2025 NBA Draft Discussion Part 7

[Clutch0z24]

These you?

Dumb to go back and find these where literally the whole real GM board and everyone outside of the realgm board had these exact opinions....There were very few posters who were on the Barnes bandwagon over the Suggs one....We just lost Lowry and were looking for a guard that possessed Suggs skills....We wanted a PG to take the reigns....To go and find these posts....To act as if it was a Hot take to pick Suggs > Barnes at that time is silly.....

Lol. Please.

Go ahead and search my posts on Barnes both prior to the draft, and when the pick was made.

It's important to make note of these things for posterity.

That's why we asked you for your list now. That way we can see who knew what they were talking about at the time and who didn't years later.

This is a basketball forum where people make all kinds of predictions and guesses....No one is going to tell the future here....And YOU are also not going to be able to tell the future....If you like Bryant cool....Other people can have opinions on players....Bryant does not have the offensive upside to ever be a star or all star in this league ....Thats my opinion....We will see in time what happens but if i had to put money on it id say his chances are slim...Good role player sure...

[CazOnReal]

Anyone suggesting that we should be okay with trading Dick because we have Jamison Battle is not to be taken seriously in talent evaluation.

Again: There's a conversation to be had about consolidation or even swapping out one of our SGs for a wing or big man that has proven talent. Lively, Jabari Smith Jr., etc.

Doing so for a non-lottery pick, be it Dick or Ochai, is straight up stupid, the sort of malpractice and mismanagement of assets that this board loves to complain about by the same members suggesting the moves in the first place.

With RJ there's some consideration for his cap space and whether it's the best use of it on this team but you don't trade him away for peanuts if you do make that move.

[XTC]

Im saying if we did infact take Bryant 9th....I would not be shocked at all if we look back at where we picked Bryant and you see 2-4 players that are either better than Bryant or All star level guys....Just like when you look at that #9 list of picks ^ And you can name alot of players better than them in the draft class....

I like Bryant but i think at 9 there will be better players than him available....His defense is good but hes not going to be the best wing defender in the league....And his offensive game has bad limitations like other people point out....No Mid range pull up game, No Handles, Can't get to the rim, Can't break his man down off the dribble, Does not draw fouls.....Hes a 3&D who could be a good Fast break guy....Thats his game right now....And like i said the majority of them players are good players in the league and teams want them but they are never the best player on their teams or all star level players....They are just role players....Which is what i think Bryant is and will be in the NBA....Unless he has a rare development curve where he becomes an iso/ball handling/shot creating wizard in the NBA ....Which i will bet against...

Off topic, but I just want your input

Who was a better player in 2015 and why

Kawhi Leonard who averaged
16/7/2/2

Demar Derozan who averaged
20/4/4/1

One was on a team where he was the go too guy...And one was on a team full of HOF....Not a good comp....If you put Kawhi on any other team during them years hes getting you more points and more stats in general....

Kawhi had a good offensive game and He could handle the ball a little, His mid range shot was always lethal....If you watched him in college he showed flashes of shot creation skills....While it wasn't fine tuned...He showed he had the ability to put the ball on the floor and could beat his man in a verity of ways....Bryant has not shown it much ....Go back and watch some Kawhi in college....Comparing Bryant to Kawhi is not a good one imo...

No one's comparing the two (especially not me), just a question I wanted to ask you. You seem to really favor offense first guys over defense first guys.

And no one could predict how great Kawhi could become just based off his college career, and if they said they did, they're lying.

[Mark_83]

Dumb to go back and find these where literally the whole real GM board and everyone outside of the realgm board had these exact opinions....There were very few posters who were on the Barnes bandwagon over the Suggs one....We just lost Lowry and were looking for a guard that possessed Suggs skills....We wanted a PG to take the reigns....To go and find these posts....To act as if it was a Hot take to pick Suggs > Barnes at that time is silly.....

Lol. Please.

Go ahead and search my posts on Barnes both prior to the draft, and when the pick was made.

It's important to make note of these things for posterity.

That's why we asked you for your list now. That way we can see who knew what they were talking about at the time and who didn't years later.

This is a basketball forum where people make all kinds of predictions and guesses....No one is going to tell the future here....And YOU are also not going to be able to tell the future....If you like Bryant cool....Other people can have opinions on players....Bryant does not have the offensive upside to ever be a star or all star in this league ....Thats my opinion....We will see in time what happens but if i had to put money on it id say his chances are slim...Good role player sure...

