Draft Watch 2018

[KF10]

I think it is very difficult to squeeze more than 4 players out of this roster that can be considered useful for a good team in the NBA.

Contrary to common belief, I don’t believe we are all that talented at all.

If I was Vlade, I’m taking BPA no matter what with the Kings’ own pick.

I wish we make a play for another draft pick too.

[kalenclayton]

I think it is very difficult to squeeze more than 4 players out of this roster that can be considered useful for a good team in the NBA.

Contrary to common belief, I don’t believe we are all that talented at all.

If I was Vlade, I’m taking BPA no matter what with the Kings’ own pick.

I wish we make a play for another draft pick too.

Are you talking currently or in the future? Currently, I think you are close. I see Temple, Koufos, Fox, Randolph, Hill, Bogdanovic, and Hield being useful on a good team. It all just depends on the team style for each of them.

For the future, who knows? I know Fox and Bogdanovic will be useful for the future. The rest are too young and inexperienced for us to know.

[KF10]

I think it is very difficult to squeeze more than 4 players out of this roster that can be considered useful for a good team in the NBA.

Contrary to common belief, I don’t believe we are all that talented at all.

If I was Vlade, I’m taking BPA no matter what with the Kings’ own pick.

I wish we make a play for another draft pick too.

Are you talking currently or in the future? Currently, I think you are close. I see Temple, Koufos, Fox, Randolph, Hill, Bogdanovic, and Hield being useful on a good team. It all just depends on the team style for each of them.

For the future, who knows? I know Fox and Bogdanovic will be useful for the future. The rest are too young and inexperienced for us to know.

Future.

This is simply based off my interpretation of the given talent on the roster.

[kingjawn100]

I think it is very difficult to squeeze more than 4 players out of this roster that can be considered useful for a good team in the NBA.

Contrary to common belief, I don’t believe we are all that talented at all.

If I was Vlade, I’m taking BPA no matter what with the Kings’ own pick.

I wish we make a play for another draft pick too.

Are you talking currently or in the future? Currently, I think you are close. I see Temple, Koufos, Fox, Randolph, Hill, Bogdanovic, and Hield being useful on a good team. It all just depends on the team style for each of them.

For the future, who knows? I know Fox and Bogdanovic will be useful for the future. The rest are too young and inexperienced for us to know.

Look at it this way. The Warriors, Celtics and Rockets are probably the 3 most likely title contenders in the league this year. i don't think 1 player on our roster would start for any of those teams. Looking down the road i see Fox as probably our only player who i could see as a starter on a title contender. I love Willie's improvement but there's no way i could see him being the starting center on a title winning team. Bogi and Buddy's athletic limitations would keep them mostly as specialists. It's like we have a team filled with great bench players but very few real starters. No-brainer to me...take BPA.

[kingjawn100]

Also i've gotta say...this year's draft looks great on paper but to me is pretty overrated if you want immediate help. Some thoughts after watching games this weekend...

AYTON; Alarming deficiencies on defense. Much smaller players are able to score on him way too often. Not sure id call him the most intense player in the world either. if you're gonna be a somewhat traditional big in the modern NBA you better effect the game a ton on the defensive end and i'm not sure he does.

BAGLEY: Not a rim protector at all. Him next to Willie would be maddening defensively. This duke team plays atrocious defense and he's one of the main culprits. He may mesh well with Fox's up-tempo style but Joerger doesn't seem all that into running.

YOUNG: Sure he leads the country in assists but he also leads the country in turnovers and his shot selection is just awful sometimes. He's listed as 6'2" but there's no way in hell he measures that tall. The defense also is pretty non-existant. I don't see any team being ok with him chucking up 35 foot 3's 8 seconds into the shot clock all game (which is a huge part of his game). Also not a great fit next to Fox.

BAMBA: He seems a good 3 years away from making a significant impact as an NBA player. Raw on offense and even worse he seems like a guy who doesn't always play hard. The Gobert comparisons dont really work for me for that reason. Someone's gonna draft him top 5 and look really bad the first couple of years.

The Kings lack creators on offense which to me is why Porter (assuming he's healthy) and Doncic would top my list. In today's nba ball handlers are much more valuable than predominantly low post big men. Ayton is intriguing but if he's not helping you on defense at that size how much is he really helping you?

Wendell Carter Jr might be the most nba ready player in the entire draft but there's not a ton of upside there.

