Official 2013 Draft Thread - Part I

[pancakes3]

Weird. My 2 red flags for him are a) his age and b) his range. Otherwise I think he's a great prospect and could carve out a very nice career for himself like Andre Miller did, and like Jeremy Lin is trying to do.

[BruceO]

pancakes i think shabazzs playmaking isnt there yet. that being said the reason i like him is because he is not undersized, has long arms, strong and has a quick first step and is explosive so no mechanical weakness. he can score, he is putting up those numbers as an out of shape freshman who never played with the team. mentally he is competitive and tough on teammates like kobe or jordan. he has a good motor and will be able to physically dominate. i also think we need a closer not a center who isn't ideal. should have drafted drummond then shabazz, instead of beal plus whoever

[The Consiglieri]

Some of us liked Drummond (me) a lot of us were scared that he was a Kwame type knucklehead with no offensive game. The issue with guys like Drummond is always whether or not you're willing to roll the dice on a player whose got a 50% chance of being a dominant superstar and a 50% chance of being a subpar, appalling, knucklehead with a very limited game. I'd always take the risk and roll the dice, you win nothing with solid to above average players, you need to get a difference maker whose elite. Drummond was our only shot at that after we got screwed in the lottery but there was zero chance we were gonna pull the trigger on that after McGee. Maybe we get lucky this draft. We're due as usual.

[montestewart]

^
By committing (through trades) $30 million+ per year at the three front court positions, on top of using four of the last 1st round picks on those same positions, and with Wall at PG, EG pretty much set it up where it would have been a little awkward to take anything but a SG with the #3. Maybe he took the wrong SG, but how would he justify taking Drummond after acquiring Nene, Okafor, and Seraphin? (Other than saying, "Guys, remember that trade I just made? Turns out I f**ked up.") I'm assuming if they landed the #1 pick, they wouldn't have traded for Okafor, but it is Terd and Ernie, so who knows?

[Dr Positivity]

Some of us liked Drummond (me) a lot of us were scared that he was a Kwame type knucklehead with no offensive game. The issue with guys like Drummond is always whether or not you're willing to roll the dice on a player whose got a 50% chance of being a dominant superstar and a 50% chance of being a subpar, appalling, knucklehead with a very limited game. I'd always take the risk and roll the dice, you win nothing with solid to above average players, you need to get a difference maker whose elite. Drummond was our only shot at that after we got screwed in the lottery but there was zero chance we were gonna pull the trigger on that after McGee. Maybe we get lucky this draft. We're due as usual.

I kind of disagree with the 50% chance superstar/50% bust label. I kind of always felt Drummond was most likely to fall in the middle, a guy who gives you 10-13 pts, 9-10 rebs, and a couple blocks but isn't offensively gifted enough to be a star. Like the player Deandre Jordan is turning into

[DMVleGeND]

^
By committing (through trades) $30 million+ per year at the three front court positions, on top of using four of the last 1st round picks on those same positions, and with Wall at PG, EG pretty much set it up where it would have been a little awkward to take anything but a SG with the #3. Maybe he took the wrong SG, but how would he justify taking Drummond after acquiring Nene, Okafor, and Seraphin? (Other than saying, "Guys, remember that trade I just made? Turns out I f**ked up.") I'm assuming if they landed the #1 pick, they wouldn't have traded for Okafor, but it is Terd and Ernie, so who knows?

We did have depth in the frontcourt, and two good big men in Nene and Seraphin (Okafor is not), but lacked star power. After trading McGee, the big man w/ the best physical tools and upside on the roster, he needed to be replaced, but instead Ernie of course went the safe route, which will never win you championships in this league.

[pancakes3]

Ok, the anti-Drummond's may be issuing mea culpas that Drummond isn't busting as much as I expected but ease up on the hyperbole. He's not THAT good.

[truwizfan4evr]

Who are your top 3 best prospect in this draft?

[DMVleGeND]

Ok, the anti-Drummond's may be issuing mea culpas that Drummond isn't busting as much as I expected but ease up on the hyperbole. He's not THAT good.

I never said he was "all-world great" or anything, but he's been productive in the minutes he gets (all Pistons fans are screaming for him to be starting), and has all the physical tools you could ask for. I think it's pretty obvious from everything we've seen thus far that even if he doesn't reach his potential, he's still a high floor player.

[Dr Positivity]

Who are your top 3 best prospect in this draft?

I like Len, Zeller, and Goodwin as top 3

[pancakes3]

I never said he was "all-world great" or anything, but he's been productive in the minutes he gets (all Pistons fans are screaming for him to be starting), and has all the physical tools you could ask for. I think it's pretty obvious from everything we've seen thus far that even if he doesn't reach his potential, he's still a high floor player.

