Official Raptors 2011 NBA Draft Thread, Part 2

[dagger]

Here's a scouts view of all the NCAA prospects. Very interesting read.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/w ... index.html

Harrison Barnes, 6-foot-8 freshman forward, North Carolina
I finally figured him out. People have been trying to say he's Marvin Williams, but I think he's Sean Elliott. He's not a star, but he's an all-around good player. If you're expecting a franchise player, you're going to be sadly mistaken, but he can definitely help. If he came out, I'm not sure he'd be a top-five pick, but if he slipped to eight or nine people would come up with reasons why they should take him instead of why they shouldn't.

Terrence Jones, 6-8 freshman forward, Kentucky
He's a lottery pick. He scores inside and in transition. His shot is low, but if he takes his time he can make shots. He needs to be a little less selfish with the basketball, but he's a talented kid. He's a poor man's Michael Beasley. I'm not sure I trust his shot yet, but man, he competes. People ask, What position is he? I say he's a basketball player.

Perry Jones, 6-10 freshman forward, Baylor
He's the most talented kid in the class, but I don't think he's a franchise player. He doesn't have the personality for that. He's more of a blend player. He reminds me of Tim Thomas. He gets you 22 and 11, but you want him to get 36 and 17. If a team has a point guard and wants to pass on Kyrie Irving, I could see him going No. 1. He's so stinking fast it's amazing. You talk to the coaches, they say he wins all the sprints in practice against the guards. One thing you have to wonder about is he never won, not in high school, not in AAU.

Kyrie Irving, 6-2 freshman guard, Duke
Do I have any reservations if he doesn't play this year? Not even a little bit. He's that good. He'll still be a top three pick if he comes out. This is a point guards' league, it's not a centers' league anymore. He's a good athlete, not a great athlete, so he'll never be electric like John Wall or Derrick Rose, but Chris Paul is not electric in that way either.

Jared Sullinger, 6-9 freshman forward, Ohio State
I love him. He's like Elton Brand but he's a better basketball player. If he's not No. 1, he's not lasting past the top three. He'll get his shot blocked just like Kevin Love did, but his shooting percentage already accounts for that. He's comfortable with both hands and he makes free throws. He just has a great feel for the game, and you can tell winning is important to him. My concern is that he doesn't have a lot of upside, he's a finished product. And he's not a great athlete, so he has a ceiling.

[Double Helix]

Great find, Dagger.

[Alfred]

I don't understand how you can say that Derrick Williams isn't a good athlete.

[fredericklove]

HB plays like Sean Elliott.......................................? I can't really picture that.

[RomaniaLuvTR]

i have a feeling Alec Burks is going to be the steal of the draft...i see a little Wade in him..just remember this post..

[Kevin Willis]

Sean Elliot was a good player in his day so that's not a knock. He was similar in height - stature. A really good player, top 2-3 on every team he played on. Can shoot. Can drive. Can't carry a team though. Borderline All-Star every year in his prime, sort of like Ginobilli. It's not that far off.

Edit: Some love for Leonard and Honeycutt. We need wing players and both would be fine with me - Fire and Ice.

Kris Joseph is alright too but I can also see him slipping to maybe our Miami pick.

[sunny]

He's not a great athlete, but he's physical, he has a high basketball IQ, and he's a winner. He's a little undersized, but he's pretty effective and his numbers are crazy. I love his patience. He's a four-three combo at the next level. What he's really developed this year is his outside shot. I question his motor a little, but he's definitely a lottery pick.

LOL

[sunny]

Here's a scouts view of all the NCAA prospects. Very interesting read.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/w ... index.html

Harrison Barnes, 6-foot-8 freshman forward, North Carolina
I finally figured him out. People have been trying to say he's Marvin Williams, but I think he's Sean Elliott. He's not a star, but he's an all-around good player. If you're expecting a franchise player, you're going to be sadly mistaken, but he can definitely help. If he came out, I'm not sure he'd be a top-five pick, but if he slipped to eight or nine people would come up with reasons why they should take him instead of why they shouldn't.

Terrence Jones, 6-8 freshman forward, Kentucky
He's a lottery pick. He scores inside and in transition. His shot is low, but if he takes his time he can make shots. He needs to be a little less selfish with the basketball, but he's a talented kid. He's a poor man's Michael Beasley. I'm not sure I trust his shot yet, but man, he competes. People ask, What position is he? I say he's a basketball player.

