# Austin Rivers to enter draft



## 29380 (Feb 23, 2009)

> Austin Rivers is leaving Duke after just one season.
> 
> The 6-foot-3 freshman will sign with an agent and forgo his remaining eligibly, multiple sources told CBSSports.com.
> 
> ...


http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/blog/eye-on-college-basketball/17992524/sources-austin-rivers-leaving-duke-for-the-nba


----------



## BlakeJesus (Feb 1, 2006)

I think his game is probably better suited for the NBA anyways, hopefully goes to a situation that's good for him.


----------



## Diable (Apr 26, 2005)

I just don't see who is rating Rivers as a lottery pick. I don't think he's that good of a player, because his game seems best suited to AAU or schoolyards. Doesn't bother me if he goes either. He's not good enough to take you anywhere as your best player and he appears to be unable or unwilling to play a role that doesn't involve him ignoring everyone else on the floor and jacking up shots. He isn't good enough to do that AI routine in the NBA and he does not seem to have any other skills. He looks like he has to be a bench scorer, and probably not on a good team.


----------



## FSH (Aug 3, 2002)

overrated player i think that can slip down draft boards...he isnt as good as a shooter people say he is and he isnt a PG

he is a 6'3 SG that shoots 65% from the FT line


----------



## BlakeJesus (Feb 1, 2006)

If he's available for their pick, do the Celtics draft him?


----------



## 29380 (Feb 23, 2009)

He would be a nice player off the bench for the Nuggets he could take Rudy Fernandez role if Rudy opt to go back to Spain, he would be the second unit's primary playmaker since Andre is probably leaving in FA.



BlakeJesus said:


> If he's available for their pick, do the Celtics draft him?


I highly doubt it.


----------



## 29380 (Feb 23, 2009)

> But the most interesting scenario might be in Boston if Rivers is still on the board. Currently the Celtics are slated to pick 17th. The team will be in rebuilding mode this summer and they'll want to build around someone with star potential. Would Austin's dad want to coach Rivers? Would Celtics' GM Danny Ainge allow it? Such a move would put a lot of pressure on both Doc and Austin and one source close to the process said that they're hoping Austin's off the board before Doc and Ainge have to make that call.


http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/blog/_/name/nba_draft/id/7728498/nba-draft-austin-rivers-nba-outlook-celtics-big-question


----------



## 29380 (Feb 23, 2009)

> Austin Rivers figures to be a Top 15 pick in the NBA Draft, according to one veteran NBA scout.
> 
> “I think he’s going in the Top 15,” the scout told SNY.tv Friday. “He’s had a good year. He got better as the year went on. He slowed down and got himself more under control and figured it out.
> 
> ...


http://www.zagsblog.com/2012/03/23/nba-scout-says-austin-rivers-is-a-top-15-pick/



> A second NBA scout says Austin Rivers won't be a lottery pick: "Rivers is a scorer who can get to the basket. He needs to work on his perimeter shooting and defense. First round but not lottery."


----------



## sincere (Feb 24, 2012)

i think he got the whole package, especially determination and heart. all he needs is a bit more weight and muscles.


----------



## hobojoe (Jun 20, 2003)

BlakeJesus said:


> I think his game is probably better suited for the NBA anyways, hopefully goes to a situation that's good for him.


Without question his game is best suited for the NBA. He's going to be a good player, it'd be a mistake to let him slip to the lower half of the 1st round.


----------



## Pacers Fan (Aug 25, 2002)

hobojoe said:


> Without question his game is best suited for the NBA. He's going to be a good player, it'd be a mistake to let him slip to the lower half of the 1st round.


Yup. Rivers isn't a collegiate type of player. He might need to be a primary scorer on a team to be more effective than just a stand alone 3-point shooter, but that's fine, because i have no doubts that he'll become a Monta Ellis-type with better 3-point shooting. He's a smart kid with a good pedigree. I'm still not ruling out his ability to transition to PG, either. Whatever teams pass on him outside the lottery are going to be very, very sad.


----------



## Headliner (Aug 11, 2011)

I think he needs at least another year (two to be secure) to develop more. Besides, why miss the college experience?


