2014 Draft Prospects Thread

[Worm Guts]

I don't think Barnes got a fair shot to progress once Iguodala showed up on the team. Young players need chances to make mistakes.

He reminds me of Shved. They can be ballers if they were just given a chance. The talent is there. You can see it.

How many chances does Shved need? Because he has had a lot of them

I think both Barnes and Shved have had plenty of opportunity.

[Gunny]

I don't think Barnes got a fair shot to progress once Iguodala showed up on the team. Young players need chances to make mistakes.

He reminds me of Shved. They can be ballers if they were just given a chance. The talent is there. You can see it.

How many chances does Shved need? Because he has had a lot of them

I'm convinced Shved would have looked MUCH better had he been the primary back-up at PG with Barea at SG. His execution of the pick and roll is beautiful and he understands the game.

[Krapinsky]

I don't think Barnes got a fair shot to progress once Iguodala showed up on the team. Young players need chances to make mistakes.

He reminds me of Shved. They can be ballers if they were just given a chance. The talent is there. You can see it.

How many chances does Shved need? Because he has had a lot of them

I think both Barnes and Shved have had plenty of opportunity.

Barnes had a 16.8% usage rate last year, which is akin to Budinger and Brewer on the Wolves. For a guy who is supposed to be a scoring option first, that's not really much of an opportunity to utilize his skill set.

I'm not sure what to think of Shved. He seems to have regressed last year. Adelman stripped his confidence quite a bit.

[Worm Guts]

How many chances does Shved need? Because he has had a lot of them

I think both Barnes and Shved have had plenty of opportunity.

Barnes had a 16.8% usage rate last year, which is akin to Budinger and Brewer on the Wolves. For a guy who is supposed to be a scoring option first, that's not really much of an opportunity to utilize his skill set.

If you're getting 28 minutes a game, the opportunities are there if you can create for yourself. His usage rate is low because he's never consistently shown the ability to get his own shot. Not in college, not in the pros.

[MinneOOPalis]

The thought of possibly getting Wiggins or Parker is getting me so excited!



Honestly I think regardless of what happens Love is gone. Ive tried to hold on hope that maybe we could convince him to stay.. but with all this media hype and rumors it feels like the damage is done.

[Krapinsky]

I think both Barnes and Shved have had plenty of opportunity.

Barnes had a 16.8% usage rate last year, which is akin to Budinger and Brewer on the Wolves. For a guy who is supposed to be a scoring option first, that's not really much of an opportunity to utilize his skill set.

If you're getting 28 minutes a game, the opportunities are there if you can create for yourself. His usage rate is low because he's never consistently shown the ability to get his own shot. Not in college, not in the pros.

Disagree. If you're a 5th option on offense, asked to play in a confined role, your opportunities really aren't there.

[Worm Guts]

If Thompson and Curry are spreading the floor, taking the attention of the defense. You should be able to take advantage of that and at least be scoring efficiently with the opportunities you're given. If you take advantage of the opportunities you're given, you get more. Barnes didn't take advantage.

[Krapinsky]

If Thompson and Curry are spreading the floor, taking the attention of the defense. You should be able to take advantage of that and at least be scoring efficiently with the opportunities you're given. If you take advantage of the opportunities you're given, you get more. Barnes didn't take advantage.

That requires someone passing him the ball.

[Feilong]

If anyone has insider can you c/p what it says about Harris and Young?
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/draft201 ... portCAARoc

[Maefteda]

Harris' hot shooting

Harris had to skip the draft combine last week thanks to a mild groin strain. He was still nursing the injury here in L.A., and his on-the-court work was limited to some jump shooting and ballhandling drills. The good news is that those are the two things that scouts will be watching closely in workouts, and Harris excelled in the workout. Harris shot the ball very well his freshman season at Michigan State, shooting 41 percent from beyond the arc. His shooting numbers dipped considerably the first half of his sophomore year before he got hot at the end of the season and moved the number up to 35 percent from 3-point range.


In the drills I saw, Harris shot the ball extremely well, nailing 3 after 3 from well beyond the NBA 3-point line. He has great form on his jumper, and his strength allows him to get his shot off with no problem from deep. I expect that he's going to show very well against the Nik Stauskases of the world in workouts.

A number of teams are also looking at Harris as a potential combo guard or point guard at the next level. To that end, trainer Joe Abunassar of Impact Basketball put him through a series of ballhandling drills to show what you can already see in game film -- Harris has a very tight handle and is very, very quick with the ball. While he may not be a pure point guard, in today's NBA, he could easily play the position in most offenses.

Factor in that Harris is the youngest sophomore in the draft, coming off a terrific season in the Big Ten for Michigan State, has the reputation of a high-character, hard-working kid, and is one of the few two-way players in the draft, and I think he remains a lock for the lottery and a likely top-10 pick. He'll work out just about everywhere from Boston at No. 6 to the Bulls at No. 16. The Charlotte Hornets could be an interesting destination for him at No. 9. They need shooting from the wing and Harris' ability to play some point could alleviate Kemba Walker in stretches.

Age an asset for talented Young

Warren's primary competition at the small forward position will come from Young. We got to see Young in only his fourth day of workouts, which meant that he didn't have the same number of reps under him that the other players in the workout did. That didn't stop him from making a positive impression.

