Analyze your team's draft...

[Gman]

This time a year has a lot of optimism, hope and guessing...

... we don't really know what the future holds, but we do tend to know our own teams a little bit better.

So what you think of your team's draft? I personally like to read the take of real fans about their own.

Boston Celtics

Boston is in flux. The Celtics had several picks, but none of them really premium. In what has become all-too-typical Danny Ainge fashion, the C's traded from here to there and back again... but I don't know if it's any clearer exactly where this team is heading. The picks:

Romeo Langford - Wing (2/3) from Indiana. Another in a line of semi-reaches from Ainge and company. Reminds me of similar "reaches" in Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier... the C's like to bet on athletes first and hopefully smooth over the rough spots later. Shooting will obviously have to improve, but this kid apparently played with a hand injury most of last year... so there is added hope on that front. Jaylen Brown had similar concerns and he worked to become a good shooter. So, we'll see.

Grant Williams - Wing/Tweener (3/4) from Tennessee. Not as tall as you'd like, not as quick as you'd like... but Williams just knows how to play basketball. Not a high ceiling guy, but has a number of positive attributes that can be molded into a plus role player. Hopefully, of course. A younger P.J. Tucker?

Carsen Edwards - PG (1) from Purdue. IT 2.0? Offensive dynamo... but size obviously drops him to the 2nd round. Edwards has real NBA offensive skills, though... and the C's appear to have an opening at the PG position right now. I personally wouldn't be surprised if he was in the rotation sooner rather than later. Stevens has experience molding a team around such a player.

Tremont Waters - PG (1) from LSU. A late pick... I don't know too much about him and my expectation is set very low.

----------

Additionally, Boston traded into what will almost certainly be a very late 1st round pick next year and opened up some cap space this year... and that's where some mystery comes in.

What the heck are the C's gonna do with that cap space?

Are they still trying to compete now? What exactly is the direction after getting Kyrie'd?

We'll have to stay tuned, I suppose. But I honestly can't say I have a firm finger on that pulse at the present moment.

 

[Sparhawk]

Sixers basically punted on their 2nd round picks to get Thybulle, pick up some future 2nd rounders, and clear a wee bit of cap space..... but to do what? They better have solid FA plans because they clearly did not want to rely on cheap, young players, which while understandable for a team trying to win now, could limit them down the road.

I wanted Thybulle, so I'm happy with how that turned out.
Not so much with selling the other 2nd rounders.

 

[tlance]

Washington Wizards

Rui Hachimura- this was a solid pick. Hachimura lacks the upside of a player like REddish, but he should be a solid contributor with a versatile skill set that fits the modern NBA. I think he should be a nice complimentary piece for years.

Admiral Schofield- Another solid pick. Schofield has a pretty high floor for a second round pick. Pretty fair chance he turns into a quality rotation player. If he is able to improve his defensive positioning and footwork, he can be a good 3 and D guy.

The Wizards got 2 solid players. I don't see a ton of upside with either pick, but a team drafting without a GM could have done a lot worse.

I give them a solid B

 

[Gman]

Sixers basically punted on their 2nd round picks to get Thybulle, pick up some future 2nd rounders, and clear a wee bit of cap space..... but to do what? They better have solid FA plans because they clearly did not want to rely on cheap, young players, which while understandable for a team trying to win now, could limit them down the road.

I wanted Thybulle, so I'm happy with how that turned out.
Not so much with selling the other 2nd rounders.

I think what the Celtics have done in recent history exposing Philly's (former) lack of defense and athleticism at the wing position has led directly into y'alls past 2 drafts.

First Zhaire Smith, now Thybulle... the problems of defense and athleticism at the wing appear to be solved.

Now the problem appears to be overall team outside shooting.

 

[The Q]

This time a year has a lot of optimism, hope and guessing...

... we don't really know what the future holds, but we do tend to know our own teams a little bit better.

