2024-2025 College Basketball / NBA Draft

[davesilver]

Agreed #3 feels like fools gold. I’d feel pretty stupid if Bailey turns out to be the next Tatum, but I think in our position you need to trade down and maximize the haul for a higher floor player with strong upside like Kon or VJ/Tre. I’d even trade down further to Brooklyn at 8 if the evaluation on Maluach is high

[sodmoraes]

Just wildly speculating, but do you guys think Morey may have a "short leash" on this draft, by the owners, because of the failure of the max contract given to Embiid? The owners may see that contract as big fumble of Morey, so he could have less freedom to chose who he wants, and may be forced to pick whoever the owner wants. If it happens, you could argue that it increases the probability of choosing Bailey, since he seems to be the consensus pick at 3rd.

[76ciology]

Just wildly speculating, but do you guys think Morey may have a "short leash" on this draft, by the owners, because of the failure of the max contract given to Embiid? The owners may see that contract as big fumble of Morey, so he could have less freedom to chose who he wants, and may be forced to pick whoever the owner wants. If it happens, you could argue that it increases the probability of choosing Bailey, since he seems to be the consensus pick at 3rd.

Last season, we had the 3rd best championship odds. Morey did an excellent job pivoting away from the Harden situation and has proven he has an eye for talent. His recent draft picks, Tyrese Maxey and Jared McCain, speak for themselves. Even Quentin Grimes was a steal. Given his track record, I don’t think he’s on a short leash. Hell, even when last season was a disaster we even managed to tank ourselves to a top 3 pick. And if he ever got fired, he’d land another job within a week. That’s how good he is.

Obviously, it would be ideal to land the best player with the 3rd overall pick. But even if the pick turns out to be a bust, it’s not a disaster. Don’t forget, we had about a 40% chance of losing this pick entirely. We were even talking about Grimes as a hedge in case that happened. In that sense, this pick is really just a bonus.

[Arsenal]

The only clear mistake Morey has made here is the extension to Embiid. Every other move was good or can be justified, including the PG deal since it only cost us pure cap and we can salary dump him if we want. I'd be interested to know the decision-making between Morey and the ownership on that Embiid deal.

But overall he's been good and we're lucky to have him. I expect another good decision here with the #3 pick.

[Negrodamus]

Just wildly speculating, but do you guys think Morey may have a "short leash" on this draft, by the owners, because of the failure of the max contract given to Embiid? The owners may see that contract as big fumble of Morey, so he could have less freedom to chose who he wants, and may be forced to pick whoever the owner wants. If it happens, you could argue that it increases the probability of choosing Bailey, since he seems to be the consensus pick at 3rd.

I don’t think Morey would take the job if ownership was going to meddle with his decision making.

[Jailblazers7]

The only clear mistake Morey has made here is the extension to Embiid. Every other move was good or can be justified, including the PG deal since it only cost us pure cap and we can salary dump him if we want. I'd be interested to know the decision-making between Morey and the ownership on that Embiid deal.

But overall he's been good and we're lucky to have him. I expect another good decision here with the #3 pick.

Yeah, hard for me to fully blame Morey for the Embiid extension. Ultimately, the owners are signing the checks and they own responsibility for giving someone $190M over 3 years.

[76ciology]

I believe there’s a threshold of talent that, once reached, gives a team a real shot at winning, and when you’re at that level, you have to go all in. Last season, we had to take that shot with Embiid, George, and Maxey. And now, we have to take another chance that Embiid can return to a high level alongside George and Maxey next season.

And you can’t take those chances with Embiid “worrying” about his contract.

[Mik317]

trading down is probably the smart move

but **** the smart move lol.

It will be a sign that they still expect they can truly compete next year imo.

I think Tari Eason is neat but trading all the way down to 10, potentially missing out on guys bu-but it makes the team better short term is just not what I want to be hearing right now....even if it is probably the "correct" move.

Be a man; take a guy at 3 and move like he is going to be that dude...lol I'd be fired so fast lol

[FireMorey]

We'll find out with what options are on the table for the Sixers and what they're able to do just how the league views these players. If the Sixers are able to trade down for an absolute haul then we'll know at least one team values the player taken at 3 as a blue chip player. Obviously, the league may not agree with the fan and pundits that there is no star at the 3rd pick. We'll get more clarity as the reports from insiders come out over the next month. Morey won't trade down if he views one of these guys as superstars so if he's exploring options it's obvious he doesn't.

I stand by (for now) trading down for Tre as my favorite option. Or taking Harper if he falls to 3. But I wouldn't be disappointed if Bailey is the pick, because if he is, the scouts and front office would clearly view him as a stud and that would make me feel pretty good about it because he's projected to go high for a reason. He has a lot of potential.

[Negrodamus]

trading down is probably the smart move

but **** the smart move lol.

It will be a sign that they still expect they can truly compete next year imo.

I think Tari Eason is neat but trading all the way down to 10, potentially missing out on guys bu-but it makes the team better short term is just not what I want to be hearing right now....even if it is probably the "correct" move.

