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Given the lively exchange of views, positive & negative, on Will's first draft, it seems a good idea to gather everyone's draft. Not your opinion about whether we did "good" or "bad," but what YOU would have done -- whom YOU would have taken.

Now, obviously, we won't know how good or bad our draft was in a real sense until we see how the guys we took -- or the ones any of us would have preferred we take! -- actually do in the league. But, by that time everyone will have edited their memories.

To avoid revisiting the Deni trade, let's just assume it. I.e. for this thread, you're making the #14 pick.

As well, if you're happy w/ our having traded 26 & 51 for 24, no problem. Just list the guy you'd have taken at 24.

But if you're not happy with that exchange of picks, just list the 2 guys you'd have taken at 26 & 51 -- from those who were actually available of course. I.e. no picking Kyshaun George at 26!

& no trades that didn't happen either.

A couple of other things:

1. This thread should be locked the moment the pre-season begins.
2. If you don't list your picks in this thread, we should assume you approve of Will's draft as is.

The reasons for these provisos should be obvious -- at least I hope so!

I would have taken:

2 -- Alex Sarr
14 -- Bub Carrington
26 -- Jonathan Mogbo -- No, that's not accurate. It would have been either Dillon Jones or Djurisic, but I can no longer be sure which I would have gone for.
51 -- Ulrich Chomche*
(Obviously, I would not have traded up from 26 to 24)

How about you?

* Or maybe Cam Spencer -- but probably Chomche.

2 - Reed Sheppard
14 - Collier
26 - Filipowski
51 - Reece Beekman or DJ Burns. Comche would have been good too.

2 - Reed Sheppard
14 - would not have traded Deni
26 - Terrence Shannon Jr
51 - don’t know and don’t really care.

Still, nate -- just for the backwards glance later -- if you'd been picking at 14, whom would you have taken...?

I wanted to trade down to get Stephon Castle and Zach Edey. I stated I thought the Spurs wanted Sheppard and Castle. I thought they wanted Castle more since they tried the Sochan experiment as a giant PG for much of last year. But Sheppard is a near ideal fit next to Wemby, an ideal Pop type player. They needed shooting. His defense effort fundamentals and BBIQ are all exactly a Spurs type player. His foot speed on defense could be covered by Wemby. Wemby needs a Tony Parker to his Tim Duncan. I think they would have leaned towards Reed.

At 2 I may have selected a player I thought the Spurs wanted, to see if I could get them to trade one or more of #4, 8 plus a prospect or as much future draft capitol as I could extract from them. If they balked then I would have kept the guy I took at 2, and been fine with it, knowing this year's draft is unusual and you are not picking a #2 guy no matter what.

I was similarly interested in Portland's 7 & 14, but given the Deni trade that was clearly off the table.

I think I would have leaned towards Castle. He doesn't yet fit well next to Bilal, but would play great with Edey if I could get him. Positional size, etc is in favor of Castle even if Reed's stats were unbelievable. Literally in my case. I did not entirely believe them. So:

2. Castle. Or trade with Spurs for #4.
We take Reed for them at #2 knowing he won't slip past Houston at #3. If so:
(4. Castle.)
(8. Edey). The Spurs did trade this pick, so this part is not far-fetched. Though we would have had to include capital beyond the #2 for this to happen.

14. Interesting. We would need shooting and had lost Deni so a forward would be nice. I would have been looking at Jared McCain, KelEl Ware, or DaRon Holmes. Mocks had Holmes going earlier than our late pick at 26. If I plan to re-sign Tyus and trade Kuzma I would be better off taking a guy who can slide between 4-5 as a chance of pace for Edey or to develop next to him. I liked Holmes' hustle and stat stuffing vs Ware who looked good but had a knock against him that he would disappear in games. Ware was more laterally athletic, but better passing means I give the edge to Holmes. I want a big-to-big option at 4. DaRon Holmes.

26. No way I would have traded up to 24. Here I'm looking at a wing/shooting guard with size who can pass well and handle a bit, hopefully hit from outside. Nikola Djurisic. Dillon Jones. I don't know. Coin flip. I liked Jones stat stuffing. Figured there is upside to his athleticism with big time trainers. Djurisic impressed at the combine with probably the best athletic testing overall besides Devin Carter. I liked his snappy passing and a bit of wiggle to his handle. Recency bias might have overcome the #3 maxim of draft picks ("never pick the white guy for their athleticism, they are always injured", right behind "#2 never pick the guy who is tall because of a disease"). I think I would have gone for Nikola Djurisic.

51. Cam Spencer. Reunite him with Castle, with an upgrade for Donovan Clingan in Zach Edey. We would win the championship every year. Okay the NCAA championship, but still. I wanted Hukporti, but with Edey and Holmes already taken I need off ball shooting and smarts.

doclinkin wrote:We would win the championship ever year. Okay the NCAA championship, but still.

there's a banner of this somewhere in the Knicks facility probably

What's funny is if the draft had gone perfect for me I would have been stressed out right now.

