2021-22 Rookie Thread

[kdthunderup]

Nearly all the top rookies sans Suggs have come out the gates and have looked really promising. It’s usually always a mixed bag this early on.

and Cade

Well I mean he hasn’t played an NBA game yet…

[LBJKB24MJ23]

Mobley might have a spotty offense at times but his defense is ridiculous.

I can see why the Raps would have wanted to move up to get him. his length is redic

[God Squad]

Slow day for Scottie Barnes
18 points
7 rebounds
7 assists
2 blocks

Meh

[Madhouse]

Davion Mitchell is a defensive savant.

[LoveMyRaps]

Scottie Barnes is going to be a superstar.

So many studs in this draft. Was expecting it to be the best since '03 and we're sure off to a great start.

[yoyoboy]

Mobley's got a long way to go offensively. More than anything, adding bulk will help him. Defensively he's already legit though.

[LoveMyRaps]

Where amazing happens.

Watch on YouTube

OP SCOTTIE.

[God Squad]

Anyone brave enough to give some hot take comps for the rookies?

[tdotrep2]

lebron just might take his talents back to celevland for a 3rd time when his contract ends to play with mobley

[DCasey91]

Anyone brave enough to give some hot take comps for the rookies?

Cades a SG, he’ll be All Star Level but nothing to write home about. He won’t be the best player but he’ll be good.

Never saw the elite passing skill so can’t comment on it in College games. Shooting is class for his size and does well when asked to score. Downside is his bully ball tactics is vanilla inside and won’t work in the NBA.

Smaller Tatum with less scoring polish. And Tatum is very shot reliant even now. So expect some 5-17 awful shooting type games.

Mobley - Garnett but moves like AD instead
Barnes - Pippen hybrid with some All Star Iggy game/bodyshape
Giddey - Slow Mo Lamelo not Anderson/Ingles/Rubio

Are the clear stand outs so far for me. But there’s a monster (JJ) waiting in the wings, just sucks he’s on the Hawks. They have an overabundance of talent lol

Kuminga is big Wiggins (don’t like the word bust but he’ll be bog average).

Josh Christopher for my pick outside the lotto to be a nasty as heck player in due time somewhere other than the Rockets.

Top 5 on redraft in 5 years time:

Mobley
Barnes
Giddey
Cade/Green tie

Best of the rest: JJ, Suggs, Christopher, Murphy III, Duarte, Mitchell, Wagner, Sengun.

[God Squad]

Anyone brave enough to give some hot take comps for the rookies?

Cades a SG, he’ll be All Star Level but nothing to write home about comparing the top picks.

Never saw the elite passing skill so can’t comment on it in College games. Shooting is class for his size and does well when asked to score. Downside is his bully ball tactics is vanilla inside and won’t work in the NBA.

Smaller Tatum with less scoring polish. And Tatum is very shot reliant even now. So expect some 5-17 awful shooting type games.

Mobley - Garnett but moves like AD instead
Barnes - Pippen hybrid with some All Star Iggy game/bodyshape
Giddey - Slow Mo Lamelo not Anderson/Ingles/Rubio

Are the clear stand outs so far for me. But there’s a monster (JJ) waiting in the wings, just sucks he’s on the Hawks. They have an overabundance of talent lol

Kuminga is big Wiggins (don’t like the word bust but he’ll be bog average).

Josh Christopher for my pick outside the lotto to be a nasty as heck player in due time somewhere other than the Rockets.

Solid comps. I'd agree somewhat with your Mobley/Barnes/Giddey comp. What about Green? IIRC in the Draft threads you were high on him, as in best in class high. I've heard those takes on Cade also. I need to see more games as he didn't play much in SL. I do think he'll be jump shot reliant also. I'm not sure with Josh Christopher from what I saw in SL. He has the most confidence, but suspect IQ from what I saw. Those aren't a good combo IMO.

So what about these guys if you managed to see any.
Green
Franz
Mitchell
Suggs
Duarte

[yoyoboy]

Read on Twitter

[DCasey91]

Anyone brave enough to give some hot take comps for the rookies?

Cades a SG, he’ll be All Star Level but nothing to write home about comparing the top picks.

Never saw the elite passing skill so can’t comment on it in College games. Shooting is class for his size and does well when asked to score. Downside is his bully ball tactics is vanilla inside and won’t work in the NBA.

Smaller Tatum with less scoring polish. And Tatum is very shot reliant even now. So expect some 5-17 awful shooting type games.

Mobley - Garnett but moves like AD instead
Barnes - Pippen hybrid with some All Star Iggy game/bodyshape
Giddey - Slow Mo Lamelo not Anderson/Ingles/Rubio

Are the clear stand outs so far for me. But there’s a monster (JJ) waiting in the wings, just sucks he’s on the Hawks. They have an overabundance of talent lol

Kuminga is big Wiggins (don’t like the word bust but he’ll be bog average).

Josh Christopher for my pick outside the lotto to be a nasty as heck player in due time somewhere other than the Rockets.

