2024 NBA DRAFT THREAD 3

[RoteSchroder]

Just to chime in on Chomche & just my 2c on how I'd approach the draft..

Firstly, I don't really fully buy the Bruno comparison although I understand the parallel that's being attempted by maybe how they compare offensively. Offensively, yes Chomche would be very raw like Bruno was BUT that's not UC's ROLE anyways and that's a HUGE separator in how they project and what potential IMPACT they can have on the team. Bruno was brought in with the hopes to be a serious OFFENSIVE player either like Giannis (who he wasn't nearly athletic enough to be) or KD (which he lacked the shot creation ability AND shooting touch lol)...that's not what UC would be brought in to do.

Chomche's strength is his DEFENCE.

While of course there is such thing as having bball IQ defensively and a ton to learn, what stands out about Chomche is how he's instinctually a good rim protector & rebounder. Both are facets of the game that many say is more so a matter of effort & instincts. It looks like UC has some and that's why he's so intriguing because he could end up being a great rim protector if he continues to learn the game more and at least there's a semblance of a jumper there. If we were able to get that out of OG, Norm etc....if they can just get him to hit perimeter shots, you essentially have a Turner or Lopez type of C but he also looks athletic enough to be a threat to roll to the rim for alleyoops which is all but an ideal fit with Scottie.

BUT for me, he's a BACK UP PLAN at 31st pick - HANSEN YANG is the player I would actually take. While every SRP is most likely to bust, Yang's boom potential is unmatched in the 2nd rd (IF he falls there, I'm just putting him there because I don't ever seem him on draft boards and haven't heard of him staying in China but who knows).


My play would be...

TOR - one of Risacher, Buzelis, Holland or at worst Williams
IND - if we kept our pick* one of Collier, McCain or Carter to have a solid backup PG, if we lost it one of Ware or Saluan (if neither then Bub Carrington) but I'd like a player with length to defend & some upside
DET - I stand on Hansen Yang lol, if not Chomche or AJ Storr

Not sure if Hansen is declaring in this draft. YouTube comments section makes it seem like he’s not declaring and I saw him mocked in the 20’s in a 2025 mock draft.

If his mobility or ability to play against higher level competition checked out, he’d probably be a lotto pick in this draft. The U19 World Cup was basically college level play, maybe even tougher considering Sarr, Cody and Risacher had their struggles. Izan Almansa did really good there though, so maybe it’s just a different game

[CazOnReal]

One other thing on Salaun/Chomche re: as a prospect who'd be an explicit project.

Fit aside (since I think both would have a role in the current roster), I am very curious about if this current FO would take a swing on a low floor/high ceiling player after what happened with Bruno because, while you can certainly talk about Masai wanting to draft Giannis or SGA, there were several reasons why the FO never did pull the trigger on a trade on either despite them being optimistic about both players, and the failure of them developing Bruno Caboclo is an underrated factor in them ultimately passing on a future MVP/DPoY and current MVP candidate. Developing a generational player is hard, especially when you were trying to contend like the "We the North" Raptors were slowly building towards. It's especially difficult when the player you're drafting at the fringe of or just outside of the lottery is, well...they're going 12-20 for a reason instead of 1st overall. The Raptors have had a a slew of developmental success stories from the 2010s onward and Bruno was not one of them. To date, he's the only Masai draft pick that has been a bonafide bust that had any notable expectations i.e. no one was expecting Malachi Flynn to become an All-Star even if the pick that came after was unfortunately a dinosaur-shaped borderline All-Star who'd be perfect next to Scottie (and Desmond Bane wasn't a standout rookie so I doubt he'd somehow be good enough to derail the Tampa tank in this hypothetical timeline).

If you look at the Raptors draft picks since Masai took over i.e. post-Bruno, most of them were pretty safe or had circumstantial factors that mitigated any risk involved such as the Raptors taking Siakam in 2016 when they had a relatively safe prospect in Jakob Poeltl. In that regard, the drafting of Scottie Barnes - which was considered a stretch at the time (albeit not to an absurd extent as most mock drafts had him in that 5-8 range) - could be seen as a pick more aligned with the thought process of the risky, high upside pick of Mr. Two Years Away only this time, it paid off with a player who was an All-Star in their 3rd year despite less than ideal circumstances.