----------



## FSH (Aug 3, 2002)

Hdlr said:


> I think he needs at least another year (two to be secure) to develop more. Besides, why miss the college experience?


Because Duke doesnt want him...


----------



## hobojoe (Jun 20, 2003)

Hdlr said:


> I think he needs at least another year (two to be secure) to develop more. Besides, why miss the college experience?


He could contribute on an NBA team right now. Hell he could be the 2nd option offensively for the Magic. Everyone knows he's not a finished product yet, but he can create his own offense against anybody. That's still a really valuable commodity.


----------



## BlakeJesus (Feb 1, 2006)

Hdlr said:


> I think he needs at least another year (two to be secure) to develop more. Besides, why miss the college experience?


That sounds all well and good, but I think a year or two in the NBA would do way more for him than staying a year or two in college. You can't say that about every player, but I think it holds true for Austin.


----------



## Headliner (Aug 11, 2011)

hobojoe said:


> He could contribute on an NBA team right now. Hell he could be the 2nd option offensively for the Magic. Everyone knows he's not a finished product yet, but he can create his own offense against anybody. That's still a really valuable commodity.


Anybody can contribute to an NBA team when you think about it, but learning NBA strategies (offense, defense, studying players & movements, etc) is a whole different ballgame from college sports.


BlakeJesus said:


> That sounds all well and good, but I think a year or two in the NBA would do way more for him than staying a year or two in college. You can't say that about every player, but I think it holds true for Austin.


You really think so? I'd take development under Coach K then potentially struggling in his first few years as an NBA guy. (Even though most struggle, but the less struggle at the beginning, the more valuable he'll be)

For the record, I like the guy.


----------



## Nimreitz (May 13, 2003)

hobojoe said:


> Hell he could be the 2nd option offensively for the Magic.


Might as well get this out early: Every ****ing year people overrate the hell out of college players and underrate the hell out of current NBAers. No he couldn't be. How's Derrick Williams doing? How about Brandon Knight? Kemba? JIMMER?!

Those are all guys on bad teams drafted higher than Rivers is projected. None of them are #2 scoring options on their team.


----------



## Diable (Apr 26, 2005)

Basically the only thing Rivers is good for is running Iso plays. Only reason you'd run Iso plays for him is if you wanted to win a lot of ping pong balls.


----------



## hobojoe (Jun 20, 2003)

Nimreitz said:


> Might as well get this out early: Every ****ing year people overrate the hell out of college players and underrate the hell out of current NBAers. No he couldn't be. How's Derrick Williams doing? How about Brandon Knight? Kemba? JIMMER?!
> 
> Those are all guys on bad teams drafted higher than Rivers is projected. None of them are #2 scoring options on their team.


The guy is a very gifted scorer, I'm sure you can see that. Do you really think Ryan Anderson or Jameer Nelson are better scoring options? I watch every game of theirs, they're not. Didn't say he'd be a great player right now, but he can absolutely score the basketball.


----------



## Blue (Jun 21, 2007)

Nimreitz said:


> Might as well get this out early: Every ****ing year people overrate the hell out of college players and underrate the hell out of current NBAers. No he couldn't be. How's Derrick Williams doing? How about Brandon Knight? Kemba? JIMMER?!
> 
> Those are all guys on bad teams drafted higher than Rivers is projected. None of them are #2 scoring options on their team.


Monta Ellis, Rashard Lewis, Michael Redd, Carlos Boozer... all 2nd round draft picks, who at some point, were a top 2 option on their team. Just cause he's not projected in the lottery doesn't mean he cant ball. 

I honestly dont see what people saw in Jimmer as far as being an NBA lottery pick anyway. He had a nice little jumper but thats about it. He looks shorter than he is, and his athleticism is crap. At least Austin has NBA quickness and athleticism w the ball, the main thing for him will just be improving his strength, efficiency, and maybe his decision making. 

His ceiling is waaaay higher than Jimmers, his size gives him an edge on Kemba, and he's more athletic than Knight. He has his flaws but he is a guy who it will take a cpl years before we truly know what he can be. Just because he's projected outside of the lottery doesn't mean he's not capable of being a #2.


