2021 Draft thread

[thinktank]

Yeah I’m not worried about the rest of those young teams.

Let’s just start winning next year.

[Wolveswin]

If we land a top 3 pick, do we have the best young core in the league?

KAT
DLO
Ant
Beas
Jaden
Top 3 pick

all 25 or younger.

Probably so, but won’t last long. Magic will take that crown with a younger group and tank 2022 1st. Towns will age out of 25 and younger too.

Isaac
Fultz
Okeke
Anthony
Hampton
WCJ
Bamba
2021 Top 3
2021 Bulls 1st (currently #10)
2022 Tank 1st
Plus 2x 2023 1sts

Cavs, Thunder and Pelicans have impressive youth list too.

Wcj, hampton,bamba, anthony all suck.

Says a Wolves fan on a Wolves board. Probably find more people who will say Russell sucks and is a big negative (hence his standing on worst NBA contracts). Also say Jalen who?

[Neeva]

Probably so, but won’t last long. Magic will take that crown with a younger group and tank 2022 1st. Towns will age out of 25 and younger too.

Isaac
Fultz
Okeke
Anthony
Hampton
WCJ
Bamba
2021 Top 3
2021 Bulls 1st (currently #10)
2022 Tank 1st
Plus 2x 2023 1sts

Cavs, Thunder and Pelicans have impressive youth list too.

Wcj, hampton,bamba, anthony all suck.

Says a Wolves fan on a Wolves board. Probably find more people who will say Russell sucks and is a big negative (hence his standing on worst NBA contracts). Also say Jalen who?

Stick to your 2027372029392 crappy Towns trades.

[Wolveswin]

Wcj, hampton,bamba, anthony all suck.

Says a Wolves fan on a Wolves board. Probably find more people who will say Russell sucks and is a big negative (hence his standing on worst NBA contracts). Also say Jalen who?

Stick to your 2027372029392 crappy Towns trades.

Good reminder it has been a while. Thanks for the reminder.

[Krapinsky]

Cade Cunningham reminds me of Jason Tatum, though I suspect Tatum might be a little longer. I think it's much easier to find comps for Cunningham than it is Mobley. A skilled, well-rounded and defensive-minded big seems to be a rarity in today's NBA.

Mobley seems a little bit of a throwback PF in the mold of KG, Bosh and Rasheed Wallace.

I think he is a bit of a throwback, but I'd lean more towards Horford or Juwon Horward than those guys. I think he's destined to be more a complimentary player. Is that worth a top 2 pick? I dunno about that. In a vacuum I would probably take Suggs over him at the end of the day all things being equal. However, for the Wolves he's the clear #2 choice because he fills a need.

[Worm Guts]

Cade Cunningham reminds me of Jason Tatum, though I suspect Tatum might be a little longer. I think it's much easier to find comps for Cunningham than it is Mobley. A skilled, well-rounded and defensive-minded big seems to be a rarity in today's NBA.

Mobley seems a little bit of a throwback PF in the mold of KG, Bosh and Rasheed Wallace.

I think he is a bit of a throwback, but I'd lean more towards Horford or Juwon Horward than those guys. I think he's destined to be more a complimentary player. Is that worth a top 2 pick? I dunno about that. In a vacuum I would probably take Suggs over him at the end of the day all things being equal. However, for the Wolves he's the clear #2 choice because he fills a need.

He’s 7 ft and 215 lb, which is definitely the body type of a young KG and why I would compare him to the longer, thinner body types. I can see comparing his all around game to Horford, but I don’t think I get the Howard comparison.

[Domejandro]

I really do not understand why Rosas couldn't at least get 1-4 protection on this pick. I just don't get it.

[jpatrick]

I really do not understand why Rosas couldn't at least get 1-4 protection on this pick. I just don't get it.

I’m sure if he thought we’d be this bad, he’d have pushed harder. You can’t tell me that would have been the sticking point for Golden State.

At this point, like the top guys so much, don’t care if we get 1, 2, or 3, just want the 40% chance to come through.

[Krapinsky]

Mobley seems a little bit of a throwback PF in the mold of KG, Bosh and Rasheed Wallace.

I think he is a bit of a throwback, but I'd lean more towards Horford or Juwon Horward than those guys. I think he's destined to be more a complimentary player. Is that worth a top 2 pick? I dunno about that. In a vacuum I would probably take Suggs over him at the end of the day all things being equal. However, for the Wolves he's the clear #2 choice because he fills a need.

He’s 7 ft and 215 lb, which is definitely the body type of a young KG and why I would compare him to the longer, thinner body types. I can see comparing his all around game to Horford, but I don’t think I get the Howard comparison.

