Harry Giles Update

Like a lot of Duke fans, we hated not seeing Harry Giles at his best when he was at Duke.

The Sacramento Kings opted for patience though and shut him down last season so that he could fully rehab.

The buzz has been building over the spring and summer and if you click here, you can see some video evidence of his recovery.

He’s often been compared to Chris Webber, who was a great talent, but Webber was kind of like a center playing forward.

Not Giles. As you’ll see here, he’s more like a guard playing forward. Webber was effective but a bit clunky by modern standards.

Giles, by contrast, is incredibly fluid and another good example of the concept of positionless basketball. Yes he’s 6-11 but he’s incredibly fluid.

Come to think of it, here’s a more interesting comparison and a new argument to kick around.

He’s more like Danny Manning.

When Manning was at Kansas, he was celebrated for his skill package. At 6-11, he ran that team. Everything went through him. He was smart, gifted and a great basketball player.

We’re not sure Giles can do everything he could but we’re positive about this: 1988 Danny Manning could never have done what you see Giles do on this clip.

Physically there can’t be too much difference. Giles grew up with a different understanding of the game though and the things that he does, we expect, Manning could have done but would have been reluctant to do in a game if only because his coaches would have told him to have a seat.

It’s going to be fascinating to see how far he can evolve.