2021 NBA Draft, Part 2

[clyde21]

Agbaji returning to school, bummer

[NYCbeadyrae]

CBS just bumped Bouknight up to #5. A handful of GMs are in love with him. Best self creator in the draft. He won’t make it out of mid lotto. He may go before Barnes and Kuminga because Orlando may be scared he won’t be there at 8.
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/2021-nba-draft-big-board-updated-top-100-prospect-rankings-risers-and-fallers/

[Marcus]

CBS just bumped Bouknight up to #5. A handful of GMs are in love with him. Best self creator in the draft. He won’t make it out of mid lotto. He may go before Barnes and Kuminga because Orlando may be scared he won’t be there at 8.
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/2021-nba-draft-big-board-updated-top-100-prospect-rankings-risers-and-fallers/

Magic ain't already guard heavy prospect wise? Sengun to replace Vuc isn't the move?

Edit: Forgot about WCJ. i mean i guess Bouknight works if he's better at doing what the guys they have there already do.

[clyde21]

Santiago Aldama is staying in the draft, maybe got good news

[clyde21]

CJ Walker and Marcus Bagley withdrawing from draft and returning to school

[clyde21]

Julian Champagnie returning

[clyde21]

Makur Maker staying in the draft

[God Squad]

Makur Maker staying in the draft

Didn't he get hurt or his season get canceled? He's one guy that should have returned IMO. Then again I'm not a fan and maybe he got good feedback.

[RepTDOT94]

Hey guys, I just decided to start a blog and wrote a piece about why the Pistons could select Jalen Green. I hope I'm not breaking any rules by posting a link to my piece here, it's just a passion project that I've had in mind for a long time. Let me know your thoughts and I am on Twitter as well!! https://court-vision.ca

[PhilBlackson]

CBS just bumped Bouknight up to #5. A handful of GMs are in love with him. Best self creator in the draft. He won’t make it out of mid lotto. He may go before Barnes and Kuminga because Orlando may be scared he won’t be there at 8.
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/2021-nba-draft-big-board-updated-top-100-prospect-rankings-risers-and-fallers/

Magic ain't already guard heavy prospect wise? Sengun to replace Vuc isn't the move?

Edit: Forgot about WCJ. i mean i guess Bouknight works if he's better at doing what the guys they have there already do.

The last thing the Magic should do is worry about replacing any previous players and just focus on getting the best players available.

They actually don't have shot creator or scorer and the guards they have are quite flawed that I wouldn't worry about them to begin with. Not to mention they already have TWO young Cs (WC Jr & Bamba) they need to see what they have in them but Sengun's height actually seems best suited at PF which is Isaac's spot (arguably best player on the roster).

[Hal14]

Santiago Aldama is staying in the draft, maybe got good news

The way this headline is phrased, it says "professional basketball" and not specifically "NBA" and doesn't say "NBA Draft".

I think Aldama might be talking to pro teams in Europe about doing what Filip Petrusev did - make the move from a smaller D-I college to a year playing pro ball in Europe in order to better prepare him for NBA, raise his draft stock and bridge the gap so he's going from patriot League -> Europe pro league -> NBA rather than what would probably be too big a jump to make if he went straight from Patriot League -> NBA.

I think he's considering both options - NBA draft as well as sign with a Europe team..

He's a very intriguing player IMO.

Edit: whoops, I guess I forgot to link to the tweet I was. talking about:

Read on Twitter

[WuTang_CMB]

1. Cade
2. Green
3. Barnes
4. Mobley
5. Suggs
6. Kuminga
7. Bouknight
8. Moody

[SNPA]

What about Thor as a Center?

Yes, he is skinny (claims to have added ten pounds -210). He’d have to add another 15-20 at least but he has good shoulders, although skinny legs. But his defensive IQ around the rim is good and his offense fits better as a Center and he is switchable.

As a PF he has value, as a Center wouldn’t he have more? He said Grant/Ingram are his models but I think he should be looking more at Hakeem (not a comparison…an archetype).

[The-Power]

What about Thor as a Center?

Yes, he is skinny (claims to have added ten pounds -210). He’d have to add another 15-20 at least but he has good shoulders, although skinny legs. But his defensive IQ around the rim is good and his offense fits better as a Center and he is switchable.

