Prospect Watch Thread

[moss_is_1]

I think Barnes is going to be special.

Why? He's been average at best all year.

I still think Barnes is my guy for this team.

(1) He's sort of a local product (from Aimes - 4 hrs away) so we know he won't be unhappy playing in the twin cities.

(2) College wings typically don't set the word on fire their freshman years. Look at Mayo, Derozan, Brandon Roy, Joe Johnson, etc.

(3) He is high A+++ character with leadership intangibles.

And also the fact that he was the #1 recruit out of HS, is the first freshman EVER to be voted on the preseason all american team, and his character is so exceptional. You just don't see highly scouted guys with great work ethic and more than half a brain fail.

He's consistently improved throughout the year and has shown that he doesn't shy away from the big moments. #Winner

I agree with you 100%. Barnes is going to be a beast in the NBA. I've really liked what I've seen and read on him. He's a good shooter, passer, defender, athlete. I think he's got enormous potential to be a franchise guy. He needs a better handle and he'll be complete, he's really playing great for UNC the last 10 or so games.

NC State-25 points
Boston College-26 points
Florida State-17 points 10 rebounds
Duke-9 points(only 8 shots)
Clemson-20 points
Wake-17 points
Boston College-10 points 9 rebounds
NC State-16 points 8 rebounds
Maryland-21 points
Florida State-18 points, gw three

I think part of the reason he doesn't put up huge numbers is UNC is stacked and Roy Williams sucks.

[horaceworthy]

I think Barnes is going to be special.

Why? He's been average at best all year.

He ranged mostly from putrid to average to start the year, but since Kendall Marshall took over the starting PG spot and Barnes got his confidence going by hitting the game winner in Miami, he's been pretty good. He's managed to raise his PER from something around 9 to a bit over 17 in that timespan. While 17 still isn't exactly lighting the world on fire for a collegiate player, that's an impressive increase.

[horaceworthy]

I still think Barnes is my guy for this team.

(1) He's sort of a local product (from Aimes - 4 hrs away) so we know he won't be unhappy playing in the twin cities.

(2) College wings typically don't set the word on fire their freshman years. Look at Mayo, Derozan, Brandon Roy, Joe Johnson, etc.

(3) He is high A+++ character with leadership intangibles.

I think Barnes not dominating from day 1 has more to do with him being 18 than (2). Most of the guys like Beasley, Love, Wall, Cousins, etc. who stepped right into awesome at the college level were 19 their freshman year (Durant being a notable exception). 18 year olds who either stumbled as frosh or made big leaps as sophomores include Blake Griffin, Jrue Holiday, Greg Monroe, Derrick Favors, etc. Depending on what you think of his time in Golden State, you might even throw Randolph on that list.

This is actually one of the things I potentially really like about this draft class. Barnes, Irving, Valanciunas, Kanter, Sullinger, Knight, Nogueira, etc. are all 18. There are some 19 year old sophomores who look to have made big leaps in Derrick Williams, Alec Burks and Kawhi Leonard.

This draft is tough to peg. It has a chance to be really good, but it's tough to judge because the two potentially best big men aren't playing in the NBA (Valanciunas and Kanter), the top prospects are a bit younger than usual, and the lockout leaves some things still up in the air (but at the end of the day, there's still going to be 30 guaranteed contracts available). People don't realize some things like that when looking at this class, and as opposed to most years, when there's an average of about one lotto pick per year who didn't play in the NCAA, there are potentially 4 lotto picks not playing in the NCAA right now that most don't get to see on a regular basis.

[Saltine]

Here is an interesting take on Barnes from people who watch him every game...
http://www.dailytarheel.com/index.php/a ... son_barnes

For everything that folks wished Harrison Barnes was when the season began, he’s a finisher. It’s not something a lot of players can say. In fact, it’s not something a lot of elite players can say (see James, LeBron). But against Duke, North Carolina needs Barnes to be more than a finisher. The Tar Heels need him to play the entire 40 minutes like he does the last four.

Barnes has hit game-winning or go-ahead baskets in five games for UNC. Those include two last-second 3-pointers in the state of Florida, the most recent of which came Wednesday night in Tallahassee. But as big as those buckets have been for Barnes and the Tar Heels, he hasn’t been nearly as impressive in the opening 36 or so minutes of games. With the biggest game of the season looming, Barnes needs to be the star all game long.

