Official 2015 NBA Draft Discussion Thread [ft. TyCobb]

[Austincys21]

Updated big board:

1. Russell
2. Towns
3. Okafor
4. Winslow
5. Cauley-Stein
6. Hezonja
7. Johnson
8. Mudiay
9. Kaminsky
10. Porzingis
11. Dunn
12. Looney
13. Grant
14. Lyles

Lyles will be an underrated pick. He's top 10 imo... Not sold on Stanley

[ALL HAIL]

Also, don't get me wrong at all, but Coach K has a little D'Antoni in him.

He makes talented offensive guys look GODLY.

Something about his offense that makes talented guys look out of this world.

I don't think there's a system or coach anywhere that could make a player look as polished and skilled as okafor looks wirhout that player being the real deal. There's nothing fabricated about how good okafor is in the post.

I agree, don't get me wrong. Coach K just has a way with accentuating above average talent and making those guys appear a whole lot better than they are.

As a playmaker alone, Kyrie Irving looked like the second coming of Isiah Thomas at Duke. In the pros, he's looked a lot closer to Marbury.

Jabari Parker looked like a sure fire lock to come in and drop twenty a game, offensively, like a Carmelo clone. In the pros, albeit with a very small sample size, he can barely hit a three and scrape 14 a game.

I could go on. I'm just sayin'.

[tugs]

I don't follow college hoops and only see highlights. So if you would compare these 2 bigs to current NBA players would it be

Towns = I see Monroe
Okafor = ?

[ALL HAIL]

I don't follow college hoops and only see highlights. So if you would compare these 2 bigs to current NBA players would it be

Towns = I see Monroe
Okafor = ?

Current NBA players ...

Okafor ... Kanter
Towns ... Ibaka

[tugs]

Didn't realize Towns has the range like Ibaka. Okafor seems also like an Al Jeff.

[TyCobb]

Kanter is pretty good for Okafor, although Okafor is better inside but has a worse shooting stroke.

Towns is more closer to Marc Gasol to me.

[ALL HAIL]

Didn't realize Towns has the range like Ibaka. Okafor seems also like an Al Jeff.

He doesn't have Ibaka's range my man. It's a comparison, not a carbon copy. It's just a template dude.

Towns rebounds a lot better than Ibaka and will mix it up in the paint more as well. There are many that compare him to Horford as well.

Okafor will be better than Al Jefferson or Kanter on defense. Again, it's just a template.

[Slava]

Fair enough but a shot blocker alone doesn't make for a great defense and the lack of one doesn't make it impossible either. I'd have to have serious concerns about Okafor's defensive motivation to look past his offensive efficiency.

You haven't seen enough?

Okafor is not a rim protector.

Look, all the truly great centers in the history of the league would still be drafted in the lottery if they couldn't score a lick.

You can't say that about Okafor at all.

I don't know how old you are, but he's a shorter version of Brad Daugherty--a very solid NBA center, with Wayman Tisdale-like offensive prowess.

He's not a defensive anchor dude. Trust your eyes.

I'm not saying he's suddenly going to start blocking shots but he is big and wide, that alone deters a ton of shots, kind of like Brook Lopez. If the coaches can work him into a team pick and roll scheme, that'd be more than fine.

[Slava]

Kanter is pretty good for Okafor, although Okafor is better inside but has a worse shooting stroke.

Towns is more closer to Marc Gasol to me.

Okafor is 10x the passer Kanter is. I think of him as an offensive hub or router. If nothing else, just establish him in the post and dump him the ball to create something.

[Slava]

Updated big board:

1. Russell
2. Towns
3. Okafor
4. Winslow
5. Cauley-Stein
6. Hezonja
7. Johnson
8. Mudiay
9. Kaminsky
10. Porzingis
11. Dunn
12. Looney
13. Grant
14. Lyles

Lyles will be an underrated pick. He's top 10 imo... Not sold on Stanley

Agreed, I take a double take to differentiate between Towns and Lyles sometimes.

[TyCobb]

There's really no comparison to Okafor in the NBA. He's a load in the post, and not in the Al Jefferson flip shot kind of way, with legitimate moves and footwork.

I hate comps personally.

[Slava]

I'd say a less athletic more offensively polished version of Bynum, given how soft his hands and touch are. Saying that reminds me of how great Bynum looked in 2008. If he didn't have glass knees, he'd have won us a couple more rings after 2010 before 2015.

[ALL HAIL]

Y'all must really be youngsters because he plays so much like Daugherty it's ridiculous. He' s got much more ball-handling skills, while Brad Daugherty has more height.

Both are/were exceptional passers and low post players while being challenged in the defensive department.

You're not going to find a closer comparison.

