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Official 2015 NBA Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb]

Moderators: Danny Darko, Kilroy, TyCobb

Who will win the national championship?

Wisconsin
6
25%
Kentucky
7
29%
Duke
9
38%
Michigan state
2
8%
 
Total votes: 24

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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#861 » by dockingsched » Sun Mar 29, 2015 1:04 pm

[tweet]http://twitter.com/IAmDPick/status/582137708786556928[/tweet]

[tweet]http://twitter.com/IAmDPick/status/582139209424637952[/tweet]

http://www.basketballinsiders.com/chat/nba-overseas-chat-with-david-pick-32815/

Last week Hezonja gave an interview to the Croatian Sportske novosti claiming he should be the first pick in the NBA draft. Few days later Barcelona had an Euroleague game against Zalgiris and lots of NBA scouts where there waiting to see Hezonja. But, he got a DNP. My question is WHY? Because of some interview? Or because Barcelona is not happy he wants to leave? And how will this last incident affect his status in Barcelona?

One more about Hezonja.
In that interview he mentioned how he likes the Lakers? Considering that Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak was also in the Kaunas to see Hezonja play what are the chances that he gets pick by the Lakers?





I’m not sure why everyone made such a fuss over Mario Hezonja’s interview about being the top pick in the draft. I spoke to him in January and he said: “If I was in college I’d probably be the No. 1 pick. I had an offer from Kentucky. I’m European and I need to work harder to break into the U.S market.” Click here for full story.

In response to your questions: 1. There is no doubt in my mind that Hezonja was benched because of the interview. I’m told Barcelona are unhappy he’s leaving for the NBA next season. One source in Mario’s camp called his coach a “clown” for benching him vs Zalgiris Kaunas. What are the chances Lakers take him at No. 4? According to DraftExpress’ 2015 Mock Draft LAL will select D’Angelo Russell while Hezonja goes Detroit at #8. However, given that Mitch Kupchak traveled to Lithuania to see him in the flesh … there’s a good chance Lakers pick Hezonja.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#862 » by Goudelock » Sun Mar 29, 2015 2:30 pm

dockingsched wrote:[tweet]http://twitter.com/IAmDPick/status/582137708786556928[/tweet]

[tweet]http://twitter.com/IAmDPick/status/582139209424637952[/tweet]


All aboard the Mario Hezonja Hype Train!!

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Watching Wisconsin yesterday, I thought that Sam Dekker looked like an NBA player as a SF. He'd be a nice guy to get in the 2nd round. He can shoot well enough, and actually drives to the basket (unlike our current SF Wes Johnson and Ryan "I'm a scrub" Kelly)
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#863 » by dockingsched » Sun Mar 29, 2015 2:53 pm

Dx has Dekker projected at 16, so might be a bit of a reach to get to the second round
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#864 » by ROballer » Sun Mar 29, 2015 3:08 pm

I really like Hezonja ,and if we don't advance in the lottery and stay 4th ,I'd be torn between him and Winslow honestly( assuming no.1-3 go as planned, Towns/Okafor/Russell in no particular order )


Like him more than Mudiay
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#865 » by ArC_man » Sun Mar 29, 2015 5:56 pm

If Winslow is gone at 4 and WCS's health doesn't pan out, I wouldn't mind taking Hezonja at 5.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#866 » by moonpie » Sun Mar 29, 2015 8:34 pm

Damnit come on MSU!
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#867 » by moonpie » Sun Mar 29, 2015 8:35 pm

Overtime...
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#868 » by kblo247 » Sun Mar 29, 2015 8:35 pm

aaron_gray wrote:
kblo247 wrote:Can't support the great march exploitation, which is all this bs is. They are exploiting the hell out these kids and making millions yet won't give a damn if these kids get sick or hurt


What do you feel is the best way for the NCAA to compensate them? iirc most of them are eligible for a set payment after they graduate anyways. I think a lot of them have insurance too in case of injury, and remember, the college education is an insurance itself. Do you think they should be paid like regular employees, or that they should receive a larger sum after their ncaa career is over?

Just saw this. They could be paid like you are in work study. College education isn't an insurance in itself, it really isn't since these kids miss most their classes during the season and aren't fully educated. I would be all for them treating them like work study and giving them minimum wage for the hours they practice and play per week as it would really keep them down to. 20 hrs of practice and the kids would have money for food or whatever else like when students are going there, just look how other students have the benefit of being paid to work on campus or work part time with set hours around their classes.

I would even settle outright for giving the players rights to their images. Some kids could make a couple hundred legal bucks and get a good catered meal on a autograph session or something at a local place. The NCAA takes that way from them and to me that's wrong personally.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#869 » by moonpie » Sun Mar 29, 2015 8:51 pm

YES! MSU advances
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#870 » by ArC_man » Sun Mar 29, 2015 9:50 pm

Adam Morrison shaved off his stache?
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#871 » by Michael Lucky » Sun Mar 29, 2015 11:13 pm

ALL HAIL wrote:
TyCobb wrote:I like Okafor over Towns if we had #1 because I'm not sold on Randle as the PF of the future.

I know Ty, but the real question is, if you'd like to step into my line of thinking for a moment, how much better, in your mind, is Okafor than Towns?

If the gap is sizable, then I understand your thinking, however, if the gap is slim, for lack of a better word, negligible, then according to "my math"', you need to draft the guy that fits better with the talent in which you've already invested.

