The (way too early) 2024 Draft thread. Woo! Tanking!

[jangles86]

Will Topic or Rissacher be playing in the Serbian or French Olympic team?

[doclinkin]

As for Shooting guard. One angle here would be that adding an enticing shooting guard in the draft would give cover to any Coach to play the lotto pick instead of the over-priced problem we currently deal with. In that respect the players at the offguard spot are worth a longer look.

Here are a handful of my favorites in the draft:
https://tankathon.com/players/compare?players=trey-alexander--kevin-mccullar--ajay-mitchell--zaccharie-risacher--jaylon-tyson

"Zaccy Riccochet". He's listed as a SF but plays as a super-sized face-up guard. I think he has crept up to my #1 overall option in the draft. Efficient, playing in a tough league carrying a heavy load as a young player. He slipped early but has come on stronger as the season went on. Plays defense, rebounds, blocks shots. Envision this team going from undersized 2-guard with halfass effort, to a 6'9" player who is battling grown professionals in a defensively tough league. Both are gunners who don't pass much, but Risacher is shooting 46% from 3 against defenses that are keyed against him. 51% overall. Floor stretcher. Recall the gravity that players like Davis Bertans had when he was hitting from outside as a giant 2-guard. Now imagine if Bertans had a handle and could finish at the rim. Positional length, IQ, work ethic. Positional flexibility to play 1-4 depending on the personnel. All meets the profile of what this front office likes. Add to it productive stats, and the bonus of the French connection with Bilal to help them both grow and adjust to the league. At this point I think I take him over Sarr. He has unmatched positional length PLUS he is putting up the stats you want to see, not merely hoping to grow into his potential.

Watch on YouTube

Kevin McCullar. My guy. If he is available at 26 I want him. Tough as a mug. Plays better against his hardest competition. Fills every stat category. Gamer and competitor. I think his stock climbs during the NCAAs as he is a tourney type player. Blazes bright under pressure.

Jaylon Tyson. Smooth. A natural. Another overlooked guy. Solid in every stat category. Currently ranked late, he will shine in the combine play and in workouts so will probably climb the charts. I'd trade up in the 2nd half if I thought I had a chance to pull him.

[NatP4]

Podziemski put up better numbers against significantly better competition while being 2 years younger.

Mitchell is a fringe 2nd round guy that will be 22 years old on draft night.

[doclinkin]

I don't know about the comparison, given that Podziemski went at 19 & Jalen Williams was a lottery pick, but he does look like a prospect to be sure.

True. But at this point in the season both were mocked in the 2nd round. Climbed after workouts etc. So okay , I guess I mean under the radar stealth prospect.

[Hibachi_0]

Will Topic or Rissacher be playing in the Serbian or French Olympic team?

Risacher is in the team for the Euro qualifiers that will be held in a week or so, no NBA players for this but is a good chance to see where he stands. Topic is injured and Nuñez won't play either as he just recovered from an injury.

[doclinkin]

Podziemski put up better numbers against significantly better competition while being 2 years younger.

Mitchell is a fringe 2nd round guy that will be 22 years old on draft night.

https://tankathon.com/players/compare?players=ajay-mitchell--jalen-williams--brandin-podziemski

Make your case. All were highly efficient small school West Coast scorers that carried a usage rate over 25%. I'll give you the strength of schedule, but the three are close in numbers, better in many cases for Ajay, though sure he has had an extra year to develop. If you can get close to the production of either Jalen Williams or B Podz with a 2nd round pick, then you are using your draft assets wisely.

[NatP4]

Podziemski put up better numbers against significantly better competition while being 2 years younger.

Mitchell is a fringe 2nd round guy that will be 22 years old on draft night.

https://tankathon.com/players/compare?players=ajay-mitchell--jalen-williams--brandin-podziemski

Make your case. All were highly efficient small school West Coast scorers that carried a usage rate over 25%. I'll give you the strength of schedule, but the three are close in numbers, better in many cases for Ajay, though sure he has had an extra year to develop. If you can get close to the production of either Jalen Williams or B Podz with a 2nd round pick, then you are using your draft assets wisely.

And as I said, Podziemski was almost a full 2 years younger than Mitchell.

Williams might be a slightly better comparison, still a year younger, and just no comparison in competition. The toughest team Santa Barbara faces is UC Irvine. Santa Clara has Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s, San Fransisco multiple times a year, scheduled Ohio State and Oregon non conference.

[NatP4]

Kolek, Devin Carter, KJ Simpson, Tamin Lipsey, Juan Nunez, Caleb Love, Reece Beekman are all above Mitchell IMO. Lipsey and Simpson are 1st round talents IMO.

Draft is LOADED at PG.

[doclinkin]

Risacher last week. He looks thicker than the start of the season. Legs sturdier, balance better, handle tighter. More confident out there. Coming on strong. Still a teenager but able to dominate.

Watch on YouTube

[nate33]

As for Shooting guard. One angle here would be that adding an enticing shooting guard in the draft would give cover to any Coach to play the lotto pick instead of the over-priced problem we currently deal with. In that respect the players at the offguard spot are worth a longer look.

