Lauri Markkanen

[Russ Smith]

^^Nice stroke by Lauri but man do I hate that corner 3 that analytics loves. I think they'd stop loving it if they factored in all the times the shooter steps out of bounds along with the number of times it results in an imbalanced defense at the other end because someone was buried in that corner.

Warriors announcer and ex player Jim Barnett says that over and over. The thing we know the most about corner 3's is misses lead to layups at the other end.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Warriors announcer and ex player Jim Barnett says that over and over. The thing we know the most about corner 3's is misses lead to layups at the other end.

I don't doubt it, between the court imbalance and the likelihood that the rebounder is facing or at least partially open-stanced allowing for a quick outlet or a full court pass. A lot of coaches used to not even let players practice a baseline shot unless it was inside 10 feet or so because of this. But as I also mentioned, that step-out is also pretty common. PJ Tucker probably stepped out of bounds more than half as often as he actually made a 3 from there.

 

[Finito]

I don't know about "glorious" but more like above average.

Getting good in the NBA happens because you duck and get a really good draft pick or free agency. We seem to have drafted very well recently and to want to give up on what a 19-20 year old kid after one year is a joke dude

 

[Hoop Head]

Say we draft Lauri and play him at Center next to Chriss, who rebounds? Chriss can make some highlight reel blocks like Amare but he's not a rim protector and he's a poor rebounder. Lauri doesn't even offer the little bit that Chriss does, he's not a rim protecter at all and is also a poor rebounder. We'd get killed defensively with that front court, it would be worse than when we had Frye and Markieff in the front court because we wouldn't have Tucker at the 3 to help clean up their mess on the glass. How weak our defense and rebounding was is the main reason people wanted Frye to opt out and go elsewhere after our lucky season in 2014-15. It doesn't matter what our record was, it wasn't enough to get to the playoffs and that team had significant holes. We'd be in a similar spot if we wasted the #4 pick on Markkanen.

Best case, we finish #8 or #9 in the west again and draft in the low teens, worst case we suck and finish #10 or #11 in the west and draft in the late single digits, hoping to add an impact player that we missed out on the year before.

 

[Bodha]

I don't know about "glorious" but more like above average.

you dont nothin about Suns history if you think that. Just because we dont have any titles doesnt mean this isnt one of the greatest teams in the league.


4th winningest franchise in the NBA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_all-time_NBA_win-loss_records

 

[Finito]

you dont nothin about Suns history if you think that. Just because we dont have any titles doesnt mean this isnt one of the greatest teams in the league.


4th winningest franchise in the NBA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_all-time_NBA_win-loss_records

I'm born and raised here and have lived and died with this team. So you need to quit with that.

Lakers and Celtics have glorious past

You know what winning all those regular season games and no championships means to me? Frustration and disappointment. The Suns seem snakebit every single time the draft comes around and we're have a shot at 1.

We have a good history but it damn sure ain't glorious and save me your 50 win out in the second round seasons and moral victories.

 

[Bodha]

I'm born and raised here and have lived and died with this team. So you need to quit with that.

Lakers and Celtics have glorious past

You know what winning all those regular season games and no championships means to me? Frustration and disappointment. The Suns seem snakebit every single time the draft comes around and we're have a shot at 1.

We have a good history but it damn sure ain't glorious and save me your 50 win out in the second round seasons and moral victories.

Look at that back peddlin.

How is the 4th best team in league history "average or above average"?

Its not.

you didnt realize we win more often than 90% of the league and now youre trying to talk your way out of that comment.

 

[Finito]

Look at that back peddlin.

How is the 4th best team in league history "average or above average"?

Its not.

you didnt realize we win more often than 90% of the league and now youre trying to talk your way out of that comment.

How is that back peddling. We clearly have two different outlooks on life.

You see Jason Kidd and 50 wins out in the second round with no real championship hope as great.

I see Jason Kidd and 50 wins out in the second round with no real championship hope as spinning your wheels and going nowhere.

I said our history is above average and it is.

 

[Finito]

Lol playoff wins we rank 13th

So we rank 4th in regular season wins but the Bulls and there 6 championships rank 8th, Heat got 3 championships in there short history rank 9th, the Pistons and there 3 championships rank 17.

