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How good or bad is Enes Kanter. Really.

Xsy

Well-Known Member
My opinion of Enes Kanter has been high, it's been low. It's been here, it's been there. Guys-- it's been everywhere.

Since the draft, Utah fans have had an erratic view of what we've got in our number three pick. He was the obvious #3 pick in the draft this year, even before the lotto balls bounced in Utah's favor. We've heard people say he's a beast who's been playing with full grown men since he was 16 years old. We also hear people saying a good chunk of Kanter's minutes this season will be spent in the D-League. But really, what do we have here?

Here's what we know.

The Bull from Istanbul is literally a Bull. A male cow with horns and everything. The kid's 6'11" in shoes, and 259lbs of muscle, sans for 5.9% body fat. Enes loves to bang around on the inside. His back-to-the-basket game is fantastic, and his footwork is great. He's even got ridiculous stamina, recording 21 minutes during the draft combine's treadmill test. That's the top of the big men class-- the only other four players to go 21 minutes were guards.

Along with his size, his shooting touch is pretty chocolatey. And by chocolatey, I mean smooth and sweet. Kid's got great range for a big guy, and he's an above average free throw shooter as well. Tends to finish soft around the rim. Doesn't do great finishing with his left. Pretty much doesn't at all. Good rebounder, fights for rebounds far out of his own zone. A lot of people have considered his rebounding skills to be elite.

What we're all concerned about is the fact that Enes Kanter hasn't played basketball at a high level for years. He played a little this summer for Turkey, but they didn't use Kanter to his potential-- they sort of just chucked threes the entire time. I don't wanna talk about it. Aside from that, he was ruled ineligible, blah blah blah, we all know this story. Because of his limited play experience, people are concerned about how he'll play at the NBA level. He's got the size and strength that you can't teach, and a lot of other skills that should translate seamlessly into the NBA. But there's still a lot of room for concern. He's not known for good defense, and we're not sure whether or not he's the type to quickly learn how to defend in the NBA. He tends to look lost, and can turn the ball over a lot, too.

I'm sure there's a whole lot of crap I'm forgetting to mention, but I'm getting too lazy to keep typing, and this is getting long winded as it is. So yeah, when you stop and look at what we've got-- what do you think?

Is Kanter going to see more than 10mpg? Is he the learnin' type? Can he really be the big man of our future? What does he need to achieve this season to avoid the 'bust' label?

We've all had time now to form our personal opinions. What's your final Kanter assessment before the season starts, and we can finally see for ourselves what he can do?
 
Tons of potential, but not much game experience or basketball IQ (Due to the lack of experience). If he is a smart, and as hard of a worker as people have said, he will come along quickly. Maybe midway through the season, maybe a year or two, but hopefully at least by then.
 
I'm eager to see what he's got - but the way I look at it, there is no bar for him. I have no expectations from him whatsoever this year given his recent history and the bigs we currently have. Any impact he makes is a bonus for us this year. After seeing him a good amount of times on the court, and he's development this season, then I'll have a better idea what his ceiling is.
 
I have high hopes but when I first saw him in person i got a sick feeling because of how much his body looked like Hoffa.

I think he will have a similar year to favors first 3/4 of last season.
 
I have high hopes but when I first saw him in person i got a sick feeling because of how much his body looked like Hoffa.

I think he will have a similar year to favors first 3/4 of last season.

I wouldn't worry about this. Hoffa just wasn't agile and quick enough for the NBA. I believe Kanter has better athletic ability and will belong.
 
I'm expecting him to have a Hayward type season. At the beginning, he will be nervous as heck and look like he shouldn't be anywhere near an NBA basketball court and then towards the end of the season (with increased minutes maybe), he will have some good games and start to show some great potential. I think he's a project, almost like having a Euro overseas. I'm all for giving our young guys a lot of minutes to speed up their development, but in Kanter's case, I think it might be better to take it slow.
 
