Is this draft really that strong?

[elindholm]

I've started reading the profiles, and after Oden and Durant, no one is really looking like a star in the making. It seems like there have been other recent drafts where the field had more pizazz. Is this draft really all that hot? I guess the depth is allegedly the main thing, but the guys who figure to go in the late lottery sure don't sound very exciting either.

 

[azirish]

The general consensus is that it is not that strong at the top, but that it is pretty deep. There will be guys taken in the early second round who would have been in the late teens in some other drafts.

But after the top two or three, the rest all have questions. There are some guys who could be pretty good, but nobody worth trading a franchise player to get.

 

[Folster]

There is just so much hype about Oden and Durant that others are getting overlooked. I also think that the bigs are getting too much attention and that a swingman or two will be drafted after all of the bigs and absolutely tear it up. Someone like Brewer, Green, or J. Wright.

 

[azirish]

There is just so much hype about Oden and Durant that others are getting overlooked. I also think that the bigs are getting too much attention and that a swingman or two will be drafted after all of the bigs and absolutely tear it up. Someone like Brewer, Green, or J. Wright.

The gold standard of recent drafts from a top eight was probably 2003:

Lebron
Darko
Anthony
Bosh
Wade
Kaman
Heinrich
Ford

The weird part about that draft was that there were more good players taken from 19 on than from 9 to 18.

 

[slinslin]

Almost every draft is overrated before the summer leagues at least...

 

[SunsTzu]

Griffin said that he felt the draft has 11-13 impact players that could step in and help a team right away. He also commented that he felt next years draft would be similarly deep but lack the star power up top.

 

[F-Dog]

Obviously, the biggest strength of this draft is the #2 overall pick. Having a no-questions-needed superstar available at that spot is almost unheard of.

After that, this draft could be as good as 2003 down to #12 overall or so. Brandan Wright in the 3-5 area, while not quite the sure thing that Chris Bosh was, is obviously a better prospect than Marvin Williams. Conley is a very solid prospect, you already know I like Noah, and it looks like Yi, Thornton and Hawes will all be pushed down several picks below the 7-9 range, where they'd be picked most years.

Beyond that, it's really anybody's guess. I understand Denver's front office thinks the back half of the first round stinks, but I think there are enough intriguing prospects to last to #35 or so. The foreign players are wild cards, especially Tiago Splitter, who's in a similar situation to Fran Vasquez a couple of years ago--late lottery talent, but unless he's come to a tentative agreement with somebody, he could free-fall all the way through the first round because of salary-slotting restrictions.

 

[SunsTzu]

Almost every draft is overrated before the summer leagues at least...

I don't know most drafts are underrated until the NBA season ends. The '03 draft was thought of as a 2 player draft going in.

 

[slinslin]

Griffin said that he felt the draft has 11-13 impact players that could step in and help a team right away. He also commented that he felt next years draft would be similarly deep but lack the star power up top.

Lets see this after this highschool group tears up the NCAA.

If Mayo averages 20/5/5 there will be more hype for him than for Durant or Oden..

 

[F-Dog]

I don't know most drafts are underrated until the NBA season ends. The '03 draft was thought of as a 2 player draft going in.

I think you mean 3 players (LeBron, Darko, Carmelo), with Bosh in a tier by himself just behind them.

 

[SunsTzu]

I think you mean 3 players (LeBron, Darko, Carmelo), with Bosh in a tier by himself just behind them.

No it was believed by most that there was little value behind James and Anthony and there were a good number that believed Darko would bust(Chard Ford pimped him like crazy though). Atleast thats all I remember hearing.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

Lets see this after this highschool group tears up the NCAA.

If Mayo averages 20/5/5 there will be more hype for him than for Durant or Oden..

I get what you are saying, but I dont think anything is going to be more hyped than Oden. Hell, he was arguably hyped more than LeBron

 

[F-Dog]

A few people said LeBron would bust too. Mostly, it was the college basketball establishment trying to protect Anthony.

Both Joe Dumars and Kiki Vandeweghe preferred Darko over Carmelo. IIRC, Darko tested out ridiculously well at the combine and had a solid pedigree in the Euro Juniors and lower leagues, too (like Bargnani, unlike Skita).

 

[SunsTzu]

I get what you are saying, but I dont think anything is going to be more hyped than Oden. Hell, he was arguably hyped more than LeBron

Yeah I've been hearing Oden will be the best big man drafted in a decade since he was a sophomore in HS. Mayo's hype has actually died down some as the past couple years(isn't as big as some people were projecting him to be at this point and questions about his maturity).

I'm intrested in seeing how Derrick Rose does in college.

 

[SunsTzu]

A few people said LeBron would bust too. Mostly, it was the college basketball establishment trying to protect Anthony.

I remember even Duke Vitale was even saying that James was the only HS player he ever thought was ready for the NBA. I don't recall many people picking James to bust outright, though I think his immediate success was a suprise to many.

 

[azirish]

I remember even Duke Vitale was even saying that James was the only HS player he ever thought was ready for the NBA. I don't recall many people picking James to bust outright, though I think his immediate success was a suprise to many.

I thought Anthony would do better from the start because of the level of experience he had winning the national championship. Still, LeBron was clearly going to do well, it was only a matter of time.

 

[Gaddabout]

I've started reading the profiles, and after Oden and Durant, no one is really looking like a star in the making. It seems like there have been other recent drafts where the field had more pizazz. Is this draft really all that hot? I guess the depth is allegedly the main thing, but the guys who figure to go in the late lottery sure don't sound very exciting either.

It is very deep, and there's probably more value in the second round since the 80s. But I think there will be a lot of whiffs along the way. We're probably going to look back at the guys who go 5 through 25 and wonder what was special about them, while they guy taken 15th in the second round goes on to an All-Pro career. If I'm drafting in the mid-first round, I would put more emphasis on how performed in college and less on potential, because there are a lot of two-skill and three-skill players that are hard to tell apart otherwise.