Gary Trent Jr.

[EvanZ]

The logic of drafting one guy because he has none of the things that a previous guy also didn't have is rather...odd.

[King Ken]

+1

I think you guys are underrating him. The NBA will always have a need for 3pt shooters with size. The SG class also looks on the weaker side. Hard to name more than 5 SGs better than him.

SG might actually be the deepest position.

Doncic
Bridges
Smith
Walker
Trent Jr.
Brown
DiVincenzo (maybe)
Diallo
Allen

and then you have the combo guards like Thomas, Shamet, Simons, Milton, Calebs, etc.

SG is my #2 deepest outside of center.

This draft is really deep now that I have time to evaluate players who aren't around my Hawks picks ranges.

The center class is the deepest and the best it's ever been in NBA history as far as a draft class is concerned and this has been a class scouts have been waiting for, for years. It might not be as long a list as SG but other positions are always somewhat long in most draft classes. The center classes are normally extremely weak. By the #3 guy in most classes for centers, you might end up with a future key role player. This class has about 14-15 guys who could rate long term. That's insane. Most classes tend to suck at the center by the 3-4 guy.

2nd is SG. It's extremely deep. You got at least 15-20 guys who could play in the NBA long term. This is a weak position in the NBA which has been littered with weak drafts over the last 5 years at this position. This draft if properly developed could restock the NBA like the Steph Curry draft class did for NBA PG's.

3rd is PG. It's an extremely deep class but not as top heavy as last year. The good thing about this class is a lot of quality upperclassmen so that should translate into useful 2nd rounders or undrafted guys who can contribute must faster at a NBA level even without the top tier potential.

4rd is PF. You got Bagley. After that, you got Porter Jr and Jackson. Then it goes completely downhill. You do have a lot of day 1 PF's but I see most developing into C's or SF's when they get bigger or add more range to their jumper.

5th is SF. I see this as an extremely weak SF class, especially compared to 2016, 2017 and even 2019. Of course, some see Doncic and Porter Jr as SF which I don't. Miles Bridges and Kevin Knox are my top SF's, after that Musa is the only 1st rounder I see at SF and I question that he will be just a tweener at best for the position. Just an extremely weak crop at SF this year. If you need one, wait to 2019. But with so many previous classes being loaded with them, you should be okay at this spot for most franchises.

[No-Man]

+1

I think you guys are underrating him. The NBA will always have a need for 3pt shooters with size. The SG class also looks on the weaker side. Hard to name more than 5 SGs better than him.

SG might actually be the deepest position.

Doncic
Bridges
Smith
Walker
Trent Jr.
Brown
DiVincenzo (maybe)
Diallo
Allen

and then you have the combo guards like Thomas, Shamet, Simons, Milton, Calebs, etc.

Doncic, Bridges, Troy Brown and probably Zhaire are gonna play more 3 than 2 in the pros considering how difficult is to find SF with size, so you probably need to move them out of that list, even if they can play the 2 to some degree

[doordoor123]

I like him. He’ll be Tim Hardaway in his prime. Not a lot of players can get as much space as he does on his jumpers. Definitely think his game is translatable. And his father says that he’s better than hes shown at Duke. I don’t know if I believe that, but his father specifically mentioned his speed. Maybe in a more fast-pace setting he can be even better.

[EvanZ]

My dad thinks I'm awesome too.

[King Ken]

I think you guys are underrating him. The NBA will always have a need for 3pt shooters with size. The SG class also looks on the weaker side. Hard to name more than 5 SGs better than him.

SG might actually be the deepest position.

Doncic
Bridges
Smith
Walker
Trent Jr.
Brown
DiVincenzo (maybe)
Diallo
Allen

and then you have the combo guards like Thomas, Shamet, Simons, Milton, Calebs, etc.

I'm taking all of the guys on the 1st list before Trent without hesitation. Also add Svi to that list as well. Svi is better than Trent in basically every category and has a huge size and athleticism advantage over him.

D4L831, I went back over my notes on Booker, I literally have them at the same exact grade. It was the combine that shot Booker from late 1st grade to lottery. I wasn't a big Booker fan, he was the 6th man for a reason at UK. The difference is, us at Duke, we had no choice but to start him, our backup options wasn't all that good.

