Official Draft Thread 2015-16

[165bows]

Ben Simmons is incredibly unique, he really doesn't really have a good comp. He's an elite rebounder, a great passer with elite vision and is elite at drawing contact and getting to the line. He can't really shoot, which hinders his ability to score, yet he's surprisingly good at shooting free throws.

I'd be shocked if he couldn't come in to this team next year and average 14-11-4.

Schmitz had a bunch of comps with video to compare Simmons, including Blake Griffin, Lamar Odom, Boris Diaw and one I hadn't though of, Michael Beasley. That last one is a bit frightening, especially since he was the closest comp physically of all of them to Simmons in terms of measurements. Beasley had even better rebounding numbers per minute in college than Simmons, but ended up being fairly typical as a combo forward rebounding the ball.

Stop hating on Simmons. H8r.

Everybody's got something.

[SmartWentCrazy]

Ben Simmons is incredibly unique, he really doesn't really have a good comp. He's an elite rebounder, a great passer with elite vision and is elite at drawing contact and getting to the line. He can't really shoot, which hinders his ability to score, yet he's surprisingly good at shooting free throws.

I'd be shocked if he couldn't come in to this team next year and average 14-11-4.

Schmitz had a bunch of comps with video to compare Simmons, including Blake Griffin, Lamar Odom, Boris Diaw and one I hadn't though of, Michael Beasley. That last one is a bit frightening, especially since he was the closest comp physically of all of them to Simmons in terms of measurements. Beasley had even better rebounding numbers per minute in college than Simmons, but ended up being fairly typical as a combo forward rebounding the ball.

Mike Beasley's college stats are off-the-charts good. He had a WS/48 over .400, 33% higher than Anthony Davis, 15% higher than Oden. He had all the talent of a HoF'er-- unfortunately he had the brain of a child.

If Simmons could be Mike Beasley with a good head on his shoulders, I'd be thrilled.

[Murta]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/DraftExpress/status/699618334959079425[/tweet]

Nice combo of skill, size and decent athleticism, but he has had some injury woes in past years. I think he's a late lottery to mid-1st talent and if I'd have to choose between him and Nurkić, it's really really close. I'd might even choose Zubac because Nurkić is on the lower end of height for NBA center.
Pretty interesting prospect for our and DAL picks. But doesn't want to be stashed, that was kinda clear since the beginning of the season, it's now almost crystal.

[Gomes3PC]

Ben Simmons is incredibly unique, he really doesn't really have a good comp. He's an elite rebounder, a great passer with elite vision and is elite at drawing contact and getting to the line. He can't really shoot, which hinders his ability to score, yet he's surprisingly good at shooting free throws.

I'd be shocked if he couldn't come in to this team next year and average 14-11-4.

Schmitz had a bunch of comps with video to compare Simmons, including Blake Griffin, Lamar Odom, Boris Diaw and one I hadn't though of, Michael Beasley. That last one is a bit frightening, especially since he was the closest comp physically of all of them to Simmons in terms of measurements. Beasley had even better rebounding numbers per minute in college than Simmons, but ended up being fairly typical as a combo forward rebounding the ball.

Mike Beasley's college stats are off-the-charts good. He had a WS/48 over .400, 33% higher than Anthony Davis, 15% higher than Oden. He had all the talent of a HoF'er-- unfortunately he had the brain of a child.

If Simmons could be Mike Beasley with a good head on his shoulders, I'd be thrilled.

Yeah, as I said, talent was never the issue with Supercoolbeas.

[Slartibartfast]

For those picks in the 18-25 range, I like Deyonta Davis (super bouncy PF/C - Zeller replacement), Valentine (SG/SF - see some Turner in him), Sabonis (super smooth, love the lefties - think he will develop a 3 in the NBA), and Thomas Bryant (potential Sully replacement).

Turner with 3-point range (up to 45% on the year) and without the superstar complex. I think Valentine will end up as one of 5 best players in this draft.

His numbers are insane 20/8/7 in 33mpg, on 47/45/85 shooting splits (62TS%).

[Gomes3PC]

I don't think he has ET's handle or first step, I should note. But he has that "can do a bit of everything" skillset that seems to mesh well with Stevens.

[165bows]

Nice piece on potentially switching Simmons back to righty on his shot. Apparently he uses his right for almost everything except FTs/jumpshots.

[tweet]https://twitter.com/kevinoconnornba/status/699640923257380865[/tweet]

[mbsnmisc]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/DraftExpress/status/699618334959079425[/tweet]

Nice combo of skill, size and decent athleticism, but he has had some injury woes in past years. I think he's a late lottery to mid-1st talent and if I'd have to choose between him and Nurkić, it's really really close. I'd might even choose Zubac because Nurkić is on the lower end of height for NBA center.
Pretty interesting prospect for our and DAL picks. But doesn't want to be stashed, that was kinda clear since the beginning of the season, it's now almost crystal.

