For me, Tari Eason is my target. Whether he "falls" to 17 or the Rockets move up (trading Wood and/or Tate opens up roster spots while moving up...). I just see Eason as potentially that perfect a fit between Paolo and Green. With him defending 3s and 4s and KPJ on 1s and 2s, I think the Rockets can live with Sengun playing positional defense. If Eason is not an option then I probably look to trade down. If San Antonio is willing to part with 20 and 25 to move up to 17 then I would want 2 of Kendall Brown, Dalen Terry, Marjon Beauchamp or Christian Koloko.
I want to replace Koloko with EJ Liddell. I know he's no more than 6'7 in shoes, but he has great length. He is a tough defender who can rebound and shoot the ball. Koloko seems a little flat footed to me.
My target is Jovic and in most mocks he's available. That's why I prefer to trade a vet or two for an additional mid first because I think you could grab Jovic AND Eason along with Paulo or Ivey!? That would be an amazing draft.
I really like the middle of this draft. We have a lot of young players but I still wouldn't mind taking 3 FRP this year. If Wood and Tate could get us #13 as an example. #3-Banchero #13-Mark Williams #17-Who knows? You could go with Eason if he falls or the HR swing in Dieng or Jovic.
1.Jalen Williams. Too many needed tools be it offensively or defensively. Will be very helpful for a good playoffs team for a very long time. KPJ can return and battle for most of his minutes at the 3. 2. Ousmane Dieng. Crazy potential. Compatible with the team schedule of at least/hopefully, one more tanking year. 3. Tyty/Jovic/Procida/Eason/Beauchamp/K. Brown/J. Terry/. Any of them, In that order Of course just considering the most realistically available player at this range.
Many Good players will still be available at this spot. The only guys worth mooving up for here in my opinion : Griffin/ Sharpe if they unexpectedly fall after pick 11 because of some lingering question marks Or One of the 3 best remaining bigs : Sochan/Duren/Williams in that order.
Here's the best video that I can find on Nikola Jovic. It's poorly titled (eye-roll), but it's worth a watch. You can get a lot more here than from seeing the short twitter clip of his "workout" at the NBA Combine. My initial take on Jovic was a hard pass, as his highlights vaguely reminded me of Jan Vesely (who went #6 to the Wizards in 2011). That guy was a straight-line, dunk-only jumper and didn't last in the NBA (though he is still playing overseas at a high level). I now see that comp doesn't really work at all; someone is going to pick up a nice contributor in Jovic. Playing in the Adriatic League last season, Jovic had the ball in his hands a lot (24% usage rate, but 21% TO rate). For a European team to put that much responsibility for shot creation in the hands of a then eighteen-year-old speaks to his potential and court impact. For comparison purposes, Jovic is far more turnover prone than Dieng (25% usage, 14% TO rate). But neither of these guys had Vesely's non-existent usage rate of 10% (and a 15% TO rate, yikes!) Jovic won't be able to dribble past quicker NBA defenders, but at 6-11 (in shoes), he likely can play well on the wing. He's added some weight in the last year (222 lbs at the combine, his team profile in Europe shows 205). While he doesn't finish often above the rim unless he has a runway, he can create something if the ball ends up in his hands with the shot clock winding down. Lots of other plusses: good passer, good hands, developing 3-point range (even off the bounce), nice IQ without the ball on offense, not wildly foul prone (playing an average of 28 minutes a game in ABA). The minuses: no game in the post, lacks the strength to be a power forward, a step slow laterally, and his body is still developing. Does he become a better version of David Bertans or Jason Tatum-lite? Probably somewhere in the middle.
Great insight, thanks. Can you decipher Procida's game for us too please.☺️ That small sample size of highlights makes him look pretty intriguing. Nice stroke from 3, fairly athletic... I think the Rockets still got a good network of scouts in Europe so they will hopefully have the most precise assessment of those guys abilities and potentials.
I started to really like Jovic at 17. He's getting a lot of buzz. Rumors of a promise in the teens. He only started playing competitively 2 or 3 years ago. obviously that shows how quickly he's improving. he's also growing. last year he was listed at 6'10" 200, and at the combine he measured 6'11" 220. I would also really like Eason, Terry, and Liddell.
I really like him. too bad he's likely out of reach unless we trade up. good news is that pushes someone down to us. hopefully its someone we can use. I'm not too high on the SGs like Branham or agbaji.
Assuming we get Banchero I want either Mark Williams or Duren. If both guys were available which one would you guys take? I’m leaning towards Duren. Sell me on Williams over Duren.
Not concerned at all that he's slipping into the 20's because he hasn't been interviewing well and coming off as having lower bball iq? I love the idea of his game and fit, but if its true he's having difficulty showing a grasp of nba concepts I'm not sure how successful he'll be. remember stromile swift? if we pass on him I wouldn't blame stone. if we take him I'd be ok rolling the dice here too. why not swing for high risk high reward? stone has the job security for it. If they pass on him I think Dalen Terry would be my pick. I think he can be the defensive SF (yes SF) we're looking for. measured basically the size of a SF at the combine. He has a higher standing reach and longer wingspan than other forwards in the draft. Liddell, Kendall Brown, laravia. in fact brown who is widely regarded as a 3/4 is only 6 lbs heavier than Terry with 3" less of a standing reach. So I think its fair to assume Terry can be a point forward. yes shooting is a concern but everyone in this range comes with a concern. he shot 36% this year and showed improvement from 32% last year. his 73% ft shooting is pretty average and very projectable to be an average 3pt shooter. as a full time PG you'd want more, but as a 3D SF he can hit the spot ups and be very effective.
interesting that Eason isn’t on that list. The rumors about his poor workouts may be true after all. Assuming all 16 are off the board by the rockets pick (and that’s highly unlikely) Jalen Williams, Eason, and EJ Lidell should get a good look. I prefer all 3 to Branham, Deing and Agbaji. assuming Daniels is taken too early to move up for, I hope we are looking at Sochan and Mark Williams as trade-up candidates.
Guys beware of what we are wishing for... Guys, let be careful of what we're wishing for... We might get it all after all, without knowing what to do with it...
