Alec Burks VS. Getting swept in the 2011 Playoffs

[freakazoid]

Bad comparison. Jazz ended up with the twelfth pick, not the last lotto pick.

The question because, would you rather have Marcus (not Markieff) Morris in last year's draft or make the playoffs?

Bad post.

Obviously, we don't know where Utah ends up this year, so it's pretty silly to say we should compare to the 14th pick last year, when Utah could end up anywhere 12-14 if they miss the playoffs this year. We do, however, know exactly what pick we got last year, so I'll go ahead and stick with Alec as an example of what kind of value this pick could have for Utah.

Also, for arguments sake, let's just assume Utah does get the 14th pick this year. In which case, we'd still be comparing a 2011 #12 pick to a 2012 #14. In other words, a 12 pick in an average/weak draft to a 14 pick in very strong draft. Even if we call it 14, the difference in depth between the 2 drafts makes it basically a wash. Some people would argue that the 14 in this year's draft might actually be more valuable than last year's 12.

 

[spycam1]

Also, I think the course of this franchise changes once the team makes the playoffs and I do not want to keep Al. I want to get the most possible for him, I don't begrudge him, I like him, and I wish him well, but I don't see how this all works out. If Big Al gets extended I'm going to be ****ing depressed.

If Al gets an extension, I will really be scratching my head. What would have been the point of drafting Kanter over Knight if we intended to keep Al long term?

 

[spycam1]

Some people would argue that the 14 in this year's draft might actually be more valuable than last year's 12.

It's not even a question. The 14th pick in 2012 is almost like the 5th pick in 2011. No joke.

 

[Stars Fan]

The problem with this scenario is that is presupposes a win in the draft..i.e., we think we know what kind of player Burks is/will be, but we have no guarantee that whoever we select in the draft will be worthy of the pick. The draft isn't exactly a crap-shoot, but it's not science either. There have been plenty of lottery pick busts, that no one thought would bust. So it's not like you can project forward with the same accuracy and focus as you can looking backward.

The other thing that I have not seen in this thread is the impact of purposely tanking on the team. I don't think that you can say that you can just tank for one year and then get back into the thick of winning the next. Once you start down the road of losing on purpose, everything changes when it comes to team dynamics. The worst thing would be that the coach and the front office lose creditably with the players. Then how do you regain it? It's not like Golden State, Sactown, etc want to be consistent losers. Finding one player in the draft who changes the direction of the team is very rare.