2025 Draft Thread - Part 2

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

Dude took my Dairy Queen jokes too literally.

The problem isn't his weight. His 247.5 is 15 pounds lighter than Sorber.

[The Consiglieri]

My current targets at #6 would probably be (assuming the obvious two + Ace and Edgecomb are off the board):

Kon Knueppel - Think his shooting and scrappiness would fit in beautifully on this team. Maybe you get lucky and he taps into some hidden upside and turns into a Desmond Bane type.

Derrik Queen - Totally get it if you'd rather not risk it. Part of my reasoning here is I simply like watching guys like him, Sengun, Sabonis, etc. try to make it work against NBA players; probably my favorite archetype to watch in the league from an aesthetic point of view. Best case scenario, he gives you a much needed offensive hub that helps open things up for everyone else with his combination of self-creation and passing ability, and uses his good hands/athleticism of his teammates to survive defensively. Downside is pretty obvious here.

Kasparas Jakucionis - Think he's a good combination of fairly high ceiling and fairly high floor. If everything clicks for him, I can see a world where you're running the offense through him a lot. Both the passing vision and the creative passing ability are there, comfortable with all those step back jumpers, and pretty good finishing around the rim once he gets there. Handle is too loose for me to be convinced he'll be able to get downhill on his own a lot, but hopefully he figures that out. If he ultimately isn't good enough to be a true offensive hub, I can see him settling into sort of a Bogdanovic/Ingles type of role where he develops a decent two-man game with someone and just kinda keeps the ball moving, makes winning plays, etc.

You managed to nail the most beloved board prospect before yesterday (Queen), and the most loathed (Jakucionis) and the most ignored (Kon Kboringashell) lol.

Interesting take.

I have no idea who they'll take: they seem to like athleticism, high end positional size and length, and long term volatility upside potential, and no old guys ever (every drafted and acquired young prospect by this regime has been 21 or younger their draft year and typically 18-20)....very curious what they'll do here at 6, which is basically the dumpster fire pick of round 1, 1 pick after where a falling mega prospect could be nabbed. 1-2 are tier 1, 3-4 are tier 2, 5 is the slippage tier 2 guy or the top of tier 3, and 6 is ---- it, trade out of this class or down.

I'll be super annoyed if we stick at 6, unless someone, anyone, between Fears, Maluach, or another fast rising option, like Traore or that other dude I heard about yesterday (forgot his name), I just can't see sticking. Trading up, trading down, or trading out. The only way I stick at 6 is if there's some mystery box wild card potential stud there. I am not remotely interested in the team drafting a utility option guy who can be a "solid 3 and D, solid B low post presence, rim protector yada yada yada", swing for the fences or trade up, down or out, period. I do not want the billionth iteration of the Guggs/Cheaney/Jared Jeffries/Arvis Hayes/Troy Brown/Kispert/Johnny Davis horse ---- aim for floor nonsense. Up, down, out or wild card, period, full stop.

We are short two stars, we just blew one chance at a star and may have only one more before these guys could get fired in '27, personally, I want them swinging for the fences at GM's, not making protect my paycheck solid floor picks.

[AFM]

Dude took my Dairy Queen jokes too literally.

The problem isn't his weight. His 247.5 is 15 pounds lighter than Sorber.

I'm mostly just surprised at his results. We all knew he wasn't some insane athlete, but watching him play he just struck me as average--not slowest big man of all time or whatever his results showed yesterday.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

slowly getting over it, but there is one thing that, if the team does this, i will once again have to back out

please do not take Derik Queen 6th overall. It looks so tempting to take the local kid out of Maryland that you've watched all year, who over performed a little in the tournament. Yes him and Bub have a history and all of that, I do not care. He is not the answer. What we actually need is more guard play. The team is stacked as far as wings, Bub is serviceable as a secondary playmaker. I would have loved Dylan Harper, and I wonder if trading for #2 is in play right now (I doubt the assets are good enough).

