This is the same front office that also traded up for Sengun, Same front office that targeted Fred and Dillon as top free agent targets. And also added Holiday as depth. I get that Fred and Dillon were more proven commodities, but I think it shows that they understand that you don't have to be 6'8" with a 7' wingspan and a 40 inch vert to be an effective player.
I'm possibly over-interpreting from a small sample size, but I feel like an additional component that weaves itself through the Stone front office preferences is taking young athletic talent that has been misused or miscoached due to extenuating circumstances. This manifests in drafting or signing 4/5 star high school recruits who don't blow the doors off with production during their freshman years, or go through the alternate minor leagues. Examples: Jalen Green (G-League) vs. Evan Mobley (coached by his father) Josh Christopher (Top 15 HS recruit who clashed with his coach at ASU) Daishen Nix (G-League, Top 20 HS recruit) TyTy Washington (Top 15 HS recruit, forced to play 2-guard next to a 5-10 JR PG) Cam Whitmore (Top 25 HS recruit, coach at Villanova has sucked as a successor to Jay Wright) Amen Thompson (Overtime Elite...'nuff said) They also were guilty of over-investing in KPJ, assuming John Lucas could straighten him out, and assuming that J.B. Bickerstaff was mismanaging him. Tari Eason, Alperun Sengun, and Usman Garuba seem to be pure statistical production picks, guys that the internal data models were so overwhelmingly positive on that they were willing to overlook limited physical tools (or possibly medical red flags for Tari?). Jabari was the 3rd best of 3 top prospects. I don't think anything played into the decision to take him other than that, and no other prospect was realistically considered. Going off of this hypothesis, I'd imagine that the Rockets are probably lower than consensus for: Stephon Castle: not overwhelming athleticism, physical tools, or even a carrying skill, and played in what is clearly the best system and for the best coach in college basketball. Zaccharie Risacher: fairly poor athleticism, average length, and good but not unbelievable statistical production. Devin Carter: Age and sudden year-over-year improvement. Get the guys who are still yet to peak, rather than the guys who break out due to experience in college. Dalton Knecht: Ditto to above, but especially for scoring, rather have a guy who doesn't know what he's doing and is scoring efficiently anyway (ala Amen), versus someone who is scoring due to polished moves. Guys that fit the Rockets draft modus operandi: Matas Buzelis: G-League Ignite tire fire situation, but was a top HS recruit. Ron Holland: Copy-paste from above. Reed Sheppard: Stats only pick, and a vote against Coach Cal's ability to utilize his talent effectively. Literally, the Sengun of PGs, the stats are stupidly good, while the critical tools (foot-speed/length) are very concerning. Alex Sarr: OTE alumni who played significantly better once leaving that program for Perth. Donovan Clingan: Because the Rockets value big rim protectors more than most other teams; it's also why they are so reluctant to give Sengun the keys to the car. Of course, this is only my guesstimate based off of trying to find a pattern in what they have done, and doesn't say much about the prospects themselves; it is also just as likely with only three years of evidence that any trends or preferences are just due to chance.
INSIDER UPDATE 6-17-24 23:06 EDT Now that the NBA Finals are over - look for things to start really heating up for Houston as the Rockets head into the offseason
Well, the Regular Season is better than the Playoffs. And the Offseason is more important now than the RS.
Very different players. Clingan is bigger and a more skilled shooter and passer at this point. Sarr is elite at switching and moving around the floor defensively - something that Clingan isn't all that great at. Sarr may not even end up being a center - Clingan is only a center. For a team like the Rockets - Sarr is a very good fit because the Rockets have Sengun on the court, and Sarr can cover for him quite a bit, and Sengun can help make up for some of the lack of strength Sarr is lacking.
Sarr could in theory solve a lot of issues for us--or if not, seems likely to at least become a good backup center. But I doubt that both Atlanta and Washington pass on him, and he does need to be a shooter to play alongside Sengun extensively.
