Thon Maker

[SlideRuleJockey]

The Ballad Of Thon

With apologies to the Byrds and God (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)

1. Start the video
2. Follow along with the altered lyrics in the spoiler.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4ga_M5Zdn4[/youtube]

Spoiler:

Drafted at ten (Thon, Thon, Thon)
By our dear Bucks (Thon, Thon, Thon)
Was this pick a big massive reach? oh good heavens!

When were your born? is that a lie?
Are you nineteen, or twenty nine?
We need to know, is your age real?
All the league laughs, and our board weeps.

Where will you play? (Thon, Thon, Thon)
Regular season..... (Thon, Thon, Thon)
The NBDL or have you, a roster spot?

If you are older, when will you break down?
Those team options, will we pick up?
Will you be traded or cut, or even get a second contract?

Born in Sudan (Thon, Thon, Thon)
To Astrailia (Thon, Thon, Thon)
California, Virginia, then Canada.

You're so skinny, thin as a rail
You must bulk up, you must add mass.
Camp out in the weight room, and let Suki reshape your body.

We wish you well. (Thon, Thon, Thon)
Prove everyone wrong. (Thon, Thon, Thon)
And have a HOF career, in Milwaukee.

Can you make J's? Is your shot real?
Can you box out? Can you rebound?
All of these skills, we hope you'll learn.
At your old age, I hope it's not too late.

[ZeppelinPage]

Don't know why Drummond and Giannis are being compared to Thon Maker. Thon Maker is arguably older than nearly all of the NCAA players in the draft, and was playing against Highschool students.

He's 23 and in highschool...how is this anything like Giannis and Drummond is beyond me. That's not to mention he wasn't even that dominant against HSers.

Aiming for the fences...meh, I don't think his ceiling is all that high. If he's 19, then that's not as bad, but I have my doubts, and that's still old as hell for a HS player lol.

He isn't 23. It's pretty much been proven he can't possibly be that old and at most is a year older, he couldn't have just taken 3-4 years off his age when going to Canada and he sure as hell wasn't a 9 year old in Kindergarten.

[Prez]

Don't know why Drummond and Giannis are being compared to Thon Maker. Thon Maker is arguably older than nearly all of the NCAA players in the draft, and was playing against Highschool students.

He's 23 and in highschool...how is this anything like Giannis and Drummond is beyond me. That's not to mention he wasn't even that dominant against HSers.

Aiming for the fences...meh, I don't think his ceiling is all that high. If he's 19, then that's not as bad, but I have my doubts, and that's still old as hell for a HS player lol.

He isn't 23. It's pretty much been proven he can't possibly be that old and at most is a year older, he couldn't have just taken 3-4 years off his age when going to Canada and he sure as hell wasn't a 9 year old in Kindergarten.

He's 23 dude. Dude on reddit said he was. It's basically fact.

[BoutPractice]

I think it's a great pick, regardless of his age.

Could he be turn out to be a bust? Of course. But how often do you get to draft an athletic, agile 7 footer with a solid shooting foundation?

If he pans out, I can imagine how terrifying the already formidable Bucks frontcourt might become... Instead of a Greg Monroe to complement Giannis and Jabari, you'd get an intimidating defensive presence who can also spread the floor.

A bit like the Thunder, you could put together a versatile lineup that combines height with the versatility of small ball...

Yes it's a gamble... But it's also the sort of gamble that makes good teams great.

[KingKyrie1]

Why not trade down and then pick him? doesn't make much sense.

[crazy_me_87]

Don't know why Drummond and Giannis are being compared to Thon Maker. Thon Maker is arguably older than nearly all of the NCAA players in the draft, and was playing against Highschool students.

He's 23 and in highschool...how is this anything like Giannis and Drummond is beyond me. That's not to mention he wasn't even that dominant against HSers.

Aiming for the fences...meh, I don't think his ceiling is all that high. If he's 19, then that's not as bad, but I have my doubts, and that's still old as hell for a HS player lol.

He isn't 23. It's pretty much been proven he can't possibly be that old and at most is a year older, he couldn't have just taken 3-4 years off his age when going to Canada and he sure as hell wasn't a 9 year old in Kindergarten.

He's 23 dude. Dude on reddit said he was. It's basically fact.

So anything anyone anonamysly Posts on Reddit without any real proof is now Fact?
Wow..
Stephen A said Lebron to Lakers... was that a Fact? No just something without real proof said on TV..

