Who should the Hornets draft at #2?

[vexco]

Just wanted to go on record to state that I believe if we pass on Scoot it'll be a mistake. I view Miller as a more complementary piece, but I think Scoot has the potential to be the face of the franchise, best player on a perennial playoff team. If we select Miller, I hope he proves me wrong.

I just don't see the skill he has that would lead you to believe that.

[SWedd523]

Scoot- 41%
Miller- 39%
Amen- 20%

^reposting for posterity. That was me a week ago.


I think I'm somewhere around 60/40 in favor of Scoot these days, but very honestly am fine with either one. I still have sneaking suspicions that Amen is going to be a stud and we'll look back in future years about missing out on another "SG of the future"

[BuzzCityRell]

Just wanted to go on record to state that I believe if we pass on Scoot it'll be a mistake. I view Miller as a more complementary piece, but I think Scoot has the potential to be the face of the franchise, best player on a perennial playoff team. If we select Miller, I hope he proves me wrong.

I just don't see the skill he has that would lead you to believe that.

I just don't see the athleticism that will translate against NBA defenders. Again, It's just my opinion. I'll admit the game against Leaky Black resonates.

[Hornet Mania]

Not trying to dump on Scoot at all, but the idea he has more franchise-player (or some have even said generational) potential seems more hype than reality.

We've seen plenty of athletic PGs and even the best ones don't achieve massive team success. Baron Davis and Steve Francis were both great players at their peak but not truly upper-echelon and I'm not even sure Scoot will reach their ceilings. Fox and Morant are modern comps, but neither seem capable of taking their teams to a title unless the rest of the roster is absolutely stacked. Rose had the most team success of comparable athletic lead guards but also by far the best overall team and a weak East, when he met Miami his team lost 4-1.

That's also why I cringe when I see posters on the General Board suggest we trade Melo and build around Scoot. Aside from the fact they have barely seen Melo play, his archetype is significantly more likely to someday be a major difference maker than Scoot's. A lot of this future franchise potential talk just seems to be built on hype and name recognition.

The realistic best-case for Scoot is a type of player that has never won anything as the best talent on his team. That isn't necessarily damning, he could still be Morant or Baron which is awesome, but also not someone you can just pencil in as leading you to a lot of playoff success.

To be fair, Miller is not an iron-clad first-ballot Hall of Famer either. I just raise my eyebrows at claims, mostly GB not here, that us passing on Scoot means passing on tons of future success. They both seem like future all-stars to me, not MVPs.

[KingCat]

Not trying to dump on Scoot at all, but the idea he has more franchise-player (or some have even said generational) potential seems more hype than reality.

We've seen plenty of athletic PGs and even the best ones don't achieve massive team success. Baron Davis and Steve Francis were both great players at their peak but not truly upper-echelon and I'm not even sure Scoot will reach their ceilings. Fox and Morant are modern comps, but neither seem capable of taking their teams to a title unless the rest of the roster is absolutely stacked. Rose had the most team success of comparable athletic lead guards but also by far the best overall team and a weak East, when he met Miami his team lost 4-1.

That's also why I cringe when I see posters on the General Board suggest we trade Melo and build around Scoot. Aside from the fact they have barely seen Melo play, his archetype is significantly more likely to someday be a major difference maker than Scoot's. A lot of this future franchise potential talk just seems to be built on hype and name recognition.

The realistic best-case for Scoot is a type of player that has never won anything as the best talent on his team. That isn't necessarily damning, he could still be Morant or Baron which is awesome, but also not someone you can just pencil in as leading you to a lot of playoff success.

I think the most exciting thing about Scoot is not his athletics, but his passing abilities he has displayed up to now.

I'm not saying he is a 5 star floor general just yet, but I think he is advanced in that category for his age. I'm pretty confident that Scoot now is a better playmaker at 19 than Russ or Ja were at 19.

I saw someone describe Scoot as an athletic Mike Conley, and that honestly excites more more than a Russ comparison.

[Hornet Mania]

Not trying to dump on Scoot at all, but the idea he has more franchise-player (or some have even said generational) potential seems more hype than reality.

We've seen plenty of athletic PGs and even the best ones don't achieve massive team success. Baron Davis and Steve Francis were both great players at their peak but not truly upper-echelon and I'm not even sure Scoot will reach their ceilings. Fox and Morant are modern comps, but neither seem capable of taking their teams to a title unless the rest of the roster is absolutely stacked. Rose had the most team success of comparable athletic lead guards but also by far the best overall team and a weak East, when he met Miami his team lost 4-1.

That's also why I cringe when I see posters on the General Board suggest we trade Melo and build around Scoot. Aside from the fact they have barely seen Melo play, his archetype is significantly more likely to someday be a major difference maker than Scoot's. A lot of this future franchise potential talk just seems to be built on hype and name recognition.

The realistic best-case for Scoot is a type of player that has never won anything as the best talent on his team. That isn't necessarily damning, he could still be Morant or Baron which is awesome, but also not someone you can just pencil in as leading you to a lot of playoff success.