Wow! Did you suddenly gain some humility? Unlike you I am not saying any player or outcome is a certainty. I've learned my lesson after mine and this board's collective Valanciunas meltdown way back when. You might want to try that sometime instead of stating opinions as if they're certainties or facts. I'm just going to assume you're still very young, so I can give you some grace.

[PhilBlackson]

Anyone suggesting that we should be okay with trading Dick because we have Jamison Battle is not to be taken seriously in talent evaluation.

Again: There's a conversation to be had about consolidation or even swapping out one of our SGs for a wing or big man. Doing so for a non-lottery pick is straight up stupid, the sort of malpractice and mismanagement of assets that this board loves to complain about by the same members suggesting the moves in the first place.

It's "malpractice" to trade a 13th pick for 16th pick (so 3 spots down lol) if you believe they offer relatively similar upside but the later is at a position of FAR greater need?! Seems hyperbolic at best but I guess you know all on your high horse.

[CazOnReal]

Anyone suggesting that we should be okay with trading Dick because we have Jamison Battle is not to be taken seriously in talent evaluation.

Again: There's a conversation to be had about consolidation or even swapping out one of our SGs for a wing or big man. Doing so for a non-lottery pick is straight up stupid, the sort of malpractice and mismanagement of assets that this board loves to complain about by the same members suggesting the moves in the first place.

It's "malpractice" to trade a 13th pick for 16th pick if you believe they offer relatively similar upside but the later is at a position of FAR greater need?! Seems hyperbolic at best I guess you know all on your high horse.

Case in point.

I've already given examples of players who are proven NBA talent at a more relevant position that one could make an argument for a swap even if I think it's not necessary to make that move this season. 2026 offseason? Different story with Ochai potentially having his extension kicking in and RJ - if he's still on the team - being in his final contract year.

This is peak "That pick could be anything!" nonsense and i'm not entertaining it for stupid reasons like "we have Jamison Battle".

A serious team does not make a call on who's on the out for its SG rotation based on whether they have Jamison Battle or not. You make it because you've evaluated which talent you feel is best for your current core and either want to consolidate for a star or make a move for a piece that fits your schemes, rotation, etc. better than whoever is on the outside looking in.
You don't move one developing young player still on his rookie deal for another development project when you just added 4 rookies last year, are seemingly adding 2 more young players to this team at minimum this year while trying maintaining a winning culture and still have plenty of work to be done developing your other young guys like IQ, Scottie, RJ, Dick, Walter, Chomche etc.

The Chicago Bulls post-MJ did that same thing when they were rebuilding - constantly trading the talent they had for lottery picks (which it should be noted #16 is...not, which is another reason why it's ridiculous) and while they did draft a bunch of talented players when simply looking at the names they picked, they all ended up succeeding on teams that weren't the one Jerry was running because they never let the young core grow together. There is zero reason to make brash moves for a non-lottery pick unless you're getting, like, a young player back with that pick i.e. trading Ochai for Topic and #15.

[Clutch0z24]

Lol. Please.

Go ahead and search my posts on Barnes both prior to the draft, and when the pick was made.

It's important to make note of these things for posterity.

That's why we asked you for your list now. That way we can see who knew what they were talking about at the time and who didn't years later.

This is a basketball forum where people make all kinds of predictions and guesses....No one is going to tell the future here....And YOU are also not going to be able to tell the future....If you like Bryant cool....Other people can have opinions on players....Bryant does not have the offensive upside to ever be a star or all star in this league ....Thats my opinion....We will see in time what happens but if i had to put money on it id say his chances are slim...Good role player sure...

Wow! Did you suddenly gain some humility? Unlike you I am not saying any player or outcome is a certainty. I've learned my lesson after mine and this board's collective Valanciunas meltdown way back when. You might want to try that sometime instead of stating opinions as if they're certainties or facts. I'm just going to assume you're still very young, so I can give you some grace.

I can keep going...This you???....Don't act like you have not made hot takes before about players to draft and who not to draft and act like your opinion is all mighty when you are not perfect either....We all make hot takes to bring some of mine up in the past is foolish in this convo...

[PhilBlackson]

Anyone suggesting that we should be okay with trading Dick because we have Jamison Battle is not to be taken seriously in talent evaluation.

Again: There's a conversation to be had about consolidation or even swapping out one of our SGs for a wing or big man. Doing so for a non-lottery pick is straight up stupid, the sort of malpractice and mismanagement of assets that this board loves to complain about by the same members suggesting the moves in the first place.