“I would like to always be known as a finisher,” Barnes told me after the N.C. State win last Wednesday. “But it’s more of, make sure it’s a complete game. You shouldn’t always have to have a slow start and then always come up big in the end. You should be able to do it consistently throughout a game.” He scored nine quick points on 3-for-4 3-point shooting against Maryland on Sunday to start the game and it seemed the Black Falcon would finally string together a complete game. He tapered off though and finished with nine field goals on 23 attempts.
........

[shangrila]

He's a perfect fit. The team can play with anyone for 44 minutes but struggles in the last 4. Barnes isn't great in the first 44 but is HOF in the last 4. Yes? YES!?

Seems like the best fit to me. Even better if they can get him to be more consistent then Beasley has been.

[Worm Guts]

He's not a perfect fit since he's far more small forward than shooting guard.

[shangrila]

If Beasley keeps up his current play I wouldn't exactly let him dictate whether or not to take Barnes.

[collin_k41]

Hate to jump on the bandwagon but Barnes would be my personal pick as well. If we could draft him and bring Rubio over, that'd be a sweet offseason in and of itself. My only worry is that he won't enter the draft this year. The kid highly values education, not to mention I'm pretty sure he knows he has more to give UNC. I hope he comes out though so we have a chance at him, a can't miss type of prospect.

[Worm Guts]

If Beasley keeps up his current play I wouldn't exactly let him dictate whether or not to take Barnes.

Wes is also a SF

[Klomp]

If Beasley keeps up his current play I wouldn't exactly let him dictate whether or not to take Barnes.

Wes is also a SF

But has also shown he can defend the best SG in the game...I'd have no issue pairing Johnson and Barnes.

[bluethunder0005]

I'm fine with keeping Wes at SG if he can continue to prove he can play there on both offense and defense consistently. If we do take Barnes then I think we have to move Beasley, preferably for a Center.

[phonzadellika]

I haven't really had the opportunity to watch a tar heels game yet this year...thinking I'll get my chance during the tourney...but unless Barnes is really THAT good I think that dumping Beas for a rookie SF is short-sighted. I think part of Beas' struggles lately are part ankle recovery and part defenses adjusting to his game...you can tell he is frustrated right now. I don't know if Beas can net a C that would be better than the difference between him and Barnes.

If Barnes is going to be a sure-fire tour de force on D and also have the ability to create his own shot while shooting relatively efficiently, then it might be worth looking at. If he's going to play Beas-like D (and I don't think Beas D is horrible...I think he tries and will be better when the teams overall D improves) and put up Beas like stats then I'd rather just keep the guy who has got a year in the system and draft a big man or a guard.

[jpatrick]

I don't get the Barnes love. He has been clutch in the last minute of games but that doesn't mask what he does in the first 39. Despite having a good handle he can't beat anyone off the dribble therefore he doesn't get to the rim and never goes to the line . His offensive game right now consists of trying to get enough space to get off a jumper. The problem is he's only shooting 32% from 3 (and 40% overall).

With that said, he's been playing better lately. I see him as a very nice role player who hits open shots, moves the ball and plays good D, but definitely not the superstar I've read about in the last few posts, more of a Luol Deng/Marvin Williams type guy which isn't bad and is certainly a top 8 pick in this draft (maybe top 5).

[shangrila]

If Beasley keeps up his current play I wouldn't exactly let him dictate whether or not to take Barnes.

Wes is also a SF

Wes has had arguably his most productive stretch of his season lately and it's all come from starting and playing big minutes at SG. With more experience he'll be fine there.

[shangrila]

I don't get the Barnes love. He has been clutch in the last minute of games but that doesn't mask what he does in the first 39. Despite having a good handle he can't beat anyone off the dribble therefore he doesn't get to the rim and never goes to the line . His offensive game right now consists of trying to get enough space to get off a jumper. The problem is he's only shooting 32% from 3 (and 40% overall).

I don't think I would call his handles good. They're better then Wes' but that isn't saying much. Once he improves them he should be able to get to the line a lot more, especially in the more open NBA game.

The thing with Barnes is that he isn't the kind of sure fire prospect that Wall or Griffin were. Right now he's still transitioning from the post to the perimeter and is in a lot of ways still a huge work in progress. But the kid has a good work ethic and excellent character, if you believe the reports, and if he's overcoming the biggest knock against him in pre-season (doesn't have the 'killer instinct') then I think the sky's the limit for him as a player.

