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Andris Biedrins

Drafted #11 in the 2004 NBA Draft by the Warriors
Height: 7'0" (213 cm)
Weight: 240 lbs (109 kg)
Position: C
High School: Valters Basketball School
Hometown: Riga, Latvia
Current Team:

Articles

NBA Scouting Reports, Pacific Division (Part One)

Matt Williams
Matt Williams
Jul 31, 2008, 06:33 pm
Overview: A developing left-handed Latvian big man who is really starting to come into his own as one of the better centers in the game. Came into the league at age 18, and still has a great deal of upside. Has excellent size and very good athleticism for a big man. Shows great mobility in transition and when defending the pick and roll. Doesn’t have astounding bulk, but plays stronger than most NBA centers. Didn’t have a lot of success early in his career, but found a niche perfectly tailored to his skills in Don Nelson’s system. Skill-level is fairly poor, but isn’t asked to be anything he’s not. Understands his strengths and sticks to them. Rebounds the ball extremely well and produces incredibly efficiently on the offensive end. Shows great competitiveness. Plays with so much adrenaline that he has a very difficult time from the free throw line. Despite his experience level, Biedrins is so young that it wouldn’t be surprising to see him improve significantly.

Offense: A raw offensive player, but is efficient enough at the simple things he does well (and plays with such shot-happy teammates) to not make that much of an issue. Always amongst the league-leaders in field goal percentage. Gets more than half of his shots off of cuts and offensive rebounds. Gets another third from post ups and pick and rolls. Does most of his damage by working off the ball and using his terrific hands to simply catch and finish, which he’s amongst the league’s best at. Uses his strength to muscle his man underneath. Makes an effort to read ball handlers as well. Sets good screens and knows how to roll to the basket to set himself up to make a play. Gets the ball in the post with his back to the basket, but not very frequently. Very raw down there. Almost exclusively turns over his right shoulder. Needs to work on his off hand, and improve his footwork. Known for his struggles at the line. Has improved his mechanics to an extent, but still has an unorthodox release. Has improved remarkably from 30% in his second season to over 62% in his fourth season. Decent passer for a player his size. Not very assertive. Rarely puts the ball on the floor to score, and if he does, it’s only with his left hand. One of the most active offensive rebounders in the League.

Defense: Very hard worker and the only one on Golden State’s roster who’s role revolves around the defensive end. Good weakside shot blocker. Very tough on the block. Uses leverage to push his man off his spot. Tries to go straight up on shots, but makes some mistakes. Commits quite a few fouls when rotating to meet weak-side penetration. Very effective one-on-one in close in comparison to the average player. Great rebounder. Scrappy in the paint. Good timing. Anticipation will come around in time. Experience will only make him better.