Is this the year Stone finally trades up in the draft?

I think you are wrong...Scoot is a very mature point guard. He has the athletic ability of DRose and Westbrook, but he played in the G-league purely off skills and didn't focus on his physical advantages. He doesn't play for the highlights and just makes the smart basketball play every time. He doesn't throw flashy passes, unless that is the pass that gets the easy bucket. He makes the simple safe pass. He shoots the open shots, makes moves to get teammates involved, sees plays before they develop, and hits the open man. In my opinion, his play style in the gleague wasn't highlight friendly. However, because he wasn't relying on being bigger, stronger, or faster than his opponents to make plays, it is easier to see how his game will translate when he might not be bigger, faster, or stronger. Scoot is like Jason Kidd gamein the body of Westbrook, he plays the way a


He also is a competitor. I was really impressed with how he played against Wemby's team. Not just that he got good stats and his team won, but that he took it straight at Wemby every chance he got and usually won the matchup.
Scoot Henderson 2022.10.4 | GLI vs MET | Full Player Highlights - YouTube

 

This would be the year to put some chips on the table and move up for Scoot.

Unfortunately he won’t even agree to work out for us.

So the decision has basically been made for us… stick at 4 and draft BPA.

I’ve already talked myself into Amen… excited to see him try and reach his other worldly potential.

 

I'd love to but the Hornets and Blazers are both gonna have 29 offers for both those picks and I doubt ours will be the best. The value of each pick is relative to each draft and unfortunately this year 3 >>>>>>>>>>>>>> 4.

 

No. It never happens.

The price would be too steep, anyway.

But I'd be happy to be wrong.

 

I'm good with whomever is at 4.

 

They stick with 4 and draft Amen.

They trade the 20 and KMJ plus filler for a vet role player and 2nd round pick they can stash in the valley.

 

Missed an O there! My bad.

 

Like last year, Brandon Miller falls to Houstons lap just like
Jabari did.

1) Scoot does not get past #2 Hornets take to help MJ
sell his share......or a team trades up for Scoot (Not Rockets).

2) Brandon Miller falls back to #4 because of Ja Morant
and recent gun issues...makes drafting him too risky for
#1 thru #3. But #4 is not so rich.

3) Houston drafts Cam Whitmore at #4 unless Brandon
Miller is there.

4) I expect Rockets want to trade back
____________________

But if Rockets don't trade back:
1) Wemby [ Spurs ]
2) Scoot [ Hornets or other team (not Rockets) ]
3) Amen [ traded to Raptors ]
4) Brandon Miller [ Rockets,
I don't believe teams give up much to draft Brandon Miller ]

 

Welp

 

Me and my Blazers buddy spent several hours last night drinking and talking about what the Blazers will do. We concluded that the Blazers are going to keep building for the future while being competitive with Dame. They’re gonna resign Jeremy Grant. They are trying to move Simons and Nurc for better D and two-way fits on their roster. There’s not a good fit at #3 if Miller is off the board, but if they like Scoot or the Thompsons, fit isn’t gonna prevent them from drafting the best player. Portland could trade back, but very unlikely they trade out of this draft to make a run with Dame. Just look at what they did last year drafting Shaden Sharpe. They tried to trade the pick; didn’t get what they wanted so they drafted the rawest, highest upside player in the draft. Dame ain’t gonna dictate what Portland does. They are paying him well and he wants to be there. They just have to put a playoff roster together and they don’t need to trade #3 to do that.

 

When you are top 5 there is no reason to trade up. All the top 5 players have nearly identical hit rates.

DD

 

^ Wrong as usual

 

https://www.bruinsportsanalytics.com/post/nba_draft_analysis

Actual data on how well each draft slot has turned out historically.

Spoiler: Big difference between 1-5.

 

Hopefully yes, trade up to 1 or 2 and get Amen.....

 

Blazers/Hornets interested in Zion…. Rockets rumored to be interested in Zion.

Blazers/Hornets interested in Paul George… Rockets rumored to be interested in George.

Hmmm… Might be a pattern here. Rockets trying to acquire what the Blazers/Hornets need. Pattern will be complete if we become linked to Adebayo.

This is a highly aggressive strategy which matches with Stone and Udoka’s personalities.

 

The Blazers have mostly been a second tier team in the West at best. Lillard, LMA, Roy, Drexler, Sheed, ZBo, Cliff Robinson, Quitten...

Oh yeah, they had Adelman and they were good once but at their pinnacle, they were not a historic team.

I just do not see them break out of it, not right now.

 

Feel bad for your friend who’s in denial. Dame is not going to stick around this time, there’s a clear difference in tone and what his PR team is sending out. They’ve laid the groundwork for a forced trade if the Blazers don’t do right by him.

They have better assets (#3) than they ever could’ve dreamt they’d have. They can’t now say the pick is not enough to upgrade the roster.

Dame wants to be there and will make the money anyway. That’s not going to stop this train wreck the blazers have created from crashing.

This situation is teaching players to not trust anything their first organization says. They’ve been very unfair to Dame and haven’t paid him a dime more than 29 other teams would happily pay him.

 

They’ll try but be unsuccessful. After the draft they’ll overpay for second tier vets so that they can be play-in fodder.