[Krapinsky]

The Barnes love has a lot to do with my current level of Beasley frustration. What I don't like about Beasley, Barnes seems to have the opposite characteristics.

One thing that was said at SSAC today that was retweeted by many was that a player can be one of Soft, Selfish, and Stupid, but not two. I worry that Beasley is two.

But Barnes doesn't mean we have to give up on Beasley right now. It probably means we have to give up on Webster though. Barnes being a 19 year old rookie you would not expect him to get too many minutes out of the gate. That would give us a little more time to see what we have with Beasley.

[Worm Guts]

If Beasley keeps up his current play I wouldn't exactly let him dictate whether or not to take Barnes.

Wes is also a SF

Wes has had arguably his most productive stretch of his season lately and it's all come from starting and playing big minutes at SG. With more experience he'll be fine there.

He's been playing mostly SG all year, I think we'd be better if we started playing our players at their natural positions.

[phonzadellika]

I'm fine with giving up on Webster. He's been inconsistent and now he's got injuries on top of it. But the opportunity cost of taking Barnes means that we don't improve our C play or our PG play, which are the positions of greatest need for the future, especially if Rubio doesn't come out. I think the Wolves need to come out of this draft with a high quality bona fide NBA C.

I'm not even sure that Barnes is the best SF in this draft, although I haven't even watched him play yet outside of some youtube videos. Jan Vesely looks like he'd be fun to watch, but I haven't seen a game of his yet either. I have watched Derrick Williams and Terence Jones play and they were both impressive. And Alex Burks is a legit shooting guard that a lot of people like. There are tons of wings in this draft, and none of them seem to be head and shoulders over the others yet. The Wolves could probably trade back into the lottery and nab one. If one wing separates themselves in the tourney, then game on.

[Krapinsky]

I'm fine with giving up on Webster. He's been inconsistent and now he's got injuries on top of it. But the opportunity cost of taking Barnes means that we don't improve our C play or our PG play, which are the positions of greatest need for the future, especially if Rubio doesn't come out. I think the Wolves need to come out of this draft with a high quality bona fide NBA C.

I'm not even sure that Barnes is the best SF in this draft, although I haven't even watched him play yet outside of some youtube videos. Jan Vesely looks like he'd be fun to watch, but I haven't seen a game of his yet either. I have watched Derrick Williams and Terence Jones play and they were both impressive. And Alex Burks is a legit shooting guard that a lot of people like. There are tons of wings in this draft, and none of them seem to be head and shoulders over the others yet. The Wolves could probably trade back into the lottery and nab one. If one wing separates themselves in the tourney, then game on.

Does one exist in this draft?? That seems like a remote possibility. Further, with Randolph now in the mix it's possible another front court player isn't needed. We'll have to wait and see.

What Kahn and Rambis have said all along is this team needs that go to scorer to close out games. We were hoping that might be Beasley, but he seems to be too easily rattled and turnover prone.

Out of everyone in the draft I think Barnes has the tools, the composure, and the mindset to be that guy -- though, again, there might not be a guy like that in this draft.

[phonzadellika]

I don't think Beas gets easily rattled, I think that right now NBA teams have him figured out, which isn't hard to do when he basically does the same things on offense all the time. He's not a very creative player. Artest had his number at the beginning of the season when he said that Beas has got 1 move. So either teams have found a way to defeat him, or the ankle is still bothering him so he isn't as unbeatable as he was early in the year, although it's probably a combination of both. Either way, he's got growing pains right now.

I'm excited about Randolph, he seems determined to make it work here, I hope he finishes the season strong. I like him playing with Love but he's not the answer at C for the long haul. Darko is more of a face-up guy. Pek plays below the rim. Randolph is too skinny. There obviously aren't any Dwight Howards, Shaqs, or Ewings in this draft, but if we get a guy who is an intuitive defensive player and a natural back to the basket player it will be a huge upgrade over what we have now. It may not exist in this draft, but Valanciunas looks like he could be a high-level piece. I know it's not what you want from your #3 pick, but I don't know that this a BPA draft outside of Irving.


I don't know, maybe Barnes is the answer...but so is Wes maybe. He's been hitting bigger and bigger shots lately. He looks like a different player than he did in the beginning of the year.

If we did draft Barnes, I believe that a Rubio/Johnson/Barnes/Randolph/Love lineup would be a terror on the break. Would probably be a 100% improvement defensively against most teams we face as well.