2020 Draft

[No-Man]

Yup, Edwards is an inefficient gunner who plays defense only when he feels like it. Honestly, I'm not sure that doesn't fit Ball, as well.

Ball is just an odd choice for the top of the draft. He does some things really well but in the modern NBA, picking a guard in the top 3 who's weaknesses include shooting and defense just seems odd to me.

shooting doesn't project as a weakness for LaMelo

defense, yeah

He is also more of a wing than anything, ideally he would not need to defend Guards but just the least talented perimeter player for the other team, which is better cause wings are normally less skilled than PGs on average, and easier to guard

[pcbothwel]

Edwards game reminds me of Jason Richardson, Michael Finley, some Beal, some Mitch Richmond

That kind of player

Great call on J Rich... bulky, two foot jumper, with a shaky jumper.
He's not a Beal or Donovan Mitchell level prospect to me.
i dont have him in my top 5.

I like Cole, Okoro, Mannion, Wiseman, and Haliburton above him

[nate33]

I just spent some time doing my first real research into this draft. Like many on this board, I absolutely love Tyler Bey. That guy is going to have a 10-year career as a pro. I'd love to package a couple of 2nds, or maybe trade one of our decent young players like Bonga or Wagner to move up and get him in the middle of the 1st round. (I like Bonga and Wagner, but they only have 2 years left on their rookie deals and I think Bey will give us 4 good years as an ultra-cheap contributor.)

I'm a little less high on Obi Toppin. He's not bad, but I don't think he is a very fluid athlete and that's going to hurt him at the next level.

I don't like the top of this draft. There are about 6 players that are good enough to get picked in the 5-7 range, but there's nobody worth a top 3 pick. Naturally, this will be the year that we get lucky in the lottery and end up with a top 3 pick. I'd trade down, but nobody is going to want to trade up.

Of the 6 point guards in the top 10 of the draft (Anthony, Ball, Halliburton, Hayes, Hampton and Mannion), my favorites are Mannion and Hayes. I think I like Mannion the best in the abstract, but on this team, I'd lean toward Hayes because he has the size and ability to play some SG.

Of the bigs, I really do like Okongwu. I just love the way he moves and his nose for the ball. He'll be just fine at center in the NBA. I agree that there are shades of Bam Adebayo in his game.

I'm intrigued with Avdija. The guy has the skills and agility of a shooting guard, but in a PF's frame. He might really be a star. But I'm frightened by that 55% FT%. I never trust guys who shoot pretty well from 3-point range but very poorly from the FT line. I think it's a sign of mental weakness, or at least a lack of discipline and attention to detail.

[payitforward]

I would definitely move Wagner to get Bey (though not Bonga).

I doubt a couple of R2 picks gets us a mid-R1 pick. At least not using http://nbasense.com/draft-pick-trade-value/2/kevin-pelton-2 as a rough guide to value.

Main point, though -- I agree, Tyler Bey looks likely to be a really good NBA player.

[payitforward]

Anyone with thoughts on:

Daniel Oturu
Isaiah Stewart
Devin Vassell
Jordan Nwora
Reggie Perry
Jahmi'us Ramsey

?

[Illmatic12]

Anyone with thoughts on:

Daniel Oturu
Isaiah Stewart
Devin Vassell
Jordan Nwora
Reggie Perry
Jahmi'us Ramsey

?

The ones I can comment on...

Don’t like Stewart (and I’ve watched UW a decent amount).. powerful post player with midrange touch but I don’t like his movement, he has “stuck in the mud” feet and lacks instincts to be a defender. However I’d give him a look if he fell to the Bulls pick (currently projected #38) but I doubt he will..

Vassell on the other hand, has awesome basketball instinct and would probably be a top 10 pick if he wasn’t so damn skinny. If he declares I think he’s in the group of top wing prospects along with Okoro, Avdija and longterm I like him more than McDaniels.

Nwora - Solid high IQ player but his athleticism is very mediocre for an NBA wing, won’t be a shotcreator at all. Would be fine with the Bulls pick??

Perry - old school post player with ok athleticism , not a huge fan of these types although he does play hard. I’d rather look at someone like N’Faly Dante who has potential to be a game changer on D.

[payitforward]

Thanks... how about Jalen Smith? Has he been discussed here? Maybe in the R2 thread...?

[Shoe]

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[Illmatic12]

^Im not gonna lie.. Hayes has my attention as of late. That stepback three look good. He’s able to get it off quickly too ala D’Angelo Russell.. will need to bring it a bit higher above his head, since he isn’t gonna get a ton of separation from NBA defenders.

Thanks... how about Jalen Smith? Has he been discussed here? Maybe in the R2 thread...?

Personally not a huge fan re: Jalen’s NBA prospects.. don’t like his defensive instincts and wish he played with more force.

Speaking of R2 pick.. this is a draft where the 30-40 range will be a sweet spot, I think there’s a good chance that teams will botch the first round and let some quality players slip into that range . A lot of projected second rounders have caught my eye for one reason or another (to my surprise there were sites that still have Aaron Nesmith falling to the 30s)

[Illmatic12]

Some thoughts on team needs/draft philosophy :

-Obviously the main priority for Sheppard is to address Washington’s historically bad defense. Improving to even slightly below average next season could make a huge difference in the win column. Wall is going to replace Isaiah Thomas which will help, but none of their core players of Wall/Beal/Bertans/Rui can be relied upon as defensive stalwarts so it’s gonna have to come from the rest of the roster.

-The Wizards personnel has actually been effective at forcing turnovers (11th) so how is their D so bad? Evidently it’s because they are the worst defensive rebounding team in the league, have the second worst block rate, and give up the second highest percentage of points from the foul line.

