2014 NBA Draft Prospects Thread #5 | Raps picking 20th

[Young_Buc]

Yeah, Parker is best player in this draft for me. Nobody is near his level at his age in this years draft. I don't get why people say that in longterm other player will become better then him it's not like Parker is 23 years old, they guy is only 19 he has the capability to improve as anyone else in this draft
It should be
1. Parker
-gap-
2. others

You're leaving defense out of the equation.
He will be burned....often.

Also LeBron doesn't use a crossover or an elite handle to get by players, He blows by them with the athletic ability of a wide receiver. Parker doesn't have that. He looks like Rudy Gay (who passes the eye test moreso than someone like PG)

[Roland Brice]

Yeah, Parker is best player in this draft for me. Nobody is near his level at his age in this years draft. I don't get why people say that in longterm other player will become better then him it's not like Parker is 23 years old, they guy is only 19 he has the capability to improve as anyone else in this draft
It should be
1. Parker
-gap-
2. others

You're leaving defense out of the equation.
He will be burned....often.

Also LeBron doesn't use a crossover or an elite handle to get by players, He blows by them with the athletic ability of a wide receiver. Parker doesn't have that. He looks like Rudy Gay (who passes the eye test moreso than someone like PG)

Exactly. Anyone who thinks Parker is the best player in this draft probably only focuses on offense. He's not going to defend well in the NBA. I've said it many times before, he'll have people drooling over his aesthetically pleasing offensive game, but true basketball purists will realize that he needs to play both sides of the ball to be a winner, unless a team wants to surround him with defenders. He might even win rookie of the year because that's based on offense, but when he's been in the league for 10 years he'll have a reputation like Carmelo Anthony who's amazing offensively but is a loser.

[Indeed]

Was it a legit rumor that Thanasis Antentokounmpo refused to be interviewed by the Toronto Raptors?

I didn't hear that, but I've been out of the loop somewhat. The best search I found came up with this:

Ryan Wolstat: Thanasis Antetokounmpo says no interview with Raptors. Kind of strange, Masai loved his brother and tried hard to get him last year

That just sounds like there wasn't an interview, not that there was a refusal by the player. It would be really strange that a guy that's a second rounder would refuse to be interviewed by Ujiri, especially given the Nigerian connection.

Perhaps we are not interested in him instead.

[Loso04]

Not sure if posted

Adam Zagoria: Hearing CJ Fair did well today against Rodney Hood at the Bulls workout today. Fair has Bucks Thursday & Hornets Friday

[Indeed]

I think Payton & Vasquez can play together. What do you guys think?

Lowry / Payton
Derozan / Vasquez
Ross / Inglis (#37)
Amir / Patterson
Val / C

Not feeling it. Who's gonna defend SGs?


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM Forums

Vasquez can guard spot up SG. I think more likely the lineup look like this:
Lowry (offense) / Payton (defense)
Vasquez (offense) / Ross (defense)
DeRozan (offense) / Inglis (defense)
Patterson (offense) / Amir (defense)
Jonas (offense) / #59 (defense)

OR

Lowry (offense) / Payton (defense)
Vasquez (offense) / Ross (defense)
DeRozan (offense) / #59 (defense)
Patterson (offense) / Inglis (defense)
Jonas (offense) / Amir (defense)

[Indeed]

Not sure if posted

Adam Zagoria: Hearing CJ Fair did well today against Rodney Hood at the Bulls workout today. Fair has Bucks Thursday & Hornets Friday

Fair has short arms, so it is difficult for him to play PF. Even SF would be challenging with 6'10" wingspan.

Meanwhile, I see Hood dropping big time. He doesn't have the quickness nor wingspan (6'8" only), which is difficult for him to score or defend in the next level. McDaniels, Hairston and Glenn Robinson may shift up and replace him.

[BillyGM]

Not sure if posted

Adam Zagoria: Hearing CJ Fair did well today against Rodney Hood at the Bulls workout today. Fair has Bucks Thursday & Hornets Friday

Fair has short arms, so it is difficult for him to play PF. Even SF would be challenging with 6'10" wingspan.

Meanwhile, I see Hood dropping big time. He doesn't have the quickness nor wingspan (6'8" only), which is difficult for him to score or defend in the next level. McDaniels, Hairston and Glenn Robinson may shift up and replace him.

If Hood dropped to 20th there's no question that Raptors would choose him

[Raptorfan2012]

I think Payton & Vasquez can play together. What do you guys think?

Lowry / Payton
Derozan / Vasquez
Ross / Inglis (#37)
Amir / Patterson
Val / C

Not feeling it. Who's gonna defend SGs?