Or perhaps Barnes is the exception. Both Dick and Koloko, the two main draft picks since Scottie, were relatively safe picks as both were arguably the best player available on the board for their respective drafts. I don't know if i'd describe the FO as afraid of making a massive swing on someone like Chomche or Salaun because this team only chose a direction in the middle of this season by officially retooling into the Scottie era but when you have a proven talent like Scottie - irrespective of whether one thinks he's a 1st option or not - I can see why one would want to prioritize Scottie's development in order to return to the playoffs/the path to contention rather than take player who could derail that if they become a bust. You already have a player with All-NBA upside and his rookie extension is fast approaching; all too often, teams make the mistake of rebuilding for too long and end up in a perpetual cycle of mediocrity and the O.G./Siakam trades were indicative of that; those picks are conveying soon and RJ/IQ are ready to contribute now while developing alongside Scottie. We can debate what the ceiling of BBQ is as far as young cores in the NBA go but ultimately, it's far less extensive than the rebuild some might have expected because players like Quickley, RJ and yes, even Ochai are known talents (albeit Ochai is starting to lean more towards "potentially good bench player" than "potential good starter for a team" due to his oft-discussed shooting woes).

All of this is to say, I have no goddamn clue what their own boards look like, let alone what their plan is if they do keep their pick. For all I know, they're harassing Cleveland with promises to trade their own trio of 2024 picks and Brown + Boucher for Mitchell just so they can say they traded out of this draft for a third time.

[RoteSchroder]

One other thing on Salaun/Chomche re: as a prospect who'd be an explicit project.

Fit aside (since I think both would have a role in the current roster), I am very curious about if this current FO would take a swing on a low floor/high ceiling player after what happened with Bruno because, while you can certainly talk about Masai wanting to draft Giannis or SGA, there were several reasons why the FO never did pull the trigger on a trade on either despite them being optimistic about both players, and the failure of them developing Bruno Caboclo is an underrated factor in them ultimately passing on a future MVP/DPoY and current MVP candidate. Developing a generational player is hard, especially when you were trying to contend like the "We the North" Raptors were slowly building towards. It's especially difficult when the player you're drafting at the fringe of or just outside of the lottery is, well...they're going 12-20 for a reason instead of 1st overall. The Raptors have had a a slew of developmental success stories from the 2010s onward and Bruno was not one of them. To date, he's the only Masai draft pick that has been a bonafide bust that had any notable expectations i.e. no one was expecting Malachi Flynn to become an All-Star even if the pick that came after was unfortunately a dinosaur-shaped borderline All-Star who'd be perfect next to Scottie (and Desmond Bane wasn't a standout rookie so I doubt he'd somehow be good enough to derail the Tampa tank in this hypothetical timeline).

If you look at the Raptors draft picks since Masai took over i.e. post-Bruno, most of them were pretty safe or had circumstantial factors that mitigated any risk involved such as the Raptors taking Siakam in 2016 when they had a relatively safe prospect in Jakob Poeltl. In that regard, the drafting of Scottie Barnes - which was considered a stretch at the time (albeit not to an absurd extent as most mock drafts had him in that 5-8 range) - could be seen as a pick more aligned with the thought process of the risky, high upside pick of Mr. Two Years Away only this time, it paid off with a player who was an All-Star in their 3rd year despite less than ideal circumstances.

Or perhaps Barnes is the exception. Both Dick and Koloko, the two main draft picks since Scottie, were relatively safe picks as both were arguably the best player available on the board for their respective drafts. I don't know if i'd describe the FO as afraid of making a massive swing on someone like Chomche or Salaun because this team only chose a direction in the middle of this season by officially retooling into the Scottie era but when you have a proven talent like Scottie - irrespective of whether one thinks he's a 1st option or not - I can see why one would want to prioritize Scottie's development in order to return to the playoffs/the path to contention rather than take player who could derail that if they become a bust. You already have a player with All-NBA upside and his rookie extension is fast approaching; all too often, teams make the mistake of rebuilding for too long and end up in a perpetual cycle of mediocrity and the O.G./Siakam trades were indicative of that; those picks are conveying soon and RJ/IQ are ready to contribute now while developing alongside Scottie. We can debate what the ceiling of BBQ is as far as young cores in the NBA go but ultimately, it's far less extensive than the rebuild some might have expected because players like Quickley, RJ and yes, even Ochai are known talents (albeit Ochai is starting to lean more towards "potentially good bench player" than "potential good starter for a team" due to his oft-discussed shooting woes).

