Official Draft Thread 2015-16

Post #81 » by **165bows** » Tue Sep 15, 2015 1:24 pm

pfm wrote:
165bows wrote:What about Skal on the defensive end, what's your opinion there? You like the quality of this draft so far or no?

When I saw your original post I was going to mention Skal. I think he's got really nice potential there (and on both ends). He's currently my #1 prospect.

Agree, for me as well. I haven't seen a ton so far but based on his profile I like the upside much better than the other top guys. Skal or bust in this draft until shown otherwise.

I might even have Skal/Bender as 1-2.

No-Man · Post #82 » by **No-Man** » Tue Sep 15, 2015 2:10 pm

Skal lacks strength big time, the thing is, he is mobile and quick on his moves, plus he has plenty of length, he is not an explosive big, but he can move, I think defensively he can be solid as a PF, sort of like Olynyk, mobile, long, intelligent, but not a difference maker.
His potential is much higher as an offensive weapon, sweet touch, range, his length and fluidity, we will see how he evolves but he can be a really good face up big.
I have him in my top3, but below Bender, and Simmons.
Bender is my clearcut 1# at this point, although I reckon that depending on the team, I might got them drafting Simmons ahead, it is kind of close between those 3.
Then Ingram, Brown, Murray, Stone, Korkmaz, Rabb, Poeltl, Jones, Trimble, Dunn, Ellenson, Zimmerman, Jackson, Newman, kind of mixed together.
It is still far too early, I'd point towards a guy that is completely forgotten in every draftsite and has the potentital to be a quality player at NBA level, Juancho Hernangómez, Willy's younger brother, he is a SF/PF in the mold of Andres Nocioni, strong, athletic, plays hard, rebounds, developing his offensive game, really underrated but he will be a top25 player from this class when its all said and done.
UCLA is a team full of underrated guys as well, it is difficult to predict how they would go, but Bolden if he puts it together could go in the lotto, same with Prince Ali, and Welsh could be a 1st round big.
I dunno exaclty how are they going to rotate, but they have a deep long team.

Alford-Holiday
Hamilton-Ali
Bolden-Allen
Parker-Goloman/Olesinski
Welsh-Okwarabizie

brackdan70 · Post #83 » by **brackdan70** » Wed Sep 16, 2015 2:56 am

165bows wrote:
brackdan70 wrote:Ah...2nd guy is Kris Dunn...projected #8 by Draft express. will see how this year goes for him.

Nicely done my friend, all the and-1s for you. Thought it was interesting they compare pretty well, considering they are exactly the same age and Dunn is (at least for now) projected top-10 by one outlet. Dunn has a few advantages statistically such as assist volume, but my guess is Rozier is actually a little more polished , esp. on the defensive end.

Not sure if it means much, but it did leave me feeling a little better about the Rozier pick at any rate.

I was totally surprised by the Rozier pick. I liked Anderson, RHJ, and Portis better, but after seeing him play and digging a little deeper I am totally good with it.

Post #84 » by **165bows** » Thu Sep 17, 2015 2:24 am

[tweet]https://twitter.com/nbadraftblog/status/644320269969002496[/tweet]

Post #85 » by **165bows** » Mon Sep 21, 2015 6:45 pm

Dean D. putting up a preliminary big board today. Here's 21-60 the rest will be later today.

http://deanondraft.com/2015/09/21/2016-preseason-big-board-s-21-60/

Note that while the top 20 includes the top international prospects in this year’s draft class, this list excludes the second tier internationals.

21. Theo Pinson (ESPN: 44, DX: 31 in ’17)

The #15 RSCI recruit in 2014, Pinson is the 3rd highest rated returning sophomore behind Justin Jackson and Isaiah Whitehead. He had limited opportunity to showcase himself as a freshman coming off the bench behind Jackson and JP Tokoto, and then a foot injury sidelined him for the majority of the 2nd half. He is skinny but otherwise he has ideal tools to defend either wing position, and he used his athleticism to fill up every non shooting/scoring stat category in his freshman sample with exceptional passing for a wing. With Tokoto gone, Pinson figures to play big minutes next year and has strong breakout potential.

22. Troy Williams (ESPN: 41, DX: 20)

Williams has a good base of athleticism, quickness, ball handling, and passing ability for a wing. There are questions about his shooting ability, as he only attempted 0.6 3P per 40 minutes as a sophomore. But he was also playing PF/C for a small Indiana team, and he did shoot 74% FT. If he can develop 3 point range, he has nice upside with the tools to be a good defensive wing and the ball skills to play on the perimeter.