So what you think of your team's draft? I personally like to read the take of real fans about their own.

Boston Celtics

Boston is in flux. The Celtics had several picks, but none of them really premium. In what has become all-too-typical Danny Ainge fashion, the C's traded from here to there and back again... but I don't know if it's any clearer exactly where this team is heading. The picks:

Romeo Langford - Wing (2/3) from Indiana. Another in a line of semi-reaches from Ainge and company. Reminds me of similar "reaches" in Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier... the C's like to bet on athletes first and hopefully smooth over the rough spots later. Shooting will obviously have to improve, but this kid apparently played with a hand injury most of last year... so there is added hope on that front. Jaylen Brown had similar concerns and he worked to become a good shooter. So, we'll see.

Grant Williams - Wing/Tweener (3/4) from Tennessee. Not as tall as you'd like, not as quick as you'd like... but Williams just knows how to play basketball. Not a high ceiling guy, but has a number of positive attributes that can be molded into a plus role player. Hopefully, of course. A younger P.J. Tucker?

Carsen Edwards - PG (1) from Purdue. IT 2.0? Offensive dynamo... but size obviously drops him to the 2nd round. Edwards has real NBA offensive skills, though... and the C's appear to have an opening at the PG position right now. I personally wouldn't be surprised if he was in the rotation sooner rather than later. Stevens has experience molding a team around such a player.

Tremont Waters - PG (1) from LSU. A late pick... I don't know too much about him and my expectation is set very low.

----------

Additionally, Boston traded into what will almost certainly be a very late 1st round pick next year and opened up some cap space this year... and that's where some mystery comes in.

What the heck are the C's gonna do with that cap space?

Are they still trying to compete now? What exactly is the direction after getting Kyrie'd?

We'll have to stay tuned, I suppose. But I honestly can't say I have a firm finger on that pulse at the present moment.

That worked as a college center. Now he's an NBA tweener who is a decent shooter for a 5. But not nearly enough to be a stretch 4. And he's not long either.

I don't know. I want to like him. He's an upperclassmen who came as a non heralded recruit to become a 2 time SEC POY. He plays hard. He's strong and tough as nails. But his game just screams great college player, but not much of an nba one.

Okeke is the PJ Tucker of his draft.

 

[The Q]

Washington Wizards

Rui Hachimura- this was a solid pick. Hachimura lacks the upside of a player like REddish, but he should be a solid contributor with a versatile skill set that fits the modern NBA. I think he should be a nice complimentary piece for years.

Admiral Schofield- Another solid pick. Schofield has a pretty high floor for a second round pick. Pretty fair chance he turns into a quality rotation player. If he is able to improve his defensive positioning and footwork, he can be a good 3 and D guy.

The Wizards got 2 solid players. I don't see a ton of upside with either pick, but a team drafting without a GM could have done a lot worse.

I give them a solid B

not a big fan of Rui in the top 10. Good kid but like you said lacks upside.

Schofield in round 2 is fine. Solid gamble for the classic 3 and D type. He's strong as hell for a wing. I'm curious if he can't play some small ball 4.

 

[The Q]

Sixers basically punted on their 2nd round picks to get Thybulle, pick up some future 2nd rounders, and clear a wee bit of cap space..... but to do what? They better have solid FA plans because they clearly did not want to rely on cheap, young players, which while understandable for a team trying to win now, could limit them down the road.

I wanted Thybulle, so I'm happy with how that turned out.
Not so much with selling the other 2nd rounders.

i think they should've gotten paschall too. Then just called it a day. Two seniors who are long, can D up, and shoot spot up 3s. exactly what they needed.

 

[Gman]

That worked as a college center. Now he's an NBA tweener who is a decent shooter for a 5. But not nearly enough to be a stretch 4. And he's not long either.

I don't know. I want to like him. He's an upperclassmen who came as a non heralded recruit to become a 2 time SEC POY. He plays hard. He's strong and tough as nails. But his game just screams great college player, but not much of an nba one.

