Sonics Add DJ White
Climb back down off the ledge, and add "Genius" to the "Boy Genius" label for Sam Presti again (for awhile there, I was beginning to think he was more of the former and less of the latter). The Sonics have selected
DJ White from Indiana with the 29th pick of the first round.
Seattle dealt their #32 and #46 picks in the second round of this year's draft in order to pick up White with Detroit's first round pick (got that?). White is a good back to the basket player, he's a senior, and he instantly becomes one of the two or three best post players on offense on the entire team (yeah, we're that bad, folks). Seattle still has two remaining second-rounders available.
15 Comments:
I can't believe DeAndre Jordan and CDR are still on the board in the second round. Jordan was a borderline lottery selection, and now he won't even get a guaranteed contract. How can anyone pass him up at this point?
A reserve frontcourt of Johan Petro and D.J. White is a so-so tandem, as my iffiness toward their potential is compensated by them having meshing skill sets. My focus is centered on more important things, though.
Chris Wilcox should be moved for someone who'll work well beside Nick Collison in the interior; however, it's entirely possible that Clay Bennett will just let Wilcox play out his contract.
Anyhow, Sam Presti still can't be forgiven for his flat-out foolish, downright doltish decision to draft Serge "Olumide Oyedeji, Jr." Ibaka with the 24th pick. That was a complete and utter farce.
this is an excellent move. whenever you can get a mediocre big man with a history of knee injuries AND put him on a guaranteed contract for two 2nd rounders, you simply have to make that deal.
dumb dumb i would have loved to have cdr deandre or darrell arthur we would have had a great front court but no they want us to leave
Having watched DJ White in the Big Ten all season, it's a good pick. His injuries were 2 seasons ago, didn't miss a game this year and he had to play a lot of minutes with an Indiana squad that had no depth.
He's strong, a good rebounder, and has some nice inside moves. Think of a Reggie Evans with an actual ability to create his own shots.
Y'know, D.J. White's contract is cheaply guaranteed for only two seasons; thus, even if he's a bust like Wayne Simien -- even though the comparisons to Leon Powe and Jason Maxiel are more apt in my opinion -- it's not any sort of financial risk.
Yet, aside from that, I had Darnell Jackson and Richard Hendrix -- who've been compared to Udonis Haslem and Paul Millsap, repsectively -- ranked higher than White. I don't make the decisions, though; that's Sam Presti's gig—for better or worse.
White was a decent choice.
Ibaka is a gamble, probably a future gamble and if he comes he will be cheap. But they have several ways to lose that gamble and I don't like that move.
Hardin at 50 is ok by me.
Kaun got sold to Cavs.
The night could have been better, probably could have been worse.
Still plenty to sort out.
I don't hate the draft or anything, but can someone explain awhy we drafted so far ahead of position? It sounded like Ibaka could have been easily had with the 32, and if we really wanted White, we could've had him at 24. Or, we could've drafted a raw center (Jordan), another point (Chalmers), another PF (Hendrix), or a solid scoring wing in CDR. It's not that I think it's a terrible draft, it's just... baffling. Hopefully, over the next decade I'll get to see the plan come together at the Key, but right now, well, I'm going to save some paper bags from the store.
Dear Seattle Supersonic fans:
D.J. White never had knee problems in his career. He broke the same foot twice in one season during his sophomore campaign at IU. He plays the game of basketball with fire and is going to be a heck of a role player to Kevin Durant's Sonics. Please remember that D.J. White won Big Ten Player of the Year and is a special talent. From McDonald's All-American to Big Ten Freshman of the Year to Big Ten Player of the Year. I am now a Supersonics fan.
Please spread the word that he broke his foot twice in two different locations and he has never had knee problems in his career. Supersonics fans are going to fall in love with DJ White.
TexasPaul
You guys got a real talent in DJ White. He will get better, he is a tough and level-headed kid, and he plays hard. He is also a leader and a listner. Detroit loss is your gain. He may not be an immediate all-star, he may never be one, but he will be a starter and will give 100 percent everyday -all day. Be grateful.
You will be thrilled with DJ White. As a Hoosier fan, I can tell you that we loved DJ and hated to see him go. Fantastic young man, go-getter, leader,loyal (4 years at IU, 2 coaching changes and he stuck with us), puts 110% into the every game. Good Luck DJ!!!
Not only was it just his foot but it involved another post player stepping on it (Terrance Dials of OSU) so they were pretty freak injuries. He is only 21 (which is young for a senior). His reach is insane. He has a lot of fire (go watch some youtube highlights). Last but not least, he beat out A LOT of guys for the Pan Am team last summer that Calipari coached and DJ even started. Heck, Joey Dorsey didn't even make the team. DJ played alongside Hibbert and Augenstine and guess who the leading scorer AND rebounder was.......DJ WHITE. DJ would have been a lottery pick if Gordon wasn't on that team. You got a GREAT one.
Word.
As a huge Indiana/DJ White fan, and someone of no prior NBA fan association, I am now a Sonics fan. You'll love DJ, you just know what to expect every night. Where he'll really help is with his 15-17 foot jumper. He's deadly from that range and will draw a big man out to guard and will open up the lane for Westbrook and Durant to drive. His strength is mid-range jumper, rebounding, and his vocal leadership. On this young team I think he could be quite a motivational leader.
Interesting, that no one has said anything about DJ White being well coached in high school and college. Clearly, his awards that he has accomplished the a key indicator of how well he accepts coaching. Incidentally, if he has never been a trouble young man, he will not be in the future.
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