[Duke4life831]

SG might actually be the deepest position.

Doncic
Bridges
Smith
Walker
Trent Jr.
Brown
DiVincenzo (maybe)
Diallo
Allen

and then you have the combo guards like Thomas, Shamet, Simons, Milton, Calebs, etc.

I'm taking all of the guys on the 1st list before Trent without hesitation. Also add Svi to that list as well. Svi is better than Trent in basically every category and has a huge size and athleticism advantage over him.

D4L831, I went back over my notes on Booker, I literally have them at the same exact grade. It was the combine that shot Booker from late 1st grade to lottery. I wasn't a big Booker fan, he was the 6th man for a reason at UK. The difference is, us at Duke, we had no choice but to start him, our backup options wasn't all that good.

I was definitely higher on Booker during his time at UK than I was with Trent over this last year. I thought Cal not starting Booker and Ulis over the Harrison twins is what kept them from winning it all in 2015. Now don't get me wrong, I didn't think Booker was going to be what he has been. But I thought he was a legit lottery pick at the end of the college season.

Again I just think Booker moved much better, Trent is just a very stiff athlete. I also was not impressed with Trent off the ball. Thought he was actually pretty bad when it came to moving off the ball.

[King Ken]

I'm taking all of the guys on the 1st list before Trent without hesitation. Also add Svi to that list as well. Svi is better than Trent in basically every category and has a huge size and athleticism advantage over him.

D4L831, I went back over my notes on Booker, I literally have them at the same exact grade. It was the combine that shot Booker from late 1st grade to lottery. I wasn't a big Booker fan, he was the 6th man for a reason at UK. The difference is, us at Duke, we had no choice but to start him, our backup options wasn't all that good.

I was definitely higher on Booker during his time at UK than I was with Trent over this last year. I thought Cal not starting Booker and Ulis over the Harrison twins is what kept them from winning it all in 2015. Now don't get me wrong, I didn't think Booker was going to be what he has been. But I thought he was a legit lottery pick at the end of the college season.

Again I just think Booker moved much better, Trent is just a very stiff athlete. I also was not impressed with Trent off the ball. Thought he was actually pretty bad when it came to moving off the ball.

I personally thought the twins were better, especially Aaron for that stage. Not for the NBA of course but in college. They knew the plays. Defended well. Made needed buckets. They needed Booker as a 6th man. He could get as many shots as he wanted and he didn't have to worry about defense. Maybe it's just me, but I am actually a tad higher on Trent Jr and I am not even a Trent Jr fan. But Booker really turned it on during that 1st summer league. He was spectacular. That said, Booker did appear to have more potential. He was clearly more athletic even by my notes.

[doordoor123]

D4L831, I went back over my notes on Booker, I literally have them at the same exact grade. It was the combine that shot Booker from late 1st grade to lottery. I wasn't a big Booker fan, he was the 6th man for a reason at UK. The difference is, us at Duke, we had no choice but to start him, our backup options wasn't all that good.

I was definitely higher on Booker during his time at UK than I was with Trent over this last year. I thought Cal not starting Booker and Ulis over the Harrison twins is what kept them from winning it all in 2015. Now don't get me wrong, I didn't think Booker was going to be what he has been. But I thought he was a legit lottery pick at the end of the college season.

Again I just think Booker moved much better, Trent is just a very stiff athlete. I also was not impressed with Trent off the ball. Thought he was actually pretty bad when it came to moving off the ball.

I personally thought the twins were better, especially Aaron for that stage. Not for the NBA of course but in college. They knew the plays. Defended well. Made needed buckets. They needed Booker as a 6th man. He could get as many shots as he wanted and he didn't have to worry about defense. Maybe it's just me, but I am actually a tad higher on Trent Jr and I am not even a Trent Jr fan. But Booker really turned it on during that 1st summer league. He was spectacular. That said, Booker did appear to have more potential. He was clearly more athletic even by my notes.

What I like about Trent is that he had some enormous games. Players with huge games like that continue to have big games like that in the NBA.

