Juhann Begarin

[Hal14]

Didn't see a thread for this guy but I think he's a very intriguing prospect.

6'6" with a 7'0" wingspan, has really nice shooting form from 3 - can shoot it off the catch or off the dribble. Also very effective driving to the rim. Strong build, good athleticism. Playing professionally in France at age 18. Really good passer/play maker as well, you see him zipping live dribble skip passes across the court with his off-hand like Giddey.

How high would you take him?

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[BostonCouchGM]

just went through my big board and he's a lottery talent imho. He's extremely poised with defenders all around him and is able to keep his head up and dribble alive. That is one of the things I think separates good and great prospects. The fact that he's so physically gifted and skilled on top of it means he's a lottery talent. I'm taking him over older guys with severe limitations and I'm taking him over guys with questionable size/length or maturity issues.

[Hal14]

just went through my big board and he's a lottery talent imho. He's extremely poised with defenders all around him and is able to keep his head up and dribble alive. That is one of the things I think separates good and great prospects. The fact that he's so physically gifted and skilled on top of it means he's a lottery talent. I'm taking him over older guys with severe limitations and I'm taking him over guys with questionable size/length or maturity issues.

Exactly. Begarin is so underrated.

[BlazersBroncos]

Its hard to see why Vrenz is getting the 'late euro to the party' hype over Begarin. I think this kid is a clear cut top 35 pick.

OKC should be looking at him at 34 and 36.

[Hal14]

Its hard to see why Vrenz is getting the 'late euro to the party' hype over Begarin. I think this kid is a clear cut top 35 pick.

OKC should be looking at him at 34 and 36.

I think it's just because Begarin is later to the party. I found out about Vrenz like basically at the same time I found out about Giddey, Roko, Sengun, Garuba - all of them were starting to get hyped up right when all of the pre-draft talks started really getting cooking at towards end of NCAA tournament. So that was several months ago now.

I just found out about Begarin 2-3 weeks ago.

That, and Begarin is just another 6'6" wing. There's tons of 6'6" wings out there, so if unless someone really. digs in and does some more thorough evaluating of Begarin, they might think he's nothing special. Vrenz meanwhile, is a 6'11" wing who in addition to moving really well for a dude of that size, can also shoot it well from 3 and also shows flashes of Point Forward capabilities with how he can run PnR and throw lob passes right on the money from half court.

I like both of them and think they both have a pretty high ceiling if they keep working hard and get to the right team. But Begarin put up numbers that were just as good this season at age 18 compared to what Vrenz put up at age 20. Vrenz needs to add strength and is sometimes a little uncoordinated. With Begarin you don't have to worry about his frame or his physique - and his movements are very fluid/coordinated, plus Begarin is faster, more explosive, more athletic, has better form on his shot (Vrenz brings it down by his waist before going up with the shot) and Begarin seems to play with more of a motor, more of a toughness/edge to him which I like.

I really don't see much in terms of weaknesses for Begarin. FT shooting needs to improve (that's also a weakness for Vrenz) and sometimes he makes poor decisions with shot selection or turnovers (also a weakness for Vrenz)..and Begarin being 2 yrs younger is a major factor.

[BlazersBroncos]

Ya, I dont hate Vrenz. I do think he has a very high bust factor. Guys that are allowed to be ballhandlers at forward have to justify that by being effecient scorers as well. A guy that can only pass and shoot a standstill 3 isnt going to be an effective ballhandler in the NBA. Just too many other options IMO.

Begarin seems to have great athleticism and body control as well as a quick, functional jumper. His array of potential roles in the NBA is much more varied than Vrenz IMO. That gives him a better chance to 'hit'.