NBA Draft 2024

[BurningHeart]

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- Dvin 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.

Thanks for this. I don't know **** about college. Just watched a couple minutes of Dunn highlights and it showed me everything I needed to know. If he's got good character off the court too, then sign me the **** up.

[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- Dvin 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.

Thanks for this. I don't know **** about college. Just watched a couple minutes of Dunn highlights and it showed me everything I needed to know. If he's got good character off the court too, then sign me the **** up.

You're very welcome man. YES to your question above about his character, aside from being an intense, relentless player on the court, he's very similar actually to Mikal Bridges disposition/character off the court. a quiet, humble and intelligent kid that stays out of trouble, lacks ego, and just is invested in doing whatever the tam needs to get a win. A lot of concern is made over his current lack of offensive ability, but I mention this because it's relevant in that it really speaks to his scarificial mindset of putting the teams' success before his personal successes, as well as his focus on his role defensively first.

Having said that, I'm again not overtly worried about his lack of offensive acumen as we still have three v ery elite offensive stars that could mentor his shooting, etc. AND even aside from that, there are numerous very high end offensive shooting consultants that Ishbia could hire (money not being an issue) to help Dunn (and maybe even Okogie) turn a corner on those weaknesses. Ishbia could easily hire any of Chip England, Dave Love, Bruce Fraser, Chris Matthews, att Beeuwsaert ( a.k.a. Coach Beez ) definitely David Nurse (Nick Nurses' brother) would be great for the suns mental weakness, lack of professionalism, iuntensity issues and lack of focus too! And he's a high end shooting coach as well that helped the BRK Nets back in 2016.
https://www.davidnurse.com/about#:~:text=In%20total%2C%20David%20has%20worked,talented%20wife%2C%20actress%20Taylor%20Kalupa.

We definitely have options, but the suns front office (especially the scouting departments) have to put significant work in, as well as the the suns talent consultants too. IF I can do this level of research with basically zero resources by comparison, there's no excuses for whiffing so badly on talent, prospects, etc year after year................rinse and repeat!

[lilfishi22]

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.

I dunno. Non-shooters are the first to get exploited nowadays allowing defense to load up on star offensive players. And despite the high motor which normally leads to more rebounds and trips to the line, he's also a poor shooter at the line which doesn't bode well for him as a potential outlet option. And to top that off with not much else offensively other than dunks and alleys, I have to really question whether he can stay on the court. I'm legit scared off him now as a prospect.

While his shot-altering, game-changing dominance in Coach Tony Bennett’s packline defense resembled that of former Cavalier guard De’Andre Hunter — the 4th pick in the 2019 NBA Draft — Dunn does not have the offensive resumé Hunter boasted coming out of college and will be drafted significantly lower as a result. Beyond fastbreak dunks, acrobatic alley-oops and point blank layups, Dunn rarely looked comfortable with the ball in his hands during his time with Virginia. He does not currently possess an off-the-bounce skillset capable of beating an athletic defender one-on-one, which led many of his post opportunities to turn into contested jump shots or inside-out passes.

His jump shot itself is another weakness. Dunn never warranted respect on the perimeter in college, making just 12 three-pointers on 51 attempts in two seasons. Opponents had no problem sending him to the free-throw line either, as the guard finished his career in Charlottesville a touch under 53 percent on free throws.

Paired with a lacking aggressiveness at times, that low level of efficiency led Dunn to post numerous suspect performances last season — he made one or fewer field goals in six different contests despite playing 20 or more minutes in all of them. Perhaps more worrying, his frailties on offense appeared to worsen as the campaign went on — in Virginia’s final 14 games, Dunn averaged just 5.2 points per game on 10 percent shooting from three-point range and 35.3 percent at the line. No matter what he brings as a defender, NBA teams will view that kind of offensive production as a substantial risk in the first round. Dunn noted that he lacked confidence from the perimeter during his college career, emphasizing that it will be a point of emphasis for him as he makes the transition to the NBA.

“Confidence-wise, it wasn’t always there for me just letting it go from beyond the arc,” Dunn said to ESPN. “I’m going to have a whole different mindset with that.”

[Ghost of Kleine]

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.

I dunno. Non-shooters are the first to get exploited nowadays allowing defense to load up on star offensive players. And despite the high motor which normally leads to more rebounds and trips to the line, he's also a poor shooter at the line which doesn't bode well for him as a potential outlet option. And to top that off with not much else offensively other than dunks and alleys, I have to really question whether he can stay on the court. I'm legit scared off him now as a prospect.

While his shot-altering, game-changing dominance in Coach Tony Bennett’s packline defense resembled that of former Cavalier guard De’Andre Hunter — the 4th pick in the 2019 NBA Draft — Dunn does not have the offensive resumé Hunter boasted coming out of college and will be drafted significantly lower as a result. Beyond fastbreak dunks, acrobatic alley-oops and point blank layups, Dunn rarely looked comfortable with the ball in his hands during his time with Virginia. He does not currently possess an off-the-bounce skillset capable of beating an athletic defender one-on-one, which led many of his post opportunities to turn into contested jump shots or inside-out passes.

