Dear Spurs Fans:

Hello.  I am a lifelong Pitt basketball fan who is feeling very snubbed right now.  I thank the Spurs for ending the free fall that accompanied Dejuan Blair's draft status last night.  I am excited to see that so many Spurs fans are excited for his arrival.  My take on Dejuan's game (after watching him for around 80 games the last two years).

• Obviously, the thing that everyone talks about is his ability to rebound.  Rebounding seems to be about a lot of things: reach, jump, desire, positioning, etc.  His reach has been covered ad nauseum; it's long.  He isn't a great, explosive athlete, although he can finish with authority.  His desire is top notch when it comes to getting loose balls.  But what is really impressive is his positioning.  He has described watching shots in the air and seeing the trajectory so that he can try and predict what the ball is going to do.  He has an uncanny ability to do this.  Also, his hands are as big as the basketball itself, and they are very soft as well.  His rebounding rates were no accident; he's the best college rebounder of the decade.  Also much has been written about rebounding translating well into the pros.  WIth all of these factors, the Spurs have gotten a player who is truly excellent at one thing.
• Something less talked about is his ability in the low post.  This will undoubtedly be tougher for him as an undersized 4 in the league, but he still has the ability here, and he consistently took it to guys who were much bigger than him in college.  With his penchant for grabbing offensive rebounds, plus 3-4 legitimate post moves, he can start to score a bit immediately in the league. 
• He needs to work on his face-up game.  There isn't much to add to this; he's not a good shooter from 15 feet.  He needs to work on this.  He knows this.  He has the desire to improve, and him being slighted will only improve his drive.
• His defense isn't great.  I think this can be attributed to a lot of things.  He was the biggest body (not tallest of course) on the court in almost every game he played at Pitt, and he got some fouls called on him for this.  Plus, he has a penchant for stupid fouls, especially on the stupid hedging we would have him do out on the perimeter.  He was always a foul concern, which I think impacted how he played interior defense.  He has the intelligence and the heart to play good defense, but its a work in progress. 
• Another thing that is overlooked, and a way in which he could contribute immediately, is his interior passing skills.  He's got great vision on the low block.  He's very unselfish and is willing to make the extra pass for the easy bucket.  This might be my favorite aspect of his game.
• His attitude is top notch.  He's confident and easygoing.  He's always got a big smile on his face.  And yet, he's still an intense competitor who often feels like he has a chip on his shoulder.  It's a delicate balance that he's able to pull off rather well.
• Edited: I can't believe I forgot another aspect of his game.  He's extremely agile.  While on the defensive end he's not great in the post, he is really active in passing lanes.  Look at his number of steals in his 2 years of college ball.  Outstanding for someone his size, who plays his position.  It did lead to a few of his dumb fouls, but the upside on defense is there, I believe it.

In short, I know Spurs fans are excited to have him.  I just wanted to stoke those fires a bit.  Plus, you've got a guy who will be happy to visit sick kids in the hospital, sign autographs until the day ends, and appear in local car commercials until you get sick of him.  And this guy somehow falls to the 37th pick.  I almost went into a rant here about how awful the NBA is.  I mean, c'mon, I live in Pittsburgh.  We don't have a team.  The only enjoyment I get here is seeing guys from my alma mater succeed in the League, which hasn't happened in my lifetime.  Our best NBA player is Mark Blount.  But I'll stop my rant. 

Dejuan, I hope you love San Antonio, I hope their fans love you back, and I hope DirecTV takes my credit card to buy the NBA League Pass.  And Spurs fans, I hope that you'll allow me to join your bandwagon.