Re-Assessing the 2019 Draft

[ecuhus1981]

I would like to frame this discussion from a big-board perspective, instead of a literal "re-draft". The teams that selected players had not only talent in mind, but team direction, positional fit and many other factors in their decisions.

With that said, here is how I see the 2019 draft class, in terms of current on-court production as well as long-term asset value:

1) Zion Williamson
2) Ja Morant
3) DeAndre Hunter
4) RJ Barrett
5) Tyler Herro
6) Darius Garland
7) Matias Thybulle
8) Brandon Clarke
9) PJ Washington
10) Cameron Johnson
11) Coby White
12) Cam Reddish
13) Talen Horton-Tucker
14) Nicholas Claxton
15) Nickeil Alexander-Walker
16) Rui Hachimura
17) Chuma Okeke
18) Bol Bol
19) Cody Martin
20) Daniel Gafford

I'm sure you'll have your own spin on this list, so please share. Let me know who you think I should have higher or lower, and provide your own Top 20, thanks!

[Roger Murdock]

If you could go back to draft night I’m fairly certain the top 5 remains the exact same. I think the shake up would be if the Pelicans don’t trade with the Hawks (which looks like a disaster now) and take Garland at 4 who’s a perfect fit with Zion. But in that event Cavs just take Hunter and it’s still the same top 5.

After that it gets Whacky. Culver is a total bust. White and Hayes don’t look good but have some tools. Rui stays top 10. Reddish goes R2 like Culver.

Lots of good players though. I’d round out the top 10 with Herro, Rui, Clarke, Keldon, and Washington in some order

[babyjax13]

I think this is a draft where talent evaluators performed better than usual. The player I was most insistent that I did not buy the hype on was Culver (I thought NAW was a slightly superior prospect and Culver was going to be overdrafted) but outside of that the lottery didn't look terrible. I think Hayes is probably a bit underrated on this list and in general, I think New Orleans is making a mistake by playing Adams more than him, tbh. I agree that Keldon Johnson should be higher, and KPJ should be on the list...but otherwise not too many qualms with the list you have.

Bazley, Grant Williams, and Jordan Poole should probably be on the bubble for the top 20, as well.

1. Zion Williamson
2. Ja Morant
3. RJ Barrett
4. De'Andre Hunter
5. Tyler Herro
6. Kevin Porter Jr.
7. PJ Washington
8. Darius Garland
9. Keldon Johnson
10. Jaxson Hayes
11. Brandon Clarke
12. Nic Claxton
13. Chuma Okeke
14. Talen Horton-Tucker
15. Coby White
16. Rui Hachimura
17. Cam Reddish
18. Nickiel Alexander Walker
19. Darius Bazley
20. Grant Williams
---
Bubble (no order): Jordan Poole, Daniel Gafford, Cody Martin, Caleb Martin, Bol Bol, Jalen McDaniels, Jaylen Nowell, Eric Paschall, Isaiah Roby, Goga Bitazde, Luka Samancic, Ty Jerome, Terrence Mann, Miye Oni

It was a monster of a draft.

EDIT: I'd move Garland up to 3 and move KPJ over Herro and Washington over Hunter the more I think about it (and the more I've seen Garland).

[clyde21]

this is a mix of what I thought before the draft (because it's still early) and what we've seen so far in the NBA

1 Zion Williamson
2 RJ Barrett
3 Ja Morant
4 DeAndre Hunter
5 Tyler Herro
6 Darius Garland
7 Keldon Johnson
8 Kevin Porter Jr.
9 Bol Bol
10 Coby White
11 P.J. Washington
12 Nicolas Claxton
13 Chuma Okeke
14 Nickeil Alexander-Walker
15 Brandon Clarke
16 Darius Bazley
17 Matisse Thybulle
18 Luguentz Dort
19 Talen Horton-Tucker
20 Rui Hachimura

biggest disappointment for me so far has been Sekou.

[clyde21]

It was a monster of a draft.

funny how that works...almost everyone here except for a select few hated it.

[CptCrunch]

My big board on the Knicks forum:

1. Zion

2. Morant/Barrett

3. Culver/Hunter/Reddish/Washington

viewtopic.php?f=24&t=1838415&p=75320940&hilit=zion#p75320940

Pretty good aside from Culver ruining it. Keep in mind May 2019 was when a big portion of the media/board wanted Morant over Zion. This climaxed near the end of their rookie season when the vast majority of this forum preferred Morant over Zion.

[BlazersBroncos]

I didnt expect him to vault up the draft boards but I surprised draftniks have not noticed how drastically improved Nassir Little has been this year. Still inconsistent, but looking like a NBA player if not a low usage 4/5th starter sometime in the future.

[nolang1]

Covid and the bubble has really thrown things off with this draft where my assessment before the draft was probably more accurate than going into this season (remember when people were actually saying stuff like 'would you trade Tyler Herro for #1 in 2020?").

The one player where I'm probably most different than consensus would be Jaxson Hayes. He's still 20 and in a one-number metric like LEBRON the only 20-and-under players with a better rating from this draft are and Zion and Horton-Tucker (last year for 19-and-under players it was just Zion). Obviously that's not the end-all be-all for evaluating players, but I'd say that's pretty good for someone who's regarded as super raw with no clue what he's doing.

