What's new
By:
Filters

2023 NBA Draft Megathread

I was watching the Minny Lakers preseason game which Wemby attended last night. At some point he got interviewed by the tv announcers. I was genuinely impressed. He speaks English fluently and seems really intelligent. I wouldn't be concerned about his shot selection and on court decisions for now, he sure looks like someone who will learn and adapt.
 
hgb said:
And not the franchise-changing Aaron Gordon (to be fair, two picks higher and it's Embiid).
Click to expand...
What if I told you Gordon did change our franchise... or Smart. Maybe Hayward never leaves and gets hurt. Getting nothing out of the pick was one thing... investing so much time and then a second contract in trying to make it work hurt quite a bit.

You just don't want to be in a position where you are taking what is left. You'd like to get your first choice of the guys in that next draft tier after Scoot.
 
Handlogten's Heros said:
What if I told you Gordon did change our franchise... or Smart. Maybe Hayward never leaves and gets hurt. Getting nothing out of the pick was one thing... investing so much time and then a second contract in trying to make it work hurt quite a bit.

You just don't want to be in a position where you are taking what is left. You'd like to get your first choice of the guys in that next draft tier after Scoot.
Click to expand...
A couple of ping pong balls resulted in us drafting Exum/Kanter instead of Kyrie/Embiid. As you've said a couple of wins/losses can really be the difference between building a potential dynasty and being a treadmill team.
 
Handlogten's Heros said:
However bad it hurts to watch THT play basketball and JB struggle and Ochai learn on the job... it is worth it. However embarrassing it is to shut down sexton with knee soreness or Lauri with plantar fasciitis or rest KO because of a migraine or give him 3 months of paternity leave for the birth of his second cousin... it is worth it.

We need to reach day hooker levels of shame to out tank one of OKC, Houston of SA... at very least put ourselves in pole position at 4th. It is worth it.
Click to expand...
That's one of my things for this season, I'm just going into it open minded. We have so many young players across the roster now, this is where you let them get burn and see if any of them can emerge as potential pieces that will be apart of the rebuild. We haven't really had a young team like this since the Hayward/Kanter/Burks/Favors/Exum days.
 
Handlogten's Heros said:
What if I told you Gordon did change our franchise... or Smart. Maybe Hayward never leaves and gets hurt. Getting nothing out of the pick was one thing... investing so much time and then a second contract in trying to make it work hurt quite a bit.

You just don't want to be in a position where you are taking what is left. You'd like to get your first choice of the guys in that next draft tier after Scoot.
Click to expand...
Sure, they could've been better, but Exum looked pretty decent too, until the injury. Picking higher is always better, but I'm not sold on picking 4th or 5th that year would've made a huge difference.

That said, of course I agree, we want to get a high pick. This year is going to suck, since I *hate* hoping for my team to lose. I'm 100% against a >1 season tanking operation.
Lose out this year, draft someone good, be solid next year and give up that pick to OKC while rebuilding with a bunch of interesting prospects.
 
I'm watching the Pacers in pre-season. They don't look bad. I think they'll be a bit better than the Jazz if they don't trade out their vets and prune down their roster. Benedict Mathurin looks good for a rookie. Probably already better than Cam Reddish.

If the Jazz can duck the Pacers and Pistons in the standings that would be huge. We would be in the bottom 4 along with OKC, HOU and SA.
 
Last edited:
Mock drafts seem pretty high on Dillon Mitchell. I'm skeptical. His game has been limited, and his shooting has been limited. He's an end-to-end athlete with some size who looks good at the HS level, but might be Marjon Beauchamp unless a lot of development takes place.

Some mocks are lower on GG Jackson than I am. GG has Jayson Tatum measurables and a downhill game that's like a more talented and explosive version of Pascal Siakam. Plus he can create and pass off the dribble. See if he shows out when CBB starts.
 
Ferguson_Mellochill said:
Mock drafts seem pretty high on Dillon Mitchell. I'm skeptical. His game has been limited, and his shooting has been limited. He's an end-to-end athlete with some size who looks good at the HS level, but might be Marjon Beauchamp unless a lot of development takes place.

Some mocks are lower on GG Jackson than I am. GG has Jayson Tatum measurables and a downhill game that's like a more talented and explosive version of Pascal Siakam. Plus he can create and pass off the dribble. See if he shows out when CBB starts.
Click to expand...
GG is also ranked lower, imo, because he reclassified late in the process.
 
Ferguson_Mellochill said:
Mock drafts seem pretty high on Dillon Mitchell. I'm skeptical. His game has been limited, and his shooting has been limited. He's an end-to-end athlete with some size who looks good at the HS level, but might be Marjon Beauchamp unless a lot of development takes place.

Some mocks are lower on GG Jackson than I am. GG has Jayson Tatum measurables and a downhill game that's like a more talented and explosive version of Pascal Siakam. Plus he can create and pass off the dribble. See if he shows out when CBB starts.
Click to expand...
ftr, i'm bullish on beauchamp. i think he's going to be an effective jump shooter eventually. for now, i do agree with you on Dillon Mitchell - this frosh season at Texas will tell us a lot.
 
seattlejazzfan said:
yeah, this sucks. he's the guy i was most looking forward to. wouldn't surprise me if he doesn't play until december.
Click to expand...
If we miss on Vic/Scoot I hope we end up with one of the big, athletic wings with our pick. Amen Thompson, Whitmore, Whitehead and a few other guys look promising.
 
There are a lot of 6’6-6-9 in our draft range (5-10). It’s a good thing, but someone is is going to make a crucial mistake and make the wrong pick. Once the season gets going we’ll have some separation, but it’s gonna be a crapshoot regardless.
 
KqWIN said:
There are a lot of 6’6-6-9 in our draft range (5-10). It’s a good thing, but someone is is going to make a crucial mistake and make the wrong pick. Once the season gets going we’ll have some separation, but it’s gonna be a crapshoot regardless.
Click to expand...
Yeah there's a clump of wings after the top 2 guys. I think it's hard to really rank these guys right now:

Cam Whitmore, Villanova
Dariq Whitehead, Duke
Amen Thompson, OTE
Ausar Thompson, OTE
Brandon Miller, Alabama
Dillon Mitchell, Texas
GG Jackson, South Carolina
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top