There has been a lot of talk about Drummond falling to the blazers at #6 and how said player fills a big hole at center (pun). His potential and (lack of) motivation has been talked about, but really who might be a current, comparable NBA player to the young prospect.
I find myself drawing comparisons to Clippers Center DeAndre Jordan another large and athletic, defensive minded player.
The Physical:
DJ - height is between 6'11" and 7' weight at about 260 lbs.
AD - height between 6'10" and 6'11" weight around 275 lbs.
Jordan perhaps has an inch or so on Drummond, but the later already has a more muscular and larger frame.
The Athleticism:
I don't have any official numbers to compare here (until the draft combine) so I will go from observation.
Both players are very good jumpers, showing ability to block shots from unexpected places and rise up for ally oop dunks. They are both reasonably quick and fast for their size and take advantage of their physical gifts on the defensive end, if not as much on offense.
The Stats:
DJ: 07-08 Texas A&M Freshman GP: 35 MPG: 20.1 PPG: 7.9 FG%: 61.7 FT% 43.7 APG: 0.4 RPG: 6.0 BPG: 1.3 SPG: 0.2
AD: 11-12 UCONN Freshman MPG: 28.4 PPG: 10 FG% 53.8 FT%: 29.5 !*** APG: 0.4 RPG: 7.6 BPG: 2.7 SPG 0.8
The first thing to note is that Drummond averaged about 8 more minutes per game over the season, but he did put up better numbers in points, rebounds and blocks, the key metrics of a center. Jordan shot a better FG%, but being over 50% isn't terrible. What is terrible is his 29% free throws! That has to be a record for awfulness!
Conclusion:
Yes DeAndre Jordan was a second round pick and we are talking about taking Drummond in the lottery this year, but don't forget that Jordan just got around a $50 million extension to stay with the clips (!) Centers are hard to come by and it would appear that Drummond is already a few steps ahead of Jordan at similar points in their careers.
Don't expect Drummond to be what Greg Oden was. Don't expect Drummond to be like Dwight Howard. Don't even expect Drummond to be an All Star. Do expect Drummond to be a slightly better center than DeAndre Jordan is at this point in four years. Put him next to an excellent offensive PF like LA and he can flourish into a very good big man who plays D, rebounds, and puts in some dunks on offense. When was the last time we had a center that could do that?


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