[nolang1]

D4L831, I went back over my notes on Booker, I literally have them at the same exact grade. It was the combine that shot Booker from late 1st grade to lottery. I wasn't a big Booker fan, he was the 6th man for a reason at UK. The difference is, us at Duke, we had no choice but to start him, our backup options wasn't all that good.

I was definitely higher on Booker during his time at UK than I was with Trent over this last year. I thought Cal not starting Booker and Ulis over the Harrison twins is what kept them from winning it all in 2015. Now don't get me wrong, I didn't think Booker was going to be what he has been. But I thought he was a legit lottery pick at the end of the college season.

Again I just think Booker moved much better, Trent is just a very stiff athlete. I also was not impressed with Trent off the ball. Thought he was actually pretty bad when it came to moving off the ball.

I personally thought the twins were better, especially Aaron for that stage. Not for the NBA of course but in college. They knew the plays. Defended well. Made needed buckets. They needed Booker as a 6th man. He could get as many shots as he wanted and he didn't have to worry about defense. Maybe it's just me, but I am actually a tad higher on Trent Jr and I am not even a Trent Jr fan. But Booker really turned it on during that 1st summer league. He was spectacular. That said, Booker did appear to have more potential. He was clearly more athletic even by my notes.

Booker was an extra young freshman and had a lot more off-the-dribble scoring ability than Trent Jr. Probably even more damning is that Booker was better on defense too.

[King Ken]

I was definitely higher on Booker during his time at UK than I was with Trent over this last year. I thought Cal not starting Booker and Ulis over the Harrison twins is what kept them from winning it all in 2015. Now don't get me wrong, I didn't think Booker was going to be what he has been. But I thought he was a legit lottery pick at the end of the college season.

Again I just think Booker moved much better, Trent is just a very stiff athlete. I also was not impressed with Trent off the ball. Thought he was actually pretty bad when it came to moving off the ball.

I personally thought the twins were better, especially Aaron for that stage. Not for the NBA of course but in college. They knew the plays. Defended well. Made needed buckets. They needed Booker as a 6th man. He could get as many shots as he wanted and he didn't have to worry about defense. Maybe it's just me, but I am actually a tad higher on Trent Jr and I am not even a Trent Jr fan. But Booker really turned it on during that 1st summer league. He was spectacular. That said, Booker did appear to have more potential. He was clearly more athletic even by my notes.

Booker was an extra young freshman and had a lot more off-the-dribble scoring ability than Trent Jr. Probably even more damning is that Booker was better on defense too.

Trent is clearly better on defense. Far more lateral quickness. Far better BBIQ which wasn't good defensively. But watching even the highlights, you can't help but notice Booker was quicker and more agile on the ball.

[nolang1]

I personally thought the twins were better, especially Aaron for that stage. Not for the NBA of course but in college. They knew the plays. Defended well. Made needed buckets. They needed Booker as a 6th man. He could get as many shots as he wanted and he didn't have to worry about defense. Maybe it's just me, but I am actually a tad higher on Trent Jr and I am not even a Trent Jr fan. But Booker really turned it on during that 1st summer league. He was spectacular. That said, Booker did appear to have more potential. He was clearly more athletic even by my notes.

Booker was an extra young freshman and had a lot more off-the-dribble scoring ability than Trent Jr. Probably even more damning is that Booker was better on defense too.

Trent is clearly better on defense. Far more lateral quickness. Far better BBIQ which wasn't good defensively. But watching even the highlights, you can't help but notice Booker was quicker and more agile on the ball.

I wasn't bringing that up to say that Booker was way better than Trent on defense but to allude to the fact that Booker's defense in the NBA has taken away much, if not all, of the offensive value he brings. Even someone who's better defensively (which is debatable) but significantly worse offensively is not a positive player in the NBA.

[King Ken]

Booker was an extra young freshman and had a lot more off-the-dribble scoring ability than Trent Jr. Probably even more damning is that Booker was better on defense too.

Trent is clearly better on defense. Far more lateral quickness. Far better BBIQ which wasn't good defensively. But watching even the highlights, you can't help but notice Booker was quicker and more agile on the ball.