You can have your regular season wins. Again 13th when the playoffs come around

 

[Bodha]

I said our history is above average and it is.

Thats a sickening attempt at the definition game.

Tom Brady and Lebron James are also "above average".

 

[Finito]

Thats a sickening attempt at the definition game.

Tom Brady and Lebron James are also "above average".

Suns 0 championships

Tom Brady and Lebron James combined 8 championships.

You honestly can't see the difference or your stuck and you just can't say oh ok maybe you have a point.

 

[Hoop Head]

Ok, the Suns may have the 4th most regular season wins in NBA history but we've also been around longer than about 12 other franchises. Where does the team rank for the last 10 years? That's what matters. We may look at the Suns history as a whole but a lot of the prospects and free agents in the NBA weren't old enough to remember the Barkley years and some may barely remember the Nash/Amare years. We've been awful the last 5 seasons, there's no denying that.

 

[Bodha]

Suns 0 championships

Tom Brady and Lebron James combined 8 championships.

You honestly can't see the difference or your stuck and you just can't say oh ok maybe you have a point.

Lots of hall of famers dont have rings. Post season success is nice, but its not the be-all, end-all.

Especially when you consider the majority of our post season failures have come at the hands of the top 2 winningest teams in NBA history: Spurs and Lakers. No shame there.

You got caught. Accept your L.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------


As I said, my agenda is to return this GLORIOUS franchise back to its 4th all time winningest ways.

 

[Bodha]

We've been awful the last 5 seasons, there's no denying that.

And you wonder why I chant for Mcdonoughs deportation during every lineup introduction?

Hes the worst GM in the league.


Id rather have Rod Graves be the Suns GM than Mcdonough, that soft headed goon idiot.

 

[Finito]

Lots of hall of famers dont have rings. Post season success is nice, but its not the be-all, end-all.

Especially when you consider the majority of our post season failures have come at the hands of the top 2 winningest teams in NBA history: Spurs and Lakers. No shame there.

You got caught. Accept your L.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------


As I said, my agenda is to return this GLORIOUS franchise back to its 4th all time winningest ways.

This is an organization not a player. We've seen countless players come and go.

Yeah no shame in in being a runner up. That explanes so much about you.

Have you seen The Rock? The movie, There's a great scene where Nic Cage tells Sean Connery that he's gonna try his best and Sean Connery snaps back Your "best"! Losers always whine about their best. Winners go home and **** the prom queen.

*drops mic*

 

[BC867]

I'm born and raised here and have lived and died with this team. So you need to quit with that.

Lakers and Celtics have glorious past

You know what winning all those regular season games and no championships means to me? Frustration and disappointment. The Suns seem snakebit every single time the draft comes around and we're have a shot at 1.

We have a good history but it damn sure ain't glorious and save me your 50 win out in the second round seasons and moral victories.

The Suns have reached two NBA Finals in its almost fifty years. And one of those two was clearly a Cinderella season. That leaves one legitimate Finals appearance in a half century.

Is any Suns fan really turned on by the sound of that? I'm not and I have been a Suns fan for 47 years.

During that time, two people have run the operation. One, a very good marketing man. The other, a small town banker. What do those two professions have in common? Their top priority -- top priority -- is entertaining the fans to maximize attendance/revenue.

It took Jerry a long time to understand the purity of being the best, and that was with the D-backs by bringing in Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling. I feel that Sarver is too shallow to ever reach that mentality.

And now, it's been too long since the Suns were even 50-and-fade. The history is no mystery. And now, the Suns are not even close to that history.

Is this draft going to make a difference? Our future needs a solid rebounder at one of the power positions. And a lead Point Guard who can make the rest of the team better. Devin Booker is not going to take us to the next step by himself.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Lauri doesn't even offer the little bit that Chriss does, he's not a rim protecter at all and is also a poor rebounder.

You don't like him, I get that. And you're correct, he is not much of a rim protector, especially if you measure that protection by blocked shots. But I don't know how you can support your contention that he is a poor rebounder. You can argue he is not a great rebounder and insist we should be prioritizing that skill when we draft but the stats and the situation indicate he is far from being poor at it.

For one thing, as a Wildcat, there were fewer rebounds than typically available due to pace. They scored 76.6 points per game and held their opponents to 65.9 points per game. Lauri averaged 30.8 minutes per game and pulled down 7.2 boards per. That's a pretty fair average, even for a center.