Okeke is the PJ Tucker of his draft.

Williams will have to develop an NBA 3 pt shot. No doubt.

He was a good FT shooter in college, and is a hard worker as you say... so there is hope on that front.

 

[logic]

I like the Pistons Draft.

#15--Sekou Doumbouya
Great potential. He could have gone higher. Pistons lucked out to find him here. Young and still developing.

#37--Deividas Sirvydis
Another young and still developing foreign player. Probably D-league to get experience and bulk up. Maybe deep bench. Good risk at #37.

#57--Jordan Bone
I love this pick late. Really have no expectations at #57, but they found a PG with experience from a good team. If he makes it great, if not it was #57.

The Pistons did what they had to at #15 and took a guy who should have been drafted earlier. Hopefully he can play the 3 right away. Great potential with his athleticism. Sirvydis is a flyer on potential. He is young and talented but will really need to add size to play in the NBA. A good risk at #37. And Bone has potential to be a good back up PG. He has maturity and speed. See if he has enough so we can get rid of Reggie.

 

[WiggyRuss]

This was the last big board I did on Tuesday:

1. Zion
2. JA
3. Barrett
4. Garland
5. Culver
6. Hunter
7. Reddish
8. White
9. Sekou
10. Hayes
11. Clarke
12. Little
13. LAngford
14. Biadze
15. Porter Jr

-----so, the Cavs, in my estimation, got the draft's 4th best prospect at 5......and got the draft's 15th best prospect at 30. The other guy they got was a clear analytics pick-

According to Terry Pluto of the CPD:

1. You can see the influence of two factors in the Cavs first-round draft picks. The first is the front office placing an emphasis on analytics and outside shooting. A strong case can be made that Darius Garland andDylan Windler are perhaps the two best 3-point shooters in this draft.

The second influence is new coach John Beilein. The former Michigan coach also loves outside shooters – and also scorers who can move without the ball to get open. That’s the 6-foot-8 Windler, who is far more than an excellent 3-point shooter.

 

[WiggyRuss]

I like the Pistons Draft.

#15--Sekou Doumbouya
Great potential. He could have gone higher. Pistons lucked out to find him here. Young and still developing.

#37--Deividas Sirvydis
Another young and still developing foreign player. Probably D-league to get experience and bulk up. Maybe deep bench. Good risk at #37.

#57--Jordan Bone
I love this pick late. Really have no expectations at #57, but they found a PG with experience from a good team. If he makes it great, if not it was #57.

The Pistons did what they had to at #15 and took a guy who should have been drafted earlier. Hopefully he can play the 3 right away. Great potential with his athleticism. Sirvydis is a flyer on potential. He is young and talented but will really need to add size to play in the NBA. A good risk at #37. And Bone has potential to be a good back up PG. He has maturity and speed. See if he has enough so we can get rid of Reggie.

i thought Sekou was nice value there. He is 2-3 years from making a big time impact, but if he gets there he will be well worth the pick.

 

[Black Adam]

we got a guy in the 2nd round...

that is all...

 

[WiggyRuss]

I was bummed that the Jr Smith contract did not get dealt but I think the (i) Lakers trade for Davis, and (ii) the Hawks trading up kind of derailed some of those avenues. Also, some of the teams that were linked, like the Heat and Hornets- i mean- its not even like those teams would open up cap room by making a deal. If they had opportunities to open up cap room to trade for a guy- then there would have more likely been a deal- but neither of those teams valued cost savings so much as to give up a top 13 pick.

Once it got passed Sekou at 15 it simply was not worth it to get a pick and take on a bad contract.

Is it guaranteed Smith does not get dealt? No. But it would kind of surprise me at this point. The PElicans offloaded their bad K. The Celtics dont need to offload a bad K. The Nets offloaded their bad K. The Lakers dont have a bad K to offload (and dont have any assets anyway). The Rockets would love to get rid of Paul but that aint happening.

