Official Raptors 2011 NBA Draft Thread, Part 5

[arbsn]

A bigger question now is: Does Harrison Barnes declare for the draft? We've heard that he's been leaning towards staying or that it's been 50/50 all year.

Does this loss tip the scale one way or the other?

I say he goes into the draft. He's a top 5 pick this year in a weak draft. Top 5 won't be handed to him next year, and if he's as inconsistent next year he would probably be fringe lottery

So it would be silly for Barnes not to declare... Plus UNC is getting James Mcadoo who plays the 3

[Sizemore24]

A bigger question now is: Does Harrison Barnes declare for the draft? We've heard that he's been leaning towards staying or that it's been 50/50 all year.

Does this loss tip the scale one way or the other?

I hope no. Macadoo is a better player than he his.

[Reef]

Can Knight break guys down off the dribble? I just saw him mostly catch and shoot and lead the fast break. I know the system is partly to blame for that.

He broke his man down in the game winning shots against Princeton and Ohio State.

Nice.

[arbsn]

Can Knight break guys down off the dribble? I just saw him mostly catch and shoot and lead the fast break. I know the system is partly to blame for that.

He broke his man down in the game winning shots against Princeton and Ohio State.

Both of those were set up by Pick and roll NOT iso

[Rude Boy 1]

Can Knight break guys down off the dribble? I just saw him mostly catch and shoot and lead the fast break. I know the system is partly to blame for that.

His handle isn't incredible as far as I can see. But he does have the ability to get separation.

[Mos Def]

The problem with Barnes is that it looks like he plays too laid back on the court. Hard to tell if it's just him trying to run the offense or if he just likes to coast throughout most of the game....

The other issue I have is he seems to rely on his jumpshot/3-point shot too much. He has to work on getting to the rim and/or posting up more. He certainly has the physique to do so.

[5DOM]

PG this draft, SF next draft doesn't sound bad. Hope we can get a decent C through free agency or trades

[ItsDanger]

My thoughts on Barnes & Knight.

Barnes, pure chucker, selfish on offense, hits the set 3 well, huge drop when pressure or movement, limited break down ability. On the 3 to make it 73-69, he lost his man on easy coverage. Still think his D is mediocre, he's goign to have problems in the NBA.

Knight, excellent speed but his offense still looked ordinary, as far as running a team offense or making plays in the paint, nothing special.

I come away feeling this draft is nothing special and we wont improve our team much at all. Uninspiring talents.

[U_Mad]

I still want to draft Barnes, if you look @ UNC, whit Henson and Zeller, it was never necessary for Barnes to go into the paint, and he was never really relied on heavily to supply the O so he'd just stay at the perimeter and take his jump shots.....but then when they do need him you can see how he is able to flip a switch and take a game over and that killer instinct is very intriguing because its something that we've been missing on this team for a long time...
Also he'd be a great fit beside DD and it'd make Caldys job easier (not havin to shoot as much)

[Reef]

PG this draft, SF next draft doesn't sound bad. Hope we can get a decent C through free agency or trades

Trade Bargs for a top 10 pick and hope Kanter measures out around 6-11 in shoes. Draft Knight and Kanter. I wish lol.

[Mr.Raptorsingh]

PG this draft, SF next draft doesn't sound bad. Hope we can get a decent C through free agency or trades

Yeah, and plus, I think the SF depth in next year's draft is flat-out better than this year's draft. After Barnes and Williams (who some say is a 4), who else is there?

[basketball royalty]

I think I would be fine with getting Knight if Irving is off the board by our pick. I like Kemba too but his at his height I wouldn't be comfortable drafting him at 4 or 5 where we are likely to be picking.

What other guys do you think fall into the 4-5 range that we can be comfortable in taking. I would look to either grabbing a PG or a SF and it seems this draft has good prospects at both those positions.

[Mr.Raptorsingh]

I think I would be fine with getting Knight if Irving is off the board by our pick. I like Kemba too but his at his height I wouldn't be comfortable drafting him at 4 or 5 where we are likely to be picking.

What other guys do you think fall into the 4-5 range that we can be comfortable in taking. I would look to either grabbing a PG or a SF and it seems this draft has good prospects at both those positions.

Pretty much all the guys we've mentioned. Irving, Knight, Barnes, Walker, and Williams.

But, I do think that Kanter and Valanciunas will make their way into the conversation.

[sunny]

The problem with Barnes is that it looks like he plays too laid back on the court. Hard to tell if it's just him trying to run the offense or if he just likes to coast throughout most of the game....

The other issue I have is he seems to rely on his jumpshot/3-point shot too much. He has to work on getting to the rim and/or posting up more. He certainly has the physique to do so.

Dating back to his days at Kansas, Roy Williams has always been a systems type of guy. I invite you to go back and watch Jamison/Carter at UNC if you like and watch how they played. Barnes might have a lot more to his game than what shows, but he plays within the UNC system.
This system dictates a lot of what he does on the court.
So its possible Barnes has a lot more than what he is showing now, it's hard to determine, but its definitely a factor to consider.

[fredericklove]

If Kentucky wins the title this year it's just going to bring a whole lot more pressure for the Gilchrist/Davis group, but I'm pretty sure Gilchrist thrives in these expectation. Hope we draft Irving this year and Gilchrist next.

[basketball royalty]

What do you guys think about Jeremy Lamb? I know his body is under developed but he is going to be good. Don't think he will be coming out though.

[Mr.Raptorsingh]

What do you guys think about Jeremy Lamb? I know his body is under developed but he is going to be good. Don't think he will be coming out though.

Huge fan. I've made this comparison a couple of times already, but I think he's a Doug Christie-type player.

[drew_28]

This may be a weak all around draft...but the top 5-8 players can make a difference IMO. I mean you've got Irving, DWilliams, Perry Jones, Barnes, Kanter, Terrence Jones add in Walker and Knight to the discussion..any one of those players will upgrade our current team.

We just need to find a way to cut bargs, jose, and barbosa lose...hopefully for a C or 2012 picks.

[5DOM]

What do you guys think about Jeremy Lamb? I know his body is under developed but he is going to be good. Don't think he will be coming out though.

He seems to do everything well and is supposed to have 7'4" wingspan. Sold.

[dagger]

Leaning right now,

Irving
Williams
Valanciunas
Barnes
Wright
Kanter
Walker
Jones
Vesely


I assume all of these enter the draft except maybe Barnes. Barnes may sound like he's staying today, but I wouldn't take no as definitive until late April.