Now, does "Tractor" seem like all that appealing an NBA nickname to
you? I have the sinking feeling that Traylor is going to be a bust
in the pros, mostly because I am not sure what position he is going
to play. He is strong and relatively quick for a man of his size,
but I don't think that these skills will translate well from college
to the NBA. At 6'8" he is too short to be an effective center for
the most part. He might make a decent backup center, but I think
that relatively weak centers will still be able to shoot over him
without too much trouble. For this reason, I do not think that he
will be an especially effective shot blocker. Plus, his weight means
that the quicker centers like Robinson and Hakeem can probably get
by him pretty easily, even though Traylor can be deceptively fast for
his body type.
He is being projected as a power forward, with emphasis on the word
"power." Again, relative slowness becomes a factor here. More
problematic is the fact that he has no range on his shot. He is good
at catching and passing the ball, so he could be a decent post
player, but these days power forwards really need to be able to play
away from the basket as well, which I have my doubts that Traylor can
do in the NBA. Some team desperate for inside strength (maybe Nelson
will draft him as the anti-Bradley) will probably take a chance on
him toward the end of the lottery or in the mid-teens, but unless he
is willing to accept being a limited role player, he may end up
hurting his team more than helping it.
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