Meyers Leonard and the USA U19 team in the FIBA World Championships, June 30-July 10, Latvia

AzIlliniFan · Jun 29, 2011, 11:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bballbob

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaytonIllini

If not:

Meyers, anyone that fouls out without scoring a point should pour themselves a tall cool glass of STFU. Otherwise, you just seem like you're retarded.

Just a little harsh? The great thing about posting anonymously on a forum is you can post things you wouldn't actually say to the person.

The bolded part is harsh but I don't see where the rest is. Why wouldn't you say that in response to ML's tweets?

DaytonIllini · Jun 29, 2011, 12:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bballbob

Just a little harsh? The great thing about posting anonymously on a forum is you can post things you wouldn't actually say to the person.

Not at all.

He needs someone, an adult or peer, to tell him to shut up. If I knew him, I'd be happy to do so but it really ought to be coming from his coach or his teammates. He'd have no reason to listen to me.

If he is going to disrespect opposing players and in this case an entire world full of players, he should at least be able to back it up with actions on the court.

He represents our school and nation. If he scored 25 on the guy he is talking about and shut him out, it would be a bit rude to say what he did but more understandable. When you lay a complete egg and embarrass yourself on the court thru lack of production, you ought to simply be quiet IMO. If he gives up 30 to Sullinger this year is he going to be saying that Sullinger is overrated? Will that be a positive for the Illini team?

In fairness to the kid though, I see that his tweets are not shared publicly. I suspect he did not intend for them to be read by his opposition.

bballbob · Jun 29, 2011, 12:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaytonIllini

Not at all.

He needs someone, an adult or peer, to tell him to shut up. If I knew him, I'd be happy to do so but it really ought to be coming from his coach or his teammates. He'd have no reason to listen to me.

If he is going to disrespect opposing players and in this case an entire world full of players, he should at least be able to back it up with actions on the court.

He represents our school and nation. If he scored 25 on the guy he is talking about and shut him out, it would be a bit rude to say what he did but more understandable. When you lay a complete egg and embarrass yourself on the court thru lack of production, you ought to simply be quiet IMO. If he gives up 30 to Sullinger this year is he going to be saying that Sullinger is overrated? Will that be a positive for the Illini team?

In fairness to the kid though, I see that his tweets are not shared publicly. I suspect he did not intend for them to be read by his opposition.

You obviously don't have a handicapped child.

Serious Late · Jun 29, 2011, 12:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bballbob

You obviously don't have a handicapped child.

Oh... my... goodness. What? Relevance? Point? Is this serious?

These debates over random things 19 year olds say gets so ridiculously old, it is unbelievable.

Okay, sure. What he said wasn't the smartest thing ever, but I am more concerned with the 0-0 he put up. That is taking a Double Double to a different extreme. I would like to see what he does when he is facing someone who wasn't drafted #5 overall in the draft.

DaytonIllini · Jun 29, 2011, 12:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bballbob

You obviously don't have a handicapped child.

Thankfully no, but what that has to do with the quote you reference, I have no idea. If you are talking about using the word 'retarded', I will happily rephrase my previous quote for you and say that it made him sound 'dumb'. And to any parents with 'dumb' kids out there, my apologies in advance if use of the word upsets you.

AzIlliniFan · Jun 29, 2011, 01:10 PM

I didn't realize his tweets were protected. Those of you who have access to his tweets need to give some thought to the context of the tweet before posting them here for general public consumption. It obviously wasn't his intent that it be shared on a message board. That being said. After a similar personal performance I doubt I'd be saying something like that, even to a friend.

HeartofaChampion · Jun 29, 2011, 01:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AzIlliniFan

I didn't realize his tweets were protected. Those of you who have access to his tweets need to give some thought to the context of the tweet before posting them here for general public consumption. It obviously wasn't his intent that it be shared on a message board. That being said. After a similar personal performance I doubt I'd be saying something like that, even to a friend.

Dan posted the tweets. ML was in a tweeting conversation with MD, whose tweets aren't protected publicly, which is probably why they appeared publicly. By responding to MD's tweet, ML's tweets became public. Guessing ML knows how that works.

jg67 · Jun 29, 2011, 01:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Serious Late

Oh... my... goodness. What? Relevance? Point? Is this serious?

These debates over random things 19 year olds say gets so ridiculously old, it is unbelievable.

Okay, sure. What he said wasn't the smartest thing ever, but I am more concerned with the 0-0 he put up. That is taking a Double Double to a different extreme. I would like to see what he does when he is facing someone who wasn't drafted #5 overall in the draft.

