# Suns UFA signings



## tempe85 (Jan 7, 2005)

*Stephen Graham of Oklahoma State
*Yakhouba Diawara of Pepperdine
*Rory O'Neil of Southern California
*Jan Jagla of Penn State
* Mindaugas Katelynas of Tennessee-Chattanooga 
* Lucas Tischer of Brazil (Tischer played on Brazil's junior team with Leandro Barbosa) 
*European pro Ricky Minard (Italy via Morehead State)
*Lynn Greer (Russia via Temple) 
*Michael Haynes (Israel via Fordham)

These guys should be on our summer league team. Also Dijon Thompson should be on it as well. 

Since the rosters are now expanded to 14 at least a couple of these guys have an excellent chance to make the team. 

A little blurb about a couple of them:

Ricky Minard 6-4 200 (SG)



> Was taken with the 49th pick of last years draft by the Sacramento Kings. Only played in four games for Sacramento last season before being cut. Now plays in the Italian league.
> 
> College stat page:
> http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=2458
> ...


Dijon Thompson 6-8, 209

NBADraft.net:


> Strengths: Versatile wing ... Can score in a variety of ways ... When he’s in a groove, he's nearly impossible to guard ... Good handle ... Stellar body control around the basket ... Finishes well ... Excellent form on his jumper. High release point, perfect rotation, and feather-soft touch ... Range out to college 3-point line and beyond ... Effective as a spot-up shooter ... Top-notch midrange game ... Rare combination of strength and finesse ... Exceptional rebounder (averages almost 9 boards a game) ... Steady ... Doesn’t get too up or too down on himself ... Great crunch-time nerves ... Solid leadership skills ... At 6'8", has great size for NBA 2-guard ... Long arms ... Outstanding post feede ... Very smart player. Makes the correct decision with the ball more often than not ... Commands respect from his teammates ... Hard worker ... Always looking to improve his all-around game ... Like fellow Pac-10 stud Ike Diogu, a “self-made” basketball player ... Durable... Good at the foul line... Doesn’t force many bad shots ... Let’s the game come to him... Great teammate.
> 
> Weaknesses: Needs a LOT of work on defense (to his credit, Dijon has improved from “atrocious” his sophomore/junior seasons to “passably mediocre” his senior season) ... Plays on his heels far too often ... Gambles for steals and gives up defensive positioning ... Vulnerable to back-cuts ... Picks up too many cheap fouls ... Has a tendency to let his concentration drift on the defensive end ... Not a freak athlete ... Most of his rebounds come as a result of superior positioning, not leaping ability ... Currently lacks the lateral footspeed needed to keep up with NBA 2-guards and small-forwards ... Occasionally falls in love with the 3-point line and doesn’t drive to the basket enough ... Not very good in transition (offensively and defensively) ... Far too hesitant going to his left ... Wwill need to adjust from being “the Man” at UCLA to being a role player on the next level ...


Lucas Tischer 6-10, 270



> "The biggest sleeper on draft night could be Brazilian Lucas Tischer, a 6-foot-10, 270-pound big man who has tested off the charts athletically in workouts," ESPN Insider's Chad Ford wrote this morning. Tischer has the size to be a force in the paint and is still a good athlete, but his skills are not up to par, particularly on the offensive end of the court. A lot of teams aren't looking for much offense from their centers, however, and will be willing to let Tischer grow into his game at that end of the court. Tischer will likely go in the second round, but the possibility that he sneaks into the first round can't be ruled out.


Wow Ford thought he could be a first rounder and the guy went undrafted. Just shows how deep the draft was. 

Stephen Graham 6-6, 200 (SG)


> Twin brother of #6 selection in the draft Joey Graham.
> 
> Stat page
> http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=3425


Yakhouba Diawara 6-7 225 (SF)


> Stat Page:
> http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=15215
> 
> I think the guy is French. Don't quote me on that though.


Rory O'Neil : 6-11 240 (C)


> Stat page:
> http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=5037


Jan-Hendrick Jagla 7-0 240 (PF)



> German. Went to Penn State for 2 years then declared for draft. Went undrafted and ended up having to go to Europe. Has played in the Greek leagues as well as German leagues.
> 
> Stat page:
> http://statistik.basketball-bundesl...ndex.php?team=435&saison=2004&spieler_id=3142


Lynn Greer 6-2 175 (PG):


> Played in the NBDL for a year, now plays for Russia.
> I don't believe he actually saw action for the Milwaukee Bucks but he was on the team for about a month.
> 
> Stat page and Bio:
> http://www.nba.com/draft2002/profiles/lynn_greer.html


Micheal Haynes 6-7 (SF)



> Israili league statistics: http://www.safsal.co.il/player219.aspx



-----------------------------------
Tischer was obviously our big signing and probably has the best chance to make the team out of all of them (except Dijon).


