7'1'' Rebounder / Three point shooter

[DefenseWinsChamps]

What if I told you that there was a 7'1'' center with a 7'3'' wingspan and 9'0'' standing reach with huge hands who was only 24 years old and could probably be signed this offseason.

Of all players 7 feet or taller, he averaged the 2nd best rebounding percentage of any player(percentage of rebounds obtained per chances).

What if I told you that he allowed only 42% shooting at the rim last season. Although the bad news is that number shot up to 52% this season (only Johnson was better than that for us this season).

What if I told you that he is also an accomplished 3 point shooter, averaging 39% for his career. This past season he averaged 38% on 3 attempts per game.

What if I told you that player was Meyers Leonard, a goofy-looking, tall and lanky Justin Bieber wannabe.

Seriously though, one of my hobbies is to try to find hidden gems in the draft, free agency, or trade. There are two guys I am targeting this off-season to help us.

First, Meyers Leonard is not a sexy free agent name, but his rebounding is fairly unheralded. He would add a ton of size, length, and rebounding to a team that needs it WITHOUT sacrificing an open court. I also think that his length bothers a lot of shots, although he has been inconsistent as a rim protector.

Second, Evan Fournier is exactly what we need on the wing. He is a 40% three point shooter who can also slash and break down defenses. He has room to grow, but I think he could be better than Gordon Hayward.

I know these guys aren't Kevin Durant, Ben Simmons, Jimmy Butler, or Demarcus Cousins, but adding them wouldn't mess with our assets, wouldn't mess with our youth movement, and would improve our team noticably.

All the while, we could still trade for Butler or Cousins.

[PhoSita]

My question with Leonard is what are his limitations that have kept him off the floor or out of the starting lineup for Portland. Because I feel like I haven't actually seen him play that much despite watching the Blazers a fair amount this year.

Fournier I like, though I think he's a pure two. Not sure how effective he is defensively. He would certainly add needed shooting. Replace Turner with him and add a bench wing who can cover threes, I think that'd be a significant improvement.

But sure if ORL will let Fournier get away though.

[DefenseWinsChamps]

My question with Leonard is what are his limitations that have kept him off the floor or out of the starting lineup for Portland. Because I feel like I haven't actually seen him play that much despite watching the Blazers a fair amount this year.

Fournier I like, though I think he's a pure two. Not sure how effective he is defensively. He would certainly add needed shooting. Replace Turner with him and add a bench wing who can cover threes, I think that'd be a significant improvement.

But sure if ORL will let Fournier get away though.

I think it is just a young big man learning. Deandre Jordan was averaging 24 mpg as a 24 year old (6th year). Big men especially take time because they are the anchor of a defense, so they have to read and respond to a lot of different movements.

Agreed on the defensive thing with Fournier, but in CBS scheme, I think he would be fine.

[Geo123]

The biggest question  on Meyers Leonard is how is he going to recover from shoulder surgery which caused him to miss the last part of the year.  Plus with him being restricted there's no way Portland will let him go if they think he's healthy. They have the cap space..

[BlastFromThePast]

What if I told you that there was a 7'1'' center with a 7'3'' wingspan and 9'0'' standing reach with huge hands who was only 24 years old and could probably be signed this offseason.

Of all players 7 feet or taller, he averaged the 2nd best rebounding percentage of any player(percentage of rebounds obtained per chances).

What if I told you that he allowed only 42% shooting at the rim last season. Although the bad news is that number shot up to 52% this season (only Johnson was better than that for us this season).

What if I told you that he is also an accomplished 3 point shooter, averaging 39% for his career. This past season he averaged 38% on 3 attempts per game.

What if I told you that player was Meyers Leonard, a goofy-looking, tall and lanky Justin Bieber wannabe.

Seriously though, one of my hobbies is to try to find hidden gems in the draft, free agency, or trade. There are two guys I am targeting this off-season to help us.

First, Meyers Leonard is not a sexy free agent name, but his rebounding is fairly unheralded. He would add a ton of size, length, and rebounding to a team that needs it WITHOUT sacrificing an open court. I also think that his length bothers a lot of shots, although he has been inconsistent as a rim protector.

Second, Evan Fournier is exactly what we need on the wing. He is a 40% three point shooter who can also slash and break down defenses. He has room to grow, but I think he could be better than Gordon Hayward.

I know these guys aren't Kevin Durant, Ben Simmons, Jimmy Butler, or Demarcus Cousins, but adding them wouldn't mess with our assets, wouldn't mess with our youth movement, and would improve our team noticably.

All the while, we could still trade for Butler or Cousins.

Great minds think alike.   

See my post in the "Next year's Starting Center" thread.

Combination of players + draft picks might entice the Trail blazers to move Leonard who I think is ideally suited for what Ainge and BS want in a big man in today's NBA.

[IDreamCeltics]

I think Fournier would be a great pickup.  Leonard seemed to feature heavily into Portland's plans at the beginning of this season and just couldn't provide enough value to play big minutes.

[Surferdad]

Tell me about their defense.

[Csfan1984]

Both those guys were looking at good pay days till injury. Sure there will be a few teams going after their services.

[konkmv]

Take bender skai and maker from the deaft