2023 Draft Prospect discussion

[Psubs]

After Scoot, I feel like the Raptors should look at George over the Thompsons.

No question.

As far as I'm concerned, the Top 4-5 is locked, barring injury or a bad combine showing.
Wemby
Scoot
Amen/Miller/Whitmore
Miller/Amen/Whitmore
Whitmore/Miller/Amen

My next tier of guys are:
George
Smith
Ausar/Black
Black/Ausar
Wallace/Walker
Walker/Wallace

Tier 1: Wembanyama and Scoot

Tier 2: Br Miller, Amen, George, Whitmore

Tier 3: Ausar, Cason, Dick, Walker, Black

Tier 4 (gambles): Nick Smith, Baba Miller, Whitehead, GG Jackson

By season's end, Baba Miller could move into tier 3. I just wanna finish bottom 6.

[God Squad]

How much stock does everyone put into OTE in regards to evaluating the Thompson twins stats? They have ridiculous STOCK rates. Ausar had 7 steals and 3 blocks last game. I mean, the level of competition here must be a pretty big factor.

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Honestly there competition is subpar. They did themselves no favours by playing there compared to the G League IMO. What's also concerning is the total lack of progression in there jumper (amen in particular). I personally I don't know how to evaluate them. Not Sharpe level, but a serious mystery box with them.

[Kevin Willis]

How much stock does everyone put into OTE in regards to evaluating the Thompson twins stats? They have ridiculous STOCK rates. Ausar had 7 steals and 3 blocks last game. I mean, the level of competition here must be a pretty big factor.

Sent from my Pixel 6 using RealGM mobile app

Not much. I can see them both falling a bit before the combines as other top players go through March Madness.

[WuTang_CMB]

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[Los_29]

No shot creation though. Miller struggles with shot creation and finishing around the basket. He's a good athlete but not a great one and I'm not liking those steal and block rates. But I think he's going to be a good player in the NBA. Just not sure I see a superstar there. Depending on where we pick, I'll be happy to draft him though.

Miller is also going to be 21 this year. Much older than I thought.



I need to watch this kid play. I haven't seen him play yet. But just going by his numbers, I am very intrigued. Great size, nearly 40% from three and blocking nearly 2 shots a game.

Brandon Miller seems like Danny Granger but if he can improve his handles, maybe Paul George.

I see a lot of Danny Granger in Miller. That's definitely worth a Top 5 pick to me.

Granger is a great comparison. If you can get that anywhere in the top 10 then you did really well. I'd be super happy with that.

[Rapsfan07]

After Scoot, I feel like the Raptors should look at George over the Thompsons.

No question.

As far as I'm concerned, the Top 4-5 is locked, barring injury or a bad combine showing.
Wemby
Scoot
Amen/Miller/Whitmore
Miller/Amen/Whitmore
Whitmore/Miller/Amen

My next tier of guys are:
George
Smith
Ausar/Black
Black/Ausar
Wallace/Walker
Walker/Wallace

Tier 1: Wembanyama and Scoot

Tier 2: Br Miller, Amen, George, Whitmore

Tier 3: Ausar, Cason, Dick, Walker, Black

Tier 4 (gambles): Nick Smith, Baba Miller, Whitehead, GG Jackson

By season's end, Baba Miller could move into tier 3. I just wanna finish bottom 6.

I'm going to go with Smith over Dick tbh. I know his college numbers look amazing but there's one of these no defense lights out shooters in every draft and they often don't become more than just specialists in the NBA. If I'm drafting in the lotto and everyone with star potential is already of the board, I'm going with a guy who can play both sides of the ball. I'd argue that Smith has more star potential than Dick.

Baba Miller doesn't impress me at all.

[PhilBlackson]

While I'm not quite in love with Keyonte George like some of you because I'd likely take majority of the bigger wing prospects over him because I just have one real fear about his game (speed/quickness) BUT of the SGs (him, Nick Smith, Wallace)...he'd be my EASY favourite pick of them.

