2021 NBA Draft, Part 2

[mademan]

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Suggs is one of those high impact non spectacular players, slated to go to a team thats been one of the most successful franchises the last 8 years that was led by a high impact non spectacular player. Great fit

[Big J]

Yea Suggs is great. Kid reminds me of prime Deron.

[BlazersBroncos]

Anyone else think Queta plays like Joel Embiid without a jumpshot? His passing and footwork are so underrated.

I think he can be a 15/10/3/2/1 caliber C w/ positive OBPM + DBPM. He isnt as fast as one would like but he has great vertical pop and has amazing timing on his blocks.

[Charm]

I feel like the game against Texas Tech says a lot about Queta for better and for worse. On one hand, he impacted the game in many ways with 13 boards, 6 dimes, and 7 blocks. On the other hand, the one thing his team needed was buckets, and he couldn't get buckets despite being 6"+ taller than every defender. I think he has a role at the NBA level, but he's also in serious danger of getting run off the floor because he can't directly punish opponents for going small.

[babyjax13]

I'm super excited Primo decided to stay in. That gives us another long wing with a tantalizing skillset in the lottery/mid first. I feel like there is a good chance someone out of Moody/Bouknight/Primo/Williams really breaks out.

[Marcus]

I feel like the game against Texas Tech says a lot about Queta for better and for worse. On one hand, he impacted the game in many ways with 13 boards, 6 dimes, and 7 blocks. On the other hand, the one thing his team needed was buckets, and he couldn't get buckets despite being 6"+ taller than every defender. I think he has a role at the NBA level, but he's also in serious danger of getting run off the floor because he can't directly punish opponents for going small.

do you see any room + aptitude for development in his game?

[Charm]

I feel like the game against Texas Tech says a lot about Queta for better and for worse. On one hand, he impacted the game in many ways with 13 boards, 6 dimes, and 7 blocks. On the other hand, the one thing his team needed was buckets, and he couldn't get buckets despite being 6"+ taller than every defender. I think he has a role at the NBA level, but he's also in serious danger of getting run off the floor because he can't directly punish opponents for going small.

do you see any room + aptitude for development in his game?

In general, I think the safe assumption is that potential for improvement is more or less a function of age, and Queta's definitely a bit on the older side. Of course, the good news is that he's already an NBA-level rebounder and shot blocker, and his assist+steal numbers point to his quality basketball IQ, which is an Achilles heel for loads of rebound/block machine centers. But it seems pretty clear that he's plateaued as a scorer, and his scoring numbers are really unimpressive considering the generally weak competition he faced.

If you're going up against Jokic or Embiid or Towns, then you're probably happy to have a guy like Queta who has the nimble feet, IQ, and length to at least slow them down, and you don't really mind if Queta only scores 4 or 5 points as long as he's playing smart team basketball and doing his job on the other end of the court. But against other teams that can put all their best talent on the floor in a small-ball lineup, he's probably a dinosaur.

[BlazersBroncos]

I feel like the game against Texas Tech says a lot about Queta for better and for worse. On one hand, he impacted the game in many ways with 13 boards, 6 dimes, and 7 blocks. On the other hand, the one thing his team needed was buckets, and he couldn't get buckets despite being 6"+ taller than every defender. I think he has a role at the NBA level, but he's also in serious danger of getting run off the floor because he can't directly punish opponents for going small.

I agree, and I dont think Queta will ever be a great scorer. But the league has moved in a direction where, outside Joker/Joel, you dont see many bigs as a teams #2 or even #3 scoring option. If your looking for a utility center, who makes the right pass, defends the rim, hits the boards, can roll a bit and pick up garbage buckets, Queta might be your guy. And thats a guy alot of teams are looking for, a low usage / 5th option C who plays the right way, plays within himself, has a good IQ, knows how to find the open guy, etc.

I think he could be a starting C for a playoff team before his rookie deal is over, assuming the team in question isnt looking for him to be much of a bucket creator / getter.

[NYPiston]

lol at all the Cade hot takes in this thread. He's gonna be a star in this league. It seems like people always like to pick apart players who have been consensus #1's for a long time and this is no different.

He certainly has some weaknesses that need to be worked on. The handle can get sloppy at times, he struggles with man to man defense against quicker players and he needs to get physically stronger which are all things that are easily fixable but you can't teach his gifts. He has very high Basketball IQ, he's a 3 level scorer with takeover mentality which he displayed time after time in the clutch late in the season, he has very good vision (don't let the assist numbers in college fool you, his teammates were subpar) and he has the mentality to want to be great that not many players have, not to mention that he's a 6'8" guard which alone will create matchup nightmares. He's the most complete prospect in this draft. He might not have quite the elite of the elite upside like Green or even Mobley if he ever decides that he wants to play like a 7 footer but Cade is a pretty safe bet to be an NBA All Star caliber player. The safest bet in this draft.

