2018 NBA Draft

[GimmeDat]

It's crazy to me that Kostas Antentokounmpo never gets mentioned.

Remember who told you to look out for him first

He's not 2018 though.

[PhilBlackson]

It's crazy to me that Kostas Antentokounmpo never gets mentioned.

Remember who told you to look out for him first

He's not 2018 though.

Really?!

I could have sworn that he was supposed to be eligible in the next draft. He's already 19 and will be 20 by the time the draft rolls around. What's holding him back??

[GimmeDat]

It's crazy to me that Kostas Antentokounmpo never gets mentioned.

Remember who told you to look out for him first

He's not 2018 though.

Really?!

I could have sworn that he was supposed to be eligible in the next draft. He's already 19 and will be 20 by the time the draft rolls around. What's holding him back??

Hmm.. someone more knowledgeable than me here will be able to answer that one for you, I'm not too sure - all I know is he's not on any 2018 mocks and that's why not many people are talking about him. Definitely has looked promising though!

[dukes_wild]

I expect Miles Bridges to be a top 5 pick when it's all said and done. I also think Mo Bamba's insane 7'9 wingspan combined with his skill-set will make him a threat to go #1 overall. Doncic is being hyped too much too early I think, but he should end up going top 5 as-well.

It's a wide open class though. There's just not much high end talent in this class.

players that I think everyone should watch or keep an eye on:

- Hamidou Diallo
- Troy Brown
- Trevon Duval
- Justin Jackson
- Kostja Mushidi

I can see those players really going up the mock boards throughout the season, Troy Brown especially, but if Hamidou Diallo gets better with his jumper, or Justin Jackson takes his solid freshman year and improves on it across the board, I can see people loving him as he has that massive hands/long arms, 6'7 230 strong frame physical tools that are eerily similar to Kawhi Leonard.

Really like Troy Brown though, Oregon is always a fun team to watch. He's a tall and long SG/SF hybrid, has a great attitude and character, projects to be a good defender, he's not even 18 yet and seems to have good feel for the game. If there's any sleeper to end up in the top 5 it would be him.

[reanimator]

Why are you evaluating him as a volume scorer if that's not his game? He's a point forward prospect with natural scoring ability.

Sent from my LG-H811 using Tapatalk

"kid shows natural ability as a scorer..."

How is that in any way a reference to him being a volume scorer? It's saying he can score and has the tools to do so. But that's not all he's capable of.

But, thanks for quoting something I said rather than answering my question.

Sent from my LG-H811 using Tapatalk

If you were not talking about volume scoring then why mention it since that could apply to just about any player?

[Mirotic12]

Hmm.. someone more knowledgeable than me here will be able to answer that one for you, I'm not too sure - all I know is he's not on any 2018 mocks and that's why not many people are talking about him. Definitely has looked promising though!

He's not on any mocks, because he sat out his freshman year, due to bad grades, and was the worst player on Greece's under-20 national team last summer.

He hasn't shown anything really yet. Maybe he will play with Greece's under-20 team this summer, and we can see where he is at. But so far, he has not reported to the team's training camp.

He is 1997 born and in US college, so he was definitely eligible for the 2017 draft already. If he was playing in Europe, he would have been eligible even in 2016.

[bennjuiced34]

"kid shows natural ability as a scorer..."

How is that in any way a reference to him being a volume scorer? It's saying he can score and has the tools to do so. But that's not all he's capable of.

But, thanks for quoting something I said rather than answering my question.

Sent from my LG-H811 using Tapatalk

If you were not talking about volume scoring then why mention it since that could apply to just about any player?

Because natural scoring instincts don't always equate to a volume scorer. However, if you say a prospect is a volume scorer, usually that means natural scoring instincts.

The 2 aren't mutually exclusive. Just because Doncic can score and has a well-rounded offensive game doesn't mean he's best fit to be a volume scorer at the next level when you factor in his passing and PG skills. Why take away strengths of his game and turn him into something he's not, just because he can provide offensive firepower?

