Official #2 Pick Thread - Ford #7: Parker

[europa]

Yao played in eight All-Star games, was all second All-NBA twice and third-team All-NBA three times. He may not have realized his full potential due to injuries but no way can you call him a bigger bust than Oden. Nobody trumps Oden on the bust list of the last decade in my opinion. Even Oden himself realizes he was an enormous bust.

[Newz]

Ming may be the only guy regarded as a disappointment relative to the hype but was better than most realize.

And I have no idea if that makes sense. It does in my head.

I like your list, but I would probably but Melo or Darko over Griffin for 10. Melo was unreal as a Freshman and totally dominated college basketball. That guy really is an elite talent and if he approached the game the right way, he'd be unbelievable.

I'm not sure if it was Darko as a prospect or just the hype train going out of control, but I remember quite a few people on draft day saying that the Cavs would regret taking LeBron over Darko. Obviously that seems absurd now that things have played out, but there were scouts who were ridiculously high on him.

[Newz]

Yao played in eight All-Star games, was all second All-NBA twice and third-team All-NBA three times. He may not have realized his full potential due to injuries but no way can you call him a bigger bust than Oden. Nobody trumps Oden on the bust list of the last decade in my opinion. Even Oden himself realizes he was an enormous bust.

He wasn't really a 'bust' as he was pretty amazing when he actually played in NBA games. He just couldn't stay healthy. If he was healthy, I think he'd be on the same level as AD, if not better. Oden was an incredible talent.

[Wooderson]

Davis grew like 6 inches his jr year of HS forcing him to change positions, so you could say he also was/is still early on in his developmental curve. And he was on a stacked UK team which masked his offensive skill as well.

All fair points.

I'm just noting that psychologically these things are always easy in hindsight. I was a huge AD guy from day one at Kentucky and I just don't remember the bandwagon being so full as it is now in June 2014.

Yes it was a big bandwagon, but like any bandwagon it grows after the fact as the player excels in the pros. The same way everyone and his brother today insist it was clear that MJ was a future HOF'er coming out of NC in 1983. He was a mega-watt prospect, but people didn't talk about him pre-draft in the exact way they later claimed they talked about him pre-draft.

He was definitely underrated some places, but I thought he was pretty hyped on here. There were people elsewhere who thought he was gong to be more Tyson Chandler than Garnett, but they just weren't paying enough attention. Best player in the country with elite physical tools. I remember thinking that top 10 player was his floor and anything less than top 5 would be a disappointment.

Embiid has a similar ceiling as a prospect right now, but imo the likelihood of him reaching it is lower, even if you disregard the injury concerns.

[bankrupt euro]

The AD-Embiid comparison is a bit of a stretch for me because of their height difference. Davis (and Duncan, and Howard, and Hakeem, btw) is around 6'9''barefoot, 6'10'' with shoes, really helping his agility, coordination, jump and ability to develop on-the-ball skills.

[europa]

A talented big man who couldn't stay healthy. Imagine that.

[Ron Swanson]

Davis grew like 6 inches his jr year of HS forcing him to change positions, so you could say he also was/is still early on in his developmental curve. And he was on a stacked UK team which masked his offensive skill as well.

All fair points.

I'm just noting that psychologically these things are always easy in hindsight. I was a huge AD guy from day one at Kentucky and I just don't remember the bandwagon being so full as it is now in June 2014.

Yes it was a big bandwagon, but like any bandwagon it grows after the fact as the player excels in the pros. The same way everyone and his brother today insist it was clear that MJ was a future HOF'er coming out of NC in 1983. He was a mega-watt prospect, but people didn't talk about him pre-draft in the exact way they later claimed they talked about him pre-draft.

There has definitely been a good dose of revisionist history in regards to the hype around Anthony Davis the prospect. People conveniently seem to forget that there were serious questions about his offense and that the most popular comparison for him at the time was Marcus Camby.

He was the clear cut #1 that year and everyone recognized his massive potential, but I don't buy this "once in a generation prospect" label that has been assigned to him in hindsight. Scouts were pointing out his faults and weaknesses just like they're doing with Embiid and Wiggins now.

I don't think it's a massive stretch to say that AD and Embiid are comparable talents at all.

[Wooderson]

A talented big man who couldn't stay healthy. Imagine that.

They should have taken MDJ or Gooden

[europa]

A talented big man who couldn't stay healthy. Imagine that.

They should have taken MDJ or Gooden

You might be onto something there. The Cavs haven't been back to the Finals since getting rid of Gooden.

