The Suns with the 2018 #1 overall pick select....

[Ronin]

I am not good at math.


Oops that joke was sooooo two pages ago. Nvm.

 

[Hoop Head]

If the Suns were leaning Doncic I think we'd be hearing more about him than we are through certain Phoenix channels like Bordow, Gambo, other sports radio people, twitter, etc.

 

[Mainstreet]

Arizona Sports 98.7 FM does a nice analysis on Ayton. They even include a podcast of Ayton versus Doncic.

http://arizonasports.com/story/1544456/deandre-ayton-phoenix-suns-nba-draft-luka-doncic-first-pick/

 

[Ronin]

Arizona Sports 98.7 FM does a nice analysis on Ayton. They even include a podcast of Ayton versus Doncic.

http://arizonasports.com/story/1544456/deandre-ayton-phoenix-suns-nba-draft-luka-doncic-first-pick/

Statistically, Ayton fits the profile of past top center prospects. Here are his per-40 minutes numbers compared to the four last big men to go No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft.

Greg Oden: 21.7 PPG, 13.2 RPG, 4.5 BPG, 62.6 true shooting % (takes into account three-point and free throw value)

Blake Griffin: 27.3 PPG, 17.3 RPG, 1.4 BPG, 64.8 true shooting %

Anthony Davis: 17.7 PPG, 13.0 RPG, 5.8 BPG, 65.4 true shooting %

Karl-Anthony Towns: 19.5 PPG, 12.7 RPG, 4.3 BPG, 62.7 true shooting %

Deandre Ayton: 24.0 PPG, 13.8 RPG, 2.3 BPG, 65.0 true shooting %

I forgot how good Greg Oden was at the college level. Dang Injuries.

 

[Hoop Head]

So glad we got the #1 pick in a year where Ayton is a potential #1 overall pick instead of last year when it was probably Fultz at #1 followed by Lonzo Ball and below them a mix of Tatum, Jackson, and Fox. Jackson and Tatum look good, Tatum looks like he could be great. Jackson showed flashes but wasn't a #1 pick. Don't recall seeing Fox much at all, or hearing about him. Ball was in headlines primarily because of his dad and I think he did post 1 triple double, maybe 2, and I remember another headline from when there was a scuffle and Lonzo was the only Laker on the floor to walk away from him while his teammates all got into the middle of it. That's not bad, but he was called out for it and it is something that could be concerning if there were other issues or rumors about him being a bad teammate but that doesn't seem to be an issue. However with Fultz the main issue was his shoulder, whether it was healthy or not and then what happened to his shot. He played in a dozen games and posted a triple double also at the end of the season but his shot is still shaky and he doesn't look like the player the Sixers traded up for.

We're in a much better situation though Ayton being the near consensus #1 pick and the only reason he's not a lock for #1 for us is because of our new head coach being Doncic's national league coach. Doncic looks like he'll be a great prospect but if he didn't have those ties to Kokoskov then I don't think he'd still be floated as the #1 overall pick. I think the basketball talking heads would have pushed Bamba into the top as the guy who may get picked instead of Ayton. Then there would be a ton of videos hyping Bamba's combine measurements getting floated around as the reason he deserves a look instead of Ayton and that video of them in a 1 on 1 post drill would be overanalyzed and shared a ridiculous amount. The talk would probably be similar to the Doncic talk from a week or so ago but that's it, everyone knows Ayton is the surest thing and a potential franchise altering big. No one talked that way about Fultz last year, as the guy who would alter a franchises future. So thankfully the Suns tanked at the right time and were rewarded in the lottery in the right year.

 

[pokerface]

I'm glad Doncic laid an egg recently in euro playoffs . Less chance we do something stupid like pick him over Ayton now.

 

[rocker]

I thought the knock was "slow to react" rather than full court speed? I know he's had the tendency to not get back defensively but I believe that was effort not speed.

And Doncic? How long has he been playing now without a break? I'm not trying to invent excuses for him but it's my understanding he's been playing year around?

In regular 17/18 season he played 75 games so far (Euro2017, ACB, Copa, Euroleague). But if you take a calendar year... my guess is around 110 official games. He didn't had a real break last summer because of Euro2017.

Now this is a long video of Luka For the fans I guess.

https://www.eurohoops.net/en/acb/68...oncic-made-acb-league-2017-18-regular-season/

 

[Mr. Boldin]

Aren't the playoffs in the Euroleague happening though? I know the year round play has to wear down Doncic but if he's putting up stat lines like that during their postseason that's awful. He's supposed to be the MVP and there's no excuse for laying an egg like that in the postseason. If Lebron, Curry, or Durant put up a 4-5-4 stat line in their series they'd be torn to shreds and rightfully so.

He already won the Euroleague title and MVP. These are the Spanish League playoffs.

 

[Hoop Head]

I guess it makes sense he's struggling with how long he's been playing, that is impressive in it's own right though. Whoever picks Doncic should be happy with him. He should come to the NBA ready to contribute more than your average NCAA prospect since he's getting used to playing a lot more games but it's too much of a risk to take him over Ayton. If we were picking #2, #3, or #4 I'd be upset if they past on him but fortunately for us, unfortunate for him, we got the #1 pick and need to take the generational big in DeAndre Ayton.

 

[pokerface]

I guess it makes sense he's struggling with how long he's been playing, that is impressive in it's own right though. Whoever picks Doncic should be happy with him. He should come to the NBA ready to contribute more than your average NCAA prospect since he's getting used to playing a lot more games but it's too much of a risk to take him over Ayton. If we were picking #2, #3, or #4 I'd be upset if they past on him but fortunately for us, unfortunate for him, we got the #1 pick and need to take the generational big in DeAndre Ayton.

That's exactly how I feel. It's too much risk taking Doncic #1.

 

[Mainstreet]

I forgot how good Greg Oden was at the college level. Dang Injuries.

Oden would be still playing in the NBA today if not for injuries. He had microfracture surgery before what would have been his first NBA season in 2007.

 

[Phrazbit]

Oden would be still playing in the NBA today if not for injuries. He had microfracture surgery before what would have been his first NBA season in 2007.

Oden had some big red flags before he was drafted. One of his legs was like an inch longer than the other, I remember a lot of people questioning if that would lead to problems down the line... and it turned out the problems had already started.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2007/11/thats_not_a_limp_thats_just_od.html

A sad "don't worry about Greg limping all the time, it's just how he walks!" article... written right before his rash of serious injuries began. His gait was screwed up for most of his life.

 

[Mainstreet]

Oden had some big red flags before he was drafted. One of his legs was like an inch longer than the other, I remember a lot of people questioning if that would lead to problems down the line... and it turned out the problems had already started.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2007/11/thats_not_a_limp_thats_just_od.html

A sad "don't worry about Greg limping all the time, it's just how he walks!" article... written right before his rash of serious injuries began. His gait was screwed up for most of his life.

The Trail Blazers were thrust into awkward situation if they passed on Oden at #1. If they only knew how good Durant and Horford would be.

 

[AzStevenCal]

The Trail Blazers were thrust into awkward situation if they passed on Oden at #1. If they only knew how good Durant and Horford would be.

They had to have known, he was incredible despite only weighing 78 pounds as a freshman at Texas. It's often compared to but IMO it's not really like the Sam Bowie over Jordan selection. The absurdity of that decision really played out over a period of years. A lot of people were already damning the Blazers organization for taking Oden over Durant from the day they called Oden's name.

 

[Mainstreet]

They had to have known, he was incredible despite only weighing 78 pounds as a freshman at Texas. It's often compared to but IMO it's not really like the Sam Bowie over Jordan selection. The absurdity of that decision really played out over a period of years. A lot of people were already damning the Blazers organization for taking Oden over Durant from the day they called Oden's name.

Now that you mention it, I remember there was a lot excitement over Durant.