Dont believe everything you read on the Internet or watch on TV..

[Prez]

He isn't 23. It's pretty much been proven he can't possibly be that old and at most is a year older, he couldn't have just taken 3-4 years off his age when going to Canada and he sure as hell wasn't a 9 year old in Kindergarten.

He's 23 dude. Dude on reddit said he was. It's basically fact.

So anything anyone anonamysly Posts on Reddit without any real proof is now Fact?
Wow..
Stephen A said Lebron to Lakers... was that a Fact? No just something without real proof said on TV..

Dont believe everything you read on the Internet or watch on TV..

Sarcasm...

[Prez]

Why not trade down and then pick him? doesn't make much sense.

There were reports that a number of teams in the mid 1st had him in the top of their board and that he wasn't lasting into the 20s, despite the reports of other teams being concerned about his age. Trading down from 10 to the teens is a lot more difficult than it sounds for a draft where the talent level is so spread out. And Hammond absolutely loved Thon and was blown away during his workouts, if he liked him more than anyone else at 10, why not? Locking down the guy you want at 10 beats trying to trade down for him hoping for some minor asset and ending up losing him. In any case, this is the same GM that drafted our franchise cornerstone at 15, I'm gonna give him the benefit of the doubt for now.

[KingKyrie1]

Why not trade down and then pick him? doesn't make much sense.

There were reports that a number of teams in the mid 1st had him in the top of their board and that he wasn't lasting into the 20s, despite the reports of other teams being concerned about his age. Trading down from 10 to the teens is a lot more difficult than it sounds for a draft where the talent level is so spread out. And Hammond absolutely loved Thon and was blown away during his workouts, if he liked him more than anyone else at 10, why not? Locking down the guy you want at 10 beats trying to trade down for him hoping for some minor asset and ending up losing him. In any case, this is the same GM that drafted our franchise cornerstone at 15, I'm gonna give him the benefit of the doubt for now.

I hope he pans out.. but not too fast!

[SelfishPlayer]

Reaching for a player at 10 in what's considered a weak draft isn't much of a reach. Trading down would have been too much of a risk if you were in love with the player and believed that he would prove to be a sleeper where he was selected.

[Negrodamus]

Reading the beginning of this thread is pretty funny. I'd be more shocked if I hadn't expected this pick since he declared.

[HeartBreakKid]

Don't know why Drummond and Giannis are being compared to Thon Maker. Thon Maker is arguably older than nearly all of the NCAA players in the draft, and was playing against Highschool students.

He's 23 and in highschool...how is this anything like Giannis and Drummond is beyond me. That's not to mention he wasn't even that dominant against HSers.

Aiming for the fences...meh, I don't think his ceiling is all that high. If he's 19, then that's not as bad, but I have my doubts, and that's still old as hell for a HS player lol.

He isn't 23. It's pretty much been proven he can't possibly be that old and at most is a year older, he couldn't have just taken 3-4 years off his age when going to Canada and he sure as hell wasn't a 9 year old in Kindergarten.

He's 23 dude. Dude on reddit said he was. It's basically fact.

He's 19, some dude on realgm said so. I mean, you're using the same logic.

There are multiple sources that confirm the story on reddit, and I don't know if you've used reddit, but stories get verified there all the time.


That other Bucks fan says it's been proven that he can't be that old, where is..the proof?

And you do realize that if he was 20 years old...he still looks bad right? That's a junior or senior in college playing against Highschool kids. This isn't like the Giannis pick at all. This was a Jason Kidd decision, which means that it was probably dumb.

[Prez]

He isn't 23. It's pretty much been proven he can't possibly be that old and at most is a year older, he couldn't have just taken 3-4 years off his age when going to Canada and he sure as hell wasn't a 9 year old in Kindergarten.

He's 23 dude. Dude on reddit said he was. It's basically fact.

He's 19, some dude on realgm said so. I mean, you're using the same logic.

There are multiple sources that confirm the story on reddit, and I don't know if you've used reddit, but stories get verified there all the time.


That other Bucks fan says it's been proven that he can't be that old, where is..the proof?

And you do realize that if he was 20 years old...he still looks bad right? That's a junior or senior in college playing against Highschool kids. This isn't like the Giannis pick at all. This was a Jason Kidd decision, which means that it was probably dumb.

