2025 NBA Draft

[RookieStar]

Call me greedy, and I know we're in win-now mode so want more veterans, but I really want both Clayton Jr and Coward. I think both guys have all the attributes we want other than experience, but they're both older players so hopefully less of a learning curve.

The more I watch Coward the more he screams steal. He almost has it all - shooting, passing, defense and crazy length. He has all the attributes to be an elite supporting player, but I reckon his handles have potential and he could develop into more on-ball creation down the line.

Clayton Jr has been talked to death, but his fit is unquestionable. And he's a winner fresh off winning - bring that energy!

(?)/(?)
Paolo/Houstan/MoeWag
Franz/AB/TDS
Suggs/Coward
(?)/Clayton Jr/CoJo

KCP, Goga, Dell, Isaac, Cole, Jett and even TDS + PHX 26 FRP + Magic Future Firsts should be enough capital to get us quality veterans to round out that roster.

You gonna bet the farm on Coward? I admit he has all the tools... yet he hasnt shown it against power 5 competition. So i dunno if i can safely choose him in our 16th spot over guys that show they can

Bet the farm? We aren’t even in the lottery. Hell, we drafted Jett at 11.

This draft seems particularly deep. I bet we get some solid trade options though it may be hard to move out.

But it is... using a FRP on a relatively unknown guy who wasn't even considered to be a draft pick this batch/season but who suddenly rose through the charts because of... I dunno. I mean even some Duke fans havent even heard of him until rumors started that he was their NIL portal target from a "lesser" basketball program.

[RookieStar]

You gonna bet the farm on Coward? I admit he has all the tools... yet he hasnt shown it against power 5 competition. So i dunno if i can safely choose him in our 16th spot over guys that show they can

It’s tough cos I don’t think Clayton Jr lasts to the Denver pick, so it may be an either or. And I really like both. I think WCJr has some Jamal Murray to his game, and I think Coward has a floor of a Nesmith type and an attainable ceiling of an Anunoby.

But if Den pick + Jett can move us up to land whoever we don’t take at 16 I’d probably pay that.

Well... I dunno... I mean Deshawn Stevenson had a MJ comparison/ceiling when he was in the draft. lol

But seriously, an advantage of OG is he is as strong as a tank and built that way. Isnt Coward more of the middle between tank and lean?

[Bensational]

You gonna bet the farm on Coward? I admit he has all the tools... yet he hasnt shown it against power 5 competition. So i dunno if i can safely choose him in our 16th spot over guys that show they can

It’s tough cos I don’t think Clayton Jr lasts to the Denver pick, so it may be an either or. And I really like both. I think WCJr has some Jamal Murray to his game, and I think Coward has a floor of a Nesmith type and an attainable ceiling of an Anunoby.

But if Den pick + Jett can move us up to land whoever we don’t take at 16 I’d probably pay that.

Well... I dunno... I mean Deshawn Stevenson had a MJ comparison/ceiling when he was in the draft. lol

But seriously, an advantage of OG is he is as strong as a tank and built that way. Isnt Coward more of the middle between tank and lean?

I’m just going off highlights in scouting reports so can’t pretend to know the guy’s game too well, but you know I don’t care much about consensus rankings. Coward looks strong to me, though. Defensively there’s plenty of vision of him getting into a seated position and absorbing contact whilst keeping his long arms up vertically. It just looks like really disciplined stuff, to me.

And his entry passing from the perimeter is a great bonus. If it develops and works out I could see him having some MoJo-like chemistry with bigs.

Just all up a potentially great connector piece.

[RookieStar]

It’s tough cos I don’t think Clayton Jr lasts to the Denver pick, so it may be an either or. And I really like both. I think WCJr has some Jamal Murray to his game, and I think Coward has a floor of a Nesmith type and an attainable ceiling of an Anunoby.

But if Den pick + Jett can move us up to land whoever we don’t take at 16 I’d probably pay that.

Well... I dunno... I mean Deshawn Stevenson had a MJ comparison/ceiling when he was in the draft. lol

But seriously, an advantage of OG is he is as strong as a tank and built that way. Isnt Coward more of the middle between tank and lean?

I’m just going off highlights in scouting reports so can’t pretend to know the guy’s game too well, but you know I don’t care much about consensus rankings. Coward looks strong to me, though. Defensively there’s plenty of vision of him getting into a seated position and absorbing contact whilst keeping his long arms up vertically. It just looks like really disciplined stuff, to me.

And his entry passing from the perimeter is a great bonus. If it develops and works out I could see him having some MoJo-like chemistry with bigs.

Just all up a potentially great connector piece.