That is a bigass 18 year old. I wonder how accurate those measurements are ? I don't love the way he runs, it kind of looks like he needs bigger shoes. He is an interesting prospect.

[Murta]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/DraftExpress/status/699618334959079425[/tweet]

Nice combo of skill, size and decent athleticism, but he has had some injury woes in past years. I think he's a late lottery to mid-1st talent and if I'd have to choose between him and Nurkić, it's really really close. I'd might even choose Zubac because Nurkić is on the lower end of height for NBA center.
Pretty interesting prospect for our and DAL picks. But doesn't want to be stashed, that was kinda clear since the beginning of the season, it's now almost crystal.

That is a bigass 18 year old. I wonder how accurate those measurements are ? I don't love the way he runs, it kind of looks like he needs bigger shoes. He is an interesting prospect.

I don't know about numbers, but when I saw him live for the first and only time, I couldn't miss how massively built he is, especially in the legs.

[mbsnmisc]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/DraftExpress/status/699618334959079425[/tweet]

Nice combo of skill, size and decent athleticism, but he has had some injury woes in past years. I think he's a late lottery to mid-1st talent and if I'd have to choose between him and Nurkić, it's really really close. I'd might even choose Zubac because Nurkić is on the lower end of height for NBA center.
Pretty interesting prospect for our and DAL picks. But doesn't want to be stashed, that was kinda clear since the beginning of the season, it's now almost crystal.

That is a bigass 18 year old. I wonder how accurate those measurements are ? I don't love the way he runs, it kind of looks like he needs bigger shoes. He is an interesting prospect.

I don't know about numbers, but when I saw him live for the first and only time, I couldn't miss how massively built he is, especially in the legs.

Definitely has an NBA body. I hope Danny at least considers a Euro player this year. The last couple of drafts have yielded some good young big men. What kind of injuries has he sustained ?

[Andrew McCeltic]

Nice piece on potentially switching Simmons back to righty on his shot. Apparently he uses his right for almost everything except FTs/jumpshots.

[tweet]https://twitter.com/kevinoconnornba/status/699640923257380865[/tweet]

Yeah thanks, I was about to post this.. Big news for his upside..

[Gomes3PC]

That would take "rebuilding [Player X]'s jump shot from the ground up" to a new level.

[lon3lytoaster]

That would take "rebuilding [Player X]'s jump shot from the ground up" to a new level.

Tristan Thompson did it.

[Duke4life831]

That would take "rebuilding [Player X]'s jump shot from the ground up" to a new level.

Tristan Thompson did it.

And that really took his jumper to a whole new level........

[No-Man]

Zubac could go late-lotto but there are a ton of bigs there, Poeltl, Jones, Ellenson,...difficult, there are a ton of bigs overall, he might slide to Dallas pick that will be a good target.

[Slartibartfast]

I don't think he has ET's handle or first step, I should note. But he has that "can do a bit of everything" skillset that seems to mesh well with Stevens.

ET's handle is tighter but I don't think ET's first step is all that great and I think the respect for Valentine's J will make him similarly capable of getting into the paint.

[Gomes3PC]

I don't think he has ET's handle or first step, I should note. But he has that "can do a bit of everything" skillset that seems to mesh well with Stevens.

ET's handle is tighter but I don't think ET's first step is all that great and I think the respect for Valentine's J will make him similarly capable of getting into the paint.

ET is not elite or even great with his first step, but Valentine has lead feet. That said, your point is valid. If he's a 38-40% shooter from deep, guys will close out hard and he is a really savvy player, so he will know how to take advantage of that.

[jmr07019]

Let's say we're sitting at 3 and Philly offers either Okafor or Noel for our pick. What do you do?

I'd take Okafor.

[mbsnmisc]

Let's say we're sitting at 3 and Philly offers either Okafor or Noel for our pick. What do you do?

I'd take Okafor.

If he would get in better shape and commit to playing defense he can be a great player. The only thing that scares me is I see a little bit of quit in him. When a physical big, (Sully type), bodies up on him he tends to pull away from the basket. I know he is young, but some dogs don't hunt.

[SirTankalot]

]ET is not elite or even great with his first step, but Valentine has lead feet. That said, your point is valid. If he's a 38-40% shooter from deep, guys will close out hard and he is a really savvy player, so he will know how to take advantage of that.

The Valentine comparisons to Draymond only extend to the offensive end of the court. As you allude to, Valentine does not have the foot speed to play NBA defense, which is exactly what makes Draymond so valuable to the Warriors. Valentine can't DH in basketball. He will have a very tough time getting onto an NBA court with his lack of athleticism.

Jarrod Uthoff is the senior 3/4 who you want to draft late, not Valentine.