NBA Draft 2024

[bwgood77]

That's pretty awesome that we won the tiebreaker for playoff purposes with the Pelicans but we also win the tiebreaker for a higher draft pick...so the 6th seed has a higher pick than the 8th seed (or would, if them and Milwaukee were not swapping).

So then we're picking at #22 for sure then?

Well, assuming what Givony said is correct.

[sunsbum]

Okobo over Brunson? Ayton over Luka? But yeah, Smith over Haliburton? Trading for Shamet over taking someone like Ayo?

What? You're cherry picking all-stars in a totally fictional what if environment. If you applied that logic, every GM in the history of the NBA would be terrible.

Well, Brunson was national player of the year, on a Villanova championship team, played with Bridges, and went 2 picks after Okobo, who hadn't really proved anything.

I didn't mention some others, like not drafting Kawhi because he sweat too much in the interview, going for Markieff instead, and even less obvious ones like Len over Giannis, Jokic, etc.

Did....did you not read what I just said? You're playing a fantasy game in an alternate reality. I'm asking about the picks that WERE MADE, in REAL LIFE that James Jones actually drafted , not before, not after...literally the players we drafted. If you were to go back and 20/20 hindsight drafts every single GM would be trash tier so whatever point you're trying to make isn't computing.

[bwgood77]

What? You're cherry picking all-stars in a totally fictional what if environment. If you applied that logic, every GM in the history of the NBA would be terrible.

Well, Brunson was national player of the year, on a Villanova championship team, played with Bridges, and went 2 picks after Okobo, who hadn't really proved anything.

I didn't mention some others, like not drafting Kawhi because he sweat too much in the interview, going for Markieff instead, and even less obvious ones like Len over Giannis, Jokic, etc.

Did....did you not read what I just said? You're playing a fantasy game in an alternate reality. I'm asking about the picks that WERE MADE, in REAL LIFE that James Jones actually drafted , not before, not after...literally the players we drafted. If you were to go back and 20/20 hindsight drafts every single GM would be trash tier so whatever point you're trying to make isn't computing.

You asked what picks he was upset with. I answered with my answer to that question. I didn't mention Jackson, Bender, Chriss because I actually was pretty excited about those guys at the time. But I wanted Luka, Haliburton and Brunson. Just what I felt.

[Ghost of Kleine]

That's pretty awesome that we won the tiebreaker for playoff purposes with the Pelicans but we also win the tiebreaker for a higher draft pick...so the 6th seed has a higher pick than the 8th seed (or would, if them and Milwaukee were not swapping).

So then we're picking at #22 for sure then?

Well, assuming what Givony said is correct.

Well If he's correct, then that's really encouraging honestly. Although I was under the belief that the final pick ranges would be determined upon elimination or more or less once the playoffs were 90% determined (up to the finals or something)??? But if I'm wrong, then I'd happily accept the 22nd pick.
(as long as we don't once again do something incredibly idiotic like try and trade out of the draft for some low ceiling average- mediocre vet believing it's a "fix all" move!

But then I'm a bit stuck IF we just stay pat and pick at 22 and call it a night, because there'll just be so many really good options there still! I think that for my part, I'd still prefer a trade back/ trade down scenario to still get one of our targets and maybe also sneak into the 2nd round (IF possible) in order to address more positional/depth/talent needs. for my interests, there are a few teams that fit that trade back scenario:

Knicks
#23,#25,#38.
Washington
#26,#51.
Denver
#28,#56.
Jazz
#29,#32.
Boston
#30,#54.

Out of all of those teams, I'd maybe only have interest though in New York trading back to the 25th pick to also pick up the 38? Otherwise staying at our pick though It'd honestly be very tough for me to choose between Kolek, Edey, Tyler Smith, Da'Ron Holmes. IF I'm being honest, I'm thinking the BPA available is Tyler Smith. And my board would likely end up as:

1- Tyler Smith.
2- Tyler Kolek.
3- Ryan Dunn.
4- Zach Edey.
5- Da'Ron Holmes (or Comche).

