'14 Draft Thread - Parker Declares. List your top 4

[Rockmaninoff]

I don't think a facilitating PG is necessary. What is crucial is having a couple dominant scorers that can facilitate. Look at the successful teams of the past, and most will have this configuration regardless of position. Typically though, one of the scorers will be a perimeter and one a big.

The best teams use the majority of possessions as such:

- someone brings the ball

- ball gets passed to one of the scorers

- scorer pressures the defense

- scorer takes high percentage shot if available or facilitates if not

- ball moves as defense attempts to recover

- high percentage shot taken if defense exploited or passed back to one of the scorers if not

- scorer attempts high percentage shot near the end of the shot clock or facilitates to open man

The reason the Bucks were the worst team in the league this year was because their best (and only) scorer was Brandon Knight and the role players couldn't hit shots.

Could Knight excel on a good team that had talented, intelligent players? I think so. Would I want him to be one of my scorers? Maybe as a sixth man. Would he buy into starting PG as a role player? Remains to be seen.

I'm not sure it's worth contemplating. The focus needs to be on finding dominant scorers.

[Rockmaninoff]

I also think you are what you can defend. I think someone like Parker can be on the floor as a team's 3rd or 4th biggest player, because he is a plus rebounder and I think he'll be able to function in a good (maybe even great) team defense. Could he be exploited by a scorer on the opposition? Sure, because he lacks some athletic attributes that would allow him to defend isolation well.

Wiggins on the other hand has enough size and athleticism to guard some 1s, all 2s and 3s, and some 4s. My concern then is that he doesn't have enough scoring skill, and I'm leary about banking on development. I think the NBA is more about refining.

So I think I'm talking about net value, and the guy that I think has the most is Exum. I think he has scoring and facilitating skills, and I think he'll be a plus defender against 2s and against some 1s and 3s both individually and in team schemes.

[theFireBlanket]

Could Knight excel on a good team that had talented, intelligent players? I think so. Would I want him to be one of my scorers? Maybe as a sixth man. Would he buy into starting PG as a role player? Remains to be seen.

I'm not sure it's worth contemplating. The focus needs to be on finding dominant scorers.

http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/258367511.html
Source= Charles Gardner ^, another quote from the same article that is interesting re: could BK buy into PG as a role player.

I'm really cool with John Wall and it's an inspiration to see him in his fourth year and see how he's leading his team,"..."Not necessarily scoring the ball a whole lot, but just leading his team and putting guys in the right position."

I'd like to think he could because he's a hell of a talent but his play this year suggested that he wouldn't do it. If he's capable of evolving as a player and doing what it takes to win, like he advocates the draft pick doing, then he should be comfortable with any role.

[mchase27]

Wiggins - I could talk myself into him being Dominique Wilkins or Desmond Mason
Embiid - Hakeem or Greg Oden (injury) / Emeka Okafor (play)
Parker - Melo or Caron Butler
Exum - Healthy Penny or Healthy Shaun Livingston
Randle - Karl Malone or Kris Humpheries


If I had to bet one one guy being a highly productive pro, I'd bet on Julius Randle. Put him next to a strong defensive center and you have the start of a strong 50+ win team ala David Lee and Zach Randolph. That said, I have no doubt that at least 2 of the other guys will have a much better pro career. I just don't know which two.

CAN YOU BELIEVE HES SAYING EMBIID IS AS GOOD AS HAKEEM!?

Based on nothing as usual, "oh boy look he did the dream shake to some scrub playing for New Mexico State". Embiid seem's like he could be more Roy Hibbert or Tyson Chandler.

But you idiots want to crown him the greatest CENTER EVER. Based off what?

[Baddy Chuck]

Once against, you are the densest person possibly on the entire forums. He very clearly was pointing out a player he thought at their absolute best those players could compare to. He in no way was saying Embiid is going to be Hakeem or Randle was going to be Malone. If he was saying that, all 5 comparisons could be quoted and be called crazy because all 5 of those guys are far off those players currently.

I mean holy ****ing hell, he even said he could just as well be Emeka Okafor or Greg Oden.

Not one **** person has ever said Embiid is guaranteed to be Hakeem, but the comparisons are there because of the skills Embiid has shown this early in his career, which are much more then 1 move in 1 game.

[mchase27]

Once against, you are the densest person possibly on the entire forums. He very clearly was pointing out a player he thought at their absolute best those players could compare to. He in no way was saying Embiid is going to be Hakeem or Randle was going to be Malone. If he was saying that, all 5 comparisons could be quoted and be called crazy because all 5 of those guys are far off those players currently.

I mean holy ****ing hell, he even said he could just as well be Emeka Okafor or Greg Oden.

My issue is people going to the extremes on these comparison's. It's either Hall of Famer/top 10 player of all time or Scrub.

[cinematographer]

It's not even so much you are what you can defend anymore. You're an amalgam of the role you can play on defense and the role you can play on offense. A topology study of the NBA done for Sloan suggests there are 13 NBA positions -- http://www.sloansportsconference.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Alagappan-Muthu-EOSMarch2012PPT.pdf. Using SportVU data and advanced metrics would add clarity and reclassify/find new positions.

I guess what I'm saying is, with the players we have, we need to view them outside of traditional classification and not let their role on either end of the court dictate their role on the other.

[Baddy Chuck]

My issue is people going to the extremes on these comparison's. It's either Hall of Famer/top 10 player of all time or Scrub.

