WELLCOME TO MIAMI MY SWEET GIANT.....KEL'EL WARE IS THE PICK!

[powerball1373]

Do we think his mom misspelled Kal-El (Superman)? We have a good history drafting guys with misspelled first names...

[eddieheatfan]

Watch on YouTube

[greg4012]

Read on Twitter

[K N U C K L E S]

But since he's a center, of course he's a terrible FT shooter. Maybe he'll buck the trend like Bam did. Although he regressed a little last season.

[dshearn]

I heard the guys on TV basically saying that Ware can rival a top 5 pick....he can be that good....but he has openly said he does not know if he loves basketball.....

Yeah that is a red flag, but come on....we all know people like that....that is why damn near every job on this planet has a leadership hierarchy....that is leadership....someone needs to take the fella under their wing and focus on him. If what I heard is correct and the dude can shine like a top draft pick when he is not even sure if he wants to be doing this.....what is he capable of locked in with solid mentorship? Hell you can't ask for a better spot then Miami.....is there a better carrot in the entire world? Look what you can do in Miami if you have NBA money....We have leadership....hell Miami's whole thing is leadership. Hell the media tells other franchises fan's about how everything in Miami is about Heat culture. You have the carrot, you have the mentors...and this young man has talent....this could end up working out rather well

[dshearn]

Other note....watched the highlight reel of the guy.....this fella really likes that turn around jump from the dunker spot Miami was sticking JJJ at......VERY interesting....same side we got those 3s from PJ tucker....basically....this guy might not even want to operate in our more traditional Bam/Duncan area of the court. It is no mystery that Bam/Duncan/Jimmy seem to prefer the right side....and this guy seems to like to operate on the left side. A superficial high-level take on this is he might fit in rather well...this does not look like a guy that is naturally going to be in the way of at least some of the stuff Miami has spammed in the past.


If Ware can continue to draw fouls in the NBA...this could be interesting...you can't just rotate people in foul trouble away from Jimmy if Ware wants to keep setting up on the left side..... yeah...I like this...

[RexBoyWonder]

Read on Twitter

This is huge.

They legit believe in his shot, they think he can be a spacer on offense and play next to Bam.

If they're right - we'll have an elite front court pairing for years to come.

Can't think another PF + C pairing with this much length, athleticism in the current NBA.

[RexBoyWonder]

“Kel’el is a three-and-D center,” Heat vice president of basketball operations and assistant general manager Adam Simon said to reporters shortly after the end of Wednesday’s first round. “It is not easy to find 7-footers who can play out on the perimeter offensively and also be able to defend with his ability to shot block and defend the post. For us, that was very appealing.”

Read more at: https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nba/miami-heat/article289546304.html#storylink=cpy

[greg4012]

Read on Twitter

This is huge.

They legit believe in his shot, they think he can be a spacer on offense and play next to Bam.

If they're right - we'll have an elite front court pairing for years to come.

Can't think another PF + C pairing with this much length, athleticism in the current NBA.

Yup and it’s better than just a pairing. It’s a frontcourt rotation that can be comprised almost entirely of Bam, Jovic and Ware minutes.

That will become a very multi-faceted 96 minutes of frontcourt play.

One of the best ways to build a great team is to focus on having as dynamic and impactful of a frontcourt rotation, as possible.

All indications are Ware is ecstatic that Miami chose him bc he knows they’ll develop him and put him in positions to succeed and wants to work. That’s a total 180 from some of the rumored concerns about his attitude. I’m sure Miami put him thru it in the workout and vetted him with Mike Woodson and Heat legend Don Maclean.

Let’s unlock this upside

[Bishop45]

I can see Ware doing work on the bench after we trade Jovic and pieces for Randle

[greg4012]

Read on Twitter

[greg4012]

First things that jump out when you watch Kel'el Ware play are obviously his length and athleticism. The last time Miami had a player as big as Kel'el Ware was Hassan Whiteside. The impact that size can have on the NBA court speaks for itself. So, let's talk about his athleticism and fluidity.

