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2011 Bobcats Draft Workouts - Day 2
Bobcats Draft Workouts Day 2
June 3, 2011
Draft Workout Gallery - June 3 Update | Head Coach Paul Silas Interview | Tristan Thompson Interview | Tristan Thompson Dunking Drill | Kemba Walker Interview | Kemba Walker Shooting Drill | Nikola Vucevic Interview | Trey Thompkins Interview | Shelvin Mack Interview | 2011 Bobcats Draft Central | Draft Workouts Day 1
The Bobcats continued their 2011 NBA Draft preparation Friday at Time Warner Cable Arena® by working out Tristan Thompson (Texas), Kemba Walker (Connecticut), Nikola Vucevic (USC), Trey Thompkins (Georgia), Shelvin Mack (Butler) and Delvon Johnson (Arkansas) in front of Bobcats Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Jordan, General Manager Rod Higgins, the coaching staff and team scouts.
Tristan Thompson is an early-entry candidate for the 2011 NBA Draft, coming out of the University of Texas after one season. Picked as a first-team All-America selection and chosen as the Big 12 Freshman of the Year, Tristan Thompson averaged 13.1 ppg, 7.8 rpg, including 3.8 offensive rebounds per game, and 2.4 bpg, which led the Big 12.
Kemba Walker enters the 2011 NBA Draft as an early-entry draft candidate after an incredible junior season in which he led the University of Connecticut Huskies to the NCAA championship. Averaging 23.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 4.5 apg and 1.9 spg, Walker was named a consensus first-team All-American and he won the Bob Cousy Award, which is given to the nation’s top point guard.
Nikola Vucevic is leaving the University of Southern California after three seasons. He averaged 17.1 ppg, grabbed 10.3 rpg and blocked 1.4 shots per game in his final season. Vucevic was chosen for the first-team All-Pac-10 squad and helped the Trojans reach the NCAA Tournament.
Trey Thompkins is entering the 2011 NBA Draft as an early-entry candidate after spending three seasons at the University of Georgia. In his final season with the Bulldogs, he scored 16.4 ppg, 7.6 rpg and 1.7 bpg. Trey was selected first-team All-SEC for the second consecutive season and he led Georgia in scoring, rebounding and blocking shots.
Shelvin Mack enters the draft as an early-entry candidate after his junior year with the University of Butler. Mack recorded 16 ppg, 4.5 rpg and 3.4 apg in his final season as a Bulldog, helping lead the team to the NCAA National Championship game. He was selected second-team All-Horizon League and Most Outstanding Player in the Southeast Regional of the NCAA Tournament.
Delvon Johnson enters the draft after his senior season at the University of Arkansas, in which he averaged 9.6 ppg, 7.2 rpg and 2.9 bpg. Leading the team in rebounding, blocks and field goal percentage, Johnson also was honored with a selection to the SEC All-Defensive Team.
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(On how day 2 of the workouts went)
(On Kemba Walker and Shelvin Mack)
(On Walker's size as a possible concern)
(On how he runs workouts)
(On concerns with Kemba possibly being a complement to D.J.)
(On Walker as a point guard)
(On Kemba’s defense)
(On the bigs)
Thompson Profile | Video Interview | Dunking Drill
(On the workout)
(On his draft stock)
(On what he thinks makes his stock rise)
(On what pushed him for his 100 consecutive dunks during drills)
(On the drill warming him up)
(On playing with the smaller guys, Kemba and Shelvin)
(On other workouts)
(On whether he thinks he’d be a good fit on the Bobcats)
(On playing in front of Michael Jordan)
(On his experience at Texas)
(On what advice fellow Longhorn D.J. Augustin said to him)
Walker Profile | Video Interview | Shooting Drill
(On wearing Jordans with Michael Jordan at the workout)
(On working out in front of MJ)
(On the workout)
(On being matched up with big guys in some one-on-one situations during the workout)
(On his draft position)
(On his position in the NBA)
(On how he’d fit on the Bobcats)
(On his reaction to people talking about his height)
(On his approach to being a point guard)
(On upcoming workouts)
(On whether he feels his draft position is safe in the top nine)
(On his height being an advantage with his quickness)
(On going against Shelvin Mack)
(On how he compares himself to other point guards in the draft)
(On working out for the Bobcats despite some prospects not wanting to work out for teams they think they won’t fall to)
Vucevic Profile | Video Interview
(On the workout)
(On the level of competition and the effect it had on him)
(On having 100 dunks in the dunking drill)
(On the impression he wants to leave)
(On his range)
(On how he could fit on the Bobcats)
(On playing in front of MJ)
(On his draft stock)
(On where’s he’s worked out)
(On the difficulty doing these workouts back-to-back)
(On whether interest in him has gone up because of his height)
(On not working out against players of elite prospects)
Thompkins Profile | Video Interview
(On the workout)
(On competing with a group of five other guys as opposed to working out in smaller groups)
(On what he showcased in the workout today)
(On what he believes his biggest strengths will be in the NBA)
(On his offensive style)
(On working in front of MJ)
(On his Charlotte ties)
Mack Profile | Video Interview
(On playing against Kemba)
(On how his team’s run in the NCAA Tournament helped his draft stock)
(On matching up with some forwards in the workout)
(On where he might go in the draft)
(On what he’s trying to showcase)
(On if more shots fell than in the championship game)
(On his other workouts)
We matched up forward against forward. But then we have some one-on-one where we match up everybody – guards against forwards and forwards against guards and see what they do. It’s good all the way around.