I think the most exciting thing about Scoot is not his athletics, but his passing abilities he has displayed up to now.

I'm not saying he is a 5 star floor general just yet, but I think he is advanced in that category for his age. I'm pretty confident that Scoot now is a better playmaker at 19 than Russ or Ja were at 19.

I saw someone describe Scoot as an athletic Mike Conley, and that honestly excites more more than a Russ comparison.

I'm not sure about Ja tbh, he was an excellent passer in college, but I see what you're saying.

I'm totally fine with Scoot, just wanted to push back a bit on the assumption that a smallish point guard prospect should be considered very likely to be a top-tier talent in the modern NBA. History suggests otherwise, if your metric for success is winning.

[fatlever]

I think my final resting spot is 51/49 Scoot/Miller.

Basically 50/50, because both their weaknesses equally scare the s*** out of me. The last few days it's been harder and harder for me to see a path towards an all NBA player for either. The trauma of being a hornet's fan, Where your brain always assumes that whoever we pick is going to be a dumpster fire.

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[vexco]

Just wanted to go on record to state that I believe if we pass on Scoot it'll be a mistake. I view Miller as a more complementary piece, but I think Scoot has the potential to be the face of the franchise, best player on a perennial playoff team. If we select Miller, I hope he proves me wrong.

I just don't see the skill he has that would lead you to believe that.

I just don't see the athleticism that will translate against NBA defenders. Again, It's just my opinion. I'll admit the game against Leaky Black resonates.

I'm talking about Scoot. I feel like he'll be a fine player but he hasn't shown anything except athleticism to me.

[BuzzCityRell]

I just don't see the skill he has that would lead you to believe that.

I just don't see the athleticism that will translate against NBA defenders. Again, It's just my opinion. I'll admit the game against Leaky Black resonates.

I'm talking about Scoot. I feel like he'll be a fine player but he hasn't shown anything except athleticism to me.

For me it was his strength and first step. It's going to be hard for guards stop him from getting to his spots.

[vexco]

I just don't see the athleticism that will translate against NBA defenders. Again, It's just my opinion. I'll admit the game against Leaky Black resonates.

I'm talking about Scoot. I feel like he'll be a fine player but he hasn't shown anything except athleticism to me.

For me it was his strength and first step. It's going to be hard for guards stop him from getting to his spots.

His rim finishing for having such a good first step/strength is pretty lackluster. I don't know what "his spots" are except for a nice midrange J. He offers no spacing so he'd solely have to operate with the ball in his hands and relegating Lamelo to just being a shooter? I dunno, just seems off to me personally.

[-Ian-]

I voted for Brandon Miller, but I'm good if Scoot is the pick. A lot of Hornets fans on social media who are pro-Scoot act like its the end of the world if Charlotte passes on Henderson and picks Miller. Both of them are great prospects imo.

[vorbis]

waited until the last minute to cast my vote on this. I don't follow college bball / draft prospects nearly like I used to, so I didn't want to put my finger on the scale without at least having my own idea of the two main candidates' games.

so I've watched a fair bit, and I've smmfh at the wild back and forth on here and social media that so many of y'all are entertained by. do your thing, I'll sit it out.

but I continue to get good vibes from Scoot. he's comfortable in his own skin, has athleticism that you can obviously see on video, has explosiveness in his first step, a fearlessness in his game, and is comfortable with the ball in his hand. his weaknesses, such as they are, are not all that uncommon in draft prospects. defensive intensity and focus. shooting consistency. these sorts of things are coachable. I can sense the drive in him to push towards the top of the mountain.

Miller, idk, just the vibes seem off to me. it's a very wishy washy thing, I get it. the stroke is consistent but it doesn't always look as free and easy as a knock down NBA shooter's stroke does. one-on-one as the shot clock goes down, I'm not seeing this force of nature who will get a bucket when he has to. defensively I'm not seeing a gamebreaker, just...decent? pretty good? blocking at the rim as a help defender is valuable, but it's not some sign of eliteness. and another wishy washy thing but, idk, I just get bad vibes from his interviews. I mean what do I know. but I'd hope to see some fieriness from him that indicates he'll enthusiastically take the next step in his development. elevate his competitiveness at the highest level. take over games. push through bad games to be there in the 4th quarter. it just feels off to me.

so I'm voting Scoot and looking forward to learning what I missed about Miller if he hits big. I've been wrong before, but I've been right too. (was right on Kawhi, Kemba, wrong on McLemore, Stauskas)

[GoBobs]

Not trying to dump on Scoot at all, but the idea he has more franchise-player (or some have even said generational) potential seems more hype than reality.

We've seen plenty of athletic PGs and even the best ones don't achieve massive team success. Baron Davis and Steve Francis were both great players at their peak but not truly upper-echelon and I'm not even sure Scoot will reach their ceilings. Fox and Morant are modern comps, but neither seem capable of taking their teams to a title unless the rest of the roster is absolutely stacked. Rose had the most team success of comparable athletic lead guards but also by far the best overall team and a weak East, when he met Miami his team lost 4-1.

