big XII than he thinks. Much bigger. We all are thinking we'll run this year. Where does that leave him? Trailing the guards, I'd guess, at least during the second part of each half. Upon further review, I'm guessing that he'll be here two years. Pure gut feeling.

Actually, j2d2, I'm the one who made that claim. Keep in mind, I said Tiny has more skills than Blake did as a "freshman." BG made some huge strides from his freshman to his sophomore seasons, and it would not have been even close if I was comparing Tiny to the player we saw last year. Likewise, if we were talking about athleticism, quickness and conditioning, Blake would win hands down.

My point is, Tiny has some unique skills for a man his size. He's a very good passer and he has more than adequate handles, plus he has already developed some impressive post moves. But, IMO, the advantage Tiny has over Blake as a freshman is in his ability to knock down mid-range jumpers and even become a threat from behind the arc if need be. If Blake had a face-up game his freshman year, he did not show it. I'm pleased to say that changed last season.

I agree 100% that Tiny will not be able to run the floor the way Blake did, yet he is not exactly slow of foot. If he works himself into game shape so he can sustain his effort for longer periods, he will be perfect for an up tempo game. His outlet passes to the guards and wings to start a fast break are as good as I have seen in years. The teams he played on at Oak Hill ran the floor at every opportunity, and Tiny was the trigger man on a lot of those fast breaks.

 

[elmocarp]

I meant to cover this in my original post, but I think its also important to note that as of right now, Tiny isn't projected as a first rounder. Whatever people think of him, no one really thinks of him as a one-and-done type guy.

I think with the way Capel has been running things, Gallon or any other talented player will come in and spend their first year learning to fit within the team, tailoring their offensive game to complement teammates and learning to defend and play with consistent effort. Then season two can be the time for them to come in and learn to take over games and lead.

Also, I don't think Capel gets enough credit as a mentor for these guys from us fans. Willie has been a very real surprise in terms of how coachable and unselfish he has been while at OU, and he deserves most of the credit for that. However, I think a lot of that has to do with his ability to trust Capel. And not only trust what he is saying, but that Capel is giving him quality advise.

I personally believe that being a 4-year player who played for a guy like Coach K, Capel is a true believer when it comes to the advantages of waiting until you really are ready as opposed to when the league is willing to take you.

I don't know what Tiny's attitude or mindset is when it comes to the NBA (and frankly, I think too much has been made of his one comment about leaving early), but I do believe that Capel isn't one of these guys that is going to bend to a guy just so he can feature his talents. I think Coach is only going to play a guy who demonstrates he is going to buy in to the team.