2019 Draft Prospect Watch Thread

Sleepyazn · Post #101 » by **Sleepyazn** » Tue Aug 14, 2018 5:18 pm

unless you lebron james, extra bulk doesn't help in today's nba. Zion built like a db instead of a basketball player and honestly he raw as **** in terms of actual basketball skills.

kamaze · Post #102 » by **kamaze** » Wed Aug 15, 2018 4:15 pm

With a great coach at Duke a star player's weaknesses can be hidden as was the case with Okafur. So if Zion is a small forward without wing skills their offense will be tweaked He wasn't mobile and was a bad defender but in the system you din't see that what stood out was his low post skills.

Paradise · Post #103 » by **Paradise** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 3:05 am

BRUH!

Watch on YouTube

kamaze · Post #104 » by **kamaze** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 3:58 am

shakendfries wrote:

Watch on YouTube

Is the truth he'd be the 1st African on the Brooklyn Nets too make it happen!

shakendfries · Post #105 » by **shakendfries** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 4:10 am

Paradise wrote:BRUH!

Watch on YouTube

Watch on YouTube

Zion looks iight - I saw him toss some lightweights around. RJ Barrett brings actual tears - he's the real Maple Jordan. However, the team they faced seemed pretty easy to exploit.

Final thoughts - defensive oriented programs are gonna end Duke in the tournament, since they'll eventually figure out how to slow down RJ & Cam. We'll see if Zion can shoot this season - teams will leave him open if his form is still suspect.

MrDollarBills · Post #106 » by **MrDollarBills** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 5:13 am

Zion needs to work on his jumpshot. The handle is halfway decent and the athleticism is elite along with the physical size. We'll see how well he does going forward.

He is definitely on the draft board though. his muscle mass and agility are not a common mixture for most NBA prospects.

kamaze · Post #107 » by **kamaze** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 12:04 pm

Zion would be great if he were an inch or two taller as a power forward he's listed at 6'6 shorter than Barret.

Prokorov · Post #108 » by **Prokorov** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 12:09 pm

People are downgrding Zion because of his height and wingspan but he can cleary play PF at the next level at 275 and with bake griffin(maybe better?) level athleticism. look what PJ tucket has done defensively at that size, less wingspan, less muscle/weight, and less athletecism.

zion doesnt seem unskilled to me either. i know it was a scrub team but he was hitting threes, a few NBA distance and his jumpshot mechanics are not broken. i was suprised how good his handle was.

most of all, he plays with tenacity, and with his athleticism/size that goes a long way.

whats the worst case? trevor booker with elite athleticism and a better jumpshot/handle?

Prokorov · Post #109 » by **Prokorov** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 12:09 pm

kamaze wrote:Zion would be great if he were an inch or two taller as a power forward he's listed at 6'6 shorter than Barret.

PJ tucket is 6'5" and has been one of the better defensive PFs/combo forwards the last couple years

MrDollarBills · Post #110 » by **MrDollarBills** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 12:48 pm

Prokorov wrote:People are downgrding Zion because of his height and wingspan but he can cleary play PF at the next level at 275 and with bake griffin(maybe better?) level athleticism. look what PJ tucket has done defensively at that size, less wingspan, less muscle/weight, and less athletecism.

zion doesnt seem unskilled to me either. i know it was a scrub team but he was hitting threes, a few NBA distance and his jumpshot mechanics are not broken. i was suprised how good his handle was.

most of all, he plays with tenacity, and with his athleticism/size that goes a long way.

whats the worst case? trevor booker with elite athleticism and a better jumpshot/handle?

I think without question he is on our target list. He definitely has some serious upside. this is why I wanted to see him in the NCAA.

I mean this team was a scrub team but still. I like what I saw and that jumper can be worked on. If he's in our pick range I would not be upset if he's picked. He gave me some Barkley/Larry Johnson pre back injury vibes tbh. Very smooth handle in transition. If Kenny were to get his hands on him oh my god.

vincecarter4pres · Post #111 » by **vincecarter4pres** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 3:34 pm

Some of those change of direction, first step and crossover moves are what standout to me. His potential is eye popping if he can at least be a mediocre defender and not a complete turnstile. I think there's potential there for him to be a full time 3, though the mismatches he'd create at the 4 would be other level $hit.

MrDollarBills · Post #112 » by **MrDollarBills** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 4:55 pm

Yeah, I'm not sure why we heard chatter that he couldn't be a next level SF. That kind of ball handle and range aren't anything to sneeze at. I liked what I saw from him on those rebounds too but I want to see him do that versus some of the teams with bigger front lines.

kamaze · Post #113 » by **kamaze** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 8:12 pm

So far he looks good but Ryerson isn't NCAA level competition, no offense to Canada but they're known to be soft when it comes to basketball. He was still able to bully them around in the post he'll get his shot blocked more.

kamaze · Post #114 » by **kamaze** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 8:17 pm

Prokorov wrote:
kamaze wrote:Zion would be great if he were an inch or two taller as a power forward he's listed at 6'6 shorter than Barret.

