Draft Notes

[The Rock MVP]

So I enjoy the draft and college basketball. I usually watch a lot of the games and am in the process of starting the college basketball portion of a basketball blog me and my friend will be starting.

I see alot of people making rash assumptions about this draft and I thought I would let you guys know what I have seen. I'll only address things that are unknown so I will not discuss Anthony Davis.

Random Notes: This draft is not as deep as people think it is. The reason people think it is deep is because players that were projected into the top 5 after coming out of HS have slipped like Austin Rivers or Terrence Jones.


Kidd Gilchrist or Bradley Beal: These two guys will be the best players in this draft. They both naturally have basketball skills to shoot, penetrate and find the teammate. If I'm picking at 2 or 3....these are my guys in order.

Harrison Barnes: Guy can shoot, penetrate, and pass. Guy cannot play above average defense....yet. Think about it. Barnes is athletic, can shoot, jump out of the gym. He spaces the floor correctly and has a smart bball IQ. These are the necessary tools needed to TEACH someone defense. He didn't play alot of D at UNC because he has two 7 footers in the paint.

Tyler Zeller/Sullinger: If we don't move up, draft Zeller or Sullinger would be steals. More so Zeller. Neither will be all stars, but they both give you value that you cannot teach. Sullinger I think is not as good as Zeller.

Leonard/Royce White: These guys did produced at a certain level in College, but in the NBA, Leonard becomes a Cole Aldrich. He has no post game, no athleticism. Don't let the dunking fool you since he is 7'1. Royce White is good and could be there for the NY pick, but you definitely will not see him at an all star game. Above average D, but he doesn't have the stroke to be an offensive threat.

Drummond and Lamb: Drummond is very very raw. He is actually too raw, but does have athleticism. He is easily 3 years out from making a significant all around impact on the NBA. He was terrible in college in the post and does not have a jumper. Some team is going to take him and be sorry since he can't help until much later.

Lamb is the enigma in this draft. He reminds me alot of Corey Brewer in college, but with less D and a better shot. Take him if he is there at 14, but know this...He can't be your super star guy since he relies heavily on his shot and his subpar speed to get in the paint.


Sorry....(Expecting TL;DR)

[The Rock MVP]

Possible Late Round Gems

Draymond Green: Solid Bball player who knows how to play.

Fab Melo: Dumb as an Ox, but is better defensively than Leonard and does the same on offense.

Khris Middleton: Fluid offensive player and lengthy enough to make an impact on D

Festus Ezeli: Massive player with a small post game who is athletic and above average on D

[jayhow92]

I pretty much agree with this. Drummond will piss off the team who drafts him because by the he will possibly become something, he's going to be off his rookie contract.

Still intrigued by Royce White though. He's got such a unique skill set to his game.

What do you think about the others? Like PJ, Ross, Henson, Rivers, and Wroten Jr.

[The Rock MVP]

Royce White is sort of a guy you can't measure. He is the main guy on a team that over achieved in the Iowa State Cyclones. That team if you break it down has no body that is NBA class.
- He didn't shoot as much as you would like him to since he is great at taking the right shot. His FG% is a little inflated due to the fact that he only takes about 9-11 shots a game. If he took as much as Barnes or MKG (other SFs) or even Perry Jones...He would be in the 42% range which is still good.
- He is a great rebounder, but again on an Iowa Cyclone team that almost got out rebounded by Texas towards the end of the season. Texas has no business out rebounding anyone.

Henson is interesting. I don't think teams will be disappointed in drafting him. I think he is a little injury prone and obviously needs to put on weight. He can shoot since his shot is almost unblockable with his height. (Youtube him...He shoots high) I honestly think he is Anthony Davis-light. He can do almost everything Davis can do in shot blocking, mid range, post moves but not as good. He doesn't have the motor either.

Ross: Expect his 3 pt % to drop since Washington is a 3 pt shooting team. He also is a sub par shooter in my opinion. Other people think otherwise. He is athletic enough to learn. I don't like how he plays smaller than he actually is on offense and defense if he isn't 3 feet away from the basket. 3 feet within the basket, he is solid at rebounding and put backs.
- Honestly, we have a guy who is like that already in parsons

Rivers: Selfish player. Entitlement issues. Avoid since I honestly think he is one of those guys who wants to play in a big market for big names. Notice how his cross over move requires a travel. I am a Texas fan. He can shoot and is quick, but so are NBA players and the help D will shut him out on his drive. I think he will be OJ Mayo...not bad, but overhyped.