I wasn't bringing that up to say that Booker was way better than Trent on defense but to allude to the fact that Booker's defense in the NBA has taken away much, if not all, of the offensive value he brings. Even someone who's better defensively (which is debatable) but significantly worse offensively is not a positive player in the NBA.

I don't have him listed as significantly worse on offense much less worse. But I do see some of what D4L is saying about the quickness and agility not being the same with Trent and Booker. In the open court, both are fast with the ball which will likely help more in the NBA than in college for both which it did for Booker.

[nolang1]

Trent is clearly better on defense. Far more lateral quickness. Far better BBIQ which wasn't good defensively. But watching even the highlights, you can't help but notice Booker was quicker and more agile on the ball.

I wasn't bringing that up to say that Booker was way better than Trent on defense but to allude to the fact that Booker's defense in the NBA has taken away much, if not all, of the offensive value he brings. Even someone who's better defensively (which is debatable) but significantly worse offensively is not a positive player in the NBA.

I don't have him listed as significantly worse on offense much less worse. But I do see some of what D4L is saying about the quickness and agility not being the same with Trent and Booker. In the open court, both are fast with the ball which will likely help more in the NBA than in college for both which it did for Booker.

And a lot of the difference you saw in areas like strength and athleticism was due to Booker being 9 months younger as a freshman.

[Justwar]

SG might actually be the deepest position.

Doncic
Bridges
Smith
Walker
Trent Jr.
Brown
DiVincenzo (maybe)
Diallo
Allen

and then you have the combo guards like Thomas, Shamet, Simons, Milton, Calebs, etc.

I'm taking all of the guys on the 1st list before Trent without hesitation. Also add Svi to that list as well. Svi is better than Trent in basically every category and has a huge size and athleticism advantage over him.

D4L831, I went back over my notes on Booker, I literally have them at the same exact grade. It was the combine that shot Booker from late 1st grade to lottery. I wasn't a big Booker fan, he was the 6th man for a reason at UK. The difference is, us at Duke, we had no choice but to start him, our backup options wasn't all that good.

Booker doesn't even go pro if poythress doesn't get hurt and if you saw poythress defense before his knee, you'd agree. Booker couldn't guard Sam dekker is why ky didn't win it all. They never were going to split the twins or ulis and booker best friends. Definitely was wrong on him. Lyles was better though freshman year too.

[SelfishPlayer]

Klay Thompson potential is very real for him. Klay was widely considered a second round pick for a large portion of his last season in school.

[King Ken]

I wasn't bringing that up to say that Booker was way better than Trent on defense but to allude to the fact that Booker's defense in the NBA has taken away much, if not all, of the offensive value he brings. Even someone who's better defensively (which is debatable) but significantly worse offensively is not a positive player in the NBA.

I don't have him listed as significantly worse on offense much less worse. But I do see some of what D4L is saying about the quickness and agility not being the same with Trent and Booker. In the open court, both are fast with the ball which will likely help more in the NBA than in college for both which it did for Booker.

And a lot of the difference you saw in areas like strength and athleticism was due to Booker being 9 months younger as a freshman.

Age can be overrated on this site during this time of the year. Donovan Mitchell was older than Booker and no one is passing on Mitchell now for Booker.

[nolang1]

I don't have him listed as significantly worse on offense much less worse. But I do see some of what D4L is saying about the quickness and agility not being the same with Trent and Booker. In the open court, both are fast with the ball which will likely help more in the NBA than in college for both which it did for Booker.

And a lot of the difference you saw in areas like strength and athleticism was due to Booker being 9 months younger as a freshman.

Age can be overrated on this site during this time of the year. Donovan Mitchell was older than Booker and no one is passing on Mitchell now for Booker.

I said nothing about Donovan Mitchell, and it should be obvious that an age difference of a few months (9 in the case of freshman Booker-Trent Jr., 4 in the case of Mitchell-Booker) makes more of a physical difference at age 18 than at age 21.

[Wizop]

has to be on Pacers watch list.

Sent from my phone.

[eminence]

Meh, not a fan, 3&D guy that hasn't figured out how to play D imo. Blew a lot of coverages.