2025 NBA Draft Discussion Part 8

[JCP11]

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Jase is still my pick...Even if hes shorter he has top 5 talent in this draft....Should not pass that up....Especially at 9th....He will shock alot of people if hes picked late in this draft as one of them players people passed on that should not have.....Just too much talent/skill overall to base his outcome as a player on his height...Hes 6'2" in shoes....While not the best hes still not tiny with a 6'6" Wingspan and a way above average athlete.....And could still grow an inch while in the league...Makes me not too concerned about his height when he can finish in the paint with the best of them in this class....

To me he has the best 3 level scoring + upside left at 9th...Can hold his own on the defensive end while also having 1st option shot creator upside...

But i get it for people who don't like him due to size....But just remember size is not everything we have seen many 6'7" guys flame out while the more skilled smaller guys succeed...

to put it in perspective Hes the same height as Kyrie Irving but Kyrie wingspan at 6'3" And Jase 6'6" Wingspan....Kyrie had a great career even if hes not the biggest because he has amazing basketball skills and great finisher at the rim....No reason to think Jase can not succeed cause hes "Short" When he is a better athlete than Kyrie and has a longer wingspan than Kyrie....Not comparing his skill level to Kyrie im just pointing out a player who has less athletic/shorter wingspan at that height can succeed so its dumb to say Jase can't succeed due to height when he will be just fine...

The talent of Jase is undeniable but he will get hunted and feasted on in a playoff game defensively. You would practically have to pair him with Maluach to make it work like Conley and Gobert and that would be hard to make happen. Jase looks more like a 6 man type than a player like Cole Anthony than a starter right now imo.

[Indeed]

I heard the on/off stats is otherwise, not much of a difference. You have reference that it was worse when he is off the floor?

It's a myth people spew out to make him look better.

Duke had a:

DRTG of 94.6 when he was on the court
DRTG of 94.3 when he was off the court

Duke had an alltime great defense whether Maluach was on the floor or not.

Source: https://www.dukechronicle.com/article/2025/04/duke-mens-basketball-khaman-maluach-development-final-four-jon-scheyer-offense-defense-rebounding-alley-oop

"Duke’s defensive rating, which measures points allowed per 100 possessions, did not change significantly from when Maluach was on the floor (94.6) to when he sat (94.3)"

If Maluach was anchoring the defense, the stats would reflect it. Maluach is a prime example of coulda, woulda, shoulda. I don't think people realize how bad his underlying numbers are. A 6.8 block percent for a guy this big is worrisome. I think the only guy who had a bad block percentage and became a legit rim protector where Brook Lopez, and Jarrett Allen.

Edit -
More stats... Opponents shot:

49% at the rim when Maluach was on the floor

55% at the rim when Maluach was off the floor

The anchor for this Duke team was Cooper Flagg, and Dukes defensive scheme.

Not sure whose numbers are correct, but I've heard the below numbers referenced on multiple NBA podcasts about him as a prospect-

https://theswishtheory.com/scouting-reports/khaman-maluach/#:~:text=Duke's%20defense%20has%20a%20ridiculous%2086.7%20defensive,too%20(numbers%20versus%20top%20100%20teams%20only).

Khaman Maluach's presence on the court has a significant positive impact on Duke's defensive rating. When he's playing, Duke's defensive rating is 86.7, a considerable improvement from 90.1 when he's off. This means Duke allows fewer points per 100 possessions with Maluach on the court. Furthermore, opponents' rim shooting percentage decreases by 12 points when Maluach is on the court.

Elaboration:

Duke's defensive rating with Maluach on: 86.7
Duke's defensive rating with Maluach off: 90.1
Opponent rim shooting percentage with Maluach on: 45%
Opponent rim shooting percentage with Maluach off: 57

If those numbers are true, that is a MASSIVE difference when he is on court or off.

Just to point out, this was discussed earlier and after your previous post.
The sample size were small (6 games?) against top teams, and the defensive rating was not much of a difference.

[Psubs]

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Sion James looks like he's gonna be a steal in the 2nd round.

We already worked out with him.

Charlotte should not pass on him twice with #34 and 35, but Hornets gonna Hornet. They should take a big with the other 2nd.

VJ, Sion and Kalkbrenner would be a great haul for the Hornets. Really should draft Tre over VJ.