You can see how fluidly he moves on tape. I never put too much stock into combine athleticism testing numbers in a vacuum, but they still have some value in verifying what is shown on tape. Kel'el's numbers make clear that his fluidity and athleticism for his size are for real (Hassan Whiteside's testing numbers in parenthesis for quick comparison):

Lane Agility 10.97 (11.83)
Shuttle Run 2.91
3/4 Sprint 3.29 (3.54)
Max Vertical 36 (31.5)

Out of the 76 draft prospects that participated in the athletic testing, Ware had the 22nd best lane agility time (1 center above him; 1 PF above him); 17th best shuttle time (1 center above him; 2 PFs above him); 33rd best Max Vertical (5 Cs above; 5 PFs above); and 61st best 3/4 sprint (8 centers above and 9 PFs above).

At 7' 230 pounds, Ware has athletic testing numbers of a Small Forward--especially with regards to short area movement. That shows on the court.

Now, Miami and Ware need to figure out how to ensure he's using those movement skills effectively to get to the right spots on the court, make the right decisions, and generally develop greater awareness in his role.

[RexBoyWonder]

Watch on YouTube

[greg4012]

Now let's talk touch. After the length and athleticism, the next thing that pops when watching Ware is his great touch. Dude often looks like he's playing with the ball on a string between his hand and the basket when he's on the court. It looks very natural coming off his hand as he seems to have great awareness of where the rim is at all times. I don't know the deal with his inconsistent FT shooting, but looking into some of his HS tape, Ware has always been a 3 pt shooter. Some of his HS tape almost has too much 3 pt shooting.

Ware looks smooth whether finishing at the rim, getting to a turnaround midrange jumper, or on C&S from 3. His shooting breakdown from this season reflects that:

- 74% FG at the rim (nearly 50% of his total FGAs)
- 44% FG on non-rim 2s (45% as a Freshman)
- 42.5% 3FG (low volume)

The low volume of 3PAs paired with the low FT% are yellow flags worth monitoring for his shooting development. But, the more I dig into his past work, the more it becomes clear that shooting outside of the paint is nothing new to Ware. If anything, it's his preferred form of offense. At Indiana under Woodson, I believe there was a concerted effort to get Ware more comfortable doing the big man things in the paint. I'm sure Miami will continue to develop that while also fostering his role as a floor spacing big.

Ware obviously did great shooting during his workout (one of the things Adam Simon harped on) and endured the gauntlet that the Heat put him through to show some toughness and want-to. I'm confident the Heat will have a great developmental program set up for Ware. I don't think Miami will want him to be a decisionmaker on the floor any time soon. But, he will be a play finisher.

Additional note: Ware was 9th in the NCAA in dunks this past season with 63.

[RexBoyWonder]

Now let's talk touch. After the length and athleticism, the next thing that pops when watching Ware is his great touch. Dude often looks like he's playing with the ball on a string between his hand and the basket when he's on the court. It looks very natural coming off his hand as he seems to have great awareness of where the rim is at all times. I don't know the deal with his inconsistent FT shooting, but looking into some of his HS tape, Ware has always been a 3 pt shooter. Some of his HS tape almost has too much 3 pt shooting.

Ware looks smooth whether finishing at the rim, getting to a turnaround midrange jumper, or on C&S from 3. His shooting breakdown from this season reflects that:

- 74% FG at the rim (nearly 50% of his total FGAs)
- 44% FG on non-rim 2s (45% as a Freshman)
- 42.5% 3FG (low volume)

The low volume of 3PAs paired with the low FT% are yellow flags worth monitoring for his shooting development. But, the more I dig into his past work, the more it becomes clear that shooting outside of the paint is nothing new to Ware. If anything, it's his preferred form of offense. At Indiana under Woodson, I believe there was a concerted effort to get Ware more comfortable doing the big man things in the paint. I'm sure Miami will continue to develop that while also fostering his role as a floor spacing big.