Be a man; take a guy at 3 and move like he is going to be that dude...lol I'd be fired so fast lol

To be fair, Tatum tearing his achilles has sent shockwaves throughout the East and we have as good a chance of making the Finals (if we stay healthy) as any of these other teams. Also there's the part that Morey and Nurse want to remain employed with the Sixers.

[Black Mage]

Givony said, in his podcast with KOC, he lives in New York, so he covered a lot of Rutgers games and practices. He watched Bailey extensively in high school and knows him personally. He believes Bailey is absolutely going to be a star because of his length, explosiveness, and shot-making ability. Givony said if he were the Sixers, he would draft Bailey third 100% he doesn’t see a better alternative. He also mentioned that Edgecombe and Tre Johnson wouldn’t be good fits for the Sixers.

Im still shorting the Ace Bailey stock

I could see a path for Edgecombe fitting in the immediate future and down the line. He'd be a natural compliment for pairing with McCain units. VJ would give a McCain unit a speed and athleticism boost while McCain provides ballhandling and playmaking. VJ's speed could help the Sixers dictate defensive coverages against McCain and VJ. McCain, if I recall correctly, struggled with the faster more athletically elite guards. Those guards would have to shift over to VJ otherwise VJ likely just smokes a slower defender. On the defensive side; VJ provides point of attack defense and off-ball help defense which naturally covers up for some of McCain's weaknesses and lets us hide McCain as needed.

Where I don't see the fit is VJ with Maxey. Even with Maxey's shooting improvements; they are two very similar guards in terms of their preferred style of play for putting pressure on the rim. I don't see them being able to playoff of each other as naturally as McCain and VJ. That's OK because Grimes does fit well with Maxey. It's just noted b/c I feel Ace fits in any scheme/rotation which in my book adds value over VJ if you find they are equal upside prospects.

This would give VJ time to work on his handle/vision/passing to become a more complete two-way guard. So there's immediate value to the team now with goal of ultimate value later down the line.

[Black Mage]

The more I look at Tre; the more I can't help but keep thinking of Lou Williams (in his prime) a spark plug 6th man off the bench for this team. I've been trying to find a good breakdown of how Steph Curry played in his Freshman year at Davidson. Not saying he's Steph, but I am curious to see how they compared freshman to freshman while keeping in mind Tre did it at Texas whereas Steph was only in Davidson.

If anyone get find a site that has that info for me that'd be awesome.

[Mik317]

the thing with the guard or guard sized guys is that they do technically fill a need as you do need 4 guards anyway....especially for 82 games

the current lineup is
Maxey/MCCain
Grimes
PG/Oubre/Edwards
Yabu
Biid/Bona

I assume Gordon wants out but would be dumb to turn down his option. Drummond probably wants back sadly. Butler probably returns but is just a guy imo

so we have rotation spots at the 2 and 4 at minimum imo

So I don't worry about "fit" for the guard sized dudes at this point....hell Grimes may get a bag and leave for all we know, Maxey has been banged up every year and McCain is coming off a shortened season himself. Having youthful bodies with upside there is waaay better than the corpses we had to rely on this year

[Black Mage]

Going through the pros and cons of every prospect, I think I'm quite firmly in the Tre Johnson camp. Which surprises me, because typically I like two-way guys with high IQ. I'd love to have Edgecombe and Murray-Boyles on the team, but the upside of Tre is more important to me.

If you view him as a potential wing/SF, suddenly his C&S shooting, off ball movement and off the dribble shooting are not just good, but elite? He can fly around screens, shoot effortlessly from 25 feet, shoot stepbacks and a really important factor is that his release point is quite high. It's not a Buddy Hield situation that his lower release point limits the shooting volume in the NBA.

I mean, what 6'6'' wing that's reasonably athletic had a shooting/scoring season like him in the last ~10 years, given volume, efficiency and difficulty of shots?
These statistical outliers are important to me if you look for upside. It's especially impressive if you factor in his context. It's not a high volume/efficiency year for Kentucky or Duke filled with playmakers that draw attention.

The shooting will translate and if he's capable of making shots on the move, defenders will be forced to play very aggressive on him. That will open up the court. I do think that he's shown enough flashes that there's a potential Booker/Herro development path in which he gradually takes more on-ball responsibilities throughout his career.

Question is, whether he can fill his 6'6'' frame (6'10'' wingspan) enough to be strong enough to play as a true wing and whether he has willingness and IQ to be passable on defense. Based on his interviews he says the right things, so I would love to see how he develops when he's in a gym with guys like Maxey.

If folks here scoffed at Ace's statement that he's a good passer they should double over in laughter at Tre saying he's a developing two-way player. Watching more of Tre; there are times he just gets blown by even when appearing to lock-in b/c he doesn't have that quick twitch hip movement which also comes out a bit in his offensive game. It's bizarre b/c Tre tested really well in lane agility.

[Black Mage]

[x]

Read on Twitter

?s=46&t=bJcUtOCSwzTqqyZgysWpbQ[/x]

Good, as much as I’ve been trashing t everyone around this pick, I feel like it’ll end up being good for our future because Bailey is simply too alluring of a prospect for teams to not want to trade up. If we can move back a few spots and build back some future assets, then we easily won this draft.