23. Malik Pope (ESPN: 6, DX: 30)

Pope had a decent season for a toolsy 18 year old freshman, and he has clear breakout potential as a sophomore. He missed significant time in high school with injuries, so he may have extra sneaky upside if he can finally stay healthy for an extended time frame. But he did not excel at anything as a freshman and is merely a good not great athlete, so Chad Ford should probably relax before ranking him ahead of Dragan Bender.

24. Wade Baldwin (ESPN NR, DX 39 in ’17)

Post #86 » by **Slartibartfast** » Mon Sep 21, 2015 7:24 pm

165bows wrote:Dean D. putting up a preliminary big board today. Here's 21-60 the rest will be later today.

http://deanondraft.com/2015/09/21/2016-preseason-big-board-s-21-60/

Note that while the top 20 includes the top international prospects in this year’s draft class, this list excludes the second tier internationals.

21. Theo Pinson (ESPN: 44, DX: 31 in ’17)

The #15 RSCI recruit in 2014, Pinson is the 3rd highest rated returning sophomore behind Justin Jackson and Isaiah Whitehead. He had limited opportunity to showcase himself as a freshman coming off the bench behind Jackson and JP Tokoto, and then a foot injury sidelined him for the majority of the 2nd half. He is skinny but otherwise he has ideal tools to defend either wing position, and he used his athleticism to fill up every non shooting/scoring stat category in his freshman sample with exceptional passing for a wing. With Tokoto gone, Pinson figures to play big minutes next year and has strong breakout potential.

22. Troy Williams (ESPN: 41, DX: 20)

Williams has a good base of athleticism, quickness, ball handling, and passing ability for a wing. There are questions about his shooting ability, as he only attempted 0.6 3P per 40 minutes as a sophomore. But he was also playing PF/C for a small Indiana team, and he did shoot 74% FT. If he can develop 3 point range, he has nice upside with the tools to be a good defensive wing and the ball skills to play on the perimeter.

23. Malik Pope (ESPN: 6, DX: 30)

Pope had a decent season for a toolsy 18 year old freshman, and he has clear breakout potential as a sophomore. He missed significant time in high school with injuries, so he may have extra sneaky upside if he can finally stay healthy for an extended time frame. But he did not excel at anything as a freshman and is merely a good not great athlete, so Chad Ford should probably relax before ranking him ahead of Dragan Bender.

24. Wade Baldwin (ESPN NR, DX 39 in ’17)

Surprised Shawn Long didn't make the cut.

Post #87 » by **165bows** » Mon Sep 21, 2015 7:29 pm

And the top 20.

1. Dragan Bender (ESPN: 7, DX: 5)

Dragan Bender is the 2016 poster child of being far more beloved by stats than scouts. He is not an elite athlete nor does he have a go to scorer skill set, so DX and ESPN rate him below the top freshmen and Chad Ford goes as far as to rate him below Malik Pope. But his 261 minute FIBA u18 sample nets him a historically elite 17.4 according to Layne Vashro’s EWP model, which is 4th all time behind Shaq, Anthony Davis, and Nerlens Noel.

He had a bunch more on Bender as well.

2. Ben Simmons (ESPN: 1, DX: 2)

There are four prospects who can be argued as the top incoming freshman, but I easily favor Simmons. He has the quickness, athleticism, skill level, and (reported) intelligence to thrive as a point guard, except he has a power forward body. His physical tools and passing both look great to my eye. His primary critique is that he is a mediocre outside shooter, but he has hope of becoming a competent 3 point shooter so this is not a backbreaking flaw. Simmons stands out as Hoop Summit player with the biggest upside tail, as well as the one I am most excited to watch this season.

3. Brandon Ingram (ESPN: 4, DX: 4)

Ingram appears to be Kevin Durant lite. His level of dilution compared to the real thing remains to be seen, but he is more than 1 year younger than Simmons and 1.5 years younger than Labissiere. His mold has plenty of upside and I am putting him above Skal because I have an inkling that there is an age bias that causes scouts to underrate the age gap as these players are all being evaluated side by side. And his intersection of reach and shooting mesh for an awesome upside tail, especially given that he appears to have good feel for the game.

Skal, Jaylen Brown, Cheick Diallo, Poeltl, Henry Ellenson, Jamal Murray and Kris Dunn round out the top 10.

http://deanondraft.com/2015/09/21/2016-preseason-big-board-s-1-20/

KGboss · Post #88 » by **KGboss** » Tue Sep 22, 2015 12:16 am

Is this turning out to be a better draft than originally projected 6 to 12onths ago? I see a lot more excitement around the top of this draft than originally reported.

