OT: Andre Drummond speech

[HuskyWarrior611]

Great message for the kids. With this mindset I hope Andre lasts in the league for a long time and gets a chance at being a starter again. Think he turns 30 this season but he’s still one of the better athletes as a big in the league.

 

[navery12]

Drummond's career is bizarre. He signed a max contract, put up 18 and 15 in his last year of the deal and now can't get more than the league minimum. Obviously the NBA changed and the numbers were on bad teams, but still surprising

 

[karstenkibbe]

Understand his disappointment with making the league minimum, but I hope he appreciates how blessed he is to be 29 years old with career earnings of $141 million.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

Drummond's career is bizarre. He signed a max contract, put up 18 and 15 in his last year of the deal and now can't get more than the league minimum. Obviously the NBA changed and the numbers were on bad teams, but still surprising

Like he said, it seemed to be about his attitude. Even with those crazy numbers he was prone to those Shaqtin a fool moments.

If he was consistent and played within a role he could be a Deandre Jordan type. Plenty of teams need an athletic defensive anchor if he can focus on that.

 

[slepers]

Understand his disappointment with making the league minimum, but I hope he appreciates how blessed he is to be 29 years old with career earnings of $141 million.

I don’t think his message was anything but disappointment with himself and how he acted. His message was enjoy the ride and be a good team mate and do what’s right for the team.

 

[Secure Dog]

Seems like yesterday that he reclassified and came to UConn as a walk on. We were immediately given a chance to repeat and we under achieved all year. But he was an absolute monster. You could see he was physically on another level. I mean for a 6’11” big frame big he got up and down the court as well as anyone that size ever did and really still does. Did not know there were issues with how he interacted with teammates. I mean he was cool enough to get financial aid so as t;o not take scholarship. Does not strike me as selfish but money can change people. Hope he finds a role.

 

[johnhuskies95]

Seems like yesterday that he reclassified and came to UConn as a walk on. We were immediately given a chance to repeat and we under achieved all year. But he was an absolute monster. You could see he was physically on another level. I mean for a 6’11” big frame big he got up and down the court as well as anyone that size ever did and really still does. Did not know there were issues with how he interacted with teammates. I mean he was cool enough to get financial aid so as t;o not take scholarship. Does not strike me as selfish but money can change people. Hope he finds a role.

He came into a tough situation- Calhoun was in and out the whole year, Boatright's suspension, Boatright and Napier's alleged rift, the guy he was effectively replacing (Oriakhi) was upset at the coaching staff. He still showed some pretty good flashes, I remember the first 5-6 minutes of the second half against Syracuse in the Carrier Dome he had a stretch where he looked absolutely unreal.

 

[whosurdaddy2720]

No clue about his attitude on the bench or in the locker room but I’m pretty sure he went from 100M to league minimum mostly because the league changed right underneath him. Nobody wants a thick lumbering big man with no midrange or perimeter game anymore.

If anything he should be thanking his lucky stars he got drafted the year he did and got that money at all because he’d probably be a second round pick at best in today’s NBA.

 

[Tenspro2002]

No clue about his attitude on the bench or in the locker room but I’m pretty sure he went from 100M to league minimum mostly because the league changed right underneath him. Nobody wants a thick lumbering big man with no midrange or perimeter game anymore.

If anything he should be thanking his lucky stars he got drafted the year he did and got that money at all because he’d probably be a second round pick at best in today’s NBA.

Exactly.

Yeah, he wishes he was born 25 years earlier and could have been part of a center-oriented league in the 90s where nobody cared that he couldn't play more than 5 feet from the hoop.

But he's #blessed he even got as much as he did before the league evolved to no longer need him. And the difference between 140MM and, say, 400MM he might have gotten if the league were like it was in the 90s, is insignificant compared to the difference between 140MM and peanuts that he'd have gotten coming out today.

 

[superjohn]

No clue about his attitude on the bench or in the locker room but I’m pretty sure he went from 100M to league minimum mostly because the league changed right underneath him. Nobody wants a thick lumbering big man with no midrange or perimeter game anymore.

If anything he should be thanking his lucky stars he got drafted the year he did and got that money at all because he’d probably be a second round pick at best in today’s NBA.

His other problem is he never utilized his supreme size and athleticism to become a great defender. He's basically just an awesome rebounder and the league doesn't care about those guys anymore.

 

[Kitaman]

I see a DeAndre Jordan trajectory. And that's not a diss.

 

[Shamon30]

I wouldn't mind the league minimum. Just saying.

 

[aceboon]

The whole "league changed" narrative is missing the fact that if Drummond was an elite rim protector/shot blocker and rim runner/roll man he would still be able to make way beyond the league minimum. Not every team has a stretch 5, hell before his knee got cooked Robert Williams 4 year/$54M contract was an underpay and he's doing what I described above. If Drummond did more of the stuff that impacted winning he would be fine, but he doesn't.

 

[Tenspro2002]

His other problem is he never utilized his supreme size and athleticism to become a great defender. He's basically just an awesome rebounder and the league doesn't care about those guys anymore.

An awesome rebounder at a time when most teams just sprint back on defense after the shot goes up lol

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

The whole "league changed" narrative is missing the fact that if Drummond was an elite rim protector/shot blocker and rim runner/roll man he would still be able to make way beyond the league minimum. Not every team has a stretch 5, hell before his knee got cooked Robert Williams 4 year/$54M contract was an underpay and he's doing what I described above. If Drummond did more of the stuff that impacted winning he would be fine, but he doesn't.

Rudy Gobert got traded for 4 1st rounders and makes 200 mil without a single post move let alone jumpshot. Could’ve been Andre if he focused on the right things.

Sad thing is Andre has every tool to be just those things. I remember sports science did a study on him that showed how he was the most athletic player in the league.

Edit: here it is

The science behind Andre Drummond's elite athleticism

Andre Drummond isn't your typical 6-foot-11, 280-pound big man. In fact, science proves the jump-ball wunderkind might just have the most mechanically perfect body in the NBA.

es.pn

 

[OceanDoggie]

I see a DeAndre Jordan trajectory. And that's not a diss.

Probably right.

Aside from the dynamics of the league and a shift in what is considered a skilled position, His moment with the Lakers and Lebron put the stain on Him. Reminiscent of Dwight Howard after He was shunned by Kobe.