DCZards wrote:hands11 wrote:
Whoever they add will need to be able to contribute and fit in right away. I think that leads away from a player like Bennett who we aren't sure of his position and Noel who will take a few years to fill out. I even think that counts out Shabazz.
If they use the top pick, something like VO, CJM, Len, Dieng, Otto, Burke and maybe Kelly Olynyk, seems to be their best chance of not messing up. I feel confident those plays will do what we know they can do at the next level and do it year one. I also expect most if not all to keep good value in about that order.
I certainly hope the Zards don't go into the draft with a short-term approach that results in them drafting the lower-ceiling potential of a VO or Dieng over the higher-ceiling potential of a Bennett, Noel or even a Shabazz. That would be shortsighted.
Oladipo isn't a low upside pick IMO. Not like Dieng or Olynyk IMO. He's such a great athlete that he could be special. Take the defense and athleticism of a Tony Allen, Iman Shumpert, or Avery Bradley and give him a pure shot. That's a very very valuable player. I see him as basically being Shumpert with extreme scoring efficiency whereas Shumpert had very low efficiency throughout his CBB career.
So the defensive potential is top notch and he should have a very reliable three pointer right from the get go. He's scrappy and long too and has good strength. I think we could go small and have great lineups with him, Wall, and Beal.
Now if you're saying the upside with him is less because our need for a SG/SF is low, that's different. I'm not totally buying in to our wing situation right now. First, I think as Beal develops, he's going to get to the point where he will play PG, SG, and SF. That'll give us versatility.
Second, I'm not sold on Ariza and Martell being able to stay healthy and effective and stay with us long term. They were good last year in between injuries but both seemed to miss a lot of time. Webster is a UFA this summer and Ariza will be next summer. They're not necessarily part of our long term plans.
So I think you can draft Oladipo just like you can draft Shabazz or Porter. All three have positional flexibility. Oladipo should eventually be able to play some at each perimeter spot too. Porter should be able to eventually play up at PF IMO. Bazz should be interchangeable at SG and SF.
And I think Oladipo represents an upgrade over both Webster and Ariza, so there is that factor. Draft him and we'll have a rock solid group of perimeter players to build around. That might be the best outcome you can hope for in such a poor draft class.