[LightTheBeam]

I think people are quick to forget that at one point Crawford was close to star level. Still, Crawford is a bad comp for Fox. If Fox could eventually shoot like Crawford he'll be a superstar with the physical tools he's has. And Buddy is a bad comparison for Crawford as well. Crawford was always a combo guard who would shoot first and pass later. Buddy is a true SG/wing. Different types of players.

I wasnt disrespecting Crawford as a player just saying the comparison is way way off.

Buddy strikes me as a bad version of Klay. Shouldn't be creating his own shot, but excels in spotting up. He also has the potential to be a real good defender.

I see the Wall comparisons in Fox the more he plays. This guy has the ability to be 10 feet behind the defender in the open court and still beat them to the rim. Hes becoming a better and better finisher, he sets his teammates up well. And he can be a pest on the ball. His midrange almost reminds me of a younger Westbrook. Im probably being a bit optimistic but that is much closer to what I see than Crawford.

And what's frustrating is that when allowed to run pick and roll he's potentially elite. If you notice, a lot of the time Buddy gets the ball with very little time to work. He's also been very unselfish. He's not great at creating but the stuttered, start and stop opportunities to create that he gets won't help his development. The truth is he's by far the only player on the team capable of truly going off. Why he gets 20 mpg and 8 shots some games is a question that should revolve around the lack of coaching intelligence of the team itself. I see them run more double screen action to the elbow for Temple than Buddy. WTF is that? It's no wonder this team is looking like azz. This is why you have to have a coach that knows scouting and personnel.

Yup he had a beautiful come around that night. It was ray allen-esque. But for some reason like you said coach prefers to give Temple 10 shots a night. Crazy.

[nolimit0820]

It's an equal opportunity offense unfortunately. I think it's the age old debste...adapt to your player personnel or players adapt to your system. I have no clue why Fox isn't it a pick and roll situation at least 50 percent of the time...he's already showing his high iq and willingness to get others involved

[408Kings]

I wasnt disrespecting Crawford as a player just saying the comparison is way way off.

Buddy strikes me as a bad version of Klay. Shouldn't be creating his own shot, but excels in spotting up. He also has the potential to be a real good defender.

I see the Wall comparisons in Fox the more he plays. This guy has the ability to be 10 feet behind the defender in the open court and still beat them to the rim. Hes becoming a better and better finisher, he sets his teammates up well. And he can be a pest on the ball. His midrange almost reminds me of a younger Westbrook. Im probably being a bit optimistic but that is much closer to what I see than Crawford.

And what's frustrating is that when allowed to run pick and roll he's potentially elite. If you notice, a lot of the time Buddy gets the ball with very little time to work. He's also been very unselfish. He's not great at creating but the stuttered, start and stop opportunities to create that he gets won't help his development. The truth is he's by far the only player on the team capable of truly going off. Why he gets 20 mpg and 8 shots some games is a question that should revolve around the lack of coaching intelligence of the team itself. I see them run more double screen action to the elbow for Temple than Buddy. WTF is that? It's no wonder this team is looking like azz. This is why you have to have a coach that knows scouting and personnel.

Yup he had a beautiful come around that night. It was ray allen-esque. But for some reason like you said coach prefers to give Temple 10 shots a night. Crazy.

Maybe they're trying to showcase Temple's other skills to potential trade partners before the deadline?

[City of Trees]

Isaac Bonga looks legit.

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[UcanUwill]

Serious question for anyone who watches euro ball a lot...how much better does Doncic project to be in the NBA than Bogi? Just from the vids i've seen and everything i've heard he doesn't seem like a generational talent to me. Much morseo a safe/high floor pick.

The Kings are so far away from being a title contender that if we had the choice we should chose Ayton. He's the one guy in this draft that could revitalize the entire franchise. imagine Ayton/WCS/a healthy Giles in the front court along with Fox and Bogi in the backcourt. Not sure how many wins that gets you next year but it would be a very fun team to watch.

I wasn't very high on Bogdan, hes been better than I anticipated. Bogdan was very good in Euroleague, but Doncic at 18 already having a better season. Of course that doesn't prove much, but just breaking down, Doncic has better handle, better playmaking ability and better finishing ability. He is a point guard who can also play off ball fine, he looked very good alongside Dragic this summer. Doncic however is pretty bad athlete and his ceiling is questionable, he also relies far too much on step back 3s since he struggles passing by his defenders. His biggest selling point right now is the fact that he is so young and already dominating Euroleague competition. That hasn't happened in like ever. If he was couple years older, he would still get plenty of hype, as hes playing at EL MVP level, but I think people would be far more critical and conservative about him. Of course you can say that in couple of years, Doncic will be much better that he is now, but that just a prognosis.

