PF/C Kosta Koufos (CSKA Moscow)

[LitlBuck]

People forget he is just a kid. If he has the desire to work he will be fine.

You are supposed to take those things into consideration when you'd leave college early to play professionally. JO is correct in his analogy. If you left school early to go work at a big company, you had better be prepared or you will get chewed up in business and in life. Jerry Sloan will not take his youth as an excuse.

 

[akronbuck]

I wonder if his high school coach will contact Sloan and question him how he's using him :)

 

[jimotis4heisman]

I wonder if his high school coach will contact Sloan and question him how he's using him :)

lets leave greynolds and his comments in the greynolds thread...

 

[akronbuck]

lets leave greynolds and his comments in the greynolds thread...

didn't know he had one but, I hope Kosta does something about his hand strength because, it was funny watching small players just taking the ball away from him.

 

[osugrad21]

Canton

Around the NBA: Koufos finds learning curve
GlenOak grad hitting rough spots in first year in NBA
Monday, October 20, 2008
BY CHRIS BEAVEN
[email protected]

Nothing falls one night. Almost everything goes in a few nights later. And the head coach wants to see significant improvement on the other end of the floor.

Welcome to life as a rookie in the NBA ? which is pretty much how GlenOak High School graduate Kosta Koufos expected it to be.

The 7-footer from Ohio State is going through the usual ups and downs of a first training camp. The Jazz's No. 1 pick shook off an 0-for-5 shooting performance to open last week by going 5-for-7 three nights later. That looked good on the stat sheet. But that doesn't mean he met the expectations of coach Jerry Sloan, who did not care for Koufos getting confused a couple of times.

"I think everybody's pulling for him, but he's got to be held responsible for not knowing where he's supposed to be after a while," Sloan told the Deseret News. "He's got to learn how to get to the right spots, know what play we're running, know what we're doing defensively. That's part of being a basketball player."

Koufos has played in four of the five games, missing one because of a hamstring strain. He is averaging 3.8 points and 3.0 rebounds in 8.8 minutes a game, shooting 7-of-14 from the floor.

In his most extended run, 20 minutes against Denver, he had the 5-of-7 shooting, hitting the only 3-pointer he tried. He had 11 points and seven rebounds, but also uncharacteristically missed all four foul shots.

Koufos was not about to get down on himself after the 0-for-5 game. "I'm young, I'm still learning the game, and I know what I did wrong, and I'm going to correct it," he told the Salt Lake Tribune.

As unhappy as Sloan was over mistakes made by Koufos, his critique to the Deseret News included some praise:
Cont...

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

First-round draft pick Kosta Koufos, a center who played just one year of college, is likely to spend much of his rookie season in the D-League.

 

[MaxBuck]

First-round draft pick Kosta Koufos, a center who played just one year of college, is likely to spend much of his rookie season in the D-League.

Interesting, especially given the Hawks' including Othello Hunter on their roster (as an undrafted FA).

 

[osugrad21]

Link

Utah Jazz: Rookie once wanted to be a point guard, now he's a 7-foot power forward


[FONT=Verdana,Helvetica,Arial]By Randy Hollis[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Helvetica,Arial]Deseret News[/FONT]
Published: Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2008 12:27 a.m. MDT

And, starting at point guard ... from Ohio State ... number 41 ... Kosta Koufos.
OK, so that's probably not something you're going to hear from the P.A. announcer in an NBA arena anytime soon. All right, most likely, never.
But once upon a time, say 15 years (and about 4 or 5 feet in height) ago, Koufos ? a rookie center for the Utah Jazz ? actually fashioned himself as a point guard.
"I started playing basketball when I was a little kid, like 3 or 4 years old," Koufos recalled at a recent Jazz practice session. "I remember just practicing in the driveway and dribbling the ball around in the driveway. I would come home and take shot after shot every day after elementary school and middle school, and my love for the game just grew."
And, as it turns out, so did he.
"When I was younger, I played the point guard position," Koufos pointed out. "And then, when I grew and got up to a good height, I just ran with it.
"I love the game. Nobody had to push me toward it. I've just worked hard for it.
"I grew a couple of inches every year, and then in middle school I sprouted up. By probably the eighth grade, I knew I wasn't going to be a point guard any more," he said. "When I was a freshman in high school, I was 6-foot-9, and by my sophomore and junior year, I was 7-foot."
Cont...

 

[LitlBuck]

I still think another year at Ohio State would have benefited Kosta greatly but what do I know.

 

[Steve19]

I still think another year at Ohio State would have benefited Kosta greatly but what do I know.

I think you are right.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

I still think another year at Ohio State would have benefited Kosta greatly but what do I know.

we will never know.

we may find out if he made the right choice (good nba career, etc). we will never know if he stayed what would/might happen.

 

[LitlBuck]

I know that "we" will never know but another year of college would have benefited him as a basketball player and as a person. I don't think the Developmental league offers that many perks like fancy hotels, traveling, and all the other things that go along with being in the NBA.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Koufos was on the active roster but did not play in the opener for the Jazz last night.............

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

Utah rookie Kosta Koufos made his NBA debut in the fourth quarter and was welcomed to the league by Kaman, who smothered Koufos' attempt at a hook shot. ...

Link

Kosta Koufos was the first one into the game, with 5:38 remaining and the Jazz leading the Clippers by 26. Morris Almond was next, a day after the Jazz declined his 2009-10 contract option, and Kyrylo Fesenko checked in third.
The Jazz got a look at all three of their recent draft picks at the end of Saturday's blowout. Almond hit a three-pointer and scored five points, Fesenko had a follow-up dunk, and Koufos was unable to score his first NBA points.
"Koufos, I thought he might pass out on me," acting coach Phil Johnson said. "That's so exciting for him. He works so hard, that's one of the things we like about him so much. And he needs to get a little taste of it. That's great for him to get out there and play."
Koufos had his first shot, a left-handed hook, blocked soundly by Chris Kaman. "I've just got to get my moves down pat," he said. "But as the time goes on, I feel like I can establish that move."

 

[osugrad21]

Link

KOUFOS FAN: His only rookie hasn't played a whole lot of minutes this season, but that doesn't mean Jazz coach Jerry Sloan isn't impressed by Kosta Koufos.
Quite the opposite.
After shootaround Friday, the 21st-year Utah coach had nothing but compliments for the 19-year-old from Ohio State, who was born after Sloan got his head coaching job with Utah in 1988.
"It's fun to watch him," Sloan said. "He's come in here and he's been really refreshing. He knows he's got a long ways to go, but how hard he's worked, he's really been impressive."
Sloan also likes how Koufos sticks his head into the huddle, even when he isn't involved in the action. To him, it shows the 7-foot first-round pick, who was born on Feb. 24, 1989, is paying attention."He wants to get better and the only way to get better is to listen," Sloan said.
"I'm just trying to just learn the play, know what the situation is," said Koufos, who dressed but did not play in Friday's win over Oklahoma City. "You never know. One day they'll just call me and I'll be ready to go."