It's "malpractice" to trade a 13th pick for 16th pick if you believe they offer relatively similar upside but the later is at a position of FAR greater need?! Seems hyperbolic at best I guess you know all on your high horse.

Case in point.

I've already given examples of players who are proven NBA talent at a more relevant position that one could make an argument for a swap even if I think it's not necessary to make that move this season. 2026 offseason? Different story with Ochai potentially having his extension kicking in and RJ - if he's still on the team - being in his final contract year.

This is peak "That pick could be anything!" nonsense and i'm not entertaining it for stupid reasons like "we have Jamison Battle".

A serious team does not make a call on who's on the out for its SG rotation based on whether they have Jamison Battle or not.

The only case in point is your continued smug arrogance like you know it all

Yes you gave examples of trades that you have no idea whether or not the other team would have any interest in and/or if the asking price would be higher since they are in fact more established pieces than even Gradey himself (which btw you also edited in AFTER I had already responded hence why it's not in this quote -- just like I see you did this one but I'm not responding to all that added junk now lol).

Also no one disputed using Ochai or RJ instead, that was you just thinking you're so much smarter than everyone else lol I'm sure if that were an option most would agree to that route instead but the whole reason why people mention Dick's name would be the higher perceived value to get an asset you desire. It's unlikely in this hypothetical that ORL wants to trade their 1st for a potential year rental like Ochai (and want a higher upside) and they certainly don't want to take on more salary with RJ especially with his lack of shooting.

The last part is just your usual smugness and/or just poor comprehension because I didn't say Battle was THE reason, only a PART of it. The previous poster mentioned the value of Dick's movement shooting which Battle has just factually been substantially better at no matter how you try (and fail) to mock but that was only a part of it. The greater issue is that Gradey plays at an overloaded position (SG)....all of that combines as to why it's not "malpractice" to consider trading a 13th pick for a 16th at a greater positional need who also offers a far more consistent trait (defence). But I'm done with the know-it-allness for the night, hopefully next time you can discuss it without coming into the conversation like you're above it all.

[Mark_83]

I can keep going...This you???....Don't act like you have not made hot takes before about players to draft and who not to draft and act like your opinion is all mighty when you are not perfect either....We all make hot takes to bring some of mine up in the past is foolish in this convo...

Dude, you're an utter clown. My posts were over 13 years ago. Congratulations. Go back further and you'll find even worse takes especially during the Valanciunas draft.

Everyone has bad takes. I mention mine all the time. Search the Siakam draft for some real bangers. That's not really the point. The point is learning from your bad takes so that you gain a little humility, which it appears you're still in the process of.

Literally none of the posts you've screen-shotted shows anything that contradicts that. Nowhere do I tell people their opinion is wrong and mine is right. I didn't post your hot takes because your takes were wrong. I posted them because both then as now, you speak with so much certainty and arrogance as if your opinions are facts when in fact, like the rest of us you know jack ****.

[Clutch0z24]

Off topic, but I just want your input

Who was a better player in 2015 and why

Kawhi Leonard who averaged
16/7/2/2

Demar Derozan who averaged
20/4/4/1

One was on a team where he was the go too guy...And one was on a team full of HOF....Not a good comp....If you put Kawhi on any other team during them years hes getting you more points and more stats in general....

Kawhi had a good offensive game and He could handle the ball a little, His mid range shot was always lethal....If you watched him in college he showed flashes of shot creation skills....While it wasn't fine tuned...He showed he had the ability to put the ball on the floor and could beat his man in a verity of ways....Bryant has not shown it much ....Go back and watch some Kawhi in college....Comparing Bryant to Kawhi is not a good one imo...

No one's comparing the two (especially not me), just a question I wanted to ask you. You seem to really favor offense first guys over defense first guys.

And no one could predict how great Kawhi could become just based off his college career, and if they said they did, they're lying.

I don't always value offense first guys but for what our team needs atm...We prolly need some offense first players....We are one of the worst offensive teams/Half court offensive teams in the league...Ik Ingram is coming in but hes also injury prone and banking on him for 82 games will be a struggle....I think we need another dynamic scorer for sure....We have enough defensive first guys riddled on the bench and sprinkled into the starting lineup...

As for defenders in this class...If i were to pick one of the defense first guys id prolly go with Maluach for his rim protection skills (Something we lack) or Rasheer>Bryant/Noa due to having more offensive touch and ability and also is taller so he can get to the rim better and fills more a position of need for us...

