PG Mike Conley (Memphis Grizzlies)

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

SportingNews.com

Counterpoint: Conley's shooting must improve
June 22, 2007


Ryan Fagan: Conley is ready to be a star When Mike Conley climbs up to the stage to greet David Stern during the NBA draft, he'll instantly become one of the very best athletes in a league of phenomenally great athletes. Conley is so quick and elusive, Stern might have trouble catching up to hand him a Memphis Grizzlies cap.
Conley does such a wonderful job handling a team that his high school won three consecutive state titles and his college, Ohio State, won the Big Ten regular season and tournament titles and advanced to the NCAA championship game. It helped to have Greg Oden around -- it helped a lot -- but Conley managed the Buckeyes on the floor as if he were a fifth-year senior.
So what am I doing on this side of the argument, wondering if Conley will become an elite NBA player?

Continued.....

[bucknut11]

Conley is listed as SI.com's top Guard in the draft...

1. Mike Conley Jr., 6-1, 175 pounds, Fr., Ohio State
Watching Conley is to watch a player who never seems to be off balance, who always seems to be gliding into an open area. He has superior quickness off the dribble and peripheral vision and dexterity to find open teammates once he gets into the paint. His slight build and lack of a consistent perimeter shot are not a huge concern, as both his frame and his shooting range can be improved with work. When teams are comparing him to Tony Parker, you know they are sold.

[osugrad21]

Philly Enquirer

Guards who get the point

Conley and Law are among few prospects who can handle the toughest of jobs to fill.

By David Aldridge

Inquirer Staff Writer


STREETER LECKA / Getty Images
Guard Mike Conley Jr., the consensus top prospect, is just 19 but, some experts say, needs to work on his shooting.


It's the hardest position to fill adequately in the NBA, and that includes center. You can score and defend down low with power forwards, but finding a true point guard to run your offense and get his teammates not only open shots but also easy shots is almost impossible. There are a handful of prospects this year who might be able to handle that toughest of assignments.

Cont...

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

Hawks need Conley in backcourt

But it looks like Atlanta will make wrong picks

By Terence Moore

Cox News Service

The Atlanta Hawks are on the verge of becoming the Hawks again. They are one day shy of doing the wrong thing by using their No. 3 pick overall in the NBA Draft to grab another ``long and athletic'' guy (General Manager Billy Knight's words, not mine) for an already stuffed frontcourt.
This time, Shelden Williams, Josh Smith, Solomon Jones, Josh Childress and Marvin Williams is named Al Horford.
This time, the Hawks can save themselves from themselves. All they have to do is take a deep breath, count slowly to 10 and repeat the following: We need a point guard. We need somebody with charisma. We need a natural leader.
We need Mike Conley Jr.
The thing is, Conley's pre-draft workout on Monday at Philips Arena was more for show than for real. Horford likely is the Hawks' choice at No. 3. If so, they'll use their No. 11 pick in the draft for Acie Law or Javaris Crittenton, the inferior point guards in this mix. Then Conley will become the latest Chris Paul and Deron Williams by evolving into an instant success for somebody else when he could have done the same for the Hawks.

Continued.....

[OSUsushichic]

Congrats to Mike on the #4 pick!

[Best Buckeye]

Congrats Mike! Any chance of a loan Mike?

[akronbuck]

congrats . He'll be a special PG.
Did anyone see ESPN showing his father dunking behind the free throw line very easily, ?

[BB73]

Originally Posted by akronbuck

congrats . He'll be a special PG.
Did anyone see ESPN showing his father dunking behind the free throw line very easily, ?

I saw that. I've seen youtube dunks by his father on BP, they might be in this thread.

edit - they are, but who wants to find it back in post 484?

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKDDJH_aU9s[/YOUTUBE]

[bkochmc]

Congrats Mike! It's a special day when two high school teammates are taken in the top 5 of any draft! Good luck in the NBA!

[svrnblk]

Good Luck Mike...you will make me watch the NBA again!

[akronbuck]

Originally Posted by BB73

I saw that. I've seen youtube dunks by his father on BP, they might be in this thread.

edit - they are, but who wants to find it back in post 484?

[youtube]dKDDJH_aU9s[/youtube]

thxs. ya, I'm to lazy to search that long

dang, Conley SR. made that look to easy

[BB73]

The two picks going in the top 4 is very rare. Only once since the NBA draft started in 1947 has a school has a pair of picks with a lower total than 5. The 1/4 combination was matched by MSU in '79.

'69 UCLA #1 Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar), #3 Lucius Allen
'79 MSU..#1 Magic Johnson, #4 Greg Kelser
'07 tOSU #1 Greg Oden, #4 Mike Conley, Jr.

Other years where a school had 2 picks in the top 4.

'84 N.Car. #3 Michael Jordan, #4 Sam Perkins
'95 N.Car. #3 Jerry Stackhouse, #4 Rasheed Wallace
'02 Duke...#2 Jay Williams, #3 Mike Dunleavy
'03 UConn #2 Emeka Okafor, #3 Ben Gordon

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

NBA
Conley enjoys last laugh at draft
Former Ohio State star confident he'll silence critics at NBA level, too
Saturday, June 30, 2007 3:25 AM
By Bob Baptist


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Mike Conley


NEW YORK -- As the second half of the McDonald's All-American Game expired little more than a year ago, Mike Conley Jr. watched from his seat on the bench, powerless to try to help his trailing team rally.

"They forgot about him," said his father, Mike Conley Sr. "The coach said, 'I'm sorry, Mike, I just forgot about you,' and put him in with like a minute to go."
Conley Sr. did not forget that moment Thursday night. Nor did he forget to remind his son of it as they sat together in Madison Square Garden, waiting for NBA commissioner David Stern to call Junior's name during the first round of the league draft.
"Mike, just think about the McDonald's game, when they forgot about you in the second half and didn't play you," Conley Sr. said he told his son, "and where you are today compared to all the other players who were in it. That's a testament to the hard work and dedication he placed on himself from that point forward."

Continued....

[Buckskin86]

In Vegas: Conley Approaching NBA with Humility
By Travis Heath
for HOOPSWORLD.com
Jul 6, 2007, 23:24

Conley finished the game with 12 points, 5 rebounds, and perhaps most impressive for a rookie, not a single turnover.

In Vegas: Conley Approaching NBA with Humility | HOOPSWORLD.com | NBA News and Information | powered by Basketball News Services

[Buckskin86]

While Kyle Lowry has been impressive so far in Vegas, averaging 15.7 points in three games, it is Conley who observers here are talking about.

Both Conley and Lowry are roughly the same size and share similar skill sets -- both have questionable jump-shooting ability but plenty of quickness and ballhandling prowess -- and Iavaroni is reluctant to compare them.

"They are a nice complement, you have to compete but also cooperate," he said. But there's no doubt how much Conley has impressed onlookers at UNLV.

"Lowry plays his tail off, but Mike has a better command of the ball," said one Western Conference coach. "He can drive, draw and dish with both hands at full speed. He's a handful. There are going to be some guys that give him problems on defense because of his size, but he has the ability to make up for it."

"He is going to be so tough on you in pick-and-rolls, he's going to get Darko so many jumpers," said an Eastern Conference scout. "He can do so many things because of his speed. That will buy him time until he develops his jumper."

On Thursday, Conley had 13 points and seven assists.

"I can't express how happy I am we got Mike Conley," Iavaroni said. "I am really excited."

ESPN - Iavaroni excited about new-look Grizz - NBA