Both of them were really good. I like Shelvin. He shoots the ball very, very well. Kemba can take you off the dribble. Both of them can pass well. Defensively, they’re going to all need work, like everybody else. But they got up and down: three-on-three up and down the court, fast break. And each one of them knows how to pass, so it’s good. They did a good job.
No doubt. I got D.J. (Augustin) who is small, but understands how to play and is a great shooter. And you concern yourself with other players his size, so to me, that’s always a concern. But at the end of the day, whoever’s good, that’s who we’re going to look at.
Well, I don’t want to kill anybody, but you know, we really work them hard and I want to see their skill level. To me, when you run them to death, then you don’t see what they can do skill-wise. So I think our approach is a lot better. Everybody has their own approach is a lot better than that.
When you consider the two, you have to adapt and see which one you think is better for your ballclub. Because, basically, they’re kind of the same kind of player. I always tend to the guys that are with me. Someone coming up, how are they going to react? I’ve been with him for half a year now; I know him and I know what he can do and I think I know how good he can be. So that’s a plus for him, but you have to look at the whole thing and can this kid come in and do better or be better in the future?
He showed me he’s a good passer, he can really take you off the dribble and that kind of thing. It’s difficult to say whether or not he can be a great point or a great two. Being a two would be difficult because of his size, so he’d have to play point. I think he could be a good one.
Well, that’s always a concern. It’s a concern with who we have currently. So you just have to find a way to help them out and design your defense so they can’t get hurt.
I thought Tristan did terrific. They all did, but especially Tristan and the boy from USC [Nikola Vucevic]. But they all did a good job. They were tough, they battled, they went at each other. And that’s what I like to see: do you commit yourself to really working hard? And they all did and I have to commend them for it. The Nikola kid, he’s a good outside shooter, big hands, catches the ball and the pivot – goes with both hands: left and right, which is good. So I liked him a lot.
It was great. The coaching staff really made us get after it, a lot of conditioning, really to see if we’re mentally ready to play. So it was a good workout today.
To be honest with you, I don’t really pay attention to the mock drafts. You never know what could happen. Teams trade up and trade down but like you said, I guess my stock’s rising. You just got to be hungry and keep working hard.
I think, just looking at a guy who plays hard. I think playing hard is actually a talent. It’s hard to find guys who play hard. I’m able to play hard and give it all I got.
It was actually Nik from USC. He kept going and I said, "I'm not going to stop until he stops." So we got to 50 and coach said, "Keep going until you get tired." And then we both got to 100 and we both called it quits. I like to be competitive.
Yeah, definitely. It wakes up your legs. Especially us being on the road so much, a drill like that definitely wakes us up and gets the motor running.
It’s fun. It’s unfair, because they were in the Final Four – I'm still mad about that. It's fun having guards, real good college guards like Kemba and Shelvin. It definitely helps us bigs get the ball and put us in the position to score.
This is my third workout. My first workout was with Houston, then I just came from Washington. Milwaukee, Cleveland and a couple other workouts are in the works.
I think I’d be a great fit here. You know, Tyrus Thomas, Dante Cunningham, Kwame Brown – great post players in this league. Great veterans and pros learn how to play the game, which would benefit me a lot.
It was an honor having the opportunity playing in front of the greatest player ever. To play in the courts, showing him what I’m good at is just an opportunity that I just got to cherish for the rest of my life.
My experience at Austin was great. Coach Barnes put me in the opportunity to be where I am right now and I have to give him all the praise and the thanks right now. But the city of Austin – I love the city and it was hard for me to leave.
He just said, "Keep going hard and do what you do well and play hard and that’s what they want to see."
