RealGM

For some reason this year's draft seemed to arrive much quicker for me than in years past. I normally would've started this earlier to get more back and forth, but for the purposes of keeping the streak alive, I guess I'll take another stab at it before draft hits us. Sorry for the self-indulgence.

The purpose of this thread is to make a case for a player who may not be an obvious pick, but someone that I like to be the pick. Here are the ones I've done in years past. Some of these are dosies, but oh well, overall, it's been fun!

2023 - The case for Jordan Hawkins (Anthony Black)
2022 - The case for Jabari Smith.... at SG/SF/PF! (Paolo Banchero)
2022 - The unfortunate case for Shaedon Sharpe (favorite player, knew he wouldn't go #1)
2021 - The case for James Bouknight (Jalen Suggs)
2020 - The case for Jaden McDaniels (Cole Anthony)
2019 - The case for Matisse Thybulle (Chuma Okeke)
2018 - The case for Mikal Bridges (Mo Bamba)
2017 - The case for Jonathan Isaac (Jonathan Isaac)
2016 - N/A
2015 - The case for Kristaps Porzingis (Mario Henzonja)
2014 - N/A
2013 - The case for Trey Burke (Victor Oladipo)

Since it's late in the draft process and most of the players have been digested by all by now, .... To add to the fun, this year I doing it a little differently. I'm going to logically rule out draft prospects based off a few criteria, to narrow all of the draft options, down to the single one that I like for us. So rather than building up a case based off strengths and fit, let's see where this backup approach takes us!

NEEDS

How I currently see the Magic...

PG NEED / Anthony Black / Cole Anthony
SG Jalen Suggs / NEED
SF Franz Wagner / Jett Howard
PF Paolo Banchero / Jonathan Isaac
C NEED / Wendell Carter Jr / Mo Wagner

Sure, there is room for position flex among our players, but these are our basic needs the way I see it.

A Starting PG
A Backup Wing
A Backup Big
A Starting Center

Based on those needs, and where we are positioned in the draft, I would lean towards the draft NOT being able to fill our 2 Starting positions of need... at least not anytime soon. At 18 we're looking at a developmental guy or a niche guy. FA or Trade will likely have to be the solution to fill starting positions of need. A depth/developmental player or niche player is still an important piece to the puzzle. Hopefully, he will be able to chip in and provide versatility to give us potential matchup advantages or meet the line up challenges that opposing teams throw at us. In today's game, a hero in Round 1 could be a role player in Round 2 and so on and so forth through the playoffs. It all depends on the opponent. So having the ability to match up or create mismatches is the name of the game.

So revisiting our needs, I'm going to conservatively eliminate these 2 needs from being addressed...

A Starting PG - Will have to be done via FA or Trade
A Starting Center - Will have to be done via FA or Trade

But what we CAN realistically hope for is to build our depth, and we can do that at these spots...

A Backup Wing
A Backup Big


A BACKUP WING?

The type of backup wing that I feel like the Magic could use is someone who cannnnn drumrolll..... SHOOT! Of course! That has to be among the minimum requirements here for us. The names that stick out here are:

Jared McCain 41% on 5.8 3PA
Cody Williams 41% on 1.7 3PA
Jakobe Walter 34% on 6.3 3PA
Johnny Furphy 35% on 3.5 3PA
Jaylon Tyson 36% on 4.5 3PA
Kyshawn George 40% on 4.2 3PA
Bub Carrington 32% on 6.1 3PA
Tristan da Silva 39% on 4.8 3PA
Terrence Shannon 36% on 6.7 3PA
Cam Christie 39% on 5.4 3PA
Baylor Scheierman 38% on 8.3 3PA

Now that's a pretty nice list of candidates for sure! But how do we separate the cream from the crop? How do we hit the jackpot with the 18th pick? The next part of the equation must factor in size, athleticism, defense, upside, handle, passing, defense, and character. This is where fans start to differ on their favorite pet cats.