As a PF he has value, as a Center wouldn’t he have more? He said Grant/Ingram are his models but I think he should be looking more at Hakeem (not a comparison…an archetype).

He's too short, too weak and not good enough of a rebounder to regularly play the 5. He'd be lucky to develop into a small-ball 5 option eventually.

[SNPA]

What about Thor as a Center?

Yes, he is skinny (claims to have added ten pounds -210). He’d have to add another 15-20 at least but he has good shoulders, although skinny legs. But his defensive IQ around the rim is good and his offense fits better as a Center and he is switchable.

As a PF he has value, as a Center wouldn’t he have more? He said Grant/Ingram are his models but I think he should be looking more at Hakeem (not a comparison…an archetype).

He's too short, too weak and not good enough of a rebounder to regularly play the 5. He'd be lucky to develop into a small-ball 5 option eventually.

Weak is definitely a problem but he is 18. He is going to get stronger. I’m not saying he is pulling a Giannis but he has a similar frame and will play at a higher weight. Short I wouldn’t worry about with that massive wingspan, Holmes is the starting Center for my team. Rebounding is a question but he grabbed one board every just over 4 minutes (5-23min) as a freshman. I can see a path to rebounding for him. I think he has small ball 5 written all over him, I’m just suggesting his goal shouldn’t be Grant/Ingram (certainly not Ingram) but more of a rim protector that can stretch the floor and have ancillary skills and good upside.

[The-Power]

I think he has small ball 5 written all over him

I agree that he should strive to get there, and I can see him being a small-ball 5 down the road. I'm just saying that right now he has enough work to do to just be a small-ball C, so thinking about him as a regular C (that's how I took your post) is quite a stretch to me. In my eyes, he starts out as a clear PF and you hope that one day he can be used situationally as a small-ball 5.

I wouldn't compare him to Holmes either. Yes, Thor has the standing reach that allows you to play Center more regularly but Holmes came in at 243 lbs (Thor at 203 lbs) and he was a much better rebounder and shot blocker in his freshman year by the numbers – and I think that still clearly holds true once we adjust for different level of competition.

Right now, Thor has the length to play the 5, compared to the smaller 5s out there, but lacks everything else – rebounding, rim protection, strength/weight – and needs to put in a lot of work to just become a reliable small-ball 5, much less one that can primarily play the 5.

[SNPA]

I think he has small ball 5 written all over him

I agree that he should strive to get there, and I can see him being a small-ball 5 down the road. I'm just saying that right now he has enough work to do to just be a small-ball C, so thinking about him as a regular C (that's how I took your post) is quite a stretch to me. In my eyes, he starts out as a clear PF and you hope that one day he can be used situationally as a small-ball 5.

I wouldn't compare him to Holmes either. Yes, Thor has the standing reach that allows you to play Center more regularly but Holmes came in at 243 lbs (Thor at 203 lbs) and he was a much better rebounder and shot blocker in his freshman year by the numbers – and I think that still clearly holds true once we adjust for different level of competition.

Right now, Thor has the length to play the 5, compared to the smaller 5s out there, but lacks everything else – rebounding, rim protection, strength/weight – and needs to put in a lot of work to just become a reliable small-ball 5, much less one that can primarily play the 5.

I think we are largely in agreement. He is way to light currently but I see room for him to play at 230. That’s 20lbs more than current for an 18 year old kid on a professional weight training and nutrition program.

Where I think we see it different is rim protection. I see a high IQ defensive player with tremendous timing and length. I think he is a rim protecter on day one, and that is part of why I think Center might be best for him long term. It would maximize his defensive value and IMO maximize his offensive value. But at first, he is a PF for sure.

[GIMME_DATT]

G League Ignite Draft Prospect Isaiah Todd is canceling workouts with teams owning late first-round picks — such as the Jazz — because he has focused on visits with teams with lottery picks, sources said.

Via shams

[Big J]

G League Ignite Draft Prospect Isaiah Todd is canceling workouts with teams owning late first-round picks — such as the Jazz — because he has focused on visits with teams with lottery picks, sources said.

Via shams

Terrible decision. I hate when guys who aren’t very good do stuff like this.

[clyde21]

Read on Twitter

annoyed that the Warriors aren't on this list, but par the course for Mr Myers