----------



## RollWithEm (Jul 16, 2002)

I think his ceiling is Vernon Maxwell. He could eventually develop into one of the league's top 6th men, if he winds up in the right situation.


----------



## Nimreitz (May 13, 2003)

So. Tell me more about how he can be the #2 option on an NBA team and how Ryan Anderson isn't as good of a scoring option. Come accept your bad predictions! Rivers is a complete bum and won't be in the NBA long. He's lucky his contract is guaranteed.


----------



## BlakeJesus (Feb 1, 2006)

He's looked bad, but he's 20 years old and half way through his rookie season on one of the worst teams in the league.


----------



## Nimreitz (May 13, 2003)

Dude, he sucks. And he kinda sucked at Duke too, but everyone was making BS excuses for him like "his game is not suited to the college game". Looks like his game isn't suited to any league beyond the High School level.


----------



## hobojoe (Jun 20, 2003)

You would think being who he is he would "get it", but he clearly doesn't. He doesn't know how to play team basketball at all and Monty Williams isn't going to put up with it. He got off to a terrible start and it's like he's been forcing things and trying to do too much ever since to make up for it. Definitely not the season I thought he would have, but I haven't completely given up on his entire career yet.


----------



## Nimreitz (May 13, 2003)

I think you're right in that it's not _necessarily_ his game that is the problem as much as his attitude. He doesn't understand his strengths and weaknesses in a realistic manner and doesn't understand his role within the team. Every professional that I hear in an interview is brutally honest about how good they are in relation to their peers. Bill Simmons' "irrational confidence guys" are a myth. These are extremely talented scorers who understand their role with the second unit, not shameless chuckers who sabotage the offense.

Rivers seems to be unjustifiably confident in everything he does, and anyone who has played a single pickup basketball game knows how deplorable those guys are when they suck. By NBA standards, he sucks right now, but he has no idea.


----------



## Pacers Fan (Aug 25, 2002)

hobojoe said:


> You would think being who he is he would "get it", but he clearly doesn't. He doesn't know how to play team basketball at all and Monty Williams isn't going to put up with it. He got off to a terrible start and it's like he's been forcing things and trying to do too much ever since to make up for it. Definitely not the season I thought he would have, but I haven't completely given up on his entire career yet.


Yep, pretty much my thoughts. I think he definitely needs a change of scenery already because Vasquez took his spot playing next to Gordon and is shining. It might take him a few years to get it, but I haven't lost hope on the guy yet.


----------



## Diable (Apr 26, 2005)

I'm still happy that he left Duke. ****er would be the fourth best player on the team this year and Coach K would probably have to spend all his time trying to get him to stop doing this third rate kobegomaniacal act


----------



## Mrs. Thang (Apr 14, 2011)

River was one of the biggest "what the hell are they watching" college players of the last 5 years. He was out from the begining to "get his" at Duke and still wasn't that great at it. Talented player, but the only way he's ever going to be good doing what he does is if he's Allen Iverson. There is no such thing as a poor-man's Allen Iverson because a poor-man's Allen Iverson would be a really crappy player.


----------



## Knick Killer (Jul 16, 2006)

There's not a single Raptors fan that wishes they picked Rivers instead of Ross now.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## ChrisWoj (May 17, 2005)

Mrs. Thang said:


> River was one of the biggest "what the hell are they watching" college players of the last 5 years. He was out from the begining to "get his" at Duke and still wasn't that great at it. Talented player, but the only way he's ever going to be good doing what he does is if he's Allen Iverson. There is no such thing as a poor-man's Allen Iverson because a poor-man's Allen Iverson would be a really crappy player.


You mean Will Bynum?


----------



## Geaux Tigers (Apr 26, 2004)

Can the Pelicans trade him for Seth Curry?


----------



## Diable (Apr 26, 2005)

A lot of Duke insiders think that Seth would be one of the top college players if he were healthy this year. They haven't been able to let him practice since he got hurt and it was thought at first that he'd miss the season. Before he got hurt he was seriously balling...And you'd have to throw in Anthony Davis before we'd take Rivers back.