I definitely see what you mean. Howard was definitely shorter/much thicker and more plodding than those guys and for that reason probably makes for a poor comparison here. Horford as well. At Mobley's size and slender build, I struggle to come up with an apt comparison for players that were highly touted in the draft but who were more 'jack of all trades' PF/C's and not future hall of famers. Maybe Mobley is more 'boom or bust' than advertised?

[KGdaBom]

Probably so, but won’t last long. Magic will take that crown with a younger group and tank 2022 1st. Towns will age out of 25 and younger too.

Isaac
Fultz
Okeke
Anthony
Hampton
WCJ
Bamba
2021 Top 3
2021 Bulls 1st (currently #10)
2022 Tank 1st
Plus 2x 2023 1sts

Cavs, Thunder and Pelicans have impressive youth list too.

Wcj, hampton,bamba, anthony all suck.

Says a Wolves fan on a Wolves board. Probably find more people who will say Russell sucks and is a big negative (hence his standing on worst NBA contracts). Also say Jalen who?

I prefer the Wolves young talent extremely over the magic. Isaac is the only one of those potentially good and he probably will never play well again.

[Wolveswin]

Wcj, hampton,bamba, anthony all suck.

Says a Wolves fan on a Wolves board. Probably find more people who will say Russell sucks and is a big negative (hence his standing on worst NBA contracts). Also say Jalen who?

I prefer the Wolves young talent extremely over the magic. Isaac is the only one of those potentially good and he probably will never play well again.

Well a trade takes two willing parties. I don’t think Magic will agree to your one sided POV.

I too being biased thinking like you wish McDaniels is worth Kawhi and Towns worth Davis. Such thinking is not healthy.

[breatnach]

The low pick protection was not good, but at least we're being good sports about it, playing hard and not resting players, like Toronto or the Magic. By the time the season ends, we'll probably have overtaken the Thunder and the Cavs in the standings, giving us the 7th worst record, or a 23,3% chance of a Top 3 pick.

If there is such a thing as karma, it should reward us for not tanking.

[Dalvin]

The low pick protection was not good, but at least we're being good sports about it, playing hard and not resting players, like Toronto or the Magic. By the time the season ends, we'll probably have overtaken the Thunder and the Cavs in the standings, giving us the 7th worst record, or a 23,3% chance of a Top 3 pick.

If there is such a thing as karma, it should reward us for not tanking.

This is what I thought too, the times we tried hardest to tank are the times we stayed put and / or slipped down from our draft position. Maybe us winning would help the culture more and who knows, we might still get lucky and win a top 3 pick!

[Klomp]

Official Lottery odds for us:
1st - 9.0%
2nd - 9.2%
3rd - 9.4%
4th - 9.6% (to GS)
------
6th - 8.6% (to GS)
7th - 29.7% (to GS)
8th - 20.6% (to GS)
9th - 3.8% (to GS)
10th - 0.2% (to GS)

[Klomp]

Tell that to Jordan and Kobe

Jalen Green reminds me of those two, offensively anyway.

I can't quite put my finger on it, but I don't see it with Green. There's an awkwardness to his game that I'm just not sure he'll be able to get past at the next level. Almost reminds me in some ways of Corey Brewer. He'll have highlights for sure, but I look for fluidity when I'm grading athleticism on the court. I saw it with Zach LaVine before the draft. I saw it with Anthony Edwards before the draft. I don't see it with Jalen Green.

[Klomp]

I've been high on Suggs all along and Cunningham seems like a likely no-brainer, but the guy I'm growing on is Jonathan Kuminga.

The frame is key for me, and he seems to use it to his advantage. I love seeing him average over 7 rebounds per game against men. I also think about him being a full year younger than most of the other top prospects. Look at the development rate of Anthony Edwards and I could see similar growth from Kuminga. It would not surprise me to see Rosas bet on him.

This was written after the Ignite opener:

With apologies to Green, all of the intel out of the Ignite team camp has been that Kuminga has looked like the best prospect. He looked the best in their scrimmages and in practices in Walnut Creek. And with legitimate NBA size at about 6-foot-8, with a 7-foot-plus wingspan and a terrific frame, he looks to have the most upside for what the NBA is looking for as a big wing initiator. This is why, if you listen to the Game Theory Podcast, he’s been the guy I’ve been most excited to talk about.

To top that off, all of the reports I’ve gotten about Kuminga’s work ethic have been stellar. One source told me Kuminga was doing three-a-day workouts to prepare for the G League bubble out in the Bay Area, working with personal trainers as well as the ones provided by the G League. He takes his career seriously and wants to be great.

Overall, the feedback I received from scouts after the game was that Kuminga should probably be considered in the top tier of prospects along with Cunningham, Mobley and Suggs. One evaluator put him into context as a top-four pick.