And then hope we could buy or trade into the 2nd somehow??

[sunsbum]

Well, Brunson was national player of the year, on a Villanova championship team, played with Bridges, and went 2 picks after Okobo, who hadn't really proved anything.

I didn't mention some others, like not drafting Kawhi because he sweat too much in the interview, going for Markieff instead, and even less obvious ones like Len over Giannis, Jokic, etc.

Did....did you not read what I just said? You're playing a fantasy game in an alternate reality. I'm asking about the picks that WERE MADE, in REAL LIFE that James Jones actually drafted , not before, not after...literally the players we drafted. If you were to go back and 20/20 hindsight drafts every single GM would be trash tier so whatever point you're trying to make isn't computing.

You asked what picks he was upset with. I answered with my answer to that question. I didn't mention Jackson, Bender, Chriss because I actually was pretty excited about those guys at the time. But I wanted Luka, Haliburton and Brunson. Just what I felt.

Am I typing in Chinese or something?

[bwgood77]

Did....did you not read what I just said? You're playing a fantasy game in an alternate reality. I'm asking about the picks that WERE MADE, in REAL LIFE that James Jones actually drafted , not before, not after...literally the players we drafted. If you were to go back and 20/20 hindsight drafts every single GM would be trash tier so whatever point you're trying to make isn't computing.

You asked what picks he was upset with. I answered with my answer to that question. I didn't mention Jackson, Bender, Chriss because I actually was pretty excited about those guys at the time. But I wanted Luka, Haliburton and Brunson. Just what I felt.

Am I typing in Chinese or something?

You might as well be since you are not making any sense. You're asking people which picks they didn't like and then when answered you act like you are talking about something else. Of course not liking picks and wishing someone else was taken when they were picking is fantasy since we can't control it but that's the kind of thing we talk about in the draft thread you know.

[Djedefre]

Gotta say i'm fascinated by Sheppard tho he's way way out of our reach

[sunsbum]

You asked what picks he was upset with. I answered with my answer to that question. I didn't mention Jackson, Bender, Chriss because I actually was pretty excited about those guys at the time. But I wanted Luka, Haliburton and Brunson. Just what I felt.

Am I typing in Chinese or something?

You might as well be since you are not making any sense. You're asking people which picks they didn't like and then when answered you act like you are talking about something else. Of course not liking picks and wishing someone else was taken when they were picking is fantasy since we can't control it but that's the kind of thing we talk about in the draft thread you know.

Again, I'm asking what picks that James Jones made is he upset about. Not what picks he could have made. What problem does he have with each pick that was made besides the obvious "coulda got cleatus instead" answer.

[Ghost of Kleine]

Gotta say i'm fascinated by Sheppard tho he's way way out of our reach

Good eye man! And for sure people should be fascinated by him for all he does/can do at his size. And you're right that he clearly is out of our range (as a lottery pick). BUT what if we could get a very similar impact/production but slightly lesser bargain version of him? Because there is a prospect in the 2nd round that played for Uconn that's flying under the radar but has very similar playstyle/attributes/high end processing and decisions. And that player is Cam Spencer. His game,IQ, processing (high end decision making, shooting, passing all mirror Sheppards' very favorably.
https://www.tankathon.com/players/compare?players=reed-sheppard--cam-spencer

Spoiler:

Watch on YouTube

Now clearly, Sheppard is playing at a much quicker frenetic pace, and shooting the lights out. But if I'm being honest, I just don't think those percentages are sustainable, and he'll come back down to earth a bit. This would make the comparison between the two prospects even more close in terms of comparable value. But I personally see spencer as the budget or value version of Sheppard for those teams not lucky enough to be in range of him as a lottery prospect.

[Ghost of Kleine]

https://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2024/4/22/24137691/phoenix-suns-to-pick-22nd-in-2024-nba-draft-after-losing-tiebreaker-drawing-to-milwaukee-bucks

Phoenix Suns to pick 22nd in 2024 NBA Draft after losing tiebreaker drawing to Milwaukee Bucks
Anyone still have PTSD over the Lew Alcindor draft?