Ware obviously did great shooting during his workout (one of the things Adam Simon harped on) and endured the gauntlet that the Heat put him through to show some toughness and want-to. I'm confident the Heat will have a great developmental program set up for Ware. I don't think Miami will want him to be a decisionmaker on the floor any time soon. But, he will be a play finisher.

Would it be fair to say that now after taking a longer deeper look, you would have taken him before Mccain/Da Silva/Carter/ Knecht/Holmes

[greg4012]

Now let's talk touch. After the length and athleticism, the next thing that pops when watching Ware is his great touch. Dude often looks like he's playing with the ball on a string between his hand and the basket when he's on the court. It looks very natural coming off his hand as he seems to have great awareness of where the rim is at all times. I don't know the deal with his inconsistent FT shooting, but looking into some of his HS tape, Ware has always been a 3 pt shooter. Some of his HS tape almost has too much 3 pt shooting.

Ware looks smooth whether finishing at the rim, getting to a turnaround midrange jumper, or on C&S from 3. His shooting breakdown from this season reflects that:

- 74% FG at the rim (nearly 50% of his total FGAs)
- 44% FG on non-rim 2s (45% as a Freshman)
- 42.5% 3FG (low volume)

The low volume of 3PAs paired with the low FT% are yellow flags worth monitoring for his shooting development. But, the more I dig into his past work, the more it becomes clear that shooting outside of the paint is nothing new to Ware. If anything, it's his preferred form of offense. At Indiana under Woodson, I believe there was a concerted effort to get Ware more comfortable doing the big man things in the paint. I'm sure Miami will continue to develop that while also fostering his role as a floor spacing big.

Ware obviously did great shooting during his workout (one of the things Adam Simon harped on) and endured the gauntlet that the Heat put him through to show some toughness and want-to. I'm confident the Heat will have a great developmental program set up for Ware. I don't think Miami will want him to be a decisionmaker on the floor any time soon. But, he will be a play finisher.

Would it be fair to say that now after taking a longer deeper look, you would have taken him before Mccain/Da Silva/Carter/ Knecht/Holmes

I had already taken a deep look at the talent and loved it. That's why Ware was always my wild card that I couldn't really rank. My concern with him has always been the unknown regarding (1) attitude concerns; (2) desire to play basketball and improve; and (3) BBIQ. I couldn't really get answers to most of those questions as I don't have access to the person, his workouts, or his coaches/support system.

That's why I loved that the Heat brought him in for a workout. It presented a clear opportunity to do the due diligence on the player and person that none of us could do. The fact that Miami brought him in for workouts/interviews, surely put him through the gauntlet to see what he's made of, and did a deep dive into his past speaking with Mike Woodson, Don MacLean, and others, and then decided to draft him at 15 is nothing but encouraging to me. It doesn't mean I know the answers to the questions above, but it is a clear positive indicator on that front. I'm fairly confident that Miami still has scars from the Beasley and Whiteside experiences and has learned from them.

With all that said, I was never a fan of Knecht and I was never big on McCain. I always preferred Ware to those 2. I always saw Da Silva as a floor pick lacking in upside. I'm a fan of Carter and Holmes.

So to answer your question, I always preferred Ware over Knecht and McCain; and with the endorsement on Ware as a person & competitor from Miami's process I'll absolutely take the upside of Ware over all except maybe Carter. But, that's basically always been my position on it.

Did you believe I was anti-Ware?

[RexBoyWonder]

Now let's talk touch. After the length and athleticism, the next thing that pops when watching Ware is his great touch. Dude often looks like he's playing with the ball on a string between his hand and the basket when he's on the court. It looks very natural coming off his hand as he seems to have great awareness of where the rim is at all times. I don't know the deal with his inconsistent FT shooting, but looking into some of his HS tape, Ware has always been a 3 pt shooter. Some of his HS tape almost has too much 3 pt shooting.