Just coincidence. I’ve been wearing Jordans my whole career, so nothing new.
It was fun. It’s a little nerve-wracking, of course, to be playing in front of what people say is the best player to ever play the game. At first it’s a little nerve-wracking, but as you start playing, the nerves go away. It’s fun, just competitive.
It was good. We got up and down, we played some one-on-one and some three-on-three. I thought we all did pretty well.
Sometimes in the game, you know, pick and roll situations. Sometimes a big switches onto a guard, so you know it’s going to happen in the game. We all got a chance go up against each other. I had to guard the bigs, which was pretty rough, but they had to guard me too. I really enjoyed myself today.
I really don’t know because anything can happen on draft night. I try my best to not to follow the mock drafts and stuff because that’s just a bunch of guys that don’t really know what they’re doing. I’m just waiting until draft night because anything can happen.
I’m a point. I’ve been playing point guard my whole life. Last season, I had to score for my team out of necessity, but as far as my position on the next level, I’m a point guard.
I’m able to score, but I’m also able to get guys involved too. I think I’d fit in great for this team and I’m happy that they brought me here to work out.
I just laugh. I’ve been playing basketball my whole life and some people project me 3, lottery and some people talk about my height, but it’s never been the issue. Teams still like me, so as long as teams like me, I don’t care. My height’s never been an issue for me. If anything, I would just have to adapt and adjust to the next level.
I’ve been a point guard – I’ve been the one distributing the ball my freshman and my sophomore year. I was second in the Big East in assists my sophomore year. Like I said, I had to score this year, but I’m a guy that can really get guys involved and it just depends on how the game is going. If scoring opportunities are there for me, I’m scoring. Passing and scoring opens the opportunities. If I’m scoring, it opens the opportunities up for me to get some assists. If I’m passing the ball well, it opens opportunities up for me to score.
I’ve got Toronto, Sacramento, Utah and Detroit, I believe.
I don’t know if I feel pretty safe. Like I said, anything happens on draft night. My agent, he knows what’s best for me. He’s been doing his job for quite a long time so I trust his instincts. He’ll put me in the best situation possible.
Definitely. With speed, it gives me a chance to get to certain places that other guards can’t get to.
I thought we both went at each other pretty hard. I played against Shelvin a lot. The championship, and last summer also we were both on the USA Select Team. I felt we both went at each other today.
You know, we’re all really different, honestly – all of us. Brandon is 6’3”, Kyrie is 6’3”. I’m one of the smaller point guards in the draft. But we’re all pretty different. We all do different things, so it’s really hard.
Like I said, on draft night, crazy things happen. The Bobcats might trade up to get a higher pick or other teams just may not want me. I might fall to the Bobcats, or even lower. You never know what happens.
It went well. It was a good workout. I liked it; there was a lot of competition, a lot of playing. We started warming up and then after that, we started playing.
It was fun going against good guys. I mean, I played against Tristan already this year, and Trey, he’s really good and the other guy – I don’t know his name. It was good competition. We went against each other and it was fun. It’s good when you go against good people. It makes you want to go harder.
First, they told me the record was 40, and I was like, “There’s just no way I get there.” Then I kept going and I got to like, 98, 95 and he was like, “Get to 100 and you’re done.” Then I got to 100 and he was like, “Stop, you’re done.” I probably would have kept going a little bit but it was pretty tiring. Right after that, I was tired. I said I should have stopped a little earlier. Actually it was good for me to get going and get me warmed up.
First, I just want to show people I can play hard and I’m aggressive and I’m physical. And then, I just want to show what I can do. I’m not trying to do too much and do something I can’t do; just do what I do best and hopefully that’s enough for me.
I’m more comfortable inside; that’s like on the block – that’s where I’m the most comfortable playing at, but I can step out and down some jumpers. I’ve been working a lot. I’m getting more comfortable there in my face-up game. So, I’m trying to be as versatile as I can and play everywhere.
I think I could provide some presence inside, both defensively and offensively. I think I’ll do whatever they want me to do, but I think I could fit pretty well here, from what I saw. I watched them play a little bit this year, especially when they call me to come here. I watched them on a couple tapes of them and stuff. So I think I could fit pretty well here.
I was actually really super-happy to meet him. It’s like something I’ve wanted to do since I was a little guy. When he came in, I was really happy to finally get to see him in person and when I met him, it was pretty great.
I don’t try to think about it too much. There’s all these mocks and all these people talking about it. I don’t try to think about it too much, I just want to go out and do my work in workouts and see where I wind up. I mean, people have some mocks have me going in some mocks around like 15, 20. […] I don’t try to spend too much time thinking about it.