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM Forums

Vasquez can guard spot up SG. I think more likely the lineup look like this:
Lowry (offense) / Payton (defense)
Vasquez (offense) / Ross (defense)
DeRozan (offense) / Inglis (defense)
Patterson (offense) / Amir (defense)
Jonas (offense) / #59 (defense)

OR

Lowry (offense) / Payton (defense)
Vasquez (offense) / Ross (defense)
DeRozan (offense) / #59 (defense)
Patterson (offense) / Inglis (defense)
Jonas (offense) / Amir (defense)

But you are not accounting for FA/trades. There is a good chance Raptors will sign at least 1 swing man (either Vince or someone else) plus probably a back up vet C. In which case, Vasquez may be pointless. I still think if we draft a PG, Vasquez is gone.

[Indeed]

Not sure if posted

Adam Zagoria: Hearing CJ Fair did well today against Rodney Hood at the Bulls workout today. Fair has Bucks Thursday & Hornets Friday

Fair has short arms, so it is difficult for him to play PF. Even SF would be challenging with 6'10" wingspan.

Meanwhile, I see Hood dropping big time. He doesn't have the quickness nor wingspan (6'8" only), which is difficult for him to score or defend in the next level. McDaniels, Hairston and Glenn Robinson may shift up and replace him.

If Hood dropped to 20th there's no question that Raptors would choose him

No thank you. There are better prospects than Hood. I would definitely take Payton, Porzingis or Payne over him. Hard to say if Inglis is a better prospect, but Inglis can fill our hole as a more NBA ready prospect.

[Raptorfan2012]

Anyone have a good read on Thanasis Antetokounmpo? In the event Inglis is gone by the 37th pick, would this guy be a good pick up? Looks like a poor man's Thad Young

[Indeed]

Not feeling it. Who's gonna defend SGs?


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM Forums

Vasquez can guard spot up SG. I think more likely the lineup look like this:
Lowry (offense) / Payton (defense)
Vasquez (offense) / Ross (defense)
DeRozan (offense) / Inglis (defense)
Patterson (offense) / Amir (defense)
Jonas (offense) / #59 (defense)

OR

Lowry (offense) / Payton (defense)
Vasquez (offense) / Ross (defense)
DeRozan (offense) / #59 (defense)
Patterson (offense) / Inglis (defense)
Jonas (offense) / Amir (defense)

But you are not accounting for FA/trades. There is a good chance Raptors will sign at least 1 swing man (either Vince or someone else) plus probably a back up vet C. In which case, Vasquez may be pointless. I still think if we draft a PG, Vasquez is gone.

I doubted. We want to hang Vince Carter's banner for marketing promotion, while Vince Carter wants to get a better contract from the Mavs. We are both using each other, I don't see we are signing Vince Carter.

Meanwhile, if we want to upgrade an roster spot, I think it would be the starting PF, which is rather difficult to fill. This is why I would prefer to draft Payne or Porzingis, because there is pretty much no way we can acquire a starting PF from trade nor FA.

[Indeed]

Anyone have a good read on Thanasis Antetokounmpo? In the event Inglis is gone by the 37th pick, would this guy be a good pick up? Looks like a poor man's Thad Young

Thanasis isn't tall, he is SG/SF height 6'7" with good wingspan 7'. At most Iguodala on defense and only on defense.

I think we are not necessarily drafting a SF at #37, besides, we may already draft one at #20. Here are a few higher ceiling prospects: Powell (PF - Canadian), Bogdanovic (SG/SF), Burton (PG). Besides, someone may drop.

[BillyGM]

Fair has short arms, so it is difficult for him to play PF. Even SF would be challenging with 6'10" wingspan.

Meanwhile, I see Hood dropping big time. He doesn't have the quickness nor wingspan (6'8" only), which is difficult for him to score or defend in the next level. McDaniels, Hairston and Glenn Robinson may shift up and replace him.

If Hood dropped to 20th there's no question that Raptors would choose him

No thank you. There are better prospects than Hood. I would definitely take Payton, Porzingis or Payne over him. Hard to say if Inglis is a better prospect, but Inglis can fill our hole as a more NBA ready prospect.

Just because of the wingspan? If a player has a big winsgpan he's more NBA ready?
Ross would a disaster according to you, isn't he? He has so called trex arms

[Dukenukem23]

Anyone have a good read on Thanasis Antetokounmpo? In the event Inglis is gone by the 37th pick, would this guy be a good pick up? Looks like a poor man's Thad Young

Thanasis isn't tall, he is SG/SF height 6'7" with good wingspan 7'. At most Iguodala on defense and only on defense.