Ware looks smooth whether finishing at the rim, getting to a turnaround midrange jumper, or on C&S from 3. His shooting breakdown from this season reflects that:

- 74% FG at the rim (nearly 50% of his total FGAs)
- 44% FG on non-rim 2s (45% as a Freshman)
- 42.5% 3FG (low volume)

The low volume of 3PAs paired with the low FT% are yellow flags worth monitoring for his shooting development. But, the more I dig into his past work, the more it becomes clear that shooting outside of the paint is nothing new to Ware. If anything, it's his preferred form of offense. At Indiana under Woodson, I believe there was a concerted effort to get Ware more comfortable doing the big man things in the paint. I'm sure Miami will continue to develop that while also fostering his role as a floor spacing big.

Ware obviously did great shooting during his workout (one of the things Adam Simon harped on) and endured the gauntlet that the Heat put him through to show some toughness and want-to. I'm confident the Heat will have a great developmental program set up for Ware. I don't think Miami will want him to be a decisionmaker on the floor any time soon. But, he will be a play finisher.

Would it be fair to say that now after taking a longer deeper look, you would have taken him before Mccain/Da Silva/Carter/ Knecht/Holmes

I had already taken a deep look at the talent and loved it. That's why Ware was always my wild card that I couldn't really rank. My concern with him has always been the unknown regarding (1) attitude concerns; (2) desire to play basketball and improve; and (3) BBIQ. I couldn't really get answers to most of those questions as I don't have access to the person, his workouts, or his coaches/support system.

That's why I loved that the Heat brought him in for a workout. It presented a clear opportunity to do the due diligence on the player and person that none of us could do. The fact that Miami brought him in for workouts/interviews, surely put him through the gauntlet to see what he's made of, and did a deep dive into his past speaking with Mike Woodson, Don MacLean, and others, and then decided to draft him at 15 is nothing but encouraging to me. It doesn't mean I know the answers to the questions above, but it is a clear positive indicator on that front. I'm fairly confident that Miami still has scars from the Beasley and Whiteside experiences and has learned from them.

With all that said, I was never a fan of Knecht and I was never big on McCain. I always preferred Ware to those 2. I always saw Da Silva as a floor pick lacking in upside. I'm a fan of Carter and Holmes.

So to answer your question, I always preferred Ware over Knecht and McCain; and with the endorsement on Ware as a person & competitor from Miami's process I'll absolutely take the upside of Ware over all except maybe Carter. But, that's basically always been my position on it.

Did you believe I was anti-Ware?

I think you've always been fair in your evaluations, but we're all influenced by outside noise.

I think that In Ware's case many just couldn't focus on the obvious talent and outstanding tools and instead formalized an opinion based mainly on the narratives around him, which is kinda BS because none of us really know much about that.

Honestly I think Carter was the opposite case - it's a great story and he's very likable. But an objective look could see he's a flawed player and far from a guaranteed star.

[BBallFreak]

So, I'm hopeful that he'll see minutes this year but I'm not expecting a lot. Our frontcourt looks really good, depth-wise

Cc: Bam / Ware
Pf: Jovic / Love

As of now, our wing depth is:

Pg: Rozier / Richardson
Sg: Robinson / Herro
Sf: Butler / Jaquez

I don't hate it, but I really feel it's probably time to move on from Butler. We should trade him to Philly for pure space and picks, then flip those picks and Herro for a younger star.

[greg4012]

First things that jump out when you watch Kel'el Ware play are obviously his length and athleticism. The last time Miami had a player as big as Kel'el Ware was Hassan Whiteside. The impact that size can have on the NBA court speaks for itself. So, let's talk about his athleticism and fluidity.

You can see how fluidly he moves on tape. I never put too much stock into combine athleticism testing numbers in a vacuum, but they still have some value in verifying what is shown on tape. Kel'el's numbers make clear that his fluidity and athleticism for his size are for real (Hassan Whiteside's testing numbers in parenthesis for quick comparison:

Lane Agility 10.97 (11.83)
Shuttle Run 2.91
3/4 Spring 3.29 (3.54)
Max Vertical 36 (31.5)

Out of the 76 draft prospects that participated in the athletic testing, Ware had the 22nd best lane agility time (1 center above him; 1 PF above him); 17th best shuttle time (1 center above him; 2 PFs above him); 33rd best Max Vertical (5 Cs above; 5 PFs above); and 61st best 3/4 sprint (8 centers above and 9 PFs above).