DarkAzcura · Post #89 » by **DarkAzcura** » Tue Sep 22, 2015 12:36 am

My non-useful contribution to this thread:

Anyone else love the names in this draft? They all sound so cool.

FakeScreenName123 · Post #90 » by **FakeScreenName123** » Tue Sep 22, 2015 12:48 am

um, idk anything about this draft. But we should definitely draft the guy with the name "Dragan Bender".

Post #91 » by **165bows** » Tue Sep 22, 2015 12:16 pm

KGboss wrote:Is this turning out to be a better draft than originally projected 6 to 12onths ago? I see a lot more excitement around the top of this draft than originally reported.

Always good convo on Twitter with Dean posts so worthwhile to read through it. I can't post all of it but there was this one:

@deanondraft: @ddugan37 @NBA_Spen @VJL_bball IMO Top 5 seems promising bc none of them feel like frauds.

Also Layne Vashro coined the nickname 'Fast-Mo' for Simmons, as in a fast version of Kyle Anderson. He said he expects stat models to like Simmons quite a bit due to his broad ability to put up stats, like Anderson.

Post #92 » by **165bows** » Tue Sep 22, 2015 11:51 pm

On LSU's August exhibition trip to Australia, Ben Simmons tallied 11 of the team's 23 blocks and 18 of the 45 team steals

@deanondraft

theman · Post #93 » by **theman** » Wed Sep 23, 2015 10:20 pm

KGboss wrote:Is it too early to start a 2016 Draft thread?

Yes.

If we luck out with this Brooklyn pick and get Ben Simmons or Skal i'd be ecstatic.

Yes.

Post #94 » by **165bows** » Fri Sep 25, 2015 12:38 am

Link to Ben Simmons' draft express preview videos. Page has a link to Skal Labissiere videos as well, both guys likely top 1-4 picks if not 1-2.

http://www.draftexpress.com/article/Top-NBA-Prospects-in-the-SEC-Part-2-Ben-Simmons-Scouting-Video-5262/

Edit - I've seen a little of these guys from AS games, but a couple impressions from this and other things I've seen. Skal just looks like he's got great natural shooting touch, which is rare for an athletic seven footer. Simmons I have been a bit reserved about, but a lot to like about that playmaking ability. Really I think he is a perimeter guy, he's less four than a guy like even Paul George is IMO. I could buy into Simmons being a better pro than Jabari though.

Post #95 » by **Parliament10** » Fri Sep 25, 2015 6:57 am

Skal Labissière – He's a little skinny now. But, a great shooter, at 7 ft. I see him more as a PF.

Born: March 18, 1996 (age 19), Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Height: 7' 0"
Weight: 216 lbs

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0_-gfys8yM[/youtube]

jfs1000d · Post #96 » by **jfs1000d** » Mon Sep 28, 2015 12:08 am

Too soon guys.

I do wonder if sometimes the season is just a way to determine the order of the draft. So many draft niks out there, it's kinda weird.

Post #97 » by **165bows** » Mon Sep 28, 2015 12:12 pm

theman wrote:
KGboss wrote:Is it too early to start a 2016 Draft thread?

Yes.

If we luck out with this Brooklyn pick and get Ben Simmons or Skal i'd be ecstatic.

Yes.

jfs1000d wrote:Too soon guys.

I do wonder if sometimes the season is just a way to determine the order of the draft. So many draft niks out there, it's kinda weird.

What are you guys, the conversation police?

Post #98 » by **165bows** » Mon Sep 28, 2015 6:13 pm

The top-rated incoming guards so far in the draft.

Malik Newman of Mississippi State:

http://www.draftexpress.com/article/Top-NBA-Prospects-in-the-SEC-Part-4-Malik-Newman-Scouting-Video-5264/

And Jamal Murray of Kentucky:

http://www.draftexpress.com/article/Top-NBA-Prospects-in-the-SEC-Part-3-Jamal-Murray-Scouting-Video-5263/

pfm · Post #99 » by **pfm** » Mon Sep 28, 2015 7:04 pm

The draft rocks. Always a good time to discuss. I also feel like discussing draft prospects is the most interesting topic on here. Such a variety of opinions and nobody is really right or wrong because it's a matter of projection.

LarryBirdsFingr · Post #100 » by **LarryBirdsFingr** » Mon Sep 28, 2015 7:17 pm

not gonna lie I was watching the high school basketball that was being broadcast a few weeks ago, some interesting players for sure.