Pops Mensah Bonsu – NBA bound?

As reported by Hoopsfix yesterday, it looks like Pops is heading back to the L. Having bounced around between Europe and the Mavs, Spurs, Rockets and Raptors in recent years, Pops never really seemed to stick anywhere. Not quite able to break into a regular rotation in the NBA and perhaps permanently looking over his shoulder when back in Europe?

It’s always bemused me why he couldn’t quite find a home in Europe. Pops is a phenomenal rebounder, at both ends of the floor, and he defies easy compartmentalisation against Euro stereotypes. This, I think, as much as his determination to make a name in the NBA, has led to him bouncing around various high level Euro teams without getting as much burn as his GB numbers would suggest is fair. He’s undersized for the 5, more like a wing player but without the J. He’s an absolute athletic freak of nature that I think has suffered from not having a consistent run of play in any one system over the last few years. He is still prone to making bad decisions (like bringing the ball up and shooting threes) but has consciously worked on and improved his jumpshot and mid-range game (from non-existent to passable) and is a fantastically mobile, agile, inventive forward. He is not a lumbering 7’2” roadblock, nor a skinny pick and pop perimiter forward. What he will do is blow by you, dunk on you and block your weak sauce shots.

It’s an NBA truism, repeated by respected NBA journalists like ESPN Insider’s Chad Ford, that if you can do one thing well in the NBA, there will be a spot on a team for you. You might not be a starter, but someone will always find a home for you. That one thing could be defense (Exhibit A: Bruce Bowen’s whole career) or shot blocking (Chris Andersen and Joel Anthony, two of the top three last season in blocks per 48 mins) It could be shooting open 3s (Kyle Korver) or rebounding. Pops can flat out rebound in the NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION (sorry, been watching too much NFL Sunday Countdown). Pops pulled down rebounds at a rate of 14 per 48 minutes last year, between his 4 games for Houston and 16 games with the Raptors (I couldn’t find a link to this stat, so I worked it out myself using his totals). If he replicated that across the whole season, it would rank him 19th in the whole league, ahead of guys like Al Horford, Al Jefferson, Kendrick Perkins and Chris Kaman, and only fractions of a rebound behind a cast including Chris Bosh, Brendan Haywood and two very under-noticed rebounders in Louis Amundson and Serge Ibaka. There are 30 teams in the league and they all need dudes who can rebound. But where is the most likely destination for Tottenham’s finest?

Hoopsfix cited two tweets from a prominent NBA agent, and Sacramento Kings rookie DeMarcus Cousins as both revealing Pops would be coming back to the NBA. So is it the Kings? At first glance it doesn’t make much sense. The Kings are set at centre with Samuel Dalembert and Cousins, and Carl Landry, Jason Thompson and Hassan Whiteside at the four. The latter was a second round pick but has signed a guaranteed 2 year contract (with a further two unguaranteed). The Kings have plenty of cap room but seemingly nowhere to put Pops, unless they plan to keep him on the bench.

However, Dalembert is that sought after NBA commodity, the expiring contract. He has one year left at $12.2m and the Kings will surely try to move him during the season. Perhaps they plan to break Cousins in slowly and want Pops as a cut-price version of Sammy to come in once they make some deals?

The sentimental choice would be the Bulls, where he could partner up with GB teammate Loul Deng. Much as it would give us all over here goosebumps to see the GB frontline recreated, I don’t see it happening. The Bulls are set with Joakim Noah and Kurt Thomas in the middle, and already have an overseas project centre in Omer Asik, plus very little cap space for even Pops’ modest (by NBA standards) deal.

In addition to Asik in Chicago, the Wolves, Celtics and Knicks all added big man projects from abroad this summer, so they may be considered unlikely. Although who knows what David Kahn is thinking at any given moment. Daryl Morey already signed Pops once, so what about Houston? They already have Jordan Hill and Brad Miller to back up Yao Ming, who will only be allowed to play 24 minutes in any each and any game this season, but with the uncertainty around the Chinese giant’s health prospects going forward, it’s possible they could go for some big-man insurance.

The Raptors fans have already taken to Big Daddy in his previous spells, and any team starting Andrea Bargnani at Centre (8.5 Rebs/48 last year) is in need of a guy who can clean the glass. With only untested (at the NBA level) David Andersen to back up Bargs, added to the fact that the Raptors staff already know what Pops is capable of, I would not be at all surprised to see him back in Toronto this week.

I think the Raptors make the most sense, with the Sacramento connection also perhaps too much to be just a coincidence. Wherever he lands, GB fans will be hoping somebody finally gives the big man a chance to show what he can do over a full season, and that he’s in the best possible shape going into Eurobasket 2011 in Lithuania.

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