Raps 2020 Picks (Prospect Watch, Update: Vecenie Mock Released)

[Syd-TK3]

This is the 1st I'm seeing marshall looks pretty impressive, we drafted siakam at 22 so the age wouldn't matter to us but that video and breakdown definitely makes him sound good enough to be drafted so aside from his age I'm not sure why he isn't listed anywhere

[Karanpal]

The guy who I think is criminally underrated is Nico Mannion. To be fair there are a lot of PGs in the draft, but there is a wide variance that even puts him available at the Raps pick.

Mannion was a prep star who straight away led a team in Arizona as a freshman with NBA level athletes around him (Nanji and Green).

This size at 6-3 with a short wingspan and limited dunking ability are what people read on paper. However, watching film he is smart and sneaky athletic.

+ Scores from three levels including a Nash like floater
+ Makes obscene NBA level passes off screen and rolls or pocket passes
+ Quick feet and hands on defense
+ Can play off the ball





- can switch out on D but can lose focus and not sure how he will deal with the physicality
- can he improve his efficiency against elite size/length?

I think at the back end of the first, if he is there you do it. It is almost like how underrated Nash was coming in.

All of his skills show in this game. The passing is brilliant in this. Floaters on display as well. Even has a nice step back to his game.

Watch on YouTube

Nico Mannion, really? Nothing stands out about him, he is very basic.

I follow the Pac-12 very closely and he wasn't anything special. Pac-12 pgs used to blow past him like the wind. He's just like Terrell Terry (Stanford) if his shot isn't falling he doesn't really do anything else that impacts the game.

Nico shot FG 39.2%, 3FG 32.7%, FT 79.7% for the season at Arizona.

Nico is nothing like Steve Nash. Nico is another Pac-12 guard that CJ Elleby is better than. The Raptors would be very wise to stay far away from Nico if he's still available at #28.

What's your take on Chris smith I really think has potential to be a steal

[Psubs]

This is the 1st I'm seeing marshall looks pretty impressive, we drafted siakam at 22 so the age wouldn't matter to us but that video and breakdown definitely makes him sound good enough to be drafted so aside from his age I'm not sure why he isn't listed anywhere

Because he shoots 3's at under 30% (see Josh Jackson) and FT's under 75% (see Josh Jackson).

No reason to use a draft pick on him. Just invite him to play on your summer league team. He seems like an average G-League level player. I doubt he does better than Paul Watson.

Rather use the #58 on a gamble like Paul Eboua

https://www.basketball-reference.com/international/players/paul-eboua-1.html

He rebounded better than Bargnani did in Lega Serie A.

[Psubs]

What's your take on Chris smith I really think has potential to be a steal

Worth #58, he could be a backup SF/PF. Can't be worse than Michael Kidd-Gilchrest. Tops out at Jeff Green.

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Would rather Malik Fitts to play backup PF. He's like Patrick Patterson with better handles to play some SF.

He help lead St. Mary's to 2nd in the WCC behind powerhouse Gonzaga last season and 3rd this season. He's shot over 40% from 2 his last 2 seasons at over

Watch on YouTube

Or strictly stretch 4, Killian Tillie from Gonzaga. Ryan Anderson 2.0. Good value at the end of the 2nd round.

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[Psubs]

http://www.tankathon.com/mock_draft

Looking at players in the first half of the 2nd round, they seem just as good as players in the middle of the 1st round.

[HeadtopChunes]

http://www.tankathon.com/mock_draft

Looking at players in the first half of the 2nd round, they seem just as good as players in the middle of the 1st round.

Like i said on the first page, this is a very flat draft so a good front office can come out like a bandit

[Sir-Swish-A-Lot]

http://www.tankathon.com/mock_draft

Looking at players in the first half of the 2nd round, they seem just as good as players in the middle of the 1st round.

That's why GMs/scouts will have to do their homework to make sure they don't draft someone based on hype. Not having a pre draft camp/workouts really hurts them because they can't get a real feel up close on prospects. I can see a few second rounders/udfa outplaying some mid to late drafted first rounders. Even with the projected Lottery picks there is no real consensus.

The draft order is gonna be based on a lot of hype and who certain teams like as a player drafted later on could end up being better than players drafted before them in the draft. This draft is where we will see which NBA teams scouting department is up to par and which teams scouting department is just going with the flow of hype.

[Sir-Swish-A-Lot]

The guy who I think is criminally underrated is Nico Mannion. To be fair there are a lot of PGs in the draft, but there is a wide variance that even puts him available at the Raps pick.

