2013 NBA draft prospects chatter

[Kembastockton]

I dont mind the losing either, but its how we lose and I just dont see very much potential on this team at all and I was listening to both the Frank Garcia & The Drive on the radio as well today and seems thats how alot of folks feel...we just have no talent and even though we are rebuilding none of our young guys really look that promising. So where's the hope thats whats most disappointing to me

Talk about the glass is half empty! None of our guys look that promising? Okay fella. No Kemba is looking down right mediocre. Even though he is currently having a better season than Raymond Felton, Darren Collison, Jeremy Lin, Ty Lawson, and DERRONE WILLIAMS. Naaw that's not promising at all for a second year point guard.

Whats your problem with someone having a different opinion than you....Kemba is a average at best player on a horrible team, somebody has to put up stats...they call those empty stats. You take off your rose colored glasses and tell me how you can look at this team and see any player that looks that promising?? We dont have one player on our team who should be starting on an NBA team right now unless its Sessions and he's our backup PG just signed to a 2yr deal...So who as an organization has the bobcats developed?? And whats so promising about a PG chucker, a big man that cant score, post properly or catch the ball and a SF that has a game built off energy w/ no jumper to speak of....you are blinded by your love of the bobcats. I refuse to sugarcoat something if it stinks and this stinks....

I have no problem with differing opinions. Your post was extremly negative. We all know the Bobcats are a bad team. No one has said diferently. I just posted earlier that we will likely be bad another two years before we start to turn any type of corner. You however are posting that we have nothing good going on which just isn't true. Kemba is developing into an exciting young player. And he is not doing it with empty stats. His field goal percentages are all respectable not great, but respectable and that is what dictates whether or not a player's stats are empty. If his stats were any better he would be a lock for most improved player which he has been in the discussion for all season. Being the best player on a bad team does not make your stats empty. By your logic the best stats should all come from players on bad teams. All the great teams would be teams with balanced scoring. Yes aside from Kemba our current roster is iffey at best, but earlier this season the Rockets turned a future lottery pick, a young player, and an expiring contract into James Harden. We have potential four lottery picks, and eight expirings the next two years. How can you look at all of that potential and still say things are bleak? You have to be able to see the possibilities.

[Kembastockton]

@Dave^^Not to make light of the condition (my fiancee has it), but I find it interesting that asthma is a "red flag" to you yet you wanted White...who's condition(s) seem(s) to be a much greater obstacle (or at least have been thus far). Either way I'm not really in the Bennett camp.

Great question, I never really thought about comparing the two. The big difference is I wanted White who I considered a top 5 talent in the late 1st or the 2nd round. The reward outweighs the risk. Bennett will probably go in the top 5, so he needs to display a lot more talent IMO to validate the risk/reward of a top 5 pick. White's mental illness actually makes him a better basketball player according to him. Asthma doesn't make anybody a better athlete. White has no problem with his illness while actually playing basketball, it's the basketball-related NBA lifestyle stuff that he was upset about because there was no mental health protocol.

Looking forward to this Indiana Illinois game. Brandon Paul is kind of underrated.

The problem my brother Dave is that his illness is causing him to miss games. Has he played in any nba games this season? That kind of reverses things doesn't it? He may have seemed like a risk/reward player in the beginning, but now it kind of seems that he was only a risk.

[Eoghan]

@Dave^^Not to make light of the condition (my fiancee has it), but I find it interesting that asthma is a "red flag" to you yet you wanted White...who's condition(s) seem(s) to be a much greater obstacle (or at least have been thus far). Either way I'm not really in the Bennett camp.

Great question, I never really thought about comparing the two. The big difference is I wanted White who I considered a top 5 talent in the late 1st or the 2nd round. The reward outweighs the risk. Bennett will probably go in the top 5, so he needs to display a lot more talent IMO to validate the risk/reward of a top 5 pick. White's mental illness actually makes him a better basketball player according to him. Asthma doesn't make anybody a better athlete. White has no problem with his illness while actually playing basketball, it's the basketball-related NBA lifestyle stuff that he was upset about because there was no mental health protocol.