Fair... but then again its highlights. Im sure the highlights of Cole Anthony would make us think Cole >> MJ + Kobe. lol

But seriously, I dont care about rankings as well. I just use it as basis of interest to see what other people see in him that I might have missed. The only drawback I have of Coward is that he didn't do his production against the best of what college ball has to offer. I mean sure there are chances that he couldve done it as well against "power" schools like UK , Duke ,MICH, etc etc but there is the same chances as well that the players in those schools wouldve shut him down due to better competition.

Thats why players like JayWilll Kawhi Dame are rare.

[Bensational]

Thats why players like JayWilll Kawhi Dame are rare.

Yeah but that’s a much higher tier of comp than Nesmith and Anunoby. I don’t think we’re trying to draft another star player at #16, we’re looking for guys like those two who are helping current playoffs teams make deep runs.

Yeah, maybe lack of higher competition might be a concern, especially since he didn’t participate in the scrimmages to show he can hang with the other prospects. Maybe in workouts they can get a better sense of that?

[RookieStar]

Thats why players like JayWilll Kawhi Dame are rare.

Yeah but that’s a much higher tier of comp than Nesmith and Anunoby. I don’t think we’re trying to draft another star player at #16, we’re looking for guys like those two who are helping current playoffs teams make deep runs.

Yeah, maybe lack of higher competition might be a concern, especially since he didn’t participate in the scrimmages to show he can hang with the other prospects. Maybe in workouts they can get a better sense of that?

Maybe.. if he participates in private workouts that would allow a team to send an average-level NBA defender against him to see how he measures up. Then that would be a green flag. But if his handlers wont allow.... then they are hiding something and again its a big gamble.

[Skybox]

Thats why players like JayWilll Kawhi Dame are rare.

Yeah but that’s a much higher tier of comp than Nesmith and Anunoby. I don’t think we’re trying to draft another star player at #16, we’re looking for guys like those two who are helping current playoffs teams make deep runs.

Yeah, maybe lack of higher competition might be a concern, especially since he didn’t participate in the scrimmages to show he can hang with the other prospects. Maybe in workouts they can get a better sense of that?

Maybe.. if he participates in private workouts that would allow a team to send an average-level NBA defender against him to see how he measures up. Then that would be a green flag. But if his handlers wont allow.... then they are hiding something and again its a big gamble.

Sadly, it's almost an admission of weakness to show up and compete. The scrimmages have become a srp showcase...it's a travesty that all these kids, a year out of high school are so "empowered" that they routinely skip out of anything that could give NBA GMs the ability to properly compare them. I understand why they are told to skip anything that could be a pitfall...I just wish they weren't allowed to.

It'd be really refreshing to see the young guys demand to get in there and knock heads with the guys at their position. It used to be a common thing to invite 3 PF's (for example) to a team workout and pit them against each other directly...now these YouTube heroes are largely scouted by their dunk reels against kids who'll never sniff a G-League roster or showing off their handles vs chairs.

[RookieStar]

Yeah but that’s a much higher tier of comp than Nesmith and Anunoby. I don’t think we’re trying to draft another star player at #16, we’re looking for guys like those two who are helping current playoffs teams make deep runs.

Yeah, maybe lack of higher competition might be a concern, especially since he didn’t participate in the scrimmages to show he can hang with the other prospects. Maybe in workouts they can get a better sense of that?

Maybe.. if he participates in private workouts that would allow a team to send an average-level NBA defender against him to see how he measures up. Then that would be a green flag. But if his handlers wont allow.... then they are hiding something and again its a big gamble.

Sadly, it's almost an admission of weakness to show up and compete. The scrimmages have become a srp showcase...it's a travesty that all these kids, a year out of high school are so "empowered" that they routinely skip out of anything that could give NBA GMs the ability to properly compare them. I understand why they are told to skip anything that could be a pitfall...I just wish they weren't allowed to.

It'd be really refreshing to see the young guys demand to get in there and knock heads with the guys at their position. It used to be a common thing to invite 3 PF's (for example) to a team workout and pit them against each other directly...now these YouTube heroes are largely scouted by their dunk reels against kids who'll never sniff a G-League roster or showing off their handles vs chairs.

Agree. These kids are taught that you could lose a couple million if you drop your spot because of a bad workout...

[KillMonger]

I think Wolf might hold his own based on how well he's able to rebound the ball. He averaged 12 rpg in the 7 FIBA games and the 10 rpg the last 2 seasons in college. His measurements were the same as Jokic's. He looked smaller because he shared the starting lineup with a 7'1" player.

Mosely's offense might work with a big who can pass at the top of the arc. He could pass over the defense like Hedo did.

