Official Spec Thread: I guess now's the time to blow this dumpster fire up and bask in the glow!

[Knightro]

I'm with you man, with the lotto odds being flattened out it's so very unlikely the bottom 3 teams will get the top 3 picks. I we think one of the top 3 players is THE piece to go with Fultz / Cole, Chuma, Isaac etc, then you move and get it. Use both 1sts, future firsts (ours or Bulls / Denver) and hell even throw in T Ross, one of Bamba or WCJ (whoever you're not committing too). No point waiting for future luck and wasting valuable years with our current players if you think that player is attainable.

Obviously don't mortgage the farm, but make your own luck

Totally agree.

Play out the rest of this season and ideally get some clarity on whether or not Hampton, Anthony, Carter, Okeke and Bamba can be rotation players next year. It would be great if all five of them all get there. But if some of them don't, so be it.

Then once the draft lottery rolls around, hopefully the Magic can get a little lottery luck and get into the top 4. But if they don't, so be it. Trade up. Make something happen. Figure it out.

Create your own luck.

[Blue_and_Whte]

Yes lottery luck is involved, but it is clear as day, black and white, and 100% guaranteed that the odds will worsen the more we win.

Of course. But what I said rings true as well. Just losing will not actually guarantee the Magic anything. So all the hand wringing and bellyaching over every single win, and there will be more before the year is over, is just silly to me.

But ultimately I'm not too worried about it because the Magic don't have nearly enough offensive firepower to win many games down the stretch anyway.

The maniacal defense and energy level is going to subside (it might have already started last night) and the losses will rack up.

Exactly right. Orlando isn’t going to find many teams sleeping on them anymore. You can catch a team especially with the defense, but you have to be able to put the ball in the hoop to win games.

I love the fresh start and seeing these guys compete and if they get a win here and there so be it. They need to keep that mentality.

[OrlChamps2030]

Nah bro. The 2019 NBA Draft was not a Top 4 draft. Most considered it a Top 3 draft with Zion, Morant and Barrett... but even then, it might've been considered a Top 1 draft. As Zion was considered a level above Morant and Barrett. DeAndre Hunter was not an elite prospect.

#4 in that draft was like landing #6 in this draft.

Personally? I would say Hunter, Culver and Reddish were comparable prospects to Green and Kuminga.

I disagree

[thelead]

Nah bro. The 2019 NBA Draft was not a Top 4 draft. Most considered it a Top 3 draft with Zion, Morant and Barrett... but even then, it might've been considered a Top 1 draft. As Zion was considered a level above Morant and Barrett. DeAndre Hunter was not an elite prospect.

#4 in that draft was like landing #6 in this draft.

Personally? I would say Hunter, Culver and Reddish were comparable prospects to Green and Kuminga.

I disagree

I disagree as well. Reddish was straight trash at Duke and the other 2 were much less known.

[JBSouthpaw]

Adrian Wojnarowski
@wojespn
·
9m
Oklahoma City is waiving forward Justin Jackson, sources tell ESPN.

[thelead]

Adrian Wojnarowski
@wojespn
·
9m
Oklahoma City is waiving forward Justin Jackson, sources tell ESPN.

LOL... they just casually waived an active rotation player.

[JBSouthpaw]

Adrian Wojnarowski
@wojespn
·
9m
Oklahoma City is waiving forward Justin Jackson, sources tell ESPN.

LOL... they just casually waived an active rotation player.

If He had another year on his contract, I'd say this is the type of player to add, but with so few games and his deal is done after this year, no real point.

[thelead]

Adrian Wojnarowski
@wojespn
·
9m
Oklahoma City is waiving forward Justin Jackson, sources tell ESPN.

LOL... they just casually waived an active rotation player.

If He had another year on his contract, I'd say this is the type of player to add, but with so few games and his deal is done after this year, no real point.

eh, we don't need him and he's not special but damn is OKC tanking hard

[JBSouthpaw]

LOL... they just casually waived an active rotation player.

If He had another year on his contract, I'd say this is the type of player to add, but with so few games and his deal is done after this year, no real point.

eh, we don't need him and he's not special but damn is OKC tanking hard

With most likely 3 rookies this next year, you are probably right.
But with that open roster spot, it would be nice to get a young'n like this.