+1 his Twitter banter is the least of my concerns compared to his goose eggs. Not even a rebound, wow!

Illini70math · Jun 29, 2011, 01:33 PM

As long as we are tossing around statements about how dumb Meyers is for his tweet, perhaps it's fair to ask how good some of you are at reading and logic. Here are Meyer's exact words:

"I just played against the #5 Jonas guy from the draft. He aint like that. Period"

What did he say? Meyers said that Jonas is not worthy of being the #5 guy in the draft. That's all. That's his opinion. He may well be right. Meyers has played against guys like Sullinger, Leuer, Tisdale, and many other good centers, and you haven't. Maybe Meyers has a better idea of whether Jonas should be a #5 in the draft than you do since he has actually played against him.

What did Meyers NOT say. He didn't say that he (Meyer's) played well against Jonas, or that Jonas didn't dominate in this exhibition game. It might shock you to learn that Meyers was also dominated by Tisdale in practices. Does that mean Tisdale should have been top 10 in the draft?

Meyers said that he thought that Jonas was overvalued at #5 in the draft, not that Jonas wasn't much better than Meyers right now. FWIW, let's see how well each of these guys has done in the NBA about 15 years from now. Lots of European Wunderkinds who are highly touted come to the NBA and bomb out. Jonas may well be another one, or maybe he'll be another Dirk. Meyers doesn't think so, and he has played against him. You haven't.

Botb9 · Jun 29, 2011, 01:33 PM

To the thought of context, there wasn't any, really. Meyers did comment later that the team needs to get their minds right and get ready for "the real thing".

But let's consider this for a moment. Our guys just went undrafted. Mike Davis is a good player, and perhaps they see Davis as a better player than Jonas.

European players do get hyped. Consider the guys like Bargnani, Milicic (sic) who were high draft picks and took years to develop.

Yes, it looks silly to say that after he runs all over you, but if he's really deserving of the number five pick in the NBA draft, he SHOULD be running all over a bunch of frosh college players. You could probably argue that Mike Davis would have a great game too, considering he's played against some of the players on the U19 USA squad.

What I don't believe Meyers was saying was that "I'm better than this guy, he shouldn't be the number five pick because of that." I would take his comments as "I don't believe he's any better than Mike Davis."

AzIlliniFan · Jun 29, 2011, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Illini70math

As long as we are tossing around statements about how dumb Meyers is for his tweet, perhaps it's fair to ask how good some of you are at reading and logic. Here are Meyer's exact words:

"I just played against the #5 Jonas guy from the draft. He aint like that. Period"

What did he say? Meyers said that Jonas is not worthy of being the #5 guy in the draft. That's all. That's his opinion. He may well be right. Meyers has played against guys like Sullinger, Leuer, Tisdale, and many other good centers, and you haven't. Maybe Meyers has a better idea of whether Jonas should be a #5 in the draft than you do since he has actually played against him.

What did Meyers NOT say. He didn't say that he (Meyer's) played well against Jonas, or that Jonas didn't dominate in this exhibition game. It might shock you to learn that Meyers was also dominated by Tisdale in practices. Does that mean Tisdale should have been top 10 in the draft?

Meyers said that he thought that Jonas was overvalued at #5 in the draft, not that Jonas wasn't much better than Meyers right now. FWIW, let's see how well each of these guys has done in the NBA about 15 years from now. Lots of European Wunderkinds who are highly touted come to the NBA and bomb out. Jonas may well be another one, or maybe he'll be another Dirk. Meyers doesn't think so, and he has played against him. You haven't.

I seem to recall the tweet about Tiz being a lottery pick. I wasn't aware that ML had played against Dirk or that he was considered knowledgeable about grading draft picks.

AzIlliniFan · Jun 29, 2011, 01:53 PM

Anyways, I hope ML and the rest of the team step up when the Tournament gets underway tomorrow. In context, out of context,.... at least talking about it made the day go by faster.

Dan · Jun 29, 2011, 03:15 PM

Quote:

Photo Gallery: USA U19 Exhbition Games

usabasketball.com

Illini70math · Jun 29, 2011, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AzIlliniFan

I seem to recall the tweet about Tiz being a lottery pick. I wasn't aware that ML had played against Dirk or that he was considered knowledgeable about grading draft picks.

Perhaps you don't know how to read tweets. Meyers never said that Tisdale was a lottery pick. Davis said that, in what was obviously a joking hyperbole answer to Meyers.