1. Show me these other sources that "confirm" the reddit story.

2. This wasn't a Jason Kidd pick. It was a Hammond pick who by all accounts LOVED him.

[RSCD3_]

Thon Money Maker

Bucks fans have met their Maker.

I hated the pick but love the person. He comes off so well in interviews, it's hard not to pull for him. And there's no question about his effort level and work ethic.

One thing NBA bigs need is good hands. His hands are small, and he's known to bobble more than his fair share of balls. This might be a bigger limiting factor for him than how raw he is.

His hands are normal, I don't know where that complete fabrication came from. I think he just needs to :

HAND LENGTH (inches) 8.75 HAND WIDTH (inches) 9.50

http://stats.nba.com/draftcombine/#!/anthro/?sort=HAND_LENGTH&dir=1

He needs the wrist exercise.

[splendidham]

His hands are normal, I don't know where that complete fabrication came from. I think he just needs to :

HAND LENGTH (inches) 8.75 HAND WIDTH (inches) 9.50

http://stats.nba.com/draftcombine/#!/anthro/?sort=HAND_LENGTH&dir=1

I was going by what the "experts" were saying last night. Thanks for the correction. Maybe their point was that he doesn't have good hands. I haven't seen anywhere near enough of him to tell if he does.

Yeah I was talking about the experts that said he had small hands. He can fumble the ball at times but I think it's because he's a string bean big who uses a lot of possessions.

Read somewhere that he doesn't have bad hands but has weak wrists. Should be no issues improving them if that's the case

Edit* opps, should have read ahead


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Profound23]

I think it's a great pick, regardless of his age.

Could he be turn out to be a bust? Of course. But how often do you get to draft an athletic, agile 7 footer with a solid shooting foundation?

If he pans out, I can imagine how terrifying the already formidable Bucks frontcourt might become... Instead of a Greg Monroe to complement Giannis and Jabari, you'd get an intimidating defensive presence who can also spread the floor.

A bit like the Thunder, you could put together a versatile lineup that combines height with the versatility of small ball...

Yes it's a gamble... But it's also the sort of gamble that makes good teams great.

That is exactly how I feel. Not going to say he was the best player in the draft and he could easily be out of the league in 2 years. At pick 10 in a weak draft, take a swing for the fences. If it works, you are talking championship contender once Giannis hits his prime. If it doesn't? Oh well, you missed out on some other at best average role players.

Why not trade down and then pick him? doesn't make much sense.

They said the same thing when we took Giannis and Utah was waiting to snatch him up.

[RollingWave]

So what exactly is the counter argument for that reddit accusation? can someone put up a post that better organize the whole question?

[Jables]

So what exactly is the counter argument for that reddit accusation? can someone put up a post that better organize the whole question?

It doesn't need to be refuted with any real effort because it's obviously not true. From a quick google search I did the 'evidence' is a (very small, dodgy looking with minimal info) picture of a yearbook someone found (from a friend of course) and they are claiming with zero evidence that they discovered someone else in that picture of the yearbook is 23. In other words there are dozens of people that would have graduated with Thon Maker 5 years ago on social media that have not confirmed this story since 2 months ago when the reddit user made their claims.

This broke well before the Bucks made their pick, and instead of dropping as he would if the rumour were true the Bucks instead reached for him, no basketball team would do that little research. It's just common sense that it's a bs rumour, but for some reason if a rumour comes from reddit people assume it was the work of brilliant investigating.

[jpengland]

I said a few months ago that I would consider him at around the 10 mark and since then he has only gone up in my estimation.

He's long, athletic, has rim protecting instincts and can shoot the ball. He's pretty much potentially the ideal modern big. He's definitely a HUGE project but his ceiling is very high and even if he doesn't reach that he will likely be a rotational player IMO given his seemingly high work rate and character.

People focussed on the wrong things in the run up to the draft due to those stupid mix tapes - no he isn't going to be a wing, or a primary ball handler, a long range sniper or an obscenely good passer. But he very much could be a very good big with good stretch range and the ability to pass out of traffic and attack close outs.

I think it's a very good gamble.

[KqWIN]

Here is a better reddit article concerning Thon Maker's age.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/4q3bvy/research_into_thon_makers_age_probably_far_older/

If you still believe he's 19, you need to have a reason why he was so much younger than all of his classmates in Australia. He was in the graduating class in 2010.