“He’s clearly better than Patrick Williams, and Williams went No. 4,” one NBA scout said. “The NBA loves guys like this and tend to bet on them."

https://theathletic.com/2380520/2021/02/11/nba-draft-scouting-g-league-ignite-jonathan-kuminga-stars-daishen-nix-impresses/

[jpatrick]

I've been high on Suggs all along and Cunningham seems like a likely no-brainer, but the guy I'm growing on is Jonathan Kuminga.

The frame is key for me, and he seems to use it to his advantage. I love seeing him average over 7 rebounds per game against men. I also think about him being a full year younger than most of the other top prospects. Look at the development rate of Anthony Edwards and I could see similar growth from Kuminga. It would not surprise me to see Rosas bet on him.

This was written after the Ignite opener:

With apologies to Green, all of the intel out of the Ignite team camp has been that Kuminga has looked like the best prospect. He looked the best in their scrimmages and in practices in Walnut Creek. And with legitimate NBA size at about 6-foot-8, with a 7-foot-plus wingspan and a terrific frame, he looks to have the most upside for what the NBA is looking for as a big wing initiator. This is why, if you listen to the Game Theory Podcast, he’s been the guy I’ve been most excited to talk about.

To top that off, all of the reports I’ve gotten about Kuminga’s work ethic have been stellar. One source told me Kuminga was doing three-a-day workouts to prepare for the G League bubble out in the Bay Area, working with personal trainers as well as the ones provided by the G League. He takes his career seriously and wants to be great.

Overall, the feedback I received from scouts after the game was that Kuminga should probably be considered in the top tier of prospects along with Cunningham, Mobley and Suggs. One evaluator put him into context as a top-four pick.

“He’s clearly better than Patrick Williams, and Williams went No. 4,” one NBA scout said. “The NBA loves guys like this and tend to bet on them."

https://theathletic.com/2380520/2021/02/11/nba-draft-scouting-g-league-ignite-jonathan-kuminga-stars-daishen-nix-impresses/

He outplayed Green for the first couple games and then was pretty bad in the rest of the games. He put up some counting stats, but he was inefficient and just didn’t look very skilled or to have much of a BBIQ at all.

That said, he is athletic, has that big combo forward body, and will be the youngest US player in this draft. I think there is a gap though between the top four to Kuminga.

[Klomp]

He outplayed Green for the first couple games and then was pretty bad in the rest of the games. He put up some counting stats, but he was inefficient and just didn’t look very skilled or to have much of a BBIQ at all.

That said, he is athletic, has that big combo forward body, and will be the youngest US player in this draft. I think there is a gap though between the top four to Kuminga.

I don't doubt any of those, but those are the same types of arguments used against Edwards leading up to the draft and even early in the season to say he wouldn't amount to much.

[Krapinsky]

I've been high on Suggs all along and Cunningham seems like a likely no-brainer, but the guy I'm growing on is Jonathan Kuminga.

The frame is key for me, and he seems to use it to his advantage. I love seeing him average over 7 rebounds per game against men. I also think about him being a full year younger than most of the other top prospects. Look at the development rate of Anthony Edwards and I could see similar growth from Kuminga. It would not surprise me to see Rosas bet on him.

This was written after the Ignite opener:

With apologies to Green, all of the intel out of the Ignite team camp has been that Kuminga has looked like the best prospect. He looked the best in their scrimmages and in practices in Walnut Creek. And with legitimate NBA size at about 6-foot-8, with a 7-foot-plus wingspan and a terrific frame, he looks to have the most upside for what the NBA is looking for as a big wing initiator. This is why, if you listen to the Game Theory Podcast, he’s been the guy I’ve been most excited to talk about.

To top that off, all of the reports I’ve gotten about Kuminga’s work ethic have been stellar. One source told me Kuminga was doing three-a-day workouts to prepare for the G League bubble out in the Bay Area, working with personal trainers as well as the ones provided by the G League. He takes his career seriously and wants to be great.

Overall, the feedback I received from scouts after the game was that Kuminga should probably be considered in the top tier of prospects along with Cunningham, Mobley and Suggs. One evaluator put him into context as a top-four pick.

“He’s clearly better than Patrick Williams, and Williams went No. 4,” one NBA scout said. “The NBA loves guys like this and tend to bet on them."

https://theathletic.com/2380520/2021/02/11/nba-draft-scouting-g-league-ignite-jonathan-kuminga-stars-daishen-nix-impresses/

Would you take him top-3? If not, then he won't be a Wolf.

[coolcono]

I was thinking the only way the Wolves get rid of Rubio is if they are able to get Suggs in this draft.