----------



## Nimreitz (May 13, 2003)

Pacers Fan said:


> Yep, pretty much my thoughts. I think he definitely needs a change of scenery already because Vasquez took his spot playing next to Gordon and is shining. It might take him a few years to get it, but I haven't lost hope on the guy yet.


Change of scenery? How many games has he even played? That's ridiculous.


----------



## Pacers Fan (Aug 25, 2002)

Nimreitz said:


> Change of scenery? How many games has he even played? That's ridiculous.


52.

He's been on the verge of falling out of the rotation twice (although he's worked his way back), appears to be on the verge of burning a bridge with his coach, is not a PG right now, and has a much better undersized 2-guard in front of him. It seems to me that his development might be aided elsewhere. Rookies do get traded, ya know. I don't see what's so ridiculous about that.


----------



## Nimreitz (May 13, 2003)

The fact that his problem is his lack of ability and shitty attitude, not the team. "Change of scenery" is something that established pros going through the motions need, not a kid who played like shit and got benched. He's going to be buried on a bench everywhere he goes; the Pelicans are one of the worst teams in the league.


----------



## Pacers Fan (Aug 25, 2002)

Nimreitz said:


> The fact that his problem is his lack of ability and shitty attitude, not the team. "Change of scenery" is something that established pros going through the motions need, not a kid who played like shit and got benched.


It's a little of both. Let me present you with the example of JR Smith, who had similar problems and managed to find a niche twice.


----------



## Diable (Apr 26, 2005)

No one ever thought JR couldn't play, he just exercised his freedom of choice about which end of the floor he would play on.


----------



## Nimreitz (May 13, 2003)

Saw more out of JR Smith in a McDonald's All American game than I ever saw out of Rivers.


----------



## Pacers Fan (Aug 25, 2002)

That's not the point. Do you really think that if Austin were to play for his dad, Gregg Popovich, the Lakers, Miami, Minnesota, or Orlando, things wouldn't be a little better for him? Seriously, some players' careers are determined by the situations they're put into as rookies. I feel like Rivers is the type that needs more freedom to shine or a respectable superstar, veteran player, or coach to put him in his place and really teach him how to play. He has none of that in N'awlins.


----------



## Nimreitz (May 13, 2003)

I think some coaches might give him more rope to hang himself with, but that's it. He is not good enough to get more freedom. He needs less freedom and to start working on an actual skill, because he has none to stick at this level right now.


----------



## Floods (Oct 25, 2005)

Austin playing for Doc would be a disaster.


----------



## Dre (Jun 20, 2003)

We gotta stop with the reputation games because that gives better players ammo to be coach killers. There are only 30 head coaching spots and thousands of knowledgeable basketball minds..you really think the Hornets hired someone who's not trying to instill fundamentals on his team? Like really? What do you think an NBA practice consists of especially on a young team? Why do teams watch film? Why do they have player meetings on said film?

Oh but because Monty and his coaching staff doesn't have a track record I guess Austin gets a pass for not listening...he needs someone with a ring to tell him what to do...that's bullshit. He shouldn't need a legend to tell him the right way to play. Either he's going to get it or he won't, that's his choice.


----------



## Pacers Fan (Aug 25, 2002)

Nimreitz said:


> I think some coaches might give him more rope to hang himself with, but that's it. He is not good enough to get more freedom. He needs less freedom and to start working on an actual skill, because he has none to stick at this level right now.


Ah, well, I suppose we'll have to agree to disagree. I don't think Austin's a finished product yet, although I can see why you and others would think so. I'm expecting his shot to eventually come around and for him to use his handle to explore developing other areas of his game. We shall see.

Floods, I'm not sure. I'd like to think it'd either work out very well like a lesser version of Pete Maravich in college, or it'd be a horrendous situation where either Rivers gets far too many looks he can't convert, or he simply never plays. I don't see a middle ground, but I'd like to see what happens.


----------



## Nimreitz (May 13, 2003)

I mean, it's not necessarily a problem with his shot as much as him taking so many bad shots. Shit, I can "create my own shot" if I launch up bad shots.


----------

