2021 NBA Draft Thread

[ThunderBolt]

Some snip its from Presti last night. I could be reading too much into it, but this is far from a denial that Shai was offered in a trade.

Spoiler:

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[Old Man Game]

Ah jeez. I just heard Giddey's sister goes to school at Oral Roberts in Tulsa. Is that why this **** took him? Presti even said something about the personality fit during his presser.

I hope I'm joking but after the Ferguson thing (he's from Tulsa everyone) I've come to sort of expect them to play up these dumb state connection story lines.

[Dadouv47]

Which part makes you think he isn't denying about SGA? Don't get it.

[Old Man Game]

Some snip its from Presti last night. I could be reading too much into it, but this is far from a denial that Shai was offered in a trade.

Spoiler:

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Reminds me of a politician trying to dance around something instead of just give a straight yes or no.

[Dadouv47]

Ah jeez. I just heard Giddey's sister goes to school at Oral Roberts in Tulsa. Is that why this **** took him? He evens said something aobut the personality fit during his presser.

I hope I'm joking but after the Ferguson thing (he's from Tulsa everyone) I've come to sort of expect them to play up these dumb state connection story lines.

he got drafted because Brandon Rahbar asked him if he pooped.

Seriously, the Tulsa connection may be a small factor. Think Giddey's high IQ is a bigger factor.

[Old Man Game]

So I don't know when this video of Giddey was taken (starts at 5:29), but got to say, if this is recent, his shooting may be worse than I was anticipating. Most dudes going through draft workouts in an empty gym look butter smooth. But even in this setting his looks pretty clunky.
I'm thinking maybe the Australian National team tryout might have shortened the amount of time he had to put in to draft prep? That's what I'm hoping anyway.

Watch on YouTube

[ThunderBolt]

Which part makes you think he isn't denying about SGA? Don't get it.

I don't see the exact question but if we were to assume (which could be wrong) that sam was asked if they tried to Shai trade for Cade, there isn't any denial. Just a..."we want to sign shai to an extension" generic comment. Every team in the league would be happy to sign him to an extension.

[Dadouv47]

Which part makes you think he isn't denying about SGA? Don't get it.

I don't see the exact question but if we were to assume (which could be wrong) that sam was asked if they tried to Shai trade for Cade, there isn't any denial. Just a..."we want to sign shai to an extension" generic comment. Every team in the league would be happy to sign him to an extension.

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Must be that I guess

[Dadouv47]

If our path is building through the draft, I personally would start to listen to Shai trade offers.

You can give Giddey 3-4 years before reaching a very good level; 300-400 years for Poku and Dort already peaked.

[ThunderBolt]

Spoiler:

So I don't know when this video of Giddey was taken (starts at 5:29), but got to say, if this is recent, his shooting may be worse than I was anticipating. Most dudes going through draft workouts in an empty gym look butter smooth. But even in this setting his looks pretty clunky.
I'm thinking maybe the Australian National team tryout might have shortened the amount of time he had to put in to draft prep? That's what I'm hoping anyway.

Watch on YouTube

When players are young, they all seem to have question marks about their shooting at some point. Both Cade and Green had question marks not too long ago. Mobley, Kuminga and Barnes still have question marks although I think Mobley's are overblown. I have no idea what he'll become but this seems somewhat normal.

[ThunderBolt]

Which part makes you think he isn't denying about SGA? Don't get it.

I don't see the exact question but if we were to assume (which could be wrong) that sam was asked if they tried to Shai trade for Cade, there isn't any denial. Just a..."we want to sign shai to an extension" generic comment. Every team in the league would be happy to sign him to an extension.

Read on Twitter

Must be that I guess

Yep. I meant to include that one in my post.

[ThunderBolt]

Givony's analysis of Giddey is pretty positve.

Spoiler:

The Thunder's "process" hit a snag on lottery night as the team both dropped out of the top-five and saw Houston retain their pick, but they are still in an enviable position with several dozen draft picks on the horizon, financial flexibility and plenty of young talent. Keeping those players already on the team engaged will be a priority if the Thunder elect to chase ping-pong balls in the lottery again. There may be diminishing returns eventually with incoming draft picks impacting incumbents in looking to establish themselves in the NBA while chasing the touches and stats needed to get paid down the road.

