Rising Sophomores to Watch

clyde21 · Post #21 » by **clyde21** » Tue Nov 15, 2022 7:29 pm

?

don't see anyone going overboard with Taran, just nice to see that he's hitting his 3s so far, which is the biggest ? mark offensively for him.

EvanZ · Post #22 » by **EvanZ** » Tue Nov 15, 2022 7:31 pm

clyde21 wrote:?

don't see anyone going overboard with Taran, just nice to see that he's hitting his 3s so far, which is the biggest ? mark offensively for him.

Did you miss the tweet that was posted about him?

The Taran-Armstrong-Is-A-1st-Rounder hype train is in full effect.

He had a nearly perfect season opener with 19 pts, 7 reb, 4 ast, 6-11 FG, 2-2 3PT, and 5-6 FT.

Brilliant playmaker, physical defender, never kills his dribble, and the shooting/scoring improvements are exciting.

That is the definition of going overboard.

clyde21 · Post #23 » by **clyde21** » Sun Nov 20, 2022 11:32 pm

Read on Twitter

clyde21 · Post #24 » by **clyde21** » Fri Nov 25, 2022 4:25 am

Read on Twitter

EvanZ · Post #25 » by **EvanZ** » Mon Nov 28, 2022 3:07 pm

Wade Taylor breaking out. Really need to figure out if he’s too small to take seriously.

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EvanZ · Post #26 » by **EvanZ** » Sun Dec 4, 2022 11:52 pm

Nice "movement" shooting from Zach Hicks

Watch on YouTube

clyde21 · Post #27 » by **clyde21** » Mon Dec 5, 2022 12:00 am

lol..i dont think u understand the difference between a movement shot and a side step

EvanZ · Post #28 » by **EvanZ** » Mon Dec 5, 2022 3:04 am

clyde21 wrote:lol..i dont think u understand the difference between a movement shot and a side step

That was the same exact thing Hawkins did lol

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SeattleJazzFan · Post #29 » by **SeattleJazzFan** » Thu Dec 8, 2022 11:25 pm

EvanZ mentioned Maxwell Lewis in the OP - dude has been playing lights out through the first 8 games. he may be this year's Jalen Williams coming out of the WCC as a wing who takes a big leap in year 2 to get into the first round.

EvanZ · Post #30 » by **EvanZ** » Thu Dec 8, 2022 11:57 pm

SeattleJazzFan wrote:EvanZ mentioned Maxwell Lewis in the OP - dude has been playing lights out through the first 8 games. he may be this year's Jalen Williams coming out of the WCC as a wing who takes a big leap in year 2 to get into the first round.

Yeah he was my #1 returner this season.

EvanZ · Post #31 » by **EvanZ** » Mon Dec 12, 2022 11:18 pm

Keshon Gilbert is looking interesting. Mildly anyway.

The-Power · Post #32 » by **The-Power** » Tue Dec 13, 2022 2:50 am

EvanZ wrote:Keshon Gilbert is looking interesting. Mildly anyway.

Came here to write the same thing. Certainly fits under the ‘rising’ banner after a poor Freshman season. If he can shoot ~40% on 3s and ~80% on FTs for the season on his current usage, he becomes an interesting prospect out of nowhere.

The-Power · Post #33 » by **The-Power** » Tue Dec 13, 2022 5:54 am

Hunter has been very disappointing as of late. Not much hype left.

The-Power · Post #34 » by **The-Power** » Wed Dec 14, 2022 4:27 am

Is it time yet to talk about Ja'Vier Francis? He's just an athlete at this point but he's a special kind of athlete that makes him an elite shot blocker, rebounder and lob threat.

clyde21 · Post #35 » by **clyde21** » Wed Dec 14, 2022 5:04 am

The-Power wrote:Is it time yet to talk about Ja'Vier Francis? He's just an athlete at this point but he's a special kind of athlete that makes him an elite shot blocker, rebounder and lob threat.

tough to project for a guy only 6-8 that can't shoot at all and can't pass and has very limited handles, he's gotta be a defensive demon and even then tough to get that type of guy on the court consistently.

clyde21 · Post #36 » by **clyde21** » Wed Dec 14, 2022 5:50 am

who are the top5 sophs at this point?

for me a clear top 3 is

Hawkins
Lewis
Holmes

having a hard time coming up with the other two. maybe Trey Alexander and Terq Smith, Brazile was a possibility but he got hurt.

The-Power · Post #37 » by **The-Power** » Wed Dec 14, 2022 5:54 am

clyde21 wrote:
The-Power wrote:Is it time yet to talk about Ja'Vier Francis? He's just an athlete at this point but he's a special kind of athlete that makes him an elite shot blocker, rebounder and lob threat.

tough to project for a guy only 6-8 that can't shoot at all and can't pass and has very limited handles, he's gotta be a defensive demon and even then tough to get that type of guy on the court consistently.

I agree with all that. Obviously we're not talking about a high-end player here. But perhaps he could thrive in an Isaiah Jackson type of role. Francis is stronger and therefore a better finisher, but Jackson is still noticeably more skilled (and he's not particularly skilled) so we'd have to wait and see if Francis passes the skills-threshold for the NBA. But in terms of role that's what we'd be looking at I suppose – an undersized big who just makes athletic players all over the floor for some minutes each game.

clyde21 · Post #38 » by **clyde21** » Wed Dec 14, 2022 5:55 am

i do wanna give Bryce Hopkins a shoutout in this thread, turning it around after a terrible FS at Kentucky (where wings go to die).

clyde21 · Post #39 » by **clyde21** » Wed Dec 14, 2022 6:01 am

The-Power wrote:
clyde21 wrote:
The-Power wrote:Is it time yet to talk about Ja'Vier Francis? He's just an athlete at this point but he's a special kind of athlete that makes him an elite shot blocker, rebounder and lob threat.

tough to project for a guy only 6-8 that can't shoot at all and can't pass and has very limited handles, he's gotta be a defensive demon and even then tough to get that type of guy on the court consistently.

I agree with all that. Obviously we're not talking about a high-end player here. But perhaps he could thrive in an Isaiah Jackson type of role. Francis is stronger and therefore a better finisher, but Jackson is still noticeably more skilled (and he's not particularly skilled) so we'd have to wait and see if Francis passes the skills-threshold for the NBA. But in terms of role that's what we'd be looking at I suppose – an undersized big who just makes athletic players all over the floor for some minutes each game.

i was a big Isaiah Jackson guy but i can't get behind that comp at this point

The-Power · Post #40 » by **The-Power** » Wed Dec 14, 2022 6:09 am

clyde21 wrote:
The-Power wrote:
clyde21 wrote:
tough to project for a guy only 6-8 that can't shoot at all and can't pass and has very limited handles, he's gotta be a defensive demon and even then tough to get that type of guy on the court consistently.

I agree with all that. Obviously we're not talking about a high-end player here. But perhaps he could thrive in an Isaiah Jackson type of role. Francis is stronger and therefore a better finisher, but Jackson is still noticeably more skilled (and he's not particularly skilled) so we'd have to wait and see if Francis passes the skills-threshold for the NBA. But in terms of role that's what we'd be looking at I suppose – an undersized big who just makes athletic players all over the floor for some minutes each game.

i was a big Isaiah Jackson guy but i can't get behind that comp at this point

It's early for sure and I also don't mean it as a direct comparison. But it's a similar role that he has to hope to carve out if he wants to make it in the NBA and I do believe there's at least a chance.