[Skin]

Watching RJ Hampton go balls out against his old team reminded me of how soft we used to be and how things are finally starting to change. Yeah, he was wild, but he still made things happen that wouldn't have if he didn't hustle so hard.

Ironic how he was traded for AG because they both have the same mechanical feel to their games. RJ has a chance to make it if he stays aggressive. AG was built like a machine, but was too passive and soft in his head.

[pepe1991]

Justin Jackson is 26 years old, averaging 7 points on 51,9 % TS.

I'll never understand fascination with age in general. Just because somebody is young that doesn't mean he has star potential, and last 3 years i can't name single young trash on other team that turned into some uber elite allstar on another.

[Bakomagic]

I feel like Coach Cliff should be really intrigued with the young roster.

I mean, is there any reason that he can’t develop this team into a top 3 defense soon ?

He develop a really good defensive team (when healthy) and those teams had Fournier, DJ Augustine and Vuc on them. Cliff made these guys solid but they definitely had a low defensive ceiling individually.

Harris, Okeke, RJ, Isaac, Bamba and even Fultz and WCjr to a certain extent really raise the ceiling regarding having a great defensive unit !

Fultz/Cole
G.Harris/RJ/2021 1st
Okeke/2021 st
Isaac
WCjr/Bamba

Plus most of if not all of the top 5 guys we hope to draft have tremendous two way potential right ?

[yoyojw17]

I feel like Coach Cliff should be really intrigued with the young roster.

I mean, is there any reason that he can’t develop this team into a top 3 defense soon ?

He develop a really good defensive team (when healthy) and those teams had Fournier, DJ Augustine and Vuc on them. Cliff made these guys solid but they definitely had a low defensive ceiling individually.

Harris, Okeke, RJ, Isaac, Bamba and even Fultz and WCjr to a certain extent really raise the ceiling regarding having a great defensive unit !

Fultz/Cole
G.Harris/RJ/2021 1st
Okeke/2021 st
Isaac
WCjr/Bamba

Plus most of if not all of the top 5 guys we hope to draft have tremendous two way potential right ?

The two way potential of this team is pretty darn good. They will have the ability to switch... and team play would make them unpredictable on a nightly basis. Loving what i'm seeing and what they can become.

[swarlesbarkley]

Chuma/JI/WCJ is basically a perfect front court for college Fultz. If he can get close to that and we add a playmaking/scoring 2 guard in the upcoming draft - consider me as excited as I was entering the 2010 season.

[MalagaBulls]

Hi all, Bulls fan here in peace. How are you peeps enjoying WCJ? What do you see as his floor/ceiling? Is he a better 3rd year prospect than Bamba?
And what's your opinion of Porter? He is just too injury prone and never lived up to our expectations.
Vooch has been great and is starting to get comfortable after an emotional goodbye. Once he gets into a rhythm and develops chemistry with Zach they will be deadly in the P&R.

[zaymon]

Hi all, Bulls fan here in peace. How are you peeps enjoying WCJ? What do you see as his floor/ceiling? Is he a better 3rd year prospect than Bamba?
And what's your opinion of Porter? He is just too injury prone and never lived up to our expectations.
Vooch has been great and is starting to get comfortable after an emotional goodbye. Once he gets into a rhythm and develops chemistry with Zach they will be deadly in the P&R.

Until now WCJ exceded expectations and our coach really likes him, he also has great chemistry with our young forward Chuma Okeke who is on the rise. He seems like a much better player than Bamba. He looks like solid starter, his floor Theis maybe, Saric ?
Porter is currently injured so we know what you mean. 6'8 shooter is always valueable, maybe we ca nresign him on the cheap. Hope you do well with Vucevic, get some defensive help

[MalagaBulls]

Hi all, Bulls fan here in peace. How are you peeps enjoying WCJ? What do you see as his floor/ceiling? Is he a better 3rd year prospect than Bamba?
And what's your opinion of Porter? He is just too injury prone and never lived up to our expectations.
Vooch has been great and is starting to get comfortable after an emotional goodbye. Once he gets into a rhythm and develops chemistry with Zach they will be deadly in the P&R.