Solid comps. I'd agree somewhat with your Mobley/Barnes/Giddey comp. What about Green? IIRC in the Draft threads you were high on him, as in best in class high. I've heard those takes on Cade also. I need to see more games as he didn't play much in SL. I do think he'll be jump shot reliant also. I'm not sure with Josh Christopher from what I saw in SL. He has the most confidence, but suspect IQ from what I saw. Those aren't a good combo IMO.

So what about these guys if you managed to see any.
Green
Franz
Mitchell
Suggs
Duarte

Yeah Green sucked me in (still like him a lot), you kind of have to temper it because you have to see what they look like size wise in an NBA court. Don’t like his overall game atm and I want him to round it more. I should’ve practiced fundamental key stats/transferability that point out red flags and Geeen had a bunch. (FTR, A/T, Defense, Size)

But when he was hot he flashed best player potential. He’s game needs to round out he is more raw then what I would’ve expected. But I won’t be surprised if he drops 40 this season he’s that kind of player lol

Hyper Beal was my best comp and it still is but that’s going to take years and may/may not happen.

But with Mobley he basically never left tier 1 from the beginning. He’s just too classy for a big for his age and watching both closely as always, Green left.

Wagner - Someone on our board rates him highly. Not ready to jump on the bandwagon but I really like his size and versatility. Actually his comp is more peer related in this upcoming draft (Jovic and Roko). Very euro type game

Mitchell - Look not enamored by him and his age I’d expect him to feel comfortable at this level. I actually liked Butler more for some reason watching games. But no doubt a fantastic defender and he does look bigger than Smart from the eye.

Suggs - Loved him, loved everything about him. Maturity, leadership, motor the whole lot. I was expecting rookie lighter weight Kidd. But once again with Green he’s smaller on an NBA court. Maybe best thing to do is hold the breath before they make it on the real thing lol. He’s more of an athlete than a great great basketball player, but those are harder/rarer to find at such a young age. Can’t hate Suggs his mentality hopefully will max out his potential whatever that maybe.

Duarte - It looks like Brogdon recruited his cousin . Haha but nah he looks great which is to be expected for a 24 year old invested on a high pick but it was a good call to make. He’ll put on size and be a fine player.

For me I basically watched how they looked rather than raw accumulated stats.

[Ell Curry]

Read on Twitter

Won't shock me if he's fighting it out with Giannis to be the best defender in the league by next year since he's more mobile than Gobert and Draymond ain't getting any younger.

You could see it last year at USC, he just gets the role of center defensively and doesn't commit unnecessary fouls or let the man he's guarding get a body on him, so he's always around to help when someone drives, but he doesn't just chase blocks and give up oops or putbacks. There are other young guys with his wingspan, but they don't move as easily as he does and they're miles behind him mentally on that end.

[God Squad]

Cades a SG, he’ll be All Star Level but nothing to write home about comparing the top picks.

Never saw the elite passing skill so can’t comment on it in College games. Shooting is class for his size and does well when asked to score. Downside is his bully ball tactics is vanilla inside and won’t work in the NBA.

Smaller Tatum with less scoring polish. And Tatum is very shot reliant even now. So expect some 5-17 awful shooting type games.

Mobley - Garnett but moves like AD instead
Barnes - Pippen hybrid with some All Star Iggy game/bodyshape
Giddey - Slow Mo Lamelo not Anderson/Ingles/Rubio

Are the clear stand outs so far for me. But there’s a monster (JJ) waiting in the wings, just sucks he’s on the Hawks. They have an overabundance of talent lol

Kuminga is big Wiggins (don’t like the word bust but he’ll be bog average).

Josh Christopher for my pick outside the lotto to be a nasty as heck player in due time somewhere other than the Rockets.

Solid comps. I'd agree somewhat with your Mobley/Barnes/Giddey comp. What about Green? IIRC in the Draft threads you were high on him, as in best in class high. I've heard those takes on Cade also. I need to see more games as he didn't play much in SL. I do think he'll be jump shot reliant also. I'm not sure with Josh Christopher from what I saw in SL. He has the most confidence, but suspect IQ from what I saw. Those aren't a good combo IMO.

So what about these guys if you managed to see any.
Green
Franz
Mitchell
Suggs
Duarte

Yeah Green sucked me in (still like him a lot), you kind of have to temper it because you have to see what they look like size wise in an NBA court. Don’t like his overall game atm and I want him to round it more. I should’ve practiced fundamental key stats/transferability that point out red flags and Geeen had a bunch. (FTR, A/T, Defense, Size)

But when he was hot he flashed best player potential. He’s game needs to round out he is more raw then what I would’ve expected. But I won’t be surprised if he drops 40 this season he’s that kind of player lol

Hyper Beal was my best comp and it still is but that’s going to take years and may/may not happen.

But with Mobley he basically never left tier 1 from the beginning. He’s just too classy for a big for his age and watching both closely as always, Green left.