Perry Jones, 6-10 freshman forward, Baylor
He's the most talented kid in the class, but I don't think he's a franchise player. He doesn't have the personality for that. He's more of a blend player. He reminds me of Tim Thomas. He gets you 22 and 11, but you want him to get 36 and 17. If a team has a point guard and wants to pass on Kyrie Irving, I could see him going No. 1. He's so stinking fast it's amazing. You talk to the coaches, they say he wins all the sprints in practice against the guards. One thing you have to wonder about is he never won, not in high school, not in AAU.

Kyrie Irving, 6-2 freshman guard, Duke
Do I have any reservations if he doesn't play this year? Not even a little bit. He's that good. He'll still be a top three pick if he comes out. This is a point guards' league, it's not a centers' league anymore. He's a good athlete, not a great athlete, so he'll never be electric like John Wall or Derrick Rose, but Chris Paul is not electric in that way either.

Jared Sullinger, 6-9 freshman forward, Ohio State
I love him. He's like Elton Brand but he's a better basketball player. If he's not No. 1, he's not lasting past the top three. He'll get his shot blocked just like Kevin Love did, but his shooting percentage already accounts for that. He's comfortable with both hands and he makes free throws. He just has a great feel for the game, and you can tell winning is important to him. My concern is that he doesn't have a lot of upside, he's a finished product. And he's not a great athlete, so he has a ceiling.

interesting read - im glad you posted it.

With that said, I would put absolutely no merit into any of those reports.

[JamesNaismith]

Do not want Perry Jones....the more I watch footage the eerily familar his game is to Anthony Randolph. Just go check out DraftExpress.

[5DOM]

If Irving's gone, I'd swing for the fences and take Perry Jones. Barnes simply hasn't been that impressive. If I wanted a safer pick with an NBA position, I'd rather go after Sullinger. Another 4, but absolutely love him.

[fredericklove]

If Irving's gone, I'd swing for the fences and take Perry Jones. Barnes simply hasn't been that impressive. If I wanted a safer pick with an NBA position, I'd rather go after Sullinger. Another 4, but absolutely love him.

Same here, I'm a big Sully fan and really wish he could be in Toronto but too bad it sucks that the position need is our main priority. HB has progressed and I am still a huge believer on his exceptional work ethic. Think of all the unknown nba players with insane work ethic. It turns them from raw to star-players level (e.g. Agent Zero)

[fredericklove]

If y'all got time to kill, take a look at how the medical staff keeps the Duke Squad healthy and ready to play. At 1:48 it shows a little bit of Irving.

http://www.thedoctorstv.com/videolib/init/3530

[Prestige]

That scouting report would have you believe there isn't a single franchise player in this entire draft. Which is why I refuse to believe it. If only to console myself over the fact that we once again will have a top pick in a weak draft, only this time its even worse than what we had before.

[Reignman]

That scouting report would have you believe there isn't a single franchise player in this entire draft. Which is why I refuse to believe it. If only to console myself over the fact that we once again will have a top pick in a weak draft, only this time its even worse than what we had before.

It's the same story with every draft, people start saying it's weak and then within a few years of the class playing there's always a star or two. You just have to make sure you pick the right player.

Just look at the 2006 draft for example, everyone poo poo'd that draft prior to it and then for a good 3 to 4 years after. If you look now, that draft actually yielded 3 or 4 stars: Rondo, Gay, Roy (pre-injury) and now Aldridge. That's 4 all-star level talents (I'm talking about talent not whether they actually made it) from a draft everyone said was one of the worst all-time.

Same thing will happen with this draft, I wouldn't be surprised if there's 3 or 4 all-star level players in it, I just hope we draft one of them.

[BBen]

I've read some of your previous posts and I know you are an avid follower of the NCAA, in your opinion is Jones more suited to be a 4 or 3 at the next level? I think that's the biggest question with him, esp. considering he doesn't do the things a 4 man should be doing quite well.

