Why would Utah pick Kanter at #3

[BiggMann]

so we get lucky enough to move up three spots, the bad part is now they must make the right choice... when we drafted deron it was a coin flip imho, either him or cp3 woulda made a good choice. they just knew they needed to be in position to select one of them, thanks to atl we hade our choice. this year its much different, they CANNOT screw this pick up too much is riding on it. we are extremely weak at pg, anyone who doesnt see this doesnt know this team. why draft kanter, when you know its gonna lead to a domino effect to the current roster? we have big al as our center, no rookie anywhere is gonna beat him out. okur is prime to make a come back, may be s bit slowed but his shot is still deadly as ever. fesenko is a cheap servicable big that can fill a spot until ante tomic is ready to come to utah. but look at our guard depth, and tell me brandon knight and either alec burks, jimmer, or kawhi wouldnt step in with immediate help? k tired o typing on my phone.. peace

[carrottop12]

Most drafts you wouldn't do this, but because of the very shallow talent pool, and the similarity in players 3-15 or so, you may see the Jazz take this strategy into the draft.

Since they have 2 picks, they are going to try to maximize the talent they pick up obviously with out repeating having to draft the same position.

IMO, it's far more likely that you see a big close to the talent of Kanter slip to the 12 spot where the Jazz are drafting (think Valanciunas, DoMo, Biyombo) than it is you see a PG close to the quality of Knight drop to 12 (think Walker).

IMO, unless it becomes blatantly clear that there is a player far better than Knight at 3, (maybe Williams drops to 3) you take Knight, and take whichever big man slips to 12 (I think it's a very likely scenario, seems to always happen with at least one big in the draft) or take the best wing player left i.e. Klay Thompson, Alec Burks, or Kawhi Leonard. I think you get a better combination of talent that way than if you were to draft Kanter at 3, and hoping to address the PG need at 12.

I like Kanter a lot, but I just don't know if a team like the Jazz who gets so few opportunities to draft this high can take a big time risk on a guy who hasn't played competitive basketball in almost 2 years.

Despite Knight being the youngest player in the draft, I think he's more of a sure thing than a lot of players.

[BiggMann]

Deron williams was always going no lower than #4.

Gordon Hayward went a couple slots higher than anticipated, but, nothing unusual.

The only player that ever shocked me from the Jazz was Raul Lopez. And that was a pick in the 20s.

You wont see them drafting for need and taking a guy like Vesely at #3. They aren't stupid.

Does Kosta Koufos ring a bell? selected before serge ibaka and george hill
how about one Kris Humphries, selected before our own big al jefferson..

utah has been know to blow draft picks back when we were a playoff team, now i think the draft has become our main source of our talent.. speaks volumes to the front brass

[Cammo101]

Some in this thread are making it sound like Vesely at #3 is some giant leap. It isn't. He could easily go 4th, 5th, or 6th. In fact, I'd be somewhat surprised if he falls past 6.

[Jazzfan12]

Deron williams was always going no lower than #4.

Gordon Hayward went a couple slots higher than anticipated, but, nothing unusual.

The only player that ever shocked me from the Jazz was Raul Lopez. And that was a pick in the 20s.

You wont see them drafting for need and taking a guy like Vesely at #3. They aren't stupid.

Does Kosta Koufos ring a bell? selected before serge ibaka and george hill
how about one Kris Humphries, selected before our own big al jefferson..

utah has been know to blow draft picks back when we were a playoff team, now i think the draft has become our main source of our talent.. speaks volumes to the front brass

Koufos was a projected lottery pick.

[ManualRam]

i personally think b.knight is a bigger reach at #3 than vesely is.

[Jazzfan12]

i personally think b.knight is a bigger reach at #3 than vesely is.

Agree. Vesely's the superior prospect.

[Point-God]

so we get lucky enough to move up three spots, the bad part is now they must make the right choice... when we drafted deron it was a coin flip imho, either him or cp3 woulda made a good choice. they just knew they needed to be in position to select one of them, thanks to atl we hade our choice. this year its much different, they CANNOT screw this pick up too much is riding on it. we are extremely weak at pg, anyone who doesnt see this doesnt know this team. why draft kanter, when you know its gonna lead to a domino effect to the current roster? we have big al as our center, no rookie anywhere is gonna beat him out. okur is prime to make a come back, may be s bit slowed but his shot is still deadly as ever. fesenko is a cheap servicable big that can fill a spot until ante tomic is ready to come to utah. but look at our guard depth, and tell me brandon knight and either alec burks, jimmer, or kawhi wouldnt step in with immediate help? k tired o typing on my phone.. peace

The Jazz have a huge hole at SF. AK47 is a free agent and Hayward proved to be a better shooting guard than small forward. I believe the Jazz will select Jan Vesely as their SF moving forward. I think that's pretty much a lock unless Derrick Williams falls to them.

[PimpHandStrong]

Al also is very efficient

Only he's not. He's a ball stopper who shoots below league average TS. Big Al is, as of right now, an inefficient chucker (who teams this inefficiency with poor BBIQ and conditioning...). If he gets in shape, figures out how to play team ball, and stops avoiding any and all contact on O, he might turn into a useful player.

