The Warriors didn’t have a pick in this year’s NBA Draft, but that didn’t stop them from acquiring Oregon big man Jordan Bell in the second round from the Chicago Bulls.
He came as a steal for Golden State, who bought the rights to Bell from Chicago for $3.5 million. And although many are excited about the Bell transaction, ESPN’s Marc Spears may not be one of them.
Spears joined The Murph and Mac Show on KNBR Friday morning saying he didn’t exactly have the best impression of the PAC-12 Defensive Player of the Year.
“I wasn’t really impressed with him in the Final Four,” Spears said. “He got beat up on two block outs in a row that played a role in Oregon losing that game. I’m sure he’ll be haunted for that for the rest of his life.
“My impression with him isn’t the greatest because it was a simple block out and he didn’t do it twice in a row, but that doesn’t mean the kid didn’t have a good career, that he’s not a really good defender or anything like that so I’m not going to beat him up. I didn’t get a great impression of him, but that was just one game so I shouldn’t be that hard.”
Bell played a crucial role in advancing Oregon to their first Final Four in 78 years, but Oregon ultimately lost to eventual NCAA champ UNC. Despite that, he averaged 10.9 points per game, 8.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks. In his three seasons with the Ducks he acclimated 233 blocks over 105 games.
To hear the full podcast, listen below. For Spears’ remarks on Bell, skip to 6:24.