I think we are not necessarily drafting a SF at #37, besides, we may already draft one at #20. Here are a few higher ceiling prospects: Powell (PF - Canadian), Bogdanovic (SG/SF), Burton (PG). Besides, someone may drop.

Thanasis actually has near identical measurements to Thad Young. If Thad can get mins at the 4 I think Thanasis can as well and he's probably an even better athlete. Thanasis can play the 2/3 and small ball 4 on defense. I love his defensive versatility and he's my guy at 37.

[Roland Brice]

If Hood dropped to 20th there's no question that Raptors would choose him

No thank you. There are better prospects than Hood. I would definitely take Payton, Porzingis or Payne over him. Hard to say if Inglis is a better prospect, but Inglis can fill our hole as a more NBA ready prospect.

Just because of the wingspan? If a player has a big winsgpan he's more NBA ready?
Ross would a disaster according to you, isn't he? He has so called trex arms

YUCK!

Hood's biggest weakness as a NBA prospect likely revolves around his defense, as he shows questionable intensity on this end of the floor, rarely getting into an actual stance and frequently being knocked off balance and taken advantage of off the dribble due to his lack of strength. His relatively short arms don't do him any favors here, as he measured just a 6-8 wingspan on a few occasions, which is accurately reflected in his inability to generate steals (.9 per-40), blocks (.3) or rebounds (4.9), all of which rank among the worst rates in the draft at his position.

Hood has decent lateral quickness, so he could end up becoming at least adequate in this area, but he'll have to improve his motor and hustle quite a bit and also get stronger and tougher, as he allows himself to get pushed around without resistance more than you'd hope.

This shows up on the offensive end as well, as he tends to shy away from contact somewhat around the basket, and doesn't get to the free throw line at a very high rate. His very low 2-point percentage (49%) doesn't inspire a great deal of confidence in his ability to develop into a high volume shot-creator inside the arc at the NBA level, as he's not a terribly advanced ball-handler and avoids finishing around the basket with his right hand like the plague.

[BillyGM]

No thank you. There are better prospects than Hood. I would definitely take Payton, Porzingis or Payne over him. Hard to say if Inglis is a better prospect, but Inglis can fill our hole as a more NBA ready prospect.

Just because of the wingspan? If a player has a big winsgpan he's more NBA ready?
Ross would a disaster according to you, isn't he? He has so called trex arms

YUCK!

Hood's biggest weakness as a NBA prospect likely revolves around his defense, as he shows questionable intensity on this end of the floor, rarely getting into an actual stance and frequently being knocked off balance and taken advantage of off the dribble due to his lack of strength. His relatively short arms don't do him any favors here, as he measured just a 6-8 wingspan on a few occasions, which is accurately reflected in his inability to generate steals (.9 per-40), blocks (.3) or rebounds (4.9), all of which rank among the worst rates in the draft at his position.

Hood has decent lateral quickness, so he could end up becoming at least adequate in this area, but he'll have to improve his motor and hustle quite a bit and also get stronger and tougher, as he allows himself to get pushed around without resistance more than you'd hope.

This shows up on the offensive end as well, as he tends to shy away from contact somewhat around the basket, and doesn't get to the free throw line at a very high rate. His very low 2-point percentage (49%) doesn't inspire a great deal of confidence in his ability to develop into a high volume shot-creator inside the arc at the NBA level, as he's not a terribly advanced ball-handler and avoids finishing around the basket with his right hand like the plague.

Reminds me of T Ross weaknesses when we drafted him. The guy has nice shooting stroke , size (height), plays smart (reads D, can make plays for teammates cause of very good court vision - no tunnel vision - big plus) and isn't a tweener. Not a great slasher, doesn't have great handles - but has improved in these two things (I believe he will continue to improve this areas - but he's NBA ready in them already).
Safe pick - A guy who can shoot from everywhere will be able to make shots in the NBA.
His shooting percentages are thing of beauty 50% from 2pt 42% from 3pt
Also Duke didn't run plays through him (cause of Jabari) and he still managed to score.
Spacing is very important aspect in NBA - guys like Hood shine nowadays.
Defense. Yeah, not his strong attribute. But on Duke he always guarded the opposing team's best player, and was one of best defenders on Duke (there are not many good ones ). He will have to improve.
I think the good out weights the bad with him - guy should carve out nice career and I hope it's with us (don't see him falling below 15th pick)
Comparison. Reminds me of Morris Peterson (yea). Great shooter with the above average athleticism helping to guard his position even if doesn't have the 'wingspan'. Moreover, both are left handed. Best Case: Mo Pete with better defense. Worst Case: Wesley Johnson with offensive game.

