2025 NBA Draft Prospect Part 2

[Brinbe]

Both.


Nope lol, Ace Bailey is a minefield full of red flags everywhere so far. No other freshman prospect is comparable to him at the moment, in terms of number of significant red flags.

Good thing he's not gonna be 18 forever then. And he's not gonna be that in the league.

And acting like the other guys don't also have question marks is my point and also bad whataboutism.

If you're gonna nitpick, do it to everyone

You didn't actually read what I posted if you think I'm implying that the other guys you mentioned "don't also have question marks." Actually read what I posted again.

And if you're going to put that much stock into draft day age, we're just going to have to agree to disagree on that part. Also Kasparas in particular is only 3 months older than Ace, but yeah Edgecombe and Queen are definitely older freshmen compared to Kasparas and Ace.

I did and I think my point is that if you really dig into them like people are doing with Ace you'll end up in the same position as they all have flaws. Maybe Ace has more 'red flags' in terms of raw stats/analytics, but he also simply has size and skills that they don't too and you can't just ignore that.

For example, the thing with Jak is that he's obviously not the strongest athlete and I think it's fair to question if he's gonna be to successfully replicate all of this at the next level when he's facing stronger/faster/bigger athletes, and that's hard to totally ignore. And the difference between him and guys like Luka/Jokic who maybe also lack some top-tier athleticism is that they're absolute physical units in comparison. Is he ultimately gonna be a shooting guard at the next level with a bit of added passing ability? In that case, well we have a ton of shooting guards as is and I haven't really seen anything that really differentiates him too much from what we already have.

Edgecombe as much as I like him has his fair share of issues too. Is he gonna be a higher-end Ochai in the end?

Queen might be one of the most polarizing guys in the draft.

Obviously we'll have our faves, and I'm not exactly all aboard the 'we have to draft bailey' bandwagon, but I just think it's a bit weird that there's this intense focus on one prospect when everyone should be getting that scrutiny.

And I think that type of discourse would be more constructive when it's pretty much a free for all beyond Flagg/Harper who we can all agree either would be a big help to our team if drafted. But beyond that it's a giant question mark as far as I can tell so far.

[Clutch0z24]

Bailey wars are crazy Most polarizing prospect that's not even projected top2 by anyone?

Not everyone will get the top 2 picks...If we end up 1 or 2 there can be discussions to be had....But if we are at 3-4-5 coming away with Bailey would be a home run for me....Rn my top 5

Harper
Flagg
Bailey
Tre Johnson
Edgecomb

These are the only 5 in this draft who have superstar potential imo....The rest i don't see superstar potential...

[LoveMyRaps]

Bailey is exactly the type of scorer this team needs.

[Jstock12]

Bailey wars are crazy Most polarizing prospect that's not even projected top2 by anyone?

Not everyone will get the top 2 picks...If we end up 1 or 2 there can be discussions to be had....But if we are at 3-4-5 coming away with Bailey would be a home run for me....Rn my top 5

Harper
Flagg
Bailey
Tre Johnson
Edgecomb

These are the only 5 in this draft who have superstar potential imo....The rest i don't see superstar potential...

Jeremiah Fears also

[RoteSchroder]

Calling on Scase to read this last page.

See what I mean with the Bargnani excuses? Everyone’s averaging a triple double, if only they had better teammates.

This line of reasoning comes up every month on realgm for everyone’s favorite player.

That was an unbelievable take. Just a blatant disregard for history thinking that Scottie can do something that only two players in NBA history has ever done. lol.

Scottie becoming a nightly triple-double threat. Firmly in his Magic era in this current role. Just a shame he doesn't have better scoring teammates to take full advantage of what he creates.

Read on Twitter

He would easily be averaging a triple double if we had even just some more competent players on the roster.

It's an unbelievable take that a player who was averaging 23/10/9, could manage a triple double on a team with actual talent in that 7 game span?

Nah, it's just easier for people like you to completely ignore any context of a comment so you can make inflammatory posts. Maybe, just maybe, you look at the context of the post instead of getting your panties in a bunch, grow up.