Pick apart his game all you want and I actually agree with a lot of the flaws you guys mentioned but he has tons of plus attributes that are boring to talk about so lets focus on the negative I guess.

[Charm]

I feel like the game against Texas Tech says a lot about Queta for better and for worse. On one hand, he impacted the game in many ways with 13 boards, 6 dimes, and 7 blocks. On the other hand, the one thing his team needed was buckets, and he couldn't get buckets despite being 6"+ taller than every defender. I think he has a role at the NBA level, but he's also in serious danger of getting run off the floor because he can't directly punish opponents for going small.

I agree, and I dont think Queta will ever be a great scorer. But the league has moved in a direction where, outside Joker/Joel, you dont see many bigs as a teams #2 or even #3 scoring option. If your looking for a utility center, who makes the right pass, defends the rim, hits the boards, can roll a bit and pick up garbage buckets, Queta might be your guy. And thats a guy alot of teams are looking for, a low usage / 5th option C who plays the right way, plays within himself, has a good IQ, knows how to find the open guy, etc.

I think he could be a starting C for a playoff team before his rookie deal is over, assuming the team in question isnt looking for him to be much of a bucket creator / getter.

Yup. No shortage of interesting 2nd-round bigs. I think Queta/Huff is a really interesting debate if you're looking for an NBA-ready shot-blocking center in the 2nd round. Huff not quite as cerebral, but has that all-important stretch-5 ability. Garza, Hurt, Timme, and Petrusev are on the opposite side of the spectrum, instant-impact scorers facing big defensive questions. Then you have a few swiss army knife types in Wright, Robinson-Earl, and Isaiah Mobley, and a couple draft-and-stash youngsters in Hukporti and Diop. Oh, and Jericho Sims who doesn't always seem to know what he's doing but is obviously a monster athlete, so someone will probably draft him.

Depending on what teams decide to prioritize, I think Queta could go basically anywhere in the second round, or could even go undrafted.

[Marcus]

It seems like people always like to pick apart players who have been consensus #1's for a long time

death and taxes my friend. death and taxes

[Hal14]

Anyone else think Queta plays like Joel Embiid without a jumpshot? His passing and footwork are so underrated.

I think he can be a 15/10/3/2/1 caliber C w/ positive OBPM + DBPM. He isnt as fast as one would like but he has great vertical pop and has amazing timing on his blocks.

He reminds me a lot of Robert Williams from the Celtics. Except Queta is 4 inches taller, has better post moves and also is much less injury plagued.

Despite injuries, Williams this year was top 10 in the entire NBA in PER, TS%, offensive rating, defensive rating, BPM, Win Shares Per 48 Mins, rebounding % and blocks %...at age 23. Williams could be a future all-star if he can ever stay healthy and be able to handle more minutes without getting hurt. So if Queta is a taller Robert Williams with better post moves and better durability, that tells you that Queta could be a very special player.

Bilas called Williams a top 5 talent in the 2018 draft. He fell to end of 1st round because of concerns about his injuries and work ethic.

[karkinos]

josh christopher is either hiding from the media or is flying under the radar.

[Big J]

lol at all the Cade hot takes in this thread. He's gonna be a star in this league. It seems like people always like to pick apart players who have been consensus #1's for a long time and this is no different.

He certainly has some weaknesses that need to be worked on. The handle can get sloppy at times, he struggles with man to man defense against quicker players and he needs to get physically stronger which are all things that are easily fixable but you can't teach his gifts. He has very high Basketball IQ, he's a 3 level scorer with takeover mentality which he displayed time after time in the clutch late in the season, he has very good vision (don't let the assist numbers in college fool you, his teammates were subpar) and he has the mentality to want to be great that not many players have, not to mention that he's a 6'8" guard which alone will create matchup nightmares. He's the most complete prospect in this draft. He might not have quite the elite of the elite upside like Green or even Mobley if he ever decides that he wants to play like a 7 footer but Cade is a pretty safe bet to be an NBA All Star caliber player. The safest bet in this draft.

Pick apart his game all you want and I actually agree with a lot of the flaws you guys mentioned but he has tons of plus attributes that are boring to talk about so lets focus on the negative I guess.

I don’t know man. Everyone says Cade has the highest floor, but what about Green? What would be worst case scenario for him? A better defending Zach Lavine? I just don’t see any bust potential for Green, it’s just not there. He’s either going to be a star or a generational guy.