By Damon Allred
@iamdamonallred
Apr 22, 2024, 4:10pm MST



Did anyone get a whiff of that sweet, sweet 1969 air?

If you did, it’s likely it came from NBA president of league operations, Byron Spruell, who Monday drew for NBA draft tiebreakers and awarded the Phoenix Suns the 22nd pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, which takes place July 27-28.

Back in 1969, if you don’t remember, the Suns and Bucks tied for the league’s worst record, and thus a coin flip would be called to decide which team would win the Lew Alcindor (later becoming known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) sweepstakes.

In 2024, the stakes were much lower. Phoenix came into tiebreaker day tied with the Bucks and New Orleans Pelicans for No. 21. Ironically, New Orleans held swap rights over the Bucks thanks to the Jrue Holiday trade, so it was protected from the worst outcome either way.

Phoenix finished between the two teams, landing at No. 22.

Here are five players I’m hoping are available when the Suns pick, along with where they sit in the latest ESPN NBA mock draft.

Devin Carter, point guard, Providence (No. 17)
Tristan da Silva, forward, Colorado (No. 19)
Bobi Klintman, forward, Cairns Taipans in the Australian NBL (No. 23)
Johnny Furphy, wing, Kansas (No. 27)
Tyler Kolek, point guard, Marquette (No. 28)

I believe that Sabrestar first shared this, and was correct that the suns will indeed pick at #22 in the upcoming draft. The real question becomes who should we pick as this pick will have huge ramnifications for us going forward! The one thing that we cannot do is something grotesquely stupid like trading our pick for some low level, mediocre inconsistent aging vet thinking that it will save us from ourselves and turn our trajectory around.

Out of this short list which is lacking in accurate representation for available prospects in our range (picking at #22), I'd most likely easily take Kolek as the others names on the list above are mediocre at best and will offer minimal to maybe somewhat average impact/production. The more accurate high value targets forgotten from this list likely still in this range of the early 20s' that we should strongly pursue/consider are:

Zach Edey, Tyler Smith, Da"Ron Holmes, Ulriche Comche, RYAN DUNN, Jalen Tyson.
- Zach Edey would be the most dominant from the jump, offering immediate impact.

- Tyler Smith would be more of a developmental investment with a very high ( high level starter/fringe star) ceiling somewhere in between an ultimate outcome of a slightly bigger but less defensive Paul George ceiling and a bigger, more fluid, much more offensively versatile Bobby Portis.

- Da"Ron Holmes would also offer immediate moderate impact but with a lower ceiling and high floor in the mold of a mix of rich mans' PJ Brown, Or a slightly smaller, less fluid but better offensive power forward small ball 5 version of Nik Claxton?

- Ulriche Comche is another young high upside, very high ceiling development investment. He wouldn't likely offer significant immediate impact, But his ceiling is very high somewhere in the mold of a Al Horford (offensive)/ Serge Ibaka (defensive versatility) ceiling.

- Ryan Dunn Would easily offer the greatest significant impact in the form of a very athletic, high motor, physical relentless game changing lockdown defender with good size. Now he wouldn't offer any legit offensive threat, but his defense would be absolutely ELITE (likely 1st team all defensive potential) with a bigger Matisse Thybulle/Herb Jones ceiling and a 6'8 more athletic high motor Okogie as his floor.

Jalen Tyson is another very solid versatile immediate moderate impact wing with a decent moderate floor but not high level ceiling. Tysons' ceiling and reasonable outcome is somewhere between Jaime Jaquez of the (Miami Heat) and a slightly stronger,quicker, more athletic version of Kyle Anderson (Timberwolves) as a versatile utility playmaking wing/forward.

Overall, The three best Immediate impact prospects in our range are zach Edey, Tyler Kolek, and Ryan Dunn. With Kolek being the clear best tablesetting playmaker, Dunn clearly being the best lockdown versatile/generational defender, and Edey as the clearly most dominant frontcourt center option/ Nurkic Insurance.

