Caleb Wilson

[RookieStar]

Caleb is thin right now...but he plays substantially stronger/more aggressively and WAY more explosively than the guys you listed. Like if you look back at very young Giannis for example he was rail thin and nowhere near as physically developed as he's become, but his mentality and aggression was there since day 1 in the NBA. Caleb attacks the rim with ferocity and anger. Dudes like Jabari/Odom/Siakam are more fluid and range-y, and slither past defenders.

i dunno...I remember the games I watched Jabari in college and he tried to overpower his defenders going to the rim. Its only in the league where he slithers... who'se to say that Caleb will follow or be different.

Also, Giannis case is one in a million. That stick thin body to become what it is now.

No way. Just look at the stats and it's beyond obvious. Not only was Jabari taking a ton of jumpers, but the 2pt% is absolutely telling. Wilson shooting 18% better from 2 than Jabari did and 4 more attempts per game. They aren't comparable in terms of their inside abilities at all.

Oh no doubt about the junpers. Admittedly we only watchd him late because he was one of the 3 contenders for the #1 pick. His selling point was he can shoot the 3 AND ATTACK the rim. Like an high end/all star 3&D PF.

Lets face it... if Jabari lived up to his hype, everyone would pick him over Caleb.

[NO-KG-AI]

i dunno...I remember the games I watched Jabari in college and he tried to overpower his defenders going to the rim. Its only in the league where he slithers... who'se to say that Caleb will follow or be different.

Also, Giannis case is one in a million. That stick thin body to become what it is now.

No way. Just look at the stats and it's beyond obvious. Not only was Jabari taking a ton of jumpers, but the 2pt% is absolutely telling. Wilson shooting 18% better from 2 than Jabari did and 4 more attempts per game. They aren't comparable in terms of their inside abilities at all.

Oh no doubt about the junpers. Admittedly we only watchd him late because he was one of the 3 contenders for the #1 pick. His selling point was he can shoot the 3 AND ATTACK the rim. Like an high end/all star 3&D PF.

Lets face it... if Jabari lived up to his hype, everyone would pick him over Caleb.

There was literally a Jabari thread on here where a handful of us on here were questioning his complete laxk of ability to attack the rim. He was 6’10 and a supposed super freak but his dunk rate, foul drawing, and shots inside were absurdly low. It was clearly a combo of ball handling, body strength, and mentality, but Jabari was not a guy assaulting the rim at all in collge. We were lambasted and called haters for questioning him at all as a prospect though lol. Me saying that I like to see guys create easy looks and not just settle for contested jumpers all game, even if they are good at them was met with “wow bro, so you just want him to stand in the dunker spot so he can get more dunks and make you happy”, and I realized a lot of people here don’t want to discuss prospects, they want to just glaze who they like and call you a hater if you disagree.

[RookieStar]

No way. Just look at the stats and it's beyond obvious. Not only was Jabari taking a ton of jumpers, but the 2pt% is absolutely telling. Wilson shooting 18% better from 2 than Jabari did and 4 more attempts per game. They aren't comparable in terms of their inside abilities at all.

Oh no doubt about the junpers. Admittedly we only watchd him late because he was one of the 3 contenders for the #1 pick. His selling point was he can shoot the 3 AND ATTACK the rim. Like an high end/all star 3&D PF.

Lets face it... if Jabari lived up to his hype, everyone would pick him over Caleb.

There was literally a Jabari thread on here where a handful of us on here were questioning his complete laxk of ability to attack the rim. He was 6’10 and a supposed super freak but his dunk rate, foul drawing, and shots inside were absurdly low. It was clearly a combo of ball handling, body strength, and mentality, but Jabari was not a guy assaulting the rim at all in collge. We were lambasted and called haters for questioning him at all as a prospect though lol. Me saying that I like to see guys create easy looks and not just settle for contested jumpers all game, even if they are good at them was met with “wow bro, so you just want him to stand in the dunker spot so he can get more dunks and make you happy”, and I realized a lot of people here don’t want to discuss prospects, they want to just glaze who they like and call you a hater if you disagree.