He is either going to be completely terrible (getting his shot blocked, fouling like crazy, looking generally pathetic) or he is going to be pretty good backup (rebounding, getting a lot of put-backs).
 
kostakoufos.jpg



Most will remember the things being said about Kanter were the same things about the guy above. Please oh please don't let him flop like Kosta.
 
My take on the comparison with Kosta, is that Kosta has made a lot of improvement since he came to the Jazz, and Kanter is already better than Kosta is now -- did you see them go head-to-head in the Eurobasket tournament? -- plus Kanter is even younger than when Kosta first came to the Jazz.

My question about him is how well can he play D. He doesn't have great length, so will have to be a Karl Malone-type defender, using his strength to harass people on D. He does look to have better agility than Boozer, though, so let's hope he can at least be adequate. Offensively, he could be another Moses Malone.
 
I think his one big strength is that he should be able to rebound right away. I think his scoring will come later. I was all for drafting Kanter at the #3, but he could be a huge bust.
 
I don't see how there can be any idea. Even the lack of serious competition doesn't necessarily mean anything. Guys like Garnett or Stoudemire came right out of high school ready to play with the big boys. But they're obviously rare exceptions. So realistically, I'm not expecting much of anything. I just want to see what his game looks like against pros so I can get a feel for what type of player he could become down the road.
 
Dont see him playing much to begin with. However, if by the trade deadline we stink I can see us trading at least one of our vet big men which should open up additional playing time for him. As people have said dont forget how young he is and how little he has played in the last couple of years. Patience will be key.
 
I'm eager to see what he's got - but the way I look at it, there is no bar for him. I have no expectations from him whatsoever this year given his recent history and the bigs we currently have. Any impact he makes is a bonus for us this year. After seeing him a good amount of times on the court, and he's development this season, then I'll have a better idea what his ceiling is.
This.
Anything Utah gets from Kanter this season is a bonus. He's a project. I also agree with sojodave. Enes can bring rebounding and energy right away. Kind of like Millsap his rookie season. Just go after it and get put backs if possible. With the uncertain labor situation, I was leaning more towards Valanciunas as the Jazz pick. I think he has more potential as a true 5 and remaining in Europe one more year would not have been a huge deal, especially with the Jazz likely playing for a lottery pick, not a playoff spot this year.
 
My take on the comparison with Kosta, is that Kosta has made a lot of improvement since he came to the Jazz, and Kanter is already better than Kosta is now -- did you see them go head-to-head in the Eurobasket tournament? --

You must be completely blind. Kosta destroyed Kanter when Turkey played Greece in friendly ( I think it was 9-0 in limited minutes they played ). Kosta at this point is much better then Kanter, plus he is bigger and more athletic.
 
Whenever I feel doubtful on Kanter I am always consoled by recalling a post I saw on an internet message board several months before the NBA Draft:


"Coach Cal don't recruit no busts"
 
Look at kanter's body type. He's actually kind of toned and muscular. And he is very young. I think he could grow into a bigger body type. He could pack on some more muscle. And I think he will. I think you can tell a lot of times by looking at a man's neck, head, and shoulders. And in particular his jaws. He has the beginning features of an alpha male. He has square and proportionate features. He's not real long but doesn't have real short arms. Like Hoffa did. He looked like a t Rex. Also Hoffa didnt look proportional. His body looked weird. Kosta also looked wierd. He had a hunch back and didn't look like an alpha male. Now it doesn't always mean that these features will make you a beast but it will help. Just look at kris humphries looks like alpha male. But doesn't play like one. The thing that worries me is that Kanter doesn't play above the rim. He doesn't look real explosive. But doesn't look slow and he can dunk somewhat. He might end up sneaky athletic like Dwill or Hayward. I think he will be good
 
In general I think Jazz messed up by not taking Valanciunas. Kanter may turn out into reliable big man, getting something like 12pts/8 reb in his NBA career but in general nothing special. I think his potential in NBA is fairly limited due to lack of explosiveness and lift - unless he develops decent outside game and passing. But who knows, with so little game to judge about him he is a mystery, could be a bust or could surprise some people ( me including)
 
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