Wow, Gordan Hayward!

[7StraightIsGreat]

I think it's kinda sad that some Jazz fans are in here trying to discredit what Hayward did last night. I guess when you don't like the draft pick and bitch about it from the word go, you basically paint yourself in a corner that's pretty hard to get out of, so in turn you must continue trying to cast the player in a bad light even when he starts making progress and showing promise. It has to be exhausting being that negative. Granted, this 1 game means little to nothing in the grand scheme of things, but it at least showed a step in the right direction for Hayward, and most importantly I think we are starting to see the game "slow down" for him. Not only that, but I think you could see some hints of that going back to the Minnesota game before Christmas and even a little in the Portland game the other night.

I think Hayward has the talent/smarts/work ethic neccessary to build on this performance. While some will play it down and actually be idiotic enough to try and compare it to rookie performances from the likes of Kirk Snyder, I will stay on the flip side of the argument. The kid just seems to "get it" in regards to what it's going to take to be successful over the long haul.

And if you are somebody who thinks Hayward may just end up being worthy of the 9th pick, don't get too comfy with last night. Tonight he's playing in Portland a night after logging 42 minutes. Obviously a repeat performance is not likely. Too bad no amount of logic like that is going to stop haters from hatin'.

 

[Joe Bagadonuts]

I think it's kinda sad that some Jazz fans are in here trying to discredit what Hayward did last night. I guess when you don't like the draft pick and bitch about it from the word go, you basically paint yourself in a corner that's pretty hard to get out of, so in turn you must continue trying to cast the player in a bad light even when he starts making progress and showing promise. It has to be exhausting being that negative. Granted, this 1 game means little to nothing in the grand scheme of things, but it at least showed a step in the right direction for Hayward, and most importantly I think we are starting to see the game "slow down" for him. Not only that, but I think you could see some hints of that going back to the Minnesota game before Christmas and even a little in the Portland game the other night.

I think Hayward has the talent/smarts/work ethic neccessary to build on this performance. While some will play it down and actually be idiotic enough to try and compare it to rookie performances from the likes of Kirk Snyder, I will stay on the flip side of the argument. The kid just seems to "get it" in regards to what it's going to take to be successful over the long haul.

And if you are somebody who thinks Hayward may just end up being worthy of the 9th pick, don't get too comfy with last night. Tonight he's playing in Portland a night after logging 42 minutes. Obviously a repeat performance is not likely. Too bad no amount of logic like that is going to stop haters from hatin'.

+1

 

[JAZZFAN_2814]

Hayward has the skillsets -- is close enough to the prototype -- as a shooter and secondary creator that the Jazz have been missing since Hornacek retired.

Hornacek's intangibles were off the charts, but I continue to think that management made a very good pick relative to system and a look toward contention.

 

[NUMBERICA]

Being realistic isn't discrediting what Hayward did last night. Get your head out of your ***.

 

[sirkickyass]

I think it's kinda sad that some Jazz fans are in here trying to discredit what Hayward did last night.

I think you misunderstand. I'm merely saying that it's imprudent to forget everything else we have seen because he had two good quarters. One of the reasons we shouldn't forget about the other stuff is because many players have spurts where they look good even if they themselves are not actually good players.

While some will play it down and actually be idiotic enough to try and compare it to rookie performances from the likes of Kirk Snyder,

Alas, the old board is gone. If it was still up I'd link here to a whole slew of posts predicting great things for Kirk Snyder based upon a handful of impressive performances. As to the one to one game comparison I think it's pretty clear. 17 and 6 in 44 minutes vs. 15 and 6 in 28 minutes isn't exactly being unfair to Gordon.

 

[NotDeadYet]

one three and a long two, but it is a start. If he scores more than 15 I promise to spell his name correctly the rest of the year!

Not a problem; 17 > 15.... He actually outscored their 20-year old rookie, Aminu. Hayward is showing a lot of poise under duress. Aminu is impressive, but Hayward, even when physically overmatched, keeps his cool, uses his head, and keeps hustling. I'm definitely starting to buy into our taking him in the draft...

 

[Gyp Rosetti]

The better Hardwood plays, the more leverage we'll have in July with AK. That could prove huge unless AK's just all about the Benjamins.

 

[7StraightIsGreat]

Being realistic isn't discrediting what Hayward did last night. Get your head out of your ***.