You need to work on reading posts as well. I never said that Meyers played against Dirk. I said that he played Sullinger, Leuer, and Tisdale. While we're at it, Meyers also played against Jujuan Johnson as I recall. Do you think Jonas is better than Johnson? I don't. Johnson was not a #5 draft pick. Personally, I would definitely pick Johnson over Jonas.

I don't know how good Meyers is at grading draft picks, but he has played against quite a few of these guys, and you have not, so I'll go with his judgment over yours. In any event, all he did was to express his opinion about Jonas not being worthy of a #5 pick, which last I checked is permissable.

HeartofaChampion · Jun 29, 2011, 08:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Illini70math

Do you think Jonas is better than Johnson? I don't. Johnson was not a #5 draft pick. Personally, I would definitely pick Johnson over Jonas.

I would definitely side with NBA scouts, GMs and coaches over you and pick Jonas over JJ. JJ is probably too thin to establish position and score much on the low blocks in the NBA. He also has very narrow shoulders and the kind of frame where he won't be able to add much bulk. He'll likely have a nice 10-year career as an NBA backup 4 who can hit pick and pop jumpers and grab some rebounds and defend. Jonas has the body and skills to be a strong low-post scorer and board man in the league, IMO. He's also younger than JJ with more growing and upside.

Illini70math · Jun 29, 2011, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeartofaChampion

I would definitely side with NBA scouts, GMs and coaches over you and pick Jonas over JJ. JJ is probably too thin to establish position and score much on the low blocks in the NBA. He also has very narrow shoulders and the kind of frame where he won't be able to add much bulk. He'll likely have a nice 10-year career as an NBA backup 4 who can hit pick and pop jumpers and grab some rebounds and defend. Jonas has the body and skills to be a strong low-post scorer and board man in the league, IMO. He's also younger than JJ with more growing and upside.

I think you have to be very careful about the CBA effect on this draft. Just look at what is happening in the NFL right now. I think a lot of foreign players were picked over American players because there is no economic commitment in many cases. Probably a smart move with the future of the NBA agreement something of a mystery.

For every top foreign player in the NBA right now, I can name 5 top American players, but you would never know it from the draft.

HeartofaChampion · Jun 29, 2011, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Illini70math

I think you have to be very careful about the CBA effect on this draft. Just look at what is happening in the NFL right now. I think a lot of foreign players were picked over American players because there is no economic commitment in many cases. Probably a smart move with the future of the NBA agreement something of a mystery.
For every top foreign player in the NBA right now, I can name 5 top American players, but you would never know it from the draft.

Agreed on the bold; the 2nd round was particularly egregious with no-names selected left and right. But I also read that GMs said Valanciunas would have been the No. 1 pick in this year's draft if he were available to join the NBA next season. (His Euro contract precludes a buyout by an NBA club this year.) Apparently he's a big-time talent with a high ceiling.

Anyway, I just want ML to start translating his talent into on-court results. I didn't expect a whole lot from him as a frosh, but a player of his physical ability should do much more as a soph after a year of college ball under his belt. This summer is an opportunity for him to grow a lot as a player in preparation for next season. His 0-0-5 fouls game was just one game, but if he plays poorly for most of the tournament and then struggles in Italy, that's a sign that he needs to put a lot more work in the gym. (I should add that I know from a reliable source that he's not exactly the gym rat type, but he needs to become one asap. He can't just rely on his height and jumping ability anymore.)

chip2 · Jun 29, 2011, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kramer116

Meyers is now in, but has a foul on an illegal screen.

My question is / when will MK efer learn to set a decent pick. He gets called for a moving pick so much. Man this tells me that either her doesn't get it or our coaching of big men leaves a lot to be desired. Probably a little bit of both don't you think.

GO ILLINI!

Dan · Jun 30, 2011, 07:24 AM

USA 19 vs Egypt going on now, first game in Group D play.

Live stats | Watch live (pay service)

Illini70math · Jun 30, 2011, 07:46 AM

See, we were just playin' the wrong teams...

jmontgo3 · Jun 30, 2011, 07:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dan

USA 19 vs Egypt going on now, first game in Group D play.

Live stats | Watch live (pay service)

Nice first half from Meyers:

11:37 MP, 2-4 FG, 2-2 FT, 7 Reb (3 offensive), 1 A, 2 TO, 1 BLK, 2 Fouls

Groundhogday · Jun 30, 2011, 08:25 AM

Now 9 pts and 10 rebs (leading team) with 15 minutes of playing time. We should definitely play the Egyptians more often.

Dan · Jun 30, 2011, 08:46 AM

1-0!

Final: USA 115, Egypt 60

Meyers Leonard 11 points (4-6 FG, 3-3 FT), game-high 11 rebounds, game-high 4 blocks.