IQ came back and he was the one with 15 assists. Scottie 5 assists. How's he gonna get a triple double with IQ stealing his assists? It was probably easier for Scottie to get more assists with terrible teammates. IQ is supposed to be more of an off-ball player too. Imagine if we get an even better on-ball player.

Same thing with Bailey. They can't admit that he has a weakness for some reason, he'd have so many more assists if Dylan Harper was playing!

Same thing with RJ. He averaged 8.75 assists over 4 games. If only he had better teammates, he'd get a triple double!

Same thing with Bargnani. He'd average so many assists with better teammates!

It's an excuse commonly spammed by dumb homers. Everyone's averaging a triple double with great teammates. Got it.

[Psubs]

Bailey is exactly the type of scorer this team needs.

Guys that "know" they are good would be IQ, Jakobe and Dick. I think the other's even Scottie tries to appear super confident but deep down are trying to prove they are good. Bailey knows.

Guys in this draft that "know" would be Flagg, Tre Johnson, Airious Bailey, Boogie Fland, Zvonimir Ivisic .

[RoteSchroder]

Bailey wars are crazy Most polarizing prospect that's not even projected top2 by anyone?

It looks like the ppl who want him and don't want him both agree that his comparison is MPJ.

Main difference being that the ppl who like him seem to think that drafting MPJ is amazing, whereas the ppl who don't want him want someone with better all-star potential.

In terms of his starting foundation, it seems to me that Bailey has higher potential than MPJ though, as he has better tough shot making ability and can pull off moves I don't think I've ever seen MPJ do.

[Clutch0z24]

Bailey wars are crazy Most polarizing prospect that's not even projected top2 by anyone?

It looks like the ppl who want him and don't want him both agree that his comparison is MPJ.

Main difference being that the ppl who like him seem to think that drafting MPJ is amazing, whereas the ppl who don't want him want someone with better all-star potential.

In terms of his starting foundation, it seems to me that Bailey has higher potential than MPJ though, as he has better tough shot making ability and can pull off moves I don't think I've ever seen MPJ do.

Yeah but for me i think his floor is MPJ....Which means he will be MPJ level when he steps in the NBA....If he never reaches any level beyond that....It would be disappointing but 5 years down the line we are talking about....Could be Top 10 player in the NBA if things go right...

[ArthurVandelay]

Bailey wars are crazy Most polarizing prospect that's not even projected top2 by anyone?

It looks like the ppl who want him and don't want him both agree that his comparison is MPJ.

Main difference being that the ppl who like him seem to think that drafting MPJ is amazing, whereas the ppl who don't want him want someone with better all-star potential.

In terms of his starting foundation, it seems to me that Bailey has higher potential than MPJ though, as he has better tough shot making ability and can pull off moves I don't think I've ever seen MPJ do.

He’s MPJr if MPJr had a handle.

[Psubs]

MPJr without the back problems history is a nice comp for Bailey.

[Kreamy]

My top 8 right now:

1. Cooper Flagg
2. Dylan Harper
3. Ace Bailey
4. Tre Johnson
5. Kasparas Jakucionis
6. VJ Edgecombe
7. Jeremiah Fears
8. Egor Demin

[TNRaps4life]

Fast forward to 19 mins for potential assist
https://youtu.be/56wLKTbkDqI?si=OZl5gvPt_1fEewL1

[PushDaRock]

Yeah I never understood that point in terms of the Raps, we don't need anymore play makers, we need more play finishers, more shooters, more guys who can get stuff out of nothing. Bailey's weaknesses aren't the teams weakness, and his strengths are something we desperately need.

Stand by my Marvin Bagley comp.
https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/marvin-bagleyiii-1/gamelog/2018

Michael Beasley is another comparison
https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/michael-beasley-1/gamelog/2008
They put up huge games too, were better rebounders too. Also, had terrible assist numbers (albeit better than Bailey)

Can anyone think of a pure scorer with terrible assist numbers that succeeded in the NBA?
Maybe he figures it out, but the Raptors don't need a pure iso scorer. Sure, a guy that can iso score would be nice, but they damn well better be able to get their teammates involved and make them better too.

The Spurs championship years are what every team should attempt to emulate, they played beautiful basketball and could probably win a championship even if one of their stars went down.

Not saying he's a do not draft, but you better be prepared for him to be a bust more often than not.

