Zhaire Smith

[Toranaga]

Would be a real shame if he fell out of the top 10 picks. Would love for my Knicks to grab him if Mikal is gone.

I think GM's will get gun shy and job security comes into play. It's a hard sell to an owner and fan base to pick an unheralded recruit from Texas Tech with a top 10 pick. If he fails or takes a while to develop then you're probably done. But I think the reward is so great here and I don't think he fails. The sky is the limit for the many reasons mentioned in this thread. Nice to know that I'm not the only one super high on him.

[nolang1]

Do you think he can be a good fit for the nuggets? He might be able to play some 3 I think

Yeah why not? I've always felt the Nuggets should play into their altitude advantage by going after high-level athletes and really pushing the tempo, and obviously Jokic's point center skills would help make up for Smith's deficiency in doing stuff off the dribble.

I think GM's will get gun shy and job security comes into play. It's a hard sell to an owner and fan base to pick an unheralded recruit from Texas Tech with a top 10 pick.

I don't think there's enough of a sample to get a trend, but I'm trying to think of which one-and-dones were the lowest-ranked high school players. I feel like Marquese Chriss was considered one of the lower ones in recent memory and he was ranked in the 50s - obviously not a success story there. D'Angelo Russell and Devin Booker were around the 20s in the same high school class. It's definitely hard for me to remember too many players who weren't McDonald's All-Americans and then got drafted the following year, which I suppose makes sense because 30 games or so is a pretty small sample, especially when you're not going to be at all of them in person, and scouts would be more comfortable with the players they've previously assessed at a shoe camp or Hoop Summit type of thing.

When I looked at it in the past, age was a better predictor than recruiting class ranking (so a 19-year-old high school senior ranked a couple spots higher than one a year younger probably just got that ranking by beating up on kids he was more physically developed than), but the pool of one-and-dones has tended to largely consist of players who were ranked in the top 15-20 as high school seniors.

[clyde21]

Do you think he can be a good fit for the nuggets? He might be able to play some 3 I think

Yeah why not? I've always felt the Nuggets should play into their altitude advantage by going after high-level athletes and really pushing the tempo, and obviously Jokic's point center skills would help make up for Smith's deficiency in doing stuff off the dribble.

I feel like a guy like Miles Bridges is a much better fit for the Nuggets.

[EvanZ]

Robert Williams might make the most sense for the Nuggets.

[Legend_T]

Robert Williams might make the most sense for the Nuggets.

I don't think so,they need a 3, no more Pfs lol

[GimmeDat]

Robert Williams might make the most sense for the Nuggets.

I don't think so,they need a 3, no more Pfs lol

Williams should be a 5 in the NBA, and for Denver it would make a lot of sense to have a more defense/athletic option at C, but so long as they have Plumlee locked in Williams would struggle to find minutes imo.

[Chi town]

Elite athleticism and High IQ usually are good ingredients. Work ethic will be key to develop his skills.

I like Z. Think he should get 20mpg as an energy wing in his rookie season. He's an impact player. By year 3 he could be a really good one.

Don't think he lasts past lottery.

[nolang1]

Do you think he can be a good fit for the nuggets? He might be able to play some 3 I think

Yeah why not? I've always felt the Nuggets should play into their altitude advantage by going after high-level athletes and really pushing the tempo, and obviously Jokic's point center skills would help make up for Smith's deficiency in doing stuff off the dribble.

I feel like a guy like Miles Bridges is a much better fit for the Nuggets.

Really doubt he's falling to 14.

[clyde21]

Elite athleticism and High IQ usually are good ingredients. Work ethic will be key to develop his skills.

I like Z. Think he should get 20mpg as an energy wing in his rookie season. He's an impact player. By year 3 he could be a really good one.

Don't think he lasts past lottery.

Exactly. He has all the requisites: athleticism, length, BBIQ and motor. All of this should give him a really high floor in the NBA.

[clyde21]

Yeah why not? I've always felt the Nuggets should play into their altitude advantage by going after high-level athletes and really pushing the tempo, and obviously Jokic's point center skills would help make up for Smith's deficiency in doing stuff off the dribble.

I feel like a guy like Miles Bridges is a much better fit for the Nuggets.

Really doubt he's falling to 14.

