Introducing: Luke Harangody (Wait, Huh?)

Posted by Zach Lowe on Jun 25, 2010 893040 commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F2010%2F06%2F25%2Fintroducing-luke-harangody-wait-huh%2FIntroducing%3A+Luke+Harangody+%28Wait%2C+Huh%3F%292010-06-25+04%3A10%3A44Zach+Lowehttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F%3Fp%3D8930

The Celtics almost had Solomon Alabi, once thought likely to go somewhere around #20, slide all the way to their second-round pick at #52. But the Mavs (picking  for the Raptors, apparently) took Alabi two spots in front of Boston.

So the C’s took….Luke Harangody, a player I assume most of you know a lot about, since I know a lot about him and I barely follow college basketball. If you don’t, here’s the quick and dirty: A power forward who put up huge numbers (22 points, 9 boards) at Notre Dame but (according to most folks) lacks the athleticism, size and quickness necessary to succeed in the NBA. Harangody is listed at 6’8” but measured just 6’6” without shoes and has an underwhelming 6’10” wing-span, according to the DraftExpress.

Some other blurbs:

DraftExpress:

Though Harangody has made some changes to his game, his biggest weakness from an NBA perspective remains his lack of athleticism. The hard working forward certainly took the draft process seriously last summer, shedding some weight and improving his mobility to a degree in the process, but the strides he made still leave him severely lacking compared to the average NBA power forward. Extremely strong, but very undersized at just 6-6 without shoes, and without a great wingspan (6-10) to compensate for that, Harangody may not have the type of physical tools that would allow him to translate his production to a much smaller role at the next level. While that certainly limits his NBA upside, it may not exclude him from having the opportunity to make an impact as a role player.

Heh. On the one hand, rebounding is the one stat that translates predictably from college to the pros and Harangody grabbed rebounds in college. On the other hand, Harangody seems like an inferior version of Glen Davis, doesn’t he?

The Celtics unquestionably need big guys, and Harangody is a big guy. He’s probably not the big guy they were hoping to get as a few notable names kept slipping during the 2nd round, but he’s the one they got.

And remember: Someone picked at #52 has about a 5 percent chance of being anything but a total non-entity in the NBA, according to ESPN’s analysis of draft history. So there’s a good chance that Harangody, with no guaranteed deal, will never play a minute of real NBA action for the Boston Celtics.