[carrottop12]

Al also is very efficient

Only he's not. He's a ball stopper who shoots below league average TS. Big Al is, as of right now, an inefficient chucker (who teams this inefficiency with poor BBIQ and conditioning...). If he gets in shape, figures out how to play team ball, and stops avoiding any and all contact on O, he might turn into a useful player.

Al finished the season much stronger than he began it, tends to happen when you switch teams like he did. I think he'll be just fine.

I want to see Kanter's measurements and his athletic testing, could solidify him as a top 3 pick.

[Harry10]

I don't think Utah will take Kanter, but if they do, it will be because they think he is the best player available.

I think if Kanter had played this season he likely would have been the #1 pick in this draft. So even though he is not a need pick for a team at #3, you could not really fault them for trying to hit a homerun in a draft filled with singles and doubles.

Kanter reminds me of Raef Lafrentz..... both in talent and health.

[carrottop12]

Here is an Enes Kanter video from a few years ago. Another David Locke breakdown.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=cDypseEA8ls[/youtube]

[Eshai]

I see the Marc Gasol comparison 100%.

[Ming Kong!]

Here is an Enes Kanter video from a few years ago. Another David Locke breakdown.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=cDypseEA8ls[/youtube]

Dude that's 2008 video. Check out more recent video.

2010 Summit, he was the best player, broke the summit scoring record too.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YzbhAQGPqk[/youtube]

[erudite23]

Most drafts you wouldn't do this, but because of the very shallow talent pool, and the similarity in players 3-15 or so, you may see the Jazz take this strategy into the draft.

Since they have 2 picks, they are going to try to maximize the talent they pick up obviously with out repeating having to draft the same position.

IMO, it's far more likely that you see a big close to the talent of Kanter slip to the 12 spot where the Jazz are drafting (think Valanciunas, DoMo, Biyombo) than it is you see a PG close to the quality of Knight drop to 12 (think Walker).

IMO, unless it becomes blatantly clear that there is a player far better than Knight at 3, (maybe Williams drops to 3) you take Knight, and take whichever big man slips to 12 (I think it's a very likely scenario, seems to always happen with at least one big in the draft) or take the best wing player left i.e. Klay Thompson, Alec Burks, or Kawhi Leonard. I think you get a better combination of talent that way than if you were to draft Kanter at 3, and hoping to address the PG need at 12.

I like Kanter a lot, but I just don't know if a team like the Jazz who gets so few opportunities to draft this high can take a big time risk on a guy who hasn't played competitive basketball in almost 2 years.

Despite Knight being the youngest player in the draft, I think he's more of a sure thing than a lot of players.

I have a hard time understanding how you could say something like that, Bat. The PG need? Devin Harris is a better starter at the 1 than 2 of the 4 remaining playoff teams possess. He's an extremely solid veteran who may not win you games by himself, but is capable of being a quality starter on a championship caliber team. PG is not a need. Far from. "Superstar" is a need, regardless of the position that he plays. Enes Kanter has a chance to be a superstar, imo. I don't believe that Brandon Knight (or anyone else in the conversation from 4-12) has a realistic shot at becoming one, though a few guys are capable of becoming borderline stars. That means you have to take Kanter. Period. Although I do like Knight quite a bit as a prospect.

[carrottop12]

Need was probably the wrong word. It isn't a dire need, though I do think the jazz would like to get a more pure pg than Harris to put next to favors 3 years from now as a starter.

[erudite23]

I agree, but do you see one in this draft? Outside of Irving, I don't. I think if Knight reaches his full potential, he's closer to a Gilbert Arenas or prime Steve Francis than to Deron Williams, Chris Paul, Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, etc. Maybe Chauncey is a good comparison? Either way, I don't see him as a real natural PG, especially in regard to what the Jazz usually ask their guys to do.

I like BK as a prospect, but I don't like him as a fit here. I hope I'm wrong. I hated Deron as a prospect, and Knight's #s remind me of his in several respects.

[carrottop12]

It's hard to tell, he's just barely 18, and had only one guy to pass to last year. Wish kanter could have played.

[Nate505]

Deron williams was always going no lower than #4.

Gordon Hayward went a couple slots higher than anticipated, but, nothing unusual.

The only player that ever shocked me from the Jazz was Raul Lopez. And that was a pick in the 20s.

You wont see them drafting for need and taking a guy like Vesely at #3. They aren't stupid.

Does Kosta Koufos ring a bell? selected before serge ibaka and george hill
how about one Kris Humphries, selected before our own big al jefferson..

utah has been know to blow draft picks back when we were a playoff team, now i think the draft has become our main source of our talent.. speaks volumes to the front brass

It's pretty easy to blow picks in the range outside of the lottery. Hell, most draft picks past the top 5-6 or so are a crap shoot in most years.

[Elden Payton]

Bigs are a premium in this league, if they draft Kanter they would probably even trade him as a part of a package for a SF like Josh Smith or Andre Iguodala.