[Nowak008]

Knight for #8 makes a lot of sense for the Kings. If they draft Elfrid he is 2-3 years away from being a starting playoff caliber player. After the All-Star break Knight averaged 20pts/5ast. If the Magic can move from 4 to 8 and still get Smart while adding a player like Henson why wouldn't they. Henson is very underrated. He has the potential to be a longer Taj Gibson, and the Magic have a history of taking our underutilized players and making something out of them. Is it probable? Nope. But heck as long as we are dreaming, lets give the Lakers Larry (+Middleton?) for #7 too and end up with Exum/Smart/Giannis/Parker and we haven't traded Ersan yet...

I am all about dreaming, but I think we should be much more aggressive in trying to make those dreams comes true. Trading down from 4 to 8 would take a ton of assets to make the Magic even consider a move like that.

Kings incoming
Knight/Henson

Magic Incoming
Sanders/Wolters + #8 + #31

Bucks
#4

Thats a crap ton to give up, but you pair Exum/Smart with Parker/Wiggins along with Yanni...thats a great core to build around...the only problem is I'm not sure I pull the trigger if I'm Orlando or Sac.

[ReasonablySober]

Yao played in eight All-Star games, was all second All-NBA twice and third-team All-NBA three times. He may not have realized his full potential due to injuries but no way can you call him a bigger bust than Oden. Nobody trumps Oden on the bust list of the last decade in my opinion. Even Oden himself realizes he was an enormous bust.

? No one was doing that.

[ReasonablySober]

Ming may be the only guy regarded as a disappointment relative to the hype but was better than most realize.

And I have no idea if that makes sense. It does in my head.

I like your list, but I would probably but Melo or Darko over Griffin for 10. Melo was unreal as a Freshman and totally dominated college basketball. That guy really is an elite talent and if he approached the game the right way, he'd be unbelievable.

I'm not sure if it was Darko as a prospect or just the hype train going out of control, but I remember quite a few people on draft day saying that the Cavs would regret taking LeBron over Darko. Obviously that seems absurd now that things have played out, but there were scouts who were ridiculously high on him.

I think I'd agree with that, sure.

[Nowak008]

All fair points.

I'm just noting that psychologically these things are always easy in hindsight. I was a huge AD guy from day one at Kentucky and I just don't remember the bandwagon being so full as it is now in June 2014.

Yes it was a big bandwagon, but like any bandwagon it grows after the fact as the player excels in the pros. The same way everyone and his brother today insist it was clear that MJ was a future HOF'er coming out of NC in 1983. He was a mega-watt prospect, but people didn't talk about him pre-draft in the exact way they later claimed they talked about him pre-draft.

The reason why is AD was in a landslide the #1 pick and there was nobody even close to touching him as a prospect. Since we have Parker/Wiggins to complete against Embiid it makes it much more noisy.

[Siefer]

3 Andrew Wiggins Philadelphia 76ers
This is a dream scenario for the 76ers. They would take Wiggins at No. 1 if they could, and having him fall to No. 3 would be a godsend. The Sixers actually have engaged the Cavs about moving to No. 1. They aren't willing to give up both the Nos. 3 and 10 picks, but a combination of No. 3 and Thaddeus Young is a possibility. And it's a great scenario for Wiggins, as well. Of the three top teams, his camp prefers the Sixers as the best possible fit. This could be a win-win for both. If Wiggins isn't on the board for the Sixers, I'm told they'll take whoever is left between Embiid and Parker. Dante Exum also isn't out of the question here, but I hear he'll need to wow them when he rolls into Philadelphia next week for his workout with them.

This is my dream scenario.

That does seem to rule out getting #3 and #10 for #2, but yes, Philly to #1 would be incredible for us.

[europa]

Yao played in eight All-Star games, was all second All-NBA twice and third-team All-NBA three times. He may not have realized his full potential due to injuries but no way can you call him a bigger bust than Oden. Nobody trumps Oden on the bust list of the last decade in my opinion. Even Oden himself realizes he was an enormous bust.

? No one was doing that.

This is what you said - "Ming may be the only guy regarded as a disappointment relative to the hype."

In my opinion, Oden is far more guilty of that than Yao. Oden was a gigantic disappointment. He'll go down as one of the biggest busts in NBA history although (like Sam Bowie) much of that is primarily due to the guy taken right after him.

[Rockmaninoff]

One thing I find confusing is that everybody talks about how ready Parker is to contribute, but nobody talks about how Exum's game is tailor made for the NBA. This is a league that rewards penetration and that's all Exum does.

