2023 NBA Draft Megathread

[Handlogten's Heros]

None of Dick, Black, Wallace, GG, Walker, Hendrix, JHS, Pods, Bufkin, or Hawkins will be the next Lebron or MJ. Oh no people will hate me now for saying that.

It was just weird. Like he dropped a truth bomb that most of these guys don’t work out. Yeah… we know… we’ve seen this before too.

 

[The Jazz Wonderbra]

Dallas isn’t doing that. 10 + Bertans for 16 seems about right value wise.

Probably not, but if you are Dallas you are screwed unless you can shed some salary. The issue for them is that they need to keep Luka happy and they aren't doing it by having no flexibility and a rookie at the 10th pick. Plus Ainge isn't going to just bend over for Dallas to help them out.

They have to pay him $31,000,000 to warm the bench for 2 years. Meanwhile, Luka is getting pissed.

The 16th for the 10th and giving them flexibility isn't good enough for us.

 

[NUMBERICA]

Locke hates every player in the draft apparently according to his pod. He goes off about how no experts ever talk about how a player mostly is going to fail or suck. Yeah no duh… it’s assumed that any player can bust and many will suck. When you talk about a player you primarily talk about how it looks if it works.

I kid and I exaggerate but man… every guy gonna have some flaws and just saying they are all likely busts is not how you evaluate things.

I actually loved his rant today. Spoke to my frustration with the draftnik sites that in some cases almost completely ignore downsides like No Ceilings. They get access to prospects by glossing over their flaws and it’s a problematic ecosystem.

There was a point made somewhere here about how we should like most of the players cuz why not? The why not is that most players don’t make it so we’re doing nobody any favors by not being critical.

 

[NUMBERICA]

On the fence on Bertans + 10 for 16. That's an awful contract if we want to be competitive over the next two seasons. You'd have to feel really good about who's there at 10 vs. 16. And if there is someone you really wanted in that 10 - 16 range, I'd first try to package 16 + 28 to move up for them.

Bertans is non-guaranteed next year, so he is basically an expiring.

 

[Elizah Huge]

Bertans is non-guaranteed next year, so he is basically an expiring.

He has 5M guaranteed next year and it’s fully guaranteed if he plays 75% of regular season games this year.

 

[NUMBERICA]

He has 5M guaranteed next year and it’s fully guaranteed if he plays 75% of regular season games this year.

Sorry, which years are what now?

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

He likes Hendricks better than Walker ... at least that's the impression I got from his pod. No idea if it means anything...

It means he looked at stats and probably watched a game.

I like his analysis. It's pure first impression and number based. Take it for what it is.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

I actually loved his rant today. Spoke to my frustration with the draftnik sites that in some cases almost completely ignore downsides like No Ceilings. They get access to prospects by glossing over their flaws and it’s a problematic ecosystem.

There was a point made somewhere here about how we should like most of the players cuz why not? The why not is that most players don’t make it so we’re doing nobody any favors by not being critical.

No ceilings guys are bonkers optimistic. I think they are outliers and don’t necessarily consider them like experts. Like they get wild dumb.

It’s just weird because I think it’s assumed and we talk about warts all the time… which is how players fail.

 

[Shad]

Is it draft day yet?

 

[default]

FYI next week Leif is taking over Locked on Jazz again up until the draft. He is a bit stiff to listen to, but has watched a lot more of these players than Locke and was actually at the draft combine., so I like hearing his takes.

 

[Elizah Huge]

Sorry, which years are what now?

This upcoming season it’s guaranteed. If he plays 75% of regular season games this upcoming season his contract is fully guaranteed next year which is the final year of his contract. It has an ETO with only 5M guaranteed if he doesn’t play that 75% of games.

 

[KqWIN]

I guess... I'm not very excited to draft such a player this high. Again... especially since we already have one that's plenty good enough to play that role... and probably better than Walker. Jarace is iffy fit with Kessler because they have similar functional negatives offensively. How much is he really adding offensively? And I mean again - think about deep playoff run... what are you relying on him to do? Are we drafting him just for defensive versatility?

The negative functionality would be shooting, and I’d agree with that concern. But I will say that it’s not a done deal that Jarace can’t shoot in the NBA, for the record I think he will be an Aaron Gordon type shooter.

But I still think he adds a lot on offense. His passing is great and I think he can be a really good roll man. Maybe I’ve been watching too much Jokic and Bam but I really love the added element of a two man game where the big can be the ball handler. But even before Bam and Jokic I loved guys like Millsap, Horford, Diaw, Thad Young etc. I just see a lot of shades of some of my favorite players in him which is why I like him, but the concern with playing him next to someone like Kessler is valid.

I love him with Lauri though. You get a more mobile and versatile on both ends while still having a “big man” presence. The guys I had mentioned above would be my ideal fits with Lauri in a playoff setting. The effectiveness of a player like Kessler in the playoffs will always be an ongoing debate, Gobert was the best in the world at what he did and he never escaped it. I don’t care to bring that debate up again, but that’s something you have to consider.