Preferred APPROACH to the draft

[Snakebites]

Just curious- which of these GENERAL approaches fits the closest to how you'd wish to approach the draft? I feel like there's a lot of unpredictability and a lot of different directions we can take here- there's no obvious choice.

I realize these options may not EXACTLY match with what you want to do. Pick the one that is closest to the approach you think has the highest chance of helping the team going forward.

Assume no crazy or unexpected drops in the draft.

[Cowology]

Just curious- which of these GENERAL approaches fits the closest to how you'd wish to approach the draft? I feel like there's a lot of unpredictability and a lot of different directions we can take here- there's no obvious choice.

I realize these options may not EXACTLY match with what you want to do. Pick the one that is closest to the approach you think has the highest chance of helping the team going forward.

Assume no crazy or unexpected drops in the draft.

At this point I am drafting based on need/fit. I'm exploring all those other options though and if there is something sexy I'm not opposed to changing direction. But by default I think we go in looking to draft somebody who can **** shoot.

[Invictus88]

Just curious- which of these GENERAL approaches fits the closest to how you'd wish to approach the draft? I feel like there's a lot of unpredictability and a lot of different directions we can take here- there's no obvious choice.

I realize these options may not EXACTLY match with what you want to do. Pick the one that is closest to the approach you think has the highest chance of helping the team going forward.

Assume no crazy or unexpected drops in the draft.

At this point I am drafting based on need/fit. I'm exploring all those other options though and if there is something sexy I'm not opposed to changing direction. But by default I think we go in looking to draft somebody who can **** shoot.

Or someone who can actually protect the rim... Ideally both...

[7r5ur]

1st option is draft the best upside player. I don't really think there are bad fits at the top because we need almost everything and no one on the roster should be guaranteed to be here going forward, but of course if you have 2-3 prospects that you value very similarly, take the one that fits the best.

2nd option is to move down closer to the late lotto range and try to pick up an extra '25 1st rounder.

I'd be happy with either of those. Worst option by far would be trading the pick for some bloated contract veteran that doesn't move the needle much.

[crashnburn26]

I would dodge all the high upside guys in this draft - it usually means that its someone who's swing skill is shooting (Salaun, Buzelis, Cody Williams, etc.), which don't bode well with our teams needs as of today. We need more of a high floor guy in this draft, and that comes with someone who can shoot. I'd love if Risacher fell to us, but I'm doubtful of that happening. Reed/Knecht/Clingan are my guys in this draft, and I usually am against the super senior prospects but I wouldn't mind it this time. I'm aware we hired Vinson, but his hands should already be full with Ausar/Ivey/Cade assuming we keep the youth.

[A_dub06]

Free agency is for addressing team needs and fit, the draft is where you shoot your shot for a star/high end player

[zeebneeb]

I voted keep pick, draft based on fit, as I didn't see one based soley on fit with Cade. I am very fluid on how it happens, but all incoming pieces need to be brought in, soley based around Cade.

[dVs33]

I voted keep the pick and go for upside.
Use the cap space on guys that fit and work it out as best you can.
If Monty is here next season he needs to focus on developing the young guys and seeing what they've got.
This past season he didnt and that why I think everyone is down on our young guys.

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[A_dub06]

I voted keep pick, draft based on fit, as I didn't see one based soley on fit with Cade. I am very fluid on how it happens, but all incoming pieces need to be brought in, soley based around Cade.

If you draft for “fit”, this implies you think that the other players on the team are either going to be or are that good that you wouldn’t want to replace them. The only player we have like that is Cade, there’s literally no other position that we have anything at all close to that level, and even then, if the Mav’s can’t win with Luka who is an exponentially better player than Cade will ever be and Kyrie who whilst a nut job is a great player, what are we building here? Mavs version .50 destined to be a play-in knocked out team?

Use cap space to get your support cast and draft for upside

[SuperBad]

I’m drafting shooting, when u can get it cheap for a minute. I don’t want to waste a draft pick on a center, there always some available these days, Duran and Stew is fine. I’d be just fine with drafting Reed or Knecht, and also signing Monk, same at the 3/4 spots. But if we keep Ausar, and Duran, really everyone else needs to be an average or better 3pt shooter. Draft the best available shooter.

[LaSheed]

Man Snakebites I feel like I've never been so back and forth on what to do in a offseason that I can remember.

I've been pounding the table of trade the pick since the draft lottery. But the more I listen to podcasts and think about it....it's really the only way to get a star player here.

Our asset cabinet is bare. If there are 4-5 guys that you project to have around the same ceiling I'm all for trading back. Hopefully we can make it a bidding war but we haven't ever seen anything like that here in Detroit that I can ever remember.