Until now WCJ exceded expectations and our coach really likes him, he also has great chemistry with our young forward Chuma Okeke who is on the rise. He seems like a much better player than Bamba. He looks like solid starter, his floor Theis maybe, Saric ?
Porter is currently injured so we know what you mean. 6'8 shooter is always valueable, maybe we ca nresign him on the cheap. Hope you do well with Vucevic, get some defensive help

I didn't realize Porter was hurt again. He has the body of a 47 year old and he is only 27. Believe me, de know how valueable he can be when healthy and in a rhythm. He was a great 2 way glue guy who could get you 16-20 points when he was on. How shot from the Arc is good and he rebounds & defends well. Oh well.
I wish WCJ luck and hopefully he develops confidence. If he develops a consistent 3 pt shot you guys will have gotten fair value on that part of the trade.

[Skin]

Hi all, Bulls fan here in peace. How are you peeps enjoying WCJ? What do you see as his floor/ceiling? Is he a better 3rd year prospect than Bamba?
And what's your opinion of Porter? He is just too injury prone and never lived up to our expectations.
Vooch has been great and is starting to get comfortable after an emotional goodbye. Once he gets into a rhythm and develops chemistry with Zach they will be deadly in the P&R.

WCj has been exactly what we've needed. Defensively, he's been just what the doctor ordered. With his hustle, smarts and defense, he'll be much easier for us to build around going forward. Soon enough he'll establish himself as a walking double double. His age aligns with our rebuild. He's already firmly supplanted Bamba. Bamba is still a key piece for us as he offers different strengths, but WCj just plays with another level of composure, BBIQ and just knows what to do. Bamba floats around ad hoc'ing everything, but you can tell Coach K established strong fundamentals in WCj. Clifford is also known to be a big man coach and you it seems to be bringing out something in WCj that wasn't as apparent in CHI.

I hope Porter is not a part of our future. He's still inconsistent. I believe he was included in the trade as an expiring contract and I expect us to let him walk unless he takes a 50% or more discount.

Vuc is a great character guy. He has a lot of fans here. I'm sure he's already won the hearts of many Bulls fans too. If you're happy with Vuc, that's great. I personally hated the player. Highly skilled, but way too soft for my liking. Melted in the playoffs.

[tiderulz]

Hi all, Bulls fan here in peace. How are you peeps enjoying WCJ? What do you see as his floor/ceiling? Is he a better 3rd year prospect than Bamba?
And what's your opinion of Porter? He is just too injury prone and never lived up to our expectations.
Vooch has been great and is starting to get comfortable after an emotional goodbye. Once he gets into a rhythm and develops chemistry with Zach they will be deadly in the P&R.

i'll admit i wasnt expecting much from WCJ at all and he has far exceeded my expectations. Part of it being on a new team maybe, and maybe Clifford just knows how to coach big men well. remains to be seen if he can stay healthy, but i like what i see so far.

[tiderulz]

Hi all, Bulls fan here in peace. How are you peeps enjoying WCJ? What do you see as his floor/ceiling? Is he a better 3rd year prospect than Bamba?
And what's your opinion of Porter? He is just too injury prone and never lived up to our expectations.
Vooch has been great and is starting to get comfortable after an emotional goodbye. Once he gets into a rhythm and develops chemistry with Zach they will be deadly in the P&R.

WCj has been exactly what we've needed. Defensively, he's been just what the doctor ordered. With his hustle, smarts and defense, he'll be much easier for us to build around going forward. Soon enough he'll establish himself as a walking double double. His age aligns with our rebuild. He's already firmly supplanted Bamba. Bamba is still a key piece for us as he offers different strengths, but WCj just plays with another level of composure, BBIQ and just knows what to do. Bamba floats around ad hoc'ing everything, but you can tell Coach K established strong fundamentals in WCj. Clifford is also known to be a big man coach and you it seems to be bringing out something in WCj that wasn't as apparent in CHI.

I hope Porter is not a part of our future. He's still inconsistent. I believe he was included in the trade as an expiring contract and I expect us to let him walk unless he takes a 50% or more discount.

Vuc is a great character guy. He has a lot of fans here. I'm sure he's already won the hearts of many Bulls fans too. If you're happy with Vuc, that's great. I personally hated the player. Highly skilled, but way too soft for my liking. Melted in the playoffs.

well, melted in 1 playoff and showed up in the other.