2019 NBA Draft

[Mattya]

Unless there is a can’t miss prospect at PG in these coming drafts I would rather try to sign a free agent or make a trade.

Ja Morant is the premier PG prospect and I don’t think there’s any chance he falls outside the top 5.He’d be the long term answer at PG

I’m not sold on Morant being a premier PG prospect.

[Neeva]

Looks like a better prospect than Trae Young( I know it isn’t saying much).

Unless there is a can’t miss prospect at PG in these coming drafts I would rather try to sign a free agent or make a trade.

Ja Morant is the premier PG prospect and I don’t think there’s any chance he falls outside the top 5.He’d be the long term answer at PG

I’m not sold on Morant being a premier PG prospect.

[Mattya]

Looks like a better prospect than Trae Young( I know it isn’t saying much).

Ja Morant is the premier PG prospect and I don’t think there’s any chance he falls outside the top 5.He’d be the long term answer at PG

I’m not sold on Morant being a premier PG prospect.

Yea idk what to make of him.

[alabamawolf]

Unless there is a can’t miss prospect at PG in these coming drafts I would rather try to sign a free agent or make a trade.

Ja Morant is the premier PG prospect and I don’t think there’s any chance he falls outside the top 5.He’d be the long term answer at PG

I’m not sold on Morant being a premier PG prospect.

He’s the closest thing to that in this draft. He was the best player on the floor by far against Alabama and Auburn. He’s not just a stat padder in a lower tier conference

[wolfen]

If we're going to be realistic, I'd like us to be sellers at the deadline and try to get 2 picks in the top 40 for Rose and Tolly. I don't think that we're beating the Warriors in round 1 if we slime into the playoffs, we got our young guns a taste of that last year. Long term is more important. Trade Rose and Tolly and assure developmental minutes to Okogie and KBD, we've really got to see what he's got before the end of the season, if he is a possible plus rotational player or not. So, we'll have our pick around 10, a pick around 47, and hopefully 1 late first rounder and an early 2nd. That gives you ammo to move up or down because of the multiple picks. Honestly, I wouldn't mind coming out of this draft with 3 prospects, and again this year, I think there are some good NBA players in the top 40, you just have to hit on them.

So let's say we make the trades, then turn 4 picks into 3 and we draft at 10, 26 (moving up a bit by trading our pick 47), and 32. We need pretty much every position, possible starting PG of the future, wing depth, and maybe a hybrid 3/4 or 4/5 player. Some players I like at our picks if this comes to fruition:

Pick 10: Culver (do it all SG/SF), Nickiel Alexander-Walker (do it all SG/PG), Darius Garland (PG), KZ Okpala (SF/PF hybrid), Sekou Doumbouya (SF/PF hybrid).
There are others that could be good picks at that spot but some of them are somewhat redundant to what we have, and others, I just need to do more research.

Pick 26: Ashton Hagans (PG), Coby White (PG/SG), Tre Jones (PG), Tyler Herro (SG), Grant Williams (SF/PF), Jontay Porter (PF).

Pick 32: Sagaba Konate (PF/C), PJ Washington (PF), Brandon Clarke (PF), Tyus Battle (SG/PG), Markus Howard (PG), Cam Johson (SF)

So mix and match. There are a LOT of players in those tiers that would be good picks and would offer some sort of fit to the roster. Will all 3 picks pan out? Probably not, but who knows. One line of thought is to focus on shooting and scoring at all 3 picks. Culver, White, Johnson. NAW, Herro, Howard. If even 1 of the 3 offensive first picks pan out, it would be worth drafting with that philosophy, instead of picking by position such as Garland, Herro, and Clarke. Anyways... Just some random draft thoughts for the day. Coby White is starting to really grow on me, quite a game last night against the Hokies (fun to watch both he and NAW)...

[Mattya]

Ja Morant is the premier PG prospect and I don’t think there’s any chance he falls outside the top 5.He’d be the long term answer at PG

I’m not sold on Morant being a premier PG prospect.

He’s the closest thing to that in this draft. He was the best player on the floor by far against Alabama and Auburn. He’s not just a stat padder in a lower tier conference

Being the best point guard in this class isn’t saying much.

[alabamawolf]

I’m not sold on Morant being a premier PG prospect.

He’s the closest thing to that in this draft. He was the best player on the floor by far against Alabama and Auburn. He’s not just a stat padder in a lower tier conference

Being the best point guard in this class isn’t saying much.

There are very few “can’t miss” PG prospects ever. Curry, Westbrook, Lillard, CP3, Lowry, and Conley weren’t considered cant miss prospects.

[Mattya]

He’s the closest thing to that in this draft. He was the best player on the floor by far against Alabama and Auburn. He’s not just a stat padder in a lower tier conference

Being the best point guard in this class isn’t saying much.

There are very few “can’t miss” PG prospects ever. Curry, Westbrook, Lillard, CP3, Lowry, and Conley weren’t considered cant miss prospects.

Right, but I’m not buying that Morant is that type of prospect. He plays fast ad has a high usage so his passing stats are a little inflated. Not seeing anything really beyond basic lob, entry and pick and roll passes. Not sure how effective he will be in the half court. I also worry that he is overrated defensively. He looks like he gambles a lot and his frame doesn’t look like it will add a lot of strength. We don’t have to draft a point guard.