That being said i don't see all star upside with these guys as i do with a few others...Id pick Jase Richardson over all 3 ^ I think considering he was one of the best shot creators in this class while also being a + defender and also has a better 3 pt shot compared to Bryant while also getting to the rim more, drawing double the amount of fouls, Can break a defender down off the dribble, Can hit a verity of tough shots on and off the ball etc...

Draft is hard to get right but for me i go with the offensive skills that could translate to them being a superstar....Most of the superstars in the NBA have a offensive shot creation bag....Its rare to transform a 3&D player into a legit superstar....Off the top of my head i can't think of 1 3&D player who is the best plyer on their team....Kawhi btw was never just a 3&D guy...In college he was more than that if you go look at it...

[Clutch0z24]

I can keep going...This you???....Don't act like you have not made hot takes before about players to draft and who not to draft and act like your opinion is all mighty when you are not perfect either....We all make hot takes to bring some of mine up in the past is foolish in this convo...

Dude, you're an utter clown. Those posts were over 13 years ago. Congratulations. Go back further and you'll find even worse takes during the Valanciunas draft.

Everyone has bad takes. I mention mine all the time. Search the Siakam draft for some bangers. That's not really the point. The point is learning from your bad takes so that you gain a little humility, which it appears you're still in the process of.

Literally none of the posts you've screen-shotted shows anything that contradicts that. Nowhere do I tell people their opinion is wrong and mine is right. I didn't post your hot takes because your takes were wrong. I posted them because both then as now, you speak with so much certainty and arrogance as if your opinions are facts when in fact, like the rest of us you know jack ****.

I never once said my opinion was right did i?....I simply stated my opinion on Bryant....You took offense to my opionion and thats why you all upset about it... ....I stated in my posts about Bryant that he does not have the offensive bag/ handles/ iso scoring/ Self creation to be anything more than a 3&D fast break guy....Thats an opinion i have....Which is a very valid opinion because i am right that Bryant has not shown he can do these things yet....

He does not attack the rim as you would hope he would and does not get to the FT line which shows me hes not aggressive as a Wing and likes to hover on the 3pt line and waits for a pass...He doesn't create for himself or others....To me hes just a 3&D role player...If im wrong in the future im wrong....

No need to be upset over an opinion though...You are basically telling me right now i was wrong about a few takes before so there for i should not post opinions on players anymore....Coming from you who made way worse hot takes about drafted players in the past....I can make my opinions and you can make yours...No need to take it personally...Or name call...

[ImaBeatDatAzz]

This will be a tough decision between Bryant and Noa

[mademan]

I'd trade Dick for the 16th pick in a second. I dont see how Dick gets consistent minutes with the battle on the wings. Of the guys projected to get minutes - RJ/Ingram/Ochai/JKW/Battle - someone (or a few someone's) will be spending a lot of time on the bench. You cant tell me your confident that Dick wont be eating a lot of pine next year.

[nivisi9]

Again, no need to overcomplicate it. If you're gonna go the (to take a classic old Simmons term) Tremendous Upside Potential route at 9, why wouldn't you just go with the guy in Bryant who will be a plus defender with a ready made jumper who has solid athleticism/good measureables and has shown he can be a decent passer? We saw his value at Arizona and how he lifted them despite not getting as much run as he probably should've got and he passes the eye/numbers tests. Is he an on-ball creation monster? Probably not, but if he was he probably wouldn't be available at 9. But we don't need him to be that either when there on-ball creators already on this team and you also never know how guys might develop. It's not out of the question considering his tools and relative age. But what's there is the bones of a very good two-way player who fits a defined complementary role at the next level and fits what Masai was talking about in terms of what he was looking for in this draft.

Don't we consistently see in the playoffs how those are the guys you can't play off the floor? Mikael Bridges fits this and went for five FRPs lol.

And compare, for example, with Essengue, and I think people overindex on how athletes/prospects look in transition because it's exciting/flashy and fail to acknowledge how they'll look in half-court settings and that's when things fall apart with him a bit. If they're gonna ultimately similar roles as off-ball corner winģs, take the guy with a better shot.

https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/carter-bryant-is-a-winning-player

I think what's more important is Star potential versus role player. Bryant most likely positive outcome is a valuable role player 3+D

Essengue is averaging over 6 FT attempts per game (close to 9 per 36) at 18 in a superior pro league then someone like Saluun (6th overall last draft) played in last season.

Essengue is an elite finisher around the basket.