All of this is to say, I have no goddamn clue what their own boards look like, let alone what their plan is if they do keep their pick. For all I know, they're harassing Cleveland with promises to trade their own trio of 2024 picks and Brown + Boucher for Mitchell just so they can say they traded out of this draft for a third time.

In terms of comparisons to raw players like Giannis, we gotta go back and look at his pre-NBA scouting reports.

https://www.nbadraft.net/players/giannis-adetokoubo/

https://walterfootball.com/nbascoutingreport2013gantetokoumpo.php

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1627273-giannis-adetokunbo-breaking-down-greek-phenoms-2013-nba-draft-stock

Giannis now is basically a very polished version of what he was pre-draft. I mean..two of his major weaknesses, shooting and strength, are probably the easiest things to improve on and his shooting is still weak. But Giannis had a lot of substance in his game that could build upon.

I don’t know much about Shai’s college career, but 9 BPM as a freshman is really good.

Whereas with Salaun I can’t name a particular strength of his at the moment, aside from being a great athlete. And I don’t know much about Chomche, but at least it seems like he’s a good shot blocker.

[HadAnEffectHere]

The issue with SGA out of college was that his jumpshot was completely broken off in that... he didn't jump and his release was extremely slow.

Like, he would be dribbling and then just stop completely and release his shot flat footed.

It looked horrible and would have ruined any driving potential in the NBA.

https://youtu.be/OUCQ398C7nc?si=G9HkFZ6keIvst-cq&t=286

SGA was also badly underweight but that was not as serious as a concern (Lowest body fat percentage in NBA history and only 180 pounds despite being 6'4.5" with a 6'10" wingspan). His jumpshot form in college was just legendarily bad and would have stopped any potential of stardom if he hadn't fixed it.

[grant101]

The issue with SGA out of college was that his jumpshot was completely broken off in that... he didn't jump and his release was extremely slow.

Like, he would be dribbling and then just stop completely and release his shot flat footed.

It looked horrible and would have ruined any driving potential in the NBA.

https://youtu.be/OUCQ398C7nc?si=G9HkFZ6keIvst-cq&t=286

SGA was also badly underweight but that was not as serious as a concern (Lowest body fat percentage in NBA history and only 180 pounds despite being 6'4.5" with a 6'10" wingspan). His jumpshot form in college was just legendarily bad and would have stopped any potential of stardom if he hadn't fixed it.

This is true, but the difference is that unlike salaun and chomche, SGA always had incredible touch around the basket and on push-shots/floaters (he also had a massive advantage in had shiftiness, awareness and ballhandling, but that's a different subject). It's actually what gives me confidence that Castle and Collier’s shooting comes around.

[OakleyDokely]

Aiming to hit singles and doubles sometimes isn't a bad way to approach the draft. A guy like Jaime Jaquez likely isn't ever going to become a star, but he's a useful player who will be a valuable piece in a trade later. If you can accumulate a few of these type of guys, you can package some of them for an upgrade at a certain position when the opportunity arises.

That's why I like guys like Sears, Carter, da Silva, Kolek, Edey, Knecht etc. They aren't high upside guys, but all of them likely have a place in NBA rotations.

[Smalltown]

Aiming to hit singles and doubles sometimes isn't a bad way to approach the draft. A guy like Jaime Jaquez likely isn't ever going to become a star, but he's a useful player who will be a valuable piece in a trade later. If you can accumulate a few of these type of guys, you can package some of them for an upgrade at a certain position when the opportunity arises.

I agree with this. If we keep all 3 picks (if) i'd expect 2 of the picks to be relatively safe, higher floor, guys. The other would be a swing for the fences player.

[WuTang_OG]

Read on Twitter

[Psubs]

Pretty much Salaun is somewhere between a Coulibaly and Bruno prospect.

I feel like Chomche is the Giannis type prospect that Masai let get away. Milwaukee took a risk by reaching at 15, so I think reaching for Chomche at #17 is what should be done. Could see the Knicks nabbing him with 1 of their 2 picks in the 20's.

