Official Raptors 2011 NBA Draft Thread, Part 6

[5DOM]

It's actually because the non freshmen (especially the seniors) suck this season.
Age difference matters when the two players are at similar talent level, but Kemba's been clearly better this year.

Oh really? Then how come last year the first senior was picked at 23 ? and not a single senior in the top ten the year before that until Terrence Williams was selected at 11 ? and not a single senior selected in the top 10 the year before that? Yeah if you look at history, age IS an important factor for NBA scouts

Again, I agree that age is an important factor but you are putting too much emphasis on it when the comparison is between two players where one player is clearly better than the other right now.

Look at Evan Turner and Wesley Johnson, they had no problem going in the top 5 last year.

Look at Favors vs. Ed Davis. 19 year old Freshman vs. 21 year old Sophomore. Of course it's still to early to say, but do you still think there should have been 10 picks b/w them?

[TiKusDom]

Again, I agree that age is an important factor but you are putting too much emphasis on it when the comparison is between two players where one player is clearly better than the other right now.

Look at Evan Turner and Wesley Johnson, they had no problem going in the top 5 last year.

Look at Favors vs. Ed Davis. 19 year old Freshman vs. 21 year old Sophomore. Of course it's still to early to say, but do you still think there should have been 10 picks b/w them?

Ed Davis would have gone as a top 5 draft pick if he declared as a freshman. He was marked as a consensus top 5 pick as a freshman after UNC finished its season. He would have gone much higher if he declared as a freshman, but fell as a sophomore. In fact that proves my argument more, as a freshman Ed Davis was a stud and everyone projected him to be a great player in the NBA and had him going top 5. As a sophmore his stock plummeted because of his injuries.

[RaptorReloaded]

Bayless over Walker and Knight. We should be looking to draft a sf or center and getting rid of Jose. I'm liking the idea of getting Kanter, Barnes or P.Jones.

[Silk Wilkes]

Bayless over Walker and Knight. We should be looking to draft a sf or center and getting rid of Jose. I'm liking the idea of getting Kanter, Barnes or P.Jones.

Agreed. I was looking at Jerryd and Derrick Rose last night and they are almost exactly the same size. Obviously Derrick is more athletic but Jerryd is no slouch. I'm not saying Jerryd is gonna be Derrick Rose good but he has the potential to be really good. He has the tools. We need a wing if Kyrie is gone, not Brandon or Kemba.

[5DOM]

Again, I agree that age is an important factor but you are putting too much emphasis on it when the comparison is between two players where one player is clearly better than the other right now.

Look at Evan Turner and Wesley Johnson, they had no problem going in the top 5 last year.

Look at Favors vs. Ed Davis. 19 year old Freshman vs. 21 year old Sophomore. Of course it's still to early to say, but do you still think there should have been 10 picks b/w them?

Ed Davis would have gone as a top 5 draft pick if he declared as a freshman. He was marked as a consensus top 5 pick as a freshman after UNC finished its season. He would have gone much higher if he declared as a freshman, but fell as a sophomore. In fact that proves my argument more, as a freshman Ed Davis was a stud and everyone projected him to be a great player in the NBA and had him going top 5. As a sophmore his stock plummeted because of his injuries.

Wait.. by using the same logic you are using in Knight-Kemba debate, wouldn't you still have drafted Favors over Davis because his freshman year was better than Davis' and he's also 2 years younger than Davis? Besides the gap b/w Knight and Kemba right now is much bigger than Davis and Favors anyway.

[bboyskinnylegs]

Bayless over Walker and Knight. We should be looking to draft a sf or center and getting rid of Jose. I'm liking the idea of getting Kanter, Barnes or P.Jones.

Agreed. I was looking at Jerryd and Derrick Rose last night and they are almost exactly the same size. Obviously Derrick is more athletic but Jerryd is no slouch. I'm not saying Jerryd is gonna be Derrick Rose good but he has the potential to be really good. He has the tools. We need a wing if Kyrie is gone, not Brandon or Kemba.

we also need a C, the bigger guys on the Bulls really bothered us last night. I'm liking our draft position right now. If we can't get Kyrie, we won't have to reach for one of the other PGs... the BPA in our range is very likely going to be a SF or C in Barnes/Jones/Williams/Kanter/Valanciunas.

[Silk Wilkes]

Bayless over Walker and Knight. We should be looking to draft a sf or center and getting rid of Jose. I'm liking the idea of getting Kanter, Barnes or P.Jones.

Agreed. I was looking at Jerryd and Derrick Rose last night and they are almost exactly the same size. Obviously Derrick is more athletic but Jerryd is no slouch. I'm not saying Jerryd is gonna be Derrick Rose good but he has the potential to be really good. He has the tools. We need a wing if Kyrie is gone, not Brandon or Kemba.

we also need a C, the bigger guys on the Bulls really bothered us last night. I'm liking our draft position right now. If we can't get Kyrie, we won't have to reach for one of the other PGs... the BPA in our range is very likely going to be a SF or C in Barnes/Jones/Williams/Kanter/Valanciunas.

We're almost in perfect range unless we were hell bent on Kyrie. I'm starting to cool on him though. I think we can get something solid if we "miss out" in the Kyrie Irving sweepstakes.

[MinnyMo]

Why does this board seem to me gravitating towards drafting Perry Jones on Valanciunas, both of whom are expected to play the 4 in the NBA? Can someone explain to me how that would make us better when we have the glut of players at the 4 like we do?