[Klomp]

Not seeing anything really beyond basic lob, entry and pick and roll passes.

Not sure why this matters. If flash was required, Jason Williams would be HOF point.

[Mattya]

Not seeing anything really beyond basic lob, entry and pick and roll passes.

Not sure why this matters. If flash was required, Jason Williams would be HOF point.

Where did I say flash was required? Should I assume that you think all assists are created equally and there is no difference in passing ability between players? That players with basic passing ability(and high TOS in Morant’s case) are equal to passer like Rubio or Tyus.

[SO_MONEY]

Not seeing anything really beyond basic lob, entry and pick and roll passes.

Not sure why this matters. If flash was required, Jason Williams would be HOF point.

Where did I say flash was required? Should I assume that you think all assists are created equally and there is no difference in passing ability between players? That players with basic passing ability(and high TOS in Morant’s case) are equal to passer like Rubio or Tyus.

Rubio or Tyus...lol.

[Mattya]

Not sure why this matters. If flash was required, Jason Williams would be HOF point.

Where did I say flash was required? Should I assume that you think all assists are created equally and there is no difference in passing ability between players? That players with basic passing ability(and high TOS in Morant’s case) are equal to passer like Rubio or Tyus.

Rubio or Tyus...lol.

Do you consider those players as average passers?

[Klomp]

Not seeing anything really beyond basic lob, entry and pick and roll passes.

Not sure why this matters. If flash was required, Jason Williams would be HOF point.

Where did I say flash was required? Should I assume that you think all assists are created equally and there is no difference in passing ability between players? That players with basic passing ability(and high TOS in Morant’s case) are equal to passer like Rubio or Tyus.

Here's the difference, I believe...

You're saying basic passes. To me, 98% of passes are basic and those that aren't are when flash is added (no-look, behind-the-back, etc). I think what you're referring to is the vision to see passing lanes (a trait of players like Rubio, Ball, Simmons, etc). But the actual physical act of passing the ball? Yeah, it's pretty much either basic or flashy as the two options in my book.

[Mattya]

Not sure why this matters. If flash was required, Jason Williams would be HOF point.

Where did I say flash was required? Should I assume that you think all assists are created equally and there is no difference in passing ability between players? That players with basic passing ability(and high TOS in Morant’s case) are equal to passer like Rubio or Tyus.

Here's the difference, I believe...

You're saying basic passes. To me, 98% of passes are basic and those that aren't are when flash is added (no-look, behind-the-back, etc). I think what you're referring to is the vision to see passing lanes (a trait of players like Rubio, Ball, Simmons, etc). But the actual physical act of passing the ball? Yeah, it's pretty much either basic or flashy as the two options in my book.

There is more that separates passers than just flash. Threading needles with pinpoint prescision into a teammates shot pocket to help a player get open? Basic passers get shut down when defense picks up and cuts those passing lanes off just a little bit faster than basic passers can make a play. Players like Simmons, Nash, Lebron, and Rubio can and could make the backdoor pass when defenses try ball denial. Basic passers don’t make those passes, and when they do it usually ends in turnovers.

I’m not seeing anything impressive in making plays for other players by Morant, the, you couple that with a high TO number it should worry people. I also don’t buy that he will be as good attacking the rim in the NBA. Maybe the increased spacing will help, but at the same time I’m seeing a lot of wild attempts and considering his frame I think he will struggle with finishing against NBA rim protectors.

[minimus]

I think we should consider decision making and basketball IQ as well. For instance, Luka Doncic is a basic passer with elite decision making and IQ. Same with Harden.

[Domejandro]

People groan at it simply because he is from Minnesota, but Tre Jones is obviously going to be a good player. Arguably the best defensive guard in College Basketball, insanely high A/TO and A/USG rates, improving floater, and heads-up off-ball player.

[SO_MONEY]

Where did I say flash was required? Should I assume that you think all assists are created equally and there is no difference in passing ability between players? That players with basic passing ability(and high TOS in Morant’s case) are equal to passer like Rubio or Tyus.

Rubio or Tyus...lol.

Do you consider those players as average passers?

I don't think Tyus is in the same league as Rubio in passing ability, so using them as the same is comical.

[mplsfonz23]

People groan at it simply because he is from Minnesota, but Tre Jones is obviously going to be a good player. Arguably the best defensive guard in College Basketball, insanely high A/TO and A/USG rates, improving floater, and heads-up off-ball player.

I like Tre, but I don't see much that separates him from Tyus. Stats are good, but his style is suited for that system like Tyus.
Both are a little small to be an effective PG as bigger guards can shoot over them with ease.
I hope he can recover from that AC joint injury, those can take a long time to become strong again.

[Mattya]

Rubio or Tyus...lol.

Do you consider those players as average passers?

I don't think Tyus is in the same league as Rubio in passing ability, so using them as the same is comical.

And he is still a better passer than Morant which is the point. I used Wolves examples because people seem to understand those better especially when I’m trying to communicate that there is a difference in quality of passers and not all assists are created equally.

[wolfen]

Givony has Garland projected as the 7th pick in the draft now that he has declared. There is a reason he's being projected so high, he's much younger than Morant and coming out of highschool it wasn't even close as far as prospect rankings. http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/25827162/darius-garland-vanderbilt-says-enter-nba-draft
Probably less flash than Morant, but possibly a better NBA PG...