To those who faithfuly watched him in college then yeah, hats off to them. I guess i and other magic fans were sucked in by the pre-draft hype of who he could be. I mean.. we saw those vids of him shooting 3s, blocking shots, dunking while driving to the rim... all in a (allegedly) 6'11 package.

Well the workouts and interview with us( insiders said that he sucked at it) made us not choose him.

But talking about Caleb... hia body type is like Jabari and the others i mentioned.

[Chuck Everett]

Caleb and Jabari don't play anything alike. I always saw Smith as the true 4-man version of Rashard Lewis. However, he still has so much more filling out to do physically, that I believe his best years will be from 25-31. Caleb is more like Stromile Swift/Tyrus Thomas with hopefully a better (NBA) bball IQ.

[vincecarter4pres]

Caleb and Jabari don't play anything alike. I always saw Smith as the true 4-man version of Rashard Lewis. However, he still has so much more filling out to do physically, that I believe his best years will be from 25-31. Caleb is more like Stromile Swift/Tyrus Thomas with hopefully a better (NBA) bball IQ.

I think the way he projects out if he develops correctly is going to surprise a lot of people.

If things go right you’re looking at someone with an advanced post game, good catch and shoot from deep, great off ball finisher, pick and pop, and legit triple threat on ball from the perimeter as well, with some serious playmaking chops; both initiator and connective.

For all the talk of how raw he is(true for sure to an extent), it’s more so he’s raw directly compared to Boozer, Flemings, Dybantsa, Peterson, Acuff, etc.

Compared to other 4’s(especially those who project as probable switchable to the 3 for extended periods or full time), in this class and the last however many years, he’s actually way ahead of the curve overall.

He’s also extremely productive and efficient given how technically raw he still is.

His footwork is really good and truthfully it didn’t start out this good this year, he’s developing at an accelerated pace right before our eyes. His main problem is he doesn’t seal well, both technique and his weight and strength(lack there of).

He’s shown flashes of legit Tmac looking perimeter dribble drive playmaking for others.

His handle is a work in progress for sure though, but his poor outside shooting isn’t helping him on that front. But his shot doesn’t look awful or even bad at all, so I’m a believer in it coming around and wildly opening up things for him.

I love his fire, his motor and his personality as well. Combined with his unteachable talents and measures, and budding skillset, along with his above average bbiq, it really makes me believe in him taking a number of sizable incremental jumps year after year once he’s in the league. All the talks of him comparing to some of these other crappy raw lifeless prospects from other drafts, they lacked all of the above that Wilson has, sans the unteachable measures and athleticism. That’s the only thing he has in common with long shot scrubs like Kuminga, Sochan and Williams.

I’m just gonna put my hot take out there, he will be a franchise cornerstone player and one of the top 2 from this class if not the best player, and a perennial MVP candidate by year 4 or 5.

I’ve really come around on Dybantsa, he’s got my #1 slot on my big board. Also have come around a lot on Boozer, though I still have big reservations on him fully translating, but it will take something extraordinary to move Wilson off my #2 big board slot before the draft.

[Duke4life831]

Out for the rest of the season with a broken thumb

[JustBuzzin]

Out for the rest of the season with a broken thumb

Trying to fall to Charlotte

[FarBeyondDriven]

Read on Twitter

?s=20

man, he's something special. I kinda expect the Kings to get screwed in the lottery because I think there's no chance Dybantsa or Peterson will accept going to Sacramento but if the consolation prize was Wilson I'd be absolutely ecstatic.

[SNPA]

Read on Twitter

?s=20

man, he's something special. I kinda expect the Kings to get screwed in the lottery because I think there's no chance Dybantsa or Peterson will accept going to Sacramento but if the consolation prize was Wilson I'd be absolutely ecstatic.

That’d be good with this Kings fan. I think he might be the best player.

Sac won’t take DP, they’d take AJ though. It’s known the front office like him.