At 7' 230 pounds, Ware has athletic testing numbers of a Small Forward--especially with regards to short area movement. That shows on the court.

Now, Miami and Ware need to figure out how to ensure he's using those movement skills effectively to get to the right spots on the court, make the right decisions, and generally develop greater awareness in his role.

Another note on Ware's agility testing:

His 10.97 lane agility time is the 8th fastest time on record for a Center at the NBA draft combine dating back to 2000. He's the tallest/longest of all Centers in the top 10.

[greg4012]

Would it be fair to say that now after taking a longer deeper look, you would have taken him before Mccain/Da Silva/Carter/ Knecht/Holmes

I had already taken a deep look at the talent and loved it. That's why Ware was always my wild card that I couldn't really rank. My concern with him has always been the unknown regarding (1) attitude concerns; (2) desire to play basketball and improve; and (3) BBIQ. I couldn't really get answers to most of those questions as I don't have access to the person, his workouts, or his coaches/support system.

That's why I loved that the Heat brought him in for a workout. It presented a clear opportunity to do the due diligence on the player and person that none of us could do. The fact that Miami brought him in for workouts/interviews, surely put him through the gauntlet to see what he's made of, and did a deep dive into his past speaking with Mike Woodson, Don MacLean, and others, and then decided to draft him at 15 is nothing but encouraging to me. It doesn't mean I know the answers to the questions above, but it is a clear positive indicator on that front. I'm fairly confident that Miami still has scars from the Beasley and Whiteside experiences and has learned from them.

With all that said, I was never a fan of Knecht and I was never big on McCain. I always preferred Ware to those 2. I always saw Da Silva as a floor pick lacking in upside. I'm a fan of Carter and Holmes.

So to answer your question, I always preferred Ware over Knecht and McCain; and with the endorsement on Ware as a person & competitor from Miami's process I'll absolutely take the upside of Ware over all except maybe Carter. But, that's basically always been my position on it.

Did you believe I was anti-Ware?

I think you've always been fair in your evaluations, but we're all influenced by outside noise.

I think that In Ware's case many just couldn't focus on the obvious talent and outstanding tools and instead formalized an opinion based mainly on the narratives around him, which is kinda BS because none of us really know much about that.

Honestly I think Carter was the opposite case - it's a great story and he's very likable. But an objective look could see he's a flawed player and far from a guaranteed star.

No guaranteed stars in the draft. Hard to project the upside with older players, but I love the tangible ways that Carter improved that I think will translate to the NBA level--namely he become a reliable volume 3 pt shooter and became a 2-feet finisher in the paint. I don't think he'll ever be a lead guard. He doesn't have the handle or playmaking for it.

Ware had noise around him for some justifiable reasons. He was not a good screener in college. He looked lackadaisical and lost at times on the court. He lacked physicality. Pair those things with the rumors of attitude concerns and the mystery of his fall out with Oregon and it led to a murky picture. Unfortunately, I just didn't have answers to the noise and couldn't get the answers (I could have watched all his game tape, but ain't nobody got time for that).

The thing with outside noise, like you alluded to, is it often takes on a life of its own. I thought it was so silly how the "draft community" was souring on Ron Holland. Turned out to be BS.

Ware does come off as a little bit of an airhead in his interviews. But, maybe that's not accurate. Even if it is, I don't care that much as long as he's a grinder and wants to work, compete and be coached up.

It's an interesting scenario, because I was basically deferring to Heat's judgment on the matter since they were working him out and doing their due diligence. If the Heat picked him, I'm ecstatic because it means the Heat feel good about the questions I couldn't answer or understand. If the Heat didn't pick him, I wouldn't lament it because I'd assume the Heat were not convinced he was the right fit ready to grind as a pro and a competitor.

I'm excited to watch him develop with Miami.