However we do not need another young center to develop, apparently his combine results were terrible. Not only that, but what I saw from Queen in that tournament looked closer to "elite college player" than "NBA prospect" and maybe there are things that show up in practice that I'm not aware of, but I do think there is a high chance of him busting.

There is zero chance we take Queen, he may drop to the 20’s.

I'd take a chance at 18 tbh. Combine measurements are cool and show the physical limitations some players have. I always thought 6 was a reach for Queen, but he knows how to play and will get you a bucket when you need it.

It'd be funny to take Maluach & Queen. If possible I'd do it. And it would be fun to see the the combination of playstyles with Sarr.

I would be very happy with Maluach and Queen.

I won't be shocked if Queen slips out of round one now.

[dobrojim]

I can convince myself Kon could work out, but I also think he could have high bust potential.
My guy is still Maluach as he could be the best player in the draft in 3-5 years. Or a mostly non-factor.
Jako has been consistently in the top 10 in most mocks. I've not seen him play or was so
unimpressed I don't remember him.
Queen? Who's to say at this point? Is he the guy who said give me the MFing ball or does the college context
of that narrative force us to disregard it?

I'm not sure it is fair to say 'we' blew our chance at a star. There will be good players on the board
when we pick, they just won't be as obvious. So who will be considered prescient and who will look deluded in 3-5 years?

We don't know for sure which or if a youngster we already have will blossom.

I don't think many here predicted the way Kyshawn has developed (so far).

[closg00]

The Queen implosion is going to shakeup the draft board, the mocks haven’t been adjusted yet. If I am his agent, I withdraw my name from the draft and play another year of college hoops. OTOH, Derik may be able to do well in 5 on 5 workouts, there may be no getting around the real possibility that he won’t be able to defend at the next level.

[TGW]

Queen at 18 is a no brainer if he makes it that far. He's Sengun 2.0. He's too good of a basketball player to pass up at that point. Some players are just so good their measurables don't matter.

[tontoz]

I watched Kasparas several times. The more I watched the less I liked him. Very turnover prone and not very dynamic with the ball. He relied heavily on step back 3s and he doesn't get much separation on that shot.

[machu46]

Dude took my Dairy Queen jokes too literally.

The problem isn't his weight. His 247.5 is 15 pounds lighter than Sorber.

I'm mostly just surprised at his results. We all knew he wasn't some insane athlete, but watching him play he just struck me as average--not slowest big man of all time or whatever his results showed yesterday.

Being slightly generous here, his numbers would still certainly be bad historically but it's worth pointing out that up until last year, guys that were likely to test as poorly as he did would probably have just skipped the testing. Having said that, the athleticism numbers are still bad. Not entirely sure those numbers really matter for his game though; regardless of whether or not he can jump high, he has kinda freakish coordination for a player his size and I think if he pans out in the NBA, that will be a big reason why. He very well may be able to attack defenders despite being at an athletic disadvantage.

[80sballboy]

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[DCZards]

#2 Simply trading down and out, and trying for a grand slam or two high upside dart throws, while acquiring more '26 draft capital.

I lean towards #2 because historically in drafts like this, while there are hidden stars (Haliburton level) or superstars (Giannis/SGA level), nobody has a clue who they are and it's never really obvious which guys is gonna be a baltche, and which guy is gonna turn into Lillliard or Curry or Giannis or SGA etc, which makes it more than likely a fools errand to pretend you are that smart guy who can sniff out every all star hidden gem improperly scouted (or whose due for a growth spurt, and has exactly the right supersauce between the ears to maximize said potential).

I'd just rather stack more balls for the '26 draft, than pretend we are the one genius front office that can peel off the next SGA or Giannis between slot 6 and 30 (if there even is one).

I completely disagree with this line of thinking. I’m not passing on an opportunity to draft a player (or two or three) in this draft. I’m fine with trading down a few slots to pick up a couple of extra picks, but I want my team to take their swings…whether or not they hit a home run.