For me, I would eliminate these guys for the following reasons:

Cody Williams 41% on 1.7 3PA - Nice length, but so skinny, shies from contact and did not shoot enough volume to trust his shot.
Johnny Furphy 35% on 3.5 3PA - Fine collegiate basketball player, but limited upside.
Kyshawn George 40% on 4.2 3PA - Not enough to offer with other parts of his game
Baylor Scheierman 38% on 8.3 3PA - Old man playing with boys simply not BPA at 18

I'm more of a fan of these wings, so sifting through with a fine tooth comb is necessary here...

Jakobe Walter - 34% on 6.3 3PA - 6'10 wingspan - 6'5, 200 - Long wingspan but only 8 blocks all year? Really?
Jared McCain - 41% on 5.8 3PA - 6'3.5 wingspan - His limitations in length and athleticism is going to make him struggle on defense
Bub Carrington - 32% on 6.1 3PA - 6'9 wingspan - I can't see him beating out Anthony Black for minutes, and his length did not translate on defense as much as you would hope
Jaylon Tyson - 36% on 4.5 3PA - 6'8 wingspan - A little too similar to Jett Howard and a worse shooter. 3 different schools in 3 years is peculiar.
Tristan da Silva - 39% on 4.8 3PA -6'10 wingspan - More of a pure SF. Too stiff to play SG.
Cam Christie - I really like the consistency on his shooting form, but not enough offensive outbursts like the other guys

The type of wing that I think the Magic need is one who in addition to having an outside shot, is someone who can provide some potency in scoring in other ways as well. Someone who would help the Magic move on from the FAs likes of Gary Trent Jr, Buddy Hield... maybe even Klay Thompson... This lead me to my favorite wing player this year being...

This lead me to my favorite wing player this year being...

Terrence Shannon - 36% on 6.7 3PA - 6'8 wingspan - 6'7, 225

PG NEED / Anthony Black / Cole Anthony
SG Jalen Suggs / Terrence Shannon
SF Franz Wagner / Jett Howard
PF Paolo Banchero / Jonathan Isaac
C NEED / Wendell Carter Jr / Mo Wagner


A BACKUP BIG?

With this year's FA class of bigs not being the most thrilling crop, it's hard to see a clear cut solution to fix the Magic's weakness at Center. It is established that WCj is a serviceable big, but nobody's idea of an intimidating big man. Mo Wagner is a fun, energetic big that can shift momentum with his big moments and clown effects. It was these reasons why Jonathan Isaac was able to get tested at Center at times last season. With hit or miss success, he was our best defending big man. Goga Bitadze could've taken home that credit, but it doesn't mean much as most expect his Magic days to be over.

One of the beautiful things about drafting bigs are that they tend to translate more quickly into the NBA. We saw this with Derek Lively on the Mavs last year. I admit to having regrets on passing him for Jett Howard at times. Every year, there are bigs who are available in the mid to late first round that are able to provide impacts in year 1.

On top of that, this year's playoffs proved that having multiple big men who can play big roles is super useful. It was amazing watching the Western Conference bigs battle things out... Gobert, Towns, Reid vs Jokic, Gordon vs Gafford, Lively, Washington... As long as Embiid is healthy, Philly will be a challenge for us. IND has started stacking up bigs with Siakam next to Turner. Magic need to find a way to keep up with the Jones.

In our draft range, there are the likes of...

Kel'el Ware
Yves Missi
Zach Edey
Kyle Filipowski
Tyler Smith
DaRon Holmes

Of these bigs, only one of them really stand out as someone that I would be yelling for the Magic to take. If they took one, these guys, I'd be optimistic about them, but not really thrilled about it.

Kel'el Ware - Showed A LOT by gaining weight, but plays so lethargically and soft in the paint. Shades of Mo Bamba.
Yves Missi - Exciting player, but offers nothing outside the block.
Zach Edey - Want to love him, but I don't like how his game fits with our players.
Kyle Filipowski - I just can't get behind him as our pick. Looks like a 2nd rounder to me.
DaRon Holmes - Could be sneaky good, but not obviously good.