I think most of the people who are excited about Hayward's performance last night are the ones being realistic. I haven't seen anybody proclaim that he has officially arrived as an NBA star, etc. I think everybody who has hope for the kid realizes that this is a process and they are simply pointing to his performance as a positive and hopefully a stepping-stone to better things. Yes, we know it's only one game. Yes, we know he has to do much more before he even comes close to living up to his draft position. All of these things are very well known, yet when the kid has a nice night and some of the fans want to celebrate it, some in here feel like it's their self-appointed duty to try and spew what their version of reality is. If you can't wrap your mind around that, then you need to be the one pulling your head out of your ***.

And Kicky, the Kirk Snyder comparison is all well and fine if you take out one little factor: When Snyder was a rookie in Utah, fans weren't privy to the information that Snyder was a stark raving mad lunatic. Had fans known that, maybe their excitement would have been tempered somewhat. Snyder's is a very sad story because in reality, he had the tools to be a very successful player for the Utah Jazz. Had it not been for his mental illness, I think many of the fans expectations would have been met.

I don't have any personal interest vested in Hayward other than he plays for my favorite team so I obviously want him to succeed. With that being said, he just seems to have the make-up of a player who tends to have success in this Jazz system. He's a hard-working, intelligent basketball player who's willing to learn and seems to put team before self. I realize people question whether he's athletic enough for the NBA and there were also the questions of his physique when drafted and while those aren't his greatest attributes, I think he's been better than advertised in both areas.

I guess I'd classify him as a safe bet to be successful because I've never seen a player with all of that going for them crash and burn for the Jazz. I guess time will tell, but as I said in my last post, I'm sure the vultures will pick at him every chance they get.

 

[7StraightIsGreat]

And props to whoever neg-repped me and called me a "hack" without signing it. That's a bitch move. If your'e gonna call me a name at least man up and let me know who's insulting me.

 

[Siro]

And props to whoever neg-repped me and called me a "hack" without signing it. That's a bitch move. If your'e gonna call me a name at least man up and let me know who's insulting me.

You must not have gotten many neg reps to be so roused by one. I have at least 6 "hack" neg reps.

 

[NUMBERICA]

And props to whoever neg-repped me and called me a "hack" without signing it. That's a bitch move. If your'e gonna call me a name at least man up and let me know who's insulting me.

I'll take responsibility for it even though I didn't do it.

 

[Borat]

Hayward is a 20 year old rookie, and having one good half certainly does not qualify him as a star. But, he followed that up with decent performance against Blazers loss, and he seems to be generally improving. The kid needs time. It's way too early to pass judgment, but at this point I would like to see him keep starting. Kirilenko did not exactly impress this year, is injured yet again, and Gordan seems to be improving and doing OK as starter. Let's see if he can keep this going. Maybe we will get the benefits sooner than later.

 

[LogGrad98]

Hayward is a 20 year old rookie, and having one good half certainly does not qualify him as a star. But, he followed that up with decent performance against Blazers loss, and he seems to be generally improving. The kid needs time. It's way too early to pass judgment, but at this point I would like to see him keep starting. Kirilenko did not exactly impress this year, is injured yet again, and Gordan seems to be improving and doing OK as starter. Let's see if he can keep this going. Maybe we will get the benefits sooner than later.

This is a nice level-headed response. No need to unrealistically build him up the way CJ was the last few years, and no need to slam him down in his first year in the league the way Almond was. He was obviously gun-shy and overwhelmed at the start but he is slowly gaining confidence. I think his college experience will end up helping him adjust, it will just take some time. Who knows where he will end up but we can only wait and see. I watched the tournament and was impressed with him. Still I was surprised he went that high, and that we picked him, but the abilities are there on both sides of the ball. If he can connect the dots he could be great.

Personally I am glad we didn't send him to the D-League. I have yet to see the D-League really help any player that was drafted straight to the NBA. It is a good developing ground for players like Gaines, but I think it is too easy for players that are already near-NBA caliber to dominate or at least feel entitled so they don't get as much out of the experience. But that is another topic.

 

[7StraightIsGreat]

It was a nice follow-up performance by Hayward. We'll have to see, but we can come expect similar performances from him, I'd be in favor of moving AK to the bench full time. First and foremost, I think Hayward would get more benefit from playing with D-Will, Sap and Jefferson as opposed to getting the majority of his minutes with the second unit.

Plus, I think it gives us a very formidable bench as we move towards the 2nd half of the season. A line-up with Watson, CJ, AK47, Fesenko and Memo sounds downright delicious.