Way too early NBA draft thread 2021

[erlim]

I for one am happy this thread is now free to go to the grave yard.

[WindyCityBorn]

Dream scenario is missing out on the playoffs, lucking out into a top 4 pick with the new odds, signing Ball in the offseason, signing Noah as an assistant or Ambassador for the team (to help with the young team and possible FA recruitment).

My dream scenario is definitely not missing out on the playoffs if it has anything to do with Vuc or Zach not playing great.

Not making the playoffs now would suck balls.


This year is still fairly meaningless IMO. If they gel quickly, play well, and make a run... great, I’m all for it. But this will likely be our last chance to have this lottery opportunity in a stacked draft if we sneak into the top 4. Could be franchise altering. I’ll take that opportunity with new odds over barely making the playoffs and getting bounced in the first round, even if we don’t hit and the pick goes to Orlando.

[Leslie Forman]

So…anybody gonna make a 2024 draft thread?

You skipping 2022?

If the draft pick next year is high enough to warrant it, hoo boy this board is gonna be a warzone

[WindyCityBorn]

This thread can die!

[Cabbage bulls]

Lock this thread and ban the OP

[ThreeMileAllan]

I am kind of hoping this gives us a shot at AYO with our 2nd round pick

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[LateNight]

As a nerd, I am looking forward to our threads about second round and undrafted picks! Bring on the deep scouting

[Drgaliza2]

☝️ In response to deep scouting.. Im actually intrigued on this guy.. as a 2nd round pick.. either him or dayron sharpe

Watch on YouTube

Watch on YouTube

Watch on YouTube

“Kai Sotto is a tremendously skilled player for his size and age,” explained Chris Ebersole, NBA Senior Director of International Elite Basketball Operations. “His footwork and ball skills are advanced, and make him a challenge to defend.”

Ebersole also spoke highly of Sotto’s skills at the other end of the court. “Defensively, Kai uses his basketball IQ to his advantage, positioning himself well, and using his length to block or change shots near the rim without lunging or falling for shot fakes.”

Post Moves

Kai Sotto’s post game is the centerpiece of his offensive skill set. He can comfortably score with either hand and spin to either direction using some very adept footwork for his size, as well as a variety of shoulder fakes, step backs, hook shots and step throughs that keep his defenders off balance.

Passing

“[Sotto’s] biggest strength I think is probably his passing ability,” Givony says, and the few clips here showcase an impressive range of assists, from interior dump-offs to on-the-money entry passes to cutters to passing on the move on drives. Sotto also displays great court vision, using his height to scan above defenders, and his length to pass right over them.

Handle

For a player of his age and height, Sotto’s ball handling skills are well above average, and he puts them to good use playing off the bunce when attacking closeouts and initiating drives out of post-ups. His handle may not exactly look graceful, but it’s effective in adding another valuable dimension to his offensive game.

Touch Around The Rim

Sotto has a soft touch around the basket, with good hands and a solid sense of timing on layups and putbacks. Considering his wiry frame which, at least in the near future, won’t allow him to body his way in for dunks against stronger opponents, his touch combined with his standing reach should be invaluable for him to make shots at a high percentage from several feet out.

Range

Kai Sotto’s shooting range extends to the three-point arc, and he can pull up or spot up from just about any location on the court. He has a sufficiently high release point and elevation on his jumpers to shoot over most defenders with ease, and can even step back into a fadeaway. If he does enter the NBA draft, he will certainly draw comparisons to Denver Nuggets rookie Bol Bol, who has a comparable body type and similarly combines a lanky, 7-foot-2 physique with high-level skills including the ability to shoot from deep.

Shot Blocking

With his height and wingspan, shot blocking ability is to be expected, but one specific aspect of Sotto’s rim protection stands out in reviewing these clips, and

that is his propensity to retain possession of the ball and get his team going on the break with outlet passes after blocking shots. It’s a good example of the high basketball IQ Ebersole spoke of, and shows a strong awareness for a player of his age.

Mobility

While Sotto still needs to work on improving his speed and conditioning, he does display good mobility for his size. He does a solid job of rim-running out of pick-and-rolls, and when he applies the effort on defense, can run to chase down blocks and close out on perimeter shots. (It does bear noting that, although I did not include such plays here, Sotto does a lot of literally standing around after offensive possessions and not running back on defense at all. Whether this is due to poor conditioning or some other reason, it’s a bad habit he needs to correct sooner rather than later, as it won’t fly at the NBA or even collegiate level.)

This is from An article by joel rush @forbes regarding kai sotto

I hope the bulls scouts dont miss on this talent if we only managed to get 2nd rnd pick. He could be our ring protector at pf/center.

Why bulls need his skill set? Bulls needs a rim protector with length and is able to go outside when needed so zach can penetrate. Bulls need a facilitator ala jokic.. plus we arent sacrificing youth and just incase vucivic retires or get injured(hoping not) we still have a bigman.. we need a 2way bigman.. its hard to hv all defense no offense and all offense no defence big..

I might have to look on some other scouting report on who we can get in the 2nd rnd.. hidden gems like manu ginobili, jokic, marc gasol, toni kukoc

[DuckIII]

I am kind of hoping this gives us a shot at AYO with our 2nd round pick

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It won’t.

[Leslie Forman]

Honestly, I feel like Ayo is a guy that gets talked about as a 15-20 pick, Jay Bilas hypes him up once the teens start coming, saying he's one of his top guys left…but then he ends up going something like 30th.