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## tempe85 (Jan 7, 2005)

Out of these players the ones with the best chance of making the team are probably in this order:

1. Dijon Thompson (practically guarenteed)
2. Mindaugas Katelynas (Marion Redux)
3. Lucas Tischer (We need all the big men we can get)
4. Ricky Minard (has an all around game... pretty good defender)
5. Stephen Graham (not as good as his twin but still has a lot of physcial skills you won't see in many UFA's)
6. Lynn Greer (one of the better PG's in Europe)
7. Yakhouba Diawara (Had a great Junior season and not so good senior year... might turn it around)
8. Rory O'Neil (Bruiser... probably a Voskuhl type of player)
9. Jan-Hendrick Jagla (He is 7 feet tall but I heard Mehemet Okur ate this guy for lunch in Germany.... that's not good.... )
10. Micheal Haynes (Pretty athletic.... wouldn't probably find any playing time for the Suns though)


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## tempe85 (Jan 7, 2005)

Mindaugas Katelynas 6-9 217 (SF, PF)

STRENGTHS:


> Has all the physical characteristics an NBA team looks for in a small forward. At 6-9 and with a nice wingspan, he certainly has the body, although he is a little skinny. The most impressive thing about Katelynas is his incredible athletic ability, which rivals basically any player in this draft. He moves very well and is extremely quick up and down the floor. On top of that, he probably has the best vertical leap of any player his size in the draft, with an NCAA slam dunk contest trophy to back that up. He not only jumps for height, but also for distance, thanks to his excellent hang-time. He can receive the ball right on the outskirts of the lane, and elevate for a dunk without needing a head start to finish strong and comfortably, thanks to his athleticism and wingspan.
> 
> Offensively, Katelynas' role in college appeared to be limited from the two tapes of his we've acquired this year. His team loved to run the floor, and so does he, so he was the perfect big man to do that in their system as he usually beats most guards down the floor. This is how he scored a lot of his points, along with the many offensive rebounds he would collect. His motor is outstanding and he never stops moving for even a second. Katelynas is excellent moving off the ball as he understands the concept of team play and looks very efficient executing in set plays, as you would expect from a European prospect. He is a solid passer, and plays the game patiently, almost never taking bad shots (56 FG%, 46% 3P) and always playing within himself.
> 
> ...


WEAKNESSES:


> In college, Katelynas was used almost strictly as either a power forward or center. Besides one perimeter oriented freshman who got about 11 minutes per game, Katelynas was the biggest player on his team and was therefore expect to play accordingly.
> 
> 
> Offensively, the paint was his usual habitat, and for him to score in the half court set he was expected to establish position, seal off his man and back him down to the basket. He does not have the bulk or the post moves to score like that on a consistent basis, but that's what his team needed him to do, and he never complained. Therefore his perimeter skills, especially his ball-handling skills are not up to par with the rest of his game. His handle isn't atrocious or anything like that, but it most definitely needs work for him to be able to contribute on a consistent basis in the NBA. While he shot an excellent percentage from behind the arc as well (46%) he did so on a limited number of attempts (less than 1.5 per game) so this is not really a large enough sample size. At Portsmouth he looked like he had a pretty nice stroke, but his perimeter shooting was inconsistent both in warm-ups and during the games. He also needs to improve his free throw shooting, which stands at 65%.
> ...


Outlook:


> Katelynas established himself as one of the more intriguing sleeper prospects in this draft with a terrific performance at the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament in early April. What is ironic is that he was not invited to the tournament initially and only caught on after he won the NCAA slam dunk contest on national television. He got into the slam dunk contest after his coaches at UT Chattanooga put together a highlight tape from practices and games and sent it in to the NCAA. After a few higher profile prospects pulled their name out of Portsmouth, a spot was opened up for Katelynas. He was labeled by Assistant Director of NBA scouting services Ryan Blake as the sleeper of Portsmouth a few days before the tournament started in an interview here on Draftcity (see archives).
> 
> Since Portsmouth, he has been training in Los Angeles with Athlete's performances and a personal basketball trainer to prepare himself for the many workouts which he has already lined up before the Chicago pre-draft camp, which starts on June 7th.
> 
> He is viewed as a 2nd round pick at the moment, with a chance to move into the first round with a strong showing in private workouts and Chicago


His personal website: http://www.katelynas.com/ (Be sure to check out the media section where he shows his dunks in the NCAA Dunk contest... he won the contest by the way)


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## tempe85 (Jan 7, 2005)

Stephen Graham 6-6 215 (PG, SG, SF)

STRENGTHS:


> At a chiseled 6-6, 215 pounds, Graham already has an NBA body, complete with a pair of huge arms, wide shoulders, large hands and a very strong lower body. This is always the first thing mentioned by players who have went up against him in high school, college and lately in NBA workouts, just how tough he is to put a body on and how physically impressive he is. With his strength and tenacity, he is not a fun matchup for most players to go up against. He has a prototypical body for an NBA shooting guard, and is even big enough to log some minutes as a small forward without giving up too much.
> 
> Graham is also an excellent athlete, much like his brother Joey, but much more fluid in his movements. Watching him move with or without the ball in his hands, it's hard not to be impressed by how much bounce he has in his step. He is extremely quick off his feet and possesses a very nice vertical leap. His lower body strength and good body control make him more of a long jumper (which comes to play in the many memorable soaring put-backs he had at Oklahoma State) than a high jumper, but he can get off the floor to snatch rebounds, alter shots and dunk just fine.
> 
> ...


