What's new

2023 NBA Draft Megathread

Initial reports came out and people just added stuff to it. You can't both sides this.

It's a nothing burger. Teams are asking about it just so they can read him when he talks about it. I'm sure they are more concerned with the company he keeps and just want to know what his inner circle is more than anything.
I think you can legit do both sides here. Its highly plausible that he did see the text and did know about the gun in the car... its also plausible he did not see the text and was picking up his buddy. Worst case he has an extreme lack of judgement... best case its wrong place wrong time. Either way I think his future judgement and behavior will let us know the truth about who he is. Personally I'll give him the benefit of the doubt this time and say he didn't know.
 
Is there a way to get the 5 and keep the 9? I would sell Detroit the point that the mid teens is where the real value is. I would offer 16, and two to three quality future firsts.

It would be very nice to have Cam and Jarace on the same team.
 
Can’t wait to see which guys the Jazz actually have rated highest on their own board.
Luckily Udoka isn’t in this draft.
I know a lot of people love Hendricks and I get it, but I don't see him as a good fit next to Lauri. Ideally I want someone a bit more dynamic next to him. If fit isn't really a concern and you just want who you consider BPA, I get that too.

JHS does seem like the intersection of everything we've heard Utah wants

I think this place would meltdown if we passed on Hendricks at 9 and Wallace at 16 lmao.
I wouldn’t.
This is weird to me, because he's arguably one of the better scorers + passers in the draft. But I understand the "boring" angle as he doesn't hit the same kind of high notes the other PGs do. I'd be thrilled if he falls to 16 and as much as I love Bufkin I would take Cason over him.
He wasn’t recruited as a pg, I don’t think it’s his natural position
Going to do a little bit of a deep dive into JHS and will post here.



I'm not in love with Hendricks. But I like him. I think he has a very translatable skillset. I kind of feel like at 9 we should still be aiming higher... as in... players with higher reasonably achievable ceiling. IMO if you don't think the players remaining at 9 have all-star potential and Hendricks is there... I feel like he's relatively easy pick with high floor and easy transition to the league.

JHS looked like one of the best actual basketball players I watched in my "highlights scouting"... I bet I'm missing some stuff doing it like this, but I don't have the time this year to watch 2-3 games by every player we might pick before the draft. @KqWIN has mentioned he doesn't finish well at the rim and his defensive metrics are not great... but I still like him. He just looks like a player who knows how ot play and organize a team and he can score... I'm not sure if 9 is the pick I would use... but at 16 IMO he's a no brainer.
 
Is there a way to get the 5 and keep the 9? I would sell Detroit the point that the mid teens is where the real value is. I would offer 16, and two to three quality future firsts.

It would be very nice to have Cam and Jarace on the same team.

I doubt it. Detroit is a young team that isn't about to punt on the opportunity to add young talent.
 
Wasserman says Bilal has a lottery promise, does not surprise me in the slightest. Been saying this for a very long time. His talent is obvious, and the teams between 9&16 are the most obvious Bilal destinations. If we want Bilal we take him at #9. He won’t be there at #16.

As far as some mentioned concerns about Bilal….

Skinny? Yeah he is skinny. He’s also 18 and grown 7-8+ inches in the last couple of years what do you expect? He will need to get stronger and add weight in the NBA….but that is a very realistic development.

Late bloomer? To me this is a reason to draft him. One year ago he was relatively unknown even in France. We’re not drafting guys for who they were a year ago. He’s arguably the most improved player in the last year and that’s part of the appeal in drafting him. His developmental trajectory is steeper than anyone else and I believe he is only scratching the surface.

The real concern IMO is that his starting point is too far back to materialize into something great. Defensively I think he is NBA ready, but his offense may be too far behind to truly be a high impact guy on that end. But if his rapid development continues the sky is the limit.

Bilal is not a man of mystery. He’s playing a significant role at significantly higher level of basketball than the NCAA. What you make of his performance is up to you, but he is front a center for all scouts to see. He may have been unknown before but not anymore.
 
Wasserman says Bilal has a lottery promise, does not surprise me in the slightest. Been saying this for a very long time. His talent is obvious, and the teams between 9&16 are the most obvious Bilal destinations. If we want Bilal we take him at #9. He won’t be there at #16.

As far as some mentioned concerns about Bilal….

Skinny? Yeah he is skinny. He’s also 18 and grown 7-8+ inches in the last couple of years what do you expect? He will need to get stronger and add weight in the NBA….but that is a very realistic development.

Late bloomer? To me this is a reason to draft him. One year ago he was relatively unknown even in France. We’re not drafting guys for who they were a year ago. He’s arguably the most improved player in the last year and that’s part of the appeal in drafting him. His developmental trajectory is steeper than anyone else and I believe he is only scratching the surface.

The real concern IMO is that his starting point is too far back to materialize into something great. Defensively I think he is NBA ready, but his offense may be too far behind to truly be a high impact guy on that end. But if his rapid development continues the sky is the limit.

Bilal is not a man of mystery. He’s playing a significant role at significantly higher level of basketball than the NCAA. What you make of his performance is up to you, but he is front a center for all scouts to see. He may have been unknown before but not anymore.
My main concern with him is I get too much Exum vibe watching him…
 
If Jazz can't move up from 9, I'd stay put there but trade 16, 28 and future 1st, to move up to 10 or 11. That way, we could draft some good players. Players that actually makes sense for us, not like boneheaded drafting like DL did with Doke.
 

He tried to recreate the Warriors with the Hawks. No idea how much imput he would have with the Wizards, but if he does he might push for high level versatile shooters. I'm not really sure there are many/any of those in the Wizards range of the draft? Gradey Dick... I guess? Jordan Hawkins as a proxy to Klay? Taylor Hendricks might be the best bet at 8.
 
Last edited:
Gradey Dick is the next Kevin Huerter. Surprisingly athletic, pure shooter who can stay in front of his man.

Huerter is the closest thing the league has to Klay Thompson. So I wouldn't be shocked if the Wizards pursue Dick.

Besides... Wizards + Dick sounds a little MAGIC MIKE 4 to me.
 
My main concern with him is I get too much Exum vibe watching him…

I don’t think you’re totally off base for saying that, there are some similarities, but it still doesn’t surprise me that team is willing to take a chance on an Exum-ish prospect in the late lottery. Bilal’s physical tools, mentality, and high level experience are all much better than Exum.
 
Top