NBA Draft 2024

[RedIndian]

So what are we expecting tomorrow? We stand pat at #56 or do we try move back higher into the 2nd round to try and get Kolek?

Utah at #32, Portland with #34 and #40, Minnesota with #37 and Charlotte with #42 could all be trade partners I think.

I think one possible deal could be Little + 3 2nds for Nick Richards + #42.

If Tyler Kolek or Ajay Mitchell (both of whom we worked out) are available at #42, I think that's something we'll look at. We've obviously liked Richards (lots of reports about that), and he's one of the few attainable pieces with the Little contract.

The other deal of course would Little for Kessler. But Ainge would certainly ask for the 2031 pick, and I'd imagine we want to preserve that for a genuine difference maker. What a pity we couldn't get in on the Avdija deal. 2 1sts is what it took to get him, and we should have offered that.

I think James Jones did a terrific job trading #22 for his guy + 3 2nds but I think he is done making trades in this draft.

Bronny James IF he is available at #56. If Bronny is gone I think we will select an old prospect for that 15th roster spot.

Might not make any draft trades, but I definitely think we'll be shopping Nas Little, and possibly even Nurk.

[Revived]

I see a lot of people talking about how Dunn needs to develop his three point shot, however I hope that our coaching staff can utilize him in more creative ways.

Dunn is reportedly good at cutting to the basket and finishing around the rim. He has the length of a power forward so should be able to finish over most defenders.

If our strategy on offense is to just camp anyone not named Booker, KD or Beal around the three point line and bomb away open threes, then why even have a coaching staff. I can come up with that. We need to run plays that play into our player's strengths.

Look, I wrote extensively about the list of guys I'd have taken at #22. My favourite pick was actually DaRon Holmes.

I also said specifically that I wouldn't draft Dunn because of his egregious shot, but I think people need to appreciate how special of a defensive prospect he is. He isn't Thybulle or just a larger Okogie. He's a DPOY calibre prospect. I'd compare him with Mobley, AD, Marion, Kirilenko in the type of prospect he is. Sam Vecenie literally called him the best defensive player he's seen in a decade.

If he could shoot (or do anything offensively), he'd have been the #1 pick in this draft.

Yeah, his shooting will likely suck forever. But he's going to give us some electrifying moments. THAT's worth getting behind.

And Fwiw, just to be hopeful, a few things:

1. His high school tape showed a lot more promise for him offensively. Some flashes of dribbling, self-creation and passing that you didn't see in college. Tony Bennett at Virginia is notorious for running a very rigid offensive scheme.

2. He's an excellent cutter and finisher. Took 60% of his shots at the rim, and converted 69% (outstanding number for a wing). Isn't just athletic and explosive with his dunks, but he's very good at timing his cuts and slips. So while he won't shoot in year 1, look for him to generate points on lobs, screens and cuts - he's already very good at this.

https://www.si.com/nba/suns/analysis/grading-phoenix-suns-first-round-moves

Dunn is a high-impact defender and phenomenal athlete that can slot into a rotational spot right away to play crucial minutes as a POA (point of attack) defender with hope that the offensive game will develop at the next level.

First-Round Grade: A-
The Suns traded down, added more flexibility moving forward, and got the prospect they were likely the highest on. The Suns also have an opportunity to move up and get a prospect they like this afternoon - so stay tuned.

Shhhhhh. We're in the "hate anything the Suns do" mode now. Don't ruin that with positivity. Shhhhhh.

Seriously, no matter who was taken certain guys here would bash us. If somehow we had managed to get Sarr for a 2031 SRP, posters here would find a way to crap on it.

A lot of these dudes don't even watch college ball. Dunn was a good and needed pick for the team.

And guess what Slimm? People here have been right for like 5 or 6 years consecutively now.

People on this forum are 10x smarter than the idiotic dumb*** making the picks or any Suns FO moves, James Jones.

And that’s a sad thing cause nobody here gets paid to do this for a living while James Jones is a former nba player who gets paid millions and millions of dollars for making horrific front office decisions.

[Revived]

Thybulle is 6'5 and can't play over the rim like Dunn.

Thybulle is more like a Raja Bell type of defender but he hasn't developed a good 3p shooting yet.

Dunn can be compared to Marion on defense because of his skills/mentality/high motor and his same measurements...6'7 and around 7'2 wingspan and 215 lbs.

That bigger size will make him more versatile and easier for him to be an impactful player on both sides of the court.