[whitehops]

lol at all the Cade hot takes in this thread.

yeah there's definitely a ton of material for a "this didn't age well" post in the future.

he was the #1 high school player in the country. on junior national teams, he was the clear lead player (despite playing with older guys as well). he was first team all-american AND the big 12 player of the year as a freshman. at every level he's been clearly head and shoulders above his peers and his tape backs everything up.

i get that people love underdogs and it's cool to be edgy but cade not being a lebron-level athlete doesn't mean he's going to be hedo turkoglu. there are so many examples of elite players relying on skill rather than explosiveness to succeed (harden, doncic, jokic, paul, nash, pierce, etc.). cade has never been the most athletic player on the floor at any level he's played, yet he continues to be the best.

like as a prospect, he compares favourably to jayson tatum in a lot of ways but because he isn't an explosive athlete (neither is tatum), his ceiling as a scorer and as a player is capped. it makes no sense to me.

[buzzkilloton]

The Cade haters who think hes some tier 3 prospect in the draft and Green is a lock superstar need to go watch some the U19fiba when they were on the same team. This is them playing with good players and good competition on the same team together.This is a team that had Green,Cade,Haliburton, Barnes,Suggs,Mobley and some other big players.

Cade played the 2nd most minutes and Green 3rd on the team with NBA ROY the candidate Haliburton playing the most minutes. Cade not only scored more points then Green he was the engine of the team. Their was no question who the better NBA prospect was another reason of many why Cade is the 1 prospect not Green.

Mind you since then Cade has improved his outside shooting dramatically. Showing hes not some Ben Simmons type player who will never work on his weaknesses and will just be what he is. Ofc Green has improved too but regardless Green is no Cade.

Of course if you just load up youtube highlights and watch Green and Cade Green stands out way more then not only Cade but anyone in the draft. Green's a great athlete and amazing dunker. That said hes really skinny and doesnt have a good wingspan. I think the Zach Lavine comp fits him perfectly hes a great prospect but hes no Cade. You may like him better because hes more exciting to watch but to try to put Green two higher tiers above Cade is just someone trying to be contrarian hot take forum scout.

[Charm]

Out of all the top prospects this year, Cade obviously had the most difficult time adjusting to a higher level of competition. The game's even faster and more athletic at the NBA level...so...seems very reasonable to expect his struggles to continue. He'll trend even more in the direction of being a 3-point specialist, so his best hope for stardom is probably a Klay Thompson kind of outcome.

[buzzkilloton]

Oh yeah lots of trouble "adjusting to the higher level of competition" playing the best team in the nation with a supporting cast of all scrubs.

Out of all the top prospects this year, Cade obviously had the most difficult time adjusting to a higher level of competition. The game's even faster and more athletic at the NBA level...so...seems very reasonable to expect his struggles to continue. He'll trend even more in the direction of being a 3-point specialist, so his best hope for stardom is probably a Klay Thompson kind of outcome.

Watch on YouTube

;ab_channel=Swish

[nolang1]

lol at all the Cade hot takes in this thread. He's gonna be a star in this league. It seems like people always like to pick apart players who have been consensus #1's for a long time and this is no different.

He certainly has some weaknesses that need to be worked on. The handle can get sloppy at times, he struggles with man to man defense against quicker players and he needs to get physically stronger which are all things that are easily fixable but you can't teach his gifts. He has very high Basketball IQ, he's a 3 level scorer with takeover mentality which he displayed time after time in the clutch late in the season, he has very good vision (don't let the assist numbers in college fool you, his teammates were subpar) and he has the mentality to want to be great that not many players have, not to mention that he's a 6'8" guard which alone will create matchup nightmares. He's the most complete prospect in this draft. He might not have quite the elite of the elite upside like Green or even Mobley if he ever decides that he wants to play like a 7 footer but Cade is a pretty safe bet to be an NBA All Star caliber player. The safest bet in this draft.

Pick apart his game all you want and I actually agree with a lot of the flaws you guys mentioned but he has tons of plus attributes that are boring to talk about so lets focus on the negative I guess.

I don’t know man. Everyone says Cade has the highest floor, but what about Green? What would be worst case scenario for him? A better defending Zach Lavine? I just don’t see any bust potential for Green, it’s just not there. He’s either going to be a star or a generational guy.

Well he's commonly compared to Zach Lavine, a guy who has been a negative player for much of his career until the last year or two when he started to hit 38+ percent of his threes at high volume, so I don't think it's inconceivable that he busts if the expectation is that he's going to be a star or 'generational' player.

[Big J]

If I’m being honest part of what bothers me about Cade as the top pick is his demeanor. It doesn’t seem like he cares much about winning or losing. It feels like he’s just trying to make sure he looks cool out there.