Thank Nation! Raps pick 9th - Draft on June 23rd 8pm (Part 7)

[nowayguy]

FWIW Chad Ford said it's going to be either Skal, Sabonis, or Poetl.

I haven't heard anyone talking about these three. Chad's either got some really impressive intel or he's making it up.

Someone is going to fall to us. The only guys guaranteed to be gone are Simmons and Ingram.

This is definitely best case scenario and not something to count on happening. Still, it's not impossible to imagine Sacramento going in a different direction if they don't like the leftover from the previous seven picks.

[theonlyeastcoastrapsfan]

Skal reminds me of Magic Randolph in his Warrior days. He's skinny, but he's wiry strong. He's quick on his feet and can switch onto guys on the perimeter, and is a strong weakside shotblocker with his timing/length/explosiveness. Offensively, he has good hands, and should do well in the P&R being able to roll hard to the basket as an easy target or knock down open jumpers. I think he can be really useful to us even early on in a well-defined role, with the upside to become much more longterm. Randolph was more skilled offensively, while I see Skal being more effective defensively.

You mean Anthony Randolph? Didn't he suck?

http://www.campusrush.com/2016-nba-draft-scouting-reports-ben-simmons-brandon-ingram-1872857167.html

"I'm not a fan. I might take him in the late teens because that's where you can take a gamble. I don't think he's tough or physical, and I don't know if he knows how to play. If you watch him work out one-on-nothing, he can blow you away. The problem is when the game starts. He can really shoot. [Cavaliers forward] Channing Frye is going to get him drafted high. You're just seduced by his talent. If there's a team that wants to take a chance on him in the top 10, more power to you."

What's Channing Fry's contract situation like anyway. Why not just go after him.

[artsncrafts]

It would be funny if Murray(or another elite top 8) gets drafted 8 and we draft Sabonis 9 and get coin tossed again.

[Knucknbuc]

he shot 78% from the free throw line. he doesnt have stone hands no pun intended. If immaturity is the whole problem he said today he loves casey and wants him to mentor him. Should be fixable. Bebe would have the worst practices against this guy

Dayonte Davis is better.

Stone is one of the worse passing bigs in the draft, and rates really poorly on defense. He is a late first round, early second round pick. Could be really good if he improved in those areas.

He literally said he wants to be drafted by the Raptors. I'm in with our 27th.

I still like Chriss or Kork at 9. I don't really trust the other bigs in our range.

Yea not many actually say they want to be drafted by the raps and actually mean it his seemed sincere tho. Hes got talent i think his stock may be rising tho. Might have to take him at 9 or trade down and take him cuz i dont think hes there at 27. I like him better then sabonis. Yuck

[Patman]

Sorry but the options are kind of silly considering one is "most likely challenging for MVP"...who the heck is not going to want a player of that caliber?! lol

You clearly did not read the OP. Most likely to challenge for MVP means player with the highest ceiling. Where we're picking, that usually means a player that can also be a complete bust. Guys like Sebastian Telfair and OJ Mayo had really high ceilings, for example. Contrast that with someone like a Denzel Valentine this year, or in years past, a Shane Battier. A polished player, you know what you're getting, but they don't have star potential.

[cram]

But yesterday I just realized the player he most reminds me of and that is Perry Jones III which depending on who you are can be a terrible thing or hopefully optimistic (as I would be).

I still think PJ3 could be a good player in the league if he was both a) given a chance to play b) was more aggressive. Thon has a lot of commonalities with him - height, athleticism, skill etc. Both guys I believe are SFs as much as people want to label them PFs based on their height. Given the age difference PJ3 is further along and shooting touch looks pretty good imo. Personally I rather offer PJ3 a minimal contract that replaces JJs or JTs because I really feel he could have a breakout here behind Carroll with his poor health. I do think taking Thon at #9 is beyond a stretch at this point but heck before PJ3 tumbled in the draft, he was expected to go in the 7-10 range so anything is possible but I would really hope if we do gamble it's with our later pick or we package it with some other pick (add some 2nd rounders) to move up and grab him if really need be.

Didn't PJ3 fall because of his knees? I feel like he was 5x the basketball player that Thon Maker is, and looked a lot more athletic.

[Treadmill_Team]

Considering where we are as a team, that this will prolly be our last top 10 for the near future, you go for the homerun. You can't get homerun potential players late in the draft(sorry Bruno was never that)

[TheGoodDoctor]

Skal really does remind me of a better shot blocking Channing Frye.

[poonsmjj]

This is an extremely interesting read

"FINCH" RETURNS TO OFFER BRUTALLY HONEST SCOUTING REPORTS ON MORE THAN 50 TOP NBA PROSPECTS
http://www.campusrush.com/2016-nba-draft-scouting-reports-ben-simmons-brandon-ingram-1872857167.html

SOmeone should fine his older scouting reports and compare them to now

Here is the 2015 evaluation.

Still too early to tell how accurate these assessments are. Finch was right on the money about Booker, KAT. Didn't trust Powell's shot, had doubts about Wright, thought Myles Turner was overrated. Once again, too early to tell but I suppose it shows that even the scouts are human and aren't the be-all and end-all of talent evaluation.