Thybulle has improved his 3PT shooting. It's not the most consistent but these past two seasons he's averaged 36% from 3 on almost 3 attempts a game. Also shot 38% on corner 3's. He's also improved on his FT shooting to comfortably above 70%. That's respectable but despite all that, he's still only averaging 7 FGA per36 for his career. He's essentially still treated as a non-factor on that end.

Thybulle is an elite defender, at the NBA level, and the only reason he doesn't get more PT is because he's still a negative on the offensive end. These will be the same issues Dunn will have to contend with when he gets to the NBA

Well, like I said Thybulle isn't a good comparison because he can't be used as a cutter or in the dunker spot because he can't finish at the rim with authority like Ryan Dunn.

At 6'5 Thybulle would need to score over 40% from three to be solid on offense because he isn't a lob threat or a crazy finisher in transition.

I want to give you an example...Derrick Jones Jr doesn't "need" to be that good at the 3p line to be useful on offense because he adds other stuff to his team with his athleticism, height and length.

Was Derrick Jones Jr a first round pick?

[mkot]

6'6" Wing 7'2 Wingspan with 32" vertical super athlete but literally zero offensive game, people been talking about him like he is the best defensive wing to come into the draft in the last decade. He have games where he had 7 blocks, 5 blocks multiple times and a game with 7 steals. He is the type of defenders that constantly "attack" his opponent ala Jaden McDaniels ala Herb Jones ala Alex Caruso. If he can consistently get 15-20 minute a game the next season under Bud, he could be in the top 3 of best shot blocking forward in the league ala Peyton Watson this season, a guy who averages 3 points coming out of college.

[Puff]

Dunn plays defense and rebounds the ball. Now, if he can get the Matrix to teach him his funky 3 point shot, we could have just struck gold.

Now please find a three point shooting free agent big that can rebound to back up Nurk. Who is that going to be?

Oh yeah a point guard would be nice as well. How you do those things, I could care less. Just get it done.

[RedIndian]

Dunn plays defense and rebounds the ball. Now, if he can get the Matrix to teach him his funky 3 point shot, we could have just struck gold.

Now please find a three point shooting free agent big that can rebound to back up Nurk. Who is that going to be?

Oh yeah a point guard would be nice as well. How you do those things, I could care less. Just get it done.

For the Nassir Little contract, 3 options:

Davion Mitchell - Kings just drafted Devin Carter, and re-signed Monk. They're definitely not giving Mitchell a rookie extension, and will likely trade him. I'm not the biggest Mitchell fan tbh. Kings completely cut him out of their playoff rotation. His defense is good, but he's small. Now he shot the 3 ball well last year (and also in college) - so if he can hit that at a good volume, it might be worth trading for him at a low cost. Little for Mitchell straight up.

Nick Richards - likely will require us to give up some 2nds in addition to the Little contract. Gives us a vertical threat and length behind Nurkic. Very good screener and rebounder too, though not exactly highly switchable (prolly better than Nurk though)

Sasha Vezenkov - low key one of my fav targets. He got limited playing time last year, but Kings fans really liked him when he played. Good size at 6'9, 7'1 wingspan. Can use him in screen and pop actions, he's a smart team defender. I think another bigman shooter would do wonders in the Bud offense. Would also help us play Dunn more if we get another shooting big. Dean Wade is another guy in this mould who would fit the Little contract, but I don't think we can ever do business with the Cavs with the Ishbia-Gilbert rivalry.

[Saberestar]

Thybulle has improved his 3PT shooting. It's not the most consistent but these past two seasons he's averaged 36% from 3 on almost 3 attempts a game. Also shot 38% on corner 3's. He's also improved on his FT shooting to comfortably above 70%. That's respectable but despite all that, he's still only averaging 7 FGA per36 for his career. He's essentially still treated as a non-factor on that end.

Thybulle is an elite defender, at the NBA level, and the only reason he doesn't get more PT is because he's still a negative on the offensive end. These will be the same issues Dunn will have to contend with when he gets to the NBA

Well, like I said Thybulle isn't a good comparison because he can't be used as a cutter or in the dunker spot because he can't finish at the rim with authority like Ryan Dunn.

At 6'5 Thybulle would need to score over 40% from three to be solid on offense because he isn't a lob threat or a crazy finisher in transition.

I want to give you an example...Derrick Jones Jr doesn't "need" to be that good at the 3p line to be useful on offense because he adds other stuff to his team with his athleticism, height and length.

Was Derrick Jones Jr a first round pick?

He was undrafted, every player has his own path.

