Draft Prospect: Sam Young

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If the Spurs retain their current draft position of 37, a certain tier of player will be unavailable to us. But as Tim has repeatedly noted, the Spurs may attempt to trade up. If we can work our way into the first round, we can begin directing our attention to a different caliber of athlete. If the Spurs do make such a move, I think Sam Young of the University of Pittsburgh deserves serious consideration.

Jonathan Givony, of Draft Express, had this to say about Young:

Blessed with athleticism, strength, and an excellent body, Sam Young looks the part and has the work ethic to be a defensive specialist at the next level. Certain parts of his offensive game fit the description of an effective role-player as well… If he improves the range on his jumper to acclimate the 37.2% three-point percentage he posted as a senior past the NBA-line, he could become a viable offensive role-player who is an even better defender, a la James Posey.

I am a casual Pitt fan (my mother is from Pittsburgh), so I watched a fair amount of Young this season and I fundamentally agree with his assessment. As Givony notes, Young has both the physical ability and the mentality to be a marquis perimeter defender in the NBA. There are concerns about his height (at 6′ 6″ he is slightly undersized for the SF position) but, as best I can tell, his doggedness and length are highly effective antidotes. His expansive wingspan allows him to pester taller outside shooters and rebound well above his height (video below will attest to the latter).

As you may have just noticed, Young isn’t a bad outside shooter either. He seems to fit the mold of the “3 and D” Spurs wing except he can also finish at the rim. In fact, he prefers to take advantage of overzealous rotators and head for the hoop, where his upper-body strength allows him to absorb contact and still put up a decent shot attempt. He doesn’t have a reliable pull-up jumper; once he has committed to the dribble his only option is to finish at the rim. But the Spurs are not interested in role players with a mid-range game. The most efficient spots on the floor from which to score are at the rim and beyond the arc. Young has the ability to score from both.

Young is not the most talented small forward in this draft class. Demar DeRozan, Austin Daye, and Chase Budinger are all more talented. But the Spurs are not interested in pure talent. We are not building from the ground up. We have a system and we are interested in the players that best compliment that system. In my opinion, of the top 5 small forward prospects in this draft, Sam Young is the best fit for the silver and black.

  • Big50

    I like Young as well. I got to see him play several times and he seems like a solid guy both offensively and defensively, but is he worth trading up for? From you previous draft posts it seem that there are some hidden gems in the 2nd round to snap up.

  • Juan

    I like the fact that he can dunk in traffic. As incredible as it sound, the Spurs have no one besides Manu does it unless they have a clear path to the basket. Not even Timmy, he almost always lays it up if there is the slightest contact or a defender near by.

    Like you said, what we need is athletic, long defenders with a decent shot. Most of our current players only fit the the last part of the description.

  • juan H.

    i agree with juan. we need guys that can bring a lot of energy to the table….I miss Malik rose

  • TrueFan

    I’ve been thinking along similar lines about Young for the past month or so. In the right system (i.e. the Spurs’] he has the tools to be a solid role player. It will be a shame if he goes to run ‘n gun team that expects him to be their sole defensive stopper…

    If the Spurs can buy the 25th or 28th picks (from the Thunder or T’Wolves, respectively) for straight-up cash, then Young would definitely be a great choice, but I don’t know that he has enough upside to justify trading up if it would cost a future 1st rounder.

  • Chris K.

    I agree, we should not be throwing away future first rounders to move up in one of the weakest drafts in recent years… We should only move up if we can do so without giving up future first round picks…

    What do people think about drafting Calathes as well? Seems like something the Spurs would do. Makes some sense, because he would play in Greece next year and maybe come over in 2010 with Splitter…

  • Jose

    Young is very talented. He would fit well with the Spurs. Young can also score. Plays D. Hopefully, the Spurs can get him.

  • Sri

    Timothy,
    Not sure if I understand this “But the Spurs are not interested in role players with a mid-range game. The most efficient spots on the floor from which to score are at the rim and beyond the arc”.