[Almost Retired]

Loyola sure had an off day shooting the basketball. They looked like a completely different team than the one that soundly beat the Illini. It was not a well played game. The Baylor v Villanova game was better. It reinforced my belief that Davion Mitchell is the exact right player we need to add. I wish we could trade Coby White to the Pelicans after the season for one of their mid First round picks and their high second rounder. I'd take Mitchell in a heartbeat. I'd add him for his defense alone. Everything else he gives you is just gravy on the biscuit. He wasn't hitting from outside but he impacted the game in the second half doing everything else. He's got a quick enough first step to go along with that linebacker's body. His defensive footwork when he's covering on the ball is elite. And his help defense when he's covering the weak side shows a very high BB IQ. He drives with authority. And so strong in the upper and lower body. A starting lineup of Zach, Mitchell, Paw, Lauri and Vooch could make some noise in the East.

[Wingy]

It reinforced my belief that Davion Mitchell is the exact right player we need to add. I wish we could trade Coby White to the Pelicans after the season for one of their mid First round picks and their high second rounder. I'd take Mitchell in a heartbeat. I'd add him for his defense alone. Everything else he gives you is just gravy on the biscuit. He wasn't hitting from outside but he impacted the game in the second half doing everything else. He's got a quick enough first step to go along with that linebacker's body. His defensive footwork when he's covering on the ball is elite. And his help defense when he's covering the weak side shows a very high BB IQ. He drives with authority. And so strong in the upper and lower body. A starting lineup of Zach, Mitchell, Paw, Lauri and Vooch could make some noise in the East.

Know nothing about him, but what about his age? 22.5 already...that’s old for even a senior (and he’s listed as a jr). In general, I get nervous when a guy in college looks great vs guys 2-3 years (or more) younger.

[The Box Office]

We should keep discussing new players. There is no harm in that. At all. It's just talk.

By the way, Evan Mobley moved up into my Top 3 knocking out Cade Cunningham. It's been a damn long time since I seen USC go into the Elite 8. Mobley is the real deal. That 2 handed in your face dunk was nasty. This Tuesday's night Jalen Suggs' Gonzaga vs. Evan Mobley's USC Trojans. It's gonna be a heavyweight fight.

5. Jonathan Kuminga
4. Cade Cunningham
3. Evan Mobley
2. Jalen Suggs
1. Jalen Green

[ChettheJet]

I think this year's draft will be more predictable than last year and maybe how players end up performing better fits where they were picked. Last year without much of a season and no tournament scouting was nearly a guessing game. This year while not completely back to normal, I don't think scouts saw many games in person, there are more games so teams will have a better idea about who they are drafting and there will be fewer misses or over reaches than last year

[Rose2Boozer]

I'm not sure what type of tournament bump he'll receive, but Quentin Grimes could be an interesting second round prospect for the Bulls.

[Almost Retired]

It reinforced my belief that Davion Mitchell is the exact right player we need to add. I wish we could trade Coby White to the Pelicans after the season for one of their mid First round picks and their high second rounder. I'd take Mitchell in a heartbeat. I'd add him for his defense alone. Everything else he gives you is just gravy on the biscuit. He wasn't hitting from outside but he impacted the game in the second half doing everything else. He's got a quick enough first step to go along with that linebacker's body. His defensive footwork when he's covering on the ball is elite. And his help defense when he's covering the weak side shows a very high BB IQ. He drives with authority. And so strong in the upper and lower body. A starting lineup of Zach, Mitchell, Paw, Lauri and Vooch could make some noise in the East.

Know nothing about him, but what about his age? 22.5 already...that’s old for even a senior (and he’s listed as a jr). In general, I get nervous when a guy in college looks great vs guys 2-3 years (or more) younger.

The age factor isn't really a detriment. He's ready to play on Day 1. Watch the way the kid plays defense. On the ball on and on the weak side. There will be no need to wait 2 years for his body to get strong enough to compete. He'd be one of the the strongest point guards in the league even as a rookie. He'd compliment Zach really well. We need better on the ball defense from our guards. Show me another guard in the draft that plays a more tenacious one on one defense? He draws charges. And he's strong. He can drive and finish. He can score. He can facilitate. And he's a hell of a competitor. His nickname is "Off Night" because everyone he plays against has an off night. He's a candidate for the Naismith DPOY and he'll probably win it. His work ethic at Baylor is legendary. He's one of those guys you have to lock out of the gym or he'd set up a cot and live there. He is exactly what we need right now if we can't entice Micic to leave Europe and join the Bulls. But we need to make a trade that lands us a pick between 12 and 18 to get Mitchell in my opinion. I think Coby for the Pelicans mid First Rounder and their high second rounder is pretty fair.

[Bandit King]

What draft picks??!

[Almost Retired]

I'm hoping AK can make a post season trade and pick up some draft picks for this draft. I'd love to get one of the Pelican's First Rounders and their high second rounder. We could get a starter and a rotation player or a Euro we could stash a year like Hukporti. I'd be willing to part with Coby or Lauri at this point and add guys who are two way players willing to battle. Kispert, Mitchell, Sengun, Dosunmu, Chris Duarte, Taevion Kinsey, Joel Ayayi, Tre Mann, David Duke...

There might even be some undrafted Free Agents worth a look on a short term deal. Someone like Dejon Jarreau from the Houston Cougars. The guy is a lockdown defender with experience and a good BBIQ. He's a senior so it's likely he'll go undrafted. Offensively he's probably only adequate. But that elite defense would be welcome since our current perimeter defense is almost nonexistent.

[fleet]

Wait, we can still get the pick if it’s top 4 I thought.

[PlayerUp]

Wait, we can still get the pick if it’s top 4 I thought.

Right and Top 4 Picks are all that pretty much matter in this draft. After that our pick will sit somewhere around #9 or #16 which nothing overly impressive. The real concern is the 2023 Pick which Lavine could walk by then so we're in rebuild mode and lost our pick similar to the situation Minnesota is in this season.