All the publicity about Chet at #2 also assumed Smith at #1. If Orlando now decides to go Paolo, does OKC then switch to Jabari? They had no real way of knowing. All we knew for sure (assuming that you were believing what was being reported) is that OKC had Paolo as their third option. Chet was a top two option but they could have preferred Jabari but felt he was going #1. Paolo going #1 introduced a new option that wasn't thought to be likely.
Stone could have played Sengun full games last season IN THE TANKING YEAR(!), give him PT he deserved and let him win the ROY, so that the future prospects dont avoid Rockets. TAKE THAT FOR DATA
His sauces are as flavorful as water but he needs to promote the game and the fake narrative of #1 vs #3. That's it, that's my point. Like most of ESPN content, has no substance, waste of time.
they asked for meds from all - only Paolo complied... the other 2 were posturing... The other 2 would not give him the info - until after it became apparent they might fall... how is that against Stone...? i mean if u wanna say he should have had contingency plans in place to trade back in case 1 of the 3 who fell to him didnt provide medicals - ok... but there's no evidence showing he didnt... all his scrambling was trying to get information that had previously been with held from him... i dont understand your angle regarding Stone in this instance... i mean if he didnt want to give up assets to move up... to ONLY THEN see the others guys medical reports... i cant blame him... are you saying he should have moved back beforehand - since he may be in a position to draft a player to whom he hadnt seen the med reports? i dont understand what your expectations of him are in this instance... He asked for the info - and got shut down... so he had to either cut his losses for a sure thing (ie someone later whose meds he had seen - if Paolo is gone) - or react on the fly as things developed... i think he played it right... i'd have been happy with Jabari or Paolo - but didnt want to gamble on Chet... and it appears that is how he played it...
We don't know if the Rockets had earlier tried to trade up or not. We also don't know what the cost to get #1 would have been. Just because we may have somebody rated #1 doesn't mean that we were willing to pay the price to move up. It takes two sides to make a deal and you have to be willing to pay the asking price. Hypothetical: Let's say we liked Smith at #1 but Orlando said, "ok, the price for the top pick is the #3 pick and Jalen Green". The guy who falls to #3 and Jalen Green is a much greater value than any of the top 3 this year so you don't do the deal. You could still think Smith is the best in this draft but aren't willing to give up what's being asked. Bottom line is that we don't know a whole lot about what was actually done or not done. It's kind of hard to complain about something that we don't really know the details of.
You know what? I don't really care - am happy with Jabari, would have preferred Chet, but am really happy with Lock Smith. DD
Exactly. He wasn't going to move out of 3 until he knew who would be available. He ended up getting a great fit so it's hard to argue with how he played it.
There are no direct quotes on that. Only conjecture from Magic GM, who's trying to make himself look so smart, that led to nothing because he sat on the pick.
That was exactly what I said in my first 2-3 posts to you and my main issue throughout our debate (before the medical thing), but alright.
I confused you with the poster telling me they clearly traded up to take Paolo. If we’re cleared up on the medical issue I’m not sure what the debate is. The Rockets attempted to move up to control their destiny, whoever that was. We also don’t know how much they were willing to invest in moving up. Inquiring to do so isn’t surprising, it’s just due diligence by the GM.
Nothing indicates that Stone and his team did not do all they could in knowing about Chet. We only know that they did not have his medical records and was concerned.
Their concern made them appear to make panic moves. Did Rockets have Sengun's medicals when they traded up to 16 to draft him? Previous to drafting him, Rockets had zero contact with Sengun or his team.
It makes sense Id be scared of Chet too . OKC was willing to gamble . From our perspective we are looking to push green and sengun and kpj and Tate . Picking smith or banchero (who seem to be more likely to take on a fuller load early on)makes sense . now . We were prolly pretty sure OKC was going Chet . So I’m sure we didn’t offer too much . getting Smith is a dream . I think he was the best , will be the best , and now i get to root for him on the rockets .
True. And Stone relied on both of Woj's statements (Paolo and Chet) as fact. Only panicked when Woj updated his Banchero statement to say Banchero could go #1.