Herb Jones was #35 and OG Anunoby was #23, so you can say that Dunn being picked at #28 makes a lot of sense taking into account his NBA comparisons.

[mkot]

Dunn plays defense and rebounds the ball. Now, if he can get the Matrix to teach him his funky 3 point shot, we could have just struck gold.

Chances are he won't and that's why he dropped all the way to our lap. Shooting below 60% from FT line is very telling, teams just aren't gonna guard him and he may become unplayable at times because of this shortcoming. I think we just have to be realistic about it. A wing who can't shoot is hard to get meaningful minutes in today's league.

[Saberestar]

Dunn plays defense and rebounds the ball. Now, if he can get the Matrix to teach him his funky 3 point shot, we could have just struck gold.

Now please find a three point shooting free agent big that can rebound to back up Nurk. Who is that going to be?

Oh yeah a point guard would be nice as well. How you do those things, I could care less. Just get it done.

For the Nassir Little contract, 3 options:

Davion Mitchell - Kings just drafted Devin Carter, and re-signed Monk. They're definitely not giving Mitchell a rookie extension, and will likely trade him. I'm not the biggest Mitchell fan tbh. Kings completely cut him out of their playoff rotation. His defense is good, but he's small. Now he shot the 3 ball well last year (and also in college) - so if he can hit that at a good volume, it might be worth trading for him at a low cost. Little for Mitchell straight up.

Nick Richards - likely will require us to give up some 2nds in addition to the Little contract. Gives us a vertical threat and length behind Nurkic. Very good screener and rebounder too, though not exactly highly switchable (prolly better than Nurk though)

Sasha Vezenkov - low key one of my fav targets. He got limited playing time last year, but Kings fans really liked him when he played. Good size at 6'9, 7'1 wingspan. Can use him in screen and pop actions, he's a smart team defender. I think another bigman shooter would do wonders in the Bud offense. Would also help us play Dunn more if we get another shooting big. Dean Wade is another guy in this mould who would fit the Little contract, but I don't think we can ever do business with the Cavs with the Ishbia-Gilbert rivalry.

Davion Mitchell all the way for me.

Little + 2 2nds could be enough? Little has 3 years left on his contract, I doubt they would agree without picks.

[RedIndian]

Dunn plays defense and rebounds the ball. Now, if he can get the Matrix to teach him his funky 3 point shot, we could have just struck gold.

Now please find a three point shooting free agent big that can rebound to back up Nurk. Who is that going to be?

Oh yeah a point guard would be nice as well. How you do those things, I could care less. Just get it done.

For the Nassir Little contract, 3 options:

Davion Mitchell - Kings just drafted Devin Carter, and re-signed Monk. They're definitely not giving Mitchell a rookie extension, and will likely trade him. I'm not the biggest Mitchell fan tbh. Kings completely cut him out of their playoff rotation. His defense is good, but he's small. Now he shot the 3 ball well last year (and also in college) - so if he can hit that at a good volume, it might be worth trading for him at a low cost. Little for Mitchell straight up.

Nick Richards - likely will require us to give up some 2nds in addition to the Little contract. Gives us a vertical threat and length behind Nurkic. Very good screener and rebounder too, though not exactly highly switchable (prolly better than Nurk though)

Sasha Vezenkov - low key one of my fav targets. He got limited playing time last year, but Kings fans really liked him when he played. Good size at 6'9, 7'1 wingspan. Can use him in screen and pop actions, he's a smart team defender. I think another bigman shooter would do wonders in the Bud offense. Would also help us play Dunn more if we get another shooting big. Dean Wade is another guy in this mould who would fit the Little contract, but I don't think we can ever do business with the Cavs with the Ishbia-Gilbert rivalry.

Davion Mitchell all the way for me.

Little + 2 2nds could be enough? Little has 3 years left on his contract.

In my books, Little is the more valuable player. Mitchell has not been good at all for the Kings - they literally cut him out of their rotation, and with Carter and Monk and Ellis, everyone knows there's no room for Mitchell and that the Kings won't pay him.

Little actually is a playable wing - he was quite decent at Portland. Not sure why Vogel didn't give him any burn. And the Kings actually need a bench wing. Plus he's on a decent deal for 3 more years.

I wouldn't attach any picks - Little for Mitchell straight up, or I'd just look for a better deal.