That's also why I cringe when I see posters on the General Board suggest we trade Melo and build around Scoot. Aside from the fact they have barely seen Melo play, his archetype is significantly more likely to someday be a major difference maker than Scoot's. A lot of this future franchise potential talk just seems to be built on hype and name recognition.

The realistic best-case for Scoot is a type of player that has never won anything as the best talent on his team. That isn't necessarily damning, he could still be Morant or Baron which is awesome, but also not someone you can just pencil in as leading you to a lot of playoff success.

To be fair, Miller is not an iron-clad first-ballot Hall of Famer either. I just raise my eyebrows at claims, mostly GB not here, that us passing on Scoot means passing on tons of future success. They both seem like future all-stars to me, not MVPs.

Agree with what you are saying. I also think the most important aspect of any prospect is what is between the ears.

Pelicans are figuring out that a player can be more talented than anyone else in basketball, but if he doesn’t care you can’t count on the guy. This is part of why they want scoot so bad. They have learned from the experience.

Scoot could have finished out his senior year of high school, and that would have been an easier road than graduating early so he could go play in the G League at 17. That says to me he is willing to work and not afraid of the possibility of failure.

[KingCat]

Not trying to dump on Scoot at all, but the idea he has more franchise-player (or some have even said generational) potential seems more hype than reality.

We've seen plenty of athletic PGs and even the best ones don't achieve massive team success. Baron Davis and Steve Francis were both great players at their peak but not truly upper-echelon and I'm not even sure Scoot will reach their ceilings. Fox and Morant are modern comps, but neither seem capable of taking their teams to a title unless the rest of the roster is absolutely stacked. Rose had the most team success of comparable athletic lead guards but also by far the best overall team and a weak East, when he met Miami his team lost 4-1.

That's also why I cringe when I see posters on the General Board suggest we trade Melo and build around Scoot. Aside from the fact they have barely seen Melo play, his archetype is significantly more likely to someday be a major difference maker than Scoot's. A lot of this future franchise potential talk just seems to be built on hype and name recognition.

The realistic best-case for Scoot is a type of player that has never won anything as the best talent on his team. That isn't necessarily damning, he could still be Morant or Baron which is awesome, but also not someone you can just pencil in as leading you to a lot of playoff success.

To be fair, Miller is not an iron-clad first-ballot Hall of Famer either. I just raise my eyebrows at claims, mostly GB not here, that us passing on Scoot means passing on tons of future success. They both seem like future all-stars to me, not MVPs.

Agree with what you are saying. I also think the most important aspect of any prospect is what is between the ears.

Pelicans are figuring out that a player can be more talented than anyone else in basketball, but if he doesn’t care you can’t count on the guy. This is part of why they want scoot so bad. They have learned from the experience.

Scoot could have finished out his senior year of high school, and that would have been an easier road than graduating early so he could go play in the G League at 17. That says to me he is willing to work and not afraid of the possibility of failure.

I used to hate the "we picked him cause he has high character" stereotype that we've been doing for years. It's why we ended up getting guys like MKG, Morrison, Kaminsky, etc...but with our current roster, getting dudes with a good head on their shoulder feels like a higher priority now, it especially doesn't hurt when these dudes have as much talent as scoot.

[Hornet Mania]

For what it's worth, all the betting markets have swung heavily in favor of Scoot in the last 24hrs. He was the favorite now he's the very heavy favorite, it looks similar to what happened with Banchero last year.

Seems like someone has insider info Scoot is our guy, or at minimum that we're picking him then making a trade.

[JustBuzzin]

Zion from the top rope!

[chabber]

Still Miller over Scoot, probably 55/45 but I still haven't fallen in love with either one when watching tape. Wouldn't surprise me if either never make an all star team. Probably will end up being someone like Cam Whitmore when he realizes he's playing with 4 other teammates.

I think Scoot has the higher floor because his first step, passing and handling translate very easily. I'm not counting on his shot improving enough and in general the athletic PG that can't shoot is one of my least favorite archetypes; even when they reach their peak, I still value versitle lower grade talent at other positions more. If his shot does improve and he acquires a high 3ball% then his ceiling goes through the roof.

I feel Brandon has the potential to reach a higher ceiling for me, with his size, versatility and shooting, but he has bust potential with his ability to finish and create space in question. I think he can put on muscle pretty easily, and possibly could improve his handling enough to the point that those concerns could be alleviated somewhat.

When it comes to fit, I really question Melo & Scoot playing together. There are a lot of examples of this not working with a more recent one being the Cavs and Sexland. Can it work, maybe yeah, but the fit with Miller is much easier to picture going right, especially with his size. Starting with a 6'6" PG with the hopes that every position increases in size is the way you want to build your team.

[luciano-davidwesley]

I'm very slightly leaning Scoot today, though I think both guys will become at least career above average starters if not all-stars.

Happy with either pick. Trading down to #3 for assets and getting one or the other would be a great outcome too.