Sarr could be an under the radar steal for us. I'd embrace Reed, but Sarr is to me the best prospect in the draft. I see Mobley potential in him. Imagine mixing Mobley with Sengun... Love Jabari, but he's not a 7-2 guy with 7-4 wingspan. I think the fact that Sarr has been on the spotlight since he was 16 (he was that when he was playing for Overtime elite, say again, SIXTEEN) is playing against him. He has developed shooting, passing, since then while still being a raw 19 big man with a wide room for improvement. I really like his feel for the game, his IQ, his fluidity with and without the ball, and those wide shoulders man... His shooting mechanics look very promising as well. If his head works well... you have a potentially VERY impactful player there, and being Jabari already a good fit for Alpi, I see Alex even more complementary. Actually, he would complement very well Jabari as well. Overall, I see him as the best prospect in the draft, so would be more than glad to get him at #3.
I'd rather have a big man PF who can already shoot like Jabari than Sarr who has the promise of being a shooter but can't shoot right now and might never be able to shoot. Sarr isnt the only one who improved Jabari went from 30% in his rookie year to 36% on higher numbers and a bigger role. In fact his rookie to sophomore jump was bigger than either Jalen or Sengun. The only reason Jabari has low numbers is because of low attempts, he could have easily been a 20 pts scorer if he was featured more.
Bold prediction … Sarr falls we draft him and trade him for a star with player and / or future picks .
Hollinger’s Top 75 Big Board Spoiler Tier 01 - Best bets in bad class 1. Ron Holland | F | G LEAGUE IGNITE | Age: 18 | Height: 6-7 2. Stephon Castle | G, F | CONNECTICUT | Age: 19 | Height: 6-6 3. Donovan Clingan | C | CONNECTICUT | Age: 20 | Height: 7-2 4. Reed Sheppard | G | KENTUCKY | Age: 20 | Height: 6-2 Tier 02 - Promising teenagers 5. Alex Sarr | C | PERTH WILDCATS | Age: 19 | Height: 7-0 6. Nikola Topić | G | CRVENA ZVEZDA | Age: 18 | Height: 6-6 7. Matas Buzelis | F | G LEAGUE IGNITE | Age: 19 | Height: 6-9 8. Rob Dillingham | G | KENTUCKY | Age: 19 | Height: 6-1 Tier 03 - No-frills college vets 9. Kyle Filipowski | F, C | DUKE | Age: 20 | Height: 6-11 10. Devin Carter | G | PROVIDENCE | Age: 22 | Height: 6-2 Tier 04 - Talented but I have questions 11. Johnny Furphy | F | KANSAS | Age: 19 | Height: 6-8 12. Isaiah Collier | G | USC | Age: 19 | Height: 6-3 13. Zaccharie Risacher | F | JL BOURG | Age: 19 | Height: 6-8 14. Dalton Knecht | G | TENNESSEE | Age: 23 | Height: 6-5 15. Cody Williams | F | COLORADO | Age: 19 | Height: 6-7 16. Tidjane Salaun | F | CHOLET | Age: 18 | Height: 6-10 17. Ja’Kobe Walter | G | BAYLOR | Age: 19 | Height: 6-4 18. Jared McCain | G | DUKE | Age: 20 | Height: 6-2 Tier 05 - Sleepers 19. Oso Ighodaro | C | MARQUETTE | Age: 21 | Height: 6-10 20. Trey Alexander | G | CREIGHTON | Age: 21 | Height: 6-3 Tier 06 - One super sleeper 21. Jonathan Mogbo | F | SAN FRANCISCO | Age: 22 | Height: 6-6 Tier 07 - Quasi-sleepers 22. Bub Carrington | G | PITTSBURGH | Age: 18 | Height: 6-4 23. Tyler Smith | F, C | G LEAGUE IGNITE | Age: 19 | Height: 6-9 24. Pacome Dadiet | F | RATIOPHARM ULM | Age: 18 | Height: 6-8 Tier 08 - Some centers 25. Zach Edey | C | PURDUE | Age: 22 | Height: 7-4 26. Kel’El Ware | C | INDIANA | Age: 20 | Height: 7-0 27. DaRon Holmes II | F, C | DAYTON | Age: 21 | Height: 6-9 Tier 09 - Final first-round grades 28. Jaylon Tyson | F | CALIFORNIA | Age: 21 | Height: 6-6 29. Justin Edwards | F | KENTUCKY | Age: 20 | Height: 6-6 30. Baylor Scheierman | F | CREIGHTON | Age: 23 | Height: 6-6 Tier 10 - Second-rounders who may make it 31. KJ Simpson | G | COLORADO | Age: 21 | Height: 6-0 32. Adem Bona | C | UCLA | Age: 21 | Height: 6-8 33. Ryan Dunn | F | VIRGINIA | Age: 21 | Height: 6-6 34. Yves Missi | C | BAYLOR | Age: 20 | Height: 6-11 35. Harrison Ingram | F | NORTH CAROLINA | Age: 21 | Height: 6-5 36. Tyler Kolek | G | MARQUETTE | Age: 23 | Height: 6-1 37. Kyshawn George | F | MIAMI (FLA.) | Age: 20 | Height: 6-7 38. Juan Nunez | G | RATIOPHARM ULM | Age: 20 | Height: 6-4 39. Jamal Shead | G | HOUSTON | Age: 21 | Height: 6-0 Tier 11 - Roll the dice 40. AJ Johnson | G | ILLAWARRA | Age: 19 | Height: 6-4 41. Nikola Đjurišić | F | KK MEGA BEMAX | Age: 20 | Height: 6-7 42. Jaylen Wells | F | WASHINGTON STATE | Age: 20 | Height: 6-7 43. Ajay Mitchell | G | UC SANTA BARBARA | Age: 22 | Height: 6-3 44. Cam Christie | G | MINNESOTA | Age: 18 | Height: 6-5 45. Trentyn Flowers | G | ADELAIDE | Age: 19 | Height: 6-7 Tier 12 - Old guys 46. Enrique Freeman | F | AKRON | Age: 23 | Height: 6-7 47. Dillon Jones | G | WEBER STATE | Age: 22 | Height: 6-5 48. Jalen Bridges | F | BAYLOR | Age: 23 | Height: 6-7 49. Terrence Shannon Jr. | F | ILLINOIS | Age: 23 | Height: 6-6 50. Pelle Larsson | G | ARIZONA | Age: 23 | Height: 6-5 Tier 13 - I do not get it 51. Tristan da Silva | F | COLORADO | Age: 23 | Height: 6-8 52. Bronny James | G | USC | Age: 19 | Height: 6-2 53. Kevin McCullar | F | KANSAS | Age: 23 | Height: 6-5 54. Ulrich Chomche | C | NBA DEVELOPMENT ACADEMY | Age: 18 | Height: 6-10 55. Bobi Klintman | F | CAIRNS TAIPANS | Age: 21 | Height: 6-9 Tier 14 - Stash picks 56. Melvin Ajinça | F | SAINT QUENTIN | Age: 20 | Height: 6-7 57. Armel Traore | F | ADA BLOIS BASKET | Age: 21 | Height: 6-8 58. Ariel Hukporti | C | MHP-RIESEN | Age: 22 | Height: 6-11 Tier 15 - Two-ways 59. Reece Beekman | G | VIRGINIA | Age: 22 | Height: 6-1 60. Isaac Jones | F, C | WASHINGTON STATE | Age: 23 | Height: 6-8 61. PJ Hall | F, C | CLEMSON | Age: 22 | Height: 6-8 62. Zyon Pullin | G | FLORIDA | Age: 23 | Height: 6-4 63. Tristen Newton | G | CONNECTICUT | Age: 23 | Height: 6-3 64. N’Faly Dante | C | OREGON | Age: 22 | Height: 6-10 65. Judah Mintz | G | SYRACUSE | Age: 20 | Height: 6-3 66. Isaiah Crawford | F | LOUISIANA TECH | Age: 22 | Height: 6-5 67. Antonio Reeves | G | KENTUCKY | Age: 23 | Height: 6-5 68. Cam Spencer | G | CONNECTICUT | Age: 24 | Height: 6-3 69. David Jones | G | MEMPHIS | Age: 22 | Height: 6-4 70. Anton Watson | F | GONZAGA | Age: 23 | Height: 6-8 71. Isaiah Stevens | G | COLORADO STATE | Age: 23 | Height: 5-11 72. Keshad Johnson | F | ARIZONA | Age: 23 | Height: 6-6 73. Quinten Post | C | BOSTON COLLEGE | Age: 24 | Height: 7-0 74. Jaylin Williams | F | AUBURN | Age: 23 | Height: 6-7 75. Aaron Estrada | G | ALABAMA | Age: 23 | Height: 6-3