    Firstly, I would think mid range jump shots have more probability of going in than the 3. Secondly, with Duncan plagued by injuries come play-off time and with his age, I think most elite teams would play him straight up than double him (at the very least Lakers/Orlando have the personnel to do it and they will be contending every year). Couple that with clogging the paint to cut off Parker’s penetration, where will the open looks come from? A solid mid range game from couple of players will come very handy in these situations. Wouldn’t it also cut down Spur’s over-reliance on 3 that we saw this year?

    P.S. 1 - I almost never saw a role player take it to the rim except in transition. Not sure why?

    P.S. 2 - I have always felt that Finely’s mid range game was never properly utilized.

    - Sri

  • http://www.48minutesofhell.com Graydon Gordian

    Sri,

    Mid-range shots are less efficient than 3-point shots because they do not have a dramatically higher percentage of success while they are worth 1 point less. 3 corner (of which the Spurs shoot a high volume) is particularly efficient, because it is the point at which the 3-point line is closest to the basket.

    The most efficient place on the floor to score is at the rim, because FG% is high and there is a high likelihood of heading to the free throw line.

    I do think the Spurs are over-reliant on 3-pointers but I would like us to replace those three pointers with penetration and points in the paint, not mid-range jumpers.

  • mori1040

    In regards to Sri’s post, no role players take it to the rim because mainly they lack the ball handling and finishing skills to be effective: I’m thinking of Bowen dribbling out of the corner and pulling up for that 12-15 footer which he rarely makes, along with Ime who usually gets his shot blocked if he drives in all the way or throws up something wild. Finley could do this a few years ago, but at this point in his career, it’s asking too much to expect him to do anything off the dribble against laterally quicker defenders.

    If they’re not hitting their 3’s, these players create a huge offensive liability for the Spurs. Perhaps George Hill will be able to create more when he develops a better outside shot. That way defenders would have to close out hard on him opening up driving lanes for layups or handoffs to Timmy, Ian, etc.

    But what we really need is a player like Kelenna Azubuike who is strong, athletic, a deadeye shooter from long range (41% career, 45% last season), and always takes on the toughest defensive assignment (he usually does as good a job as you could expect on Kobe). On top of all that he’s a great hustle guy who’ll get you at least 5 boards per game and has a good nose for tipping in missed shots.

  • gospurs44

    the Spurs need a player who can beat his man off the dribble and either hit the mid range jumper or get to the rim. They have no one that can do this other than Tony. Why they wouldn’t want a player that could do both is beyond me.

  • mori1040

    One more thing,

    I’m not so sure the Spurs are over reliant on the 3 point shot. If you look at the numbers, we took 1,620 3 point attempts during the regular season. If you do the math, this means for every four shots we took, 1 was from beyond the arc (25%). We made 3’s at about a 39% success rate.

    Now let’s look at the Magic. They took 2,147 threes during the regular season, meaning 33% of all their field goal attempts were from long range. They also hit a very competitive 38% of their three’s.

    I don’t have to tell anyone how much success they’re having against LBJ and his Cavs, a team we swept 2 years ago but honestly, in a 7 game series this year (and especially against Manu) we wouldn’t have a chance against.

    The difference, I think, is that when you watch the Magic, they have so many guys who can spot up for the three and then put the ball on the floor, thus collapsing the defense and opening up one of their other shooters from long range, or they have the ability to get themselves to the foul line. Courtney Lee, Hedo, Mickael Pietrus, Rashard Lewis, even Alston to an extent, can all create their own shots once they’re run off the line.

    It’s tough to keep getting quality talent when you’re at the top every year, but I have a lot of faith in the Spurs management. We’re bound to get someone who’ll fill this role.

  • fingon5

    I tentatively like Sam Young as a Spurs prospect. His age (24) has to be a concern because it means he is not likely to improve beyond the polish of being in a good pro system. Assuming he is a useful enough player now, the Spurs don’t have to be too worried about long-term potential since we’re trying to win now. I would be wary of giving up too much though since what we saw this year at Pitt is likely to be close to all we’re going to get.

  • sexy mom

    I thank sam will be one of the top frist round pick,if not the best one the spurs need to buy up to about the 15th pick to get him because he will be pick before the 16th pick.

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