2025 Draft Thread - Part 3

[trast66]

I love the approach to our rebuild but not convinced Winger/Dawkins are good drafters. Only time will tell.

[80sballboy]

Some like the pick

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[badinage]

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[80sballboy]

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[DCZards]

I watched Illinois several times to check out Kasparas and soured on him, but was pretty impressed with Riley. Good skills with the ball but man he is skinny.

Riley’s ability to score stood out to me in a couple of March Madness games. Was pointed out on ESPN that he rarely turns the ball over…must be those guard skills.

[tontoz]

Riley was 13th on Dat's final board btw

[The Consiglieri]

This draft gets a D-

It's like the year of tanking went to waste once Carrington made that shot.

I don't agree with you on the FO, but yeah, Dat gives it an A+, you and I give it a fail.

I absolutely loathe everything except the trade down from 18, since I didn't think we'd take Traore or Jaku since we're inexplicably convinced (for now anyway) that Bub can be a legit PG, I was fine and the haul was great, but it was quite telling that both guys I would have taken, went immediately thereafter, guys we probably were never gonna take but well worth the 18. If we'd taken a guy I thought anything of at 21, I'd be really really upbeat, but Riley was 16th on my list of targets at the 18 slot after the consensus top 10-12 were off the board, I had him as worth a pick in the 28-35 zone. Blech.

Feels like they took him because we have absolute no shooters whatsoever, and we just added two guys that can hit jumpers from anywhere, but I don't want a draft for need, the entire team is ---, we need studs, not filled needs, but difference making upside guys. Riley felt too much like a Kispert pick to me. I wanted a big swing, like Traore, Jaku, Powell, Theiro, McNeely. But I do get the sense that Riley could be a legit weapon in time, I'm just enormously unimpressed, it was a draft that really, really, really, reminded me of the 2018-2022 horror show.

My two positives:
Tre can be special if he puts it all together.
Riley is viewed as a genuine upside guy, and as I mentioned in redraft talk the past few months, these guys continued their trend of drafting 18, 19, 20 year olds (and trading for them), we don't draft old anything. Both guys quite young with room to grow.

I freaking hate this draft, but we bagged for my 2nd rounders, both guys have a lot of upside, and are quite young, they do fill needs, I'm a bit bothered by the fact that like 2 of the 4 top prospects next year are wings....so, we may be just chock full of wings if we have any draft lottery luck 11 months from now.

[80sballboy]

I watched Illinois several times to check out Kasparas and soured on him, but was pretty impressed with Riley. Good skills with the ball but man he is skinny.

Riley’s ability to score stood out to me in a couple of March Madness games. Was pointed out on ESPN that he rarely turns the ball over…must be those guard skills.

I wish he was a better athlete. But if he's still growing, great. I think Dawkins has done pretty well thus far in his first four FRPs not including tonight. I'll reserve judgement but I didn't expect a lot from George and Carrington and both showed that they belong. We'll see about Riley but I like the fact that we got a few more 2nds to play with in that trade than I did with the actual pick.

[dobrojim]

23rd on Tank FWIW.

[80sballboy]

I know we will eventually need a PG and another big or but it looks as though DA was right when he said that Bub is going to run the show at least for next season.

[The Consiglieri]

Jase being ignored, so far

Everything I read suggested that guy was going to suffer a HUGE plunge at the draft from being mocked in the 10-15 zone for the late winter and spring months pre combine.

[TheBlackCzar]

Why are people disappointed? Almost 6-9, and is a Will Dawkins special — a guy who had a massive growth spurt, from 5-9 as a high schooler til now. Which means he’s got guard skills.

He's not quick or fast.... We don't have anybody beyond CJ or AJ who can actually drive to the rim with any consistency.... We don't have any defensive C.... Sarr is a 4 until he gets stronger....

Such a let down... Having skill with blah athleticism is not going to win us any titles... I'll wait and see but I'm starting to get underwhelmed by picking all these projects who aren't elite at anything.....

I'd rather have traded 18 to move up and get Ace....

[dobrojim]

Jase being ignored, so far

Everything I read suggested that guy was going to suffer a HUGE plunge at the draft from being mocked in the 10-15 zone for the late winter and spring months pre combine.

I was never sold on him other than his NBA DNA.

[J-Ves]

Riley put on 20 pounds since last season, but don't really get this one. Not much length. He's over 6-9 in shoes but while I liked him in college, I also get a lot of Patrick Baldwin Jr. vibes. More skilled though but not very athletic. Should have stayed in school.

Baldwin was mostly a catch and shoot guy, while Riley is an excellent playmaker for his position. Unfortunately Riley’s trex arms will prevent him from playing PF

[Benjammin]

I'd be interested in trading into the end of the first round to get Wolf or Fleming if the price isn't too high.

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[The Consiglieri]

I love the approach to our rebuild but not convinced Winger/Dawkins are good drafters. Only time will tell.

Oh I think Bilal was a great pick at the time in '23 and could still turn out spectacular. Guy is only 20 right now, several years younger than guys people have posted about wanting (Clayton, Wolf, Broome, Clifford).


Sarr is just 20 as well. Showed a ton of promise, though everything is still projection and hope.

Bub was excellent and promising and also quite young and still getting youth to his insane growth spurt '22-'25. Just 19 right now.

George is a bit older, but in redrafts, like Bub, George is going higher because a lot of people were impressed with what he put together in '25.

To me anyway, in any redraft I think all of those guys are going at slot or higher, maybe not Bilal? Not sure with him, but all 4 of them are well thought of around the league and by the people that evaluate these talents. They aren't certified holy ---- stars like Haliburton was and whom this whole board loved back then.

No stars yet, and I think no stars still, but a lot of players that are legit tools, legit pieces, just nothing that's transformative, I think there's a difference there. These aren't, "WTF, obvious BUST," type picks likes Troy Brown, or obvious never going to be worth the slots, like Kispert, or meh's like Rui and Davis....Pretty much all of them have upside, and confirmed floors at this point. It's not bad, it just also doesn't move the needle in terms of the rebuild unless we find two superstars in Tre Johnson, and the '26 and '27 first rounders.

[AFM]

Maybe I'm trying to read his mind or something, but Ace didn't look thrilled to go to Utah. No doubt he was expecting to come here.

[Tyrone Messby]

Pretty frustrating draft. Still don’t have a franchise potential player sadly. Have a bunch of 3rd-5th options though.

[AFM]

Should be mandatory viewing:

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[The Consiglieri]

I know we will eventually need a PG and another big or but it looks as though DA was right when he said that Bub is going to run the show at least for next season.

I think we've got to land a top 2 pick to land a PG next year. Most of the top rated guys are Wings, and 4's it sounds like, I think there are two combo guard prospects in the top 10ish for now, but I don't think either are regarded as traditional PG period.

So Bub is probably it unless we land a stud PG in '27 or trade for it or whatever.