18. NO
19. Philly
21. NO
23. Pho
24. NY
25. NY
26. Was

These teams could all use Chomche, so shouldn't wait until #31.

Then at #31 take the safer player or someone like Carlton Carrington if he somehow doesn't get picked up in the 1st.

I have Hunter Sallis slightly ahead of Jaylon Tyson, based on 3pt shooting. Sallis had 1 bad game in the middle of the season and Tyson had 2 at the end of the season. Not a big deal. Also, Sallis had a slightly better A/T and BPM. Similar amount of steals but less fouls for Sallis. If the plan is to let Trent and Bruce Brown walk, I guess Sallis would be a good replacement. I think either would be like a Christian Braun level prospect.

[PhilBlackson]

Pretty much Salaun is somewhere between a Coulibaly and Bruno prospect.

I feel like Chomche is the Giannis type prospect that Masai let get away. Milwaukee took a risk by reaching at 15, so I think reaching for Chomche at #17 is what should be done. Could see the Knicks nabbing him with 1 of their 2 picks in the 20's.

18. NO
19. Philly
21. NO
23. Pho
24. NY
25. NY
26. Was

These teams could all use Chomche, so shouldn't wait until #31.

Then at #31 take the safer player or someone like Carlton Carrington if he somehow doesn't get picked up in the 1st.

While I'm with you on being ok with taking Chomche with the IND (which I'm guessing a lot of ppl won't be)...and if Yang isn't declaring then UC is my landslide favorite to get with the DET pick....

I just can't with these comparisons that you've made for Chomche, first Hakeem & now Giannis my boy I really like Chomche but idk what the heck you're watching that makes you think he's that LEVEL of prospect!


You're talking about MVP, HOF, Top 15ish all time players.....that's what you think Ulrich might be?! I can see him developing into one of the best rim protectors in the league, sure BUT one of the best players of all time, come on my guy lol we might have to simmah down a little bit on that. I think more realistically we'd just hope for him to develop into a "Turner", "Lopez" or "Prime Ibaka" type of rim protector that can stretch the floor.

But I don't see the makings of the elite footwork Hakeem had or the crazy downhill speed/overall quickness & ballhandling (not that he has a crazy bag) Giannis possess at his size.

[ItsDanger]

The issue with SGA out of college was that his jumpshot was completely broken off in that... he didn't jump and his release was extremely slow.

Like, he would be dribbling and then just stop completely and release his shot flat footed.

It looked horrible and would have ruined any driving potential in the NBA.

https://youtu.be/OUCQ398C7nc?si=G9HkFZ6keIvst-cq&t=286

SGA was also badly underweight but that was not as serious as a concern (Lowest body fat percentage in NBA history and only 180 pounds despite being 6'4.5" with a 6'10" wingspan). His jumpshot form in college was just legendarily bad and would have stopped any potential of stardom if he hadn't fixed it.

You mean bad form like Haliburton? These "concerns" were clearly a case of overanalyzing. SGA shot 40% from 3, 80% FT at Kentucky. The criticisms of SGA were more about not being athletic enough, questions whether his style would translate being that skinny while creating contact in the paint.

[HadAnEffectHere]

The issue with SGA out of college was that his jumpshot was completely broken off in that... he didn't jump and his release was extremely slow.

Like, he would be dribbling and then just stop completely and release his shot flat footed.

It looked horrible and would have ruined any driving potential in the NBA.

https://youtu.be/OUCQ398C7nc?si=G9HkFZ6keIvst-cq&t=286

SGA was also badly underweight but that was not as serious as a concern (Lowest body fat percentage in NBA history and only 180 pounds despite being 6'4.5" with a 6'10" wingspan). His jumpshot form in college was just legendarily bad and would have stopped any potential of stardom if he hadn't fixed it.

You mean bad form like Haliburton? These "concerns" were clearly a case of overanalyzing. SGA shot 40% from 3, 80% FT at Kentucky. The criticisms of SGA were more about not being athletic enough, questions whether his style would translate being that skinny while creating contact in the paint.

This is the worst form imaginable, did you watch the video, lol.

He couldn't realistically shoot off the dribble at all.

[dohboy_24]

What are the thoughts and opinions of Kwane Evans Jr as a prospect?