Looking forward to this Indiana Illinois game. Brandon Paul is kind of underrated.

The problem my brother Dave is that his illness is causing him to miss games. Has he played in any nba games this season? That kind of reverses things doesn't it? He may have seemed like a risk/reward player in the beginning, but now it kind of seems that he was only a risk.

I don't want to drone on about Royce White in the prospects thread so I'll leave it at this:

White's illness hasn't caused him to miss any games. White's crusade to establish a mental health protocol in his contract has caused him to miss games. White's view, whether you agree with it or not, is that the NBA does not have the same protections for players with mental illnesses as it does with physical ones, thus he felt like he had an unsafe work environment. He was apparently not aware of this when he was drafted and apparently Houston and he have come to an agreement on the matter and he'll report to the D-league on the 11th.

Would this have happened if we drafted him? Probably but I doubt it would have reached this extent b/c A) we suck bad enough that he probably would have started and B) MJ being a former player possibly would have acquiesced to White's mental health concerns more readily than Houston did. But I readily admit that it's pure conjecture on my part.

[JMAC3]

White is being a drama queen trying to make a name for himself before even ever playing a single game. I could maybe understand this if he tried to play a year and it wasn't working, so he resorted to this, but I can't respect how he is handling this.

[JMAC3]

I don't see it. Smart isn't the re-bounder that Wade was and isn't nearly as efficient. Reading the scouting report I see him as a Rodney Stuckey like player who can actually pass the ball- which means he is essentially Jrue Holiday.

So you are saying you haven't seen him play, just boxscores and scouting reports.

Okay lets compare Smart and Wade for a minute just for fun.

Size- Wade is 6-4 and weighs 220. Smart is 6-4 and weighs 225 as an 18 year old.

Stat Line as Freshman-
Wade 17.8 pts, 6.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.1 blocks, and 2.5 steals
Smart 14.2 pts, 5.9 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 0.8 blocks and 3.0 steals

Given Wade had better shooting percentage, but Smart takes 4 threes a game compared to Wades 1.6. Also, the college game is extremely physical these days when compared to the NBA especially with hand checks. Both guys are strong body guards, with great athleticism, and ability to create for themselves and others.

Smart is a riskier pick then McLemore, because McLemore will be a good outside shooter at the next level and has good athleticism, but to me Smart could be a superstar. Just based off his past success, his ball handling skills, and the way he affects all parts of game (scoring, rebounding, passing, and defense).

[penquin11]

No, what im saying is that I have seen him shoot rediculously bad at times. He has a 40.2% FG and 22.1% 3pt for a reason.... The last game I saw him play he had like 5 consecutive missed shots near the end of the 1st Q Baylor game, he was killing their offense.

this might not be fair, but his stats are similar to Rodney' Stuckeys more then they are Wades- except Stuckey managed a better FG%... However Stuckey was one of those deceptively sexy stat guys in college- so its probably not fair.

[MasterIchiro]

Okay lets compare Smart and Wade for a minute just for fun.

Size- Wade is 6-4 and weighs 220. Smart is 6-4 and weighs 225 as an 18 year old.

Stat Line as Freshman-
Wade 17.8 pts, 6.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.1 blocks, and 2.5 steals
Smart 14.2 pts, 5.9 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 0.8 blocks and 3.0 steals

Given Wade had better shooting percentage, but Smart takes 4 threes a game compared to Wades 1.6. Also, the college game is extremely physical these days when compared to the NBA especially with hand checks. Both guys are strong body guards, with great athleticism, and ability to create for themselves and others.

Smart is a riskier pick then McLemore, because McLemore will be a good outside shooter at the next level and has good athleticism, but to me Smart could be a superstar. Just based off his past success, his ball handling skills, and the way he affects all parts of game (scoring, rebounding, passing, and defense).