[kingjawn100]

Serious question for anyone who watches euro ball a lot...how much better does Doncic project to be in the NBA than Bogi? Just from the vids i've seen and everything i've heard he doesn't seem like a generational talent to me. Much morseo a safe/high floor pick.

The Kings are so far away from being a title contender that if we had the choice we should chose Ayton. He's the one guy in this draft that could revitalize the entire franchise. imagine Ayton/WCS/a healthy Giles in the front court along with Fox and Bogi in the backcourt. Not sure how many wins that gets you next year but it would be a very fun team to watch.

I wasn't very high on Bogdan, hes been better than I anticipated. Bogdan was very good in Euroleague, but Doncic at 18 already having a better season. Of course that doesn't prove much, but just breaking down, Doncic has better handle, better playmaking ability and better finishing ability. He is a point guard who can also play off ball fine, he looked very good alongside Dragic this summer. Doncic however is pretty bad athlete and his ceiling is questionable, he also relies far too much on step back 3s since he struggles passing by his defenders. His biggest selling point right now is the fact that he is so young and already dominating Euroleague competition. That hasn't happened in like ever. If he was couple years older, he would still get plenty of hype, as hes playing at EL MVP level, but I think people would be far more critical and conservative about him. Of course you can say that in couple of years, Doncic will be much better that he is now, but that just a prognosis.

But everything you said there would scare the hell out of me taking Luka #1 if we end up with the pick. He's young and will get better sure but he's not gonna suddenly get more athletic. If he cant blow by Euroleague comp he may really struggle getting by nba defenders. i look at the kings roster and see Fox reluctant to drive to the paint and Bogi and Buddy lacking the wiggle to get free of defenders...im not sure he'd be ideal for Sac.

[UcanUwill]

But everything you said there would scare the hell out of me taking Luka #1 if we end up with the pick. He's young and will get better sure but he's not gonna suddenly get more athletic. If he cant blow by Euroleague comp he may really struggle getting by nba defenders. i look at the kings roster and see Fox reluctant to drive to the paint and Bogi and Buddy lacking the wiggle to get free of defenders...im not sure he'd be ideal for Sac.

I hear you, but his handling is getting better, and one can argue that its actually easier to drive in the NBA, Europe court is not that wide and everyone packs the paint. He definitely shows flashes of Harden-esque plays.

Watch on YouTube

[kingjawn100]

The more i watch Ayton the more i wonder how effective he'd actually be in the modern NBA. 7-footers that aren't multi-positional fluid good ball-handlers like Anthony Davis & KAT and who cant shoot 3's like Porzingis/Dirk don't seem to be all that useful. And obviously if you don't have the passers to get him the ball that usefulness goes down considerably (Fox, while promising, is far from a pass first PG)

Defensively Ayton is far from a Rudy Gobert/Deandre type rim-protector . Last night i watched him give up tons of layups and get swatted and dunked on by smaller players.

I almost think of it as...how impactful would Patrick Ewing be in the modern NBA on a team like the Warriors? A lot of Ayton's game is mid-range jumpers and those are probably the least valuable shots in the NBA these days. Not to say that i wouldn't draft Ayton but id have serious reservations taking him #1 if the kings had the pick. I will say...one of the best things going for Ayton is for a guy that's gonna get fouled a ton in the pros, he is a 75% foul shooter so you don't really have to hide him/sub him out late in games.

To me, without question if Michael Porter is healthy he should go #1 in the draft. A 6'10 slasher that can do it all and play every position would be a no-brainer. A huge issue the kings might run into with Porter is that he can give his medical info to the teams of his liking and really control who drafts him. It's not really being talked about now but that's gonna be a huge factor down the line.

[Sacramento_King]

Michael Porter Jr may be cleared to practice soon and possibly return this year. As some have said, probably the best prospect if healthy and would fit great on our roster.

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/college/sec/university-of-missouri/article199342774.html

[kalenclayton]

Michael Porter Jr may be cleared to practice soon and possibly return this year. As some have said, probably the best prospect if healthy and would fit great on our roster.

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/college/sec/university-of-missouri/article199342774.html

If we land Porter, I will be over the moon. He would fit perfectly in the rebuild next to Fox.

[kingjawn100]

I will say this...the whole "Porter may play" thing is a bit suspicious. He has every reason in the world NOT to play this year in college and it's surprising that he would be healthy enough to play this soon after surgery. I'm among those who doubt he'll play.