1. Sheppard 2. Sarr 3. Matas. That's are the three guys i'd like here in that order. I think keeping the pick is the right thing to do and I think trading for a non star / Marcus Smart level guy is premature even with #9 attached. Smart just doesn't move me at this point. Boston drained his health like they always do. I think Mikal Bridges is the floor for what i would take to trade the pick and that would just be for #3 and Brooks.
https://www.theringer.com/nba-draft/2024/6/25/24185515/stephon-castle-uconn-nba-draft-2024-rumors I spoke with Castle on Monday, and he told me that Holiday’s performance stood out to him as he watched the Celtics’ run to the NBA Finals, in part because he sees similarities in his own game. “The Celtics had guards in the dunker spot to kind of mess with the other team’s defense,” Castle told The Ringer. “Just seeing how many different places they had their guards in, doing a whole bunch of other different things on the court. Kind of similar to what we did. I could definitely see myself in a system like that.” …It’s been widely reported that Castle has been working out only for teams in the predraft process that don’t have a pure point guard. Considering he took a backseat as an on-ball creator with the Huskies and shared responsibilities, I asked him why. “I just have supreme confidence in my game and what I believe I could be,” Castle says. “So that was my thought process behind that. Really just betting on myself.” …Castle says he’s been “sharpening” his game since the college season ended by focusing on his shooting, ballhandling, and passing. Above all else, teams want to see him find greater success as a scorer. Castle made only 26.7 percent of his 3s at UConn, and he made only 25 percent of his pull-up 2s, per Synergy Sports. At the high school level, he had his moments catching fire but never found consistency shooting from the perimeter. “I didn’t have the best shooting season last season. But most of the teams that I’ve talked to and worked out for, they’ve always said they didn’t think it would be a problem later down in my career,” Castle says. That’s a fair read. It’s one of the reasons I’m so high on Castle. His mechanics need a little work since he doesn’t have a repeatable motion and there seem to be so many moving parts every time he rises up. Castle says he’s made improvements in this department, though no changes were made mechanically. Instead, it’s about getting reps to find consistency. Castle says teams he’s worked out for haven’t marked his shot as “any kind of red flag.” …And now he’s angling for teams that can help him realize his on-ball potential. It’s been reported that he worked out for the San Antonio Spurs and the Washington Wizards, two teams that offer dramatically different situations. The Wizards are a clean slate, while the Spurs will have the pressure of supporting the greatness of Victor Wembanyama. Two of my other favorite fits for Castle are the Hornets and the Jazz, since each of those teams would provide a complementary guard to pair with him in the backcourt, allowing him to thrive in the same ways he did for UConn while also giving him a chance to develop with the ball in his hands. No matter where he lands, Castle says his goal is to become a top player in the league. “I feel like that’s what everybody should shoot for,” Castle says. “The league is so deep now, so versatile. It is going to be hard. But it’s something I’m willing to work towards.”