Both very strong indicators for shot creation to come.

Looking at Essengue's free throw rate he is clearly getting fouled a ton before he gets the chance to posterize somebody, and he has huge hands and a 9'3+ standing reach

In terms of that Saluun comparison:

Essengue – 18.8 PTS, 8.0 REB, 1.7 AST, 0.8 BLK, 2.1 STL, 6.2 FTA, 1.5 TO, 56.0% FG

Salaun – 15.0 PTS, 6.1 REB, 1.4 AST, 0.3 BLK, 1.7 STL, 2.5 FTA, 2.0 TO, 40.6% FG

one was essentially a top 5 pick and Essengue is much less raw.

Also

Essengue above the 90th percentile in win shares and PIR in the Eurocup and above the 90th percentile in most of the  major defensive analytical stats.

.247 win share rate is ridiculous for a 18 year old.

Generational FT generation and downhill demon at 6’10

We haven't even mentioned the physical profile and athleticism.

I think it be fair to say he's a prospect with some Star potential.

[CazOnReal]

I'd trade Dick for the 16th pick in a second.

Then i'm very glad you're not making decisions for this FO because that is egregious asset management.

The only case in point is your continued smug arrogance like you know it all

It doesn't take a genius to determine you can get better value for Gradey than the 16th pick in any draft. Like, i'm not advocating for trading Dick right now, but aim higher than that if you're going to make a proposal for getting another pick in this draft.

Yes you gave examples of trades that you have no idea whether or not the other team would have any interest in and/or if the asking price would be higher since they are in fact more established pieces than even Gradey himself (which btw you also edited in AFTER I had already responded hence why it's not in this quote -- just like I see you did this one but I'm not responding to all that added junk now lol).

By that same logic, you have no idea whether the Magic wouldn't prefer using the 16th pick instead of trading for Dick when they quite literally passed over him in the 2023 NBA Draft. Hell, maybe they do rate him but they value him as the 24th pick - or they could very well prefer someone like Anfernee Simons. After all, you you have no idea whether or not the other team would have any interest.

For the Magic specifically, Orlando is notorious for not making phone calls to other FOs to make trades, they just pick it up the phone when someone calls them: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ad-injury-impact-bold-quotes-from-dallas-james-harden/id293376147?i=1000690796818

But I guess considering Orlando might not even want Gradey Dick is Super Smug Bros. 2: The Lost Smugness.

Also no one disputed using Ochai or RJ instead, that was you just thinking you're so much smarter than everyone else lol I'm sure if that were an option most would agree to that route instead but the whole reason why people mention Dick's name would be the higher perceived value to get an asset you desire. It's unlikely in this hypothetical that ORL wants to trade their 1st for a potential year rental like Ochai (and want a higher upside) and they certainly don't want to take on more salary with RJ especially with his lack of shooting.

It's very funny for someone to make a judgement call about my reading comprehension when they clearly are either unable or unwilling to grasp the simple concept of "We do not need to make this decision right now for the 16th pick in the draft so the best course of action is to evaluate who does/not fit and then move them once you get to see what this team looks like with a presumably healthy roster".

It is not that complicated, it shouldn't have to be spelled out and yet, here we are.

Also Ochai is an RFA in 2026 if he isn't extended so calling them a "1 year rental" is just straight up misleading. No team is trading for Agbaji and then letting him walk when they'll be cheap to retain and offers a useful skillset in the modern NBA, regardless of what they evaluate his value to be.

The last part is just your usual smugness and/or just poor comprehension because I didn't say Battle was THE reason, only a PART of it.

In no world should Jamison Battle be a factor in your team's decision-making for the future of 3 players who are better than him. KJ Simpson is not going to be a factor for the Hornets in figuring out what they do with LaMelo Ball and if they were, then that's just another example of Charlotte's management engaging in malpractice.

The previous poster mentioned the value of Dick's movement shooting which Battle has just factually been substantially better at no matter how you try (and fail) to mock but that was only a part of it.

Do you know what the word "factually" means? Because not only is that not "factually true", it's ignoring context such as where Dick is in the pecking order for opposing team's scouting report vs. Battle.

[Thaddy]

This will be a tough decision between Bryant and Noa

Noa is in a better league than the NCAA and he's producing. Bryant was coming off the bench in college. That kind of spells out who is the better prospect.

Unless we see Essengue as a low character prospect that won't improve I am fairly certain we go with him.