This lead me to my favorite big man this year being...

Tyler Smith - 6'11, 225


Terrence Shannon VS Tyler Smith

If I had more time I would go further into it, but I'm getting sleepy.



Shannon can get buckets, has great size for a wing (something we are lacking badly - unless you count Jett). I've never seen anyone that big, go that fast, and actually finish at the rim consistently. He also gets to the FT line like nobody else's business. Has had huge scoring games, 34, 35, 40 point scoring outbursts! He's also a 2 way player that can pile up steals and blocks in a hurry. I think he will translate his game to the NBA because he accompanies all of that with great athleticism and a nice handle. Shannon would have to become a better passing teammate if he joined the Magic, but I think that is possible as he simply had one thing in his mind in college... showcasing himself for the NBA. He had a rape allegation that he was found not guilty of, but that may leave a bad mark in Weltman's eyes. He's also a one of the older, if not the oldest draft prospect as he completed his 5th college season. That doesn't bother me much as the type of player we need is someone who can step in right away and I truly believe Shannon's body and game is mature and ready to make an immediate impact.




Tyler Smith is an incredibly athletic big man who is probably best suited as a PF right now. But he's only 19 and I'm in love with the way he plays the game. His body movement, coordination, handle, explosiveness, shooting touch, defense, size... this guy can be something really special if he works hard at it. He can really space the floor. 4.0 3PA, 37.8% from 3 in PnP, 47% from 3 in transition 3 pointers, 36.8% from 3 on guarded 3s. He's a 75% FT shooter, so you don't have to worry about taking him off the floor. There's so much upside here, but that means he's still very raw. He could be a better rebounder, shot blocker, and have a better low post game. He's a guy who I would love seeing alongside Franz, Paolo, and Isaac or backing any of them up. Being young and healthy, he's a lot easier to trust in than Isaac. A pick like this COULD even mean the Magic could dangle Isaac as trade bait. Something I have been hesitant to do.


Both of them could give us incredible options. Saving money at Klay, Trent Jr, Hield, etc with Shannon's scoring punch. Or putting Isaac on the block for a bigger named star like Dejounte Murray or Brandon Ingram... 2 of my favorite trade targets.

I would be thrilled with either prospect to be honest. This is almost too close for me to call. So since this is fantasy land, let's go with... BOTH!!!!

The Case for Terrence Shannon OR Tyler Smith!!! WOO HOOO!!!!

My main concern with Tyler Smith - 6'11 is about his level of competition he faced vs what he can actually do in nba.

I've went to see how many G league players are 7 foot or taller- 6 of them.
How many of them, taller than 6'10 are even funcional? Not many.
Than you factor into this fact that Smith played on just pathetic basketball team and you have to question how inflated his numbers are.

He was backup on 2-32 team.

Three things worked for him: uncompetitive basketball, league without any quality big men, playing as backup against mainly backups.

G league simply has trash bigs. Nobody who has any sort of talent will stick there who is +6'10. Bigs always get basketball gigs because funcional body over 6'10 is very rare to find.

Something undervalued in Terrence Shannon is his mental toughness. You can’t coach or teach that I don’t believe, but you can ABSOLUTELY use that on the floor to affect everyone else.

Shannon absolutely had a huge reason to shrink and disappear this season with the serious allegations he faced. His career and freedom totally on the line, yet despite that he absolutely rised above it and put his team on his back. When the going gets tough on the court that’s a guy that’s going to be cool and calm and settle the troops down.

Love both those guys

i was planning to make a post like this of the top 5 guys im hoping for at 18, but same thing, draft really snuck up on me, all week i was thiniing the draft was thursday

But my top 5 includes both of them

1 - Kal'el Ware
2 - Terrance Shannon
3 - Tyler Kolek
4 - Kyshawn George
5 - Tyler Smith

I think Filipowski will likely be BPA.

pepe1991 wrote:My main concern with Tyler Smith - 6'11 is about his level of competition he faced vs what he can actually do in nba.

