Tom Pitt
Well-Known Member
I am not sure why we are having such a hard time with who to take at the 5th spot. It should be Vonleh. Let me try and persuade you.
If you have watched Vonleh play at all then you have seen the obvious. Vonleh has touch. That means he can shoot it and be a viable offensive weapon. We need offense. We need it pretty bad. On top of that, He has length and can help on defense. Can you imagine Favors and Vonleh (both have superior length and are athletic enough to guard the Pick and Roll in a pick and roll dominated league. Also, Vonleh is only 18 and does not turn 19 until late August, almost September. At 6'10, Vonleh took 33 3 pointers and made 17 of them. He can also put the ball on the floor in a way that seem elite for his size. He has guard skills as a big man (Anthony Davis sound familiar) but he rebounds at an elite level too.
Consider this excerpt from NBADraft.net
"Strengths: Ideal PF size with very long arms and the skill set that had many envisioning him as a wing while in high school … Has shown flashes of potential to stretch the defense, as well as a rapidly developing post game, helped by his solid frame … Will not be 19 until August, which again brings to mind the potential growth his body and game could go through, along with the fantastic size and coordination he already possesses … Was a great rebounder during his freshman season, very aggressive on both ends of the floor hitting the glass … Gets out on the break and runs very well for his size. Shows very good mobility for a player with his size and strength, moves his feet especially well considering his thick, tree trunk legs ... His combination of length, size and mobility made him a factor on that side of the floor, along with having major upside on that end with increased experience, awareness … Showed a good shot selection, shot a high percentage from the field and line, even showing ability out to three point range that could be developed down the line … Surprising ability to put the ball on the floor with decent mobility, along with range that should have defenders respecting his shot … Gets to the line fairly often and shot 71.3% FT as a freshman … Definitely passionate about basketball, has shown a will to improve and put in work … Cerebral kid. Is described as a gym rat, constantly looking to add to his game and made definite strides from senior year of HS to his freshman year of college … Though he is not an elite leaper, his length makes him a shot blocking and shot changing force ..."
He shot 71% from the free throw line as an 18 year big. That indicative that he has touch. Also, you can see from watching him play that he has touch around the basket. If you played Favors and Vonleh together, you'd have elite length and near elite athleticism in the paint.
We need shooting which Vonleh will help out with. I could see him being a reliable stretch big by his 2nd year in the league. and he has a rep for working hard and being a gym rat. I especially like the part that says he's a cerebral player. Good sign. Can anyone contribute to that rep with a reliable source? and the fact that he has a good shot selection points toward the notion that he plays the right way. Passionate about the game. awesome. He might come on a bit later but I think he's the right pick at 5 assuming that "the 4" are gone by the time we pick.
So if we trade for Vonleh, what do we do with Kanter? I Like Kanter a lot but I think having Favors and Vonleh would make Kanter into more of an Asset we could trade. I think I'd trade Kanter and try to grab some shooters or athletes in the draft. 9-15 range is likely. Stauskas will have a solid pro career as a shooter and he has some playmaking ability. If I was Lindsey I'd try hard to nab Him. Imagine that Vonleh becomes a Lamarcus Aldridge type but with more defensive prowess (best case scenario?) and let's say that Nik Stauskas becomes a better version of J.J Reddick. And what if we were able to sign Luol Deng.
Trey/Neto/Garret
Nik Stauskas/Alec Burks
Gordon Hayward/Lual Deng
Noah Vonleh/Favors
Favors/Rudy Gobert
Year one would likely be this though
Trey/Neto/Garret
Gordon Hayward/Alec Burks Nik Stauskas/
Luol Deng/Gordon Hayward
Noah Vonleh/Favors
Favors/Rudy Gobert
I think with the right coach and the right system we could become a pretty solid team. We would still be missing one or two pieces to a championship team. Don't know how we'd get them. Of course, there is a scenario where Alec Burks becomes a legit 2nd option and and Vonleh becomes a legit 1st option. With that and a top 5 defense we would be very formidable.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBQ-Wn_R9S4
https://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=10771348
Thoughts? Feelings?