Interesting story here:


> *GRAHAM BROTHERS WORKOUT *
> The workout featuring the Graham twins was much more competitive than most of the other workouts we saw over the course of the week. The Grahams started out with some ballhandling drills, and eventually moved into shooting drills. They started out inside the free-throw line and gradually worked their way out, shooting both set shots and off the dribble. The shooting made its way out to the three point line, where the results were mixed. Stevie shot 15 of 35, and while Joey started out on fire, he got a little tired and cooled off toward the end to shoot 20 of 35. Things got quite a bit more competitive from there. There were several different drills designed to show one-on-one play, one of which involved one player cutting to the wing, catching a pass, and attempting to score on the other. The full blown one-on-one drills were quite physical, with the twins playing to a virtual draw.
> 
> The first thing that bystanders noticed walking by the MultiPlex gym in Chicago were two 6-7 twins built like NFL linebackers, who seemed to be playing the wrong sport. Once you saw them with the ball in their hands, one realized that the brothers were indeed involved in the right sport. In the aforementioned ballhandling drills, Joey showed a noticeable improvement in his dribbling ability from when he was at Oklahoma State. While he did not have quite the handle of his brother Stevie, he did a pretty good job in the cone drills in front of NBA scouts from four teams picking in the range in which he is projected on being picked. Joey still possesses the same low release point on his shot with little lift, but he made absolutely everything within 18 feet of the basket. As he stepped out to the collegiate three-point line and beyond, he continued to show the ability to knock it down, just not at the amazing clip in which he was netting his mid-range jumpers.
> ...


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## tempe85 (Jan 7, 2005)

Our Summer league lineup will probably be as follows:

PG- Lynn Greer/Stephen Graham
SG- Stephen Graham/Ricky Minard
SF- Mindaugas Katelynas/Yakhouba Diawara/Micheal Haynes
PF- Dijon Thompson/Jan-Hendrick Jagla 
C- Lucas Tischer/Rory O'Neil

That looks pretty darn good.


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## azirishmusic (Feb 25, 2004)

Leandro will be on the summer team.

Stephen Graham could be an interesting possibility. Before transferring to Oklhoma State, he was a point guard. At OSU, he was strictly a role player who did not get much chance to stand out.

At his size, it would be very useful if he could evolve into a point guard. The Pistons showed how useful it is to have a big point guard that can push Tony Parker around.


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## Kekai (Jan 12, 2005)

tempe85 said:


> Our Summer league lineup will probably be as follows:
> 
> PG- Lynn Greer/Stephen Graham
> SG- Stephen Graham/Ricky Minard
> ...


I like Haynes. I dunno why. Minard is iight, so is Tischer. But we better sign Stephen Graham! Dude is awesome


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## Kekai (Jan 12, 2005)

Ok that Katelynas guy looks good :greatjob:

Anyone got a bio on Tischer? Can't find nothing on him

Great posts too tempe. I loved the Graham article.


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## tempe85 (Jan 7, 2005)

Kekai23 said:


> Ok that Katelynas guy looks good :greatjob:
> 
> Anyone got a bio on Tischer? Can't find nothing on him
> 
> Great posts too tempe. I loved the Graham article.


http://www.draftcity.com/viewprofile.php?p=105

The guy is supposedly built like a tank. Big and muscular. He's a defensive dynamo but has almost no offensive game. Sounds a lot like Stephen Hunter to tell you the truth. I relaly hope they pick up this guy and send him to the NBDL. If he can get playing time and work on his game it could really pay off in the long run. Graham is an interesting prospect. He didn't put up huge numbers in college but it seems he has almost all the physical tools his brother has (I mean they're identical twins I believe). Another guy who'd fit well in the NBDL. I think Katelynas is actually the most ready for the NBA out of all of them. He has extreme athletisim and a pretty good shot.


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## Kekai (Jan 12, 2005)

tempe85 said:


> http://www.draftcity.com/viewprofile.php?p=105
> 
> The guy is supposedly built like a tank. Big and muscular. He's a defensive dynamo but has almost no offensive game. Sounds a lot like Stephen Hunter to tell you the truth. I relaly hope they pick up this guy and send him to the NBDL. If he can get playing time and work on his game it could really pay off in the long run. Graham is an interesting prospect. He didn't put up huge numbers in college but it seems he has almost all the physical tools his brother has (I mean they're identical twins I believe). Another guy who'd fit well in the NBDL. I think Katelynas is actually the most ready for the NBA out of all of them. He has extreme athletisim and a pretty good shot.



Thanks for the info. So who are the guys that have the best chance at making the team? I still hope Graham makes it..


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