New Orleans isn't even a good fit for him since Zion is essentially a 5 on offense and is good enough that it's put the organization in more of a win-now mode where they've done stuff like trade a 1st for Steven Adams plus move Hernangomez ahead of Hayes in the rotation for a while because of one good game he had against the Kings, all to chase a play-in spot. Since his last DNP in early March Hayes is averaging 17.4 points and 8.8 rebounds per 36 while shooting 72.8% on twos and 81.3% on free throws in addition to being 3-7 on threes in that time. He's not some huge negative like you'd expect a super raw player to be and his shooting and foul avoidance are clearly trending in the right direction.

[NO-KG-AI]

Brandon Clarke’s shine has gone down a lot hmm?


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[zimpy27]

this is a mix of what I thought before the draft (because it's still early) and what we've seen so far in the NBA

1 Zion Williamson
2 RJ Barrett
3 Ja Morant
4 DeAndre Hunter
5 Tyler Herro
6 Darius Garland
7 Keldon Johnson
8 Kevin Porter Jr.
9 Bol Bol
10 Coby White
11 P.J. Washington
12 Nicolas Claxton
13 Chuma Okeke
14 Nickeil Alexander-Walker
15 Brandon Clarke
16 Darius Bazley
17 Matisse Thybulle
18 Luguentz Dort
19 Talen Horton-Tucker
20 Rui Hachimura

biggest disappointment for me so far has been Sekou.

I agree mostly but probably have THT higher than Coby and Thybulle above Clarke. Bol Bol would be behind Dort for me.

I think Bol Bol might be your Anthony Randolph but fingers crossed that Malone is just easing him back like he did with MPJ.

[clyde21]

I agree mostly but probably have THT higher than Coby and Thybulle above Clarke. Bol Bol would be behind Dort for me.

I think Bol Bol might be your Anthony Randolph but fingers crossed that Malone is just easing him back like he did with MPJ.

for sure, was always high risk high reward, but thats a bet I'm willing to take in that class every day after Zion.

that's a crowded front court tho with Jokic, Millsap, Green, MPJ, they drafted Zeke too and just added Gordon on top it...not a lot of mins to go around tbh but I've liked what I've seen when he's been on the court.

[zimpy27]

It seems like most are firm on Ja as the second pick. I could easily see him slipping out of top 5 in a couple years as his 3 shooting looks like an issue.

[Stillwater]

I think its still a bit early but some are obviously developing faster than others...
example I think the jury is still way out on Sekou who hasnt had a real pg and is in a giant dumpster fire

[ecuhus1981]

I think its still a bit early but some are obviously developing faster than others...
example I think the jury is still way out on Sekou who hasnt had a real pg and is in a giant dumpster fire

I mean, some would argue that Sekou is accelerant for that dumpster fire...

Point taken.

[Stillwater]

I think its still a bit early but some are obviously developing faster than others...
example I think the jury is still way out on Sekou who hasnt had a real pg and is in a giant dumpster fire

I mean, some would argue that Sekou is accelerant for that dumpster fire...

Point taken.

Sekou has been a massive disappointment so far but imo there is no chance the same thing happens if the spurs or the warriors draft him.

[BlazersBroncos]

Sekou doesnt look athletic at all to me when I watch him. He doesnt make smart decisions and he doesnt have the shot to offset his mediocre athleticism. He seems to play wildly out of control and isnt the type to forget his mistakes quickly, letting them affect other areas of his game. He is in a situation on a bad team that should be very conducive to high mpg but he isnt cracking 20. Its been a rough run so far.

[Roger Murdock]

It seems like most are firm on Ja as the second pick. I could easily see him slipping out of top 5 in a couple years as his 3 shooting looks like an issue.

I could easily see Garland and Barrett passing him but who else? He’s too athletic and dynamic to not end up top 5 IMO. Even someone real nice all around like Hunter doesn’t have the upside to surpass him I don’t think

[shakes0]

It seems like most are firm on Ja as the second pick. I could easily see him slipping out of top 5 in a couple years as his 3 shooting looks like an issue.

I could easily see Garland and Barrett passing him but who else? He’s too athletic and dynamic to not end up top 5 IMO. Even someone real nice all around like Hunter doesn’t have the upside to surpass him I don’t think

Before passing Ja, Garland and Barrett would first have to pass Hunter.

Hunter is at worst #3 in this draft behind Zion and Ja and could be ahead of Ja in the near future.

[CP War Hawks]

It seems like most are firm on Ja as the second pick. I could easily see him slipping out of top 5 in a couple years as his 3 shooting looks like an issue.

I could easily see Garland and Barrett passing him but who else? He’s too athletic and dynamic to not end up top 5 IMO. Even someone real nice all around like Hunter doesn’t have the upside to surpass him I don’t think

Before passing Ja, Garland and Barrett would first have to pass Hunter.

Hunter is at worst #3 in this draft behind Zion and Ja and could be ahead of Ja in the near future.

I could give an 1a 1b for either Hunter and RJ in a vacuum. RJ is having a good season. But I take the 6-8 guy with the 7-2 wingspan that offers a different ceiling on both ends.

[Roger Murdock]

Hunter doesn’t offer the offensive upside of Barrett or Garland. He’s played half the season and is 2 years older. Who cares if he’s marginally better right now. Garland has more dynamic scoring/ball handling/playmaking. Barrett is an all around stud on the wing. Hunters great but he’s a lower usage high efficiency guy rather than someone you can run a team through. I think the Hawks would definitely take him over Garland because it’s a better fit for their team but the Knicks and Cavs would prefer their guys.