Wizards 2019 Draft Thread - Part II

[Mizerooskie]

So something I've thought about for a while, but I'm not sure if it's even possible to do.

NBA teams, by and large, throw second round picks away for nothing. Couldn't a smart team gain an advantage on the league at large by investing heavily in their scouting and G-League coaching/development and then taking 3-4 shots in the second round annually? Is there something in the CBA or league rules that would prevent this?

You'd basically be cycling through a whole roster's worth every 3-4 years. Since 2014, the following players were either second rounders or undrafted:

2nd Rounders
Mitchell Robinson
Thomas Bryant
Monte Morris
Ivica Zubac
Malcolm Brogdon
Monterzl Harrell
Richaun Holmes
Josh Richardson
Spencer Dinwiddie
Jerami Grant
Nikola Jokic
Dwight Powell

Undrafted
Fred VanVleet
Brynn Forbes
Quinn Cook
Tyler Johnson
Langston Galloway

One star, some good starters in there, along with solid role players. I assert that with more serious scouting and development, both the hit rate and the quality of those hits would increase. How many teams actually fully utilize their G-League team

Anyone think this has any validity, or am I out to lunch?

[truwizfan4evr]

I'm tempted to start a thread on Justin Robinson, but I should probably wait to see if he actually graduates from the Go-Go and manages to get minutes with the Wizards.

Looking at his college numbers, he seems like a really good under-the-radar find:



The kid averaged 18 points, 7 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals while shooting 47%, 42% and 81%. He showed steady progression every year in nearly all categories. He gets to the line a good amount.

His numbers in conference play are even better:


Sports-reference lists him as 6-2, 195 lbs. I can't find any official measurements.

Here is the obligatory highlight reel:

Watch on YouTube

Great numbers, doesn’t pass the eye test at all for me. I could barely get through the highlight reel. Weird athlete

So many of the wizards board wanted us to draft him and a few others.

[truwizfan4evr]

I'm hearing so many people saying that every team who passed on bol bol will regret it. Shaw said he believes bol bol going to be better then Zion. Anyone regrets us not drafting him?

[SUPERBALLMAN]

I'm hearing so many people saying that every team who passed on bol bol will regret it. Shaw said he believes bol bol going to be better then Zion. Anyone regrets us not drafting him?

Not really... I was high on him at one point, but geez he is just so frail looking. And did you see him after he was drafted? Dude looked lost.

[truwizfan4evr]

I'm hearing so many people saying that every team who passed on bol bol will regret it. Shaw said he believes bol bol going to be better then Zion. Anyone regrets us not drafting him?

Not really... I was high on him at one point, but geez he is just so frail looking. And did you see him after he was drafted? Dude looked lost.

If he can get bigger and stronger over the years and stay away from serious injuries then who knows.

[doclinkin]

So something I've thought about for a while, but I'm not sure if it's even possible to do.

NBA teams, by and large, throw second round picks away for nothing. Couldn't a smart team gain an advantage on the league at large by investing heavily in their scouting and G-League coaching/development and then taking 3-4 shots in the second round annually? Is there something in the CBA or league rules that would prevent this?

You'd basically be cycling through a whole roster's worth every 3-4 years. Since 2014, the following players were either second rounders or undrafted:

2nd Rounders
Mitchell Robinson
Thomas Bryant
Monte Morris
Ivica Zubac
Malcolm Brogdon
Monterzl Harrell
Richaun Holmes
Josh Richardson
Spencer Dinwiddie
Jerami Grant
Nikola Jokic
Dwight Powell

Undrafted
Fred VanVleet
Brynn Forbes
Quinn Cook
Tyler Johnson
Langston Galloway

One star, some good starters in there, along with solid role players. I assert that with more serious scouting and development, both the hit rate and the quality of those hits would increase. How many teams actually fully utilize their G-League team

Anyone think this has any validity, or am I out to lunch?

Yes. I said so in the Off-season thread and a few other places. I feel like with Wall our and the team likely mediocre at best we have opportunity to take advantage of circumstances and do what we should have done all along. Build from the bottom up. Recruit BBIQ all stars who play with good attitude and smart play. Defense rebounds. Assists. Taking charges. Fighting through screens. Making the extra pass. Movement off the ball. Diving for balls even in a blowout. These are the guys you want to acquire first and foremost. Stock our GoGo squad with these players with the aim of winning the GLeague championship every year. Guys who want to win no matter what they’re getting paid or who is watching.


Then Hire a coach for the Wiz but let them pick a trusted assistant to mentor the lower team and play with a similar system. Then salt the roster with late picks and developing talent after your main squads on each have established themselves. Make liberal and free use of the squad, cycling down two way players and rookie contract guys so they get a taste of the bigs and you get a peek to see if there is synergy between your NBA and GLeague guys. And let them scrimmage against each other since they share the same facility. Test out plays the way NFL teams use their practice squad. Experiment. Get clever. Listen to the players’ good ideas and input. Suddenly you have crowdsourced your coaching and can identify smart future assistant coaches and front office guys by listening to the ones who speak up.