The only thing I could see is maybe a deal with a team like the Blazers or the Bobcats for a future first rounder to take on salary, but we shall see.

 

[shopson67]

Lakers draft was limited, of course. Talen Horton-Tucker is interesting, and reminds me of a raw Iguodala. The youngest prospect in the draft, so he should have plenty of room to grow into his body (or trim it up, lol). Very long arms, should help in defensive upside. Needs to work on his jumper, but again is still only 18. Nice value for the mid 2nd, could develop into a solid rotational wing.

 

[Sparhawk]

we got a guy in the 2nd round...

that is all...

Bold move, Cotton. Let's see how that pays off.....

 

[Shanemansj13]

Shooting, shooting and shooting.

Darius Garland. They got a pure scoring combo guard, the best shooter in this draft arguably. There is risk bc he only played 5 games at Vandy, but Kyrie missed his only season at Duke.

Dylan Windler. Gotta say never heard much about him before this draft but looking at some of film he was an elite outside shooter in college, long wingspan. Can defend and is an elite rebounder at his wing position.

Kevin Porter Jr. This kid could have went top 10 but that isn't saying much. Lack of concentration and work ethic issues are concerns in limited action. Not a huge fan of this kid but he has talent. It usually doesn't workout with these kids that have work ethic issues, he should be motivated for so many reasons. He can get buckets.

Marques Bolden - undrafted. Don't know much about him, played at Duke.

 

[tlance]

Shooting, shooting and shooting.

Darius Garland. They got a pure scoring combo guard, the best shooter in this draft arguably. There is risk bc he only played 5 games at Vandy, but Kyrie missed his only season at Duke.

Dylan Windler. Gotta say never heard much about him before this draft but looking at some of film he was an elite outside shooter in college, long wingspan. Can defend and is an elite rebounder at his wing position.

Kevin Porter Jr. This kid could have went top 10 but that isn't saying much. Lack of concentration and work ethic issues are concerns in limited action. Not a huge fan of this kid but he has talent. It usually doesn't workout with these kids that have work ethic issues, he should be motivated for so many reasons. He can get buckets.

Marques Bolden - undrafted. Don't know much about him, played at Duke.

Bolden is an athletic body.

Probably a career D leaguer, but you never know. He could make the active roster at some point.

 

[Shanemansj13]

I was bummed that the Jr Smith contract did not get dealt but I think the (i) Lakers trade for Davis, and (ii) the Hawks trading up kind of derailed some of those avenues. Also, some of the teams that were linked, like the Heat and Hornets- i mean- its not even like those teams would open up cap room by making a deal. If they had opportunities to open up cap room to trade for a guy- then there would have more likely been a deal- but neither of those teams valued cost savings so much as to give up a top 13 pick.

Once it got passed Sekou at 15 it simply was not worth it to get a pick and take on a bad contract.

Is it guaranteed Smith does not get dealt? No. But it would kind of surprise me at this point. The PElicans offloaded their bad K. The Celtics dont need to offload a bad K. The Nets offloaded their bad K. The Lakers dont have a bad K to offload (and dont have any assets anyway). The Rockets would love to get rid of Paul but that aint happening.

The only thing I could see is maybe a deal with a team like the Blazers or the Bobcats for a future first rounder to take on salary, but we shall see.

Yeah surprised JR didn't go for a pick late teens or to OKC. I assume the Cavs will be looking to get out of the luxury tax now so take back a contract wasn't in the books. Maybe they will just flip him for a future pick or so. When you have an asset like that you have to make a move. I expect a move to be made before the 30th deadline.

 

[Mebert]

Wolves traded up to leave them without starting quality at 2 positions, then drafted 2 players at the only position that they have depth.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Wolves traded up to leave them without starting quality at 2 positions, then drafted 2 players at the only position that they have depth.

sounds abour right for the wolves