Mannion was a prep star who straight away led a team in Arizona as a freshman with NBA level athletes around him (Nanji and Green).

This size at 6-3 with a short wingspan and limited dunking ability are what people read on paper. However, watching film he is smart and sneaky athletic.

+ Scores from three levels including a Nash like floater
+ Makes obscene NBA level passes off screen and rolls or pocket passes
+ Quick feet and hands on defense
+ Can play off the ball





- can switch out on D but can lose focus and not sure how he will deal with the physicality
- can he improve his efficiency against elite size/length?

I think at the back end of the first, if he is there you do it. It is almost like how underrated Nash was coming in.

All of his skills show in this game. The passing is brilliant in this. Floaters on display as well. Even has a nice step back to his game.

Watch on YouTube

Nico Mannion, really? Nothing stands out about him, he is very basic.

I follow the Pac-12 very closely and he wasn't anything special. Pac-12 pgs used to blow past him like the wind. He's just like Terrell Terry (Stanford) if his shot isn't falling he doesn't really do anything else that impacts the game.

Nico shot FG 39.2%, 3FG 32.7%, FT 79.7% for the season at Arizona.

Nico is nothing like Steve Nash. Nico is another Pac-12 guard that CJ Elleby is better than. The Raptors would be very wise to stay far away from Nico if he's still available at #28.

What's your take on Chris smith I really think has potential to be a steal

Chris Smith (13 ppg, FG 45.8, 3FG 34.1, FT 84.0), a Junior, is another raw prospect that has a lot of potential to be a solid two way player but it is going to take some time with him. He has good athleticism, versatility, length and plays hard- he is certainly an intriguing prospect. He can guard 1-4 very effectively and has the physical ability to be an outstanding defensive player. He was voted as the Pac-12 MIP this past season. To me has the potential to be a bigger Rondae Hollis-Jefferson type of player but with a better jump shot.

NBADraft.net has him at #36, Bleacher Report doesn’t have him ranked in its top 50 prospects while ESPN has him at #72 and the Athletic at #99. He might be better served going back for his senior season where he could be the man for UCLA and potentially the Pac-12 POY but I can understand him entering the NBA draft now.

I think any team that drafts him will be looking at 1-2 seasons down the line with him but the talent is there if he puts in the work which I believe he will from what I know about him. He could very easily sneak into the second round but having no pre draft camps/workouts really hurts him big time. I wouldn't be upset if the Raptors select him at #58 or sign him as an UDFA.

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[Kevin Willis]

Raw and Junior should never be in the same sentence unless they just started playing the game. If that's what we want it could come come down to Pons and Chris Smith. Not sure which is better.

[Sir-Swish-A-Lot]

Raw and Junior should never be in the same sentence unless they just started playing the game. If that's what we want it could come come down to Pons and Chris Smith. Not sure which is better.

Raw just means that Chris Smith has a lot of room for improvement, refinement in his game. He's not a finished product.

It's a toss up but I would go with Chris Smith over Yves Pons because he is taller (6'8 to 6'6) and is a better shooter especially a better free-throw shooter (84% to 63%) but both have very good potential to maximize their physical skill set on the NBA level.

Both are incredible athletes and defenders. Both play hard on both ends of the court. NBADraft.net has Smith at #36 and Pons at #40 overall. I don't think that the Raptors could wrong drafting either prospect in the 2nd round.

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[bturn2210]

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?s=20 lol

[Ell Curry]

Raw and Junior should never be in the same sentence unless they just started playing the game. If that's what we want it could come come down to Pons and Chris Smith. Not sure which is better.

I don't have an opinion on these guys, but:

https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/vince-carter-1.html

Though shooting 66% on 2s is insane for a guy playing at the 3.

Seeing that reminds me once Brandon Clarke (70% on 2s) slipped enough in the last draft, Masai should have found a way to get him. Would have been worth a top 5 or 10 2020 protected pick considering it was clear Siakam was too good for us to be any worse than a 7th or 8th seed East playoff team, even if Lowry had left (as good as he was this year, a lineup of VanVleet-Powell-OG-Siakam-Gasol with Ibaka and a bad perimeter bench would still have been at least a 45 win Orlando/Brooklyn kinda team in the East).

[mademan]

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?s=20 lol

I could see Toronto trying to move Lowry to Philly and see Toronto trying to trade up to grab someone. I absolutely cant see Philly moving Simmons for Lowry+. Thats insane

[Mark_83]

http://www.tankathon.com/mock_draft

Looking at players in the first half of the 2nd round, they seem just as good as players in the middle of the 1st round.