GLeague players gun for stats and do not play defense. Fire those guys. Make it clear the only way you WILL be called up to the main squad is if you hustle. Then do. Call up the guys who fight the hardest. Establish a culture of scrappy smart ballers. And let the hypertalents learn from them.

And yes. Load up on late picks and shuffle through them as needed. Look for the BBIQ stats and upperclassmen to start. Then the developing talent once you’ve got hustlefxcks at every position. The Ethan Happ types who play the right way even if they are underdogs at their position.

I’ve been saying for years (/hands) the GLeague/DLeague is a secret weapon. Even before the DLeague I thought that teams would be smart to buy a CBA squad (before Isaiah killed the league). I feel like you need to create a gladiator school. Like an IMG Academy level training school for pro players. And start NOW before the high school talent is let back in the league.

[MVPofDC]

I was initially upset about taking Rui with Reddish still on the board but I'm at peace with it out now. With our pick at #9 we could've done so much worse imo. I think Rui has the chance to come in and be a starter for us right away. This site says he has the potential to be in the mold of Antawn Jamison which I would welcome - https://www.nbadraft.net/players/rui-hachimura

I wish we would've taken a chance with our 2nd round pick on Bol Bol. The risk vs reward for a 2nd rd pick in the 40s would've made sense to me. I'm happy with Admiral though. He's undersized but think he's another guy who will be able to contribute sooner rather than later.

[payitforward]

So something I've thought about for a while, but I'm not sure if it's even possible to do.

NBA teams, by and large, throw second round picks away for nothing. Couldn't a smart team gain an advantage on the league at large by investing heavily in their scouting and G-League coaching/development and then taking 3-4 shots in the second round annually? Is there something in the CBA or league rules that would prevent this?

You'd basically be cycling through a whole roster's worth every 3-4 years. Since 2014, the following players were either second rounders or undrafted:

2nd Rounders
Mitchell Robinson
Thomas Bryant
Monte Morris
Ivica Zubac
Malcolm Brogdon
Monterzl Harrell
Richaun Holmes
Josh Richardson
Spencer Dinwiddie
Jerami Grant
Nikola Jokic
Dwight Powell

Undrafted
Fred VanVleet
Brynn Forbes
Quinn Cook
Tyler Johnson
Langston Galloway

One star, some good starters in there, along with solid role players. I assert that with more serious scouting and development, both the hit rate and the quality of those hits would increase. How many teams actually fully utilize their G-League team

Anyone think this has any validity, or am I out to lunch?

100% a good idea, & good teams do it. The Warriors bought R2 picks in 2016 & 2017, for example. They also signed Dedric Lawson about 5 minutes after the draft ended on Thursday! Guy carried Kansas this year....

[closg00]

I'm hearing so many people saying that every team who passed on bol bol will regret it. Shaw said he believes bol bol going to be better then Zion. Anyone regrets us not drafting him?

Absolutely, Bol was gotten for scraps, Denver doesn't have a G-League team and they took him.

[nate33]

I'm hearing so many people saying that every team who passed on bol bol will regret it. Shaw said he believes bol bol going to be better then Zion. Anyone regrets us not drafting him?

Absolutely, Bol was gotten for scraps, Denver doesn't have a G-League team and they took him.

I'm assuming the reason he lasted so long was that his medical report was a horror show. Every GM passed on him once and several passed on him twice for a reason.

[nate33]

I didn't realize that my man Kyle Guy actually got drafted! The Knicks took him with the 55th pick. In an ideal situation, he would be paired with a playmaking wing so he can guard the PG position. Maybe Barrett pans out to be that type of guy.

[Dat2U]

https://www.thestepien.com/2019/06/18/rui-hachimura-scouting-report/

Medium / Realistic Outcome: 6th/7th man scorer, poor defense. Even though he has made strides over the last two seasons (a solid jump this past season as the season progressed), I still think he has a ways to go on defense. With that in mind, I think given how important back-end defense is (and versatility), I don’t think his offensive scoring ability will be able to make up for his lack of defensive feel…especially when his offense is predicated on shooting jumpers and him being a ball stopper.

He nailed it on Hachimura IMO. I've said exact same thing for months about the kid.

The hope is he can unlock another level offensively by..

A. Stretching his shot out to 3 pt range and shooting them in volume which is certainly possible AND

B. Learning to see the floor and find cutters. Be more willing to move the ball.

He'd also have to improve his awareness enough to be passable on the defensive side of the ball.

[nate33]

https://www.thestepien.com/2019/06/18/rui-hachimura-scouting-report/

Medium / Realistic Outcome: 6th/7th man scorer, poor defense. Even though he has made strides over the last two seasons (a solid jump this past season as the season progressed), I still think he has a ways to go on defense. With that in mind, I think given how important back-end defense is (and versatility), I don’t think his offensive scoring ability will be able to make up for his lack of defensive feel…especially when his offense is predicated on shooting jumpers and him being a ball stopper.