Since you're high on Smart and McLemore I will direct this question at you. Let's say the Bobcats win the 1st or 2nd pick and select McLemore. Would you be willing to trade McLemore for the 2 Suns picks if with their first pick Smart is available? Do you think Smart + pick 13 is more valuable than McLemore?

[Badd_Intentions]

Only thing about Mclemore is if he will be more than a set shooter/finisher type player. Smarts shooting has a ways to go but he can be a playmaker and brings other intangibles to the table. Mclemores scoring has to be created for him rather than him creating his own offense. That's also why I currently have Bazz ranked higher than him.

[catch20two]

Even though Shabazz Muhammad is #1 on my list his behavior at the end of last night kind of bothered me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... RuZv7snezw

He may very well be aggravated by playing with chuckers that's less talented than him but refuse to pass. Either way he could've had a better immediate reaction as a teammate.

[penquin11]

Of the highlights Ive seen of Bazz, none of them have shone elite level speed. Now that could be because his coach is a moron and decides to play at a slower pace, or because his team is turnover central, but either way I am yet to see it.

That and he is a horrific passer. Also I can't tell if he isn't the best catcher, or if he team-mates just suck at passing.
----after more time----
I like his rebounding

he has a nice floater

he can make contact shots, has good post moves, is strong.

I was much more excited about Burke then I am Bazz, that stated, Bazz has a 3pt shot.

I still have McLemore over Bazz because McLemore is the better athlete, passer, shooter, and such.

[JMAC3]

No, what im saying is that I have seen him shoot rediculously bad at times. He has a 40.2% FG and 22.1% 3pt for a reason.... The last game I saw him play he had like 5 consecutive missed shots near the end of the 1st Q Baylor game, he was killing their offense.

this might not be fair, but his stats are similar to Rodney' Stuckeys more then they are Wades- except Stuckey managed a better FG%... However Stuckey was one of those deceptively sexy stat guys in college- so its probably not fair.

I agree he hasn't shot the ball great this season, but that doesn't stop him from winning games. When he has bad shooting games he normally has his 7 assist and 8 rebound type games. Lets be fair he is shooting 27.7% from three, which don't get me wrong is nothing to be excited about. However, you tried to take away nearly 6%... The thing that is encouraging about his outside shooting is he is still knocking down 1.1 threes per game so its not like he has hit 5 of 18 or something the dude has knocked down 23 threes this season.

I disagree with the Rodney Stuckey comparison, because Stuckey played for Eastern Washington whereas Smart is doing this against top 25 teams and in a tough Big 12 conference. The only thing that is comparable to Stuckey is that they both are about same size and have some point guard skills.

[JMAC3]

Since you're high on Smart and McLemore I will direct this question at you. Let's say the Bobcats win the 1st or 2nd pick and select McLemore. Would you be willing to trade McLemore for the 2 Suns picks if with their first pick Smart is available? Do you think Smart + pick 13 is more valuable than McLemore?

I really do not see the point in having both Portland pick and this 13th pick. I would rather be sure to bring in a quality guy, rather then quantity especially since we have so many young players already. So your asking me if I would rather have 7th, 13th, and 14th or the 2nd and 14th. Like I said I would rather just get who we want at 2nd then take what is left at 7 just for a mid first. I agree stock piling young talent is good, but we don't have to do it all in one year. Considering we most likely will have 2 top 10 picks next year.

Also, Smart is rising up Draft boards of late, now number 3 on NBADraft.net, so I doubt he will be there at 7 just depends on what draft order is like.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUa0DZg4jO0[/youtube]

[Badd_Intentions]

On bazz
I don't think he is that terrible of a passer. In that offense, when he gets the ball he tries to score. They run him off screens for 3s and sometimes try to get him in the post. I don't see howland there much longer bc they just look like a mess. No one really plays together, just 5 random guys.