[JMAC3]

He is a great athlete and will be an awesome play finisher, which makes me think he might be a center at the next level especially early in his career.
His offensive game doesn't really fit a modern 4 man, which is typically spacing the floor, attacking closeouts and sometimes attacking mismatches.

His best aspects are above the rim finishing, transition offense and tough midrange shots. NBA teams are preventing transition offense at a high rate these days. Without a consistent 3 pt shot I think his impact in the half court be limited if a team plays him at the 4 spot.

I am still high on him, but he could be a guy that starts his career slower as he adjusts to the modern game. Not quite this slow, but maybe Jalen Johnson is the type of outcome you are eventually hoping for. He needs to improve in a lot of areas before he can play the game like Jalen Johnson though.

[Caneman786]

Caleb Wilson's freshman college season for North Carolina has ended.

24 Games Played
31.3 Minutes per game

19.8 Points per game
9.4 Rebounds per game
2.7 Assists per game
1.5 Steals per game
1.4 Blocks per game

2.0 Turnovers per game
1.9 Personal fouls per game

.578 (170/294) - Field Goals
.259 (7/27) - 3-Point Field Goals
.713 (129/181) - Free Throws

14.1 Sports-Reference BPM (8.7 OBPM, 5.3 DBPM), 4th among all NCAA D1 players, 2nd among freshmen after Cameron Boozer
12.9 Bart-Torvik BPM (8.3 OBPM, 4.6 DBPM), 3rd among all NCAA D1 players, 2nd among freshmen after Cameron Boozer
8.3 Hoop-Explorer Luck-Adjusted RAPM (5.6 ORAPM, 2.7 DRAPM), 48th among all NCAA D1 players, 11th among freshmen
8.8 BPR (5.2 OBPR, 3.6 DBPR), 26th among all NCAA D1 players, 7th among freshmen

In games Caleb played, the Tar Heels went 19-5. In games he missed, the Tar Heels went 5-2 for an overall record of 24-7 in the regular season.

Caleb Wilson's plus minus for the season was +211. This means the Tar Heels won their minutes by +11.2 points per 40 minutes while Wilson played.

When Wilson was off the floor, on the season, the Tar Heels won their minutes by +5.4 points per 40 minutes.

This means that Wilson's on-off, per 40 minutes, was +5.8 points.

[BAMAFREAK]

Give him some shooters/perimeter threats, and let him eat up lobs, put backs and o boards while causing havoc on defense. Jumbo sized Thompson twin.

[JMAC3]

Give him some shooters/perimeter threats, and let him eat up lobs, put backs and o boards while causing havoc on defense. Jumbo sized Thompson twin.

Ausar averaging 10 ppg in year 3, so idk if this is a huge selling point on selecting him top 4.
Ausar is probably a better defensive prospect as well.

I think Caleb is a better shooter but the point still stands that his offensive game might struggle to scale and find consistency in the NBA.

[MGB8]

right now, I would take Wilson #1. IMO, he has the most upside of all OG the draftees, with a darn high floor, too.

The comp ain’t Jabari Parker. The upside comp is LEBRON, minus the PG skills.

[BlazersBroncos]

right now, I would take Wilson #1. IMO, he has the most upside of all OG the draftees, with a darn high floor, too.

The comp ain’t Jabari Parker. The upside comp is LEBRON, minus the PG skills.

I dont see the comp at all.

KG as the upper ceiling IMO, early Kemp in the middle, Toppin if he crashes out.

[One_and_Done]

His upside is certainly higher than Boozer, the question is whether he can reach it. At a glance he clearly should translate to the NBA.

[MGB8]

right now, I would take Wilson #1. IMO, he has the most upside of all OG the draftees, with a darn high floor, too.

The comp ain’t Jabari Parker. The upside comp is LEBRON, minus the PG skills.

I dont see the comp at all.

KG as the upper ceiling IMO, early Kemp in the middle, Toppin if he crashes out.