[Indeed]

If Hood dropped to 20th there's no question that Raptors would choose him

No thank you. There are better prospects than Hood. I would definitely take Payton, Porzingis or Payne over him. Hard to say if Inglis is a better prospect, but Inglis can fill our hole as a more NBA ready prospect.

Just because of the wingspan? If a player has a big winsgpan he's more NBA ready?
Ross would a disaster according to you, isn't he? He has so called trex arms

Ross is a SG, not a SF. Ross is quick in guarding PG/SG, but if he has better wingspan, he can stay slightly further and rely on his wingspan to contest. A combination of wingspan and quickness are the key to defend on the perimeter, because you can back off and contest shot at the same time.

This is why Livingston can guard DeRozan, because Livingston has good wingspan (add to the standing reach) to contest DeRozan without jumping.

[BillyGM]

No thank you. There are better prospects than Hood. I would definitely take Payton, Porzingis or Payne over him. Hard to say if Inglis is a better prospect, but Inglis can fill our hole as a more NBA ready prospect.

Just because of the wingspan? If a player has a big winsgpan he's more NBA ready?
Ross would a disaster according to you, isn't he? He has so called trex arms

Ross is a SG, not a SF. Ross is quick in guarding PG/SG, but if he has better wingspan, he can stay slightly further and rely on his wingspan to contest. A combination of wingspan and quickness are the key to defend on the perimeter, because you can back off and contest shot at the same time.

This is why Livingston can guard DeRozan, because Livingston has good wingspan (add to the standing reach) to contest DeRozan without jumping.

wingspan (fap)(fap)(fap)

[Indeed]

Anyone have a good read on Thanasis Antetokounmpo? In the event Inglis is gone by the 37th pick, would this guy be a good pick up? Looks like a poor man's Thad Young

Thanasis isn't tall, he is SG/SF height 6'7" with good wingspan 7'. At most Iguodala on defense and only on defense.

I think we are not necessarily drafting a SF at #37, besides, we may already draft one at #20. Here are a few higher ceiling prospects: Powell (PF - Canadian), Bogdanovic (SG/SF), Burton (PG). Besides, someone may drop.

Thanasis actually has near identical measurements to Thad Young. If Thad can get mins at the 4 I think Thanasis can as well and he's probably an even better athlete. Thanasis can play the 2/3 and small ball 4 on defense. I love his defensive versatility and he's my guy at 37.

I believe you mistaken with his younger brother. Thanasis is only 6'6.25 in height and 8'8.5" standing reach, while Young is 6'7.5 in height and 8'10" standing reach. His younger brother, Gainnis is actually 6'9 in height, and probably 8'11" standing reach.

[Dukenukem23]

Thanasis isn't tall, he is SG/SF height 6'7" with good wingspan 7'. At most Iguodala on defense and only on defense.

I think we are not necessarily drafting a SF at #37, besides, we may already draft one at #20. Here are a few higher ceiling prospects: Powell (PF - Canadian), Bogdanovic (SG/SF), Burton (PG). Besides, someone may drop.

Thanasis actually has near identical measurements to Thad Young. If Thad can get mins at the 4 I think Thanasis can as well and he's probably an even better athlete. Thanasis can play the 2/3 and small ball 4 on defense. I love his defensive versatility and he's my guy at 37.

I believe you mistaken with his younger brother. Thanasis is only 6'6.25 in height and 8'8.5" standing reach, while Young is 6'7.5 in height and 8'10" standing reach. His younger brother, Gainnis is actually 6'9 in height, and probably 8'11" standing reach.

No mistake. If you look at the numbers closely and analyze the data you will see the true measurements. Lots of phoney stuff goes on when measuring out at these combines. First of all when looking at a players height always go by barefoot height. Thanasis is 6" 5.25" and Thad is 6" 5.75", nearly identical. Young has 6' 11.5" wingspan, Thanasis has a 7' wingspan. Now here's the biggest trick if the draft....players are tanking standing reach to show a higher vertical as this is what the agents are pushing to the players to help their draft position. So we have Thanasis at 8' 8.5" which would actually be closer to 8' 10.5" had he not tanked in favour if a higher vertical. This was not common practice when Young was drafted so I inspect his 8' 10" measurement to be accurate.

As you can see Thanasis is actually slightly longer than young and should be more than capable of defending the 4 when teams go small.