Yeah - we would still have shooting issues, and sometimes we would have issues with spacing...... at least until some of our guys can become better shooters. On the defensive end, it would be excellent and a perfect fit. Having Sarr, Jabari and Amen all on the floor and switching would cause havoc. The hope is Sarr becomes a Sam Perkins type of three point shooter, hopefully with more volume and with some flushes to the basket.
Clingan is a player and Sarr is an idea. I'm not a fan of drafting ideas. There are probably 3 real players at the top of this draft. Sheppard, Clingan and Castle. Everyone else is a collection of parts that they hope can become a functioning NBA basketball player.
I get where you are coming from - you don't want guys that you have to project too much on. Where I disagree with you (and the only reason I disagree with you) is the mobility and movement - that will translate day one, and that will allow him to switch at an elite level inside, and allow him to cover the perimeter. He is elite at that right now, and it is the type of skill that is an anchor to build around. Is that enough to become a long term star or starter? No, he will still need to get stronger, he will need to learn to shoot somewhat and make the right reads on flashing to the basket - but it is an excellent building block.
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/...overall-bronny-james-goes-to-lakers-at-no-17/ 2. True or false: Stephon Castle can play point guard in the NBA? Finkelstein: False. Can he? Yes, he probably can. Is that his best, or most natural, position? No it is not. He played with the ball in his hands in high school, but was often UConn's third ball-handler this year. I've never considered him the big point guard that he has been billed as since high school, but his value is having extreme versatility on both ends of the floor, as well as being one of the top perimeter defenders in the class. Boone: True. Although, I think this can-he, can't-he debate on Castle specifically is wasted air. I tend to agree with Fink for the most part. He's a combo guard who has playmaking ability and profiles as one of the best defenders in the draft. His ceiling outcome based on his physical tools and skills is some version of Jrue Holiday in an ideal world. If you can squeeze that out of him and develop Castle into a consistent shooting threat then in hindsight, the debate on whether Castle was worthwhile of a high pick because of his positional versatility might look silly and shortsighted. Salerno: False. I don't understand Castle's strong desire to play point guard in the NBA when he didn't play the position at all during his time at UConn. You see it the other way around (a player plays PG in college and a different position in the NBA.) Castle is one of the top defenders in his class and has shown an ability to be a solid distributor, but he's more of a wing at the next level. For what it's worth, Castle should be the UConn teammate in contention for the No. 1 pick. 3. True or false: Reed Sheppard is the best shooter in the draft? Finkelstein: That's a loaded question, especially for those of us who watched him in high school, because there's a big gap between the way he shot it in high school and the way he shot it at Kentucky. He was actually around a 33% career three-point shooter in high school, so the jump we saw this year was shocking. So I'll just say that I'm more skeptical than most, who only watched him this year, that he's definitely the best shooter in the draft. Boone: Fink, you my friend are a professional hedger. Impressive. I'll go with false here. I think the best shooter in the draft is Duke's Jared McCain. Sheppard's numbers are laughably good from last season -- 100th percentile in jump shots, 99th percentile in catch and shoot, 99th percentile on dribble jumpers, 52.1% on 3s. It's a joke! But having watched the mechanics on both I think McCain has the skills to be more dynamic as a movement shooter.He really does an excellent job of sprinting to his spots, getting square and firing. Off the catch he keeps it in the shooting pocket then unloads. Reed off the catch isn't quite as quick and tends to bring it down a bit before unleashing. It's nitpicking, obviously, but in the NBA those minor details might determine major outcomes. Salerno: False. I'm siding with Boone. It's McCain. Dating back to his time in high school and on the AAU circuit, McCain's greatest strength has been his shooting from distance, and he showed this season why he's worthy of that distinction. McCain shot 30 of 53 (56.6%) on transition 3-pointers at Duke. The NBA is full of fast-paced offenses, and that skill will translate.
