2017-2018 Draft Prospects watch.

[JCSunsfan]

So how can you tell whether a player is going to be a Markannen or a Kaminsky? I thought I really like Markannen last year, but I could not get Kaminsky out of my head and figured he was pretty much the same guy.

Lauri's jumper is money.

 

[Hoop Head]

So how can you tell whether a player is going to be a Markannen or a Kaminsky? I thought I really like Markannen last year, but I could not get Kaminsky out of my head and figured he was pretty much the same guy.

Laurie's jumper is money.

Flip a coin? I think Kaminsky would have looked better if he was drafted by a team like Chicago who are super young and willing to give anyone a chance that can score. Frank was drafted by Charlotte though and was brought off the bench behind Marvin Williams, Cody Zeller, and Al Jefferson his first year. He didn't have the playing time that Lauri does and he also had more offensive weapons on his team, playing with Kemba, Batum, Jefferson, and Jeremy Lin. Meanwhile the Bulls lack depth in their frontcourt and are short handed since Bobby Portis broke Nikola Mirtic's face so Markannen ended up with the chance to start with those 2 being out the first 8 games, Portis because he was suspended and Mirotic because he's injured still.

It's more about opportunity right now and while Markannen looks good, I'm not sure if he'll be more than a Channing Frye type of big who can get hot occasionally and put up a good amount of points but that's pretty much it. Kaminsky isn't a bust though and could be the same, he's not doing much worse than Lauri in slightly less playing time. In his 3rd year he's scoring 10.3 ppg with 4.1 rpg in 25 mpg. Markannen is averaging 14.4 ppg and 7.6 rpg in 30 mpg. Neither shoot that well with Lauri shooting 43% and Frank just 41%.

 

[Errntknght]

So how can you tell whether a player is going to be a Markannen or a Kaminsky? I thought I really like Markannen last year, but I could not get Kaminsky out of my head and figured he was pretty much the same guy.

Laurie's jumper is money.

After AzSteve was touting him for the HOF last year, I checked him out. First thing I noticed was that he didn't mind mixing it up down in the paint... saw that he'd put it on the floor if given a seam - and finish... he gets his shot off quickly but stays smooth... handled the pick & pop well - got the right amount of separation so the defending guard couldn't get to him but the ball handler had an easy pass. I had some reservations about the HOF but figured he'd give our frontcourt offense a much needed lift. Still, I was surprised how quickly he adapted to the NBA...

 

[JCSunsfan]

Shooting and scoring efficiency seems to matter a lot. Athleticism seems too overblown. For some players their own athleticism seems to hinder their development. They depend on it too much and when they get to the NBA they do not have the same athletic advantage they had at the lower level.

 

[hsandhu]

Giannis' little brother Kostas despite modest numbers shows flashes of being Greek Freak 2.0. Freshman playing for Archie Miller at Dayton.

I was going to post the same thing, his physical profile is the exact same as giannis, not sure if he is as fast, need to see more video. But you figure he'll be training with his brother and learning the exact same game for that body.

I'm trying to figure out why he is not getting more hype, any answers? We may have two extra picks in the 1st round, to take a chance if he doesn't end up moving up draft boards

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[JCSunsfan]

I was going to post the same thing, his physical profile is the exact same as giannis, not sure if he is as fast, need to see more video. But you figure he'll be training with his brother and learning the exact same game for that body.

I'm trying to figure out why he is not getting more hype, any answers? We may have two extra picks in the 1st round, to take a chance if he doesn't end up moving up draft boards

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Wow. Decisions to make. Too much hype on the top 5.

 

[Ronin]

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[JCSunsfan]

We already have a primo 3 point shooter in Alec Peters. He is 6-9 and he cannot get off the bench. That kind can even rebound.

He is a 3 and R forward.

 

[Russ Smith]

I was going to post the same thing, his physical profile is the exact same as giannis, not sure if he is as fast, need to see more video. But you figure he'll be training with his brother and learning the exact same game for that body.

I'm trying to figure out why he is not getting more hype, any answers? We may have two extra picks in the 1st round, to take a chance if he doesn't end up moving up draft boards

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I've never seen him play but in that clip he looks less explosive than Giannis. He's young and Giannis improved so much and so fast maybe he will too. He was pretty well known coming over, I remember reading UCLA looked at him but his grades were not good so they never got too far with him. He wound up a partial qualifier so he sat out last year in college I assume that's why he wasn't being recruited by more bigtime schools.

He does look like an intriguing prospect.

 

[JCSunsfan]

I've never seen him play but in that clip he looks less explosive than Giannis. He's young and Giannis improved so much and so fast maybe he will too. He was pretty well known coming over, I remember reading UCLA looked at him but his grades were not good so they never got too far with him. He wound up a partial qualifier so he sat out last year in college I assume that's why he wasn't being recruited by more bigtime schools.

He does look like an intriguing prospect.

He has a history of injury issues, I hear. And he is not producing a lot at Dayton, although the season is early. He is not starting.

 

[Hoop Head]

I was going to post the same thing, his physical profile is the exact same as giannis, not sure if he is as fast, need to see more video. But you figure he'll be training with his brother and learning the exact same game for that body.

I'm trying to figure out why he is not getting more hype, any answers? We may have two extra picks in the 1st round, to take a chance if he doesn't end up moving up draft boards

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I believe most scouts think the odds of brothers hitting in the NBA is low, as far as being superstars and since Giannis was overlooked they're overlooking his brother because really Giannis was a bit of a longshot to be where he is now. Of course I think his brother worth the gamble with a late round pick but I wouldn't count on him being his brother.

