This would be something I'd be comfortable with as I have major concerns about him developing as a primary guy. But then you might start to ask yourself if he's that much better in that role than others who could be cheaper. I'm assuming he'll develop into a max guy (or super max), and if he essentially *requires* another guy to be most effective, I wonder if that limits the ceiling of a team.
Think the question to ask ourselves is if there is really anybody that special from 4-20 in this draft. Seems like one of the weakest drafts in nba history after top 3. We need to trade #4 this year for a first round pick next year. Right now we don’t have one for next year.
None of the guys outside the top 3 seem like primary guys. He’s the youngest player in the draft too so it’s hard to truly know how he projects. For Whitmore to have any kind of super high potential he has to show ball movement improvement…which he’s shown none of that so far. Guys like Jarace Walker or Taylor Hendricks might be some of the best guys outside the top 3 even if they don’t project as potential stars but just as solid role players on strong teams.
So I actually have the exact opposite opinion. I think the top 10 or so in this draft is pretty good. And I definitely don't like next year's draft. I'd much rather take someone at 20 than get a 10-20 pick next year for example. Some of this might depend on where certain players go and how they develop of course. But I see a lot of potential in a lot of guys.
I think Whitmore, Amen and Miller are all worthy of being the #4 pick. Amen has franchise-level upside. Whitmore has all-star upside. Miller’s floor is a high level nba starter. I still think we should move up for Scoot, who I’m certain is a franchise player. But if that’s just not possible folks should get comfortable with Whitmore, Amen and Miller. Two of the three will be there at #4. If our scouts don’t see any tier difference between those guys and guys like Walker, Asur, Hendricks, Black, then I’m okay moving back. I really like Hendricks for example. But there’s a good chance our scouts have two of Whitmore, Amen or Miller as a clear #3 and #4 on their draft board.
I would have Amen as a potential primary guy (requires either a decent mid-range or 3pt shot development), and if Ausar or Cam developed into elite-ish shooters, I think either of them *could* do it as well (though Ausar more likely since he's a much better playmaker). I don't think any of that is particularly likely, but I'm just pointing out that I think these guys are pretty skilled. And I kinda think some of that might be more likely than Brandon Miller being a primary guy (though he can easily remedy that by fixing his finishing/easy basket issues...possibly the easiest flaw to correct of any of these guys). I do think guys like Black, Walker, Hendricks, etc., could be elite role players and probably have a good chance of hitting those marks too though, so yeah I agree with you there. Anyway with Cam, a point I was trying to make with him is that if he's not the primary guy, some of his talents might be wasted, which might make him less valuable as a secondary/tertiary guy. Some of these other guys could potentially still do well in a lesser role, but with Cam, I'm not 100% sure (especially if he does end up as a so-so shooter in addition to being a ball stopper). In that case (i.e., you don't think he's a primary guy), it might be better to take some of those other guys over Whitmore (Jarace, Black, Hendricks, Ausar, etc.).
Put me in the camp that not picking Whitmore would be a mistake. His highlights are incredible. I don’t see a world where he has a low floor and his ceiling is high as any. My god he would help this team. I’m not a big Jalen guy…I wanted Mobley. But a core of Jabari, Jalen, Whitmore, Sengun, and Tari is really promising. Whitmore would fit so well here. We just need a nice PG to distribute and bring KPJ off the bench. Man I hate that I’m talking myself into this but maybe Ime can turn the corner for this young squad. Whitmore is a winning player. I don’t want Amen.
I was actually thinking that might not be a bad comparison (possibly MPJish too). Maybe not specifically in terms of how they play exactly, but yeah in terms of their impact on a team.
Compared with Amen Thompson, Whitmore is: - 2 years younger - Taller - Stronger - Shoots better - More versatile - Much more switchable defender Amen can't shoot. He will never learn how to shoot and will never be a good fit with Green.
this is why I like whitmore as a prospect probably more than amen who's floor is much lower despite being 2 years older. however, I'm not sure the fit is great between jalen, whitmore, and jabari. we'd be severely limited in playmaking ability. although jalen is coming along, I'm not sure the other two have it in them. in theory amen would be able to make jalen and jabari better with his playmaking, and cover jalen defensively on the perimeter. I'm torn at the moment between amen who I see as higher risk/reward but better fit, and whitmore who I see as the safer pick but not as good of a fit.
How much better is Whitmore as a shooter really? I'm not that confident in his shot. He shot 34% but that was from the college 3P line whereas Amen was shooting from the NBA line. Their FT% is very similar (70% for Whitmore, 69% for Amen). Also, Whitmore is not taller than Amen. Amen is actually slightly taller and has a much longer wingspan (7'0" for Amen versus 6'8.5" for Whitmore ).
To be clear, I was saying Aaron Gordon/MPJ as a high end comp (basically his best case scenario, excluding huge unpredictable developments). Not a floor. I go back and forth with where I think Cam's floor is. I think if the shooting and defense are legit, then yeah it should be pretty high. If they're not (and it isn't super unreasonable to say they're not), his floor is super low with not much to offer an NBA team potentially. He shares a lot of similarities as some other huge NBA busts (more so than say Amen for example).
I’m on board with this kid. 18 years old and looks like he’s in his mid 20’s body wise. tired of the scrawny teens we’ve been drafting
Thompson twins would be a HUGE mistake because you don’t draft players in the top five who can’t shoot. Amen has an awful hitch in his shot. Would you want a 20% threes and 55% free throw shooting Jalen Green. That is the upside for Amen and newsflash those numbers I quoted were against 16-18 year olds in a league of players not good enough to be 12th men on bad college teams. Agree on taking Miller but no way he’ll be around. Cam is the man and he actually played well in a good conference and is only 18, so room to improve.
Yeah, was thinking the same. Looking into the future I can see him supplanting Jalen Green, as the main scoring wing, since we don't know if Green will ever bulk-up enough. Green has a bit more sauce on his moves, but not sure that does any good... In any case, it'd be interesting to have both and see who's gonna get the full-time job. Amen is supposed to be more of a lead guard, which is a more valuable position, but seems like a longer shot. You have to squint really hard to see Amen as one of the best PGs in the league one day. While I can defo see Whitmore as a top-notch dynamite bucket, that's more realistic.