I worked out at Houston, San Antonio and Denver so far. I’m going to Boston and I have four straight workouts next week.
Well, the workout itself is fine. It’s basketball. It’s what I like to do, so it’s fun. I think the thing that’s the hardest is the travelling, when you have to change flights and wait at the airport and stuff like that. And sometimes you don’t get an exit seat; you get a small, middle seat, so that’s not fun. I think that’s the hardest part, but the basketball part is fun. It’s what you want to do, so I enjoy it.
Yeah, after the combine when I measured really well – my height, my weight and my wingspan – that really impressed people and it helped me with my stock. I mean, at USC, they measured me my freshman year, then that was it. So that was my freshman year height. Since then, they measured me. I don’t think they changed my weight or not, but people thought I wasn’t 260 and that I was that tall.
I would like to go against Enes Kanter. I went against him a little at the combine, but I would like to go against Motiejunas and the other dude, Jonas. I would like to go against those two guys because I went against Motiejunas in the European Championship two years ago and I was a pretty good matchup, but I think I got better – and he probably did too, but I think I have an advantage. I’m stronger than him and bigger, so I think I can show people I can play just like him. People don’t get to scout him like people scouted me here, so I think I can show people I can play the same as they can. I mean, it’s not frustrating. It’s something I would like to do, but if it happens, that would be cool.
The workout went well. We had a good group of guys: myself, Kemba, Nikola, Tristan, Delvon. We competed and that was the most important part about it.
This is a competitive league so you need guys who are competitors and you need people in your workout that you can go against. That’s just the name of the game.
I feel like I shot the ball well. I feel like I ran the floor pretty good. I played off the pick and rolls with Shelvin and Kemba. When the time came, I think I did a pretty good job.
Probably shooting the ball, rebounding and just coming in a contributing to a team, and help them keep winning because that’s important.
It varies. I can play with my back to the basket, I can play midrange and I’ve stretched my range out to about NBA threes. So, I’m definitely proud of myself of how hard I’ve been working to stretch my range.
It’s a thing of noticing who he is and just being like, “wow, he’s in the gym with us.” It definitely makes you want to play harder, just to pay respect to him and the game. It was definitely fun having a conversation with him.
I only have one tie: my brother. He has his family out here – his wife. He has a house out, I think it’s in Matthews, so um, south Charlotte. I actually went out there and hung out with him a little bit. So, it’s a nice city. I’d love to be here in Charlotte. Yeah, my brother would definitely love to have me in Charlotte.
Me and Kemba are great friends. He’s a hard worker, a great competitor. Last time I saw him on the court was the national championship, so it’s a good thing for us to get out here and compete again. […] Whenever you have a chance to go against Kemba, the only thing it can do is help you. Just go out there and compete. He’s a great player. He’s going to be probably a top-ten pick and I had an opportunity to compete today, so I was just happy with that.
I think it helped out a lot. It just showed that I’m a winner. I do what it takes to win, help the team win and fortunately, I was able to have some plays that went our way that was able to give me the opportunity to play for a national championship.
It helps out a lot. You know, in the NBA, if I was guarding a point guard, if I was out on a certain situation, I might get switched out on someone. It helps you out with that process.
I hear I keep improving. I’m just trying to compete, just play hard, just show what I’m about. When I come in, it’s a job interview, real business-like. I’m just taking it one day at a time. I’m not trying to look forward to the draft because a lot of things can happen. Teams can make trades, so if one team likes you, a trade can happen and it might not work out for you in the end.
Just how hard I play, how competitive I am. A lot of teams do a lot of research and they understand what you can do and what you can’t do. They just want to see how you are in practice every day, just wanting you competing hard.
[laughing] Yeah, you could say that. I make jokes about that all the time. I still can’t believe we shot the worst in NCAA history. You never think you’re ever going to shoot the worst in history, but you always know you’re going to have some bad games. We played defense. We still had a shot to win and that’s all you can ask for in that situation.
This week I worked out for the Jazz, Spurs, Rockets and then the Bobcats. Next week, I have the Knicks, Wizards and Nets. […] It’s kind of tough. I left last Saturday, I was in Utah Sunday, San Antonio Monday and Tuesday, Houston Wednesday and Thursday and here, Charlotte Friday. It’s kind of tough on your body but it shows you the grind. It’s just an opportunity. You got to be thankful for this opportunity. I know a lot of people wish they were in my situation. So it’s going to be one of the best jobs in the world.