Kentucky's James Young put on a show with his long-range shooting ability this week.
Young's size for position is impressive. With that 7-foot wingspan, he's a physically imposing wing who, at just 18 years old, could still be growing. Young got a lot of love from scouts prior to the season for his shooting in Kentucky practices and early on he showed why. He was hitting from everywhere on the floor and often rattling off seven or eight 3-pointers in a row. Young was streakier in games this year for Kentucky, but most scouts attribute that to shot selection. As Kentucky's only real 3-point threat, he launched up some questionable shots on occasion. When he gets good looks, he rarely misses.

Young may be one of the real sleepers in the draft. I've always been a big fan and everything I saw here confirmed that he has the potential to be a very good NBA player and should be mentioned in the same breath with all the other elite shooting wings.

I had more scouts call me about him than any other player in the workout. The refrain is always the same, there's more there than we saw at Kentucky -- take him off a team loaded with scorers and he would've had an even more dominant freshman season. Some teams in the lottery including the Hornets, Sixers, Nuggets, Magic, Timberwolves and Suns are all giving him serious looks in the lottery.

[Feilong]

Thanks buddy. Interesting stuff.

[serevei]

Hood or Young would be a straight up disaster at #13

[Grits n Gravy]

My biggest concern with Barnes is that he may be a small ball 4 and not really a 3. His handles aren't good enough to create against other 3's and the only time he had real success in his early career was in last years playoffs playing exlusively 4. I think he can be a good player and wouldn't be upset with Thompson/Barnes/Nedovic/couple of firsts(they could maybe get one for Lee.

[Takingbaconback]

Dont think wolves are going to have to "worry" about barnes. Warriors arent going to add him with thompson. Even if they did, he would be the best bench player on the wolves minus dieng. Dont see why wolves fans are getting all picky about a bench player. Btw shved wasnt broken down by adelman, he was broken by the nba. He is too weak mentally and physically for this league

[Feilong]

My biggest concern isn't Barnes or Lee, it's Thompson. I like him very much as a player but he is on expiring contract. If he comes to MIN his agent will demand most probably a max contract on the basis that he is a top3 SG (lack of good SGs in NBA).
Is he worth a max contract? No in my opinion.
Is MIN prepared to give him max contract? Tough question, huge headache.

The same problem maybe will have PHX this year with Bledsoe. If Lakers decide to offer him the max is PHX going to match it? Or if TOR offers him the max? (if they decide to go after him and not Lowry).

Flip unlike us has to plan several steps ahead.

[Takingbaconback]

My biggest concern isn't Barnes or Lee, it's Thompson. I like him very much as a player but he is on expiring contract. If he comes to MIN his agent will demand most probably a max contract on the basis that he is a top3 SG (lack of good SGs in NBA).
Is he worth a max contract? No in my opinion.
Is MIN prepared to give him max contract? Tough question, huge headache.

The same problem maybe will have PHX this year with Bledsoe. If Lakers decide to offer him the max is PHX going to match it? Or if TOR offers him the max? (if they decide to go after him and not Lowry).

Flip unlike us has to plan several steps ahead.

I highly doubt Klay Thompson is going to ask for a max contract. I think he'll get around 12-13 million a year. To compare, a guy like Harden got 5 years/78 million. If you realize that there are only two young SGs who can make a significant impact without dragging down your offense or defense, Klay Thompson is a great player to get back for a disgruntled superstar with one year left on his contract. He isn't some treadmill player, he is a starter for a championship contender.

[Klomp]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/DarrenWolfson/status/470067522566647809[/tweet]

[MinneOOPalis]

If we end up getting the number 1 overall pick theres no way I can pick Wiggins with Parker and Embiid on the board.

Wiggins just scares me. He gives off Wes Johnson or Jeff Green type vibes. All the tools but doesn't seem to "get it." He can't dribble, pass, and hes a streaky shooter. He doesn't seem to WANT the ball, and when he gets it he doesn't really know what to do.


Someone posted earlier that they thought Aaron Gordon might bust because of his lack of an offensive game, but at least he has a natural feel on offense and knows how to make the simple basketball play. Wiggins does not.


Dont get me wrong though I still think he can be a quality starter in the league and maybe even an all-star..but I cant bring myself to pick him over Parker and Embiid. Both of those guys are BASKETBALL players, not just athletes who can do some things on the court.


Embiid has the mind and instincts to be a productive player right off the bat and has a very good chance of being the best big man in the world.

Parker can probably step in for Love and give us some similar qualities. He can be our go to scorer at the end of games, rebound, and can be trusted to make his teammates better, but what intrigues me is his intangibles and leadership abilities. He might be the best PERSON at the top of the draft, hes just a great dude. He could step in and become the face of the franchise and immediately give us stability and someone we can count on every night.



If Love was still on the team then Wiggins is probably the choice here. But if we are looking to fill that void of franchise guy then Parker and Embiid can definitely have a higher probability of filling that role.

[Klomp]

[Grits n Gravy]

I agree with Sak, there are definitely some red flags as a number one around Wiggins about his handle and demeanor. If Emblid is cleared as fully healthy I think you just have to take him #1 regardless who's on your roster. I'd still definitely go Wiggins at 2 though over Parker.