He would avg at least another 4-5 pig if they were more uptempo. He is pretty good from what I've seen in transition. Speed seems decent, but body control and strength are his real forte attacking the rim which are invaluable at the next level.

[penquin11]

On bazz
I don't think he is that terrible of a passer. In that offense, when he gets the ball he tries to score. They run him off screens for 3s and sometimes try to get him in the post. I don't see howland there much longer bc they just look like a mess. No one really plays together, just 5 random guys.


He would avg at least another 4-5 pig if they were more uptempo. He is pretty good from what I've seen in transition. Speed seems decent, but body control and strength are his real forte attacking the rim which are invaluable at the next level.

I still would take McLemore over him. While his team is a mess Bazz really does need to work on passing, often he throws the ball to hard or to just doesn't put it in the right spot. Also I question his hands, he fumbles the ball too often for my comfort. Furthermore from a potential and "how many holes" perspective McLemore is the better prospect. He isn't famous for his handles or ability to drive and create, but on one or 2 occasions he has revealed an absolutely nasty hesitation- cross that creates plenty of space for him to nail a shot. The thing about McLemore I like is that defenses have to respect his shot, but that he is so fast and athletic that if given even a glimpse of daylight he can drive and dunk. To me his explosion is similar to Westbrooks, the guy simply has mad hops and mad speed, which I love. I don't know if he will be better than Bazz out of the gates but I am almost certain that if he can simply work on a step-back and a solid driving cross that he will be nearly unstoppable.

[Badd_Intentions]

I think overall they are right on par with each other as prospects. My test is, a minute left in the game, we have the ball and the other team is dug in on defense, who do you trust more to get you a bucket?

Just hate when we can't generate anything at the end of a game when teams take away a kemba or sessions drive to the basket.


A small note also is that Bazz is a true fresh, while Ben although wasn't allowed to play last yr he was allowed to practice.

I'd be pleased with either of them though.

[Liver_Pooty]

Muhammad acted like an ass last night walking off the court because he didn't take the last shot.

[Badd_Intentions]

Muhammad acted like an ass last night walking off the court because he didn't take the last shot.

Yea, that was pretty terrible

[Big_C_KU]

I think overall they are right on par with each other as prospects. My test is, a minute left in the game, we have the ball and the other team is dug in on defense, who do you trust more to get you a bucket?

Just hate when we can't generate anything at the end of a game when teams take away a kemba or sessions drive to the basket.


A small note also is that Bazz is a true fresh, while Ben although wasn't allowed to play last yr he was allowed to practice.

I'd be pleased with either of them though.

The thing about that last tidbit is that among many scouts McLemore still has considered to have more potential. A lot consider Shabazz to be closer to a finish product that McLemore. And Ben is only 3 months older. Neither is really the type that's going to create much offense for themselves or others because neither has the best handle. Shabazz is a much better finisher around that basket than McLemore though and his post game is solid for a wing but the problem is when he gets to the NBA he won't have that advantage as much especially if he plays more SF than SG. Ben has potential though as a driver because of his exceptional fast first step for a SG and dribbling is one that improves quickly with repetition. Where things will be questioned with him is will he have the mentality to be a top scorer and try to score from everywhere, not just as a jump shooter.

I have them 2 and 3 behind Noel. I think they're the most sure fire contributers in the draft. Ben as a deadeye starting SG who gets about 15 a game on limited shots. Shabazz as a near 20 point scorer who might take more shots than he should. Both #3 options at worse.

[thruthefire]

Even though Shabazz Muhammad is #1 on my list his behavior at the end of last night kind of bothered me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... RuZv7snezw

He may very well be aggravated by playing with chuckers that's less talented than him but refuse to pass. Either way he could've had a better immediate reaction as a teammate.

Wait, Drew II hit the shot and UCLA won? Holy ****, Bazz is a dumbass.

[thruthefire]

By the way, Drew II is averaging 7.9 assists per game. Perhaps 0.9 should take note...