I LOVE George's shot creation ability, I really do & that's where I think he'll need to lean into with his ballhandling if he's going to be elite as a scorer -- imo he'll need to be more like Kyrie (not that anyone can be THAT level of handler) than Beal. He clearly has a "knack" or just an instinctual ability or creativity to create a shot which is THE greatest need this team has (period). Idc about backup PGs or Cs lol to REALLY compete at the highest level, this team NEEDS another shot creator as BOBBY himself said. Sure we do actually need a rim protector & some guard depth AS WELL, of course but every legit championship needs 2 guys that can create for themselves/keep them honest where they can't just lock into/double tfo. That's what we NEED. I see KG doing this against college players & initially he wasn't shooting great percentages despite a nice LOOKING jumper, the concern I've heard is does he have enough quickness OR shiftiness to really create the separation he's going to need on his jumpers?!? I feel a player like Beal uses more speed & quickness to get to his spots, I think Keyonte is going to have to continue to add more shiftiness like Kyrie. Personally I'm not sure & if it's a MAYBE then I'd start leaning towards a larger wing that in time we could turn into a monster lol

I'm just not sure I see the same quickness & speed of Beal in Keyonte or will his handle & creativity get to an elite level BUT again if it's between him and any of those other SGs like NS Jr, Cason...I'm taking George because I'm even more skeptic of NS Jr, his potential to me is somewhere between Bones Hyland to Tyler Herro and I think either is decent but not a life changer. Cason of course would be a wonderful defender that would be an amazing add on that end but I don't think the team NEEDS to add a "Marcus Smart" to add with our "Wiggins"(OG). We need a dude who can get buckets, so yeah I'll take Keyonte over those guys.

[ATLTimekeeper]

I don't think I'd take anyone out of Baylor just on principle. Good luck to George, but if you look at the current top 30 scorers in the NBA only like 6 or 7 were this 'walking bucket' guard profile.

[Rapsfan07]

I don't think I'd take anyone out of Baylor just on principle. Good luck to George, but if you look at the current top 30 scorers in the NBA only like 6 or 7 were this 'walking bucket' guard profile.

What's wrong with Baylor?

I also don't think that the fairest way to judge the value of a player.

McCollum, Thompson, Herro, Murray and Holiday are all players (young and old) who find themselves outside of the top 30 in scoring this season. I think you'd be hard pressed to argue that this isn't good value for a Top 10 pick.

[LoveMyRaps]

After Scoot, I feel like the Raptors should look at George over the Thompsons.

No question.

As far as I'm concerned, the Top 4-5 is locked, barring injury or a bad combine showing.
Wemby
Scoot
Amen/Miller/Whitmore
Miller/Amen/Whitmore
Whitmore/Miller/Amen

My next tier of guys are:
George
Smith
Ausar/Black
Black/Ausar
Wallace/Walker
Walker/Wallace

Top 5 definitely isn't locked.
Top 2 is obviously locked. I think Brandon Miller will solidify himself as the 3rd best prospect. He legit looks better every game.
Then the door is wide open.
Plenty of prospects can leapfrog into the top 5.
SI recently had Jarace at #6.
IMO the Thompson twins won't go top 5. They're playing against bum level competition and can't even shoot. They're too great of a risk. Heck, I'd much rather roll the dice on Maxwell Lewis.
Whitmore/Jarace/George/Smith/Black are all capable of jumping into the top 5 IMO. Still plenty of basketball left to be played.
Wallace has been putting up some real stinkers as of late, I don't see him going top 10. Heck, won't even be surprised if he isn't a lottery pick.
As the season progresses, I could see the likes of Howard/Murray/Baba making a strong case to round out the top 10.

[UnbelievablyRAW]

i NEED Keyonte George on this team man.

I been watching his tape every day. He has that dog in him and already has an offensive bag that no one other than Fred can say they have on this roster.

[ATLTimekeeper]

I don't think I'd take anyone out of Baylor just on principle. Good luck to George, but if you look at the current top 30 scorers in the NBA only like 6 or 7 were this 'walking bucket' guard profile.

What's wrong with Baylor?

