I got to say, seeing Clingan hit those 3s and measure like he did has me doubting things. The dude is a monster.
Yeah - Sheppard did well. Actually he did better than I expected he would. I know that doesn’t measure first step, but his speed and agility is as good as other players people view as better athletes. Athletes coming in different sizes and shapes. Nowitzki, Stockton and Durant don’t jump off the page but all are excellent NBA athletes.
If it means anything, Bronny (also a 26.7% 3pt shooter in college) also shot 19/25 in the 3pt star drill. Then he played in a scrimmage and was 0/4 from 3pt (2/8 overall). The actual results of these drills doesn't really matter much IMO. If you have video, they can be useful in watching the form, but that's about it. If you want to predict 3pt shooting, you should heavily weight the tape we have on these guys, not how they did in this super small sample of a drill (which does *not* fully simulate a game). As for Castle specifically, I haven't really bothered to look at his shot and whatnot. I'm generally fairly skeptical of quick turnarounds on shooting like that. I'm a big Amen guy, but even I think it will take him years to get to just below average 3pt shooting. Castle is starting from a better spot, but I wouldn't assume he figures out his shot. Though if he does...
I personally don’t like him. I don’t think he is a really good game athlete. As a general athlete he is pretty damn good - but I don’t like his movement or ability to get separation.
I think the thing I like the most about him when it comes to him being a fit on the Rockets is that he was super selfless when it comes to basketball, he could get his shot off on damn near any possession, but he only took what came to him. If he didn't think he had a good look, he tried to get someone else a better look. Also, he's pretty amazing passing in transition getting good looks for his teammates. I just think that's EXACTLY the kind of guy you want to draft on a team full of young guys that all think they are "the guy" and all want to take 20 shots a game.....you really don't need another guy with the same mentality.
I like Sheppard and Clingan more, but Castle is being overlooked by the board. I think his upside is way less theoretical than a lot of the others in this draft
BTW, saw this person on Twitter has some Web App that compares combine numbers (including numbers from previous combines I think): https://njk11.pythonanywhere.com/ As I noted, I wouldn't obsess about these results much...but if you wanted to know, apparently Reed has the same lane agility time as Aaron Holiday, and he has the same 3/4 sprint as Westbrook. That probably means absolutely nothing, but there you go. This is all from the NBA combine data I think (so you can manually look there), but this just puts them in comparison to similar players better I guess.
If his shot isn't as good why Knecht beat RS in almost every drill in the combine? Apart from jumping Dalton had better stats in almost every drill done. You'd think the better shooter would have better result in multiple drills.
I wouldn’t be upset if Sheppard is our pick. But deep inside I’m still hoping we can find a hidden gem that has star potential, even in a supposed bad draft. I’m sure there will be star/stars coming out of this draft. Question is can Stone find him?
Ah yes, ignore the larger sample, stick to one drill because the larger sample ruins your narrative about old man Dalton. However, even if we ignore the shooting numbers and graciously say that their shooting is equal....old man Dalton is inferior when it comes to just about everything else. I know you think player height is the only thing that matters, but that kind of thinking leads to some pretty bad takes.
I respect that. And very good assessment. I just feel as far as needs against teams innthe West Clingen will better serve the Rockets. Im sure the Rocket's FO and coaching staff are making the same arguments we are. I just hope they get it right.
It seems everyone is stuck with their POV on Sheppard. You are right for me height and athleticism are might. I don't like midgets and we've seen can't miss prospects like Johnny Davis, Jimmer Fredette and Scoot underwhelm in the NBA. RS has an extremely high floor but the ceiling I'm not sure. Saying Dalton Knecht will do nothing better than RS just cuz of their college stats seems foolish to me, but I guess we will see. However you are the one who said JG is gonna be Corey Brewer so when it comes to bad takes you are the gold standard here. If the Rox do get Sheppard I'd love to be wrong. He'll be one of the exceptions to the midget rule in the NBA.
The last point is important. Situational fit definitely matters, and GM’s like Presti prioritize it highly for a reason. Would the player be happy to be in your situation? Does what success looks like for him roughly align with what success looks like for your organization and other core players going forward? If you listen to Sheppard’s combine interview, it seems like our situation would be a perfect fit for him, personality-wise and bball-wise — raising the level of the team with floor spacing, quick decisions on-ball, outlet passing, defensive playmaking etc., then developing his own individual game over time. I think our core 6 would welcome him basketball-wise too; he’s not duplicative of anyone’s role and doesn’t demand Iso touches, PnR reps, or post ups. Can’t say the same about a lot of the other guys in this draft — it would be much more zero sum with our existing core. Folks might not want to admit it, but having a “core 7” is a high wire act that would need just the right mix of personalities and bball styles.
That should remove Clingan from any consideration. Don't need a slug with below average NBA athleticism.
Dude you keep calling Reed 6'1" but you call Knecht "almost 6'8" in shoes" I just looked it up and it says that Knecht was measured at "Knecht measured at 6'5.25 and 212 pounds without shoe" So is he wearing those special shoes that give you 3 extra inches in height? LOL If Knecht is almost 6'8" in shoes, then Reed is actually closer to 6'4" in shoes... makes sense right? Just use the same damn standard for both, little consistency would be nice.
