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should've started a thread on him months ago

Could swear there was already a thread but I guess not. What a bonkers recruiting class for Musselman this year. Between Smith, Black and Walsh. Seems like clearly 2 Lotto picks and Walsh might be a first round pick himself.

Arkansas really embarrassed themselves in Maui. I don’t know what their deal is

azcatz11 wrote:Arkansas really embarrassed themselves in Maui. I don’t know what their deal is

Weird comment. They lost by 3 to Creighton and beat SDSU.

EvanZ wrote:

azcatz11 wrote:Arkansas really embarrassed themselves in Maui. I don’t know what their deal is

Weird comment. They lost by 3 to Creighton and beat SDSU.

No I mean the coach. Wtf was that at the end of the game??

EvanZ wrote:Could swear there was already a thread but I guess not. What a bonkers recruiting class for Musselman this year. Between Smith, Black and Walsh. Seems like clearly 2 Lotto picks and Walsh might be a first round pick himself.

Walsh is the biggest wildcard for me, love his physical tools, freaky length and a good athlete and is a dog defensively, but still needs a lot of work offensively

clyde21 wrote:

EvanZ wrote:Could swear there was already a thread but I guess not. What a bonkers recruiting class for Musselman this year. Between Smith, Black and Walsh. Seems like clearly 2 Lotto picks and Walsh might be a first round pick himself.

Walsh is the biggest wildcard for me, love his physical tools, freaky length and a good athlete and is a dog defensively, but still needs a lot of work offensively

I watched Walsh play a little in high school, and I just loved how much of a dog he was on both ends. A lot of guys with his tools float in and out of games and coast for large portions. Dude seemed ferocious, and that might lead to turnovers and some fouls and stuff, but you love to see that, and you can trust those guys are going to get better and make a mark. I'm a big fan of his.

AB is so so good.

EvanZ wrote:AB is so so good.

people will downgrade him b/c of lack of explosive scoring but he's absolutely filthy, just a winning player if I ever seen one.

clyde21 wrote:

EvanZ wrote:AB is so so good.

people will downgrade him b/c of lack of explosive scoring but he's absolutely filthy, just a winning player if I ever seen one.

longer Dyson Daniels that's further along with his jumper, woof

Funcrusher wrote:

clyde21 wrote:

EvanZ wrote:AB is so so good.

people will downgrade him b/c of lack of explosive scoring but he's absolutely filthy, just a winning player if I ever seen one.

longer Dyson Daniels that's further along with his jumper, woof

slightly more athletic, less scoring oriented Cade is probably my comp.

clyde21 wrote:

EvanZ wrote:AB is so so good.

people will downgrade him b/c of lack of explosive scoring but he's absolutely filthy, just a winning player if I ever seen one.

Yeah, so far I think he and Whitmore are probably a tier above the other freshman college prospects. Not sure how anyone has Nick Smith rated as the better Arkansas prospect.

there are so many things to like about black despite the fact he isn't a great shooter or scorer. size, bball iq, passing, defense, athleticism, maturity of his game, plays under control, etc. so damn impressive for a frosh and fun to watch.

The finish at 5:56 was one of the most impressive I've seen all season from any player. The strength, athleticism and coordination to pull off this finish was incredibly impressive. That's the NBA-level finishing that is great to see and I didn't think he had it in him prior to the season.

One thing not mentioned is that Anthony Black shot up from a low 3 star/unranked to high 5 star prospect due to a growth spurt between 2020 and 2021.

I think we all agree that he isn't exceptional at a single thing, but is decent in many things. A small short Black playing PG with this toolkit isn't that intriging, but when you make him a 6'7" PG, he becomes an instant NBA prospect.

AB is pure bball mastery, #3

clyde21 wrote:

Funcrusher wrote:

clyde21 wrote:
people will downgrade him b/c of lack of explosive scoring but he's absolutely filthy, just a winning player if I ever seen one.

longer Dyson Daniels that's further along with his jumper, woof

slightly more athletic, less scoring oriented Cade is probably my comp.

The difference between them as a scorer is so large that this comp is a big reach IMO.

College stats

Cade: 20 PPG on 14 FGA, 40% from 3
Black: 12 PPG on 8 FGA, 32% from 3

It's like night and day difference.

Not to mention, that's a full season of stats for Cade, including a full slate of conference play, and NCAA tournament games so a higher % of games that are vs tough competition and with higher pressure. Black's stats could dip a little once he gets through the rest of conference games and NCAA tournament games.

Cade is a guy who can be the go-to scorer on his NBA team. Black won't be a top 2 option on his - probably not even top 3.

That's less of a knock on Black than it is saying how good Cade is.

Black fits that archetype of tall guy who's in that 6'6" to 6'8" range who can play the point, good hand handles, really good feel/passing for a dude his size, questionable shooting but good defender, high IQ, a dude who's been one of the top players in his class coming up through the ranks, etc.

Others who fit that archetype are guys like Dyson Daniels, Scottie Barnes and (to a lesser extent) Josh Giddey. Or you could even say taller version of Derrick White. Either way, it's a top 10 pick.

not sure how you can discount the Cade comp and in the same post compare him to guys that are negative spacers at this point in Daniels or Giddey.

yea, Black doesn't have Cade's raw volume or 3pt% (he does have better conversion rate everywhere else tho and a better A/TO ratio), but they are the same archetype and will play very similar roles in the NBA.

the Giddey/Daniels comps completely fail when you realize they are complete non-factors off-ball and as shooters today. Scottie Barnes is just way too weird of a comp to even consider, doesn't even play the same role or position.

not sure why you're acting like Black is some sort of non-shooter.

Put me in the camp of people very concerned about his scoring/shooting as leverage for his (very excellent) playmaking skills. Maybe not as extreme as Giddey or Daniels but I feel confident Cade will be penciled in for 20 ppg minimum for a decade and Black aint that.

clyde21 wrote:not sure how you can discount the Cade comp and in the same post compare him to guys that are negative spacers at this point in Daniels or Giddey.

yea, Black doesn't have Cade's raw volume or 3pt% (he does have better conversion rate everywhere else tho and a better A/TO ratio), but they are the same archetype and will play very similar roles in the NBA.

the Giddey/Daniels comps completely fail when you realize they are complete non-factors off-ball and as shooters today. Scottie Barnes is just way too weird of a comp to even consider, doesn't even play the same role or position.

not sure why you're acting like Black is some sort of non-shooter.

Because he is. 30% from 3 so far this season. That's not very good for a guard.

16% from 3 this past summer at FIBA U18.

Scouting report from preseason:
https://www.si.com/nba/draft/prospect-profiles/nba-draft-scouting-report-arkansas-anthony-black#gid=ci02aa963d80002552&pid=usatsi_19409910

"The shooting for Black will be the swing skill that determines how high he’s selected in the 2023 NBA Draft. He doesn’t take many 3-pointers, and doesn’t convert at a high rate when he does shoot from beyond the arc. If the Arkansas freshman isn’t able to prove he can shoot if from deep this season, he may not go as high in the draft as he’d like."