Meh, I think there's a good chance he'll be there.

[nolang1]

I feel like a guy like Miles Bridges is a much better fit for the Nuggets.

Really doubt he's falling to 14.

Meh, I think there's a good chance he'll be there.

I mean, I'm not super high on him but I feel like there's a better chance he's selected like 8th than he is of being available at 14. I feel there's no chance the Clippers wouldn't take him with one of their picks.

[clyde21]

Really doubt he's falling to 14.

Meh, I think there's a good chance he'll be there.

I mean, I'm not super high on him but I feel like there's a better chance he's selected like 8th than he is of being available at 14. I feel there's no chance the Clippers wouldn't take him with one of their picks.

The Clippers are the first legitimate landing spot for him, and they pick right before the Nuggets. I don't see why it's impossible to think he won't be there.

[nolang1]

Meh, I think there's a good chance he'll be there.

I mean, I'm not super high on him but I feel like there's a better chance he's selected like 8th than he is of being available at 14. I feel there's no chance the Clippers wouldn't take him with one of their picks.

The Clippers are the first legitimate landing spot for him, and they pick right before the Nuggets. I don't see why it's impossible to think he won't be there.

I agree to disagree. I'm not even trying to talk you or myself into his skills. He's the kind of player who can look very good in a workout setting, and there are enough teams out there talk about wanting character/toughness/etc that I'm sure love the fact that he went back to school when he was a guaranteed lottery pick last year. Just takes one team to pick him.

[clyde21]

I mean, I'm not super high on him but I feel like there's a better chance he's selected like 8th than he is of being available at 14. I feel there's no chance the Clippers wouldn't take him with one of their picks.

The Clippers are the first legitimate landing spot for him, and they pick right before the Nuggets. I don't see why it's impossible to think he won't be there.

I agree to disagree. I'm not even trying to talk you or myself into his skills. He's the kind of player who can look very good in a workout setting, and there are enough teams out there talk about wanting character/toughness/etc that I'm sure love the fact that he went back to school when he was a guaranteed lottery pick last year. Just takes one team to pick him.

I'm not disagreeing that he CAN be picked before the Nuggets' turn. I'm disagreeing with your notion that he WILL be picked before then. I can see him lasting till 14 just as easily as I can see him being taken in the top 13.

[Ell Curry]

Meh, I think there's a good chance he'll be there.

I mean, I'm not super high on him but I feel like there's a better chance he's selected like 8th than he is of being available at 14. I feel there's no chance the Clippers wouldn't take him with one of their picks.

The Clippers are the first legitimate landing spot for him, and they pick right before the Nuggets. I don't see why it's impossible to think he won't be there.

My reading of the draft is there's a top 9 (Doncic, Ayton, Jaren Jackson, Bagley, Porter, Young, Bamba, Mikal Bridges, Carter), and then Smith could go 10th (or even 8th if Porter due to injury questions or some other freak thing for any of the top 9) if his workouts are good enough, as is true for lots of guys.

[WalterBenjamin]

I see Gerald Green. He is a long term project. But generaly doubt he will be a above average ballhandler for position. Low initiator equity.

[vincecarter4pres]

Was thinking about it, although he reminds me a lot of a shorter Paul George, also see a lot of Michael Finley in him.

[clyde21]

ok title officially giving me OCD yo...can someone fix it?

[Catchall]

I see Gerald Green. He is a long term project. But generaly doubt he will be a above average ballhandler for position. Low initiator equity.

I think he has better BBIQ than Gerald Green, but his lack of handle and ball skills do limit his game.

[doordoor123]

I’m kind of mixed on Smith. His athleticism and defense is so tantalizing. His offense is just atrocious. No awareness offensively. His jumper has potential, but it still needs a lot of work. Like he won’t be making threes for a while. His passing isn’t good and his just awareness on offense isn’t good. Yeah, he gets offensive boards, but do you watch where he stands all game? 10 feet from the basket. He literally waits to dunk over guys. His movement on offense just isn’t good. He has elite elite potential, but man, his offense is just not good. Good luck to the team that promised him.

You know how everyone missed out on DeJounte Murray and he ended up going 30th to the Spurs? I hope that happens with Smith. He needs a good coach to tell him what to do.