[reanimator]

How is that in any way a reference to him being a volume scorer? It's saying he can score and has the tools to do so. But that's not all he's capable of.

But, thanks for quoting something I said rather than answering my question.

Sent from my LG-H811 using Tapatalk

If you were not talking about volume scoring then why mention it since that could apply to just about any player?

Because natural scoring instincts don't always equate to a volume scorer. However, if you say a prospect is a volume scorer, usually that means natural scoring instincts.

The 2 aren't mutually exclusive. Just because Doncic can score and has a well-rounded offensive game doesn't mean he's best fit to be a volume scorer at the next level when you factor in his passing and PG skills. Why take away strengths of his game and turn him into something he's not, just because he can provide offensive firepower?

Guys like Lebron and Harden have no problem doing both so how is it an either or for a supposed generational prospect?

[The-Power]

Really like Troy Brown though, Oregon is always a fun team to watch. He's a tall and long SG/SF hybrid, has a great attitude and character, projects to be a good defender, he's not even 18 yet and seems to have good feel for the game. If there's any sleeper to end up in the top 5 it would be him.

Yeah, finally someone with me on Team Brown! Now join me on the Jaren Jackson train and we're good!

[Justwar]

Pj Washington is no one's radar but has been team USA 19u best player. He's a lot like miles bridges but bigger.

[PLO]

Really like Troy Brown though, Oregon is always a fun team to watch. He's a tall and long SG/SF hybrid, has a great attitude and character, projects to be a good defender, he's not even 18 yet and seems to have good feel for the game. If there's any sleeper to end up in the top 5 it would be him.

Yeah, finally someone with me on Team Brown! Now join me on the Jaren Jackson train and we're good!

I'm on Team Brown as well; it looks like a good wing class this coming season. Will be interesting to see what he and Victor Bailey (Bailey's Dad played in the NFL for a few years) can do next season at Oregon. The GSW certainly rate the program which is a big tick for them; if Brown and Bailey don't have good seasons it won't be because of lack of preparation or coaching that's for sure.

[The-Power]

I'm on Team Brown as well; it looks like a good wing class this coming season.

Yeah, while I don't see high-end PGs in this class yet I do like some of the wings. Lonnie Walker is another player with a lot of potential - and a great skill set for the modern NBA - who's not on everybody's radar yet.

[No-Man]

Pj Washington is no one's radar but has been team USA 19u best player. He's a lot like miles bridges but bigger.

He is longer, but nowhere near as an athlete though, he is intriguing but everything lies on his shooting, I think he has a bucket-getter type of game but his stroke isnt all that reliable, Bridges showed some advanced shooting skills off-ball last year.

[crows2]

Finally sat down and watched the Nike Hoop Summit last night, focussing on the Team USA prospects. My thoughts on each prospect are below:

*Disclaimer: When I compare a prospect to past prospects (eg. Durant, Tatum etc), I'm talking about how they were viewed as prospects pre-draft; irrespective of how they've panned out in the NBA.

Porter - Clearly a notch above most of the competition, rarely needed to get out of first gear but took over when he needed to. His on-court demeanour seems lackadaisical, similar to Kevin Durant or to a lesser extent Lonzo Ball. He played like he knew he was better than most of the players out there. I don't quite rate him as a generational prospect on Durant's level because I don't think he's the knock-down shooter that Durant is/was, but in my opinion he's a better prospect than Tatum and I'd wager that Boston would've taken him in this year's draft if he was eligible. At the moment I'd rate him on the same tier as Jabari Parker as a prospect, with the opportunity to move up or down a level depending on how dominant he is in his one year at Missouri.

Sexton - Has some shades of Westbrook as a prospect (number 4 pick), although I certainly don't think he'll ever touch the numbers that Westbrook's put up in the NBA (absolutely no one could've seen that coming). His tenacity and athleticism are top notch and will likely ensure that he at least carves out a decent career in the NBA, but it'll all come down to how he develops as a playmaker and an outside shooter. If he works on those parts of his game (which both show huge potential), he'll be a star. If he has a good season, he should go top 5 in next year's draft.

