RealGM post combine big board - #14

[clyde21]

1. Zion Williamson, PF, Duke
2. Ja Morant, PG, Murray St.
3. R.J. Barrett, SF, Duke
4. Jarrett Culver, SG/SF, Texas Tech
5. Darius Garland, PG, Vanderbilt
6. De'Andre Hunter, SF, Virginia
7. Coby White, PG/SG, North Carolina
8. Cameron Reddish, SF, Duke
9. Sekou Doumbouya, PF, Limoges
10. Goga Bitadze, C, Mega Bemax
11. Brandon Clarke, PF/C, Gonzaga
12. Jaxson Hayes, C, Texas
13. Bol Bol, C, Oregon
14.

[clyde21]

added Herro to the poll

[No-Man]

THT or Grant, been flip-flopping between them

[clyde21]

THT or Grant, been flip-flopping between them

little too high for Grant, I went THT, I'd go Herro/PJ also before Grant.

i think PJ is a better version overall than Grant, more lengthy, better athlete, more reliable outside shot, just as good of a playmaker.

[Stillwater]

Little and Porter are better prospects than the others on this list.
Little add Nowell

[916fan]

I picked other for Nickeil Alexander-Walker. One of the best SGs in this class.

[Coeur]

I know it’s going to get crazy hard to make everyone happy w choices. This is that sg glut part of the draft. I voted Rui here and think he and KZ Okpala are ahead of the rest of this group

[Stillwater]

I picked other for Nickeil Alexander-Walker. One of the best SGs in this class.

one of the best consistent shooters in the draft but lacks a first step and much of the same reasons I am not high on Thybulle he played defense in a zone most of the time. But he does have a high bbiq and his shooting is so good he might not need a first step in the role he would play. Either way you can't go wrong at this point in the draft with him if you believe he is more athletic than it looked like but I think he will not be the same level defender he was in college because he isn't twitchy at all and to me he gets knocked at least 5 or 6 spots because of it.

[Stillwater]

bit surprised nobody is picking KPJ at this point.( I picked Little ) I guess the carryover from his headcase label? I think he has poor mans Harden upside and could prove to be a top 5 player from this class down the road...but maybe I'm missing something

[Funcrusher]

gotta go THT here

[Roddy B for 3]

bit surprised nobody is picking KPJ at this point.( I picked Little ) I guess the carryover from his headcase label? I think he has poor mans Harden upside and could prove to be a top 5 player from this class down the road...but maybe I'm missing something

Headache, small sample size and 50% free throw shooter make him a late first to mid second guy to me.

[Stillwater]

bit surprised nobody is picking KPJ at this point.( I picked Little ) I guess the carryover from his headcase label? I think he has poor mans Harden upside and could prove to be a top 5 player from this class down the road...but maybe I'm missing something

Headache, small sample size and 50% free throw shooter make him a late first to mid second guy to me.

maybe, regarding the personality it hurts his stock, but at the end of the day he has an above average jump shot with elite ability to break down a defender with his dribble shake and can finish strong with his athleticism. The FT thing is a bit of a oddity except his mechanics are full body on the move from Legs with the J so it's not that surprising for a kid with so many other skills. I mean Zion and RJ can't shoot ft either...not something that was very high on their priority list either up to this point. The ft % Won't matter imo

[Stillwater]

wow the rui hype is real

[GimmeDat]

Going with THT - Langford and Williams shortly behind.

[916fan]

I picked other for Nickeil Alexander-Walker. One of the best SGs in this class.

one of the best consistent shooters in the draft but lacks a first step and much of the same reasons I am not high on Thybulle he played defense in a zone most of the time. But he does have a high bbiq and his shooting is so good he might not need a first step in the role he would play. Either way you can't go wrong at this point in the draft with him if you believe he is more athletic than it looked like but I think he will not be the same level defender he was in college because he isn't twitchy at all and to me he gets knocked at least 5 or 6 spots because of it.

I agree with you. I'm going to dive into my points deeper because I think NAW deserves to have his name in the lotto conversation.

