A couple of years ago, I’d have said it was a needless, futile task – as I didn’t see how could Lorbek translate his game to the NBA, especially considering he wasn’t that good to begin with. His lack of athleticism and quickness was, from my perspective, an absolute killer (and you had that experience in a recent past with Saras).

Now, for the first time, I’m not so sure. He has improved in every aspect of the game in the last 2 years, and especially this season, under the guidance of Ettore Messina (the best and most successful coach in Europe and a great teacher of the game). Messina stresses defence, and unlike many European coaches who rely entirely on zones, he uses more hybrid help systems, a la NBA. He really helped Lorbek on that side of the court, and you know see him playing “lower”, more nimble and reacting quicker. So, he’d still be a sub-par and slower defender for a NBA big man, but not an insurmountable liability any more, I don’t think.

The same can be said offensively: his game is now more well-rounded and polished, what would allow him to translate it better on a NBA court versus more athletic and quicker defenders. More importantly, while he’s still the typical finesse, soft, Euro big, he’s also showed improvement on that area; he won’t post up hard or throw his body around, but he’ll fight hard inside, set good, though screens and won’t just dribble out of the paint after gaining an offensive board like he was a guard. A younger Rasho Nesterovic is probably a good comparison; someone able to play a solid role as a backup big in the right situation.

Anyway, I dont’ see him as a good fit for the Pacers right now, especially with your current defensive philosophy, that demands your bigs to move so much. I project Hibbert as a valuable starter, including defensively as someone who can defend the low posts straight up (exactly like Perkins for us). But he needs to be paired with an athletic, quick-footed big with a disruptive presence (say, someone like KG, or Jermaine O’Neal, or even Jeff Foster) and and Lorbek is certainly not that player. As a 3rd/4th big, he’ll probably be able to help, especially if that athletic starting PF is not very “refined” offensivel – but a team needs to know exactly what role they have for him and be sure to find his agreement about playing that role. I reckon I have no idea if he’s interested on changing his newly acquired stardom status in Europe, that’s he’s beginning to enjoy, for a minor role in the NBA.

Anyway, it’s as you both say: in case you need a player with his skill-set and he’s interested on that role, at least now you know he’s developed into a player who’s seemingly competent enough to play that role.