I've went to see how many G league players are 7 foot or taller- 6 of them.
How many of them, taller than 6'10 are even funcional? Not many.
Than you factor into this fact that Smith played on just pathetic basketball team and you have to question how inflated his numbers are.

He was backup on 2-32 team.

Three things worked for him: uncompetitive basketball, league without any quality big men, playing as backup against mainly backups.

G league simply has trash bigs. Nobody who has any sort of talent will stick there who is +6'10. Bigs always get basketball gigs because funcional body over 6'10 is very rare to find.

All fair. What I like about him is less about his numbers, but more on his skillset and potential. The NBA is starting to see more and more 7 footers who move like guards but it's still rare to find ones who have offensive games that are not clunky. If we can hit on some of these guys, our ability to lead the curve will give us a big advantage. We have established an identity of size/athleticism/offensive prowess with Franz, Paolo, Isaac, Mo.... Tyler is another fluid, coordinated, big man with fine motor skills (he can contort his body like a guard, and his touch and soft hands around the basket serve him well).

I honestly think that if he went to college, then we would be talking about him in the Top 10 easily. I love his shot mechanics. High release, high arch, consistent motion. He can shoot off the dribble or off ball with similiar effectiveness. He's still in his boy body. Once he starts to add muscle and add a physicality element to his game, he can be dangerous.

He could be Weltman's next attempt to follow his Giannis roadmap.

three3d wrote:Something undervalued in Terrence Shannon is his mental toughness. You can’t coach or teach that I don’t believe, but you can ABSOLUTELY use that on the floor to affect everyone else.

Shannon absolutely had a huge reason to shrink and disappear this season with the serious allegations he faced. His career and freedom totally on the line, yet despite that he absolutely rised above it and put his team on his back. When the going gets tough on the court that’s a guy that’s going to be cool and calm and settle the troops down.

The Illini retired his jersey in the rafters. That doesn't happen to a guy who is a bad dude. They know him well, his coaches and teammates love him. Rave about him. The Youtube of his "Day in the life of Terrence Shannon" shows how much his coach loves him and his leadership.

You're right about his ability to get the job done with the going gets tough. How many times do we wish we had a guy who could just put the ball in the basket in crunch time. Whether shooting from deep long range or attacking the rim, this guy has proven it. Over 2000+ points scored in his college career. He knows who he is and what his game can do. ...and the Magic could use a guy like that behind Suggs. ...and just having a legit 6'6/6'7 SG would be a great addition to the position.

He would save us $18-22M per year by not having to sign Gary Trent, Buddy Hield, etc.

The Effect wrote:Love both those guys

i was planning to make a post like this of the top 5 guys im hoping for at 18, but same thing, draft really snuck up on me, all week i was thiniing the draft was thursday

But my top 5 includes both of them

1 - Kal'el Ware
2 - Terrance Shannon
3 - Tyler Kolek
4 - Kyshawn George
5 - Tyler Smith

Ware scares me because of his lack of hustle on the floor. Kid needs to play with more heart. But he does have size that you can't teach. I'm a fan of Kolek too, but he won't fit the defensive identity that the Magic are building. George is a huge project. Not sure I see enough to make me take him over others.

All in on Shannon Jr

I'm all in on Shannon too...but, man I'd love to pick up another late frp to get him...and move up to get McCain too. Lots still have Shannon mocked in the early 2nd round...There's never been a better year to ignore all of the mocks - they're all over the place.

Skybox wrote:I'm all in on Shannon too...but, man I'd love to pick up another late frp to get him...and move up to get McCain too. Lots still have Shannon mocked in the early 2nd round...There's never been a better year to ignore all of the mocks - they're all over the place.

Yeah, Sam Vecenie of the Athletic has him mocked at 17 with the Lakers trading up for him, but John Hollinger of the Athletic ranks him #49 on his big board. LOL @the discrepancy!