His jump shot itself is another weakness. Dunn never warranted respect on the perimeter in college, making just 12 three-pointers on 51 attempts in two seasons. Opponents had no problem sending him to the free-throw line either, as the guard finished his career in Charlottesville a touch under 53 percent on free throws.

Paired with a lacking aggressiveness at times, that low level of efficiency led Dunn to post numerous suspect performances last season — he made one or fewer field goals in six different contests despite playing 20 or more minutes in all of them. Perhaps more worrying, his frailties on offense appeared to worsen as the campaign went on — in Virginia’s final 14 games, Dunn averaged just 5.2 points per game on 10 percent shooting from three-point range and 35.3 percent at the line. No matter what he brings as a defender, NBA teams will view that kind of offensive production as a substantial risk in the first round. Dunn noted that he lacked confidence from the perimeter during his college career, emphasizing that it will be a point of emphasis for him as he makes the transition to the NBA.

“Confidence-wise, it wasn’t always there for me just letting it go from beyond the arc,” Dunn said to ESPN. “I’m going to have a whole different mindset with that.”

Of course your concerns over his lack of offensive ability are valid man. But for a team with multiple weaknesses and no real defensive anchor or even elite defensive options aside from trying to lean on a 35 yer old KD, in the 20s of a widely percieved shallow draft, we could really do a lot worse for only 2.5 million rookie scale player. I mean the consensus is already that he's easily the best defender in all of college basketball. And his consensus floor projection even at the NBA level is an elite generational defender with 1st or 2nd team all defense outcome. That's obviously a win for us considering our weaknesses, our draft range as well as the clear likelihood of him significantly outplaying his contract (2.5 million for 22nd pick) value.

We already know that even from the jump, he'll bring elite lockdown defense, elite athleticism, elite motor, elite defensive versatility and switchability. On top of that value, he'll add more size, athleticism, energy tenacity, toughness and grit. All of these attributes and talents/skills accentuate his value vs his contract salary and draft range. Because if his shooting was already good or advanced, he'd likely be a lottery pick. I get being concerned over his lack of offensive acumen, but his elite defensive abilities and other attributes simply outweigh those concerns. And if drafted by the suns, I really can't imagine a more advantageous situation for both parties as we have three ELITE OFFENSIVE STARS that can help mentor his shooting development.

And in turn, Dunns' elite defensive attributes would drastically shore up many of our weaknesses aside from playmaking and passing. Shooting isn't really our weakness except when our stars are afraid to shoot. And I can name at least 5 good to potentially great tablesetting guard options even post draft from the undrafted ranges and at least 6-8 high end jumbo wing shooters, polished two way 4/5s. So if assetrive instead of reactionary, we can actually walk out of draft night with significantly upgraded roster depth and versatility. And on cost controlled deals too!

[BurningHeart]

Defense would be great. That versatility is sorely lacking but it's the attitude that matters most. Our team just drifts through everything. Someone who is on it at all times is critical. I don't care if the guy's offensive prowess is lacking. He'd only be one of many parts of a fixing of the culture. There can be offensive players to be had.

This guy could probably learn to shoot 3s at a great clip. This versatility and motor + a smart, floor general distributing PG + a couple shooters and a rebounding machine. And no quit, no bitchmade flopping or complaining to refs or dirty dumb play.

That's what I want. An honorable, classy, likable franchise that is absolutely relentless, hungry, creative and insanely fun to watch.

The Suns need to be the Suns.

[SunsRback4Good]

Defense would be great. That versatility is sorely lacking but it's the attitude that matters most. Our team just drifts through everything. Someone who is on it at all times is critical. I don't care if the guy's offensive prowess is lacking. He'd only be one of many parts of a fixing of the culture. There can be offensive players to be had.

This guy could probably learn to shoot 3s at a great clip. This versatility and motor + a smart, floor general distributing PG + a couple shooters and a rebounding machine. And no quit, no bitchmade flopping or complaining to refs or dirty dumb play.

That's what I want. An honorable, classy, likable franchise that is absolutely relentless, hungry, creative and insanely fun to watch.

The Suns need to be the Suns.

Basically you want same model as the Miami Heat.

[BurningHeart]

Defense would be great. That versatility is sorely lacking but it's the attitude that matters most. Our team just drifts through everything. Someone who is on it at all times is critical. I don't care if the guy's offensive prowess is lacking. He'd only be one of many parts of a fixing of the culture. There can be offensive players to be had.

This guy could probably learn to shoot 3s at a great clip. This versatility and motor + a smart, floor general distributing PG + a couple shooters and a rebounding machine. And no quit, no bitchmade flopping or complaining to refs or dirty dumb play.

That's what I want. An honorable, classy, likable franchise that is absolutely relentless, hungry, creative and insanely fun to watch.

The Suns need to be the Suns.

Basically you want same model as the Miami Heat.

Well, I don't know about all that but just historically "Suns."

[Mr Puddles]

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- Dvin 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.

Thanks for this. I don't know **** about college. Just watched a couple minutes of Dunn highlights and it showed me everything I needed to know. If he's got good character off the court too, then sign me the **** up.

I don't watch college ball either, but the description of Missi is very appealing. Athletic and strong 7 footer who is versatile on defense, is a relentless rebounder and shot blocker, and boxes out rather than rely on his athletism to grab boards.

Sounds like exactly the type of player we need in the middle.