Official 2013 Draft Thread - Part VIII

[nate33]

Cleveland is taking Len

In fact Cleveland has the structure in place to help any big man blossom with assistant coach Jamal Mosely, who was critical in helping Tristan Thompson develop, along with Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Vitaly Potapenko, Len's countryman from the Ukraine. Cleveland GM Chris Grant loves bigs who can score and Len is by the most polished scorer at his position.

Orl and OKC are trying to do a deal so OKC gets Porter

Wizards are rumored to not want Noel, that means they go Bennett who is reported high on their list.

I would rather they take Burke, McLemore, VO, Zeller trade down, so something.

Porter would be terrific for OKC. I doubt they have enough to get him though.

No he wouldn't. They have Durant at SF and Thabo to back him up. OKC needs someone who can score points in the paint so Durant and Westbrook don't have to combine for 60 points every night.

[sfam]

D-DAY INDEED

70% chance they take Porter
30% it's Bennett

This is about where I would put the odds as well, assuming Noel is gone.

If Noel is there, I might go:

45% chance they take Noel
35% chance they take Porter
20% chance they take Bennett

[DCZards]

My draft day board*:

1.) Noel
2.) Porter
3.) Bennett
4.) Zeller

- Trade McLemore or Dipo if they're there and another team comes calling.



* I reserve the right to change this board in the future if hindsight makes it look stupid.

This is where I am as well. The only difference is I have Len tied with Zeller as my 4th choice.

[sfam]

Ford dropped this little nugget about Bennett today

Quick fact: Bennett ranked eighth in the nation with 1.3 isolation points per play and did not commit a single turnover on such plays (min. 20 plays).

That's not bad considering Bennett's supposed lackluster handles and average athleticism. Maybe he's telling his opposition jokes or something in order to break free.

[sfam]

Cleveland is taking Len

In fact Cleveland has the structure in place to help any big man blossom with assistant coach Jamal Mosely, who was critical in helping Tristan Thompson develop, along with Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Vitaly Potapenko, Len's countryman from the Ukraine. Cleveland GM Chris Grant loves bigs who can score and Len is by the most polished scorer at his position.

Orl and OKC are trying to do a deal so OKC gets Porter

Wizards are rumored to not want Noel, that means they go Bennett who is reported high on their list.

I would rather they take Burke, McLemore, VO, Zeller trade down, so something.

Porter would be terrific for OKC. I doubt they have enough to get him though.

No he wouldn't. They have Durant at SF and Thabo to back him up. OKC needs someone who can score points in the paint so Durant and Westbrook don't have to combine for 60 points every night.

Durant seems to be playing at lot of PF in small ball formats, so it would work there. But it looks like hands misread the report anyways and they are going for Len. I don't know that Len will score in the paint for them - seems like they might be OK with an Olynyk type, which is probably more gettable.

[stevemcqueen1]

I think between Noel, Porter, Zeller, Len, and Bennett, there is more than enough talent on the board for our 2nd, or even 3rd choices to be pretty solid players. I'm not as stressed this draft about missing out than I was last year of missing out on Beal.'

Also, just realized the guys I mentioned are mcqueen's guys too - just in slightly different order.

I think those 5 are most people's board. I think you could be successful with each. The only one I really worry about is Len. I think Noel, Porter, Bennett, and Zeller are all pretty safe because they are instinctive and have go to skills to have a little bit of success early in their careers and get some confidence.

I'd be totally shocked if Zeller was the pick. I don't think we'll have the chance to pick Noel. I think Len is a dark horse. So I'm pretty sure the pick will be Porter or Bennett, with us leaning towards Porter.

That's what everybody is saying.

1.) CLE - Noel
2.) ORL - McLemore
3.) WAS - Porter
4.) CHA - Oladipo
5.) PHO - Bennett
6.) NOR - Len
7.) SAC - Zeller
8.) DET - Burke
9.) MIN - McCollum
10.) POR - Caldwell-Pope

That's my crazy top ten mock. Doubt it happens that way though. I'm feeling some top ten trades this year.

[sfam]

My top 4 looks like this right now:
1. Noel
2. Bennett (I'm pretty close to listing him #1 though)
3. Porter
4. Zeller

I'd be happy with any of the four, but obviously more happy with the first two. I think if we draft Oladipo, its to move him to Minn.

[stevemcqueen1]

My draft day board*:

1.) Noel
2.) Porter
3.) Bennett
4.) Zeller

- Trade McLemore or Dipo if they're there and another team comes calling.



* I reserve the right to change this board in the future if hindsight makes it look stupid.

This is where I am as well. The only difference is I have Len tied with Zeller as my 4th choice.

I guess I would have Len as my fifth choice since I don't really want to come away with just a guard. But it's mostly because he's just the last satisfying option available after the first four I like.

I've had Zeller over Len the whole time, and I'm set in that opinion until we get more on court evidence from both. I've talked myself in and out of Len the entire season. In a comparison with Zeller, I keep going back to the core argument that, other things being fairly equal, you would rather have the 7 footer with the great feel for the gave instead of the 7 footer with the poor feel for the game.

