Zags on Ponds

My thoughts exactly:

A year and a half later, Ponds can’t do much about his size but he has made some “real strides” and NBA folks are taking notice.

“I think he has a chance but needs to stay in school at least another year,” one NBA executive told ZAGSBLOG. “If he were to come out this year, he will be headed to the G League to start his professional career.”
 
Glad to hear it. Ponds is a special player in my opinion. He seems to have developed a unique relationship with Coach Mullin. He had to make it the hard way attending public school and growing up in a somewhat tough environment. He seems to have a very nice family who steered him in the right direction without oversteering him. I went to watch him play a few games while he was at Jefferson including the Federation Championship in Albany. He almost always looked composed and deferred to his teammates instead of trying to score every time down the court. Since day 1 at St. John’s he has made an impact on the court and again is a team player who has not caused one problem that I am aware of. He handled all of the drama with Lovett well and has raised his game to another lever after struggling for the first time in his life. I know there are many on here who are quick to criticize his defense or his shot selection but he is becoming one of my favorite players in many years. I am very confident that he will return next year to further improve his game. I hope he plays so well next season that he will have a tough decision as to whether to play his senior year in college. It would be great if we can make it to the NCAA’s before he leaves or graduates as you don’t get many Shamorie Ponds walking in the door at St. John’s
 
Hoping Shamorie stays one more year—for his sake and ours. Beyond that—if he continues to improve and leads us deep into the NCAAs next year—I highly doubt he’ll return his senior year. And he would deserve the fruits of his hard work and tenacity, honing his skill-set to NBA-level play.
 
He can benefit greatly by staying in college longer.

Kid seems to have a very good head on his shoulders so I'm sure he'll make a smart decision.
 
Selfishly, I'd just love to be able to see him keep playing for us as long as we can. But, to me, he is the most skilled pure basketball player we've had here since Artest.
 
Not a perfect analogy, as Shamorie is probably more talented, but staying for his junior year has been good for Jalen Brunson. He is at least in the conversation for Wooden award and his 3 point shooting and assists have gone up while turnovers have gone down this year.
 
Not a perfect analogy, as Shamorie is probably more talented, but staying for his junior year has been good for Jalen Brunson. He is at least in the conversation for Wooden award and his 3 point shooting and assists have gone up while turnovers have gone down this year.
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Not sure Ponds is more talented then Brunson (both are great, obviously). Brunson just went to a place where he could sit and learn for two years (one year, at least), so any flaws he came in with as a freshman, were mostly masked.

Ponds played right away, so the scouts saw all of his weaknesses. Brunson could hide his.
 
Not sure Ponds is more talented then Brunson (both are great, obviously). Brunson just went to a place where he could sit and learn for two years (one year, at least), so any flaws he came in with as a freshman, were mostly masked.

Ponds played right away, so the scouts saw all of his weaknesses. Brunson could hide his.

All fair points, particularly with respect to Brunson's first year.
 
It would be great if Ponds stayed all 4 Years . If he did , he would likely accumulate all sorts of St John’s Records and since there is now a 3 point shot , might exceed Chris Mullin’s all time point totals . While that might not happen , he isn’t ready for the NBA just yet . And , neither was Lovett . But, that’s another story .. As fans , it would be great to see him play here as long as possible . He has incredible skills and has that unique ability to use both, Left and Right hands as the situation dictates . He is a Joy to watch , even if he is a little off . He has carved out a place in the line up of great guards from Brooklyn .
 
Ponds can drive in and take most people to the basket (even when double-teamed) anytime he wants, plus the fact that he is an unorthodox lefty to me means that he has a spot on an NBA roster in a few years after continuing to hone his skills. Based on his interviews, the kid to me comes off as mature and level headed, I think he is here for the long run knowing Mullin will guide him in the right direction to play professionally. He is an easy kid too root for to succeed. He can be a good precedent to future recruits if Mullin does get him into the league.
 
He caught the league at a good time -- skinnier and smaller is more accepted than it used to be. Another year of seasoning and he could have a long career.

I still fear he'll leave, but hopefully others are right.
 
I realize most are in a hurry to get to the league but think he can improve his chances of sticking from day one by staying at least 3 if not 4 years. Those scouting reports didn't mention the defense end of the court and I think another year or two will allow him to mature physically and get stronger so he can be more likely to hold his own on that end of the court. Will also give him time to further improve his 3 point shot which I think is good despite early season struggles which I attribute at least in part to taking them from to far out.
 
He caught the league at a good time -- skinnier and smaller is more accepted than it used to be. Another year of seasoning and he could have a long career.

I still fear he'll leave, but hopefully others are right.
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I understand he will test the waters just as Bashir Ahmed did last year. He is definitely not ready and would be overpowered by bigger guards in NBA camps. He still needs to work on his defense and outside shooting. He needs to remember his shooting drought and know that would be unacceptable in NBA workouts.
Finally, Slick needs to stop focusing on driving German cars and look at how it all ended up for Isiah Briscoe who famously shunned St. John's, cost Lavin his job and went on to Kentucky. He is now playing in frigid Estonia.

"(UK) puts me in the best position to play basketball after college," Briscoe said. "Calipari puts you on the highest stage. The last couple years, all his point guards have been in the NBA. I'm just trying to be the next one."
He chose Kentucky over St. John's.
 
Hopefully he gets his degree man these young guys especially coming from the hood need to understand the importance of a college education. Basketball is fine but only so many guys make it to the nba and stick. Not saying ponds is not good enough, he is very talented and has some Nick Van Exel to him. But the same options will be there for him basketball wise whether he stays 2,3, or 4 years.
 
at the end of this season Ponds might be a player that an NBA team would take a risk on. If he develops his game and physical maturity and he could be a player that NBA teams would compete to invest in. The former are destined to either fizzle out or struggle to latch onto an NBA team or go elsewhere to earn a living. The latter set the stage for themselves. It makes a big difference how you make an entrance.

 
at the end of this season Ponds might be a player that an NBA team would take a risk on. If he develops his game and physical maturity and he could be a player that NBA teams would compete to invest in. The former are destined to either fizzle out or struggle to latch onto an NBA team or go elsewhere to earn a living. The latter set the stage for themselves. It makes a big difference how you make an entrance.
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He should follow the Kris Dunn model.
 
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