At 18, Josh Giddey is both a best prospect available type-pick at this stage, as well as a fairly easy player to slot in many lineup configurations due to his elite size and feel for the game, which should allow him to play on or off the ball. His shooting and defense need to improve, something that will hopefully come as he gains strength, but he'll likely find enough ways to get on the floor and make plays early in his career thanks to his instincts and passing ability. Analytics models love his youth and the way he fills up the box score and he gained plenty of momentum in practices and in an impressive exhibition game with the Australian national team during their training camp in Las Vegas. The Thunder should be able to help him improve his frame and empower him with the type of offensive responsibility needed to reach his sky-high potential as a big playmaking guard. -- Jonathan Givony

Tre Mann analysis-

Spoiler:

The Thunder are in no particular rush to win, giving them the freedom to build slowly through the draft and develop their picks with steady doses of minutes and touches. That could easily lead them in the direction of younger, rawer prospects with higher ceilings, the type of player playoff contenders might not have the patience to invest several years in for an ultimate payoff.

Tre Mann's talent with the ball, positional size -- which should allow him to play either guard spot -- and upside is attractive at this spot. He'll need to add strength and improve his consistency as a decision-maker and defender to carve out a niche in a rotation short-term, but he has the type of shot-making prowess, creativity and versatility NBA teams covet with the bonus of being a late-bloomer physically who still has room for growth as his frame continues to evolve. -- Jonathan Givony

[ThunderBolt]

I would've taken Sengun at 16 instead of kicking the can down the road. Mann/JRE aren't who I would've picked at their respective spots but happy we took 3 guys with solid to great BBIQs. Seem like 3 great kids too. I know almost nothing about Wiggins.

It's amazing how Sam manages to leave me with the same feeling almost every year on draft night.

[Old Man Game]

Wait, does Tre Mann have a "100" emoji tattoo? That's the most millenial thing I've ever seen.

https://nbadraft.theringer.com/draft-grades

[Dadouv47]

I would've taken Sengun at 16 instead of kicking the can down the road. Mann/JRE aren't who I would've picked at their respective spots but happy we took 3 guys with solid to great BBIQs. Seem like 3 great kids too. I know almost nothing about Wiggins.

It's amazing how Sam manages to leave me with the same feeling almost every year on draft night.

indeed. Last season we only had a late FRP though and we were going to start a rebuild in a pretty bad draft class. Maledon was already a steal.

Gonna be year 2 next season and we have a canadian monster that wants to win.

[Dadouv47]

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guess top 20 protected but that's good value

[slick_watts]

i think it's interesting. almost all the draft metrics which rate josh giddey highly rate alperen sengun even higher. the #16 trade made no sense to me at all. if we're taking swings, take the swings.

josh giddey and poku are similar prospects to me. can't shoot. possessing some skills that are not meaningfully connected due to lack of shooting / handling. not elite athletes. it appears that sam has a type he's searching for. uncharacteristic. i think we should be trying to exploit market inefficiencies. instead he's chasing a trend.

we'll see how it goes. but the draft and offseason has left me nonplussed so far.

[Old Man Game]

i think it's interesting. almost all the draft metrics which rate josh giddey highly rate alperen sengun even higher. the #16 trade made no sense to me at all. if we're taking swings, take the swings.

josh giddey and poku are similar prospects to me. can't shoot. possessing some skills that are not meaningfully connected due to lack of shooting / handling. not elite athletes. it appears that sam has a type he's searching for. uncharacteristic. i think we should be trying to exploit market inefficiencies. instead he's chasing a trend.

we'll see how it goes. but the draft and offseason has left me nonplussed so far.

Oh but Sengun doesn't have a sister living in Tulsa already so it all makes sense now.

[Old Man Game]

There's a phenomenon where you reach a certain level of wealth, every dollar thereafter has almost no value to you in a economic sense (think what's an extra dollar worth to Bezos).

I feel we're getting dangerously close to that with these draft picks.

[ThunderBolt]

To be fair, Giddey was playing at a higher level of competition than Poku.