With the combine results being posted, these are my thoughts on some players.
Dalton Knecht - With his great combine numbers, I hope we can stop comparing Knecht to one-dimensional 3pt shooters like McDermott. His shooting is the selling point but Knecht is a better athlete and offers more as a creator than the usual shooters. The defense is still an issue but I don't think he's a lost cause on that end. Bad defenders have improved before, Max Strus had a -1 DBPM as a senior and he's a solid defender right now and this is after tearing his ACL. Knecht does have the size to offer some value on defense.
Kyle Filipowski - A bit disappointed with his short wingspan. 6'10.75' with a 6'10.50'' wingspan. Hard to envision Flip ever being a full time starting 5 since I don't believe he can anchor a defense even with his improvements on that end. His mobility was better this season after he had hip surgery, he can't switch onto guards but he should be able to switch on most wings/forwards. His mobility should help him at the 4 and while he isn't the best rim protector, he's still 7ft and that's valuable as a help defender. He's the best passing big in this draft class and improved significantly as a sophomore. The shooting is still a question mark but 7 footers that can dribble/pass/shoot aren't easy to find. Bigs that can be offensive hubs in short stretches can have value. Look at what Hartenstien is doing in NY.
Ja'Kobe Walter - A shooter who didn't shoot all that well this year. After a hot start, Walter went into a really bad shooting slump that tanked his shooting percentages. Walter shot over 80% from the FT line on good volume and he has good shooting mechanics so people still buy his ability to shoot. He isn't a good playmaker/ballhandler and was probably asked to do too much at Baylor. A simplified role in the NBA should help him. Wasn't a good defender but does have good size for a SG. 6'4.25 with a 6'10 wingspan. You hope that you can turn him into another 3&D guard/wing like KCP or Aaron Nesmith.
Isaiah Collier - Was not as tall as people speculated. Collier was listed as 6'4/6'5 but measured as 6'2.50 with a 6'4.75 wingspan. Collier is still built like a tank but the slightly smaller size hurts his stock a bit since he's a slashing guard and won't be able to bully opponents like he did at USC. People understandably don't want another guard but Collier's slashing is a good complement to Coby's shooting ability. He had issues with decision-making and TOs. Playing with NBA spacing will help him but he still needs reps with the ball, so if the Bulls bring back Demar, (They will) he doesn't make much sense at 11th. Doesn't shoot, rebound, or defend so he has a lot to improve on.
Yves Missi - Raw athletic rim running 5. Missi is a great athlete and there's a pathway for him to be the starting 5. Good size at just under 6'11, great leaper, finished well at the rim, and has good mobility. He's pretty good for someone who has only played organized basketball for 3 years. The appeal is understandable considering we haven't had an athletic 5 since Gafford. For the downsides, like most athletic bigs, Missi can't shoot at all and he's an awful passer. Missi's AST% is really low, having a AST% < 4 can be a red flag. Since 2010, these are the bigs that were drafted in the first round with an AST% < 4.
Despite his size and athleticism, Missi didn't block as many shots as you'd expect and wasn't a good defensive rebounder. Statistically, he performed similarly to freshman Gafford which isn't a criticism but there are downsides to drafting a player of this archetype this high in the draft. For every Dereck Lively, there's a James Wiseman or Jaxson Hayes. I don't hate the player but picking him at 11 is concerning.
Cody Williams - People are down on Cody Williams. He's a worse rebounder than Pat was in college. He doesn't get blocks or steals, is not a ballhandler/playmaker, and doesn't have a history of shooting the ball well. Is known for disappearing in games, and a lot of our frustrations with Pat can be seen in Cody. For the positives, Cody played great for the first 1 months of the season. Then he suffered a wrist injury, and after that, he got hit in the face and had to wear a mask, then he sprained his ankle. Not making excuses for him but you can say injuries derailed his season. Not an explosive athlete but does get downhill and was very efficient at converting shots around the basket. He shot 73.6% at the rim which is great and it's even more impressive when Cody is only 178lbs. He needs a lot of work but I don't know if this team can pass up on front court depth