2015: http://www.si.com/college-basketball/2015/06/22/2015-nba-draft-scouting-reports-jahlil-okafor-karl-towns-emmanuel-mudiay
2014: http://www.si.com/college-basketball/2014/06/23/nba-draft-scouts-andrew-wiggins-jabari-parker-joel-embiid-top-54
2013: http://www.si.com/nba/2013/06/24/2013-nba-draft-prospects

[nabbs]

This is an extremely interesting read

"FINCH" RETURNS TO OFFER BRUTALLY HONEST SCOUTING REPORTS ON MORE THAN 50 TOP NBA PROSPECTS
http://www.campusrush.com/2016-nba-draft-scouting-reports-ben-simmons-brandon-ingram-1872857167.html

SOmeone should fine his older scouting reports and compare them to now

Here is the 2015 evaluation.

Still too early to tell how accurate these assessments are. Finch was right on the money about Booker, KAT. Didn't trust Powell's shot, had doubts about Wright, thought Myles Turner was overrated. Once again, too early to tell but I suppose it shows that even the scouts are human and aren't the be-all and end-all of talent evaluation.

Forget to post the link??? What did he say about Booker?

[poonsmjj]

SOmeone should fine his older scouting reports and compare them to now

Here is the 2015 evaluation.

Still too early to tell how accurate these assessments are. Finch was right on the money about Booker, KAT. Didn't trust Powell's shot, had doubts about Wright, thought Myles Turner was overrated. Once again, too early to tell but I suppose it shows that even the scouts are human and aren't the be-all and end-all of talent evaluation.

Forget to post the link??? What did he say about Booker?

Oops my bad:

2015: http://www.si.com/college-basketball/2015/06/22/2015-nba-draft-scouting-reports-jahlil-okafor-karl-towns-emmanuel-mudiay
2014: http://www.si.com/college-basketball/2014/06/23/nba-draft-scouts-andrew-wiggins-jabari-parker-joel-embiid-top-54
2013: http://www.si.com/nba/2013/06/24/2013-nba-draft-prospects

[nabbs]

What Finch said regarding Anthony Bennett in SI 2013 scouting report:

"He got soft as the year went on. Why? His desire to play defense is another question. He's a good athlete but not a great one. He's going to be a better player in the pros than he was in college, because when he was in college he played with selfish teammates."

[S ID]

BTW "Finch" is not one person. It's a bunch of different scouts that the author for some reason combines.

[Totem]

Listening to woj and Jon from draft express has changed my mind on Skal. I don't mind him anymore.

[TheGoodDoctor]

Sorry but the options are kind of silly considering one is "most likely challenging for MVP"...who the heck is not going to want a player of that caliber?! lol

You clearly did not read the OP. Most likely to challenge for MVP means player with the highest ceiling. Where we're picking, that usually means a player that can also be a complete bust. Guys like Sebastian Telfair and OJ Mayo had really high ceilings, for example. Contrast that with someone like a Denzel Valentine this year, or in years past, a Shane Battier. A polished player, you know what you're getting, but they don't have star potential.

Highest ceiling is just a matter of opinion and also doesn't mean that they can be a complete bust.

Paul George and Kawhi Leonard are perfect examples. PG had a high ceiling but he didn't have a complete bust scenario because he could already at least shoot the ball and defended fairly well even in college, he was at least a 3+D player. Kawhi was at bare minimum a great defender but has great measurements and athleticism that as we can see he has a high ceiling. Much like Powell, who at bare minimum will be a very good defender which is not a bust but should he continue to improve his shooting and ballhandling he's high ceiling. They're not exclusive to each other so it's still poor wording. High risk/high reward would be better way of describing what he's getting at.

[CoachJReturns]

Scouts are never going to be right more than 50-75 percent of the time. They can only evaluate based on what they've seen so far. If a player goes and changes something completely then all his information is suddenly out of date. Powell changed his shooting mechanics which is a major adjustment most never make. If Skal finally adds 10-15 much needed pounds of muscle in the next couple years he becomes a different player. Same with Korkmaz.
It's best to pay attention to what scouts say, but also check out stats, combine numbers and of course watch them play as much as you can.

[theonlyeastcoastrapsfan]

Listening to woj and Jon from draft express has changed my mind on Skal. I don't mind him anymore.

Link. I need to recharge my Skal batteries just in case we pick him. I don't like saddness.

[CoachJReturns]

Listening to woj and Jon from draft express has changed my mind on Skal. I don't mind him anymore.

The thing that I like is that I read NBADraft.net saying he didn't use his athleticism to finish aggressively enough. Then in his pre-draft workouts he's working on exactly that. It's just guys with those big pads, but at least he's aware of his lack of physicality. The prospects who are always most frustrating are the ones who don't even see their weaknesses.

[poonsmjj]

Listening to woj and Jon from draft express has changed my mind on Skal. I don't mind him anymore.

Link. I need to recharge my Skal batteries just in case we pick him. I don't like saddness.

https://art19.com/shows/vertical

[Totem]

Listening to woj and Jon from draft express has changed my mind on Skal. I don't mind him anymore.

Link. I need to recharge my Skal batteries just in case we pick him. I don't like saddness.

https://art19.com/shows/vertical/episodes/80221d2a-76c9-4bf2-997d-d19b78733f13