Tony Wroten Jr: I am a Fan! He is 6'5 with handles. He can shoot, He can jump. He has trouble dribbling with both hands causing unneeded turnovers. He also needs to make the right pass. His speed and athleticism will always have shooters open, but he doesn't have the vision. Honestly, he is athletic enough to play PG and does have the handles, but if someone teaches him to make the right pass like Lin than he is better than Kendall Marshall who I also like. I think Miami takes him or Kendall marshall by moving up

[MrButtocks]

Your thoughts on Thomas Robinson? Potential all-star or overhyped?

[JayZ750]

What does Rivers have to do with Texas?

How does Lamb remind you of Brewer. Brewer was a taller SF that seemed to excel in more of a run and gun type system that was Florida. Lamb is a SG that seems to rely more on his shot.

I can't say for certain whether Lamb has the speed/athleticism to be able to dribble penetrate or create his own shot in the NBA, but he produced at UConn.

Completely agree on Meyers. I put Zeller in a similar boat as Meyers, and not because of skin color. Clearly better, but I just don't see him being able to do in the NBA what he was able to do at UNC.

I feel like I'd stay away from Barnes unless he was great value (i.e. he slipped). A lot of his positives you can say about someone like Marvin Williams for example. Marvin wasn't nearly as focal a point of the Tarheels in his 1 year there as Barnes was in his 2, but he put up similar and in some cases better stats per minute and the demeanor seems to be the same. I think Barnes will be a solid NBA contributor, but don't currently see all-star appearances.

I think Sullinger can surprise. I'm not sure why his stock has fallen. He's not any less athletic than he was last year or the beginning of the year. He played maybe just a little tad worse than his freshman season, but about the same. Good team, great conference, great stats. I just don't see how he can be put in the same sentence as Zeller. While it's nice to see Zeller improve to a point where he played almost as good as Sullinger did, and seeing improvement is nice, in Zeller's case I think he benefits from 4 years in the same system getting comfortable and acclimating to college speed and athleticism. He will take a while to do so again at the NBA level if at all. Sullinger came in and dominated from day one.

[The Rock MVP]

Originally Posted by MrButtocks Your thoughts on Thomas Robinson? Potential all-star or overhyped?

This is my opinion and it isn't well respected by many people. Robinson is probably the most NBA ready out of anything. He definitely is mature with his family situation, but I have seen him in person at UT vs. Kansas games. The guy is jacked. I'm talking cut. He is fast and a tenacious rebounder. He is much better than the Morris Twins. What I just stated is well known among the college bball viewers. He is listed as a 6'9 POWER FORWARD, but he is one guy I actually believe can transition to the SF position because he has the speed, strength to match up defensively. He can also shoot a college three. I don't know about the NBA three since the sample size for him at college isn't too large. I think he can make a smoother transition to the 3 spot than Morris and is much more NBA ready and younger. NBA ready meaning his body is already good to pound with players when Marcus Morris isn't there just yet.

Originally Posted by JayZ750 What does Rivers have to do with Texas? How does Lamb remind you of Brewer. Brewer was a taller SF that seemed to excel in more of a run and gun type system that was Florida. Lamb is a SG that seems to rely more on his shot.

Haha I reread that and I was probably thinking of something else as I was typing about Rivers. Brain Fart to the Max.

I actually disagree with you about the whole Florida thing. Florida had Al Horford and Noah for their half court offense and both of those guys abused people in the paint. They also had Brewer and Green who went undrafted shoot almost lights out in half court sets. These are the following reasons Lamb and Brewer remind me of each other

Both are very very long
Both are about the same height
Brewer was a better defender and known for his defense although Lamb is not deficient in this area.
Lamb is already a better pure shooter, but brewer made many clutch 3s in the back to back NCAA tournament wins
Both are tweeners in that they need to lift weight.
I don't know about Bball IQ since I don't coach them, but Lamb takes terrible shots at times, but probably due to lack of confidence in teammates

[The Rock MVP]

Originally Posted by JayZ750 A lot of his positives you can say about someone like Marvin Williams for example. Marvin wasn't nearly as focal a point of the Tarheels in his 1 year there as Barnes was in his 2, but he put up similar and in some cases better stats per minute and the demeanor seems to be the same. I think Barnes will be a solid NBA contributor, but don't currently see all-star appearances. I think Sullinger can surprise. I'm not sure why his stock has fallen. He's not any less athletic than he was last year or the beginning of the year. He played maybe just a little tad worse than his freshman season, but about the same. Good team, great conference, great stats. I just don't see how he can be put in the same sentence as Zeller. While it's nice to see Zeller improve to a point where he played almost as good as Sullinger did, and seeing improvement is nice, in Zeller's case I think he benefits from 4 years in the same system getting comfortable and acclimating to college speed and athleticism. He will take a while to do so again at the NBA level if at all. Sullinger came in and dominated from day one.