Lauri Markkanen averaged less than 1 assist at Arizona. Most scorers will generate passes off double teams, at college level you're expected to score because defenders arent as good and neither are your teammates. This changes at next level a lot.

If he was shooting the ball as well as Lauri did in college, we probably aren't having most of these discussions. But instead, we are having to project that his shooting improves to a high level in addition to all the weaknesses he currently has also improving as well.

[Grew]

Bailey is a little bit freaky because he gives me Marvin Williams/Tim Thomas vibes. He's got a ton of potential but how good does he really want to be? How far can his offense get him if he's not right in his mind both on and off the court. Does he have the drive? Does he have the BBIQ?

I see the MPJ comps and I think they are pretty good. Bailey isn't nearly as stiff and could develop into something more. Big boom/bust potential. Intriguing and scary.

[PushDaRock]

And that's based on current play or what you project they'll all be at the next level?

Both.

All those guys have just as many question marks too, especially if you consider the athleticism at the next level and how they'd adapt, plus things like defense in Queen's case.

Nope lol, Ace Bailey is a minefield full of red flags everywhere so far. No other freshman prospect is comparable to him at the moment, in terms of number of significant red flags.

Good thing he's not gonna be 18 forever then. And he's not gonna be that in the league.

And acting like the other guys don't also have question marks is my point and also bad whataboutism.

If you're gonna nitpick, do it to everyone

Some players peak early too. Someone like Emoni Bates peaked as a 15 year old dominating HS Basketball. His skill level for a 14/15 year old was insane really but he never got better from there, his weaknesses remained and his peers caught up.

There is certainly a world where Ace improves on every weakness and sharpens up his strengths even more, becomes an elite shooter and reaches his upside but also another one where his weaknesses just flat out don't get much better and his shooting doesn't reach a high level either.

[Psubs]

Bailey is a little bit freaky because he gives me Marvin Williams/Tim Thomas vibes. He's got a ton of potential but how good does he really want to be? How far can his offense get him if he's not right in his mind both on and off the court. Does he have the drive? Does he have the BBIQ?

I see the MPJ comps and I think they are pretty good. Bailey isn't nearly as stiff and could develop into something more. Big boom/bust potential. Intriguing and scary.

Bailey is taller than both Marvin and TT. He's able to dunk more easily in the halfcourt, which is important to his ability to get his shot off in the halfcourt within 10 feet.

[PushDaRock]

Bailey wars are crazy Most polarizing prospect that's not even projected top2 by anyone?

It looks like the ppl who want him and don't want him both agree that his comparison is MPJ.

Main difference being that the ppl who like him seem to think that drafting MPJ is amazing, whereas the ppl who don't want him want someone with better all-star potential.

In terms of his starting foundation, it seems to me that Bailey has higher potential than MPJ though, as he has better tough shot making ability and can pull off moves I don't think I've ever seen MPJ do.

I think MPJ in HS was a better prospect, more athletic, could attack the basket better especially in the half court, lights out shooter and contested shot maker. After all the back injuries though, he lost a lot of that athleticism and kind of became more of a catch and shoot specialist which he is extremely elite at. Hard to say what he could have been without all the injuries.

[tdotrep2]

Bailey clearly has more talen whatg mw/tt

[PushDaRock]

Bailey wars are crazy Most polarizing prospect that's not even projected top2 by anyone?

It looks like the ppl who want him and don't want him both agree that his comparison is MPJ.

Main difference being that the ppl who like him seem to think that drafting MPJ is amazing, whereas the ppl who don't want him want someone with better all-star potential.

In terms of his starting foundation, it seems to me that Bailey has higher potential than MPJ though, as he has better tough shot making ability and can pull off moves I don't think I've ever seen MPJ do.

Yeah but for me i think his floor is MPJ....Which means he will be MPJ level when he steps in the NBA....If he never reaches any level beyond that....It would be disappointing but 5 years down the line we are talking about....Could be Top 10 player in the NBA if things go right...

An MPJ floor means he becomes a 60 eFG% at worse on 17-19 ppg. That's an extremely high floor.

[XTC]

The biggest reason he fails to get to the basket or get by his man is because he has super stiff hips. I don't see that changing either.