[lilfishi22]

Am I typing in Chinese or something?

You might as well be since you are not making any sense. You're asking people which picks they didn't like and then when answered you act like you are talking about something else. Of course not liking picks and wishing someone else was taken when they were picking is fantasy since we can't control it but that's the kind of thing we talk about in the draft thread you know.

Again, I'm asking what picks that James Jones made is he upset about. Not what picks he could have made. What problem does he have with each pick that was made besides the obvious "coulda got cleatus instead" answer.

Jalen Smith is a weird one. Forgetting that Hali was available (he dropped I believe) and I think a lot of us saw him as being the logical pick but the Smith pick was also a reach as well. Very few mocks I saw had Smith in the lottery at all. Additionally, I also didn't that was a position of need.

[lilfishi22]

https://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2024/4/22/24137691/phoenix-suns-to-pick-22nd-in-2024-nba-draft-after-losing-tiebreaker-drawing-to-milwaukee-bucks

Phoenix Suns to pick 22nd in 2024 NBA Draft after losing tiebreaker drawing to Milwaukee Bucks
Anyone still have PTSD over the Lew Alcindor draft?

By Damon Allred
@iamdamonallred
Apr 22, 2024, 4:10pm MST



Did anyone get a whiff of that sweet, sweet 1969 air?

If you did, it’s likely it came from NBA president of league operations, Byron Spruell, who Monday drew for NBA draft tiebreakers and awarded the Phoenix Suns the 22nd pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, which takes place July 27-28.

Back in 1969, if you don’t remember, the Suns and Bucks tied for the league’s worst record, and thus a coin flip would be called to decide which team would win the Lew Alcindor (later becoming known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) sweepstakes.

In 2024, the stakes were much lower. Phoenix came into tiebreaker day tied with the Bucks and New Orleans Pelicans for No. 21. Ironically, New Orleans held swap rights over the Bucks thanks to the Jrue Holiday trade, so it was protected from the worst outcome either way.

Phoenix finished between the two teams, landing at No. 22.

Here are five players I’m hoping are available when the Suns pick, along with where they sit in the latest ESPN NBA mock draft.

Devin Carter, point guard, Providence (No. 17)
Tristan da Silva, forward, Colorado (No. 19)
Bobi Klintman, forward, Cairns Taipans in the Australian NBL (No. 23)
Johnny Furphy, wing, Kansas (No. 27)
Tyler Kolek, point guard, Marquette (No. 28)

I believe that Sabrestar first shared this, and was correct that the suns will indeed pick at #22 in the upcoming draft. The real question becomes who should we pick as this pick will have huge ramnifications for us going forward! The one thing that we cannot do is something grotesquely stupid like trading our pick for some low level, mediocre inconsistent aging vet thinking that it will save us from ourselves and turn our trajectory around.

Out of this short list which is lacking in accurate representation for available prospects in our range (picking at #22), I'd most likely easily take Kolek as the others names on the list above are mediocre at best and will offer minimal to maybe somewhat average impact/production. The more accurate high value targets forgotten from this list likely still in this range of the early 20s' that we should strongly pursue/consider are:

Zach Edey, Tyler Smith, Da"Ron Holmes, Ulriche Comche, RYAN DUNN, Jalen Tyson.
- Zach Edey would be the most dominant from the jump, offering immediate impact.

- Tyler Smith would be more of a developmental investment with a very high ( high level starter/fringe star) ceiling somewhere in between an ultimate outcome of a slightly bigger but less defensive Paul George ceiling and a bigger, more fluid, much more offensively versatile Bobby Portis.

- Da"Ron Holmes would also offer immediate moderate impact but with a lower ceiling and high floor in the mold of a mix of rich mans' PJ Brown, Or a slightly smaller, less fluid but better offensive power forward small ball 5 version of Nik Claxton?