I also don't think that the fairest way to judge the value of a player.

McCollum, Thompson, Herro, Murray and Holiday are all players (young and old) who find themselves outside of the top 30 in scoring this season. I think you'd be hard pressed to argue that this isn't good value for a Top 10 pick.

Baylor has produced average to bad players in the NBA.

McCollum, yes. Murray, yes. Thompson was a gunner. Holiday was not that at UCLA, same with Herro at UK. My point was the highest scorers in the NBA are only profiling as NCAA 'bucket getters' like a 1/4 of the time. Maybe George ends up being one of them, but I'd pass.

[UnbelievablyRAW]

I don't think I'd take anyone out of Baylor just on principle. Good luck to George, but if you look at the current top 30 scorers in the NBA only like 6 or 7 were this 'walking bucket' guard profile.

Given our best shot creator outside of Siakam is Fred/Trent, yes we really need to get guys who profile as scorers. The great thing about Keyonte is that he isn't James Bouknight of last year who just put up points but couldn't really defend and never passed the ball. Keyonte has good passing vision, can play off the ball as a catch and shoot threat and plays defense. I love seeing all the 5+ rebound games from him

I can very easily see him being a Devin Booker clone, has damn near the same physical profile as well while having an offensive bag that looks better than Trent's while being 3 years younger

Outside of Brandon Miller, I don't feel confident about any of the other top 10 prospects (outside Scoot and Wemby obviously). The Thompsons are athletic but lack basketball skills and are playing against kids, I'm interested in Ausar only because his draft stock seems to have lowered but only if we secure another lottery pick in trade. Cam Whitmore can't really shoot well. Nick Smith is injured and wasn't that amazing before shutting it down either.

In terms of who can bring the best offensive impact outside of the top 2, I think its either George or Miller.

[ATLTimekeeper]

I don't think I'd take anyone out of Baylor just on principle. Good luck to George, but if you look at the current top 30 scorers in the NBA only like 6 or 7 were this 'walking bucket' guard profile.

Given our best shot creator outside of Siakam is Fred/Trent, yes we really need to get guys who profile as scorers. The great thing about Keyonte is that he isn't James Bouknight of last year who just put up points but couldn't really defend and never passed the ball. Keyonte has good passing vision, can play off the ball as a catch and shoot threat and plays defense. I love seeing all the 5+ rebound games from him

I can very easily see him being a Devin Booker clone, has damn near the same physical profile as well while having an offensive bag that looks better than Trent's while being 3 years younger

In terms of who can bring the best offensive impact outside of the top 2, I think its either George or Miller.

I don't think the draft should be used like that (filling a need), especially a lotto pick. I'll watch more, for sure, but I don't know about the defense comment. He has a DBPM of under 1, and that's very difficult unless you stink at defense. When I look at NBA prospects there's quite a few lotto busts (Stauskus, Nesmith, Jabari Parker), and a lot of these microwave types that bounce around. But the good news is Anthony Edwards also had a DBPM under 1, so there's hope.

[Psubs]

After Scoot, I feel like the Raptors should look at George over the Thompsons.

No question.

As far as I'm concerned, the Top 4-5 is locked, barring injury or a bad combine showing.
Wemby
Scoot
Amen/Miller/Whitmore
Miller/Amen/Whitmore
Whitmore/Miller/Amen

My next tier of guys are:
George
Smith
Ausar/Black
Black/Ausar
Wallace/Walker
Walker/Wallace

Top 5 definitely isn't locked.
Top 2 is obviously locked. I think Brandon Miller will solidify himself as the 3rd best prospect. He legit looks better every game.
Then the door is wide open.
Plenty of prospects can leapfrog into the top 5.
SI recently had Jarace at #6.
IMO the Thompson twins won't go top 5. They're playing against bum level competition and can't even shoot. They're too great of a risk. Heck, I'd much rather roll the dice on Maxwell Lewis.
Whitmore/Jarace/George/Smith/Black are all capable of jumping into the top 5 IMO. Still plenty of basketball left to be played.
Wallace has been putting up some real stinkers as of late, I don't see him going top 10. Heck, won't even be surprised if he isn't a lottery pick.
As the season progresses, I could see the likes of Howard/Murray/Baba making a strong case to round out the top 10.

