2014 NBA Draft Prospects Thread #5 | Raps picking 20th

[Kenyon009]

The Raptors should strongly consider even Ross+20th+Johnson even for Aaron Gordon and an asset. He's going to be a great player in the league, I would definitely compare him to Blake Griffin maybe even better.

[m83588333]

The Raptors should strongly consider even Ross+20th+Johnson even for Aaron Gordon and an asset. He's going to be a great player in the league, I would definitely compare him to Blake Griffin maybe even better.

I would rather give that up for Vonleh. Gordon doesn't have Blake's skillset handling and passing. He is a Shawn Marion clone who cant create for himself but who doesn't post.

[tms]

DX is prob the best today and GIvonys done well for himself but i.ll always remember them as dot-nets jealous little brother, sometimes even making sht up to build content and/or paraphrasing nbadraft.net & Insider. kinda like that Ken Rashidi dude who posts on here? lol i still think dot-nets mocks are more accurate, safer, but thats a matte rof personal preference .

Regarding DraftExpress versus Nbadraft.net, nbadraft.net had their chance and didn't capitalize. Givony has worked hard to get to where he is today. Definitely the best NBA mock draft site out there, way better than BSPN.

agree w/ this. bare minimum http://www.nbadraft.net needs a new web design(-er) cuz they been using same template for 10 years. and dont get me wrong: DX has earned their credibility. i.m just a player hater. i hop in my time machine whenever someone brings up their um, scouting reports, "gtfoh! u mean that FLorida kid in his basement?!?!"

at the end of the day i guess we.re all just kids in our basements

[Risk101]

Some more Diagne dunks, still not at the ACB level I don't think:
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIjxuGD6OXk[/youtube]

I've seen some videos on him but he looks pretty raw right now. There's a lot more better prospects and we should be looking at more SF in the second round than a big man. I wouldn't mind taking him but with our 59th pick though.

You can say that, but for all we know he could end up being the top big man prospect of the second round. Is Ike Austin more ready for the NBA or more poised to develop (in the d-league)? If we take a 3 at 20 (and there's a good chance we will), I'm looking for the top big man prospect in the 2nd. Casey isn't going to have two rookies in the rotation next year anyway, you can pretty much bank on that.

Meh he looks like another version of Capela but i would need to see some more video on him. He looks intruiging for sure.

[Risk101]

Some more Diagne dunks, still not at the ACB level I don't think:
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIjxuGD6OXk[/youtube]

I've seen some videos on him but he looks pretty raw right now. There's a lot more better prospects and we should be looking at more SF in the second round than a big man. I wouldn't mind taking him but with our 59th pick though.

You can say that, but for all we know he could end up being the top big man prospect of the second round. Is Ike Austin more ready for the NBA or more poised to develop (in the d-league)? If we take a 3 at 20 (and there's a good chance we will), I'm looking for the top big man prospect in the 2nd. Casey isn't going to have two rookies in the rotation next year anyway, you can pretty much bank on that.

Discovered at a basketball camp in Rufisque, Senegal in the summer of 2010 by David Sanz, a coach with Basket Torrejon, Moussa Diagne arrived in Spain in the spring of 2011 at the age of 17, having barely played any basketball prior to that. He got his first taste of European hoops as an amateur in Spain's 4th division for Torrejon and competing in local junior tournaments where his size, athleticism, and instincts earned him a long term deal with ACB team Fuenlabrada, who purchased his rights, the same team that produced Gustavo Ayon and Bismack Biyombo.

The intrigue surrounding Diagne is obvious on first glance. Standing a shade under 7-feet tall with an outstanding wingspan, reportedly measuring 7-5, he has terrific size for a center prospect. He'll need to continue adding strength to his impressive 230 pound frame, but compensates with terrific speed and enough explosiveness to make good use of his length as a finisher and shot blocker.

Looking towards the 2014 NBA Draft, Diagne is among the more interesting draft and stash prospects whose name popped up on this year's early entry list. His age, lack of experience, and the fact that he's already contributing playing against quality competition leave plenty of room for optimism that he'll continue to improve in the coming seasons—as long as he's indeed actually the age he's listed as, which is somewhat of a subject of controversy in Spain. He gained plenty of exposure this season, and while he may be a few years away from contributing at the NBA level, it wouldn't be at all surprising to see a team invest a late pick in his long-term potential, even if he is indeed a little older than he's listed as.

The more I read and research on this guy the more I like.