[ALL HAIL]

I've been seriously beating the Michael Frazier drum for a while. Looks like he's coming out early.

After a bad year from him (compared to his freshman year), look for him to be a tremendous value pick in the mid to low second round.

For those that don't know him, he's a 6'4, pure shooting, shooting guard with long-ass arms, athleticism, enough lateral quickness to guard PGs and SGs. He's also a great rebounder. He's considered by many to be the best shooter in college, the type of player who looks exponentially better with talented guys around him, a rare mix of pure shooting, advanced wingspan length, and defense.

I like him so much, I'd draft him at the top of the second round.

[tugs]

Thanks for the inputs.

I'm a little concerned on the things I read that Okafor not being much of a defender, and if his style would mesh well with Randle.

Though defense can be taught and is more of an effort skill, unlike scoring that requires repetition to master moves. Initially, I prefer an all around player but seeing Okafor being a better offensive player, and the Odens, the Thabeets, those "defensive anchors" busts that were picked in previous drafts, I think it's safer to get someone who'll provide buckets inside and could be automatic.

[ALL HAIL]

Thanks for the inputs.

I'm a little concerned on the things I read that Okafor not being much of a defender, and if his style would mesh well with Randle.

Though defense can be taught and is more of an effort skill, unlike scoring that requires repetition to master moves. Initially, I prefer an all around player but seeing Okafor being a better offensive player, and the Odens, the Thabeets, those "defensive anchors" busts that were picked in previous drafts, I think it's safer to get someone who'll provide buckets inside and could be automatic.

Appreciate it, but I disagree.

I look at Randle as being like Blake Griffin, and I would rather have a guy like Ibaka/Horford/or Roy Tarpley (old school) next to Blake Griffin than a guy like Al Jefferson/Kanter/or Brad Daugherty.

I like Okafor, but when the talent levels are so close like they are with Towns, it just makes so much sense to go with the guy who fits better with talent in which you've already invested.

Lakers need to draft a big (Towns), sign a big (Brook Lopez), draft a PG (Kris Dunn or best available), trade for a veteran, combo guard who can shoot and play defense against virtually any sized guard (OJ Mayo), draft a similar-type guard (Frazier), sign an intangible, defensive, veteran, leader at PF (Chuck Hayes), sign a veteran, intangible, defensive SF who can shoot (Jared Dudley), and draft a similar-type of SF (Taurean Prince). Add all eight of these guys to Kobe and Randle and you have a very talented and deep team.

In the process of construction, I'd use Clarkson as a pawn to try to move up to draft the best PG available, I'd dump Nick Young and Ryan Kelly on anyone who would take them (much easier said than done with regard to Young), and I'd let Hill walk.

[tugs]

I think we already hit the jackpot when at 46th we got a gem, why trade him? Considering BS will still be calling the shots, we already have someone familiar with the system to run the team.

As for drafting Towns, I know it may take time but spending on an injury riddled big like Lopez wouldn't be a safe investment. I'm torn on keeping Hill but we do have Davis and Black at cheaper tags. I agree on getting a veteran big but not at Lopez's price range.

[ALL HAIL]

I think we already hit the jackpot when at 46th we got a gem, why trade him? Considering BS will still be calling the shots, we already have someone familiar with the system to run the team.

As for drafting Towns, I know it may take time but spending on an injury riddled big like Lopez wouldn't be a safe investment. I'm torn on keeping Hill but we do have Davis and Black at cheaper tags. I agree on getting a veteran big but not at Lopez's price range.

Your point about Lopez is sound. The deal would have to be as low risk as possible. I'd take a chance on him at no more than three years at a total of no more than 35 million total. If you could work in some games played contingencies I'd do that as well.

With regard to Clarkson, if you already have Towns with the high pick and you're in a position to draft an even better, more versatile prospect out of a very deep PG pool, with two more picks in the second round to address SG and SF, you have to go ahead and do it (draft another PG). The talent there is really quite deep. If you can use Clarkson to move up the PG chain, that's all the better.

Wright, Grant, and Dunn are all marked overall improvements over Clarkson. At this point I have more faith in them than I do in Clarkson, and there are others as well.

[TyCobb]

I like Okafor over Towns if we had #1 because I'm not sold on Randle as the PF of the future.

[ALL HAIL]

I like Okafor over Towns if we had #1 because I'm not sold on Randle as the PF of the future.

I know Ty, but the real question is, if you'd like to step into my line of thinking for a moment, how much better, in your mind, is Okafor than Towns?

If the gap is sizable, then I understand your thinking, however, if the gap is slim, for lack of a better word, negligible, then according to "my math"', you need to draft the guy that fits better with the talent in which you've already invested.