Up next, USA U19 vs Serbia, Friday, 8:00am CT.

CrazedUIFan · Jun 30, 2011, 09:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chip2

My question is / when will MK efer learn to set a decent pick. He gets called for a moving pick so much. Man this tells me that either her doesn't get it or our coaching of big men leaves a lot to be desired. Probably a little bit of both don't you think.

GO ILLINI!

Do we forget this kid is just going into his sophomore year in college? Let's give him some time to develop over the summer before we throw this out there. He's from a small high school where he didn't play against a lot of big men he faces now. Patience!

MTILLINOIS · Jun 30, 2011, 09:05 AM

Now this is something build on. Good job Meyers.

Jun 30, 2011, 08:25 AM	#147
Groundhogday Posts: 18,072	Now 9 pts and 10 rebs (leading team) with 15 minutes of playing time. We should definitely play the Egyptians more often. __________________ ONLY ORANGE!

Jun 29, 2011, 01:10 PM	#131
AzIlliniFan Posts: 2,042	I didn't realize his tweets were protected. Those of you who have access to his tweets need to give some thought to the context of the tweet before posting them here for general public consumption. It obviously wasn't his intent that it be shared on a message board. That being said. After a similar personal performance I doubt I'd be saying something like that, even to a friend.

Jun 29, 2011, 01:33 PM	#134
Illini70math Posts: 1,650	As long as we are tossing around statements about how dumb Meyers is for his tweet, perhaps it's fair to ask how good some of you are at reading and logic. Here are Meyer's exact words: "I just played against the #5 Jonas guy from the draft. He aint like that. Period" What did he say? Meyers said that Jonas is not worthy of being the #5 guy in the draft. That's all. That's his opinion. He may well be right. Meyers has played against guys like Sullinger, Leuer, Tisdale, and many other good centers, and you haven't. Maybe Meyers has a better idea of whether Jonas should be a #5 in the draft than you do since he has actually played against him. What did Meyers NOT say. He didn't say that he (Meyer's) played well against Jonas, or that Jonas didn't dominate in this exhibition game. It might shock you to learn that Meyers was also dominated by Tisdale in practices. Does that mean Tisdale should have been top 10 in the draft? Meyers said that he thought that Jonas was overvalued at #5 in the draft, not that Jonas wasn't much better than Meyers right now. FWIW, let's see how well each of these guys has done in the NBA about 15 years from now. Lots of European Wunderkinds who are highly touted come to the NBA and bomb out. Jonas may well be another one, or maybe he'll be another Dirk. Meyers doesn't think so, and he has played against him. You haven't.

Jun 29, 2011, 01:33 PM	#135
Botb9 Realist Posts: 3,148	To the thought of context, there wasn't any, really. Meyers did comment later that the team needs to get their minds right and get ready for "the real thing". But let's consider this for a moment. Our guys just went undrafted. Mike Davis is a good player, and perhaps they see Davis as a better player than Jonas. European players do get hyped. Consider the guys like Bargnani, Milicic (sic) who were high draft picks and took years to develop. Yes, it looks silly to say that after he runs all over you, but if he's really deserving of the number five pick in the NBA draft, he SHOULD be running all over a bunch of frosh college players. You could probably argue that Mike Davis would have a great game too, considering he's played against some of the players on the U19 USA squad. What I don't believe Meyers was saying was that "I'm better than this guy, he shouldn't be the number five pick because of that." I would take his comments as "I don't believe he's any better than Mike Davis."

Jun 29, 2011, 01:53 PM	#137
AzIlliniFan Posts: 2,042	Anyways, I hope ML and the rest of the team step up when the Tournament gets underway tomorrow. In context, out of context,.... at least talking about it made the day go by faster.

Jun 30, 2011, 07:24 AM	#144
Dan Admin Location: Champaign, IL Posts: 25,886	USA 19 vs Egypt going on now, first game in Group D play. Live stats \| Watch live (pay service)

Jun 30, 2011, 07:46 AM	#145
Illini70math Posts: 1,650	See, we were just playin' the wrong teams...

Jun 30, 2011, 08:46 AM	#148
Dan Admin Location: Champaign, IL Posts: 25,886	1-0! Final: USA 115, Egypt 60 Meyers Leonard 11 points (4-6 FG, 3-3 FT), game-high 11 rebounds, game-high 4 blocks. Up next, USA U19 vs Serbia, Friday, 8:00am CT.

Jun 30, 2011, 09:05 AM	#150
MTILLINOIS Location: Chicago Posts: 4,187	Now this is something build on. Good job Meyers.