[m83588333]

I've seen some videos on him but he looks pretty raw right now. There's a lot more better prospects and we should be looking at more SF in the second round than a big man. I wouldn't mind taking him but with our 59th pick though.

You can say that, but for all we know he could end up being the top big man prospect of the second round. Is Ike Austin more ready for the NBA or more poised to develop (in the d-league)? If we take a 3 at 20 (and there's a good chance we will), I'm looking for the top big man prospect in the 2nd. Casey isn't going to have two rookies in the rotation next year anyway, you can pretty much bank on that.

Discovered at a basketball camp in Rufisque, Senegal in the summer of 2010 by David Sanz, a coach with Basket Torrejon, Moussa Diagne arrived in Spain in the spring of 2011 at the age of 17, having barely played any basketball prior to that. He got his first taste of European hoops as an amateur in Spain's 4th division for Torrejon and competing in local junior tournaments where his size, athleticism, and instincts earned him a long term deal with ACB team Fuenlabrada, who purchased his rights, the same team that produced Gustavo Ayon and Bismack Biyombo.

The intrigue surrounding Diagne is obvious on first glance. Standing a shade under 7-feet tall with an outstanding wingspan, reportedly measuring 7-5, he has terrific size for a center prospect. He'll need to continue adding strength to his impressive 230 pound frame, but compensates with terrific speed and enough explosiveness to make good use of his length as a finisher and shot blocker.

Looking towards the 2014 NBA Draft, Diagne is among the more interesting draft and stash prospects whose name popped up on this year's early entry list. His age, lack of experience, and the fact that he's already contributing playing against quality competition leave plenty of room for optimism that he'll continue to improve in the coming seasons—as long as he's indeed actually the age he's listed as, which is somewhat of a subject of controversy in Spain. He gained plenty of exposure this season, and while he may be a few years away from contributing at the NBA level, it wouldn't be at all surprising to see a team invest a late pick in his long-term potential, even if he is indeed a little older than he's listed as.

The more I read and research on this guy the more I like.

Walter Tavares

[Undefeated]

I don't like the J.J. Redick comparison for Nik Stauskas. Firstly, Redick scores primarily off of screens for catch-and-shoot shots, one dribble pull-up and is mostly a secondary ball-handler reliving pressure against traps on the weakside with not a whole lot of off the bounce passing/shooting where as Stauskas is a lot more shifty with the ball and can drain shots off the dribble hitting stepbacks, snatch backs/pulls backs and off of a hard change of direction move like Steph Curry (word to Roland Brice). Secondly, he can drop dimes off the bounce, but doesn't have the same creativity whipping passes over his shoulder, the behind the back passes or threading the needle in pick-&-roll action which is where the comparison to Steph Curry stops. Although he does't get above the rim, he is much more crafty in the air able to elude defenders bobbling the ball while air borne a la DRose with an extremely nice touch for the backboard capable of finishing with extra sauce by adding English. Redick doesn't have the same creativity in the air. Has a deceptive first step that often catches his man off guard because he gets really low to the floor creating the space he needs to get to the rim while keeping his defender on his hip. His first step is like Pierce; not explosive, but he covers a lot of ground with his strides.

I know this won't be a popular opinion, but I have Stauskas as one of the top prospects. He's already polished and has so much to offer offensively playing under system with bits of NBA plays for John Beilein. Plug him into any offense and he'll immediately shine.

Tier 1

Embiid

Tier 2

Jabari
Wiggins
Vonleh

Tier 3

Stauskas
Smart
Exum
Randle

[Dr Comeback]

What kind of poor scouting site is that?
Did you read Draft Express?

dot-net. i still use them as my go-to. this is how i remember DX (its been almost 10 yrs! lol),

"For the last couple of years, one of my favorite websites for draft information has been DraftCity.com. Their writers, especially Jonathan Givony, had a lot of great first-hand stuff.

In the last few weeks, the site had a huge banner headline that Givony was no more:

Effective immediately, Jonathan Givony has been terminated from DraftCity.com because of statements concerning player representative Joel Bell in articles written by Mr. Givony and published on DraftCity.com on April 9, 2005 and thereafter, and Mr. Givony is no longer associated in any way with DraftCity.com.

Since that message was posted, there has been little-to-no new information on the DraftCity website.

Then today I catch wind (via HoopsHype) of a draft website that has a lot of good information. It's called DraftExpress.

