The general sentiment was that Seattle University forward Charles Garcia should have stayed in school for another year to refine his game before making the leap to the NBA.
Perhaps his critics were correct.
Garcia didn't play in three of five of the New York Knicks' Las Vegas Summer League games. When he did finally get some time, the reports weren't exactly encouraging.
From SBN's New York Knicks blog Posting and Toasting on his performance against the Detroit Pistons on Friday:
Dan D'Antoni went with an all-bench lineup to end the first and third quarters, which meant we finally got our fist look at Charles Garcia. Unfortunately, Garcia didn't get too many touches, and I have pretty much nothing to report on his performance.
And from the Twitterfeed of Seatownsports:
Watching Chuck Garcia playing for the Knicks in NBA summer league. Still looks selfish, needs to pass ball more...
If the dissatisfying performance in summer league wasn't already enough to seal Garcia's fate, perhaps the following quote from Knicks president Donnie Walsh on Knicks.com is.
“He’s a guy at 6-feet-11 who can basically jump over the basket,” Knicks president Donnie Walsh said. “He can get the rebound and bring it down on the break and make a play. He’s gonna dunk on you if you’re not ready for it. He’s got an all-around game that I think can make him an elite player. He’s obviously worked hard and his body’s a lot better now than it was two years ago. He’s got a great future.”
Unfortunately, the quote is not about Garcia, but 6'11" forward Anthony Randolph, who Garcia has often been likened to. The Knicks acquired Randolph in return for David Lee in a trade with the Golden State Warriors. In other words, the Knicks have already acquired the very player that some people might have hoped Garcia to become. And Randolph has two seasons of NBA experience under his belt meaning he's much less of a gamble.
It's impossible to say whether one more year of college would have earned Garcia a spot on a NBA roster. Yet it's safe to say that leaving early hasn't exactly worked in Garcia's favor.
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