To be fair that mock is pretty crap. Of course the guys ranked in the second look pretty good. They should be much higher in place of guys like Russian Bargnani, Mannion, Maledon, McDaniels, etc.

[mademan]

Smith vs Pons, i take Pons. Pons plays with strong energy and i think can play NBA ready defense right away. It's not just his athletic gifts, he has a good defensive BBIQ.

[Psubs]

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?s=20 lol

Not trading OG or Siakam; so Lowry and Powell for Simmons to GS and them drafting Ball for us.

PG Ball - Davis - Undrafted
SG FVV - McCaw - Thomas
SF OG - #28 - McCaw
PF Siakam - Boucher -
C Gasol - Ibaka - #58

Pay Gasol around the full MLE for 4 years knowing that he might retire before and use stretch provision. Let Ibaka wait until after Giannis signs.

[Kevin Willis]

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?s=20 lol

At first I thought - no thanks. Then after thinking about it...

Phlly ends the Ben Simmons / Embiid experiment which was not working. Lowry is a good fit on that team AND he's from Philly. If there was a place that he wanted to end out his career it would be Philly.

Lowry
Richardson
Harris
Hoford
Embiid

A bunch of all-star level players with shooting / defense from almost every position.

GSW

Well their line-up would be:

Curry
Thompson
Wiggins
Simmsons
Green

That would make them title contenders.

Toronto

Depends who we give up outside of Lowry. I am not that sold on LaMelo, he's not a No. 1 pick to me. It's like a Bargnani level draft year. Is giving up Lowry and company too much for LaMelo?

[Sir-Swish-A-Lot]

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?s=20 lol

The time for making up fantasy trade reports is upon us...what are his sources- his own imagination? Masai doesn't leak.

Kyle will most likely play out his contract in Toronto. The Raptors most likely will try to bring everyone back (Lowry, Fred, OG, Siakam, Gasol, Ibaka, Powell, RJH, McCaw, Davis, Thomas, Boucher, Miller, Brissett, Hernandez, draft picks, free agent) and run it out again in 2020-21. Only player that I see the Raptors actively trying to move is Stanley Johnson.

LaMelo Ball doesn't move the meter for me. To me he is a lot of hype. Not to say that he doesn't have talent but he has a lot of hype as well. LaMelo may not even be a better player than Lonzo Ball.

[mademan]

Read on Twitter

?s=20 lol

At first I thought - no thanks. Then after thinking about it...

Phlly ends the Ben Simmons / Embiid experiment which was not working. Lowry is a good fit on that team AND he's from Philly. If there was a place that he wanted to end out his career it would be Philly.

Lowry
Richardson
Harris
Hoford
Embiid

A bunch of all-star level players with shooting / defense from almost every position.

GSW

Well their line-up would be:

Curry
Thompson
Wiggins
Simmsons
Green

That would make them title contenders.

Toronto

Depends who we give up outside of Lowry. I am not that sold on LaMelo, he's not a No. 1 pick to me. It's like a Bargnani level draft year. Is giving up Lowry and company too much for LaMelo?

Or, if Philly is dumb enough to make that trade, Toronto steals Simmons for themselves. But Philly would never make that move

[Psubs]

Toronto

Depends who we give up outside of Lowry. I am not that sold on LaMelo, he's not a No. 1 pick to me. It's like a Bargnani level draft year. Is giving up Lowry and company too much for LaMelo?

This is for a re-tool. Powell is going to be paid around $20 million and so will Lowry. Assuming Ball would get around $6 million per year. Saving near $40 million per year. If they think that he'll be at least as good as Lonzo, then maybe a good gamble.

Perhaps starting backcourt of FVV and TD until LaMelo gets used to the NBA.

PG FVV - TD
SG TD - LaMelo - Thomas
SF OG - McCaw - #28
PF Siakam - OG - Boucher
C Gasol/Ibaka - Hernandez?

Lonzo is just 22 and got his 3pt shooting up to 38% on 6.5 attempts per game. He's got Zion to through lobs to now. Lonzo could top out at 18ppg, 9 asts and 7 rebs, while shooting 45% and 40% on 3s. Though his defense is not that great.

LaMelo is already an inch taller at 6'7 and turns 19 in the summer.

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He can't yet stay with smaller faster guards but would be nicely paired with FVV.