-This is because as eyetest shows, their forwards and bigs are largely groundbound , lacking in size, strength and/or explosiveness. They often get pushed off their spots , and tend to put teams in the bonus early by overfouling instead of contesting with verticality + altering shots.


-Think about the teams current crop of wings/forwards - Brown, McRae, Rui, Beal, Wagner, Bertans - all have decent length and frame , give effort for the most part but none are capable of making explosive vertical defensive plays. Isaac Bonga is the only exception which is why hes become a favorite of the coaching staff.


-Wizards staff should be scouting for prospects at all positions (but mainly 3-5), who are strong athletes and have the instincts to leave their area and contest shots - bonus points for having a high block rate, high rebound rate for their position.


-Isaac Bonga’s integration into the starting lineup is proof-positive that the Wizards can put some defensive specialists on the floor and still score efficiently. So they shouldn’t be afraid of adding more Bonga-type prospects who aren’t finished products on offense.




This is a teenager who fits the profile: explosive athlete with defensive instincts.. wouldn’t mind taking a flier on him in R2:

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The Wizards even brought him in for a workout last spring (before he withdrew) so surely Sheppard must be tracking his development

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Here’s another in Amar Sylla, he’s struggled overseas but is very young and like we hope with Bonga , could improve significantly once he starts to add NBA strength.

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[Shoe]

I got to take Okoro off my wishlist. Big energy wing but I see more Anonuby or Oubre than an all-star Butler or PG. I think I like Bongas ceiling more, someone who's shown he can run a PnR. He's uncomfortable putting the ball on the deck right now.

Bey plays an undersized PF in college. He's got exciting athleticism, and great FT drawer plus shooter. I don't know how his lack of size will translate to the pros. Maybe he's someone who'll step up at the next level if asked to play the 3 and do more handling.

Arizona's trio of freshmen has a good pro outlook in my opinion. Mannion is special, his quick release can't be taught. He's athletic enough to play defense and could play next to both Wall and Beal. Zeke Nnaji is a great rebounder - only fear is he looks like Jordan Hill. Josh Green though looks like he can be a very solid NBA wing. Super athletic, and comfortable driving. Right now he's rated as a great defender. Gary Harris?

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Mannions release.

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[SUPERBALLMAN]

On ESPNU Iowa St vs Texas Tech right now chance to watch Haliburton ...

[Illmatic12]

Big fan of Josh Green as a late lottery selection. He’s going to be a good NBA defender and will eventually knock down threes at a high rate.

Don’t see anything more than role player upside there , so I wouldn’t take him top 10.. but he would fit the Wizards roster well, tough hard-playing kid and has a nose for the ball.


Have zero interest in Mannion or Nnaji for the Wiz but maybe they’ll change my opinion by seasons end.

[Shoe]

Green had some very impressive attacks to the rim.
Also from USA Today's mock draft:

This season, he has put up 12.9 points per game for the Wildcats. Green has also grabbed 5.1 rebounds per game, which has allowed him to be an interesting option operating as the ball handler in a transition offense. Green is currently averaging 1.35 points per possession on these opportunities, per Synergy, which ranks in the 95th percentile. He also has a 6-foot-10 wingspan, which will help him a lot on the defensive side of the ball.

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[payitforward]

Big fan of Josh Green as a late lottery selection. He’s going to be a good NBA defender and will eventually knock down threes at a high rate.

Don’t see anything more than role player upside there , so I wouldn’t take him top 10.. but he would fit the Wizards roster well, tough hard-playing kid and has a nose for the ball.

Have zero interest in Mannion or Nnaji for the Wiz but maybe they’ll change my opinion by seasons end.

nbadraftroom has Josh Green near the bottom of R1. Might make him a steal...?

Illmatic -- why don't you like Mannion?

[Illmatic12]

Big fan of Josh Green as a late lottery selection. He’s going to be a good NBA defender and will eventually knock down threes at a high rate.

Don’t see anything more than role player upside there , so I wouldn’t take him top 10.. but he would fit the Wizards roster well, tough hard-playing kid and has a nose for the ball.

Have zero interest in Mannion or Nnaji for the Wiz but maybe they’ll change my opinion by seasons end.

nbadraftroom has Josh Green near the bottom of R1. Might make him a steal...?

Illmatic -- why don't you like Mannion?

Yeah if Green slips that far he’ll be a definite steal. I feel his stock will rise higher than that though .

Mannion has some translatable skills but the mediocre athleticism limits his upside too much for me. Generally not a fan of point guards who can’t get to the rim in half court settings.

[payitforward]

I just looked at Mannion's numbers. They're awful.

[Shoe]

Bey
Mannion
Green
Nnaji

Watch on YouTube

Bey had a rough game being matched up with 6'11 Nnaji, who had 12/12. Right now Colorado has Bey sealing in the paint and running post ups, but at the next level he's going to have to handle the ball away from the rim.

Jaden McDaniels is a question mark. Maybe depends on his work ethic.

Spoiler:

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[nate33]

I just looked at Mannion's numbers. They're awful.

He looked really good through mid-December, and then had a disastrous game against Gonzaga where he shot 3-20 (1-10 from 3). That one game dropped his season average FG% and 3P% by 3 percent each.

Since that game, he hasn't been that great. Perhaps the tough conference schedule is having an impact.

[nate33]

Bey
Mannion
Green
Nnaji

Watch on YouTube

It was interesting to watch Mannion in that video. He didn't have all that great of a night (12 points, 5 assists, 7 boards, 4-11 shooting) but it was noteworthy that Colorado was very conscious of his perimeter shot. They went over top of every high screen and often double teamed him on the high screen, that typically led to Colorado's D scrambling to keep up with the rotations. Mannion may not have gotten a point or an assist on the possession, but it was his gravity that opened things up.