Much was implied though. Starpower, upside, championship...

I don't really see the vaulted floor though. The floor for Drummond imo is that he never progresses and tosses his name into the long list of C's who technically started but were never "starter-caliber" players: Olowokandi, Jahidi White, Jason Collins, etc. More optimistically, he becomes the heir apparent to Kwame Brown and carves a nice yet unspectacular career over the span of many years like how Haywood, Dalembert, and Shawn Bradley did. There's really very little chance he pans out at his ceiling as a "good" C like Joakim Noah, or Marc Gasol much less the all-nba C's like Bogut, Chandler, and ::snort:: Howard.

Greg Monroe on the other hand, I'd trade just about anyone on our roster for (even Wall if it meant unprotected future picks).

Edit: top 3 picks?

Noel, Len, Shabazz in that order.

Noel has that rare combination of size and hustle that is just invaluable. It's what separates Noah from McGee. Noel is going to set the league on fire next season. He's putting up video game stats out of sheer athleticism. 3 steals. 3 blocks. 3 assists. 10 boards. Shooting 4 FT's a game. Pair him up with an actual point guard and some legitimate coaching? He's going to be something very special.

Len. You really can't argue against the size and the polish. Marc Gasol 2.0 if he gets a bit more elevation on his hook shots.

Shabazz. The tools are there. It's just that he's not as good as he's hyped to be. The low assists and the low steals hint at low iq on both ends of the court. Not even Caron Butler good, but better than DeRozen. Not better than Beal, imo.

Dark horse. People are tripping all over themselves over Cody Zeller but Mason Plumlee is doing amazing things right now albeit 2 years older than Zeller. 20 ppg on 65% shooting. Drawing enough fouls for 8.4 FTA/game. Just absolutely phenomenal scorer. Maybe not an all-star but certain good enough to start for a mediocre team at PF.

[barelyawake]

Read through this thread hoping not to hear Bennett's name. I was entirely self-satisfied (that I would be able to town-crier his name first), until I got to Ed's post. Bennett will certainly be picked top five if he measures 6'8 and a half. And then, he'll get into a bloody brawl at Hardee's due to roid rage. He's "swollen" rather quickly. But, I'd still take him early in the lotto.

Liking Goodwin. Liking Len.

[Jay81]

ernie is salivating...

Gobert Wants To Play In NBA Next Season
Dec 11, 2012 11:16 AM EST
Rudy Gobert is a projected top-10 pick in the 2013 NBA Draft and wants to immediately play in the NBA.

Gobert is a center currently playing for Cholet where he is averaging 8.0 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.0 blocks in 19.6 minutes per game.

"I want to go the NBA next season," said Gobert. "I don't want to play another season in Europe. I know that it is going to be tough and that I need to add muscle. I don't care about the team, if I will be picked in the NBA draft in high position, I will have minutes on the court

[barelyawake]

I'm saying this with the full understanding that me saying it will ensure that Gobert's ankles, then shins, then knees will snap as a result (as he falls like a jenga tower). However, we should start with the fact that he will have the longest wingspan in recorded, basketball history. And that he shot up four inches in the last couple years, so he is still adjusting to his height. Does he need muscle? Yep. Tons of it. Will he come out of the box dominating? Absolutely not. Huge project. Three year project and a huge risk (especially where injuries are concerned).

But...

He's smart. He's a hard worker. He sees the floor and can make a pass out of the post (though he rarely needs to). He has quick feet. He knows when to set a pick. He's developing a decent hook. And he enjoys battling under the basket,

In terms of his stats, again, he's a defensive player. And he plays Euroball. Euroball is a more spread out, team-oriented game. And it's a pro game, unlike NCAA ball. You have to battle men above you, and against you, to work up the ranks. That said, his stats are improving. He recently had a 17 point, 10 board, 4 block, 3 assist game that I watched clips of.

Yes, the toothpicks are worrisome. But, I dig the guy's personality. And if he says he will put on muscle, I'm willing to listen and hope that he does (so I can continue rooting for him). Probably no way I take him top three. But, with pounds... Let's see how much he weighs at draft.

[Knighthonor]

I am starting to be concerned, that it is no way Stern will give the Wizards the top pick in this draft nor next season draft, since the Thunder could be getting a lotto pick here.

And
Popularity of Team > anything else, when it comes to Stern and who he gives the top draft pick to...

Sad thing for Wizard's really.

He may even give them Wiggins next season...