Official Draft Discussion Thread

Skin · Post #1 » by **Skin** » Fri Dec 4, 2015 10:35 pm

I know it's early but some of us like talking about prospects throughout the season. The college season is well underway and there are lot of players to talk about. Plus, we're not on the legit contender level yet where we are good enough of a team to be beyond needing help from the draft. But isn't it pretty exciting that we have graduated out of talking about Top 5 pick range?

Who's your Pet cats? Sleepers? Who is disappointing? Who is surprising?

Ready...Set... Go! Go! Go!

Patrick1978 · Post #2 » by **Patrick1978** » Sat Dec 5, 2015 8:48 am

Skin wrote:I know it's early but some of us like talking about prospects throughout the season. The college season is well underway and there are lot of players to talk about. Plus, we're not on the legit contender level yet where we are good enough of a team to be beyond needing help from the draft. But isn't it pretty exciting that we have graduated out of talking about Top 5 pick range?

Who's your Pet cats? Sleepers? Who is disappointing? Who is surprising?

Ready...Set... Go! Go! Go!

I would love to draft stephen zimmerman from unlv.versatile 7footer who can play center and pf.or jakob poeltl from utah university.sure i hope henny drafts a big as i think we don t need another wing player.

tiderulz · Post #3 » by **tiderulz** » Sat Dec 5, 2015 2:15 pm

as deep as this team is getting, i want a swing for the fences pick. A player that if he fixes whatever drops him out out a top-3 pick, that he has a chance to be a star type of player, no matter what position

Truth24 · Post #4 » by **Truth24** » Sat Dec 5, 2015 7:29 pm

I think my top five favorites right now look like this.

1. Henry Ellenson, Marquette
2. Cheick Diallo, Kansas
3. Ivan Rabb, California
4. Dragan Bender, Croatia
5. Diamond Stone, Maryland

the_hobo · Post #5 » by **the_hobo** » Sat Dec 5, 2015 7:53 pm

Doesn't matter; since we will be champs we will have bad picks

Landshark · Post #6 » by **Landshark** » Sat Dec 5, 2015 8:43 pm

tiderulz wrote:as deep as this team is getting, i want a swing for the fences pick. A player that if he fixes whatever drops him out out a top-3 pick, that he has a chance to be a star type of player, no matter what position

This 100%. I want a freak high-upside player who has the chance to become a star. Until we actually get our franchise player, we need to invest in as many high-upside players as possible to maximize our chances.

Blue_and_Whte · Post #7 » by **Blue_and_Whte** » Tue Dec 8, 2015 2:53 pm

Didn't someone already create a draft thread?

Skin · Post #8 » by **Skin** » Tue Dec 8, 2015 7:46 pm

Blue_and_Whte wrote:Didn't someone already create a draft thread?

Was bumped after I created this, but I didn't see it at the time. Mods help!

Baka_La Flame · Post #9 » by **Baka_La Flame** » Tue Dec 8, 2015 8:14 pm

Ivan Rabb is a guy in keeping a close eye on. He projects to be a slightly more skilled Jason Thompson and he should be in our pick range which I'm guessing is 10-16

Blue_and_Whte · Post #10 » by **Blue_and_Whte** » Wed Dec 9, 2015 1:49 pm

Orlandipo wrote:Ivan Rabb is a guy in keeping a close eye on. He projects to be a slightly more skilled Jason Thompson and he should be in our pick range which I'm guessing is 10-16

I'd kinda be surprised if our pick isn't heavily shopped with other assets to try and get established talent back. The last thing this team needs is another raw player to develop imo.

seeingstars · Post #11 » by **seeingstars** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 12:21 am

I'd like to see Boston get Ben Simmons with Brooklyn's pick

Landshark · Post #12 » by **Landshark** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 1:43 am

seeingstars wrote:I'd like to see Boston get Ben Simmons with Brooklyn's pick

I'd like to see a Western Conference team get Ben Simmons.

seeingstars · Post #13 » by **seeingstars** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 2:26 am

Landshark wrote:
seeingstars wrote:I'd like to see Boston get Ben Simmons with Brooklyn's pick

I'd like to see a Western Conference team get Ben Simmons.

Funny, I immediately thought the same thing after I posted :lol:

Then again if we get to watch Gordon check him 4 times a year, can you really complain?

Skin · Post #14 » by **Skin** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 8:09 pm

I'm liking what Indiana's Thomas Bryant is all about...

BLOOMINGTON – Thomas Bryant turned to his new student section, flexed his arms toward one another and tossed his head back, letting go a ROAR that brought fans around Assembly Hall to their feet Thursday.

There were barely three minutes left in Indiana's blowout win over hopelessly overmatched Creighton.

It was in one moment both silly and superbly fitting of the best performance of Bryant’s young career. And it was illustrative of the burgeoning adoration for IU’s newest McDonald’s All American big man.

“The lion came out of me,” Bryant said postgame, smiling widely.

What’s most impressive about Bryant, at least early in his career, is that despite that energy, he never loses poise.

IU coach Tom Crean terms it “playing with emotion, not emotionally.” Bryant perfectly illustrates his point, able to keep his motor revved all the way up yet rarely moving too fast to make the right decision.

When the ball found him in the post Thursday, Bryant looked more like a quarterback than that lion. He’d size up the defense in front of him, run through options for kicking the ball back out and then go to work.

His array of post moves are advanced for a freshman, and they were on display. He went right and left, up and under and, once, simply through a visibly frustrated Creighton post defender. Some of his decisions could have been better, but he played with maturity beyond his 18 years.