[Saberestar]

For the Nassir Little contract, 3 options:

Davion Mitchell - Kings just drafted Devin Carter, and re-signed Monk. They're definitely not giving Mitchell a rookie extension, and will likely trade him. I'm not the biggest Mitchell fan tbh. Kings completely cut him out of their playoff rotation. His defense is good, but he's small. Now he shot the 3 ball well last year (and also in college) - so if he can hit that at a good volume, it might be worth trading for him at a low cost. Little for Mitchell straight up.

Nick Richards - likely will require us to give up some 2nds in addition to the Little contract. Gives us a vertical threat and length behind Nurkic. Very good screener and rebounder too, though not exactly highly switchable (prolly better than Nurk though)

Sasha Vezenkov - low key one of my fav targets. He got limited playing time last year, but Kings fans really liked him when he played. Good size at 6'9, 7'1 wingspan. Can use him in screen and pop actions, he's a smart team defender. I think another bigman shooter would do wonders in the Bud offense. Would also help us play Dunn more if we get another shooting big. Dean Wade is another guy in this mould who would fit the Little contract, but I don't think we can ever do business with the Cavs with the Ishbia-Gilbert rivalry.

Davion Mitchell all the way for me.

Little + 2 2nds could be enough? Little has 3 years left on his contract.

In my books, Little is the more valuable player. Mitchell has not been good at all for the Kings - they literally cut him out of their rotation, and with Carter and Monk and Ellis, everyone knows there's no room for Mitchell and that the Kings won't pay him.

Little actually is a playable wing - he was quite decent at Portland. Not sure why Vogel didn't give him any burn. And the Kings actually need a bench wing. Plus he's on a decent deal for 3 more years.

I wouldn't attach any picks - Little for Mitchell straight up, or I'd just look for a better deal.

I would love that to be true and get Davion Mitchell straight up for Little, the problem is that Sacto can get someone similar to Little on a minimum deal. He didn't play well enough when he had minutes for us and then he had injuries (again).

D.Mitchell 1year/$6.5M and Little 3years/$21.3M. Big difference.

[sunsbg]

Dunn plays defense and rebounds the ball. Now, if he can get the Matrix to teach him his funky 3 point shot, we could have just struck gold.

Now please find a three point shooting free agent big that can rebound to back up Nurk. Who is that going to be?

Oh yeah a point guard would be nice as well. How you do those things, I could care less. Just get it done.

For the Nassir Little contract, 3 options:

Davion Mitchell - Kings just drafted Devin Carter, and re-signed Monk. They're definitely not giving Mitchell a rookie extension, and will likely trade him. I'm not the biggest Mitchell fan tbh. Kings completely cut him out of their playoff rotation. His defense is good, but he's small. Now he shot the 3 ball well last year (and also in college) - so if he can hit that at a good volume, it might be worth trading for him at a low cost. Little for Mitchell straight up.

Nick Richards - likely will require us to give up some 2nds in addition to the Little contract. Gives us a vertical threat and length behind Nurkic. Very good screener and rebounder too, though not exactly highly switchable (prolly better than Nurk though)

Sasha Vezenkov - low key one of my fav targets. He got limited playing time last year, but Kings fans really liked him when he played. Good size at 6'9, 7'1 wingspan. Can use him in screen and pop actions, he's a smart team defender. I think another bigman shooter would do wonders in the Bud offense. Would also help us play Dunn more if we get another shooting big. Dean Wade is another guy in this mould who would fit the Little contract, but I don't think we can ever do business with the Cavs with the Ishbia-Gilbert rivalry.

I proposed countryman Vezenkov once the news came out that he wants out of Sac because of lack of playing time. His and Nassir's contracts match perfectly. He's a better player and was treated a bit unfair by Brown playing his favourites though per-36 stats were comparable to those of Barnes and Lyles. Injury was also a factor as he was hitting 50% on 3s last few weeks before that. Read on Kings board he was among the leaders in deflections so team D is not bad. Was used a lot as SF, though he's more a PF, and being slow footed and not used to defending faster players in NBA he's below average as individual defender. I think if Grayson was not on the team he'd be a great get, but they are kinda similar players - shooters with suspect D.

I wouldn't give picks for Mitchell. Kings got a better player in Elis in undrafted range. Straight up for Little, why not if there are no better options.

[garrick]

Dunn plays defense and rebounds the ball. Now, if he can get the Matrix to teach him his funky 3 point shot, we could have just struck gold.

Chances are he won't and that's why he dropped all the way to our lap. Shooting below 60% from FT line is very telling, teams just aren't gonna guard him and he may become unplayable at times because of this shortcoming. I think we just have to be realistic about it. A wing who can't shoot is hard to get meaningful minutes in today's league.

