ClutchFans 2022 NBA Draft Thread (6/23/2022)

I absolutely LOVE our last two drafts

 

Kid is 19. No one is drafting him for what he is now. They are drafting for him in 3 years. Even then. What he already is a slightly bigger Tayshaun Prince with a better/more consistent shot and offense. That is his floor with basically zero improvements.

 

the hell is this

 

why does it matter

 

I agree with that. I hope he will work very hard and learn things quickly. Silas has to coach much better on both ends of the floor. Our biggest problem is coaching now. Nobody can develop without world class coaching and support.

 

Why do we figure out who’s parents have died every draft

Beauchamp gets drafted “HE WAS HOMELESS” gets yammed into the mic before he stands up

 

I wanted Kessler too, but the Rockets had a fantastic draft overall. Some of the negativity on Smith is hard to understand. To me, he looks like a can't miss. He is only 19 years old. His basic skill set is impressive. Weaknesses can be addressed.

 

Once Hakeem gives Jabari a post game it’s over

 

when do we get to hear from our rookies?

 

Man you can tell Paolo is not happy at all

 

Well, Jabari didnt express extra happiness neither.

 

Jabari also thought he would go #1 or #2 if magic picked Chet, while Paolo pretty much was ready to play with his two boys KPJ and Jalen.. nothing during this whole draft progress told us magic wants Paolo.

 

The Rockets got them a Smith and Eason for protection.

 

No offense, but this makes no sense. I know you don't like Stone, but what has he said to make you think he got "caught with his pants down." He has made it clear since we got the 3rd overall pick that we would be happy with ANY of the top 3 guys. We were prepared for Banchero because Magic and Thunder has stated many times that Jabari/Chet are the first 2 picks. In fact every analysts and scouts as well as GMs were all saying the exact same thing. Magic literally switched it up last minute. Jabari and Banchero both didn't know that this was going to happen. Magic got cold feet last minute and switched it up. Say what you want, but Stone did the right thing at the 3rd pick which was to pick whoever was left. It's a no brainer. Don't need to trade up when all 3 prospects were close to each other in terms of potential. We had another great draft. Give props where props are due.

 

Stone didn't do his homework and had to...draft the presumptive top overall pick with ....#3 and not having to give anything up - how will he ever live it down. LOL.

 

that man is SUPER EXCITED

 

I think stone did want to do his homework but Jabari and his agent didn't expect him to go pass #2, why do you think Jabari had that quote about how he feels he is a top #2 player? Magic put it into his head only him and Chet were their top picks so he assumed if they pick Chet then the thunder will pick me. He had a slow realization that he should had given the rockets the time of day.

 

• The Magic ran a long, thoughtful predraft process, eventually landing on Banchero, but had concealed their plan so well that not even Banchero had any idea they were taking him. As I understand it, Orlando essentially avoided making him even seem like a real candidate, expressing far more outward interest in Smith and Holmgren. As of last week, Banchero’s camp was unsure if Orlando was even seriously considering him for the top pick.However, there was quiet interest: entering this week (and as was reflected in Monday’s mock draft), my understanding was that Banchero was scheduled to come to Orlando for a visit on Sunday. It’s unclear to me whether he ever actually made that trip—the rumor was that it had been canceled—but he did have a series of Zoom calls with Magic brass on Wednesday. Whatever was discussed, as I understand it, there was no additional sense of certainty for Banchero to glean from those interactions. The only true hint at a surprise outcome came from Vegas, where the betting odds sharply swung toward Banchero on Wednesday night, making him a surprise favorite to go No. 1 after sitting third behind Smith and Holmgren for most of the month. … The best part of all this is that Banchero pretty much found out the way we found out. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski sent some tweets in the hour before the draft that pointed to him as the top pick in increasingly less cryptic fashion, but from my understanding, Banchero didn’t know what to believe until he heard his name called. … The lingering question here is why the Magic felt the need to be quite this secretive about what they were doing, considering that, well, nobody was picking in front of them. It’s likely that they didn’t even land on a final decision until this week. It’s also possible they wanted to maximize their leverage in potential trade-back opportunities. When Orlando was on the clock and Banchero chatter was flying, I wondered if they were trying to bait Houston into trading up. Evidently, he was their man either way. Regardless, this was an impressive feat of subterfuge that’s exceptionally difficult to pull off, and you have to tip your cap to Jeff Weltman and his staff. We’ll see whether the pick itself pays off for them in the end.

• …at least one concrete maneuver was taken to steer Holmgren away from the Magic: according to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation, Holmgren bailed early on the last day of his Orlando visit, conducting a brief on-court shooting workout that he cut short. While I don’t know whether that impacted anything with the Magic’s decision at No. 1, objectively, it’s very hard to use a high-stakes draft pick on a player that doesn’t truly want to be part of your team.

• In wake of all the drama that unfolded at No. 1, the Rockets walked away pretty happy in the end, as Jabari Smith wound up available to them at No. 3. Most around the league felt that Houston was hoping Banchero would drop to them, but the Rockets are in great shape with Smith, who rival teams felt would have been their preference over Holmgren. I can’t state enough that Smith is my personal favorite prospect in the draft, and I think he should mature into a leader and become one of the faces of Houston’s rebuild alongside Jalen Green. … The basketball fit here is strong: the Rockets primarily want to play through Green and Kevin Porter Jr., two explosive ball-handlers who are learning to create shots for teammates. The presence of Smith will give them elite coverage as a floor-spacer, and he’ll directly benefit from having other guys who can put the ball on the floor next to him as he continues to develop his handle. Expect Houston to play through him plenty and allow him to expand his offensive game, as well. The Rockets also like to switch a lot defensively, and Smith is the most versatile defender of the three top picks. They also selected Tari Eason at No. 17, another big, rangy forward, and it’s easy to see those two wreaking havoc in tandem. … While you could see on television that Smith was disappointed not to come off the board at No. 1—entirely understandable, considering that the tenor of media coverage had painted him as the likely choice, and the Magic did have him under strong consideration—he might be exactly what the Rockets need as they work back toward being a playoff contender. Speaking from my own experiences dealing with Smith and learning about him, I was really impressed with the type of focus and poise he has at his age. For me, his character was a major part of the eval, not to mention the fact he’s the most impressive jump shooter in the draft. While neither Smith nor the Rockets expected this outcome, it’s a pretty promising pairing.