Solid Points.

I think the Marvin Williams comparison are warranted, but Williams was the 6th man on those teams and ATL took him due to potential. I'd compare Williams more to Machado who came off the bench and showed ALOT of potential and will be a top 5 pick next year.

Harrison has all the tools without a doubt. He is a high risk high reward. Best case scenerio: Paul Pierce. Worst Case Scenario: Luol Deng before Derrick Rose or Thaddeus Young

I actually like Jared Sullinger. He is a bruising PF who rebounds better than Scola. I feel like his lack of shot blocking and ability to guard stretching fours makes him a defensive liability. I hope the Rockets draft him at 13.

[Ashcoza]

someone explain the difference of Harrison Barnes and Marvin Williams? Same exact tools, skillsets, even mentalities Decent players, but ntoot consistently aggressive or the mental motor to be a top 2 option

[Rockets Jones]

Robinson reminds me of a better version of Rodney Rogers with stronger offensive rebounding, better agility and speed so I can see him playing some SF. Not sure if he can be a career starter at SF.

[ironariza]

the real enigma is Tony Wroten.

how about him?

[jopatmc]

Sullinger = Barkley + Scola + Mark Aguirre

[BleedRocketsRed]

Originally Posted by Ashcoza someone explain the difference of Harrison Barnes and Marvin Williams? Same exact tools, skillsets, even mentalities Decent players, but ntoot consistently aggressive or the mental motor to be a top 2 option

Don't like Barnes much (expect him to be solid but don't see that star potential tbh) but I really don't see the comparison (besides body types and maybe mentalities).

Barnes is way more polished coming out of college. During his two years at UNC, he was the go-to-guy and put up 17 PPG last season. Williams was the 6th man who put up solid stats but still considered to be pretty raw overall.

Williams couldn't shoot to save his life during his first few years, he has improved greatly since but he didn't have the offensive game which Barnes has early in his career.

[Shaud]

Originally Posted by The Rock MVP Tony Wroten Jr: I am a Fan! He is 6'5 with handles. He can shoot, He can jump. He has trouble dribbling with both hands causing unneeded turnovers. He also needs to make the right pass. His speed and athleticism will always have shooters open, but he doesn't have the vision. Honestly, he is athletic enough to play PG and does have the handles, but if someone teaches him to make the right pass like Lin than he is better than Kendall Marshall who I also like. I think Miami takes him or Kendall marshall by moving up

You're probably the first person to put "He can shoot" in a scouting report of Tony Wroten. I have kept an eye on him since his last year in high school and he's an amazing talent but Tony Wroten is not a shooter at all at this point in his career.

[Nook]

Originally Posted by Ashcoza someone explain the difference of Harrison Barnes and Marvin Williams? Same exact tools, skillsets, even mentalities Decent players, but ntoot consistently aggressive or the mental motor to be a top 2 option

Williams was the better athlete and Barnes was the home offensively skilled player. Williams was viewed as a prospect that had superstar potential. Barnes is considered more limited but more of a sure thing.

My issue with Barnes is that he does not draw fouls or go to the line, he is a high volume shooter.

[ironariza]

tony wroten is 6'7 with shoes

[BleedRocketsRed]

Anybody know anything about Tomas Satoransky from Czech Republic?

This kid kinda interests me. He is playing his third season in the ACB averaging about 18 MPG but not doing much at all (still impressive that a kid his age gets playing time in the ACB tbh. That has to be solid experience).

From what I have read, he is a 20 year old PG/SG standing at 6'6"/6'7" 207 lbs. Has a wingspan of over 6'7", a vert leap of 36" ( ), decent but not very good overall quickness. Supposedly has a high IQ and is solid defensively. Could be worth buying in the 2nd round maybe?

[coachbadlee]

Originally Posted by MrButtocks Your thoughts on Thomas Robinson? Potential all-star or overhyped?

All-star.

[jopatmc]

Don't look now but Draftexpress has Tony Mitchell going to the Thunder. Eek!