This is the most worrying part, he only increased his FT accuracy from .500 to .530 and of all the lock down defenders in recent years I can think of the worst was Jayln Brown at 65 percent.

Some of the lock down wings I can think of that come to mind and these are their college FT percentages.

Lu Dort 70%
J Brown 65%
Matisse Thybulle 78%
Mikail Bridges 84%

Maybe Derrick Jones Jr comes the closest at 57% and his NBA average is 70% but he has never averaged double figures and expectations for him were not that high coming into the league.

Anyway if Dunn is as productive as Derrick Jones JR that would be a win picking so late in the draft but like all things there's no way to know if the right decision was made until much later in the future.

[lilfishi22]

Dunn plays defense and rebounds the ball. Now, if he can get the Matrix to teach him his funky 3 point shot, we could have just struck gold.

Chances are he won't and that's why he dropped all the way to our lap. Shooting below 60% from FT line is very telling, teams just aren't gonna guard him and he may become unplayable at times because of this shortcoming. I think we just have to be realistic about it. A wing who can't shoot is hard to get meaningful minutes in today's league.

Yeah but he's a cutter and a dunker spot guy who can fill the lanes on transition.........like an ex-defensive 1st teamer who was also a notorious non-shooter and poor FT shooter but his elite playmaking and defense got him a max contract. Guess who that is

I'll just say that I'm glad we traded down and got some extra assets to take Dunn at #28 because at least there's some sleeper potential there. And if he busts...hey no one will ever remember or talk about a #28 pick busting anyway and we got a few 2nds out of it which could lead to something else

[KdoubleDees23]

Bronny James is horrible. I feel bad for any team drafting him because of his Daddy!

[garrick]

Dunn plays defense and rebounds the ball. Now, if he can get the Matrix to teach him his funky 3 point shot, we could have just struck gold.

Chances are he won't and that's why he dropped all the way to our lap. Shooting below 60% from FT line is very telling, teams just aren't gonna guard him and he may become unplayable at times because of this shortcoming. I think we just have to be realistic about it. A wing who can't shoot is hard to get meaningful minutes in today's league.

Yeah but he's a cutter and a dunker spot guy who can fill the lanes on transition.........like an ex-defensive 1st teamer who was also a notorious non-shooter and poor FT shooter but his elite playmaking and defense got him a max contract. Guess who that is

I'll just say that I'm glad we traded down and got some extra assets to take Dunn at #28 because at least there's some sleeper potential there. And if he busts...hey no one will ever remember or talk about a #28 pick busting anyway and we got a few 2nds out of it which could lead to something else

On the other hand if Holmes or any of the players we passed up turn up to be studs then we will be kicking ourselves for trading down to #28 in a year where it was crucial that we nailed the right player.

[sunsbg]

Bronny James is horrible. I feel bad for any team drafting him because of his Daddy!

Why would anyone want him if Lebron signs 3y contract the Lakers are supposedly offering him.

[King4Day]

So what are we expecting tomorrow? We stand pat at #56 or do we try move back higher into the 2nd round to try and get Kolek?

Utah at #32, Portland with #34 and #40, Minnesota with #37 and Charlotte with #42 could all be trade partners I think.

I think one possible deal could be Little + 3 2nds for Nick Richards + #42.

If Tyler Kolek or Ajay Mitchell (both of whom we worked out) are available at #42, I think that's something we'll look at. We've obviously liked Richards (lots of reports about that), and he's one of the few attainable pieces with the Little contract.

The other deal of course would Little for Kessler. But Ainge would certainly ask for the 2031 pick, and I'd imagine we want to preserve that for a genuine difference maker. What a pity we couldn't get in on the Avdija deal. 2 1sts is what it took to get him, and we should have offered that.

Man, if we were able to pull that off and draft Kolek, I would actually be excited for next season.

[sunsbg]

On the other hand if Holmes or any of the players we passed up turn up to be studs then we will be kicking ourselves for trading down to #28 in a year where it was crucial that we nailed the right player.

Apparently they were not high enough on anyone to draft him with #22. If someone becomes a stud it only means a lot of teams were not able to project it. Nothing to kick ourserlves about as we'll never know who Jones would've picked at 22 if no trading down. Likely it's Dunn and no additional assets in this case.

[KdoubleDees23]

If you were Bronny would you even be excited if the Lakers selected you? I feel like I would be upset as the only reason a team grabbed me was because my dad. Like did he earn it or is that Lebron making picks? I would be more pleased if any other team drafted me