Jones is clearly a run and gun 4 to me right now which is unfortunately not going to be his eventual NBA position. His similarities to Marvin Williams are uncanny in my eyes. Both are freakish athletes with a mediocre handle, a propensity to shoot or drive instead of post-up (Jones posts more in college than Williams did though) and a decent nose for the rebound. I'd say Jones will end up playing the 3 and averaging 12 and 6 as the third or fourth option. Unfortunately all of Jones' coordination and run-and-jump athleticism won't aid him that much as a 3 in the NBA and he'll just be too small to guard 4s. These are the same problems that Marvin Williams and Terrence Williams both encountered (both are overly athletic 3s from the PNW although TWill has a more prototypical body for a SF). He needs to work on a consistent outside jumper more than anything else.

At least with Jones you know that you're going to be able to select him since none of Calipari's star freshman ever seem to want to stay another year.

[yayotube]

I've read some of your previous posts and I know you are an avid follower of the NCAA, in your opinion is Jones more suited to be a 4 or 3 at the next level? I think that's the biggest question with him, esp. considering he doesn't do the things a 4 man should be doing quite well.

Jones is clearly a run and gun 4 to me right now which is unfortunately not going to be his eventual NBA position. His similarities to Marvin Williams are uncanny in my eyes. Both are freakish athletes with a mediocre handle, a propensity to shoot or drive instead of post-up (Jones posts more in college than Williams did though) and a decent nose for the rebound. I'd say Jones will end up playing the 3 and averaging 12 and 6 as the third or fourth option. Unfortunately all of Jones' coordination and run-and-jump athleticism won't aid him that much as a 3 in the NBA and he'll just be too small to guard 4s. These are the same problems that Marvin Williams and Terrence Williams both encountered (both are overly athletic 3s from the PNW although TWill has a more prototypical body for a SF). He needs to work on a consistent outside jumper more than anything else.

At least with Jones you know that you're going to be able to select him since none of Calipari's star freshman ever seem to want to stay another year.

I should've been more clear, but I was referring to Perry, not Terrence.

[Kevin Willis]

Renardo Sidney, 6-10 sophomore forward, Mississippi State
I have no interest in him. He's a fat kid. The history on him is just not good. If he had no baggage and it was just a weight issue, then he'd probably get more attention. If you're going to have a weight issue plus baggage, you better be Shaquille O'Neal off the charts. Now some other team might say he's talented, we can deal with all this stuff, let's take him. But he's not for me.


OUCH.

But I agree with these two -

Kawhi Leonard, 6-7 sophomore forward, San Diego State
That kid is just a basketball player. The questions are going to be position and jump shot. He's a fantastic rebounder, obviously, with a decent handle. They use him as their backup point guard sometimes. And he's got the biggest damn hands I've ever seen. He makes the ball look like a grapefruit. He could be a Desmond Mason-type guy. The thing about him is they signed him early in high school, he went on to become California player of the year, he had a great freshman season and he has continued to make strides. So this kid has gotten better the last three years.

Tyler Honeycutt, 6-8 sophomore forward, UCLA
He just looks the part, doesn't he? He sometimes leaves you wanting more, but he's very skilled for his size. Yes, you wish he was tougher and more physical, but they just don't make a lot of 6-7 and 6-8 kids who can do the things he can do. If he's not in the lottery he's going to be close.

[Brinbe]

Interesting read, thanks Dag.

Irving and the two Jones' remain my favs with the top-5 pick (and Jonas, but he's not really mentioned here) while I remain iffy on Barnes... Also like what I've seen/read about Burks and Knight, but they're not really in our range unless we move back in the lottery (or move up with our Miami pick).

Also, that's not to say a D-Will or Sullinger wouldn't be good here, but as said, they don't really fill needs and personally, I don't think they're big enough upgrades to justify going with a BPA approach.

[dagger]

This will drive a lot of you nuts.

Givony of DraftExpress is having multiple orgasms watch Donatas Montiejunas play.

DraftExpress
Many NBA GMs believe talent trumps everything when building a team. For them, Donatas Motiejunas will look awfully attractive on draft night

[Consequence]

This will drive a lot of you nuts.

Givony of DraftExpress is having multiple orgasms watch Donatas Montiejunas play.

DraftExpress
Many NBA GMs believe talent trumps everything when building a team. For them, Donatas Motiejunas will look awfully attractive on draft night

Heh.

On another note, can anyone with Insider sum up Chad Ford's article today about who he expects to declare? I saw a tweet mentioning that Lucas Noguiera is mentioned as likely to declare in it, and I'd love to grab him with the MIA pick.