I can see why fans want to make the comparison though. The Trail Blazers missed out on great talent drafting Bowie and Oden.

 

[GatorAZ]

They had to have known, he was incredible despite only weighing 78 pounds as a freshman at Texas. It's often compared to but IMO it's not really like the Sam Bowie over Jordan selection. The absurdity of that decision really played out over a period of years. A lot of people were already damning the Blazers organization for taking Oden over Durant from the day they called Oden's name.

I don’t recall that and remember him mostly being a no-brainer pick for Portland. I remember the entire city of Boston being heartbroken when they fell back in the lottery because he was supposed to be the next Russell. Oops.

 

[Mainstreet]

Ayton is visiting the Suns tomorrow.

Evan Sidery‏@esidery


Guess who’s coming for tomorrow’s predraft workout: Deandre Ayton.

7:52 PM - 5 Jun 2018

 

[Hoop Head]

I don’t recall that and remember him mostly being a no-brainer pick for Portland. I remember the entire city of Boston being heartbroken when they fell back in the lottery because he was supposed to be the next Russell. Oops.

That's what I remember. I do remember concern with Oden though because he played with his no dominant hand most of his year at Ohio because of a broken wrist. Once the knees became an issue it seemed like he could be a Pervis Ellison type who was always ailing from something but still was a can't pass on prospect.

 

[pokerface]

@Poop Head

http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-ba...draft-news-analysis/gxw8zh17uq3v1l92igf45fnlo

Check the title...plus there are more like this.

 

[elindholm]

I remember being skeptical of Oden, because it seemed like everyone was projecting what he'd be able to do when healthy, which he never was.

 

[JCSunsfan]

I remember being skeptical of Oden, because it seemed like everyone was projecting what he'd be able to do when healthy, which he never was.

The projections of how good he would be when healthy were so high that the risk seemed insignificant. Should have known better. The Blazers had already made that mistake once.

Durant was undervalued too. He was a 6-9 player who could shoot like a guard. But that was considered a novelty in those days. He wasn't a pg like Magic, so people really wanted a big guy to play down low like a big guy. No one was really talking about a "stretch" anything (4 or 5) then.

Even when we traded for Frye, the idea of a 3 point shooting center was not really considered much. Frye kind of started the concept.

 

[Ronin]

Luka Doncic a low risk in NBA Draft, though ceiling leaves questions
http://arizonasports.com/story/1549706/luka-doncic-low-risk-nba-draft-ceiling-leaves-questions/

 

[Ronin]

‘Don’t get cute’: ESPN’s Marks says Suns’ decision on Ayton is clear-cut
Playing the odds worked out for the Phoenix Suns.

Their league-worst NBA record in 2017-18 led them to winning the NBA Draft Lottery, but the luck also extended to their particular draft class at this particular point in time for the team.

Tyson Chandler is the only returning center on a guaranteed deal for next season, and so it’s fitting that the player most believe is the best talent in the 2018 draft class will fit Phoenix’s roster perfectly.

http://arizonasports.com/story/1551337/bobby-marks-suns-take-deandre-ayton-nba-draft-dont-get-cute/

 

[pokerface]

https://fadeawayworld.net/2018/06/0...-the-suns-could-get-for-the-first-round-pick/

The article isn't bad...it's actually pretty good. But they always ignore the contract implications (salary & contract length) and what the suns are really hoping to achieve....meaning they act like the suns 'maybe' making the playoffs should be good enough.

I don't like the idea of the suns flushing their long term future for a few medicore playoff runs. Plus being restricted financially.

I'm really not liking any trade articles involving our #1 pick. They almost always insult my intelligence and tick me off.

 

[JCSunsfan]

http://arizonasports.com/story/1551337/bobby-marks-suns-take-deandre-ayton-nba-draft-dont-get-cute/

Best pick.
In the best draft in 20 years.
Where the clear-cut best player (yes) fits the team's needs perfectly.

Oh. And we have the #16, #31, and #59 picks where those picks will nab a player that is equivalent to #10, #20, and mid second in most other drafts.