Trading Dick is the best move the Raptors could make. We have to sell on his potential, which I don't see. He's a weak ball handler and defender. He doesn't have any bag when it comes to creating his offense. The main strength should be shooting but it's been bad so far in his career. I would try to turn him into a big like Sorber or Fleming.

In the 2nd round I think Gonzalez drops, otherwise I'm going with Yang. He is a skilled big that can shoot, that's always handy.

[RoteSchroder]

Again, no need to overcomplicate it. If you're gonna go the (to take a classic old Simmons term) Tremendous Upside Potential route at 9, why wouldn't you just go with the guy in Bryant who will be a plus defender with a ready made jumper who has solid athleticism/good measureables and has shown he can be a decent passer? We saw his value at Arizona and how he lifted them despite not getting as much run as he probably should've got and he passes the eye/numbers tests. Is he an on-ball creation monster? Probably not, but if he was he probably wouldn't be available at 9. But we don't need him to be that either when there on-ball creators already on this team and you also never know how guys might develop. It's not out of the question considering his tools and relative age. But what's there is the bones of a very good two-way player who fits a defined complementary role at the next level and fits what Masai was talking about in terms of what he was looking for in this draft.

Don't we consistently see in the playoffs how those are the guys you can't play off the floor? Mikael Bridges fits this and went for five FRPs lol.

And compare, for example, with Essengue, and I think people overindex on how athletes/prospects look in transition because it's exciting/flashy and fail to acknowledge how they'll look in half-court settings and that's when things fall apart with him a bit. If they're gonna ultimately similar roles as off-ball corner winģs, take the guy with a better shot.

https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/carter-bryant-is-a-winning-player

I think what's more important is Star potential versus role player. Bryant most likely positive outcome is a valuable role player 3+D

Essengue is averaging over 6 FT attempts per game (close to 9 per 36) at 18 in a superior pro league then someone like Saluun (6th overall last draft) played in last season.

Essengue is an elite finisher around the basket.

Both very strong indicators for shot creation to come.

Looking at Essengue's free throw rate he is clearly getting fouled a ton before he gets the chance to posterize somebody, and he has huge hands and a 9'3+ standing reach

In terms of that Saluun comparison:

Essengue – 18.8 PTS, 8.0 REB, 1.7 AST, 0.8 BLK, 2.1 STL, 6.2 FTA, 1.5 TO, 56.0% FG

Salaun – 15.0 PTS, 6.1 REB, 1.4 AST, 0.3 BLK, 1.7 STL, 2.5 FTA, 2.0 TO, 40.6% FG

one was essentially a top 5 pick and Essengue is much less raw.

Also

Essengue above the 90th percentile in win shares and PIR in the Eurocup and above the 90th percentile in most of the  major defensive analytical stats.

.247 win share rate is ridiculous for a 18 year old.

Generational FT generation and downhill demon at 6’10

We haven't even mentioned the physical profile and athleticism.

I think it be fair to say he's a prospect with some Star potential.

I would probably take Essengue over Carter, as Carter's more unproven. I think Carter has the better athletic profile and better handles, but is a bit more of a project. Don't think Essengue has strong star potential. He doesn't have high-level on-ball ability and his first step off the bounce isn't that strong. Most of his scoring action is from a 2-man game, in transition, or catch-and-drive. He has a bit of a low post jumper too. I like Noa's feel for the game better.

I was also the biggest Salaun hater last year.

The way I see it..Maluach has great size/length and his theoretical role as a large mobile defensive anchor at C has a lot of value, but he's very raw and may not have great instincts/feel for the game. Kon has a lot of skill and great feel for the game, but doesn't have a great athletic profile and may at best be just a team defender. Noa is somewhere in between - great standing reach and can be productive on the court.

I would probably rule out Fears, Queen, CMB, Flemings, Kasparas at 9 for now. On the fence for Maluach, Traore, Demin..although leaning towards no for Maluach..seems like too much of a gamble.

That leaves me with..

1st round: Essengue, Yang

2nd round: Bogoljib Markovic, Milos Uzan (assuming the more common names are all taken)

[ImaBeatDatAzz]

all the reports are saying Masai is eyeing CMB??

[Mark_83]

[Yallbecrazy]

all the reports are saying Masai is eyeing CMB??

1. I never heard of anyone knowing what Masai is thinking.

2. Where are these reports?

3. He fits the profile of someone Masai loves to draft

4. He's an elite prospect and I will buy his jersey to replace my aging #3 Lowry jersey before the season starts. I'm very confident in him being at least an above average starter in this league.