PJ tucket is 6'5" and has been one of the better defensive PFs/combo forwards the last couple years

Unlike Tucker Zion has a short wingspan so you and whoever +1 your post misjudged him.

shakendfries · Post #115 » by **shakendfries** » Fri Aug 17, 2018 12:30 pm

Watch on YouTube

Prokorov · Post #116 » by **Prokorov** » Fri Aug 17, 2018 6:42 pm

kamaze wrote:
Prokorov wrote:
kamaze wrote:Zion would be great if he were an inch or two taller as a power forward he's listed at 6'6 shorter than Barret.

PJ tucket is 6'5" and has been one of the better defensive PFs/combo forwards the last couple years

Unlike Tucker Zion has a short wingspan so you and whoever +1 your post misjudged him.

tucker is list at 6'5" with a 6'10" wingspan

Zion at 6'6" with a 6'10" wingspan

you can give it + or - one inch based on what site you use but they are basically the same height and reach/wingspan. onyl zion has like 60 pounds and 14" of verticale on him

Paradise · Post #117 » by **Paradise** » Sat Aug 18, 2018 12:58 am

shakendfries wrote:

Watch on YouTube

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Watch on YouTube

Prokorov · Post #118 » by **Prokorov** » Sat Aug 18, 2018 1:16 am

30 point games vs. no name toronto schools i put 0 value in....

that said, there is stuff you see that translates that isnt opponent dependant. He is super smooth in the air. reminds me of vince carter in that regard. he doesnt just leap, on his layups he extends/swings/moves the ball gracefully while hangin in the air. he finsihes layup and dunks in traffic with either hand. for a lefty, his right hand is really stronger. better then say d'angello russels right hand. he doesnt settle for inbetween stuff, similar to jaylen brown. his shot isnt broken, solid form, good arch.

he is like this pre-injury LJ + Zach randolf hybrid with blake griffin level athletcism.

im excited to see more. but to me, he looks like a lottery level pro

MrDollarBills · Post #119 » by **MrDollarBills** » Sat Aug 18, 2018 2:07 am

Yeah I was going to say the same, what I'm seeing with his ball handling, body control, explosiveness...it doesn't matter if that is the University of Toronto or UNC, this isn't some fluke stuff. He has elite pro level athleticism to the point where his wing span doesn't look like it will be an issue because of how explosive his leap is and how strong he is. If you're Sean Marks, you have to be watching this kid like a hawk because I don't know about you guys but we need an infusion of athleticism in here. That kind of stuff that he's doing cannot be taught, I don't think its an overreaction to see this type of work on display and not see it translating to the NBA.

I will need to see how he reacts to high level competition in the NCAAs but those weren't exactly little boys he was out there splitting through and powering it down.

We'll see what happens but if you were to tell me 11 months from now this kid is wearing a Nets cap on draft night I'm not mad at all.

MrDollarBills · Post #120 » by **MrDollarBills** » Sat Aug 18, 2018 2:19 am

Prokorov wrote:30 point games vs. no name toronto schools i put 0 value in....

that said, there is stuff you see that translates that isnt opponent dependant. He is super smooth in the air. reminds me of vince carter in that regard. he doesnt just leap, on his layups he extends/swings/moves the ball gracefully while hangin in the air. he finsihes layup and dunks in traffic with either hand. for a lefty, his right hand is really stronger. better then say d'angello russels right hand. he doesnt settle for inbetween stuff, similar to jaylen brown. his shot isnt broken, solid form, good arch.

he is like this pre-injury LJ + Zach randolf hybrid with blake griffin level athletcism.

im excited to see more. but to me, he looks like a lottery level pro

Yep, he reminds me of 92' Charlotte Hornets Grandmama with better handle, an even bigger frame and more ups. Closest comparison that I can make based on his size and physicality, we can inject the name Barkley into this conversation but he reminds me more of Johnson. His shot looks more developed at this age too but that's still up in the air. Either way, that's not a comparison to take lightly because before he got hurt Larry Johnson was a beast going back to his days at UNLV and would have been a lock for HoF honors had his back not given out on him early on in his career.

the thing is though, Larry Johnson was a two way player even after his back injury. I want to see what Williamson's chops are on D. This might be the first NCAA season that I get engaged in for the first time in years.

Now I'm actually hoping that Vegas and other outlets predicting us to hit 30+ wins are wrong :lol: