2012-2013 NBA Prospects thread

[slinslin]

It's really hard for me to find 10 players I say I really like in this draft. It's not to say that I think these are the best players.

In reality it is more like this.

1. McLemore
2. Noel
3. nobody
4. nobody
5. nobody
6. nobody
7. Schroeder
8. nobody
9. Muhammad
10. Porter
and then a lot of nothing

McLemore
Worst Case : Alec Burks
Medium Case : More athletic Klay Thompson
Good Case : more athletic Reggie Miller
Best Case : Ray Allen

Noel
Worst case : 6'11 Bo Outlaw
Medium case : Marcus Camby
Good case: 6'11 Shawn Marion - long range jumper
Best case: Hakeem Olajuwon without the offensive repertoire

Noel is kind of hard to predict, there have not been many players like him at his size with that athleticism.

Regarding Noel's absolute high end upside it would be interesting to know how far developed Hakeem Olajuwon or David Robinson were at age 18-19. Noel possesses similiar athletic tools as Robinson paired with the anticipation and hand-eye coordination of Olajuwon but that is only athletically and possibly defensively. I'd guess that both Robinson and Olajuwon never looked as "mechanical" offensively.

Olajuwon 18.2mpg 8.3ppg 6.2rpg 0.4apg 2.5bpg 0.9spg 56%FT 60%FG
Robinson 13.3mpg 7.6ppg 4.0rpg 0.3apg 1.3bpg 0.2spg 57%FT 62%FG
Noel 31.9mpg 10.5ppg 9.5rpg 1.6apg 4.4bpg 2.1spg 53%FT 59%FG

At a quick glance Noel is behind in ppg, FG% and FT% so safe to say I guess that Olajuwon and Robinson just naturally were more talented offensively as scorer. Noel got more assists, maybe because he played for Kentucky or maybe because his passing is more developed because of his lack of scoring.

Defensively though Noel numbers are basically identical with Olajuwon with an edge in steals for Noel and a very slight rebounding edge to olajuwon, on a per minute basis with Noel playing more minutes

Schroeder
Worst case : Keyon Dooling
Medium case : Darren Collison
Good case : Mike Conley
Best case : Gary Payton

Porter
Worst Case : Wesley Johnson
Medium Case : Shane Battier
Good Case : Tayshaun Prince
Best Case : Danny Granger

Muhammad
Worst Case : Marshon Brooks
Medium Case : Quentin Richardson
Good Case : Jason Richardson
Best Case : Paul Pierce

 

[slinslin]

NBA combine is on ESPNU right now

Currently shooting guard group in.

 

[slinslin]

Chad Ford just said that Dennis Schroeder has a promise late in the lottery and is sitting out the drills at the combine because of a tooth ache. Apparently the team that promised him told him to sit out because they are afraid he would rise.
Can you say Dallas Mavericks?

Ford also said that Giannis Adetokunbo has a promise late in the first round and won't workout or interview for anyone.

Things like that suck, seriously. There should be some sort of rules in place to prevent this.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Givony tweeted that no one has been able to score inside on Gobert.

Jonathan Givony @DraftExpress
No one can score on Rudy Gobert inside the paint. Block, deflections, steals. Changing everything around the rim. #nbacombine

He also said that Shabazz is really struggling.

 

[Phrazbit]

Givony tweeted that no one has been able to score inside on Gobert.

Jonathan Givony @DraftExpress
No one can score on Rudy Gobert inside the paint. Block, deflections, steals. Changing everything around the rim. #nbacombine

He also said that Shabazz is really struggling.

The longer defenders of the NBA are going to eat up Shabazz if he tries to play the same style he did in college.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Hoopshype is saying that Portland is now really considering dealing their lotto pick for a center.

I would be fine with dealing Gortat, and he is about what they should expect to get.

Gortat for Portland's pick plus cap filler.

I think I might draft Gobert

 

[sunsfan88]

Chad Ford just said that Dennis Schroeder has a promise late in the lottery and is sitting out the drills at the combine because of a tooth ache. Apparently the team that promised him told him to sit out because they are afraid he would rise.
Can you say Dallas Mavericks?

Ford also said that Giannis Adetokunbo has a promise late in the first round and won't workout or interview for anyone.

Things like that suck, seriously. There should be some sort of rules in place to prevent this.

The players who listen to these "promises" are idiots. Their hurting their chances of getting drafted higher ad making more money for a simple "promise".

 

[sunsfan88]

He also said that Shabazz is really struggling.

Huh interesting cause Hoopsworld says otherwise

Shabazz Muhammad impresses in workouts/interviews: Expected to be one of the top picks of the 2013 NBA Draft, Muhammad’s stock likely rose after his performance Thursday – both on and off the court. Generally players touted around the league as top picks forgo participating in organized workouts at the combine, but not Muhammad. The 6-foot-6 shooting guard out of UCLA turned heads by not only participating in combine athletic drills, but wowing those in attendance. Muhammad shot the ball well and showed off the scoring acumen that has him projected as one of the top picks in the upcoming draft. Not only did Muhammad wow with his skills on the court, but also with his handling of the barrage of media questions off of it. Muhammad answered questions about his age and the issues surrounding his eligibility to start his freshman season. Instead of bobbing and weaving, Muhammad broached these issues head on and in the process put to rest many of those lingering questions.

 

[slinslin]

Givony tweeted that no one has been able to score inside on Gobert.

Jonathan Givony @DraftExpress
No one can score on Rudy Gobert inside the paint. Block, deflections, steals. Changing everything around the rim. #nbacombine

He also said that Shabazz is really struggling.

Givony tweeted that Muhammad played hard on defense and that his jumpshot was not falling.. that's all..

And about Gobert... many of the same things were said about Biyombo, Thabeet etc... Gobert has great upside but also incredible bust potential.

 

[slinslin]

I think at this point before the athletic testings are released

This could be my 10 to watch out for..

1. Noel
2. McLemore
3. Shabazz
4. Porter
5. McCollum
6. Gobert
7. Caldwell-Powell
8. Oladipo
9. Burke
10. Schroeder

Might shuffle around the order a little but the tendency is clear.

 

[Russ Smith]

The longer defenders of the NBA are going to eat up Shabazz if he tries to play the same style he did in college.

Yep, Porter and his teammate at Georgetown ate Bazz up although Bazz was overweight at the time.

http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2013/05/16/another-hit-to-muhammad-draft-stock/?ls=iref:nbahpts

Says what I was saying all year, selfish kid, has no clear position, might surprise people and slide in the draft.

 

[Russ Smith]

Huh interesting cause Hoopsworld says otherwise

I question that I've seen multiple reports including one quoting his dad saying he shot poorly on Thursday. It wasn't actual scrimmage they were talking about just shooting drills and they said his shot was flat, his release low(I said that all year) and that he was just missing lots of shots.

It's a terrible draft he'll go top 10 probably top 5 but his one year of college exposed a host of weaknesses that were hidden in HS and AAU ball where he just overpowered everyone. he's a year older than originally believed, he's very selfish.

I hope he takes it all to heart and changes his approach to the game. He could be a shorter Zach Randolph who came in with 2 schools, scoring and offensive rebounding. Zach spent years putting up reasonable numbers on bad teams that he in no way helped to get better. At some point he figured it all out, started to play a little defense, hit the defensive boards, and suddenly becamse a very valuable player.

But it's easier to do that at Randolph's size, Bazz is a 2 size wise and a 3/4 gamewise.

 

[overseascardfan]

Well Isaiah Austin has withdrawn from the draft so if PHX wants a big man they will either have to use their lotto pick or trade for another lotto pick as the big men are going to go well before #30. Unless they are willing to take a project like Grant Jerrett late in the 2nd round.

I think the Top 3 guys will be McLemore, Noel & Porter, NBA Draft Net recently had us taking Cody Zeller, which at that point makes sense because after the Top 3 there really isn't another impact guy and players can go anywhere from #4 to #30.

 

[Russ Smith]

Regarding Bazz' shooting it was reported he finished 59th out of 60 in the shooting drills beating only Myck Kabongo.

 

[slinslin]

I think at this point before the athletic testings are released

This could be my 10 to watch out for..

After the testing

Tier 1 Noel and McLemore
Tier 2 Oladipo, Porter, Shabazz and Burke
Tier 3 McCollum, Caldwell-Powell, Gobert, Schroeder
Tier 4 Bennett, Len, Zeller, Olynyk, Carter-Williams, Adams
Tier 5 Dieng, Franklin, Goodwin, Crabbe, Adetokunbo, Larkin
Tier 6 Karasev, Saric, Mitchell, Nogueira, Jaiteh, Jean-Charles

The biggest winner to me was Oladipo, I thought he was more like 6'3 in shoes and not that athletic but he tested basically the same as McLemore. They both are very athletic and have decent shooting guard size. I might move him to #3 on my list.

player that have caught my interest in the 2nd round: Leslie, Hardaway, Rice, Whitey, Muscala, Kabongo, Carrick Felix, Solomon Jones, Grant Jerrett, Adonis Thomas, Reggie Bullock, Tony Snell look for one them to be on the board at #57 or even undrafted in case of the local kids Felix, Jones and Jerrett.

 

[hcsilla]

Withey is a 1st round pick.

So is Hardaway, IMO, but there is no way either of them slips to #57.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I've seen Grant Jarrett mentioned a few times here. On talent and measurables, he's a top 5 pick IMO. However, I kept hearing how much better he shot during practice than games and that kind of player always scares me. I'd still give him a look with our 2nd first round pick but I think I'd prefer to stay away from the outside shooting big man type.

Steve

 

[Mainstreet]

This would be a good draft to buy a second round pick. I think there are sleepers in the second round.

 

[Mainstreet]

I've seen Grant Jarrett mentioned a few times here. On talent and measurables, he's a top 5 pick IMO. However, I kept hearing how much better he shot during practice than games and that kind of player always scares me. I'd still give him a look with our 2nd first round pick but I think I'd prefer to stay away from the outside shooting big man type.

Steve

I haven't seen Grant Jarrett listed in the two major mock draft sites. Who is to say he will not be there at #57. It will be interesting how Ryan McDonough views potential NBA players.

 

[slinslin]

Withey is a 1st round pick.

So is Hardaway, IMO, but there is no way either of them slips to #57.

I wasn't specifically looking for players for the #57 pick. I think Whitey and Hardaway should be a very early 2nd round picks.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I haven't seen Grant Jarrett listed in the two major mock draft sites. Who is to say he will not be there at #57. It will be interesting how Ryan McDonough views potential NBA players.

I don't pay any attention to the draft sites but it doesn't surprise me that Grant isn't drawing much attention from them. Scouts will have to rely as much on his high school career as they will his one season in college. As a rotational player who clearly left UA before his skills were anywhere near fully developed, he's more question mark than anything. I have no idea where he'll go but if you work him out and like his potential, with this draft class, there's really no reason to gamble on him still being there in the 2nd round.

Steve

 

[JCSunsfan]

A French bball site says we are scouting Alex Ajinca closely along with two other NBA teams.

Also, Portland is saying two things. They are considering trading their lotto pick for a center AND they are considering trading up to get Oladipo.

 

[Mainstreet]

I don't pay any attention to the draft sites but it doesn't surprise me that Grant isn't drawing much attention from them. Scouts will have to rely as much on his high school career as they will his one season in college. As a rotational player who clearly left UA before his skills were anywhere near fully developed, he's more question mark than anything. I have no idea where he'll go but if you work him out and like his potential, with this draft class, there's really no reason to gamble on him still being there in the 2nd round.

Steve

As mentioned earlier I'm intrigued by how Ryan McDonough looks at lesser know players like Jarrett. Is he more locked in on raw talent or roads more traveled. I sure miss that second round pick the Suns traded for Marcus Morris as it would give more inclination as to the new direction of the Suns. It sounds to me that McDonough might travel to the beat of his own drum and go off the beaten path.

 

[SirStefan32]

A French bball site says we are scouting Alex Ajinca closely along with two other NBA teams.

Also, Portland is saying two things. They are considering trading their lotto pick for a center AND they are considering trading up to get Oladipo.

I always thought he could become a very good player if he could add 30lb or so without losing mobility. I haven't seen him since he was in Dallas, so I am not sure if he's improved, but he had some glaring weaknesses in his game:
1. He was just too skinny. I know he was listed at 220+, but he looked like a 200-pounder to me. He was young, and big men take a while to fill out their bodies, so if he is 250lb now, I'd give him a chance.
2. He was a walking foul just looking for a referee to blow the whistle. Again, not unusual for a young, skinny 7-footer.
3. No offensive game. I remember him making a couple of really nice hook shots, so if he's worked on those in the last couple of years, and that's falling consistently, it might be enough to make him somewhat useful on offense.

Again, I haven't seen him in over two years, so I have no idea how much has changed.

As far as Portland goes, I don't know what to think. I am not sure what their plan is. Trading their lottery pick for someone like Gortat makes no sense, as Gortat is not going to make them a contender. Oladipo would make a lot of sense for them, but trading from 10 to 3, 4, or 5 is not easy.
I'd give them Gortat and #30 for #10, and their 2nd round picks (their own, and Wolves' pick), but I doubt they'd go for it.

 

[elindholm]

Also, Portland is saying two things. They are considering trading their lotto pick for a center AND they are considering trading up to get Oladipo.

So in other words, they'd like to convert their pick into a higher pick and a center. You know who has both of those? Phoenix! It's a perfect match!

Portland gets
2013 PHO pick (approx. #4)
Marcin Gortat ($7.7 million, expires 2014)

Phoenix gets
2013 POR pick (approx. #10)
cap relief
handful of magic beans

Come on, the Suns' front office should be all over this. Who's with me?