19 years old, 6'10" and 220 lbs with a 7+ foot wingspan who is a lefty in the mold of Charlie V, Chris Bosh, and Lamar Odom albeit without much 3 point range at the moment.

https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/kwame-evans-jr-potential-is-a-scary
https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/the-false-complexity-of-kwame-evans

5-star recruit from Montverde Academy who played 22 minutes per game and had 7 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, and 1 steal as a freshman.

[Yallbecrazy]

What are the thoughts and opinions of Kwane Evans Jr as a prospect?

19 years old, 6'10" and 220 lbs with a 7+ foot wingspan who is a lefty in the mold of Charlie V, Chris Bosh, and Lamar Odom albeit without much 3 point range at the moment.

https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/kwame-evans-jr-potential-is-a-scary
https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/the-false-complexity-of-kwame-evans

5-star recruit from Montverde Academy who played 22 minutes per game and had 7 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, and 1 steal as a freshman.

A little old for a freshman, turning 20 just after the draft. Does a lot of things well, decent stocks, good free throw rate and percentage and good assist to turnover ratio. Okayish rebounder and no real stand out skills. Wouldn't hate him @#31, but wouldn't be excited either.

[ArthurVandelay]

What are the thoughts and opinions of Kwane Evans Jr as a prospect?

19 years old, 6'10" and 220 lbs with a 7+ foot wingspan who is a lefty in the mold of Charlie V, Chris Bosh, and Lamar Odom albeit without much 3 point range at the moment.

https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/kwame-evans-jr-potential-is-a-scary
https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/the-false-complexity-of-kwame-evans

5-star recruit from Montverde Academy who played 22 minutes per game and had 7 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, and 1 steal as a freshman.

He should go back to school

[God Squad]

So I'm fairly late to this process due to the lottery results pending. But I don't love a lot of the freshmen in this class. I'm a big fan of looking at advanced stats and learned that BPM is a pretty good stat to project the impact a player might have in their minutes. Reed looks good in this regard, but I have questions about his measurements and position.

Has anyone watched this Collin Murray-Boyles kid? Has a whopping 10.3 BPM and the boxscores say he's a hell of a scorer. The stats are telling me he should be one of the top freshmen in this class, but I don't see him discussed.

Seems like a diamond waiting to be found.

[Mark_83]

Read on Twitter

I've been skeptical of Dunn as a high pick, but in the late teens to 20s he's a potential steal. I don't see star level upside unless he has another two gears of skill development like Pascal, but his floor is already high as a defensive stopper and all he has to do is develop a catch and shoot three and you have an elite 3 + D player to replace OG. Forget about adding anything else to his game. You lock him in the gym and make him shoot till he can consistently shoot 37% or better from three. Any other skills he adds are just a bonus.

[WuTang_OG]

We are only getting a top 4 pick or giving it up completely. Very low odds it stays at 6

I would say this year's draft specifically the top 10 isn't all that strong compared to last year for example. Quality is much less

Don't mind giving it to SAS cuz I dont think we will get that much of impact other than Sarr but we'd probably have to win # 1 to draft him .. otherwise we give it up and have a clean slate for 2025 onward for this rebuild

It is what it is at this point.

[grant101]

We are only getting a top 4 pick or giving it up completely. Very low odds it stays at 6

I would say this year's draft specifically the top 10 isn't all that strong compared to last year for example. Quality is much less

Don't mind giving it to SAS cuz I dont think we will get that much of impact other than Sarr but we'd probably have to win # 1 to draft him

It is what it is at this point

Agreed. It's a sunk cost, made a little more palatable because of how stacked next year's draft is. IMO, worst case is we stay at #6. By that point in the draft, there's a very high likelihood that whoever our front office covets has already been taken, and there are very few top picks with a decent combination of certainty of outcome, and all-star potential.

[DG88]

So I'm fairly late to this process due to the lottery results pending. But I don't love a lot of the freshmen in this class. I'm a big fan of looking at advanced stats and learned that BPM is a pretty good stat to project the impact a player might have in their minutes. Reed looks good in this regard, but I have questions about his measurements and position.

Has anyone watched this Collin Murray-Boyles kid? Has a whopping 10.3 BPM and the boxscores say he's a hell of a scorer. The stats are telling me he should be one of the top freshmen in this class, but I don't see him discussed.

Seems like a diamond waiting to be found.

He has been but I read somewhere that he's going back to school.