Look, his on ball defense is pretty awesome but his shooting is a big red flag. If he was even an average shooter and not downright terrible, he would go 1
1. Atlanta Hawks - Alex Sarr, C/F, Perth Wildcats Wes Morton, Peachtree Hoops — With the first overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, I select for the Atlanta Hawks: Victor Wembanyama! ...I’m not allowed to do that? Dang. Well, this pick isn’t nearly as much of a surefire selection. Both Zaccharie Risacher and Donovan Clingan were heavily considered here, but Sarr’s defensive versatility, mobility skills, and (all too brief) offensive flashes just barely win out. With the way the NBA game is trending, banking on a bouncy, rangy, 7’1 marvel who can guard on the perimeter gives you a solid defensive floor. There are some clear downsides to his game, more than most would like to admit: he’s slender, has inconsistent hands for catching passes, and can’t reliably set screens for a team that wants to pick-and-roll you to death with Trae Young. On top of that, his jumper and handle are much more theoretical than practical at this stage. But the Hawks don’t have control of their next three first-round picks, so it may be wise to grab as much young talent as possible and hope for a spring forward in production by the third or fourth year. If he can commit to playing the 5 a good portion of time — given the presence of last year’s breakout star Jalen Johnson — it’s hard to pass up on Sarr here. 2. Washington Wizards - Zaccharie Risacher, F, JL Bourg Gabe Ibrahim, Bullets Forever — Zaccharie Risacher’s high floor and positional value wins the day for the Wizards. His performance over 64 games for JL Bourg provides a good view of what he could do in the NBA. He put up 11 points and 4 rebounds while shooting 39% from three in 23 minutes a game. That’ll get the job done offensively for a 3-and-D player in the NBA, and he should be able to scale his production up as he grows. Risacher also shines defensively with his length and feel for the game. He could turn into Mikal Bridges if everything goes perfectly, but, more importantly, he should be a good wing if everything goes just okay. Of course, there are risks. Richaser struggled to consistently hit threes as a junior and rode an early shooting hot streak to his stats this season. If his shooting isn’t real, he will struggle to do anything offensively due to his lack of shot creation. The Wizards take Risacher because he’s a solid bet to be solid and he can fit into whatever they build going forward. The other players I considered for this pick — Stephon Castle, Donovan Clingan, and Reed Sheppard — simply didn’t have enough upside or versatility to pass on Risacher. 3. Houston Rockets - Reed Sheppard, G, Kentucky Darren Yuvan, The Dream Shake — If I’m the Rockets, I trade this pick. Houston has a plethora of young talent all fighting for court time, and injecting another kid (he’s 19) might not be ideal. I’d prefer the Rockets move this pick either for a vet or, better yet, assets in a future draft. But since we can’t trade for our purposes, Sheppard it is. He’s the best shooter in this draft, and Houston is short on them. Despite his size (6’3), he’s also an active defender and an adequate distributor, and could find playing time at backup point guard, with Amen Thompson sliding to forward. I’d also consider Donovan Clingan, Stephon Castle, and Matas Buzelis here, but Sheppard is the pick. 4. San Antonio Spurs - Stephon Castle, G, UConn Jesus Gomez, Pounding the Rock — Castle’s rumored desire to be a point guard in the NBA could scare off a lot of teams, but probably not the one that trotted out Jeremy Sochan as initiator last season. The questionable shooting is a serious concern, but Castle’s defensive versatility and secondary playmaking should be useful no matter what position he ends up playing. 5. Detroit Pistons - Donovan Clingan, C, UConn Sean Corp, Detroit Bad Boys — The Pistons need a lot of help, and they can’t really do better than having Clingan fall to them at 5. Not only does it allow them to draft a defensive anchor on a team desperately looking for consistency on that end of the floor, it opens up a world of trade down possibilities with teams looking to add the big man themselves. Clingan also gives the team flexibility to consolidate some youth already on the roster like Jalen Duren into a multi-player package for a more established player to slot alongside Cade Cunningham. You keep him, it’s a win. You trade him to the highest bidder, it’s a win. Winning has been in short supply, so the Pistons would be thrilled to see the draft board shake out like this.
I predict the Spurs have a 75% shot at drafting the guy we pass up and turning him into an all-star (Whoever it may be)