The extremes are used in regards to potential. I mean hell, you've done it with the Wiggins/Wilkins/Drexler comparisons. Wiggins is just as far off Wilkins as Embiid is off Hakeem or Ewing or whoever. Obviously their most likely case is lower then those players, but the potential is there. And literally not ONE person has argued otherwise.

[midranger]

It's not too hard to look at a player's skill set and physical attributes and apply them to both the maxed out scenario and the no development whatsoever scenario. Obviously most everyone will end up somewhere in between.

[skones]

i never understood why it would bug players where they played.

like if i was in one of these top prospects' shoes, i honestly do not think i would care at all.

i mean so what if you end up in some city you don't wanna be in? like for example, i'd never wanna live/play in detroit. but if the pistons drafted me, they have to pay me millions, and i'd instantly forget about where i was and just play for the franchise/my teammates. i'd prolly end up liking detroit more than i thought i was gonna.

but let's say i really just don't like the actual city. i'm on the road half the year, and the months i get off, i can live literally anywhere i want because i'm a millionaire. worst case, and i hate the city so bad, i have to spend 7 years or so doing this.

idk maybe i'm weird though.

Not weird, just relatively ignorant as it pertains to the stance of a 19 or 20 year old kid. Taking on the mindset of "well they're millionaires, they can do pretty much whatever they want" isn't a justifiable one. If you have a few million dollars in your pocket, and you play for the Milwaukee Bucks, and you have a nice condo on Lake Michigan, and yeah, during the summer, you go do whatever you want for four months, and then you return and get back at it in Milwaukee, and while you're "home," you're dealing with winter, and my oh my, it sucks, and you're with your boy Larry poppin bottles at Apartment 720. During those 8 months, you're checking out your buddy's Facebook, and Instagram, and Twitter feed, and he plays in LA, he spends his off days on the beach with some good looking women, and your other buddy is playing in New York exploring everything that city has to offer, snapping selfies at the Statue of Liberty and in Times Square. You're honestly going to sit there and sit there and say "eh." C'mon.

Do you have any idea how long 7 years is to a kid that age? It's a lifetime.

Winning solves everything, but you have to recognize that if you're not winning, that can create problems for a guy who doesn't necessarily come in ready to embrace the city of Milwaukee.

[Ayt]

Once against, you are the densest person possibly on the entire forums. He very clearly was pointing out a player he thought at their absolute best those players could compare to. He in no way was saying Embiid is going to be Hakeem or Randle was going to be Malone. If he was saying that, all 5 comparisons could be quoted and be called crazy because all 5 of those guys are far off those players currently.

I mean holy ****ing hell, he even said he could just as well be Emeka Okafor or Greg Oden.

Not one **** person has ever said Embiid is guaranteed to be Hakeem, but the comparisons are there because of the skills Embiid has shown this early in his career, which are much more then 1 move in 1 game.

You could make a completely innocuous comment like, "OJ Mayo's mustache kind of reminds me of the mustache guys like Jordan used to have in the late 80's" and mchase would respond, "ZOMG! HE THINKS MAYO=JORDAN!"

[mchase27]

I just think it's funny that you guys have already placed Embiid in the Basketball Hall of Fame.

[Baddy Chuck]

Holy hell.......

At this point you have to be a really good troll.

[RiotPunch]

I just think it's funny that you guys have already placed Embiid in the Basketball Hall of Fame.

[JoeJohnson2two]

I just think it's funny that you guys have already placed Embiid in the Basketball Hall of Fame.

[worthlessBucks]

Nice comments from Knight.

[MiltownHawkeye]

Can the report button be used for trolling?

[FourPointPlay]

I haven't seen anything from Exum at all, so I won't place him in my top four so as it stands currently I have:

1. Wiggins(I've been watching Wiggins for the last three years, he just keeps getting better and better and better)
2. Parker(Good size, great awareness, excellent jumper.)
3. Embiid(Big guys scare me, especially big guys coming off injury, it could turn out to be nothing though and he could be a pillar for the next 15 years giving his skill set. Or he could be Hasheem Thabeet)
4. Smart(barely edging out Randle, I just can't get over the 6'4 size as a point guard. Match-up nightmare. Maturity concerns are an issue and big red flag, even if it's a one time thing, touching a fan is a huge problem.)

[MiltownHawkeye]

I haven't seen anything from Exum at all, so I won't place him in my top four so as it stands currently I have:

1. Wiggins(I've been watching Wiggins for the last three years, he just keeps getting better and better and better)
2. Parker(Good size, great awareness, excellent jumper.)
3. Embiid(Big guys scare me, especially big guys coming off injury, it could turn out to be nothing though and he could be a pillar for the next 15 years giving his skill set. Or he could be Hasheem Thabeet)
4. Smart(barely edging out Randle, I just can't get over the 6'4 size as a point guard. Match-up nightmare. Maturity concerns and issue,)

The only similarities between Embiid and Thabeet are that they're both at least 7' and they're both African.

[Bucksfan28]

I guess I don't get why people are freaked out about him being a 35 mpg starting pg but essentially ok with him as a 6th man combo guard off the bench. Knight is a damn good player who can score and play d. We don't have to build around him but I definitely want him on this team going forward.

Anyone else think he could have a billups like career? He seems like a natural leader who will find a way to get it.

Huge difference between starting point guard and 6th man 3&D guy off the bench. One is responsible for creating and running the offense for a majority of the game, the other has his minutes rationed depending on how hot or cold he might be.