Merrily I click over, and DraftExpress is entirely familiar. The layout, the language, the contents, everything is very similar to the old DraftCity I used to know. I clicked on the "columnists" drop-down list, and bingo, here's Givony again. It's like DraftCity never went away."

http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/112/draftcity-draftexpress

DX is prob the best today and GIvonys done well for himself but i.ll always remember them as dot-nets jealous little brother, sometimes even making sht up to build content and/or paraphrasing nbadraft.net & Insider. kinda like that Ken Rashidi dude who posts on here? lol i still think dot-nets mocks are more accurate, safer, but thats a matte rof personal preference .

anyway heres DX on Hardens D,

"Defensively, Harden is very effective, as he plays a very smart, pesky, fundamental brand of defense, showing great timing and a real knack for making big plays. He comes up with plenty of blocks and steals, and is an excellent rebounder as well at his position. The fact that he possesses average size and lateral quickness might make it tough for him to defend the truly elite shooting guards in the NBA, but he’s such a smart player that you really don’t want to rule him out."

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/James-Harden-1241/

point is i remember them all saying the same thing back in 09. no one was worried abt his D- yet here we are talking like its always been his gretaest weakness. hindsight is 20/20… and ive given up on draft gurus who arent professional scouts (other than Mike "plug n play 3-cone drill" Mayock)

really it is.

He was a good defender at ASU period, you can go back and find a bunch of guys who's skills didn't translate. Its an in exact science.

[Mr.Raptorsingh]

I bet Stauskas goes top 10.

[Risk101]

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeZR5YevSxw[/youtube]

Doug doesnt look half as bad as some of the comments posted on this thread.

[m83588333]

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeZR5YevSxw[/youtube]

Doug doesnt look half as bad as some of the comments posted on this thread.

He will never get his shot off since nobody will play him to drive or pass. His defense is poor. He will be Jimmer Fredette.

[JDR720]

I bet Stauskas goes top 10.

If he does it will be to Charlotte, he is a perfect fit there

[kidr1211]

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp-agY1w11U[/youtube]

[raptor jesus]

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp-agY1w11U[/youtube]

[Dr Positivity]

I added a new technique for judging how well players will drive to the rim, by looking at how the defense is set when they do it. If a player splits through a tight defense it's more impressive than driving off an open lane. Anyways Stauskas did this as well as any slasher in the draft. There are plays where the D is in near perfect position and he gets to the rim anyways. I think his ability to penetrate could be awesome in the league. With that said finishing at the rim could be a problem since he looks to be skinnier than the average SG. I'm predicting somewhere between Jamal Crawford and Manu for Stauskas

[OAKLEY_2]

Kind of a mystery why LaVine and Payton are not both lottery picks.

[Saciid11]

I would gamble and trade anything for the top 3 pick if we have shot at Embiid ... I see Embiid healthy or not the only franchise player in the draft and possibly top3 Center in the league in few years. JV + Ross+20th for Embiid+filler

[UnderdogRaptors]

I would gamble and trade anything for the top 3 pick if we have shot at Embiid ... I see Embiid healthy or not the only franchise player in the draft and possibly top3 Center in the league in few years. JV + Ross+20th for Embiid+filler

jv+ ross + #20, 2016 knicks pick and our 2015 first

[ballislife]

Kind of a mystery why LaVine and Payton are not both lottery picks.

Both guys should be lottery picks... I think Payton's an under-the-radar player that'll get picked much higher than mocks think. There's word that Payton has intrigued a few teams in the lottery and he will be picked in the mid-first at the latest... there's a good chance he goes in the lottery to. Those teams are hoping to keep him a secret. His only knock is his shooting. But he has good size/speed/playmaking/scoring ability that might get him in the top 14.

There's also word that Lavine is not passing Chicago at #16... they want him desperately and want to move up to get him. I think teams are going to take a long look at his potential in the lottery. Wouldn't be surprised to see both go in the lottery when the draft comes around.

Regardless this is a great draft... there's so many guys that the Raptors will have a chance at drafting that can make a great impact on our team as consisted.

[Saciid11]

I would gamble and trade anything for the top 3 pick if we have shot at Embiid ... I see Embiid healthy or not the only franchise player in the draft and possibly top3 Center in the league in few years. JV + Ross+20th for Embiid+filler

jv+ ross + #20, 2016 knicks pick and our 2015 first

Any combination of players and picks Cavs or Bucks want ... Embiid is worth the risk ..