Grizzlies open draft workouts

The preparation for this month’s draft went to a new level Thursday as the Grizzlies opened their draft workouts with a trio of forwards. As in the past, the sessions were run by Grizzlies Director of Player Personnel Tony Barone, Sr.

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Tony Barone, Sr.

What are your general impressions of the workout?

Well, I think that we just have to be diligent in looking at a number of types of players. I think each of these kids brings a little bit something different to the table. The Casspi kid, as you can tell, has played professional basketball in Europe, and so he has a different physicality to him. Rhodes, who we liked at Mississippi State, is a very good shooter, and has a little bit of a step-back jumper that will allow him to get that shot off in the game. Davon is a developing young big guy. He’s going to have to figure out a position right now. Is he a two? Is he a three? We don’t know yet. I was really impressed with the way they competed today. They came in here and really went after each other. They all showed some skilled level today.

I know you don’t want to have preconceived notions, but were you looking for certain things out of any of these individuals?

I try not to do that. I think you get into a little bit of a funk when you do that. We’ve seen each one of these guys play a minimum of eight times, so we already have in the back of our mind a snapshot, which is a big snapshot, by the way. This is a small snapshot, and what you see from them in a workout is usually pretty consistent as to what they did during the year. Now, there will be some changes, and sometimes those changes are pluses and sometimes they are minuses. You add that to the whole pot, and then you stir it up and you make a decision.

What impressed you about Charles Rhodes when he was at Mississippi State?

Well, I thought he could score the basketball and that was a big issue. Even though he was a little undersized for his position, and that’s great league obviously, he could always score the ball. He has that jump shot, a little step-back jump shot that a lot of guys don’t have. That is a big plus for him.

Chris Wallace:

Can you talk about the players you brought in today?

These are three aspiring NBA players. Casspi comes to us from Israel, he’s one of the best young players in Europe. He plays for Maccabi Tel-Aviv, which is one of the traditional powers in European basketball, his team reached the Euroleague Final Four. I think eventually he’ll be the first Israeli to play in the NBA. He’s rugged, you might remember from last year at the Hoop Summit, he was one of the best players for the international team at the Hoop Summit. He showed ability to run the court, finish well on the break, he played with a great deal of determination and toughness, and that’s what you’ve got. You’ve got a tough guy who can score inside and outside. He may stay in this draft or may not, depending on the feedback he gets from teams.

Davon Jefferson was on the USC team with O.J. Mayo. He played in the Orlando pre-draft camp. If he gets drafted it’ll probably be in the second round. He’s a highly-regarded athlete who was considered one of the best high school players in the country when he was coming out.

And Charles Rhodes has put a lot of points on the board, grabbed many rebounds and been very productive for Mississippi State in the SEC over his career. He’s someone who I think is going to do very well in professional basketball over time.

So we’re real glad these guys came in. They worked hard. This is just the beginning of the process.”

Charles Rhodes:

GMS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
31	31.5	.562	.500	.673	7.8	.9	.5	1.4	17.4

How many teams have you worked out for? Was this your first workout?

The Miami Heat was my first workout. This was actually my second. I left Miami, flew here, and had a workout. My next one will be with the Wizards.

What do you think about what you did today, what you have to work on, and how you feel?

I felt really comfortable today. It was just right down the street, and this is the team that I have wanted to play for ever since I was in high school. I did very good today, and I need a lot more help, just like every other guy. You always want to improve something in my game.

What could you bring to the Grizzlies?

I think I can bring a lot to the Grizzlies. I’ll bring whatever the coach and general manager want me to bring. I think I have that type of ability. Whatever they want me to bring, that’s what I’ll bring.

What about your size in this league? They feel you are a little bit undersized, but you have always been able to score the ball in the SEC?

Everybody at the Orlando camp averaged around 6-7, even Michael Beasley, which is the same as me. I don’t think that height has much to with it. I think it’s all about your valentine. It’s all about your heart, what you’ve got inside.

How would it be to be able to be pretty close to home?

It would be unbelievable to play here in Memphis. The other day, I had a day off and came in here and worked out. I was walking around looking at everything and just started starting at the Memphis Grizzly in the middle of the court. I just started daydreaming. It would be a dream come true, but I have a lot more workouts to do and I just have to work hard and stay focused.

What is some stuff that you need to focus on that you think you need to work on?

I think the only thing I need to focus on right now is being an NBA player. Working hard and doing everything I need to do to become an NBA player.

When you talk to GMs and scouts, what are they telling you about your game and the things that you need to improve on?

They’ve just been telling me to do what I do, do what I did to get here. Do the things I did at Mississippi State and just improve. That’s what I’m doing.

Davon Jefferson:

GMS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
29	27.8	.575	.500	.696	6.3	.8	.8	1.0	12.1

Had you been to any workouts prior to today’s?

This was my second workout. I had one last night in Detroit. I flew out around nine o’clock last night, got in around 10-something, got to the hotel, it was late, but I was ok.

Did that quick turnaround affect you today?

No. You just have to do the workout. I got plenty of sleep. You’re going to get tired, you’re traveling, changing time zones, but you have to compete.

How would you rate your performance today?

I didn’t think I made a lot of shots, but I competed and went hard.

What are you looking to get out of the workouts?

I’m just trying to get better. I’m competing, trying to learn the drills to show what I can do. As far as the conditioning I worked out for a month and a half strong, so I wasn’t tired.

What position do you see yourself playing at the next level?

I’m a three. I have to learn how to play better defense on the perimeter and get my ball handling (down), but I’m a three.

Was it a hard decision to leave USC after one year?

It wasn’t that hard because I made up my mind a long time ago. As soon as the season was over I sat down with my mom. I think I’m ready. I have a lot of improvements to make, I have to get better. I have a lot of growth and progress to make. The main thing is I’m just trying to compete and get better.

Omri Casspi:

GMS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
22	n/a	.491	.397	.705	4.2	1.2	.73	.31	9.4