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This is how I feel, he'll be fine with his size I think he'll hold his own.... Between wolf maluach and queen it was wolf who had the most double digit rebound games between the three.... Keeping teams to one possession helps quite a bit, it's something Dell struggled with... It NEVER hurts adding more playmaking to the team

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[KillMonger]

Man everything I hear about cedric coward makes me think he's made for a mosely team

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[fendilim]

Man everything I hear about cedric coward makes me think he's made for a mosely team

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I like him but i wont buy his jersey

[cedric76]

Man everything I hear about cedric coward makes me think he's made for a mosely team

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I like him but i wont buy his jersey

lol

[T-Cat]

Read on Twitter

[cedric76]

The Sure pick at #16 for win now is Nique Clifford

Will he be the best player in this class? unlikely but no doubt he ll be a solid role player for this team

[Skybox]

The Sure pick at #16 for win now is Nique Clifford

Will he be the best player in this class? unlikely but no doubt he ll be a solid role player for this team

I could see it...especially if Weltman is developing a trade that sends out guys at his spot. I like him and a few others in our range...but they'd be potentially replacing some decent young guys in our lineup before we see their best...TdS, Caleb, Jett, maybe even AB. I'm okay with almost anything like that, in theory, but you really hope you guess right.

[Idiosyncratic]

The Sure pick at #16 for win now is Nique Clifford

Will he be the best player in this class? unlikely but no doubt he ll be a solid role player for this team

I mean maybe? It is still a crapshoot, it is a draft they all mostly are crapshoots even when we think they aren't. I have like players 8-27 or something as darn near interchangeable in this particular draft. It is really even, I don't see a whole lot of difference in pick value after the beginning of the draft.

So maybe Nique is the guy? You could argue that for many IMO. If they have someone they have ranked significantly above all else in the draft then take BPA for sure. I personally think he is right in there with that 2nd wave of prospects that I have all near the same value. My problem here is I think he is primarily a 3 that can maybe play some 2 and is likely another low volume 3 shooter who will mostly take open looks that are created for him. I do not dislike Nique, nor do I think he would be bad value at either of our picks, I want to make that clear. I would just look at other archetypes for our team given the players I have ranked above him and on the same level.

We have Franz, AB and TDS who all are promising players that can play the 3. If I have a bunch of draft options with equal value I feel I would be more inclined to take someone who has a chance to play the 1, especially given the fact that it looks like we may have to acquire someone who isn't a guaranteed longterm solution at that spot. Centers would also be a priority for me because I would love someone with upside behind Wendell, who may not be a championship option.

Again, if Nique or anyone else is ranked BPA by a lot then take that guy, but I think given our team and the fact that I view a ton of these prospects as being in the same ballpark of value I would personally look elsewhere first.

[cedric76]

The Sure pick at #16 for win now is Nique Clifford

Will he be the best player in this class? unlikely but no doubt he ll be a solid role player for this team

I mean maybe? It is still a crapshoot, it is a draft they all mostly are crapshoots even when we think they aren't. I have like players 8-27 or something as darn near interchangeable in this particular draft. It is really even, I don't see a whole lot of difference in pick value after the beginning of the draft.

So maybe Nique is the guy? You could argue that for many IMO. If they have someone they have ranked significantly above all else in the draft then take BPA for sure. I personally think he is right in there with that 2nd wave of prospects that I have all near the same value. My problem here is I think he is primarily a 3 that can maybe play some 2 and is likely another low volume 3 shooter who will mostly take open looks that are created for him. I do not dislike Nique, nor do I think he would be bad value at either of our picks, I want to make that clear. I would just look at other archetypes for our team given the players I have ranked above him and on the same level.

We have Franz, AB and TDS who all are promising players that can play the 3. If I have a bunch of draft options with equal value I feel I would be more inclined to take someone who has a chance to play the 1, especially given the fact that it looks like we may have to acquire someone who isn't a guaranteed longterm solution at that spot. Centers would also be a priority for me because I would love someone with upside behind Wendell, who may not be a championship option.

Again, if Nique or anyone else is ranked BPA by a lot then take that guy, but I think given our team and the fact that I view a ton of these prospects as being in the same ballpark of value I would personally look elsewhere first.

Nique is a 2/3 3&D with playmaking skills , he tick most boxes

[basketballRob]

Clifford would be good because he’s close to the same age as Franz and Suggs. The Magic fan base doesn't have the patience for another young player.

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[Skybox]

Clifford would be good because he’s close to the same age as Franz and Suggs. The Magic fan base doesn't have the patience for another young player.

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What will be his excuse if he's the same age as Franz and not as good?

Age is everything...draft a 9 year old for massive upside

[pepe1991]

Clifford would be good because he’s close to the same age as Franz and Suggs. The Magic fan base doesn't have the patience for another young player.

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What will be his excuse if he's the same age as Franz and not as good?

Age is everything...draft a 9 year old for massive upside

Nah, let's go further, let's draft Jordan's sperm.