- Ulriche Comche is another young high upside, very high ceiling development investment. He wouldn't likely offer significant immediate impact, But his ceiling is very high somewhere in the mold of a Al Horford (offensive)/ Serge Ibaka (defensive versatility) ceiling.

- Ryan Dunn Would easily offer the greatest significant impact in the form of a very athletic, high motor, physical relentless game changing lockdown defender with good size. Now he wouldn't offer any legit offensive threat, but his defense would be absolutely ELITE (likely 1st team all defensive potential) with a bigger Matisse Thybulle/Herb Jones ceiling and a 6'8 more athletic high motor Okogie as his floor.

Jalen Tyson is another very solid versatile immediate moderate impact wing with a decent moderate floor but not high level ceiling. Tysons' ceiling and reasonable outcome is somewhere between Jaime Jaquez of the (Miami Heat) and a slightly stronger,quicker, more athletic version of Kyle Anderson (Timberwolves) as a versatile utility playmaking wing/forward.

Overall, The three best Immediate impact prospects in our range are zach Edey, Tyler Kolek, and Ryan Dunn. With Kolek being the clear best tablesetting playmaker, Dunn clearly being the best lockdown versatile/generational defender, and Edey as the clearly most dominant frontcourt center option/ Nurkic Insurance.

Dunn is pretty interesting. It's hard not to get Herb Jones and Trey Murphy vibes as they are similar sized, defensive focused prospects coming into the league. That said, the shooting is a worry. While Jones wasn't a great shooter either going into the draft, he at least had a respectable FT% which is not the best but not the worst indicator of whether a shot can be salvaged. Dunn's coming in shooting 20% from 3 but also only 53% from the FT line.

[Ghost of Kleine]

https://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2024/4/22/24137691/phoenix-suns-to-pick-22nd-in-2024-nba-draft-after-losing-tiebreaker-drawing-to-milwaukee-bucks

Phoenix Suns to pick 22nd in 2024 NBA Draft after losing tiebreaker drawing to Milwaukee Bucks
Anyone still have PTSD over the Lew Alcindor draft?

By Damon Allred
@iamdamonallred
Apr 22, 2024, 4:10pm MST



Did anyone get a whiff of that sweet, sweet 1969 air?

If you did, it’s likely it came from NBA president of league operations, Byron Spruell, who Monday drew for NBA draft tiebreakers and awarded the Phoenix Suns the 22nd pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, which takes place July 27-28.

Back in 1969, if you don’t remember, the Suns and Bucks tied for the league’s worst record, and thus a coin flip would be called to decide which team would win the Lew Alcindor (later becoming known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) sweepstakes.

In 2024, the stakes were much lower. Phoenix came into tiebreaker day tied with the Bucks and New Orleans Pelicans for No. 21. Ironically, New Orleans held swap rights over the Bucks thanks to the Jrue Holiday trade, so it was protected from the worst outcome either way.

Phoenix finished between the two teams, landing at No. 22.

Here are five players I’m hoping are available when the Suns pick, along with where they sit in the latest ESPN NBA mock draft.

Devin Carter, point guard, Providence (No. 17)
Tristan da Silva, forward, Colorado (No. 19)
Bobi Klintman, forward, Cairns Taipans in the Australian NBL (No. 23)
Johnny Furphy, wing, Kansas (No. 27)
Tyler Kolek, point guard, Marquette (No. 28)

I believe that Sabrestar first shared this, and was correct that the suns will indeed pick at #22 in the upcoming draft. The real question becomes who should we pick as this pick will have huge ramnifications for us going forward! The one thing that we cannot do is something grotesquely stupid like trading our pick for some low level, mediocre inconsistent aging vet thinking that it will save us from ourselves and turn our trajectory around.

Out of this short list which is lacking in accurate representation for available prospects in our range (picking at #22), I'd most likely easily take Kolek as the others names on the list above are mediocre at best and will offer minimal to maybe somewhat average impact/production. The more accurate high value targets forgotten from this list likely still in this range of the early 20s' that we should strongly pursue/consider are:

Zach Edey, Tyler Smith, Da"Ron Holmes, Ulriche Comche, RYAN DUNN, Jalen Tyson.
- Zach Edey would be the most dominant from the jump, offering immediate impact.

