DeBlazerRiddem wrote:Spoiler:Walton1one wrote:Or you spend 2 to 3 years to find out that there’s nothing substantial there. A player needs to have more than just athleticism and physical tools to succeed in the NBA
Yeah, it's pretty frustrating for the casual draft enthusiast but so much of what makes a player great or not is their mentality and some of those less-tangible aspects.
Back to Essengue, I came away from watching some game tape thinking he is less of a project than I initially thought and as compared to Bryant/Demin and even Coward. Bryant, who I love his 2-way potential and think he will continue improving like Anunoby, but right now he reminds me more of Kris Murray. He's younger, bigger, better tools, so I expect him to continue improving and blow past that but he will take several years to get there so is a bit of a project himself. Demin, I still am not sure what role he ends up with in the NBA, I still struggle to see him as a starter, but I don't think he is ready for NBA PG duties full time so he will take a couple years to season into his role, likely leading a bench unit for a few years. Coward seemed to really struggle against length and he way he moves I just don't recall many NBA players that were very successful with inefficient biomechanics, although it does make him a little shifty if he can take advantage of that, but he will rely a lot on his jumper so its not a hard no but he could struggle to find efficient scoring opportunities. (To be clear, all 3 are still good prospects, I'm just being nitpicky)
Essengue on the other hand, seems to be playing the exact same role for his team that he would play in the NBA, so I actually think what he is doing now might translate a little better than the others who will have some adjustment needed. And I just came away really impressed with his poise on the court, I almost got a Kawhi Leonard type demeanor, maybe that is too high praise and I mean he is far from having that kind of impact but what I am getting at is he seems like a guy very comfortable in his current role and in a role that should translate pretty cleanly to what he will be asked to do in the NBA. He's still young, he still makes mistakes and gets out of control, by no means is he a perfect prospect or anything, but I just think his floor looks solid and not many limitations that would keep him from being something special if he continues improving.
Usually I look at highlights and get real excited about a guy and then go watch game tape and find myself pulling back a lot of the hype. I'll notice little things that look to be a problem. As I said for Bryant it was struggles to consistently make an impact and not tending to float, it reminds me of Kris Murray, and is sometimes a tough hurdle mentally for some players to impose themselves on the game regularly. For Demin it was how slow he looked, his struggles to create separation and scoring opportunities for himself. For Coward it was his somewhat awkward movements and his kind of surprising struggles to finish against size, even with his length but it was a real criticism that he feasted against bad teams and struggled against better teams with the kind of size he would face in the NBA.
Maybe this is just an overreaction from a bit deeper dive on him this weekend, and my history is littered with absolutely horrible draft takes so I'm by no means an expert who should be taken seriously, but right now I do have him over those other guys I was comparing him to. I really liked his ability to attack the basket, to finish through contact, draw fouls. He will face better defenders in the NBA but he has the tools and ability to continue doing that. His shooting obviously needs to improve but his shot looks good to me and he has a really solid FT% on great volume so if he can add a respectable 3 point shot suddenly he is a very tough player to guard with his ability to attack the basket, he has the size and mobility combo to create matchup problems against a lot of the defenders he will face, and it's just a scoring upside that I don't see the other 3 players here really having. But it does depend a lot on whether you think his shooting will improve or not, right now his shooting numbers are close to Demin and that is pretty bad.
So that's the hot take this weekend. Maybe next weekend it will be someone else.
Good, informative post, like you I am just an enthusiast who watches\reads way to many scouting reports, prospect videos etc., and tries to make it all make sense
I will say regarding Bryant, multiple draft gurus\scouts (Vecenie, No ceilings come to mind), have mentioned that they think Bryant’s defense can translate right away. The offensive growth is what will decide his future fate\ceiling, but lots of raving about his defensive instincts & intensity, that seems to be rotation ready right away