Drafting Towns is more about ceiling than the question of who's better between the two. Okafor is definitely a better player today and has a very high floor with how polished his game is. Okafor is the safe pick at 1 even if he may not end up being the best player in that draft in 5 years.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#872 » by DEEP3CL » Sun Mar 29, 2015 11:52 pm

dockingsched wrote:Dx has Dekker projected at 16, so might be a bit of a reach to get to the second round
Dekker's game will translate poorly at the next level. He's like an unathletic Chandler Parsons. If any team takes him in the first round that GM needs to be fired.
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SmartWentCrazy wrote:It's extremely unlikely that they end up in the top 3.They're probably better off trying to win and giving Philly the 8th pick than tanking and giving them the 4th.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#873 » by DEEP3CL » Mon Mar 30, 2015 12:02 am

ROballer wrote:I really like Hezonja ,and if we don't advance in the lottery and stay 4th ,I'd be torn between him and Winslow honestly( assuming no.1-3 go as planned, Towns/Okafor/Russell in no particular order )


Like him more than Mudiay
I'm not sold on guys I haven't seen in the heat of competition. Metta World Peace said Muiday was pretty good but he didn't overly rave on him....which was a sign for me that he may not be any better than any of the guards we've seen in this NCAA Championships. Hezonja is a 6'8" SF/SG...who's propped as a shooter, but I doubt that he's a creator for others like a Stanley Johnson would be. Hell Winslow is a safer pick than Muiday or this Hezonja kid.
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SmartWentCrazy wrote:It's extremely unlikely that they end up in the top 3.They're probably better off trying to win and giving Philly the 8th pick than tanking and giving them the 4th.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#874 » by DEEP3CL » Mon Mar 30, 2015 12:10 am

As far as the Okafor/Towns debate....I'm starting to realize that "if" we ended up in position to grab Towns it would be an ok pick still. Towns has a lot of elements in his game that may translate better in the pros than in college. He's a better freethower than Jahlil, definitely better than Okafor because he understands defensive angles a lot better. The only thing we can say Okafor is better at is offensive ability and that's starting to look like it's not a wide margin anymore considering how Towns played Saturday.

But don't get me wrong, if we got the chance for Okafor he's a great building block and let's remember the college game today isn't suited to a strong interior like Jahlil.
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SmartWentCrazy wrote:It's extremely unlikely that they end up in the top 3.They're probably better off trying to win and giving Philly the 8th pick than tanking and giving them the 4th.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#875 » by Mirjalovic » Mon Mar 30, 2015 12:34 pm

DEEP3CL wrote:
ROballer wrote:I really like Hezonja ,and if we don't advance in the lottery and stay 4th ,I'd be torn between him and Winslow honestly( assuming no.1-3 go as planned, Towns/Okafor/Russell in no particular order )


Like him more than Mudiay
I'm not sold on guys I haven't seen in the heat of competition. Metta World Peace said Muiday was pretty good but he didn't overly rave on him....which was a sign for me that he may not be any better than any of the guards we've seen in this NCAA Championships. Hezonja is a 6'8" SF/SG...who's propped as a shooter, but I doubt that he's a creator for others like a Stanley Johnson would be. Hell Winslow is a safer pick than Muiday or this Hezonja kid.


Hezonja has silky smooth ballhandling and nice playmaking skills.

but then again, i think he should try to move Rockets pick for Stauskas. He is like Hezonja poorman, and cheaper too.
shawn_hemp wrote: a guy who is far worse than Robert Covington in Brandon Ingram, and a guy who is no better than TJ McConnell or Tony Wroten in D'Angelo Russell.

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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#876 » by The Prodigy » Mon Mar 30, 2015 1:43 pm

My approach in this draft would be to select the best available talent with each of our picks. We desperately need an infusion of talent. Worry about positions later.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#877 » by Slava » Mon Mar 30, 2015 5:30 pm

Winslow enters top 5 on Draft Express, Stanley Johnson at #9. Mudiay still rated higher than Russell.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#878 » by crazyeights » Mon Mar 30, 2015 5:44 pm

DEEP3CL wrote:As far as the Okafor/Towns debate....I'm starting to realize that "if" we ended up in position to grab Towns it would be an ok pick still. Towns has a lot of elements in his game that may translate better in the pros than in college. He's a better freethower than Jahlil, definitely better than Okafor because he understands defensive angles a lot better. The only thing we can say Okafor is better at is offensive ability and that's starting to look like it's not a wide margin anymore considering how Towns played Saturday.

But don't get me wrong, if we got the chance for Okafor he's a great building block and let's remember the college game today isn't suited to a strong interior like Jahlil.


I hope Okafor's game steps up in the NBA. There are so many instances where he just ball watches 6 inches away from the ball. Sometimes he doesn't even raise his hand on defense, or try at a rebound. The dude needs to get in much better shape.

I'm worried NBA size will give him length.

Footwork's great, though.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#879 » by crazyeights » Mon Mar 30, 2015 5:58 pm

Just noticed Towns finally passed Okafor on DX.

We're gonna have to luck out and get that #1.
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Re: Official 14-15 NCAA/Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb] 

Post#880 » by Karmaloop » Mon Mar 30, 2015 6:01 pm

The Prodigy wrote:My approach in this draft would be to select the best available talent with each of our picks. We desperately need an infusion of talent. Worry about positions later.


The problem is the later in the draft you get, the less likely you are to find a talent and that guaranteed contract comes back to hurt the franchise. Unless we can find a guy with a very specific talent/role (i.e. shooter, rebounder, shot blocker, etc.), I'd rather just draft and stash a Euro or see if we can flip the pick to a future pick.

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