But such a unknown draft I'm OK with staying at #5 and selecting high upside if you think hes your guy. OFFICIAL ANSWER.

1A. Trade back and get assets. (Memphis, OKC)
1b. Stay at #5 and select highest upside if you don't get enough compensation for moving back.

[Invictus88]

If you draft for “fit”, this implies you think that the other players on the team are either going to be or are that good that you wouldn’t want to replace them.

Or it could be that your team has suffered years of drafting ill-fitting pieces with high potential and none of them have lived up to it; due in part to the fact that they are so ill-fitting.

I think that it's time to start surrounding Cade with players who aren't complete projects and have a reasonable chance to compliment his skillset next year. Otherwise Cade is going to start thinking of walking.

[Snakebites]

Man Snakebites I feel like I've never been so back and forth on what to do in a offseason that I can remember.

I've been pounding the table of trade the pick since the draft lottery. But the more I listen to podcasts and think about it....it's really the only way to get a star player here.

Our asset cabinet is bare. If there are 4-5 guys that you project to have around the same ceiling I'm all for trading back. Hopefully we can make it a bidding war but we haven't ever seen anything like that here in Detroit that I can ever remember.

But such a unknown draft I'm OK with staying at #5 and selecting high upside if you think hes your guy. OFFICIAL ANSWER.

1A. Trade back and get assets. (Memphis, OKC)
1b. Stay at #5 and select highest upside if you don't get enough compensation for moving back.

Yeah candidly I created this thread not really sure what my own answer to the question is.

In theory for a 14 win team the best path forward is to draft for potential- keep trying to hit and get that star. That's actually what I put...and I already think I was wrong.

While it's still a good idea in theory, in practice a few factors are working against us with that approach:

1) The draft is weak in terms of guys with star potential but there's a number of guys who look like quality supporting pieces.
2) We're about ready to give a max contract to a player. While in terms of success we're still at an early stage of our rebuild, that max contract kind of forces us into a later stage of that rebuild than we are probably ready to be in- the stage where fit around your max guy matters. We need to commit to that investment by getting guys who actually fit with Cade.
3) The results of that approach haven't been good in recent years. There's an argument to be made that the new management team may have more success with the approach, but it's still hard to "feel" like it's the right answer given what we see on our roster right now.

[DetroitDon15]

I really want Buzelis and feel that he is a fit and high end upside.

[theBigLip]

I could have picked any of the options. It’s hard to say for sure without specific trade packages. That being said, I chose the first option of picking for upside.

It’s hard to trade for a star and expensive to get one in free agency. So drafting one is easy on the cap space, but hard to get right with any regularity. But might as well take another swing at the draft, and save the filling of our needs to free agency.

[dVs33]

I really want Buzelis and feel that he is a fit and high end upside.

I thought the same, but the shooting is scaring me off.


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[Mr Peanut]

I think when you're a team as bad as us you pick for upside but also can factor fit into that. Unless whoever on the board is clearly in his own tier then you take him regardless of fit.

If you want better fitting pieces you can get these via FA/trade.

[Snakebites]

I really want Buzelis and feel that he is a fit and high end upside.

I thought the same, but the shooting is scaring me off.


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No shakey or questionable shooters.

[A_dub06]

If you draft for “fit”, this implies you think that the other players on the team are either going to be or are that good that you wouldn’t want to replace them.

Or it could be that your team has suffered years of drafting ill-fitting pieces with high potential and none of them have lived up to it; due in part to the fact that they are so ill-fitting.

I think that it's time to start surrounding Cade with players who aren't complete projects and have a reasonable chance to compliment his skillset next year. Otherwise Cade is going to start thinking of walking.

I don’t think the problem has been drafting players with upside, the problem has been drafting the wrong players with upside. Good players will always prevail to find a way to be positive on the floor regardless of situation. Yes we haven’t been good at creating a system at developing players but I feel you are blaming the lack of fit as the issue as opposed to the player, which isn’t fair imo. Ivey is a shooting guard and duren is a Center, the key skill to both those positions is shooting and defence, and neither player is good in those areas. How has lack of fit affected Duren playing good defence or protecting the rim? How has lack of spacing affected Ivey shooting better %’s? The answer is that it hasn’t, the team drafted the wrong players.

And Cade is not going to walk from his max contract, hadn’t happened before and it won’t.

[A_dub06]

Drafting for fit is the reason why we Luke Kennard over Donovan Mitchell. I will never be made at the front office for picking potential over fit, but I will be livid when the player drafted for fit turns into nothing more than a bench player or worse, when we simply could’ve used free agency to fill the require skilled