BigSoxFan said:Guys I'm already sold on:
High profile guys I want no part of:
Glenn Robinson III (Michigan)
James McAdoo (UNC)
Montrezl Harrell (Louisville)
Mitch McGary (Michigan)
Isaiah Austin (Baylor)
Willie Caulie-Stein (Kentucky)
BigSoxFan said:Guys I'm already sold on:
Andrew Wiggins (Kansas)
Julius Randle (Kentucky)
Jabari Parker (Duke)
Marcus Smart (Ok State)
Guys I'm intrigued by but need to see more of:
Aaron Gordon (Arizona)
Dante Exum (Australia)
Joel Embiid (Kansas)
Wayne Selden (Kansas)
Rodney Hood (Duke)
James Young (Kentucky)
High profile guys I want no part of:
Glenn Robinson III (Michigan)
James McAdoo (UNC)
Montrezl Harrell (Louisville)
Mitch McGary (Michigan)
Isaiah Austin (Baylor)
Willie Caulie-Stein (Kentucky)
I'll be disappointed if we're not picking Top 5 and getting one of your four "sold" guys, Exum, or maybe Gordon.BigSoxFan said:Guys I'm already sold on:
Andrew Wiggins (Kansas)
Julius Randle (Kentucky)
Jabari Parker (Duke)
Marcus Smart (Ok State)
Guys I'm intrigued by but need to see more of:
Aaron Gordon (Arizona)
Dante Exum (Australia)
Joel Embiid (Kansas)
Wayne Selden (Kansas)
Rodney Hood (Duke)
James Young (Kentucky)
High profile guys I want no part of:
Glenn Robinson III (Michigan)
James McAdoo (UNC)
Montrezl Harrell (Louisville)
Mitch McGary (Michigan)
Isaiah Austin (Baylor)
Willie Caulie-Stein (Kentucky)
GRIII has no perimeter game. Can't even make the college 3 at a consistent clip (32% last year, 2-12 to start this year) and isn't a creator. I guess he could be a poor man's Kidd-Gilchrist but I need more from the Celtics' 1st pick. As for McGary, he's a decent player but with Sullinger and Olynyk already on board, he doesn't offer much of an upgrade, if at all. His offense is still pretty developmental. He definitely has a place in the NBA, and certainly came on strong at the end of last year, but I don't see enough upside. Basically, with the Celtics' #1 pick, I need a guy who has #1 or #2 offensive option potential.
BigSoxFan said:Guys I'm already sold on:
Andrew Wiggins (Kansas)
Julius Randle (Kentucky)
Jabari Parker (Duke)
Marcus Smart (Ok State)
Guys I'm intrigued by but need to see more of:
Aaron Gordon (Arizona)
Dante Exum (Australia)
Joel Embiid (Kansas)
Wayne Selden (Kansas)
Rodney Hood (Duke)
James Young (Kentucky)
High profile guys I want no part of:
Glenn Robinson III (Michigan)
James McAdoo (UNC)
Montrezl Harrell (Louisville)
Mitch McGary (Michigan)
Isaiah Austin (Baylor)
Willie Caulie-Stein (Kentucky)
knucklecup said:Watch out for Noah Vonleh folks. He could be the best freshman of the bunch (obvious bias).
Everything I've read suggests that Vonleh will stay at least two years. But if hes one and done then he could definitely be in the conversation for top half of the lottery.DannyDarwinism said:
He has all-star potential. I would love to see the local kid end up in green, but will he be a one-and-done?
knucklecup said:Watch out for Noah Vonleh folks. He could be the best freshman of the bunch (obvious bias).
Carmine Hose said:Write it down. Celts finish with worst record. Brooklyn and Atlanat suffer injuries and finish just out of playoffs. Brooklyn wins the lottery going into the 1 slot. Atlanta jumps up to the second spot, forcing the Celts to third. Atalanta swaps with Brooklyn to take the 1 pick, giving the Celts 2 and 3. Atlanta takes Wiggins, Celts get Parker and Randle. Dynasty re-born.
Kliq said:Took a look at The Mag's NCAA preview where they break down the draft. Have the Celtics picking 5th, passing on Parker for Embiid. That couldn't possibly be the future?
nighthob said:
There is a 0% chance that Boston drafts a project center over a wing scorer with a top five pick. You can rest easy.
Which draft sites? I look at DraftExress and Nbadraft.net with some frequency and I haven't seen anything about Ainge being especially interested in Exum. Jon Givorney's site (DraftExpress) has Exum going at #3 and Nbadraft.net has him going at #5 and I don't see anywhere that he's projected to go mid lottery. Having said that, any of the players currently projected at the top of the draft could slip to mid lottery, which sometimes happens with 18-19 year-olds.nighthob said:It's pretty much all over the draft sites
Brickowski said:
More likely Exum's agent is pimping him, or else Ainge is putting down a smokescreen, a la Robert Swift.
nighthob said:
A smoke screen that Ainge was so dedicated to he was still trying to trade for Swift two years later just so that no one would know that he was pulling a fast one on draft night in '04!