PG Lamelo - NickSmith - Sion
SG VJ - Mann - Sion
SG Miller - Green - Sion
PF Bridges - Salaun
C Nurkic - Williams - Kalkbrenner

[OakleyDokely]

You have to be so damn good as a 6 footer to even just start in the league.

I’m not sure Jase is able to reach that ceiling with his current skillset. Feel awful for him because if he was like 2-3 inches taller lol .. generational wealth would be coming his way.

His dad made 100M+ over his NBA career. I'm sure he's already got that generational wealth.

If Jase had his dad's size, 6'6, 7ft wingspan, he'd be the #1 pick.

[WuTang_OG]

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[OakleyDokely]

Brooklyn execs reading the withdrawl list after collecting so many late 1sts

[Yallbecrazy]

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/25193838-updated-2025-nba-mock-draft-after-early-entrant-withdrawal-deadline

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Tre Johnson had the 2nd fastest lane agility time at the combine. Why would anyone take VJ over Tre? One injury like Livingston or Oladipo and VJ is an MLE player. If Tre gets injured he still could be an allstar level player.

VJ is superior at everything outside of shooting and maybe passing. VJ isn't a bad shooter himself.

Tre is also the kind of player that will command a higher salary than he is worth unless he becomes genuinely a max level scorer which is really hard to do without getting to the rim.

High bulk stat scorers get overpaid even if they are poor defenders and rebounders which Tre definitely is.

[WuTang_OG]

How I see the lottery so far

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Tre Johnson had the 2nd fastest lane agility time at the combine. Why would anyone take VJ over Tre? One injury like Livingston or Oladipo and VJ is an MLE player. If Tre gets injured he still could be an allstar level player.

VJ is superior at everything outside of shooting and maybe passing. VJ isn't a bad shooter himself.

Tre is also the kind of player that will command a higher salary than he is worth unless he becomes genuinely a max level scorer which is really hard to do without getting to the rim.

High bulk stat scorers get overpaid even if they are poor defenders and rebounders which Tre definitely is.

Tre isn't a great defender but he's average and not a negative. I think Tre has a higher floor and a higher ceiling.

[Clutch0z24]

You have to be so damn good as a 6 footer to even just start in the league.

I’m not sure Jase is able to reach that ceiling with his current skillset. Feel awful for him because if he was like 2-3 inches taller lol .. generational wealth would be coming his way.

Jason Richardson earned $105 million so let's say $50 million. If he managed his money right, they should be fine for generations.

Even if Jase is a late 1st pick and makes $5 million during his rookie contract and is an MLE player for the next 10 years after that he'll up earning as much as dad did. Him and future generations will be aight.

I don’t know, Richardson came from a time where NBA athletes weren’t as money savvy as this current Gen.

They were going BROKE in a hurry.

That 5M is really like 1.5M after taxes, etc etc. nothing to scoff at but clearly different from making IQ money vs potentially being a journeyman player in the NBA cause you weren’t 2-3 inches taller.

Kyrie Made 270 Mill, Lowry the GOAT Raptor made 276 mill, Brunson made 60 mill , Trae Young made 103 Mill, Garland made 63 mill, Morant Made 73 Mill, CP3 Made 390 Mill, FVV Made 122 Mill, Conley made 276 Mill.....

These are the players that are in that height range of Jase.....Jase has a bigger wingspan than most of them while also being a better athlete than alot of them....I doubt his height is as big of an issue as you are making it out to be....Skills/Talent matter more....You could have a 6 ft 8 player who never develops skills on the level of Jase ever and they are out of the league in 2 years...

Jase also has a standing reach of 8feet 2.5 inches which is the same as Fears in this draft....His height is literally the only "red flag" other than his height all his measurments/atheltic ability translate just fine to go along with prolly top 5 skills in this class...I would take the bet on him...

[arbsn]

I don’t think we can pass up the potential on guys like Maluach and Bryant, even if they are very unproven offensively. Whichever one is there at 9 is probably who we take.

What is Maluach's potential exactly? He has stone hands, can't rebound and is slow... Strikes me as a bust / can't play in the 4th quarter kinda guy

[WuTang_OG]

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[Basketball_Jones]

I don’t think we can pass up the potential on guys like Maluach and Bryant, even if they are very unproven offensively. Whichever one is there at 9 is probably who we take.

What is Maluach's potential exactly? He has stone hands, can't rebound and is slow... Strikes me as a bust / can't play in the 4th quarter kinda guy

Could be. I think he’s a switchable 7’2” rim deterrent with solid shooting mechanics. Okay, maybe Myles Turner/Gobert cross between the two so not huge potential but his size is really tough to pass up on.