He isn’t that big; my guess is he measures out at 6’8 and change w/o shoes, not that much taller (but broader) than his 2023 measurements.

But his handle is far better than he gets credit for, he actually has some vision, and the first step, quick jump and power parts of his athleticism are very young-Lebron like. And Lebron wasn’t any better of a shooter from range coming in, either.

Wilson doesn’t quite have the PG skills or mentality that Lebron had coming in, and he has more post to his game, but I see him, at least initially, as a power wing with an exceptional combination of elite athletic talent and pretty advanced skill.

[SNPA]

He is a great athlete and will be an awesome play finisher, which makes me think he might be a center at the next level especially early in his career.
His offensive game doesn't really fit a modern 4 man, which is typically spacing the floor, attacking closeouts and sometimes attacking mismatches.

His best aspects are above the rim finishing, transition offense and tough midrange shots. NBA teams are preventing transition offense at a high rate these days. Without a consistent 3 pt shot I think his impact in the half court be limited if a team plays him at the 4 spot.

I am still high on him, but he could be a guy that starts his career slower as he adjusts to the modern game. Not quite this slow, but maybe Jalen Johnson is the type of outcome you are eventually hoping for. He needs to improve in a lot of areas before he can play the game like Jalen Johnson though.

Put him next to a floor spacing center. Problems solved. And his shot will improve over time.

[EmpireFalls]

right now, I would take Wilson #1. IMO, he has the most upside of all OG the draftees, with a darn high floor, too.

The comp ain’t Jabari Parker. The upside comp is LEBRON, minus the PG skills.

I dont see the comp at all.

KG as the upper ceiling IMO, early Kemp in the middle, Toppin if he crashes out.

He isn’t that big; my guess is he measures out at 6’8 and change w/o shoes, not that much taller (but broader) than his 2023 measurements.

But his handle is far better than he gets credit for, he actually has some vision, and the first step, quick jump and power parts of his athleticism are very young-Lebron like. And Lebron wasn’t any better of a shooter from range coming in, either.

Wilson doesn’t quite have the PG skills or mentality that Lebron had coming in, and he has more post to his game, but I see him, at least initially, as a power wing with an exceptional combination of elite athletic talent and pretty advanced skill.

If only this were true. His handle is actually pretty weak at the moment. and the comp to LeBron is so utterly laughable I won't even try to break it down.

I still love Wilson don't get me wrong. But if he had a great handle and ability to create advantages for himself on the drive he would be essentially Giannis and by far the #1 prospect.

[MGB8]

I dont see the comp at all.

KG as the upper ceiling IMO, early Kemp in the middle, Toppin if he crashes out.

He isn’t that big; my guess is he measures out at 6’8 and change w/o shoes, not that much taller (but broader) than his 2023 measurements.

But his handle is far better than he gets credit for, he actually has some vision, and the first step, quick jump and power parts of his athleticism are very young-Lebron like. And Lebron wasn’t any better of a shooter from range coming in, either.

Wilson doesn’t quite have the PG skills or mentality that Lebron had coming in, and he has more post to his game, but I see him, at least initially, as a power wing with an exceptional combination of elite athletic talent and pretty advanced skill.

If only this were true. His handle is actually pretty weak at the moment. and the comp to LeBron is so utterly laughable I won't even try to break it down.

I still love Wilson don't get me wrong. But if he had a great handle and ability to create advantages for himself on the drive he would be essentially Giannis and by far the #1 prospect.

You are making my point. You make it sound like he can’t dribble. He isn’t a very good ball handler, but he is good enough that he can drive, including through some traffic. It isn’t a strength (yet), but he isn’t a guy who can’t dribble - he has a mid handle that could easily improve with more work. He isnt used in a way that forces that, but could be used that way in the NBA. Look at the below YouTube, starting around 3:12.

Lebron and Giannis came into the NBA with PG skills - Wilson doesn’t have that - but he has enough handle and enough shot, along with enough explosion and bend and athleticism…. He IMO should be the #1 pick.

Watch on YouTube