I’m expecting the Jazz to be particularly interested for some reason.

#5, #21 (I want any excuse to have a shot at Fleming) and PHX 2031 unprotected. Still lands one of Tre/Vj/Ace. I'm good with that.

[Black Mage]

I find Ace Bailey to have a poor basketball IQ, he struggles with making reads, which is why he can’t consistently tell the difference between a good shot and a bad one, or when to shoot versus when to pass. He’s even often lost on defense, a lot of times caught ball watching. He just hunts for stocks.

I also think the people behind him will push hard for him to have a major role, similar to what happened with Kuminga. That hope of him buying into a smaller role, like Kuminga or Wiggins, probably won’t happen until he secures a max contract.

Even in interviews, he doesn’t come across as particularly sharp.

If the lost on defense is coming from that Ceiling Floor scout video; I know the segment you are referencing and I don't think the reviewer actually realized the real mistake. Ace was left on an island in the corner with 2 guys; the other Rutgers defender didn't know where to go or what to do but aimlessly ran away to find "his man" not realizing in a broken play that he was supposed to cover the corner guy. Ace was aware and tried to watch both the corner guy and the guy coming out to the arc and while checking the arc guy the corner guy cut to the basket taking up the space the other clueless Rutgers defender had vacated.

The reviewer was overly critical on that and frankly, watching his other vids of other prospects, I felt he often criticized Ace for things he glossed over for the other prospects. Look Ace ain't perfect, but in that one moment where the reviewer said he gets lost; Ace wasn't lost, he was trying to tag 2 players while his teammate just ran away. To me that exemplifies that dog-sh** coaching that was Rutgers.

[the_process]

trading down is probably the smart move

but **** the smart move lol.

It will be a sign that they still expect they can truly compete next year imo.

I think Tari Eason is neat but trading all the way down to 10, potentially missing out on guys bu-but it makes the team better short term is just not what I want to be hearing right now....even if it is probably the "correct" move.

Be a man; take a guy at 3 and move like he is going to be that dude...lol I'd be fired so fast lol

To be fair, Tatum tearing his achilles has sent shockwaves throughout the East and we have as good a chance of making the Finals (if we stay healthy) as any of these other teams. Also there's the part that Morey and Nurse want to remain employed with the Sixers.

This is the fallacy Daryl needs to avoid if he wants to remain employed by the Sixers (honestly, he doesn't really have to worry about that, another team would hire him right away).

Joel, for all intents and purposes, is toast. It's not realistic to build two teams, one with and one without Joel. They need to build without Joel, and then if he's healthy enough to play some the onus is on Joel to fit in. Or he can fit out elsewhere.

[Iverson Armband]

trading down is probably the smart move

but **** the smart move lol.

It will be a sign that they still expect they can truly compete next year imo.

I think Tari Eason is neat but trading all the way down to 10, potentially missing out on guys bu-but it makes the team better short term is just not what I want to be hearing right now....even if it is probably the "correct" move.

Be a man; take a guy at 3 and move like he is going to be that dude...lol I'd be fired so fast lol

To be fair, Tatum tearing his achilles has sent shockwaves throughout the East and we have as good a chance of making the Finals (if we stay healthy) as any of these other teams. Also there's the part that Morey and Nurse want to remain employed with the Sixers.

Embiid and PG as your best players cannot be relied upon to make any type of Finals run. I don’t care who is injured in the East.

[Negrodamus]

trading down is probably the smart move

but **** the smart move lol.

It will be a sign that they still expect they can truly compete next year imo.

I think Tari Eason is neat but trading all the way down to 10, potentially missing out on guys bu-but it makes the team better short term is just not what I want to be hearing right now....even if it is probably the "correct" move.

Be a man; take a guy at 3 and move like he is going to be that dude...lol I'd be fired so fast lol

To be fair, Tatum tearing his achilles has sent shockwaves throughout the East and we have as good a chance of making the Finals (if we stay healthy) as any of these other teams. Also there's the part that Morey and Nurse want to remain employed with the Sixers.

This is the fallacy Daryl needs to avoid if he wants to remain employed by the Sixers (honestly, he doesn't really have to worry about that, another team would hire him right away).

Joel, for all intents and purposes, is toast. It's not realistic to build two teams, one with and one without Joel. They need to build without Joel, and then if he's healthy enough to play some the onus is on Joel to fit in. Or he can fit out elsewhere.

Everyone was buzzing about at least one of Nurse and Morey losing their job this offseason. If they don't make the playoffs, then they're going to lose their jobs. If Joel is healthy enough and they make the playoffs but lose in the first or second round, there's still a case to lose their jobs.

That said, I think they can trade down with an eye on the future. In fact, adding future picks would be a more savvy and longterm view than taking Ace Bailey and crossing your fingers that he figures things out.

[Stanford]

The Ace Bailey option in the poll should be renamed "don't overthink it."