 

[JCSunsfan]

I believe most scouts think the odds of brothers hitting in the NBA is low, as far as being superstars and since Giannis was overlooked they're overlooking his brother because really Giannis was a bit of a longshot to be where he is now. Of course I think his brother worth the gamble with a late round pick but I wouldn't count on him being his brother.

It should not matter in the least that they are brothers, at least in a negative way. They can get a good idea of his physical development based upon his brother.

As far as skills and athleticism, that should be an individual assessment. There are plenty of examples of brothers both doing OK. Plenty more examples of fathers and sons.

For me, his body type, pedigree and skill set make me want to look. His injury history and lack of production so far at Dayton give me pause.

2nd round pick probably.

 

[Superbone]

I believe most scouts think the odds of brothers hitting in the NBA is low, as far as being superstars and since Giannis was overlooked they're overlooking his brother because really Giannis was a bit of a longshot to be where he is now. Of course I think his brother worth the gamble with a late round pick but I wouldn't count on him being his brother.

Somebody please tell that to the Phoenix Suns.

 

[JCSunsfan]

If the draft was today, the Suns would have three lottery picks, barring some really weird ping pong ball action.

8, 11, and 14

 

[hsandhu]

It would be interesting if we fall out of the top 5 (which based on how bad other teams are i think will happen), is there a placement of potentially three picks that would give us a chance at moving up to get a center such as bamba ( i use him, because i think ayton is a higher prospect teams would not trade out of).

Say we end up with 6, 10, 12. Could that entice a team at 5? With 6,10,12 you could potentially end up with multiple really good prospects like jarren jackson, sexton, knox, bridges.

 

[ColdPickleNachos]

I think it depends on the team picking at 5. Most teams probably aren't passing up on Bamba if they have a shot, but the Kings, for instance, have a ton of young big men on the roster already, so picking up three great picks for moving down one spot would probably look really good to them.

 

[AZCrazy]

The lottery Gods would have us picking 12, 13, 14 after the ping pong balls fell.

 

[Raindog]

If the draft was today, the Suns would have three lottery picks, barring some really weird ping pong ball action.

8, 11, and 14

If we ended up with those 3 picks, I would be fine with just using them on the best available players at those spots instead of moving up. It's three chances to get one (or multiple) impact players, even if they aren't the top prospects. Better scenario of course would be to have one of those lotto balls come up as a top three pick, but we know the Suns' track record on luck.

 

[overseascardfan]

The lottery Gods would have us picking 12, 13, 14 after the ping pong balls fell.

No, the nightmare scenario would be landing at #14 and the other 2 picks not conveying to us for some reason.

 

[Russ Smith]

I think it depends on the team picking at 5. Most teams probably aren't passing up on Bamba if they have a shot, but the Kings, for instance, have a ton of young big men on the roster already, so picking up three great picks for moving down one spot would probably look really good to them.

of interest on Bamba, it's early but there is considerable debate if he'll even be in the draft. Bamba is a unique kid he is EXTREMELY smart, he could have gone to Ivy League schools. He's openly discussed that he might not be a 1 and done or even a 2 and done. Now clearly he's going to be inundated with talk he should go and in the end the logical conclusion is he will, but it's not a given.

Every year there are kids we all think are leaving that decide to stay and he might be the most obvious one in this freshman class to stay.

 

[JCSunsfan]

If we ended up with those 3 picks, I would be fine with just using them on the best available players at those spots instead of moving up. It's three chances to get one (or multiple) impact players, even if they aren't the top prospects. Better scenario of course would be to have one of those lotto balls come up as a top three pick, but we know the Suns' track record on luck.

I have thought about this. Does having a top three pick give you a better chance of landing a star player than having say, 8, 11, 14. With the top 3 pick, you have one shot. But there are star player picked in the late lottery every year. Having multiple shots would really help in hitting on one of them.

I think most GM's would take the top three pick. But having those other three picks is not a bad situation.

 

[SirStefan32]

I have thought about this. Does having a top three pick give you a better chance of landing a star player than having say, 8, 11, 14. With the top 3 pick, you have one shot. But there are star player picked in the late lottery every year. Having multiple shots would really help in hitting on one of them.

I think most GM's would take the top three pick. But having those other three picks is not a bad situation.

And there is usually a bust in top-3.

 

[Hoop Head]

If we had 8, 11, and 14 I'd hope we could turn two of those into the #5 pick and hold onto another. We need to make it clear that we wish to use all picks so we're not negotiating from a negative position. Portland had 3 picks in this last draft, #15, #20, and #26, but they made it clear they weren't using all 3 right off the bat and didn't get a great return. They did get #10 for #15 & #20 while they kept #26 but they got lucky in the deal they pulled off because Sacramento already drafted at #5 and decided to take on the later picks for their #10 pick.

The Suns will be a team in great position to swing a deal with a team that might look to trade down since they have multiple #1, future picks, and some intriguing young players. Hopefully Chriss can play like he did in the 2nd half of last season so his value is high headed into the draft. I don't consider him a part of the future and would like to see the Suns use him as an asset in place of a pick in a deal.

 

[Ronin]

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[Hoop Head]

Michael Porter Jr was one of the projected "Top 5" prospects and will now miss the next 3-4 months after undergoing surgery on his back/spine. You have to wonder if he'll return to college for another year or take his chances going pro. I can't see him being a top 5 selection unless he returns and dominates in the tournament but I think that's highly unlikely. Playing another year in college shouldn't hurt and he may end up being the #1 pick in the 2019 draft if he has a strong showing during his sophomore season.

http://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...ichael-porter-jr-likely-miss-remainder-season