The (way too early) 2024 Draft thread. Woo! Tanking!

Post #41 » by **Rafael122** » Fri Aug 11, 2023 7:00 pm

Flagg is reclassifying so he'll be in the 2025 draft.

Halcyon · Post #42 » by **Halcyon** » Sat Aug 12, 2023 2:36 pm

I'm down to be semi-decent this year to raise the trade value of the vets, trade them for assets and go full tank the 2 years after. We need to be bad enough to have a shot at both Flagg and Boozer in back to back years.

doclinkin · Post #43 » by **doclinkin** » Wed Sep 13, 2023 1:57 am

The aforementioned Izan Almansa

Watch on YouTube

Definitely one of my favorites. The footwork and touch in the low-post is a throwback to when this was a big man's league. I'd agree with some of the Gasol discussions about his feel and light touch. And his passing. But he reminds me of even older old-school players like Kevin McHale, Bill Walton, etc, guys who knew how to get themselves open with hesitation and timing and awareness, even in heavy traffic. The fact that he has a reliable push shot, bank shot, and a truly beautiful skyhook -- this extends his low-post game out past 10 feet. That increases his utility on offense, opens things up if he can even score out of the short roll. His game translates. He has counters and counter-counters in ways that most NBA bigs nowadays don't know what to do will. His passing awareness out of traffic to the outside shooter will make his teammates happy. That's an 18yr old with a skill set you can compare favorably with Hall of Famers. Prodigious and precocious.

He's the sort of player that will have me hoping we do slip a notch or two so we are forced to select him where he falls to us. Probably not go #1, but he is top 3 for me, this early. Hm. No, higher than that. I think so far he's my guy. Numero uno.

Watch on YouTube

doclinkin · Post #44 » by **doclinkin** » Wed Sep 13, 2023 5:09 am

The G League Ignite team figures to be fun this year. High talent, team players.

Watch on YouTube

Defensively Almansa reminds me of Joakim Noah. Active, mobile, long, able to blow up the pick and roll then recover to the paint. Not intimidating and dominant at the rim, but laterally tough to get around.

Here's a mix of highlights with a few plays where he got beat. Still, the most active player on the floor on defense:

Watch on YouTube

closg00 · Post #45 » by **closg00** » Wed Oct 25, 2023 3:16 pm

Ron Holland to the Wizards, may as-well keep this thread around early

Watch on YouTube

pcbothwel · Post #46 » by **pcbothwel** » Wed Oct 25, 2023 5:23 pm

I have Holland and Sarr as my top tier players. I would LOVE for us to get a top 2 pick and trade down a couple spots for a future 1st and Sarr.
To me, Sarr has unreal physical tools, defensive instincts, and a real good motor. If he barely improves, he'll be Nic Claxton/Jonathan Issac (Healthy)... But I see a DPOY candidate and a true KG comp if he reaches his ceiling.

smoothSeph · Post #47 » by **smoothSeph** » Thu Oct 26, 2023 5:21 am

I too am on the Sarr train. He rejects Holland a few times in this game.

Watch on YouTube

;ab_channel=NationalBasketballLeague

Hibachi_0 · Post #48 » by **Hibachi_0** » Thu Oct 26, 2023 6:19 am

There are a bunch of interesting international prospects next year. Apart from the projected lottery talent in Sarr, Almansa, and Mara, I love Ajinca and Topic. Both Risacher and Baba Miller are also intriguing. If any of these last four was to drop to the second round I would use a pick in them without a doubt.

doclinkin · Post #49 » by **doclinkin** » Thu Oct 26, 2023 1:25 pm

smoothSeph wrote:I too am on the Sarr train. He rejects Holland a few times in this game.

I haven't seen any reason why Holland is in the conversation for the top pick this year. Does anyone have a link, highlight package, analysis, something to convince otherwise? I guess he has decent athleticism and a good motor, but I dunno. He does not stand out to me.

jangles86 · Post #50 » by **jangles86** » Thu Oct 26, 2023 8:19 pm

Sarr looks very good. Defensively and offensively he is very capable. Has a lot of Garnett about him with a bit of Jermaine Oneal.

smoothSeph · Post #51 » by **smoothSeph** » Sat Oct 28, 2023 11:37 pm

doclinkin wrote:
smoothSeph wrote:I too am on the Sarr train. He rejects Holland a few times in this game.

I haven't seen any reason why Holland is in the conversation for the top pick this year. Does anyone have a link, highlight package, analysis, something to convince otherwise? I guess he has decent athleticism and a good motor, but I dunno. He does not stand out to me.

I didn't really like he either coming out of high school. He looks a bit more polished here, granted it's highlights.

Watch on YouTube

;ab_channel=NBA

long suffrin' boulez fan · Post #52 » by **long suffrin' boulez fan** » Sun Oct 29, 2023 2:13 pm

What would happen in the unlikely event that we finish outside the lottery and the Suns finish in it?