- Tyler Smith would be more of a developmental investment with a very high ( high level starter/fringe star) ceiling somewhere in between an ultimate outcome of a slightly bigger but less defensive Paul George ceiling and a bigger, more fluid, much more offensively versatile Bobby Portis.

- Da"Ron Holmes would also offer immediate moderate impact but with a lower ceiling and high floor in the mold of a mix of rich mans' PJ Brown, Or a slightly smaller, less fluid but better offensive power forward small ball 5 version of Nik Claxton?

- Ulriche Comche is another young high upside, very high ceiling development investment. He wouldn't likely offer significant immediate impact, But his ceiling is very high somewhere in the mold of a Al Horford (offensive)/ Serge Ibaka (defensive versatility) ceiling.

- Ryan Dunn Would easily offer the greatest significant impact in the form of a very athletic, high motor, physical relentless game changing lockdown defender with good size. Now he wouldn't offer any legit offensive threat, but his defense would be absolutely ELITE (likely 1st team all defensive potential) with a bigger Matisse Thybulle/Herb Jones ceiling and a 6'8 more athletic high motor Okogie as his floor.

Jalen Tyson is another very solid versatile immediate moderate impact wing with a decent moderate floor but not high level ceiling. Tysons' ceiling and reasonable outcome is somewhere between Jaime Jaquez of the (Miami Heat) and a slightly stronger,quicker, more athletic version of Kyle Anderson (Timberwolves) as a versatile utility playmaking wing/forward.

Overall, The three best Immediate impact prospects in our range are zach Edey, Tyler Kolek, and Ryan Dunn. With Kolek being the clear best tablesetting playmaker, Dunn clearly being the best lockdown versatile/generational defender, and Edey as the clearly most dominant frontcourt center option/ Nurkic Insurance.

Dunn is pretty interesting. It's hard not to get Herb Jones and Trey Murphy vibes as they are similar sized, defensive focused prospects coming into the league. That said, the shooting is a worry. While Jones wasn't a great shooter either going into the draft, he at least had a respectable FT% which is not the best but not the worst indicator of whether a shot can be salvaged. Dunn's coming in shooting 20% from 3 but also only 53% from the FT line.

Yeah! That is normally a concern, but to me not that much of a dissauder as our team already has elite offense, but one of our biggest weaknesses is perimeter and switchable defense and recovery. Dunns' mechanics from three aren't terrible either or broken as the upper body form/ mechanics are consistent. It's his lower body that he needs to focus on a bit in terms of squaring up more.

I also figure that with having 3 elite shooters/ offensive stars, Book, Beal and Durant could help mentor him on his shooting, and if he can get that aspect of his game on point, then we'd have a high end two way game changing wing. There are also plenty of really good shooting coaches that could be hired to help him out too! But even in a worst case scenario, Dunn still brings generational game changing defensive ability and will likely establish value as a 1st or 2nd team all defense. Well worth the risk in the 20s of a shallow draft, as his ability is still pretty rare to find in today's league at 6'8 and with his size and elite defensive anticipation/ processing.

I just think he checks do many boxes for our needs even without offensive impact, and anything else that can be developed is a huge bonus for that range.

[Ghost of Kleine]

You might as well be since you are not making any sense. You're asking people which picks they didn't like and then when answered you act like you are talking about something else. Of course not liking picks and wishing someone else was taken when they were picking is fantasy since we can't control it but that's the kind of thing we talk about in the draft thread you know.

Again, I'm asking what picks that James Jones made is he upset about. Not what picks he could have made. What problem does he have with each pick that was made besides the obvious "coulda got cleatus instead" answer.

Jalen Smith is a weird one. Forgetting that Hali was available (he dropped I believe) and I think a lot of us saw him as being the logical pick but the Smith pick was also a reach as well. Very few mocks I saw had Smith in the lottery at all. Additionally, I also didn't that was a position of need.