Just want to warn you guys to be patient with whoever we take, because there are going to be a lot of times during this first season when you're going to wonder how a team with no shot creators and no 2 guard could pass on Exum.

I'm terrified that the Bucks will pass on Exum's unholy union of BPA and need.

[europa]

All fair points.

I'm just noting that psychologically these things are always easy in hindsight. I was a huge AD guy from day one at Kentucky and I just don't remember the bandwagon being so full as it is now in June 2014.

Yes it was a big bandwagon, but like any bandwagon it grows after the fact as the player excels in the pros. The same way everyone and his brother today insist it was clear that MJ was a future HOF'er coming out of NC in 1983. He was a mega-watt prospect, but people didn't talk about him pre-draft in the exact way they later claimed they talked about him pre-draft.

The reason why is AD was in a landslide the #1 pick and there was nobody even close to touching him as a prospect. Since we have Parker/Wiggins to complete against Embiid it makes it much more noisy.

Yup.

[ReasonablySober]

Yao played in eight All-Star games, was all second All-NBA twice and third-team All-NBA three times. He may not have realized his full potential due to injuries but no way can you call him a bigger bust than Oden. Nobody trumps Oden on the bust list of the last decade in my opinion. Even Oden himself realizes he was an enormous bust.

? No one was doing that.

This is what you said - "Ming may be the only guy regarded as a disappointment relative to the hype."

In my opinion, Oden is far more guilty of that than Yao. Oden was a gigantic disappointment. He'll go down as one of the biggest busts in NBA history although (like Sam Bowie) much of that is primarily due to the guy taken right after him.

You're leaving out the rest of that post. Hell, the rest of that sentence.

My point was no, he wasn't the transcendent talent that landed an ESPN the Magazine cover before he ever set foot in the US.

But he was also really, really good and was most certainly an All-Star franchise caliber big man. Wish he would have stayed healthy.

[Licensed to Il]

I can talk myself in to Exum at 2 pretty easy. You could roll out Exum, Hairston (#31), Giannis, Ersan, Larry and a new coach and probably become the league pass darling (young, fun, under the radar team) that would be in the playoffs by their second year. Of course, I only advocate that approach if they think Exum is the BPA. We should not be drafting for need.

[Badgerlander]

Knight for #8 makes a lot of sense for the Kings. If they draft Elfrid he is 2-3 years away from being a starting playoff caliber player. After the All-Star break Knight averaged 20pts/5ast. If the Magic can move from 4 to 8 and still get Smart while adding a player like Henson why wouldn't they. Henson is very underrated. He has the potential to be a longer Taj Gibson, and the Magic have a history of taking our underutilized players and making something out of them. Is it probable? Nope. But heck as long as we are dreaming, lets give the Lakers Larry (+Middleton?) for #7 too and end up with Exum/Smart/Giannis/Parker and we haven't traded Ersan yet...

I am all about dreaming, but I think we should be much more aggressive in trying to make those dreams comes true. Trading down from 4 to 8 would take a ton of assets to make the Magic even consider a move like that.

Kings incoming
Knight/Henson

Magic Incoming
Sanders/Wolters + #8 + #31

Bucks
#4

Thats a crap ton to give up, but you pair Exum/Smart with Parker/Wiggins along with Yanni...thats a great core to build around...the only problem is I'm not sure I pull the trigger if I'm Orlando or Sac.

Couple of things. I know Knight+Henson are undervalued here, but remember we moved from #10 to #7 on a Salmons/Beno swap. Ford is talking Knight straight up for #8, he also mentions this under #4-

4 Noah Vonleh Orlando Magic
We've consistently had the Magic taking a point guard at No. 4. They've been high on both Exum and Marcus Smart all year. Smart already has come in for a workout, and Exum is scheduled to arrive next week for his. But the Magic might end up opting to go another route.

The team really needs a power forward, and Vonleh looks like a great fit next to Nikola Vucevic on the front line. His shot-blocking on the defensive end, plus his ability to stretch the floor on the other end, is a perfect complement to Vucevic. With the several interesting point guards likely to be available at No. 12, the Magic might be able to get the best of both worlds.

Philly is offering #3+Thad Young to go up to #1, and Henson is still on his rookie friendlier deal. Just sayin.

I mean what if Embiid falls to #4 over health concerns and we can get Parker AND Embiid??? and then give Larry+ to the Lakers for Smart? Gimmie Fat Harden for Ersan!!! lol anyways, fun to dream