Wagner - Someone on our board rates him highly. Not ready to jump on the bandwagon but I really like his size and versatility. Actually his comp is more peer related in this upcoming draft (Jovic and Roko). Very euro type game

Mitchell - Look not enamored by him and his age I’d expect him to feel comfortable at this level. I actually liked Butler more for some reason watching games. But no doubt a fantastic defender and he does look bigger than Smart from the eye.

Suggs - Loved him, loved everything about him. Maturity, leadership, motor the whole lot. I was expecting rookie lighter weight Kidd. But once again with Green he’s smaller on an NBA court. Maybe best thing to do is hold the breath before they make it on the real thing lol. He’s more of an athlete than a great great basketball player, but those are harder/rarer to find at such a young age. Can’t hate Suggs his mentality hopefully will max out his potential whatever that maybe.

Duarte - It looks like Brogdon recruited his cousin . Haha but nah he looks great which is to be expected for a 24 year old invested on a high pick but it was a good call to make. He’ll put on size and be a fine player.

For me I basically watched how they looked rather than raw accumulated stats.

Thanks for the write up bud. I'm really liking Duarte because of his NBA ready game, like you said Brogdan clone almost.

Wagner while not a good rebounder/passer or dribbler he knows how to play sound defense and he's shooting at a good rate. He looks like the epitome of 3+D for a forward and maybe more

Green is pretty polarizing in the sense that when he flashes you can see go-to scorer/best ceiling type. But it's everything else in his game that's suspect to me. IMO he's either Beal++ or Jordan Clarkson+ type. High Ceiling.

Davion - Better defending Pat Bev? Shot is inconsistent, but when its on he's a player you have to respect.

Suggs - He's breaking my heart right now tbh. I keep saying next game he'll breakout, but he's having a rough time with his shot/handle for a pg. The defense looks legit as heck though. With his current inconsistencies maybe George Hill/Marcus Smart type? If he gets it under control I can see Jrue Holiday type in there.

Giddey - Less flasy/spicy LaMelo - But I love LaMelo because he's flashy and has that swagger to his game. But Giddey is a baller through and through.

Mobley - Bosh/AD defense - Probable ROY, he's that good on defense. Super high ceiling.

Barnes - Gonna be in the running ROY all year. I have a hard time coming up with a comp for Scottie. Only because he's exceeding my initial expectations and I've been wrong on him from the get-go. Pippen/Simmons/D.Green/Kawhi I don't know where he'll end up, but his ceiling seems really high.

[JonFromVA]

Anyone brave enough to give some hot take comps for the rookies?

A little more experience and work on his timing and my hot take for Mobley is modern day Bill Russell.

Maybe its the dearth of defensive big men in Cleveland since Nate Thurmond ... but Mobley just looks historic on the defensive end. Nance Sr and Jr were good, Ben Wallace was sweet, Tristan Thompson was useful, Andy Varejao all hustle, big Z was well big, LeBron was deserving of DPOY consideration some years ... but none of them were doing what Evan has done in just his first 5 best my brain cells can remember.

[God Squad]

Anyone brave enough to give some hot take comps for the rookies?

A little more experience and work on his timing and my hot take for Mobley is modern day Bill Russell.

Maybe its the dearth of defensive big men in Cleveland since Nate Thurmond ... but Mobley just looks historic on the defensive end. Nance Sr and Jr were good, Ben Wallace was sweet, Tristan Thompson was useful, Andy Varejao all hustle, big Z was well big, LeBron was deserving of DPOY consideration some years ... but none of them were doing what Evan has done in just his first 5 best my brain cells can remember.

Got damn. If he's modern day Russel then he's the best big in who knows how long. That would be a spectacular outcome man. Honestly i'm happy for the Cavs. Mobley will drag Cleveland out the NBA gutters, he's soooo good already.

[DCasey91]

Russell was dumb athletic though even now but not a bad comp that one. Could only see it on film in transition but both him and Wilt were freaky athletic.

They do have similar blocking skills though. You can tell Mobley has been trained/coached early the right way.

He kinda of is Garnett/AD without the superstar look at me moves (which was actually to KG’s detriment to be honest he settled on fadeaway jumpers too much, and didn’t drive enough imo). Those are my closest comps (KG better motor, Mobley better facilitator than AD just comparing ages currently).

I mean the comps for Mobley that’s been thrown around is as high of a praise as you can get for a big.

[Chandan]

Read on Twitter

Won't shock me if he's fighting it out with Giannis to be the best defender in the league by next year since he's more mobile than Gobert and Draymond ain't getting any younger.

You could see it last year at USC, he just gets the role of center defensively and doesn't commit unnecessary fouls or let the man he's guarding get a body on him, so he's always around to help when someone drives, but he doesn't just chase blocks and give up oops or putbacks. There are other young guys with his wingspan, but they don't move as easily as he does and they're miles behind him mentally on that end.

i can't believe how disciplined mobley is not leaving his feet. Seems like he's got great defensive instinct and not get fooled by baits and fakes.

[ATLTimekeeper]

Dalano Banton just two 3s away from matching Ben Simmons' career totals. TJ McConnell couldn't get into his handle. Really interesting prospect. He's changed pretty much every game he's been in so far.