I'm a fan of how I imagine McCain would fit here. I'd like to see Cole Anthony traded after that pick. I honestly don't think there is any interest in him. He's another dead weight, bad contract guy that we made a mistake on. Hated him on his draft day and still do today. To his credit, he's had his moments... but overall... not my kinda guy.

Skin wrote:

Skybox wrote:I'm all in on Shannon too...but, man I'd love to pick up another late frp to get him...and move up to get McCain too. Lots still have Shannon mocked in the early 2nd round...There's never been a better year to ignore all of the mocks - they're all over the place.

Yeah, Sam Vecenie of the Athletic has him mocked at 17 with the Lakers trading up for him, but John Hollinger of the Athletic ranks him #49 on his big board. LOL @the discrepancy!

I'm a fan of how I imagine McCain would fit here. I'd like to see Cole Anthony traded after that pick. I honestly don't think there is any interest in him. He's another dead weight, bad contract guy that we made a mistake on. Hated him on his draft day and still do today. To his credit, he's had his moments... but overall... not my kinda guy.

The variance on TSJ’s draft position is crazy. He looks very likely to be a good rotation wing and possibly a day 1 contributor.. not sure how a guy like that makes it to the 2nd round

Skin wrote:For some reason this year's draft seemed to arrive much quicker for me than in years past. I normally would've started this earlier to get more back and forth, but for the purposes of keeping the streak alive, I guess I'll take another stab at it before draft hits us. Sorry for the self-indulgence.

The purpose of this thread is to make a case for a player who may not be an obvious pick, but someone that I like to be the pick. Here are the ones I've done in years past. Some of these are dosies, but oh well, overall, it's been fun!

2023 - The case for Jordan Hawkins (Anthony Black)
2022 - The case for Jabari Smith.... at SG/SF/PF! (Paolo Banchero)
2022 - The unfortunate case for Shaedon Sharpe (favorite player, knew he wouldn't go #1)
2021 - The case for James Bouknight (Jalen Suggs)
2020 - The case for Jaden McDaniels (Cole Anthony)
2019 - The case for Matisse Thybulle (Chuma Okeke)
2018 - The case for Mikal Bridges (Mo Bamba)
2017 - The case for Jonathan Isaac (Jonathan Isaac)
2016 - N/A
2015 - The case for Kristaps Porzingis (Mario Henzonja)
2014 - N/A
2013 - The case for Trey Burke (Victor Oladipo)

Since it's late in the draft process and most of the players have been digested by all by now, .... To add to the fun, this year I doing it a little differently. I'm going to logically rule out draft prospects based off a few criteria, to narrow all of the draft options, down to the single one that I like for us. So rather than building up a case based off strengths and fit, let's see where this backup approach takes us!

NEEDS

How I currently see the Magic...

PG NEED / Anthony Black / Cole Anthony
SG Jalen Suggs / NEED
SF Franz Wagner / Jett Howard
PF Paolo Banchero / Jonathan Isaac
C NEED / Wendell Carter Jr / Mo Wagner

Sure, there is room for position flex among our players, but these are our basic needs the way I see it.

A Starting PG
A Backup Wing
A Backup Big
A Starting Center

Based on those needs, and where we are positioned in the draft, I would lean towards the draft NOT being able to fill our 2 Starting positions of need... at least not anytime soon. At 18 we're looking at a developmental guy or a niche guy. FA or Trade will likely have to be the solution to fill starting positions of need. A depth/developmental player or niche player is still an important piece to the puzzle. Hopefully, he will be able to chip in and provide versatility to give us potential matchup advantages or meet the line up challenges that opposing teams throw at us. In today's game, a hero in Round 1 could be a role player in Round 2 and so on and so forth through the playoffs. It all depends on the opponent. So having the ability to match up or create mismatches is the name of the game.

So revisiting our needs, I'm going to conservatively eliminate these 2 needs from being addressed...

A Starting PG - Will have to be done via FA or Trade
A Starting Center - Will have to be done via FA or Trade

But what we CAN realistically hope for is to build our depth, and we can do that at these spots...