That emotion fueled him but never controlled him.

“It’s for real,” Crean said of Bryant’s blend of emotion and level-headedness. “He doesn’t run around stomping his feet every day in practice, but he does play hard. He’s been well coached. He’s poised.”

The night first belonged to Bryant, though. He’s been called everything from Indiana’s missing piece to a dark-horse Big Ten Freshman of the Year candidate, and he looked like those things for sure.

But that self-description, “lion” – for now, it works just fine.

“I've always had that passion in me, ever since I started playing in grade school,” Bryant said. “I wasn't the most talented player, so I had to do something to separate myself from others, and the passion, the will to drive and the will to play was the difference, and I've always kept it with me.”

http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/college/indiana/2015/11/19/creighton-no-match-iu-hoosiers-dominate/76039582/

ESPN - 6'11, 241
DX - 6'10.5, 241, 7' 5.5" Wingspan, 9' 4" Standing Reach

Chad Ford Mock - Pick #18 (BOS)

Boston's biggest need is for an athletic shot-blocker. However, you're not really going to find one worth taking in the lottery.

Bryant is intriguing. He's big, has a massive wingspan and plays hard. He also has a skill set that allows him to face the basket -- but he's very, very raw. In this draft, that upside probably outweighs what will be a long developmental curve.

nbadraft.net - Pick 21 (ATL), 2017 Mock

Strengths: Possesses great length with a 7'5 wingspan, a 9'3.5 standing reach and solid athleticism … Competitor. Plays with great intensity, passion, and aggression … Hustles hard, runs the floor well ... Great finisher around the basket … Finishes well in transition but also knows how to play in a half court setting … Great rebounder. Crashes the glass on offense. Does an excellent job of keeping the ball high on offensive rebounds and not letting smaller defenders get a hand on it … Can face up and shoot, all the way out to the three if the defender is sagging off … Reliable, good teammate who has the ability to put his team on his back ... Active, doesn’t take plays off. Isn’t the type to stand around and wait for something to happen … Good defender. Active hands. Protects the paint, blocks shots, good help defender … Isn’t afraid to bang in the paint … His intensity and desire gives him a lot of promise as these are qualities you don't often find in a talented young bigman ...

Weaknesses: Not the most fluid or athletic player, but his great intensity helps combat this ... His great length gives him shot blocking potential, however he lacks explosive leaping ability ... Feet appear somewhat anchored to the floor as he isn't good at moving laterally ... Still needs to develop his low post game ... While he makes a high percentage of his shots in the paint, he needs to develop his footwork and back to the basket game moving forward ... He has made strides in filling out his frame over the past few years but still has room to get stronger ...

DX - Pick 18, 2017 Mock

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oDTpS3Pnzo[/youtube]

Game Log: http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/draft/results/players/gamelog/_/id/20271/thomas-bryant

As it looks more and more like we will be picking towards the end or outside of the lottery, I think we have to adjust our expectations of which players will be in our range. Bryant is a raw prospect right now, but I love the combination of excellent size and length, positive attitude and passion that he brings to the table. If/When his skills catch up to his confidence, then he should be an out of the box defender with the legitimate potential to space the floor down the road. The search for the unicorn PF won't be easy, but I like the make up of Mr. Thomas Bryant from what I've observed so far!

Patrick1978 · Post #15 » by **Patrick1978** » Sat Dec 26, 2015 2:39 pm

I like Jakob poeltl from Utah,stephen zimmerman from unlv,Thomas bryant from indiana if we go for a big.
If henny decides to trade for a pf this season,i think carice lavert from michigan would be a good option.
As it looks for now we will draft between 10 and 20

T-Cat · Post #16 » by **T-Cat** » Tue Jan 5, 2016 1:43 pm

We need this guy! He would solve our up and down PG situation because he plays with grit and has the ability on both ends:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpJy_HXTL2c[/youtube]

:nod:

Mannchild · Post #17 » by **Mannchild** » Tue Jan 5, 2016 4:17 pm

Denzel Valentine all day. Not as a top pick, but as a player i really hope we target with a late lotto pick.

OrlChamps2030 · Post #18 » by **OrlChamps2030** » Tue Jan 5, 2016 4:23 pm

T-Cat wrote:We need this guy! He would solve our up and down PG situation because he plays with grit and has the ability on both ends:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpJy_HXTL2c[/youtube]

dunn is a beast

one of the few times where going back to school has helped someone's draft stock

dont love the fit on this team but he would probably be BPA if he were still on the board where we'll pick

T-Cat · Post #19 » by **T-Cat** » Tue Jan 5, 2016 5:12 pm

Zmill wrote:
T-Cat wrote:We need this guy! He would solve our up and down PG situation because he plays with grit and has the ability on both ends:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpJy_HXTL2c[/youtube]

dunn is a beast

one of the few times where going back to school has helped someone's draft stock

dont love the fit on this team but he would probably be BPA if he were still on the board where we'll pick

Fit? He simply replaces any PG on our current roster! He's that good :nod:

premo321 · Post #20 » by **premo321** » Tue Jan 5, 2016 6:17 pm

T-Cat wrote:
Zmill wrote:
T-Cat wrote:We need this guy! He would solve our up and down PG situation because he plays with grit and has the ability on both ends:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpJy_HXTL2c[/youtube]

dunn is a beast

one of the few times where going back to school has helped someone's draft stock

dont love the fit on this team but he would probably be BPA if he were still on the board where we'll pick

Fit? He simply replaces any PG on our current roster! He's that good

Yep, we really need one more guard that cant shoot, and this one is almost whole month younger than elf :-?