Here are a handful of my favorites in the draft:
https://tankathon.com/players/compare?players=trey-alexander--kevin-mccullar--ajay-mitchell--zaccharie-risacher--jaylon-tyson

"Zaccy Riccochet". He's listed as a SF but plays as a super-sized face-up guard. I think he has crept up to my #1 overall option in the draft. Efficient, playing in a tough league carrying a heavy load as a young player. He slipped early but has come on stronger as the season went on. Plays defense, rebounds, blocks shots. Envision this team going from undersized 2-guard with halfass effort, to a 6'9" player who is battling grown professionals in a defensively tough league. Both are gunners who don't pass much, but Risacher is shooting 46% from 3 against defenses that are keyed against him. 51% overall. Floor stretcher. Recall the gravity that players like Davis Bertans had when he was hitting from outside as a giant 2-guard. Now imagine if Bertans had a handle and could finish at the rim. Positional length, IQ, work ethic. Positional flexibility to play 1-4 depending on the personnel. All meets the profile of what this front office likes. Add to it productive stats, and the bonus of the French connection with Bilal to help them both grow and adjust to the league. At this point I think I take him over Sarr. He has unmatched positional length PLUS he is putting up the stats you want to see, not merely hoping to grow into his potential.

If I were to guess right now, I'd think he's probably at the top of our board - unless they have intel on Sarr that reassures them that he will reach his upside potential.

I'm totally okay with drafting another forward like Riccochet. Our team will have the potential to be extremely versatile. Coulibaly is getting bigger and stronger and should pan out to have the rebounding and rim protection ability of a center in a forward's body - a taller OG Anunoby. Avdija is getting better and better with his shooting and playmaking and may pan to be a point guard in a forward's body. Riccochet is a shooting guard in a forward's body. Those guys could play alongside literally anyone and form a workable 5-man unit. Imagine those 3 and Cooper Flagg, who is another versatile freak. Just add one more defensive minded big guard and that's really interesting.

[doclinkin]

Here showing his defensive effort. He will still get blown by, or muscled, but stays active and long with busy feet. He's still a teenager so he will sometimes make the wrong choice, but his reaction speed and heads-up recognition is high-level. Many of his quick-twitch passes would be assists if his teammates were paying attention or similarly quick thinking.

Watch on YouTube

[NatP4]

https://www.tankathon.com/players/compare?players=kj-simpson--jalen-brunson

[tontoz]

Reed Sheppard had 5 steals last night.

[nate33]

Reed Sheppard had 5 steals last night.

At some point you just have to throw out the tape measure and recognize that this kid is just knows how to play. He is 2 steps ahead of everybody on the floor, anticipating everything.

It's also funny how Sheppard consistently leads the team in minutes despite coming off the bench.

[tontoz]

Reed Sheppard had 5 steals last night.

At some point you just have to throw out the tape measure and recognize that this kid is just knows how to play. He is 2 steps ahead of everybody on the floor, anticipating everything.

It's also funny how Sheppard consistently leads the team in minutes despite coming off the bench.

I can't disregard the tape because i dont know what it says lol. I am curious to see how he measures/tests at the combine. Apparently his father had some hops.

I like his pullup J off the dribble. That was my favorite shot back in the day. Very tough to defend but not everyone is comfortable going straight up off the dribble. KD is a master at it.

He is an option but i can't say for sure if he is a better option than Castle or Topic.

[NatP4]

15.8 points 5.5 rebounds 5.3 assists 1.1 blocks 3.2 steals 2.3 turnovers 69.1% TS in 680 minutes.

Is it even possible for Sheppard to have played any better than he has this year?

[nate33]

Reed Sheppard had 5 steals last night.

At some point you just have to throw out the tape measure and recognize that this kid is just knows how to play. He is 2 steps ahead of everybody on the floor, anticipating everything.

It's also funny how Sheppard consistently leads the team in minutes despite coming off the bench.

I can't disregard the tape because i dont know what it says lol. I am curious to see how he measures/tests at the combine. Apparently his father had some hops.

I like his pullup J off the dribble. That was my favorite shot back in the day. Very tough to defend but not everyone is comfortable going straight up off the dribble. KD is a master at it.

He is an option but i can't say for sure if he is a better option than Castle or Topic.

Yeah, I think he is going to surprise at the combine with his hops and lateral quickness. Dude is really fast. If there's a knock, it'll be that he's not very tall or long.

[Rafael122]

Sheppard screams hustle guy, like a Grayson Allen type. I'm not taking him top 5.

[tontoz]

Sheppard screams hustle guy, like a Grayson Allen type. I'm not taking him top 5.

Grayson Allen? Really?

[nate33]

Sheppard screams hustle guy, like a Grayson Allen type. I'm not taking him top 5.

He is way more skilled than Grayson Allen. Whenever he is given the chance, he runs PG for that squad and does a good job. Two games ago, they took away his 3-point ball so he roasted them by penetrating to the rim, scoring 14 points in the second half, all at the rim, off of a bunch of nice hesitation dribbles in isolation coverage.

It may well be that he is too small to be a highly successful pro, but it's not because he isn't skilled. He is a very good playmaker and one of the best shooters in college basketball history. He is way more than a "hustle player". He isn't Steve Wojciechowski