A Backup Wing
A Backup Big


A BACKUP WING?

The type of backup wing that I feel like the Magic could use is someone who cannnnn drumrolll..... SHOOT! Of course! That has to be among the minimum requirements here for us. The names that stick out here are:

Jared McCain 41% on 5.8 3PA
Cody Williams 41% on 1.7 3PA
Jakobe Walter 34% on 6.3 3PA
Johnny Furphy 35% on 3.5 3PA
Jaylon Tyson 36% on 4.5 3PA
Kyshawn George 40% on 4.2 3PA
Bub Carrington 32% on 6.1 3PA
Tristan da Silva 39% on 4.8 3PA
Terrence Shannon 36% on 6.7 3PA
Cam Christie 39% on 5.4 3PA
Baylor Scheierman 38% on 8.3 3PA

Now that's a pretty nice list of candidates for sure! But how do we separate the cream from the crop? How do we hit the jackpot with the 18th pick? The next part of the equation must factor in size, athleticism, defense, upside, handle, passing, defense, and character. This is where fans start to differ on their favorite pet cats.

For me, I would eliminate these guys for the following reasons:

Cody Williams 41% on 1.7 3PA - Nice length, but so skinny, shies from contact and did not shoot enough volume to trust his shot.
Johnny Furphy 35% on 3.5 3PA - Fine collegiate basketball player, but limited upside.
Kyshawn George 40% on 4.2 3PA - Not enough to offer with other parts of his game
Baylor Scheierman 38% on 8.3 3PA - Old man playing with boys simply not BPA at 18

I'm more of a fan of these wings, so sifting through with a fine tooth comb is necessary here...

Jakobe Walter - 34% on 6.3 3PA - 6'10 wingspan - 6'5, 200 - Long wingspan but only 8 blocks all year? Really?
Jared McCain - 41% on 5.8 3PA - 6'3.5 wingspan - His limitations in length and athleticism is going to make him struggle on defense
Bub Carrington - 32% on 6.1 3PA - 6'9 wingspan - I can't see him beating out Anthony Black for minutes, and his length did not translate on defense as much as you would hope
Jaylon Tyson - 36% on 4.5 3PA - 6'8 wingspan - A little too similar to Jett Howard and a worse shooter. 3 different schools in 3 years is peculiar.
Tristan da Silva - 39% on 4.8 3PA -6'10 wingspan - More of a pure SF. Too stiff to play SG.
Cam Christie - I really like the consistency on his shooting form, but not enough offensive outbursts like the other guys

The type of wing that I think the Magic need is one who in addition to having an outside shot, is someone who can provide some potency in scoring in other ways as well. Someone who would help the Magic move on from the FAs likes of Gary Trent Jr, Buddy Hield... maybe even Klay Thompson... This lead me to my favorite wing player this year being...

This lead me to my favorite wing player this year being...

Terrence Shannon - 36% on 6.7 3PA - 6'8 wingspan - 6'7, 225

PG NEED / Anthony Black / Cole Anthony
SG Jalen Suggs / Terrence Shannon
SF Franz Wagner / Jett Howard
PF Paolo Banchero / Jonathan Isaac
C NEED / Wendell Carter Jr / Mo Wagner


A BACKUP BIG?

With this year's FA class of bigs not being the most thrilling crop, it's hard to see a clear cut solution to fix the Magic's weakness at Center. It is established that WCj is a serviceable big, but nobody's idea of an intimidating big man. Mo Wagner is a fun, energetic big that can shift momentum with his big moments and clown effects. It was these reasons why Jonathan Isaac was able to get tested at Center at times last season. With hit or miss success, he was our best defending big man. Goga Bitadze could've taken home that credit, but it doesn't mean much as most expect his Magic days to be over.

One of the beautiful things about drafting bigs are that they tend to translate more quickly into the NBA. We saw this with Derek Lively on the Mavs last year. I admit to having regrets on passing him for Jett Howard at times. Every year, there are bigs who are available in the mid to late first round that are able to provide impacts in year 1.