He nailed it on Hachimura IMO. I've said exact same thing for months about the kid.

The hope is he can unlock another level offensively by..

A. Stretching his shot out to 3 pt range and shooting them in volume which is certainly possible AND

B. Learning to see the floor and find cutters. Be more willing to move the ball.

He'd also have to improve his awareness enough to be passable on the defensive side of the ball.

He is very skilled and coordinated for a guy that started basketball so late. It's a pretty good sign that he was so successful in another sport (baseball) as well. And he's a hard worker. I'm really not that worried about him improving his offensive skills further. He'll stretch his shot out to 3-point range and he'll probably learn to move the ball better.

My biggest concern is his instincts on defense. I don't know how much that improves with experience. Some guys have an innate sense of spacing and timing and others don't. I fear that Hachimura doesn't.

I have some optimism that he'll get better as a rebounder. He definitely isn't soft. He's not afraid of contact and looks to punish other guys when he has the ball on offense. I think it's possible to transfer that mentality to the defensive glass. But again, that doesn't mean he'll have the innate ability to read the ball while it's in the air and anticipate the direction of the bounce. That's probably more instinct than learned skill.

[thinker07]

For what it's worth, I interpreted Shephards comments about Rui being 4th on their board as being -- we looked at the players that could possibly be on the board when we picked -- and he was 4th on that list. I interpreted it as Zion, Ja, RJ, maybe Hunter and Garland weren't on that list. So on this theory, Rui would be chosen if for example Coby White, Culver and Jaxson Hayes had already gone off the board. Pick your own names but I dont think he was saying that he would have chosen Rui even if White or Culver or whoever was still available.

[King Ken]

I'm a Memphis Grizz fan. Bye!

As an Atlanta Hawks fan since 1994, I had so many years I been pissed, threaten to retire my fandom, for a week did and came back. It's all because of terrible management, drafting, and **** decisions. But eventually it will change. We got Ferry then Coach Bud. It wasn't great but it's the best we ever had. Then we got Tony Ressler as the owner and Travis Senlenk. Those two are like Dr. Buss and Jerry West. Just elite all around. It will take time. I like you got ride of Ernie. I used to be a Wizards season ticket holder so I used to go to a lot of Wizards games. My wife still consider ya'll her favorite team or did. She likes the Hawks now that we got Trae. She likes watching us play now, hated it before.

She liked the Wiz with Wall, Beal and Porter Jr.

[payitforward]

It's a disease. It's an addiction.

Dat said "Bye!" but... he's been here at least twice today.

[verbal8]

Does anyone else think Zion Williamson might end up being a Joe Smith-type pick?

Not a full-on bust, but a player whose dominance doesn't translate to the NBA?

Is too athletic to fail, but I see his biggest weakness shaky outside shooting, being a liability in the pros. I think he blocks fewer shots and is less dominate inside against the longer competition in the NBA.

[payitforward]

It's like I said, Zion Williamson is the son of Derrick Williams. How can he succeed. Whereas Rui Hachimura is the Japanese translation of the English name "Kawhi Leonard."

It's so obvious!

With our new GM (Garrison Mathews, the pale-faced Rui Hachimura of shooting guards), we will make people want to forget that they took part in this draft. Executives around the league will fly in & ask if they can be enslaved to us.

[doclinkin]

It's like I said, Zion Williamson is the son of Derrick Williams. How can he succeed. Whereas Rui Hachimura is the Japanese translation of the English name "Kawhi Leonard."

It's so obvious!

With our new GM (Garrison Mathews, the pale-faced Rui Hachimura of shooting guards), we will make people want to forget that they took part in this draft. Executives around the league will fly in & ask if they can be enslaved to us.

This was tiresome schtick the first time you trotted it out. It hasn’t gotten any better with repetition. Maybe take a break? New material? I dunno.

[prime1time]

https://www.thestepien.com/2019/06/18/rui-hachimura-scouting-report/

Medium / Realistic Outcome: 6th/7th man scorer, poor defense. Even though he has made strides over the last two seasons (a solid jump this past season as the season progressed), I still think he has a ways to go on defense. With that in mind, I think given how important back-end defense is (and versatility), I don’t think his offensive scoring ability will be able to make up for his lack of defensive feel…especially when his offense is predicated on shooting jumpers and him being a ball stopper.

He nailed it on Hachimura IMO. I've said exact same thing for months about the kid.

The hope is he can unlock another level offensively by..

A. Stretching his shot out to 3 pt range and shooting them in volume which is certainly possible AND

B. Learning to see the floor and find cutters. Be more willing to move the ball.

He'd also have to improve his awareness enough to be passable on the defensive side of the ball.

So you are saying that you if Rui even becomes a starter he will have exceeded expectations?