My suspicion is that he'll make all these declarations that he's ready to play now (early February), then get held out the rest of the year for "precautionary reasons" to give the appearance come draft time (late June) that his back's been perfectly healthy for 5 months. That appearance is a lot more appealing to NBA teams than a guy who had back surgery who no one's seen or heard from in a year.

[76ciology]

Doncic should be number one on the list, guys like him who you can revolves your offense with are valuable in today’s game.

I’d then have Bamba second overall. He’s got upside and impact covered. He can be the Ingram, Kp, Myles Turner, Giannis or Gobert of this draft. Pretty sure Hammond of Magic will draft him.

I’m also good on Trae Young. His flaw is negligeable because defense is not that important at the PG position while his offense projects to be able to compensate for whatever he lacks on D. Play him with fox and you lessen his responsibilities that may make him more efficient. I’d give him atleast 50% chance to be as good as Kemba or Dragic.

Ayton and Bagley’s are flawed. Their upside leads you to blindspots with their flaws. Ayton is like a C version of LMA, he’s good but you need to build a certain type of team for him to be a star (take note not a superstar). One of those guys who gove you volume numbers with little impact.

I’d be careful with Bagley and Duke guys in general. His size at the PF and lack of perimeter game (assists&3s) makes him a questionable prospect. For me, he’s more of a project like a Marquese Chris or a young Kawhi where you have to mold him and its boom or bust.

[jazanetti]

The more i watch Ayton the more i wonder how effective he'd actually be in the modern NBA. 7-footers that aren't multi-positional fluid good ball-handlers like Anthony Davis & KAT and who cant shoot 3's like Porzingis/Dirk don't seem to be all that useful. And obviously if you don't have the passers to get him the ball that usefulness goes down considerably (Fox, while promising, is far from a pass first PG)

Defensively Ayton is far from a Rudy Gobert/Deandre type rim-protector . Last night i watched him give up tons of layups and get swatted and dunked on by smaller players.

I almost think of it as...how impactful would Patrick Ewing be in the modern NBA on a team like the Warriors? A lot of Ayton's game is mid-range jumpers and those are probably the least valuable shots in the NBA these days. Not to say that i wouldn't draft Ayton but id have serious reservations taking him #1 if the kings had the pick. I will say...one of the best things going for Ayton is for a guy that's gonna get fouled a ton in the pros, he is a 75% foul shooter so you don't really have to hide him/sub him out late in games.

To me, without question if Michael Porter is healthy he should go #1 in the draft. A 6'10 slasher that can do it all and play every position would be a no-brainer. A huge issue the kings might run into with Porter is that he can give his medical info to the teams of his liking and really control who drafts him. It's not really being talked about now but that's gonna be a huge factor down the line.

Towns shot 25% 3's at college and 42% this season. Ayton shoots 35% right now) He could become really someone special.

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[SacKingZZZ]

The more i watch Ayton the more i wonder how effective he'd actually be in the modern NBA. 7-footers that aren't multi-positional fluid good ball-handlers like Anthony Davis & KAT and who cant shoot 3's like Porzingis/Dirk don't seem to be all that useful. And obviously if you don't have the passers to get him the ball that usefulness goes down considerably (Fox, while promising, is far from a pass first PG)

Defensively Ayton is far from a Rudy Gobert/Deandre type rim-protector . Last night i watched him give up tons of layups and get swatted and dunked on by smaller players.

I almost think of it as...how impactful would Patrick Ewing be in the modern NBA on a team like the Warriors? A lot of Ayton's game is mid-range jumpers and those are probably the least valuable shots in the NBA these days. Not to say that i wouldn't draft Ayton but id have serious reservations taking him #1 if the kings had the pick. I will say...one of the best things going for Ayton is for a guy that's gonna get fouled a ton in the pros, he is a 75% foul shooter so you don't really have to hide him/sub him out late in games.

To me, without question if Michael Porter is healthy he should go #1 in the draft. A 6'10 slasher that can do it all and play every position would be a no-brainer. A huge issue the kings might run into with Porter is that he can give his medical info to the teams of his liking and really control who drafts him. It's not really being talked about now but that's gonna be a huge factor down the line.

Towns shot 25% 3's at college and 42% this season. Ayton shoots 35% right now) He could become really someone special.

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His point is valid IMO because I haven't consistently seen the same sort of creative ball handling out of Ayton that you saw from those other bigs either. Bamba has some nice handling from what I've seen. Ayton is a bit brick fisted who does look like a really good spot shooter at the next level but doesn't have great touch around the rim. His shooting is very interesting though.

[City of Trees]

Is MPG important when looking at top 10 picks? For example would you draft a top 5 college player if he logs only 22mpg?

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