On top of that, this year's playoffs proved that having multiple big men who can play big roles is super useful. It was amazing watching the Western Conference bigs battle things out... Gobert, Towns, Reid vs Jokic, Gordon vs Gafford, Lively, Washington... As long as Embiid is healthy, Philly will be a challenge for us. IND has started stacking up bigs with Siakam next to Turner. Magic need to find a way to keep up with the Jones.

In our draft range, there are the likes of...

Kel'el Ware
Yves Missi
Zach Edey
Kyle Filipowski
Tyler Smith
DaRon Holmes

Of these bigs, only one of them really stand out as someone that I would be yelling for the Magic to take. If they took one, these guys, I'd be optimistic about them, but not really thrilled about it.

Kel'el Ware - Showed A LOT by gaining weight, but plays so lethargically and soft in the paint. Shades of Mo Bamba.
Yves Missi - Exciting player, but offers nothing outside the block.
Zach Edey - Want to love him, but I don't like how his game fits with our players.
Kyle Filipowski - I just can't get behind him as our pick. Looks like a 2nd rounder to me.
DaRon Holmes - Could be sneaky good, but not obviously good.

This lead me to my favorite big man this year being...

Tyler Smith - 6'11, 225


Terrence Shannon VS Tyler Smith

If I had more time I would go further into it, but I'm getting sleepy.

Watch on YouTube

Shannon can get buckets, has great size for a wing (something we are lacking badly - unless you count Jett). I've never seen anyone that big, go that fast, and actually finish at the rim consistently. He also gets to the FT line like nobody else's business. Has had huge scoring games, 34, 35, 40 point scoring outbursts! He's also a 2 way player that can pile up steals and blocks in a hurry. I think he will translate his game to the NBA because he accompanies all of that with great athleticism and a nice handle. Shannon would have to become a better passing teammate if he joined the Magic, but I think that is possible as he simply had one thing in his mind in college... showcasing himself for the NBA. He had a rape allegation that he was found not guilty of, but that may leave a bad mark in Weltman's eyes. He's also a one of the older, if not the oldest draft prospect as he completed his 5th college season. That doesn't bother me much as the type of player we need is someone who can step in right away and I truly believe Shannon's body and game is mature and ready to make an immediate impact.

Watch on YouTube

Tyler Smith is an incredibly athletic big man who is probably best suited as a PF right now. But he's only 19 and I'm in love with the way he plays the game. His body movement, coordination, handle, explosiveness, shooting touch, defense, size... this guy can be something really special if he works hard at it. He can really space the floor. 4.0 3PA, 37.8% from 3 in PnP, 47% from 3 in transition 3 pointers, 36.8% from 3 on guarded 3s. He's a 75% FT shooter, so you don't have to worry about taking him off the floor. There's so much upside here, but that means he's still very raw. He could be a better rebounder, shot blocker, and have a better low post game. He's a guy who I would love seeing alongside Franz, Paolo, and Isaac or backing any of them up. Being young and healthy, he's a lot easier to trust in than Isaac. A pick like this COULD even mean the Magic could dangle Isaac as trade bait. Something I have been hesitant to do.


Both of them could give us incredible options. Saving money at Klay, Trent Jr, Hield, etc with Shannon's scoring punch. Or putting Isaac on the block for a bigger named star like Dejounte Murray or Brandon Ingram... 2 of my favorite trade targets.

I would be thrilled with either prospect to be honest. This is almost too close for me to call. So since this is fantasy land, let's go with... BOTH!!!!

The Case for Terrence Shannon OR Tyler Smith!!! WOO HOOO!!!!

Did you forget Myles Turner , we were high on him to

cedric76 wrote:Did you forget Myles Turner , we were high on him to

I did love him, I still do!

I don't remember making a thread for him though.

Yeah since to me this a meh draft and not really that important for our future... sign me up for T.Smith