I think NAW's first step is respectable as a plus athlete for the 2 guard position. Here's highlights of 2 of his games:

Highlights vs. Miami

Watch on YouTube

2:59 sizes up the defender and rejects the screen to attack the basket
1:05 High PnR, splits the defenders
1:29 catches the ball vs. big man at the top of the key, quickly puts the ball on the ground and attacks
3:25 tries to attack starting from mid-court, but struggles and gets away with an offensive foul


Highlights vs. Norte Dame

Watch on YouTube

0:08 quickly puts the ball on the floor and doesn't allow his defender to get the positioning
3:12 PnR, he easily beats the big man
3:28 PnR, able to get the step
3:40 catches the ball and quickly attacks a poor angle set by the big man, but help comes in time at the rim

I do think he only has an average first-step, but he makes it up with his ball handling ability. "Only average" will hurt him in ISO matchups, but he makes it up with his craftiness and ball handling. I don't have advanced stats, but it looks like he does well navigating on-ball with the help of screens. I think NAW's athleticism is underrated because he doesn't particularly have a very fast first-step in the half court as we both agree. He's also not an explosive finisher. However, I think his athleticism shows up in the open court. I think one of his biggest weaknesses right now is his lack of strength which hampers him as a finisher. He flashes some of the athleticism when he is able to finish at the rim.

One of the biggest reasons why I have him as one of the best SGs in this draft is because of the reason you stated above, he's one of the most consistent shooters in this draft. That can't be said for any of the other SGs.
*Cullver has been very inconsistent this season shooting only 30.4/70.8 from 3pt and FT respectively.
*Romeo Langford's mechanics are a bit of a mess as he was a very poor shooter from 3pt at 27.2/72.2.
*KPJ had 41.2% from 3pt and 52.2% from FT on a small sample size. I think both stats are wrong for him.. more of a shot creator.
*Herro has the best looking release of any of these players, but why only 35.5% from 3pt compared to 93.5% FT? Very streaky at Kentucky, however, I think he's the best shooter among this group. He's got the best shooting ahead of him.

All of this brings us back to NAW who proved to be the most consistent shooter among those guys at 37.4/77.8 not too far off from his freshman averages of 39.2/73

[Hoopz Afrik]

Rui

[Stillwater]

I picked other for Nickeil Alexander-Walker. One of the best SGs in this class.

one of the best consistent shooters in the draft but lacks a first step and much of the same reasons I am not high on Thybulle he played defense in a zone most of the time. But he does have a high bbiq and his shooting is so good he might not need a first step in the role he would play. Either way you can't go wrong at this point in the draft with him if you believe he is more athletic than it looked like but I think he will not be the same level defender he was in college because he isn't twitchy at all and to me he gets knocked at least 5 or 6 spots because of it.

I agree with you. I'm going to dive into my points deeper because I think NAW deserves to have his name in the lotto conversation.

I think NAW's first step is respectable as a plus athlete for the 2 guard position. Here's highlights of 2 of his games:

Highlights vs. Miami

Watch on YouTube

2:59 sizes up the defender and rejects the screen to attack the basket
1:05 High PnR, splits the defenders
1:29 catches the ball vs. big man at the top of the key, quickly puts the ball on the ground and attacks
3:25 tries to attack starting from mid-court, but struggles and gets away with an offensive foul


Highlights vs. Norte Dame

Watch on YouTube

0:08 quickly puts the ball on the floor and doesn't allow his defender to get the positioning
3:12 PnR, he easily beats the big man
3:28 PnR, able to get the step
3:40 catches the ball and quickly attacks a poor angle set by the big man, but help comes in time at the rim

I do think he only has an average first-step, but he makes it up with his ball handling ability. "Only average" will hurt him in ISO matchups, but he makes it up with his craftiness and ball handling. I don't have advanced stats, but it looks like he does well navigating on-ball with the help of screens. I think NAW's athleticism is underrated because he doesn't particularly have a very fast first-step in the half court as we both agree. He's also not an explosive finisher. However, I think his athleticism shows up in the open court. I think one of his biggest weaknesses right now is his lack of strength which hampers him as a finisher. He flashes some of the athleticism when he is able to finish at the rim.

One of the biggest reasons why I have him as one of the best SGs in this draft is because of the reason you stated above, he's one of the most consistent shooters in this draft. That can't be said for any of the other SGs.
*Cullver has been very inconsistent this season shooting only 30.4/70.8 from 3pt and FT respectively.
*Romeo Langford's mechanics are a bit of a mess as he was a very poor shooter from 3pt at 27.2/72.2.
*KPJ had 41.2% from 3pt and 52.2% from FT on a small sample size. I think both stats are wrong for him.. more of a shot creator.
*Herro has the best looking release of any of these players, but why only 35.5% from 3pt compared to 93.5% FT? Very streaky at Kentucky, however, I think he's the best shooter among this group. He's got the best shooting ahead of him.

All of this brings us back to NAW who proved to be the most consistent shooter among those guys at 37.4/77.8 not too far off from his freshman averages of 39.2/73

Great arguments... I might actually move him up my board based on this post alone