2023 NBA Draft Megathread

[Elizah Huge]

Also, the idea that we know how good or bad a draft is a year+ before it’s happened is wack. I’m old enough to remember how bad 2011 was supposed to be and it turned out being the best draft since probably 2003.

Also, all things equal, I don’t think it’s necessarily ideal to bring in 3+ rookies with serious intent to develop at the same time.

HH of all people should know that pick could end up being anything. That pick would have been 20 this year. Sign me up for that. It’s likely going to be the lesser of OKC’s and LAC’s first which could easily end up in the teens.

Plus like Ellis said it gives us multiple teams to root extra hard against which is an added bonus. Worst case scenario happens and our pick ends up in the top-10 we have a top-10 pick and another pick in the mid-teens to early 20’s.

 

[Ferguson_Mellochill]

This is exactly what I was thinking. Tbh - Bufkin (so far) reminds me of what I thought we were getting with Donovan. I think the physical profile is so different that it’s impossible to compare the two. . . but I remember thinking that their tape feels similar - minus the big athletic dunks that Donovan flashed more if.

If Bufkin hits, I think he can be a significant player. There's just no point throwing a damper on his draft stock due to what Tre Mann has done, or what James Bouknight has done. There just isn't a meaningful comparison to be made there.

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

It might be some group think but sometimes when enough people say stuff you can believe it… you don’t have to do your contrarian bull **** on everything. When dudes have said it they have quite literally said it’s not just top end… they think the depth is not there either. They have the ability to scout a lot of dudes… not just top end guys. Some classes suck… it happens. I think this class is damn good… give me the pick this year thx.

I'm not being a contrarian, I'm just telling you what they mean when they say weak draft.

 

[Elizah Huge]

Wasn’t 2023 supposedly a weak draft outside of the top too?

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

Probably means nothing but interesting nonetheless:


View: https://twitter.com/DraftDummies/status/1667715274852937728

It means a he thought of the negative ones instead of thinking about Donovan Mitchell and probably a number of other examples.

 

[Ferguson_Mellochill]

Wasn’t 2023 supposedly a weak draft outside of the top too?

No. People were pretty high on this draft class, including several prospects that have disappointed, like Whitehead, NSJ, Lively, Ware and some others.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

I'm not being a contrarian, I'm just telling you what they mean when they say weak draft.

And I’m telling you they said what they meant… not a great draft at the top or with depth atm.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

Wasn’t 2023 supposedly a weak draft outside of the top too?

Very much the opposite… people loved it and a number of dudes disappointed. I think it’s still very good.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

HH of all people should know that pick could end up being anything. That pick would have been 20 this year. Sign me up for that. It’s likely going to be the lesser of OKC’s and LAC’s first which could easily end up in the teens.

Plus like Ellis said it gives us multiple teams to root extra hard against which is an added bonus. Worst case scenario happens and our pick ends up in the top-10 we have a top-10 pick and another pick in the mid-teens to early 20’s.

You should wait to see what the protections are before declaring the upside of what it could be. It’s not simple… I didn’t want to go into it but here we go…

OKC owns Denver’s pick in 2027 top5 protected through 2029. So the pick they just got may roll into 2030 or amend the prior protections or be unprotected in 2029… or they have to wait until the league year rolls over so it can trickle in to 2030… and then the trade would be announced.

OKC is very detailed when it comes to this ****. So there very well could be protections on where that pick could land and it could convert into several seconds if it happens that the pick hits certain protections. Depending on how good the Denver pick is they got for 2029 and if they managed to amend protections… it would likely have some potential affects on how lightly or I lightly the 2024 pick is protected. There has been no specific reporting in this that I’ve seen yet… trades are reported this time of year and often completed after July 1st when the next year opens up. I’ve not heard this deal is complete yet. The chances that every team in that group misses the playoffs is slim… the chances that pick is not lotto protected or has some protections is slim… unless they got some serious considerations in the pick Denver sent.

So there are a lot of moving parts here. It may not be simple at all. If the upside is moving up 8 spots or so in a year then I’m just going to take the pick this year. Finding a contributor or two in this draft is critical. At least one of these picks likely does not pan out… I’m going to take the swings now in a draft I know I like. Whether or not the draft is good or bad next year is a question… so far looks bad… I understand that can change… what I know is this draft looks really good and I really like some of the guys that will be around at 28 this year.

 

[fishonjazz]

I think some of you are going to be in for a rude awakening on draft night when Black goes top-8 and Wallace falls to the late lottery.

Rude awakening? That's what I hope happens lol. I would love black to be off the board and for us to pick Wallace at 16.

 

[Ferguson_Mellochill]

GG worked out in Atlanta yesterday. Seeing social media posts from variety of fans, they still think GG's the vape guy.


View: https://twitter.com/ATLHawks/status/1667930917917061120

 

[fishonjazz]

Also… uhh… nothing would make me happier than Black going top-8 and Wallace being at 16.

Why would I be upset about that?

Dang, beat me to it