If you have watched Vonleh play at all then you have seen the obvious. Vonleh has touch. That means he can shoot it and be a viable offensive weapon. We need offense. We need it pretty bad. On top of that, He has length and can help on defense. Can you imagine Favors and Vonleh (both have superior length and are athletic enough to guard the Pick and Roll in a pick and roll dominated league. Also, Vonleh is only 18 and does not turn 19 until late August, almost September. At 6'10, Vonleh took 33 3 pointers and made 17 of them. He can also put the ball on the floor in a way that seem elite for his size. He has guard skills as a big man (Anthony Davis sound familiar) but he rebounds at an elite level too.
Consider this excerpt from NBADraft.net
"Strengths: Ideal PF size with very long arms and the skill set that had many envisioning him as a wing while in high school … Has shown flashes of potential to stretch the defense, as well as a rapidly developing post game, helped by his solid frame … Will not be 19 until August, which again brings to mind the potential growth his body and game could go through, along with the fantastic size and coordination he already possesses … Was a great rebounder during his freshman season, very aggressive on both ends of the floor hitting the glass … Gets out on the break and runs very well for his size. Shows very good mobility for a player with his size and strength, moves his feet especially well considering his thick, tree trunk legs ... His combination of length, size and mobility made him a factor on that side of the floor, along with having major upside on that end with increased experience, awareness … Showed a good shot selection, shot a high percentage from the field and line, even showing ability out to three point range that could be developed down the line … Surprising ability to put the ball on the floor with decent mobility, along with range that should have defenders respecting his shot … Gets to the line fairly often and shot 71.3% FT as a freshman … Definitely passionate about basketball, has shown a will to improve and put in work … Cerebral kid. Is described as a gym rat, constantly looking to add to his game and made definite strides from senior year of HS to his freshman year of college … Though he is not an elite leaper, his length makes him a shot blocking and shot changing force ..."
He shot 71% from the free throw line as an 18 year big. That indicative that he has touch. Also, you can see from watching him play that he has touch around the basket. If you played Favors and Vonleh together, you'd have elite length and near elite athleticism in the paint.
We need shooting which Vonleh will help out with. I could see him being a reliable stretch big by his 2nd year in the league. and he has a rep for working hard and being a gym rat. I especially like the part that says he's a cerebral player. Good sign. Can anyone contribute to that rep with a reliable source? and the fact that he has a good shot selection points toward the notion that he plays the right way. Passionate about the game. awesome. He might come on a bit later but I think he's the right pick at 5 assuming that "the 4" are gone by the time we pick.
So if we trade for Vonleh, what do we do with Kanter? I Like Kanter a lot but I think having Favors and Vonleh would make Kanter into more of an Asset we could trade. I think I'd trade Kanter and try to grab some shooters or athletes in the draft. 9-15 range is likely. Stauskas will have a solid pro career as a shooter and he has some playmaking ability. If I was Lindsey I'd try hard to nab Him. Imagine that Vonleh becomes a Lamarcus Aldridge type but with more defensive prowess (best case scenario?) and let's say that Nik Stauskas becomes a better version of J.J Reddick. And what if we were able to sign Luol Deng.
Trey/Neto/Garret
Nik Stauskas/Alec Burks
Gordon Hayward/Lual Deng
Noah Vonleh/Favors
Favors/Rudy Gobert
Year one would likely be this though
Trey/Neto/Garret
Gordon Hayward/Alec Burks Nik Stauskas/
Luol Deng/Gordon Hayward
Noah Vonleh/Favors
Favors/Rudy Gobert
I think with the right coach and the right system we could become a pretty solid team. We would still be missing one or two pieces to a championship team. Don't know how we'd get them. Of course, there is a scenario where Alec Burks becomes a legit 2nd option and and Vonleh becomes a legit 1st option. With that and a top 5 defense we would be very formidable.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBQ-Wn_R9S4
https://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=10771348
Thoughts? Feelings?