Does the pick swap take precedence over the non lottery protected nature of the pick for us this year?

doclinkin · Post #53 » by **doclinkin** » Mon Oct 30, 2023 2:20 am

long suffrin' boulez fan wrote:What would happen in the unlikely event that we finish outside the lottery and the Suns finish in it?

Does the pick swap take precedence over the non lottery protected nature of the pick for us this year?

The Knicks would get our pick. The Suns would keep their pick.

If we finish outside the lottery, we have no pick to swap. It reverts to the Knicks. They own it, and the Suns do not have an agreement with them to swap it. The trade of our pick to the Knicks happened first. You can't alter the terms of that deal afterwards based on a later trade agreement. Otherwise imagine the shenanigans you could play with a pick you have already traded away.

Hibachi_0 · Post #54 » by **Hibachi_0** » Mon Oct 30, 2023 3:26 am

I don't think we will draft him as I think he'll be drafted in the 15-30 range, but man I love Nikola Topic. Right now he is posting 19 pts & 8 ast in the ABA league for Mega. Just as a fun fact, Jokic won the MVP the year before going to the NBA with the same team, his stats were 15.4pts 9.3rebs 3.5ast. Obviously not comparing them, but just some context and extra info.

Nice recap of his career to this moment
[url]

Watch on YouTube

;ab_channel=BasketNews[/url]

Game against Partizan, his stats were 14 & 8 and the W, Vuk played only 7 min for 0 0 0 stat sheet

[url]

Watch on YouTube

;ab_channel=TremendousUpside[/url]

One of his best games this season
[url]

Watch on YouTube

;ab_channel=VojislavDimitric[/url]

JAR69 · Post #55 » by **JAR69** » Mon Oct 30, 2023 11:30 am

Hibachi_0 wrote:I don't think we will draft him as I think he'll be drafted in the 15-30 range, but man I love Nikola Topic. Right now he is posting 19 pts & 8 ast in the ABA league for Mega. Just as a fun fact, Jokic won the MVP the year before going to the NBA with the same team, his stats were 15.4pts 9.3rebs 3.5ast. Obviously not comparing them, but just some context and extra info.

Nice recap of his career to this moment
[url]

Watch on YouTube
;ab_channel=BasketNews[/url]

Game against Partizan, his stats were 14 & 8 and the W, Vuk played only 7 min for 0 0 0 stat sheet
[url]

Watch on YouTube
;ab_channel=TremendousUpside[/url]

One of his best games this season
[url]

Watch on YouTube
;ab_channel=VojislavDimitric[/url]

Those Mega unis in the second clip - oy. Hoosiers meets Barbie.

doclinkin · Post #56 » by **doclinkin** » Tue Nov 14, 2023 6:39 pm

Get this in early before his name shows up elsewhere. Not sure why he's not on any mocks yet but Xavier Booker is a sleeper candidate to climb to the lotto this year. Looks like the knock on him is his defensive fundamentals and conditioning, hustle on D maybe, but playing for Tom Izzo and the Spartans those are things that will no doubt improve in leaps and bounds.

Booker is a 6'11" PF with an outside stroke. Lefty. Good balance and agility at his size. Room to put on serious muscle. I expect he is not on mocks because Izzo tends to keep his guys in school and develop them slowly, but in the NIL era I don't know if he has that luxury. Booker is going to get bigger and stronger quickly. He will be noticed.

Watch on YouTube

NatP4 · Post #57 » by **NatP4** » Thu Nov 16, 2023 5:45 pm

I like Kylan Boswell with Arizona. Quality player at just 17 years old last season. 5 star recruit, only 18 years old for most of the season. Makes winning plays, has shot the lights out, and defends at a high level.

Per 40 through 3 games(one against Duke: 22 points 8 rebounds 5.5 assists 3.8 steals just 2.2 turnovers.

Boswell and Dillingham look like good candidates to fly under the radar and turn into quality NBA lead guards.

J-Ves · Post #58 » by **J-Ves** » Thu Nov 16, 2023 6:55 pm

If we draft a guard I want Castle or Topic. Love those big PGs :rock:

NatP4 · Post #59 » by **NatP4** » Thu Nov 16, 2023 8:11 pm

J-Ves wrote:If we draft a guard I want Castle or Topic. Love those big PGs

Castle is an awesome prospect. Still waiting to decide if he’s SGA or Derozan, or worst case: Brice Sensabaugh.

This class is very unlike recent years: tons of lead guard prospects.

closg00 · Post #60 » by **closg00** » Wed Nov 22, 2023 12:12 am

1. Washington Wizards: G Isaiah Collier

The college basketball season is underway and in a draft class that is wide open, a few players are making strong statements early on. USC freshman guard Isaiah Collier is one of the most powerful guards with the ball in his hands and has made a compelling case for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft in June with how well he's played early in the season.

https://sports.yahoo.com/2024-nba-mock-draft-2-isaiah-collier-alex-sarr-early-leaders-for-no-1-spot-184157823.html

Perhaps this draft will not be as dreadful as-is the current conventional wisdom