(Also, I think of 1-4 as high lottery, 5-10 as mid lottery, and 11-14 as late lottery, if Ainge is expecting to draft in the 5-10 range, then his focus is likely going to be on guys available in that range.)
SaveBooFerriss said:
I think it is way too early to start focus on ranges. One, especially with the lottery, it is hard to predict where the Celtics will pick. Second, there still could be fluctuations about where players could land. I bet no one would have been close to predicting the last draft's order in November 2012.
nighthob said:
That's because landing in the top three is completely a matter of luck and there's always someone in the five to ten range getting in there, which completely throws the results into disarray. But, for safety's sake, if you're estimating your position, you should probably start with the assumption that you're going to drop a spot. At the end of the day Boston will finish with one of the eight worst records, it's not really avoidable, but unless they actually win the lottery for a change they don't have much shot of cracking the top five.
ummm. No. The statement everyone is disputing is that it's somehow illogical for Boston to very closely follow the guys on their draftboard with an emphasis on the guys likely to be available to them. For example, I'm sure the Spurs devoted scouting resources in 2011 to Kyrie Irving. I'm equally positive that they probably spent even more time evaluating guys likely to be available in the mid to late first round. So, in response to the question "Why would Boston devote resources to scouting Dante Exum?" Because they think there's a good chance that he'll be on the board in the 6-8 range and they don't want to call his name without knowing every last thing they can. That's how you end up with draft picks like Gerald Green.SaveBooFerriss said:Your statement is illogical. Your premise is that the Celtics, and I assume all other similarly situated teams, should just focus on the guys available in the 5-10 range, but you state that one team in this range always ends up with a top three pick. That is exactly why you don't focus on ranges! You have to prepare for anything at this point. There is plenty of time after the picks are set that a team can look at ranges.
But, just as important, this time last year, Noel and McLemore were sure thing top three picks. They ended up going 6-7. You need to scout everyone.
nighthob said:
That was before one of them blew up his knee and the other gave a shout out to his uncle Darnell locked up in prison.
I watched the Duke/Arizona game. Parker couldn't do much, they rotated 3 athletic guys 6'7" or bigger on him, fronted him in the post to make him get the ball outside, and hedged into the driving lanes to cut him off. Arizona's D is stifling. Also talking about top prospects, Aaron Gordon looks like a really good defender on the ball for a 6'9" guy. He was efficient with the ball on offense, and rebounded well. He ma not put up the huge stats because he plays on such a balanced offense, but he looks legit.Kliq said:If the games in Chicago were like a coming out party for the projected top picks, last night was a step back for them. Parker had a rough night, forcing shots that would not stay down. Wiggins couldn't save his team from being upset and Gordon, while solid, did not assert himself and was content to let his teammates win the game for Arizona. Smart had his worst outing of the season, although his team still won and he did play well.
Parker has the most skills, but right now Smart is the best player, and it actually is not even close. Smart could be a starter in the NBA right now, and reminds me a lot of Derrick Rose. The thing is, this draft is so loaded that if you told me in advance that a player like Derrick Rose was in the draft, IDK if I would draft him first. The fact that there are guys that I think could potentially be better than a former MVP is very impressive.
Kliq said:I don't think much of Mcadoo as a future NBA player, but he played very well tonight against a frontline with future NBA players on it. Also, I think the Harrison brothers are good offensive players, but their defense was pitiful and slow. North Carolina's guards were able to get by them into the rim all night.Lastly, Cauley-Stein is a specialist player in the NBA at best. Very good defensive insticts and cna block a lot of shots, but lacks restraint and discipline, and has virtually no offensive game despite his size and athleticism.
Kliq said:Young was okay, Kentucky needs him to pop out more for jumpers because their offense becomes kind of log jam with Randly and Caulet-Stein. Watchin Kansas right now, and Embiid was very impressive. 17 points in under 25 minutes, fantastic defense, ran like a deer up and down the court. I have been hard on him because I think people are overrating his draft potential, but the guy is far from a stiff.
I'm with you. Of the high-profile guys I've seen so far, he looks to be the best guy considering nobody doubts his upside either.The X Man Cometh said:
Thanks for the input. From what I've seen I'd take Embiid over everyone in the draft. Parker and Wiggins included. Love his physical talent. Love his activity level. Love the fact that he does things most bigs don't do well (passing, coordinated post moves), and has improved rapidly. I'd think he's the 1st pick at this rate unfortunately.