His numbers are fine just considering pace but they start to look much better when you consider he spent most of his time on the perimeter, whether because he was playing the small forward position or the fact he was stationed there on offense even when he played the power forward and center spot.

Despite spending so much of his time on the perimeter, he even led his team in offensive rebounding percentage and narrowly missed leading his team in defensive rebounding percentage too. He blocks out and he rebounds his position well IMO. He doesn't go sky high for boards or steal a lot from the other team but he typically grabs the boards you would want and expect him to. That's not my definition of a "poor rebounder", is it still yours?

 

[Hoop Head]

You don't like him, I get that. And you're correct, he is not much of a rim protector, especially if you measure that protection by blocked shots. But I don't know how you can support your contention that he is a poor rebounder. You can argue he is not a great rebounder and insist we should be prioritizing that skill when we draft but the stats and the situation indicate he is far from being poor at it.

For one thing, as a Wildcat, there were fewer rebounds than typically available due to pace. They scored 76.6 points per game and held their opponents to 65.9 points per game. Lauri averaged 30.8 minutes per game and pulled down 7.2 boards per. That's a pretty fair average, even for a center.

His numbers are fine just considering pace but they start to look much better when you consider he spent most of his time on the perimeter, whether because he was playing the small forward position or the fact he was stationed there on offense even when he played the power forward and center spot.

Despite spending so much of his time on the perimeter, he even led his team in offensive rebounding percentage and narrowly missed leading his team in defensive rebounding percentage too. He blocks out and he rebounds his position well IMO. He doesn't go sky high for boards or steal a lot from the other team but he typically grabs the boards you would want and expect him to. That's not my definition of a "poor rebounder", is it still yours?

He's an average at best rebounder, can we agree there? And that was in college, typically players don't become better rebounders at the next level. I don't really dislike Lauri either, but I do dislike him at #4. If he's who we tanked for then last season was really lost.

 

[AzStevenCal]

He's an average at best rebounder, can we agree there? And that was in college, typically players don't become better rebounders at the next level. I don't really dislike Lauri either, but I do dislike him at #4. If he's who we tanked for then last season was really lost.

Actually I'd say he was a better than average rebounder given his position and the circumstances. But I do think, average, is probably all we could hope for from him at the next level which I'm sure is more important to you.

I'm not trying to sell him as the next great traditional big man. I believe he's going to set the league on fire from 3, everything else he does is just gravy. My first choice would be to draft a Rudy Gobert type big man but failing that, an elite stretch big man would be my second choice to add to our squad. I think that's Lauri but who knows?

 

[mojorizen7]

If he's who we tanked for then last season was really lost.

Lol right?
Just plant my butt in the dirt and harvest my arse if that happens.
When you finish dead last in points allowed you don't draft a Markkanen at #4

 

[Errntknght]

As I pointed out in the Draft Workouts thread just now, we played at a fast pace so we scored lots of points because of that. On a pace adjusted basis our scoring lagged worse than our D. More to the point we were tied for last in the WC on three point percentage - and not because we shot tons of them, we attempted the second fewest. Markannen is just the medicine we need!

 

[sunsfan88]

If he's who we tanked for then last season was really lost.

We tanked for Fultz/Ball according to all reports and insiders but that obviously isn't gonna happen because we got screwed in the lottery.

So now we have to deal with the hand that we have been given. If that means Markannen, so be it.

 

[JCSunsfan]

We tanked for Fultz/Ball according to all reports and insiders but that obviously isn't gonna happen because we got screwed in the lottery.

So now we have to deal with the hand that we have been given. If that means Markannen, so be it.

 

[Chaplin]

We tanked for Fultz/Ball according to all reports and insiders but that obviously isn't gonna happen because we got screwed in the lottery.

So now we have to deal with the hand that we have been given. If that means Markannen, so be it.

For god's sakes, it's pick #4! It's not like we went from having the worst record to pick #30! The sky is NOT falling!

 

[AsUpRoDiGy]

For god's sakes, it's pick #4! It's not like we went from having the worst record to pick #30! The sky is NOT falling!

Exactly. Still plenty of great options at #4. Certainly not best case scenario, but a very good position to be in with some intriguing prospects.