What's really egregious is that the suns could've easily traded back with the Celtics to get the 14th and 28 picks and walked out of the draft with some combination of Tyrese Maxey and Jaden McDaniels. Or McDaniels and Desmond Bane, or Maxey and Bane, or Quickley and one of Stewart,McDaniels and Bane!! Missing on Haliburton and Vassell is simply bad enough, But to also miss on ALL OF Maxey, Quickley, McDaniels, Bane, Stewart, Anthony, Pritchard just really shows how very little scouting our front office did at all IF any was done at all. Especially when even armchair GM amatuers like me know they could've traded down and picked up one of those high impact players and STILL could've gotten Smith if they really wanted him that badly, which I'd strongly question considering how little investment they put into his development, and how easily they gave him up for a talent like Shamet!!

It's just like they made a pick just for optics to say that they actually made a pick rather than actually doing there do diligence.

[Qwigglez]

No 22 pick since 2010.
2010 - Elliot Williams
2011 - Kenneth Faried
2012 - Fab Melo
2013 - Mason Plumlee
2014 - Jordan Adams
2015 - Bobby Portis
2016 - Malachi Richardson
2017 - Jarrett Allen
2018 - Chandler Hutchingson
2019 - Grant Williams
2020 - Zeke Nnaji
2021 - Isaiah Jackson
2022 - Walker Kessler
2023 - Darig Whitehead


Anyone care to guess who was the 2007 22nd pick? Without looking...
Hint:

Spoiler:

Played for the Suns

2nd hint:

Spoiler:

Fan favorite

Final hint:

Spoiler:

Assistant coach...

(If you guess, please put your post in a spoiler)

Earl Boykins?

Dang... you were close. But no. It's

Spoiler:

Jared Dudley.

[Qwigglez]

I'm all in for Goran Dragic reincarnated. (Tyler Kolek)

[BurningHeart]

Who has the best motor?

Draft them.

It's time to change the culture of this team.

[Djedefre]

IDK, man, i wouldn't have the guts to draft Edey. There is just so many things that could go wrong with that pick... I'm always super wary of guys who dominate as seniors by sheer physical superiority. And the fact that he is that type of big, pretty much a dinosaur... May be terribly wrong, but i'm saying no 9/10 times.

Aside from playing qualities and basketball traits, they have to pay attention to the character and mindset. We simply cannot draft more Chrisses, Jacksons or even Benders. They need to take things seriously and not just pull the trigger by watching tapes (any of us here could do that, and even for free 'cuz we love this freakin' franchise). Do the research, talk to staff and people at the university about the guy you're interested, try to find out where's his mind at - if he's a worker, wants to compete, looks at basketball not just as a mean to get paid and go home.

[Ghost of Kleine]

Who has the best motor?

Draft them.

It's time to change the culture of this team.

The prospects with the best motor in this draft in our range (outside of the lottery) are:
1- Ryan Dunn.
2- Yves Missi.
3- Zach Edey.
4- Devin Carter.
5- Jamal Shead.
6- Reece Beekman.

Part of the reason I'm not overtly worried about using our 22nd pick to draft a point guard in Kolek (although I really like Kolek)!!! is because their are actually numerous really good "in game" poised floor general type tablesetting guards with good ball security too well into the 2nd round and undrafted ranges. And I really think that as badly as we DO NEED an actual adept point guard, we need a lockdown switchable relentless defender (wing AND frontcourt) that is long, physical, quick, athletic and dynamic even more.

Again I say this because that archetype is even rarer in this draft (even though I have two or three undrafted alternative options for that too)

But our problem beyond the absurd FATIGUE/ WEAR DOWN related careless turnovers is a product of building a roster (James Jones ineptitude) primarily of smaller,thinner, UNATHLETIC,PASSIVE, SOFT (averse to physicality), MENTALLY WEAK finesse oriented players. This is why Nurk at times has been so critical for our success due to his size, physicality, motor, grit. IF only not subdued by his own clumsiness (I have Nurkic backup insurance too in Joel Soriano- A tough,burly, mobile 6'11 265 lb bully ball 4/5 double/double big with a Kurt Thomas type disposition but still skilled). Anyways apologies for the rambling.