I would love to have Cason Wallace suck the rest of the season and drop to the late teens early 20's so the Raptors can trade FVV or Trent and get a 1st pick to draft him.

[Rapsfan07]

No question.

As far as I'm concerned, the Top 4-5 is locked, barring injury or a bad combine showing.
Wemby
Scoot
Amen/Miller/Whitmore
Miller/Amen/Whitmore
Whitmore/Miller/Amen

My next tier of guys are:
George
Smith
Ausar/Black
Black/Ausar
Wallace/Walker
Walker/Wallace

Top 5 definitely isn't locked.
Top 2 is obviously locked. I think Brandon Miller will solidify himself as the 3rd best prospect. He legit looks better every game.
Then the door is wide open.
Plenty of prospects can leapfrog into the top 5.
SI recently had Jarace at #6.
IMO the Thompson twins won't go top 5. They're playing against bum level competition and can't even shoot. They're too great of a risk. Heck, I'd much rather roll the dice on Maxwell Lewis.
Whitmore/Jarace/George/Smith/Black are all capable of jumping into the top 5 IMO. Still plenty of basketball left to be played.
Wallace has been putting up some real stinkers as of late, I don't see him going top 10. Heck, won't even be surprised if he isn't a lottery pick.
As the season progresses, I could see the likes of Howard/Murray/Baba making a strong case to round out the top 10.

I would love to have Cason Wallace suck the rest of the season and drop to the late teens early 20's so the Raptors can trade FVV or Trent and get a 1st pick to draft him.

I'm a huge fan of Wallace. This draft is pretty stacked man. In the 15-30 range, you still have Hendricks, Whitehead, Murray, Lewis, Smith, Rupert, Jones, Sasser, Jackson, Filipowski.

[mademan]

Ya George's ability to get to the line is amazing. He's got nice creation upside while being big for a guard and a strong defender to boot. If we dont end up with a top 2 pick, he's my fav prospect.

[Rapsfan07]

After Scoot, I feel like the Raptors should look at George over the Thompsons.

No question.

As far as I'm concerned, the Top 4-5 is locked, barring injury or a bad combine showing.
Wemby
Scoot
Amen/Miller/Whitmore
Miller/Amen/Whitmore
Whitmore/Miller/Amen

My next tier of guys are:
George
Smith
Ausar/Black
Black/Ausar
Wallace/Walker
Walker/Wallace

Top 5 definitely isn't locked.
Top 2 is obviously locked. I think Brandon Miller will solidify himself as the 3rd best prospect. He legit looks better every game.
Then the door is wide open.
Plenty of prospects can leapfrog into the top 5.
SI recently had Jarace at #6.
IMO the Thompson twins won't go top 5. They're playing against bum level competition and can't even shoot. They're too great of a risk. Heck, I'd much rather roll the dice on Maxwell Lewis.
Whitmore/Jarace/George/Smith/Black are all capable of jumping into the top 5 IMO. Still plenty of basketball left to be played.
Wallace has been putting up some real stinkers as of late, I don't see him going top 10. Heck, won't even be surprised if he isn't a lottery pick.
As the season progresses, I could see the likes of Howard/Murray/Baba making a strong case to round out the top 10.

I can't see Jarace that high but I think he will be in the Top 10.

I think at least one of the Thompson twins will go in the Top 5 and that'll probably be Amen. When the combine and drills come around, that athleticism is going to be too much for someone to ignore.

Lewis is nice.. he could find his way into the late lottery...10-14 if Wallace and Smith slip. I think Whitmore will wind up in the Top 5 as well. I agree with you on Miller as well, probably going 3rd overall.

[Reeko]

This draft class looks pretty meh outside of Scoot and Wemby. A lot of the lottery guys are just ok prospects.

[TRik]

I say trade the pick to the Wizards for Taj Gibson and a 2nd round pick.