4. Castle. Left SL after taking an injury.
8. Edey. Two injuries in SL took him out of the rest.
14. DaRon Holmes. Achilles injury will force him to redshirt his rookie year.
26. Djurisic. Out until at least November with hurt foot.
51. Cam Spencer. Okay so far...

So the Wiz better be glad I didn't pick whomever they had on their boards, because no doubt they would have needed to see the doc by now.

2 - Alex Sarr with qualification, at the time I said that Ware would be better initially, but that Sarr would catch up eventually. I said if Sarr was there we had to take him, but I liked Castle and Dillingham and Reed, I wrote that UK draftees had a high success rate in the NBA.

14 - I would not have traded Deni, with Sarr drafted, I would have taken DaRon Holmes and said thanks to Anthony Gill.

26 - Collier was there, so I would have taken him

51 - With this pick traded, I would nabbed one of the undrafted guys, probably Justin Edwards as he was the highest ranked undrafted available (I believe)

I was very disappointed in the FO approach to the summer, they were content with fielding our G-League guys and draft picks instead of going after undrafted prospects, we still have a two-way slot open, the best of the undrafted guys have already been signed to two-way contracts with winning teams.

In my mind, the only point of this thread is for each poster to provide either 3 or 4 names of the guys you'd have taken at 2, 14 & either 24 or both 26 & 51 (if you wouldn't have traded up for 24).

Thus, I'm hoping to record what our preferences were on 6/26-7.

If you've changed your mind since then -- based on SL or anything else -- that's not relevant info for this thread, b/c it doesn't change what you would have done on the nights of the draft.

IOW, for example, on Wednesday night 6/26, when #2 was on the board, you had to do something, you had to make a pick. You might have wanted to make a trade, but you hadn't made a trade.

Who you would have taken. Not what you would have done otherwise if possible.

pancakes3 wrote:2 - Reed Sheppard
14 - Collier
26 - Filipowski
51 - Reece Beekman or DJ Burns. Comche would have been good too.

With Bub taken at 14, in real time I was seriously tempted in taking Filipowski at 26, fine for a 2nd/3rd big.

Fine. Doesn't change much.

2. I would have picked Reed on a gamble to induce the Spurs to trade, but if not, would have been happy to keep him when they turned it down. Pretty sure that was my final position in the draft thread: I want Castle on a trade down, but if I can't do that I'm okay with Reed.
14. Holmes. 6'10" hustle player with range, got better every year.
26. Djurisic. Flier on a guy who showed a bit of passing chops and untapped athleticism.
51. Hukporti. Oft injured Big who may have significant upside if the docs say his medicals are on the mend. If not: Cam Spencer.

It's interesting to me that as I think back it takes a whole lot of effort to be sure what my final thoughts were!
(& not to be influenced by thoughts I've had since since then!)

2) Reed Sheppard
14) Ware, but wouldn't have traded Deni.
26) George was better than I expected. I'll stay with him.
51) Alex Sarr - I didn't see anything to convince me he was worth a first round pick

payitforward wrote:It's interesting to me that as I think back it takes a whole lot of effort to be sure what my final thoughts were!
(& not to be influenced by thoughts I've had since since then!)

True, though I was loud about all the things I am surely wrong about, so the collective hive mind here will keep me honest. The Holmes pick is the one I'm less confident I would have done since I didn't spend a lot of time debating who would be available there. If I had traded Deni away (I wouldn't have, but for the point of this scenario) I would have been hoping for Edey to drop.

McCain, Ware, Holmes are all guys I mentioned throughout the Draft thread. Me I'm partial to production more than potential, so I lean Holmes there in my re-draft. With the hindsight of seeing where folks actually were picked. Though the idea that Knecht fell that far may have put him as the best player available on my board. Johnny Furphy too would have been in play there and at 26.

2. Sheppard
14. Ware
26. Filipowski

I'll preface this with I think we had a good draft.

The only thing I would go back and change is take Sheppard and not Sarr. But that's consistent with what I've said for the last 6 months. I think Sarr is gonna end up being in the top 15 players in the draft.

Now if I'm starting over from fresh what would I have done on draft night with what we had.

#2 Sheppard
#14 Carrington
I Hold on to 26 and call the bluff.
I would take George at 26 if he's there and take one of the other young SF if they are there.
#26. George/Wells/ Ryan Dunn/ Dillon Jones/Tyler Smith in that order.
At 51 to take Bronny James and I extort the Lakers for something. I force them into trading me 55 and 2 future seconds for Bronny .
#55 Comche or Flowers



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2. Reed Sheppard
* Wouldn’t have traded Deni
26. Dunno; I’m fine with George; I was intrigued by Djurisic and Shannon

payitforward wrote:A couple of other things:

1. This thread should be locked the moment the pre-season begins.
2. If you don't list your picks in this thread, we should assume you approve of Will's draft as is.

The reasons for these provisos should be obvious -- at least I hope so!

I trust our management to pick well far more than I trust my own judgement. I don't make draft prognostications. That said, I do tend to favor guys who have played well at their previous level and while I'd probably have picked Sarr, only Bub of the 3 can really say that.