The players listed above are the best remaining (still in the draft/ not returning to college) high motor, physical mentality, aggressive nature prospects that embody the fire, grit, toughness, killer instinct that our soft, mentally weak roster truly needs.

[Ghost of Kleine]

IDK, man, i wouldn't have the guts to draft Edey. There is just so many things that could go wrong with that pick... I'm always super wary of guys who dominate as seniors by sheer physical superiority. And the fact that he is that type of big, pretty much a dinosaur... May be terribly wrong, but i'm saying no 9/10 times.

Aside from playing qualities and basketball traits, they have to pay attention to the character and mindset. We simply cannot draft more Chrisses, Jacksons or even Benders. They need to take things seriously and not just pull the trigger by watching tapes (any of us here could do that, and even for free 'cuz we love this freakin' franchise). Do the research, talk to staff and people at the university about the guy you're interested, try to find out where's his mind at - if he's a worker, wants to compete, looks at basketball not just as a mean to get paid and go home.

I'm hearing what you're saying, and by majority your right in this assessment. There have definitely been valid concerns over Edeys' conditioning and mobility. But with Edey, not many people realize that his work ethic and investment/ determination is very solid, and I'd say at least on par with Nurkics' motor/mobility. Butr regardless of those considerations, Edey (even in the NBA) will be big and dominant (in terms of size/girth) at 7'4 300 as there just aren't many bigs in the league that can match his size and dominance (based on that size) one on one. In that, his immediate value still exists in that teams WILL ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO double team him as he can't successfully be guarded (in the paint one on one. Some smaller teams may have to even double or triple teams too. Now defensively, despite his current mobility issues, his massive size/ length will still be a decent deterrent anywhere close to the rim, but to fully maximize him defensively, he'll need to be flanked by good-really good wing/guard defenders that can help cover/recover out on the perimeter.

The other swing factor to his overall trajectory value would be his shooting touch. Not many people are fully aware that Edey actually does have decent form, mechanics, touch on his shot (although on small sample size).

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Overall I'm not too concerned about Edey in the 20's range because of the established value he could bring due to his size, length, dominance AS LONG AS our front office DOES UNDERSTAND what they'll need to put around him supplementally. as more of a long term core invest or depth piece consideration. But I can reasonably say that his production/impact should be fairly comparable to that of Nurkic in his role, given their similarities in playstyle/attributes and concerns. But also, I'd have no issues whatsoever if we went another direction too, as I (for my part) have alternative options to still fill that kind of role for us with under the radar prospects from the undrafted range too (seeing as we have no other draft assets left to aply)!! Thanks again Jones!

People should look briefly into:
Joel Soriano (nurkic insurance).
6'11 265 lbs of bully ball 4/5 big for St Johns, a walking double/double.
https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/no-stone-unturned-2023-the-big-men
Ariel Huktpori 7'0 255 lbs ( sligthtly bigger budget version of Clint Capela) Melbourne United.
https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/ariel-hukporti-and-greatness-in-simplicity
Cliff Omoruyi A 6'11 high motor athletic,long defensive monster ( Rutgers)
Kind of a bargain version of a mix of Nik Claxton (with lesser offense) and a 6'11 Kenneth Faried?
https://nbadraftroom.com/p/clifford-omoruyi/#:~:text=Draft%20Notes&text=He's%20a%20rim%20protector%20and,hard%20and%20dunking%20the%20ball.


Now for a center, Ideally I'd choose Yves Missi as his motor/willingness to be physical, recovery/mobility is astounding. Heck, I'd maybe even consider Kel'el Ware for his length, mobility, two way versatility IF his hot/cold motor concerns didn't really scare me! But we have alternative options for really any position we pass on in the draft.