Bamba - I've been high on Bamba for a while, but he wasn't as impressive as expected in this game and was outplayed by his teammate Jaren Jackson. Defensively he was disruptive and effective, however he needs to hustle more on the boards as he should be posting big rebound numbers at his size. I want to see better rebounding before I'm prepared to label him as a surefire game-changer.

Carter - Solid without being spectacular, and I think that's what he'll offer into the future. I think his best-case scenario as a pro is a 2nd tier PF; I can't see him ever being a superstar. He doesn't have the upside of players like Bamba, Jackson and Ayton (who didn't play in this game).

Trent - Good size for an SG but an average (not poor) athlete. He'll need to be an absolutely elite outside shooter to really make a name for himself in the NBA, and I'm not sure he'll get to that level. Solid player though and should have a good college career and is likely to at least play some role in the league.

Duval - Difficult to judge him on this game as he got hurt very early and only came back on for short periods in the 2nd half. From what I've seen, he's below all of the top PG's from this year's draft (Fultz, Ball, Fox, Ntilikina, Smith) as a prospect and Sexton's clearly jumped ahead of him for next year. I'll need to see more of him before I'm prepared to put him any higher.

Vanderbilt - Just a smart player. Was clearly one of the best players on the court in this game, always seemed to be in the right position for boards, made some great cuts and his passing and vision was elite for his size. If his outside shot develops, he has the opportunity to become a top notch 3&D or stretch 4 in the league. Also has that lefty craftiness that you see from players like Harden. I have very little doubt that he'll succeed at least to some degree.

Jackson - I wasn't a fan before watching this game but he impressed me. He owned the offensive boards and created a number of second chance points for Team USA which was one of the key differences in the end. Also flashed some very nice athleticism. I'm not convinced that he'll ever become a star or dominate, but he certainly has the tools.

Brown - I found it hard to get a read on Brown. He seems like a 'jack of all trades, master of none' type player. He didn't really stand out at all, but was effective in what he did. I need to see him play more without an all-star ensemble before knowing what he's actually going to be capable of as a pro.

Knox - Horrendous, was the worst performing player on the team. He's just not a natural basketballer at all, has no feel for the game, isn't a solid shooter or ball handler. If it wasn't for his athleticism/physical tools he wouldn't be a top 100 prospect. It'll be interesting to see how Calipari develops him next season, but if he makes the NBA he'll need to land on one of the more functional franchises with a proven player development record otherwise he'll be a bust.

Walker - Didn't stink like Knox but he was just clearly not on the same level as the other prospects. Surprised he got picked for the game.

[UcanUwill]

So u19 WC starts tomorrow. Any notable players?

[a-French-Fan]

So u19 WC starts tomorrow. Any notable players?

Wait two weeks for U20 Euro for Sekou Doumbouya (born : december 2000)

[Mulhollanddrive]

Is the 2018 class projected to be stronger than 2013, 2016?

[SlowPaced]

Is the 2018 class projected to be stronger than 2013, 2016?

I'd say so, yes. '13 was very weak, '16 was better but it had less potential stars than '18 does.

[Duke4life831]

Is the 2018 class projected to be stronger than 2013, 2016?

Ya definitely up top it is. The top 4 are all legit prospects I think teams should get excited about with Ayton/Bamba/Doncic/Porter. 2016 didnt have that kind of depth at the top and 2013 wasnt even close to that. I think it begins to drop off a good amount after that but I think overall its pretty solid for the top 10. Once you get into the late teens you start to see that this class really lacks depth.

So I think if you have a top 10 pick you should be happy with this draft, a top 5 pretty damn excited. Anything beyond that, its not too exciting.

[UcanUwill]

Really impressed with Arnoldas Kulboka so far. Was just a bomber on last years u18 team. This year he is their main playmaker, good handle, quick and light on his feet, can play make a lil bit and is 6'9. Looks good.

Sedekerskis reminds me of non athletic Blake Griffin if that makes sense. Reliable big who takes it inside, but has ball handling and passing ability.