I’m totally against backing out of the 2025 draft where there may be an outstanding player or two available. And instead hope that a stud will fall into the Zards lap in 2026.

[machu46]

I watched Kasparas several times. The more I watched the less I liked him. Very turnover prone and not very dynamic with the ball. He relied heavily on step back 3s and he doesn't get much separation on that shot.

Tightening up his handle and becoming a consistently good shooter are the two swing skills for him IMO. His skillset is such that I think he can potentially slot in nicely on the ball or off the ball, but if he's going to pan out on the ball, the handle has to get tighter. If he's going to pan out off the ball, he'll have to become a more consistent shooter. I like the fact that he has IMO multiple paths to being a valuable player; that's not a realistic case for a lot of the other prospects in this range IMO.

[80sballboy]

I watched Kasparas several times. The more I watched the less I liked him. Very turnover prone and not very dynamic with the ball. He relied heavily on step back 3s and he doesn't get much separation on that shot.

The turnovers were the big factor that turned me off about him. Watched him at least a 1/2 dozen times and he got worse each time I watched him. He's talented but I see a combo guard in his future. Very young at 18 and it showed. Turns 19 on May 29.

[The Consiglieri]

Spurs aren't trading #2 unless its for Giannis or a superstar of that ilk.

Six Bilal and 18 would not be close to getting it done

Yeah, my guess would be it would require Bilal, #6, and at least one future Wizards 1st round pick to get #2.

Yep and not coincidentally this is why the lottery should be junked. Why on earth should a team that's made what 5 finals in the last 25 years, and won a title in the last decade, was a near 50 game winner in '19, won the biggest lottery sweepstakes imaginable just two years ago, sweep ahead of perennial door mats like Charlotte and New Orleans and Washington. Why? It's beyond idiotic, and they're allowed to do it TWICE, for generational talents, just like Dallas, who were in the finals just a year ago.

It's absolutely asinine. The wizards get hosed, the Spurs get rewarded, exclusively because of a Wemby injury, and boom, two franchise mega star prospect, the Wizards, Hornets, Pelicans etc all still at zero (Zion is, well, Zion).

No, I'm not interested in selling Billal, a top 6 pick that should be #2 overall if this league was sane, and a future 1st, for a player we should already be getting in the first place, just as our sister team got Jayden Daniels a year ago. Are the Spurs right to demand that? Absolutely, would I pay it? No. I'd just trade out and aim for '26 and '27.

[The Consiglieri]

I can convince myself Kon could work out, but I also think he could have high bust potential.
My guy is still Maluach as he could be the best player in the draft in 3-5 years. Or a mostly non-factor.
Jako has been consistently in the top 10 in most mocks. I've not seen him play or was so
unimpressed I don't remember him.
Queen? Who's to say at this point? Is he the guy who said give me the MFing ball or does the college context
of that narrative force us to disregard it?

I'm not sure it is fair to say 'we' blew our chance at a star. There will be good players on the board
when we pick, they just won't be as obvious. So who will be considered prescient and who will look deluded in 3-5 years?

We don't know for sure which or if a youngster we already have will blossom.

I don't think many here predicted the way Kyshawn has developed (so far).

The reason I'd be close to couching it that way, and I'd say the NBA blew our chance at a star with their absolute horse ---- way of handling draft prospect selection not us, would be that while it wouldn't shock me at all if there's a hidden SGA, or at least a Haliburton level talent in some mystery box after the top 2/4, nobody has a clue or hope in hell of knowing who the heck it is. It could be one of the French guys, it could be Sorber, it could be Tre, it could be Fears, it could be Maluach, it could be anymore than a dozen guys that I really don't want us to draft, and a half dozen I have zero interest in. Post slot 4, nobody has a freaking clue, if there's a star, or who it might be, the best you can do post slot 4 is identify individuals with freak physical traits, particular skills, and or hopefully good mental makeups, but in terms of reliable evals that project such a thing, well, there's a reason why Jokic, and Haliburton, and Giannis, and SGA, and on and on slipped so far, they far outperformed expectations, period, and nobody saw it coming to the scale it happened. I concede that this entire board was hot as hell for Haliburton, but I don't think anybody saw him making a run at being a top 10 player in the league within 2 or 3 years of being drafted.