I like a good guard + something else that's good over Len if we trade down.

[GhostsOfGil]

[tweet]http://twitter.com/MrMichaelLee/status/349892537466626049[/tweet]

[tweet]http://twitter.com/MrMichaelLee/status/350251357430747138[/tweet]

[LyricalRico]

Chad Ford: More draft intrigue from Cavs! Hearing, somewhat convincingly, that owner Dan Gilbert loves Victor Oladipo. Me too @Dan Gilbert!!! Twitter @chadfordinsider

Indications that CLE will be trading down?

[GhostsOfGil]

Top 4:

1 Noel




2. Bennett
3.Trade


4. Porter/Zeller/Len

[Deeptu McPullup]

Well, that about settles things on Dipo for us. Can't blame him and he was gracious enough about it.

[Soup's Uncle]

The more I think about it, the more the idea of taking Bennett is starting to intrigue me. If he literally is "unguardable" and can actually play PF, he would be an excellent offensive weapon. And the Wiz need more offense.

[FAH1223]

The more I think about it, the more the idea of taking Bennett is starting to intrigue me. If he literally is "unguardable" and can actually play PF, he would be an excellent offensive weapon. And the Wiz need more offense.

He's not unguardable

Do not be impressed. He was able to blow by people in college but he WILL NOT be able to do it in the NBA and his undersized body as well as his defense is a net negative.

He's a guy you take at 13 or 14 not at #3.

[sfam]

The more I think about it, the more the idea of taking Bennett is starting to intrigue me. If he literally is "unguardable" and can actually play PF, he would be an excellent offensive weapon. And the Wiz need more offense.

Bingo. He's strongest where we're weakest. These something to be said though for doubling down on your strength, so Noel makes sense as well.

[Dat2U]

Well, that about settles things on Dipo for us. Can't blame him and he was gracious enough about it.

And I'd still draft him if Porter was off the board. Not necessarily to keep long term though. But if Noel & Porter are gone, he's the only one left on my 2nd tier, and I wouldn't feel comfortable selecting anyone else.

[jivelikenice]

I'm still going back & forth between Porter and Bennett. Once I settle on Porter, I start asking myself if its too conservative. I think its crazy to think a 19 yr old has maxed his potential but I think having a month to think about the pick has me dissecting evrything. Then I got back to Bennett and he seems to be deemed to have the highest upside by many analysts but can he play and defend the 4? In the end, I'm back a Porter. I don't think he's a 22 ppg guy, but I think he'll give you 17/6/3 and will maximize his potential like other Georgetown guys have. This will also allow s to use Ariza as trade bait in FA.....

[Dat2U]

The more I think about it, the more the idea of taking Bennett is starting to intrigue me. If he literally is "unguardable" and can actually play PF, he would be an excellent offensive weapon. And the Wiz need more offense.

And the legend of Bennett grows

If I just went by Bennett's supporters, I'd swear he's a franchise talent worthy of a #1 selection in any year.

[Dark Faze]

I'd draft Shabazz over Bennett if all I wanted was scoring. Shabazz still scored 18 PPG as a freshmen on okay percentages in combination with Howland factor and he's not undersized. He also isn't so terrible on defense that he'll be a rotating door.

[Severn Hoos]

I've been a Porter supPorter all the way through, and locked in since we moved up in the Lotto. I think he's the best fit - and while I agree that drafting for "need" is usually a bad thing, it's not the same as drafting for "fit" - and Fit should be part of the equation. Porter looks like a great fit in the system, has the right personality to mesh with the rest of the team, excels at defense, and plays well off the ball on offense.

I keep hearing about low ceilings and the need to aim higher with the 3rd pick. Reminds me of how we were all so smart and made fun of Kornheiser for saying he'd take Battier #1 in the Kwame Brown draft. Well, it's a boring pick - and probably should have been done as part of a trade-down. But Battier is out there winning titles and Kwame's a drifter.

Sure, if you get a true stud, it pays to take the guy, but you can't force it if that guys' not a stud in his own right. And that's how I feel about both Len and Bennett, that people want them to be something they aren't. They might be one day, but that's drafting on hope, and as any sales guy in my company will tell you, Hope is Not a Strategy.

Plus, what's so bad about getting the next Battier or Tayshaun Prince in this draft? Seems to me, there's a potential double upside. First, when he comes due for an extension, you might get him on a more reasonable deal than another max contract, which would be unsustainable. (Plus, that's 4 years down the road, and would be a great problem to have, if he does pan out to be better than expected.)

But even better, it leaves that spot open for a frontcourt beast as the final piece to the puzzle. In a year or two, you look to add Cousins, or Aldridge, or Favors, or look to do a trade. The team will have all of the pieces to go around such a player, so I have to think it would be a very attractive destination. If teddy is willing to spend, they should be a player for top-shelf talent.

So yeah, Porter's not that exciting. But I don't know that I want exciting right now. I want exciting at the press conference next summer when the new GM announces the megadeal to bring a star big man to the team.