[Psubs]

I don’t think we can pass up the potential on guys like Maluach and Bryant, even if they are very unproven offensively. Whichever one is there at 9 is probably who we take.

What is Maluach's potential exactly? He has stone hands, can't rebound and is slow... Strikes me as a bust / can't play in the 4th quarter kinda guy

I think he's likely Clingan that doesn't have great rebounding instincts.

[elmer_yuck]

Jason Richardson earned $105 million so let's say $50 million. If he managed his money right, they should be fine for generations.

Even if Jase is a late 1st pick and makes $5 million during his rookie contract and is an MLE player for the next 10 years after that he'll up earning as much as dad did. Him and future generations will be aight.

I don’t know, Richardson came from a time where NBA athletes weren’t as money savvy as this current Gen.

They were going BROKE in a hurry.

That 5M is really like 1.5M after taxes, etc etc. nothing to scoff at but clearly different from making IQ money vs potentially being a journeyman player in the NBA cause you weren’t 2-3 inches taller.

Kyrie Made 270 Mill, Lowry the GOAT Raptor made 276 mill, Brunson made 60 mill , Trae Young made 103 Mill, Garland made 63 mill, Morant Made 73 Mill, CP3 Made 390 Mill, FVV Made 122 Mill, Conley made 276 Mill.....

These are the players that are in that height range of Jase.....Jase has a bigger wingspan than most of them while also being a better athlete than alot of them....I doubt his height is as big of an issue as you are making it out to be....Skills/Talent matter more....You could have a 6 ft 8 player who never develops skills on the level of Jase ever and they are out of the league in 2 years...

Jase also has a standing reach of 8feet 2.5 inches which is the same as Fears in this draft....His height is literally the only "red flag" other than his height all his measurments/atheltic ability translate just fine to go along with prolly top 5 skills in this class...I would take the bet on him...

After your 5000th post on Jase, I’m still confused.
Do you like him or not?

[mademan]

I don’t think we can pass up the potential on guys like Maluach and Bryant, even if they are very unproven offensively. Whichever one is there at 9 is probably who we take.

What is Maluach's potential exactly? He has stone hands, can't rebound and is slow... Strikes me as a bust / can't play in the 4th quarter kinda guy

I think he's likely Clingan that doesn't have great rebounding instincts.

Brother, ewwww.

[manjusaka]

What is Maluach's potential exactly? He has stone hands, can't rebound and is slow... Strikes me as a bust / can't play in the 4th quarter kinda guy

I think he's likely Clingan that doesn't have great rebounding instincts.

Brother, ewwww.

On top of that, Clingan has better hands and tested quicker in the combine camp.

However, Maluach has a good ft% for his size, maybe there’s a chance for him to develop some catches and shoot.

If we drafted him. I would hope he can become a player similar to Brook Lopez 18-21.

[mademan]

I think he's likely Clingan that doesn't have great rebounding instincts.

Brother, ewwww.

On top of that, Clingan has better hands and tested quicker in the combine camp.

However, Maluach has a good ft% for his size, maybe there’s a chance for him to develop some catches and shoot.

If we drafted him. I would hope he can become a player similar to Brook Lopez 18-21.

2 things i hate to see in a prospect are bad hands and a poor BBIQ. Malauch doesnt seem to have a clear lack of BBIQ but he for sure has stone hands, which is odd considering he has a great touch around the rim. The 2 are usually more related

[arbsn]

I think he's likely Clingan that doesn't have great rebounding instincts.

Brother, ewwww.

On top of that, Clingan has better hands and tested quicker in the combine camp.

However, Maluach has a good ft% for his size, maybe there’s a chance for him to develop some catches and shoot.

If we drafted him. I would hope he can become a player similar to Brook Lopez 18-21.

Brook has soft hands and great instincts... I see similarities with lack of rebounding but Brook was a much more polished offensive prospect

[OakleyDokely]

Tamar Bates, 22 years old, Senior, Missouri
Measurements: 6'3.75 w/o shoes, 6'10.25 wingspan, 8'7 standing reach, 9.75 hand length, 191.4 lbs
Shooting: .508 FG (9.0 attempts), .397 3PT (3.9 attempts), .946 FT (2.7 attempts), .643 TS
Advanced: 22.1 USG, 7.8 BPM