That's my problem. I know there's probably a magic box filled with a star that someone will pick between 6-30ish, but it's going to be as much blind luck, as anything else that will result in such selection. I'm not a big fan of depending upon blind luck for a franchise that is as so clearly cursed as ours.

[The Consiglieri]

#2 Simply trading down and out, and trying for a grand slam or two high upside dart throws, while acquiring more '26 draft capital.

I lean towards #2 because historically in drafts like this, while there are hidden stars (Haliburton level) or superstars (Giannis/SGA level), nobody has a clue who they are and it's never really obvious which guys is gonna be a baltche, and which guy is gonna turn into Lillliard or Curry or Giannis or SGA etc, which makes it more than likely a fools errand to pretend you are that smart guy who can sniff out every all star hidden gem improperly scouted (or whose due for a growth spurt, and has exactly the right supersauce between the ears to maximize said potential).

I'd just rather stack more balls for the '26 draft, than pretend we are the one genius front office that can peel off the next SGA or Giannis between slot 6 and 30 (if there even is one).

I completely disagree with this line of thinking. I’m not passing on an opportunity to draft a player (or two or three) in this draft. I’m fine with trading down a few slots to pick up a couple of extra picks, but I want my team to take their swings…whether or not they hit a home run.

I’m totally against backing out of the 2025 draft where there may be an outstanding player or two available. And instead hope that a stud will fall into the Zards lap in 2026.

I think there's a much better chance of landing that stud in '26 by adding balls from potentially three different teams, than hoping for the best from slot 6. I get why you'd like to swing here, and there are some guys they could take, even at 18, who I view as having some degree of chance at shockingly becoming a star, but I think our odds are simply best if we have our lottery balls, the Suns balls, and some team we trade the pick to that is a good bet to be back in the lottery.

If that trade isn't available, and it may not be, everyone knows 6th was a clear and fundamental tier drop between 1-2, 3-4, and 5 (5 had the added value of someone slipping from the top 4, 6 will only have that if the team at slot 5 bungles the pick), we can pick at slot or trade down, I'd probably trade down unless I had strong fears that Fears would be gone, and Maluach and others would be gone etc.

[Jay81]

I think Kan goes higher than we think

[Hibachi_0]

Wouldn’t be surprised if the mocks are way off on Traore/haven’t adjusted to his late season surge.

Doubt he’ll be available outside of the lottery. Maybe goes in the Carrington/Topic range?? 10-14ish?

Would be cool if NBA prospect projections had valuation stuff like transfermarkt for soccer. You could trace where guys were valued over time. Instead I have to go from fuzzy memories, but I'm fairly certain Nolan Traore was rated inside the top 10, maybe even top 6 or 7 last summer, and fell to the bottom of the first round in a lot of projections circa January and February before climbing again the past month or two. I don't think any guy experienced as much volatility other than maybe that Hugo Gonzalez kid from Spain who tumbled a good 15-25 slots in aggregated mocks between 2024 and May 2025.

Yeah he was considered the 5th best prospect after Flagg Harper, Ace, and VJ before the season started. Won’t be that surprised if he manages to make it back to the top once the draft rolls around

A year ago after this game against Jakucionis' Barcelona youth team his stock was rocketing. He showed flashes in the French 1st division and everyone thought he'd have a great season, he didn't. But for me, he has always been the better guard out og him, Kasparas and Demin.

https://youtu.be/BCv1rvLM4tk?si=bTbKmhQZg7jkvGbF

It's funny how going the college path can change the draft expectations for some european players. For exmple, the alpha dog in Madrid's youth team had always been Hguo Gonzalez, not Demin. (i still think Gonzalez is a better prospect, he'll be a steal).
For me it'd be: Traore > Hugo > Demin > Jakucionis