I think if we miss out on Irving or Barnes, we should just pick the BPA, and trade with what ever team picks Walker/Knight/Kanter

[andrewxle]

LOL our fans make me laugh....A week ago this whole board was saying "bayless cant run this team" how we should draft kemba, brandon knight, how we desperately need a PG. Now after one game everybody is saying we should keep him. =/

[TiKusDom]

Wait.. by using the same logic you are using in Knight-Kemba debate, wouldn't you still have drafted Favors over Davis because his freshman year was better than Davis' and he's also 2 years younger than Davis?

Yes in last years draft I would have drafted Favors over Davis considering he was a consensus top 5 pick by every scout, draft board, and analyst in the NBA. You are assuming that because Favors hasn't performed as well as Ed Davis at this point he is somehow a worse prospect. However you completely disregard the fact that Favors was put in a very negative environment for a rookie, in an organization that showed no confidence in him, had him in a trade rumours almost every week, which has a huge negative impact on a young players development. Put him on the Raptors and he could be doing better than Ed Davis is now. Yes I would have drafted Favors over Ed , he has more potential, better NBA body, is a more physical defender , all the while being 2 years younger. I dont know who will be better, but if I was selecting last year without the ability to see into the future obviously I take Favors over Ed, just like every executive in the NBA would have.

[5DOM]

Why does this board seem to me gravitating towards drafting Perry Jones on Valanciunas, both of whom are expected to play the 4 in the NBA? Can someone explain to me how that would make us better when we have the glut of players at the 4 like we do?

I think if we miss out on Irving or Barnes, we should just pick the BPA, and trade with what ever team picks Walker/Knight/Kanter

Valanciunas will be a C.
And everyone's hoping Perry Jones can play the 3. That's his preferred position as well.

[Mr.Raptorsingh]

The way I look at it, from a basketball standpoint, we need somebody who can get defences to collapse in the painted area. Andrea Bargnani, if he had a post-game or if he can channel the game he had in NY more often, could potentially get the job done.

Now, we can sit here and hope that DeMar becomes this kind of player, and for him to do so he'll need to become adequate in a triple-threat setup, meaning his jumpshot would need to improve, so that defences won't play him solely for the 2-dribbles-and-drive or spin.

Enes Kanter, if he has some game in the post, can present some interesting things offensively, while also contributing defensively, simply by not allowing his man deep post position. Specifically, if he can eventually draw doubles down there, it opens up shot opportunities for Bayless, an improved perimeter threat in DeMar, and others.

Or, if we go the Kyrie Irving, or the Kemba Walker route at 4 or 5, these guys possess the ability to make defences react to their forays to the basket, and the same effect can happen where all of a sudden we get easier shot opportunities via ball movement.

Perry Jones is also intriguing because of his mismatch potential. I'm just a bit concerned about his makeup.

[crosswalkryan]

My draft order is still:

Irving/Barnes/D-Will...Kanter/Val/Kemba/Knight/Jones

with a big drop in talent from top 3 to bottom 5 there

[derrick-rozay]

We need to pray we get a top 3 pick. The only players I see being "game changing" are Irving (for a team like ours because we're missing a play making PG. I'm getting tired of pnrs with Jose and Bargnani), D. Will, and I've been in love with Kanter ever since the Nike Hoop Summit . no homo.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YzbhAQGPqk[/youtube]

Kemba Walker could be the next Allen Iverson. It comes down to his height because he has the skills, the motor, and the leadership to be a very good player. He didn't have a very good game last night but I think he was injured because he is usually crossing people over left and right. He just wasn't himself.
Brandon Knight strikes me as another SG in a PG's body. I don't see any PG instincts in him but he is a very good scorer. I think we can all agree we have enough scorers.
Barnes is so hard to judge because he is inconsistent. I think he'll be a solid player in a few years but he's not the #1 option we're looking for.
I am going to be pissed if we pick Perry Jones and he takes years to develop... If he ever does.

[RaptorReloaded]

If walker was anything like Iverson he would be the number 1 pick this draft.

[derrick-rozay]

If walker was anything like Iverson he would be the number 1 pick this draft.

If he was a few inches taller he would have a chance to.

[bballsparkin]

Despite his horrible shooting night I still pick Knight over Kemba. Kemba tried to dump it in a couple times and UK just took it. The smaller a player the more skill needed. Kemba is skilled but not enough to make up for his size imo. I would like Knight to fall and for BC to somehow get him with a second pick. I am mostly likely dreaming sure. Must be nice having that Clippers pick.

[Reef]

Despite his horrible shooting night I still pick Knight over Kemba. Kemba tried to dump it in a couple times and UK just took it. The smaller a player the more skill needed. Kemba is skilled but not enough to make up for his size imo. I would like Knight to fall and for BC to somehow get him with a second pick. I am mostly likely dreaming sure. Must be nice having that Clippers pick.

The problem with Knight is that it looks like if his shot isn't falling, there's not much else he can do. He didn't really create much off the dribble for his teammates and when he did get to the hoop he couldn't finish. He just can't run a team.

[bballsparkin]

Well like someone said previously, it's congested in the NCAA so he may prove to have better handles in the big leagues. And I'm admittedly more interested in him due to the success of players like Westbrook. I also would like to think his shot selection is a result of age which may be naive. Either way, Kemba or Knight, hopefully with a second pick.

[bballsparkin]

Supposing the Raps won first and Cleavland fell to third or fourth, would Raps fans trade the first pick for Cleavlands pick and Clippers pick? Assuming Cleavland had their eyes on one specific player.