my issue is Maluach and Queen can’t shoot. We’ve already got a really good offensive big that can’t shoot. Queen can’t play defense and Maluach is super raw. It feels like there are maybe 3 or 4 plsyers in this draft that are clearly top 5 and after early lotto the value is similar all the way through late 1st round. I just don’t think anyone but the high lotto is worth drafting a player rather than trading the pick.
I worry less about defense if a player has size with Udoka as the coach. If he can turn Green into a decent defender he can do it with almost anybody that is willing to give effort and learn.
There also may be another 2 or 3 big men who fit better than those 2, especially if you want them to contribute immediately I love the idea of the Rox drafting a C though
Depends on who declares for the draft and what you want out of a backup C and where you want to draft them No order: Newell Kalkenbrenner Sorbor Condon bunch of foreign guys wildcard: Danny Wolfe
If we can get Maluach we have to do it. Dude is the perfect backup to Sengun and can be his new double big buddy post Adams. Thomas Sorber as the budget Maluach would also be a good choice if we arent trading up.
I think that history has shown a non-shooting backup 5 is one of the easiest positions to fill both at the trade deadline and especially in the post-buyout market, so I'd be very reluctant to try and fill that through the draft, especially considering the long development runway for young bigs. Just from the Suns alone, you'd have to imagine that Nick Richards would be easily gettable as a throw-in in a hypothetical Durant deal. Mark Williams is probably near the top of the outcomes possible for a late lotto pick, and he was traded for a bunch of young players comparable to Reed/Cam. Brook Lopez is a FA next summer, and already had a handshake deal with the Rockets two summers ago. Robert Williams is going to be an expiring deal, and while they were demanding a 1st Rounder for him, I could easily see them get put into a similar position as the Rockets with Eric Gordon, where they end up lowering the price to a swap, rather than let him go for nothing. Give me the oldest, crustiest, 5th year 23-year old who can come in and wreck shop for 12 months, before their physical/developmental limitations become apparent. Dalton Knecht is the ideal comp here; a guy who can excel in a limited role as a rookie, and can maintain the buzz of a "former first round pick" when they're moved for better fits later.
Yeah if the pick lands at say #13, IMO it’s highly unlikely we just pick the slotted 19yo one and done and expect them to develop. Literally any of these possibilities are more likely I think: - trading out of the draft completely for a couple future assets - trading down for a late first and some future asset - even trading down for two late firsts in this draft The idea being, we’d be targeting either cheap older high end role players, or maybe euro draft and stashes. Think: Nique Clifford, Joan Beringer, Hugo Gonzalez, Yaxel Lendeborg, Kalkbrenner, Kam Jones
Clifford might actually slot in right around #13, very possible. I've also seen Collin Murray-Boyles (Sophomore) and Rasheer Fleming (Junior) ranked in that mid/late teens range of the draft where it's not crazy to just pick 'em if you like them enough. Another older guy I like is Danny Wolf, but I think he might be more of a trade back dude like you said.
Ehh, I don’t believe Clifford will go top 20. This is the peak of his hype rn after the conference tournament, but ultimately he’s a 23.5yo guy from a mid major. CMB, Fleming, guys like that, or actually picking at #12 or #13… basically I think there’s zero chance we draft a player who’s understandably looking for a place he can develop into a starter and get a big second contract. It’s just not going to work here. See Cam Whitmore.
Yeah Cam is 100% a mentality problem that even he admits is a problem. He said in an interview that he has a tendency to be lazy throughout the game and was working on fixing it.
Yes but ultimately the Whitmore issue is that for his career it would make 10x more sense to be on one of the 25 other teams who would play him anyway and potentially give him a big second contract. If you don’t have a future potential starting spot or 6th man opportunity for a guy, and you don’t have a salary slot for a serious second contract - drafting lottery guys who see those things as what they deserve is a bad idea, for better or worse. Can’t just draft most lottery guys and say “you’ll be our role player now, get used to it”. If we want to draft future cheap good role players, we have to draft players who want to be that. It’s a two way street.
But Whitmore isnt a lotto pick he was like 18th or something. If we ended up with a lotto pick who cant break the rotation against the likes of Tate and Holiday but thinks he should get a big bag then thats just a bust that wont amount to much. Nobody is telling Whitmore or Reed to just be a role player. If they were better than Jatari, Amen, Sengun and Jalen they'd start and get more PT. They arent better though, and thats their fault not anybody else's. I highly doubt majority of players in the NBA comes into the league seeing themselves as a future role player. All of these guys are the stars for their teams and usually have been their team aces for much of their lives growing up. A lot of them think their low pick or undrafted status is just temporary they will become successful later like FVV or Austin Reeves. Whether a lotto pick or undrafted, if they arent good enough to play like stars they shouldnt expect a large bag in free agency and in fact they wont get a large bag in free agency. Lotto pick status is just like getting a degree in a fancy college, it gets you in the door but your performance after getting drafted is what will get you paid, not that you were a lotto pick before.
