2022 NBA Draft

[clyde21]

Duren to Memphis

[VCfor3]

I wish Memphis had a better point guard on the roster who could help maximize Duren (and Bates if he goes there). Alex Lomax is probably their best PG and he's really more of a defensive PG.

[buzzkilloton]

Sam V just updated his early mock because of Duren and he has him 1. He does mention its close between the big 3 bigs so obv it could change. Heres the excerpt for you fine fellows that may be interested.

"We have a new No. 1. Duren is a lot of what teams are looking for from the modern big man at 6-foot-10 with a pro-ready 230-pound frame. He’s terrific defensively with great movement skills on the perimeter. He can sit down and guard opposing ballhandlers at the high school level with ease. On top of that, Duren is a legitimate rim protector who takes pride in swatting shots with impunity. He has a massive reported 7-foot-5 wingspan, and he legit will be spiking shots from opposing players who come in with anything less than full confidence. He swallows up everything on the glass. There is legitimate All-Defense team upside here. On offense, Duren is comfortable handling the ball on the perimeter and operates well out of ball-screen actions. Unsurprisingly, he’s used often as an offensive post player, but he’s expanded his game out into the midrange, especially as a shooter. The comparisons made here to Bam Adebayo are not wrong, as there are a lot of similarities in their games from an early age. Duren will need to prove he can continue along the incredibly positive growth trajectory that Adebayo has since getting to Miami, but there is every reason to believe he is a legitimate contender for the No. 1 overall spot."

[clyde21]

i see no evidence @ this point that says JD > Chet/Paolo for #1 overall, I think Sam V just trying to be the 'i was first on this' guy and it might not work out too well for him.

[Skybox]

Wow. Surprised Timme is sticking around. I thought he would have jumped to he league.

He's going to start bombing 3's next season...that'll get him the lottery money he otherwise wouldn't get

[retrobro90]

i see no evidence @ this point that says JD > Chet/Paolo for #1 overall, I think Sam V just trying to be the 'i was first on this' guy and it might not work out too well for him.

I'm not gonna pretend like I've done extensive scouting on JD but just from the cursory stuff I'm not sure he's that much better of a prospect than James Wiseman was at the same stage. The highlights look worse to me too. Wouldn't put him in the top tier when it comes to vertical pop but he does have that 7'5" wingspan. I don't see the offensive upside to put him over Chet or Paolo.

[buzzkilloton]

i see no evidence @ this point that says JD > Chet/Paolo for #1 overall, I think Sam V just trying to be the 'i was first on this' guy and it might not work out too well for him.

Could very well be a case of trying to go against the mainstream to be first on it. People love trying to be the guy who made the call no one else did. He even covers his base thats hes being aggressive because its early and limited information of giving himself the get out of jail free card. That said he could really believe it he overall does good work and spends as much time as anyone watching these guys in person and tape.

I bolded a interesting point he made. He likes the top 4 from last year better the all 4 of the guys from this year. FWIW he was high on Suggs he had him 2 and he fell to 5 he did no have Barnes in that group.

Sam said at the start of the early mock:

"The best way to look at something like this so early in the process is to consider it more of a watch list than an actual ranking. That is especially true in this class. Why? The presence of many high-upside players who, for one reason or another, might be blocked in terms of playing time or scheme or merely might take more than one year to become a genuine draft prospect. This class is not considered to be quite as strong as the 2021 group, especially at the top. I quite like Duren, Banchero and Holmgren, but I’d have them below the top four prospects in the 2021 class.

On top of that, a lot of these prospects haven’t been seen quite as much as players in past years. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc on the early evaluation portion of the process. Due to the cancellation for the second straight year of the all-star exhibition circuit, including the McDonald’s All-American, Hoop Summit and the Jordan Brand Classic, NBA personnel aren’t quite as familiar with this class as they have been with previous ones.

If there were ever a year where the preseason, way-too-early draft rankings are going to make me look dumb, this is probably the one due to us having less information than we typically do at this point. And in that vein, I expect I’ll be a bit more aggressive in moving around players earlier in the draft cycle than I typically am."

[clyde21]

so yea, he threw a million hedges on top of that in case he's wrong (which he will be) only to most likely flex nuts the off chance he'll be right....typical for these clown twitter scouts.

[buzzkilloton]

Well Duren was considered either the 1 or 2 recruit for 2022. So hes clearly going to be right there as one of the top guys when its all said and done barring stinking it up in the NCAA. From what I'm seeing on youtube and reading Duren is more of a power guy thats not really what I'm looking for in todays NBA.I want the high skill do everything bigs which is what you get with Chet and Paolo.

[clyde21]

Zaga team is just stupid stacked

Andrew Nembhard / Rasir Bolton / Dominick Harris
Hunter Sallis / Nolan Hickman
Julian Strawther / Martynas Arlauskas
Chet Holmgren / Anton Watson / Kaden Perry
Drew Timme / Ben Gregg

[clyde21]

Duke

Jeremy Roach / Trevor Keels
Wendell Carter Jr. / Joey Baker
AJ Griffin
Paolo Banchero
Mark Williams / Theo John

[CptCrunch]

Don't get why people are blowing smoke up Duren's ass when his college production best case is a Mobley. Do all the centers "don't win/centers don't matter" arguments not apply to Duren?

The consensus rather place a flawed player in Cade above Mobley because of positional advantage.

[Roger Murdock]

Cavs need a 2-way wing who can shoot deperately.

Who should I be focusing on for this draft class assuming we pick somewhere between 5 and 14.

[RollingWave]

Don't get why people are blowing smoke up Duren's ass when his college production best case is a Mobley. Do all the centers "don't win/centers don't matter" arguments not apply to Duren?

The consensus rather place a flawed player in Cade above Mobley because of positional advantage.

I would say that generally speaking picking wings over bigs has been a pretty easy way to win in the last few decades, one of the big reason is that it's quite possible for wings to grow into bigs, it's very unlikely that bigs play into a wing.

(Giannis was drafted as a 3 for example.)

[God Squad]

Wow. Surprised Timme is sticking around. I thought he would have jumped to he league.

He's going to start bombing 3's next season...that'll get him the lottery money he otherwise wouldn't get

Even if that's the case, I still don't see him anywhere near the lottery. At best late 20's, and even that seems generous.

[RollingWave]

Cavs need a 2-way wing who can shoot deperately.

Who should I be focusing on for this draft class assuming we pick somewhere between 5 and 14.

Everyone needs those guys that's why you see Memphis picking Zaire William 10

[TraBuch]

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[Marcus]

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[Duke4life831]

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[Marcus]

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you onboard now?