I think GG's draft range would normally start at 10. The question is whether he's as good a draft prospect as Gradey Dick and Cason Wallace. For some teams, he might be.
2023 NBA Draft Megathread
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I think GG's draft range would normally start at 10. The question is whether he's as good a draft prospect as Gradey Dick and Cason Wallace. For some teams, he might be.
For some it is. Most of the real ones still have their feet on earth.
The talent is real but so is the bust potential. Hard no on drafting him at 9. If the Jazz had only one pick I’m not sure if even consider drafting him at all.
Is there a specific game you're referring to here, or just making **** up?
Paging Dr. Hardy....Will is probably the best coach in the league to help him mature without breaking him.
My biggest concern is he truly a selfish player? Markkannen is now the culture. Does he clash strong with it? I don't want to draft someone where the personality is diameterically opposed to Lauri and is not willing to be led by a coach.
Brice is actually good at scoring, like really good, and we **** on him for not being good at other things. Fair enough. Those other things matter. But if he was awful at scoring, would we ignore that he’s awful at everything else? That’s what we’re doing with GG. His scoring is so bad it’s all we talk about. We don’t talk about how his defense, passing, and everything else about his game was awful.
For the record, I do think GG will get drafted pretty high and I honestly think we’re a strong candidate to do it. I don’t like it, but I think it’s somewhat likely. These types of prospects can very easily entice one team, and that’s all it takes. Ziaire duped Memphis. If they ever make it in the NBA, it is not on the back of their “star” potential but actual their potential to drop that out of their game entirely and switch to a role player.
For the record, I do think GG will get drafted pretty high and I honestly think we’re a strong candidate to do it. I don’t like it, but I think it’s somewhat likely. These types of prospects can very easily entice one team, and that’s all it takes. Ziaire duped Memphis. If they ever make it in the NBA, it is not on the back of their “star” potential but actual their potential to drop that out of their game entirely and switch to a role player.
This is a legit question, what is the talent you were seeing? He was legit awful at scoring. Struggling to find other parts of his game that would be considered talent.
There is a big difference between being skilled but dumb and being an unskilled athlete. GG is obviously skilled but dumb. It remains to be seen what the result is but the environment he lands in will determine his outcome more than most.
If we didn’t have multiple picks and an insane early development track record I’d probably hard pass on GG. But don’t deny your senses when you watch GG highlights or see his measurements. He is a real basketball talent.
The article I posted was specifically after an 11-point loss to Vanderbilt. They were down 20 at half and GG went 1/7 from the field and 0/6 from 3 in 16 mins of play. Try to keep up.
Vanderbilt 75-64 South Carolina (Feb 14, 2023) Box Score - ESPN
Box score for the Vanderbilt Commodores vs. South Carolina Gamecocks NCAAM game from February 14, 2023 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.
Sometimes you have to make qualitative assessments. If you watch him play and you don’t see the talent then there’s no point in trying to convince you. Players his size rarely move like him or have ball skills like he has.
If self-creating means bricking a ton of shots then he might be the best self-creator in the draft.
Dude GG Jackson is 6'9 215 pounds. He can self create and score at all 3 levels. Yes his defense currently is not great but with his body type and size he has potential to be a great defender if he puts in the work. Is he a polished finished product? Absolutely not. But guys with his size and skills don't usually fall past the top 5. GG's bust potential is there no doubt. But I don't want to play it safe in the draft anymore. I don't want to take nice role players like a Grady Dick or Cason Wallace. Let's shoot for the stars. If GG busts will it set the Jazz back? Yup it will. But if he hits you have a player who can become one of the top wing players in the NBA. That's kind of important right now in today's league. Stop settling on safe prospects that don't move the needle. Go big or go home. If GG Jackson is there at 9 you happily take him and don't look back.
One simple exercise y'all can do is look at players who were drafted their Sophomore/Junior/Senior seasons. Not every great player in the history of the NBA was a good player their Freshman seasons.
What if Donovan Mitchell went to South Carolina and tried to be a first option his Freshman year? What would have happened? Do you think that scenario completely changes his future and prevents him from developing further? I would say no. Part of this game is projecting off **** that isn't clear.
So yeah, you can be completely married to college production for your projections, but that isnt going to get you 100% accurate results (nothing will to be clear). You have to look past a lot with GG, and I get why that's hard. The dude played like a moron at South Carolina. The team was very bad, but he could have done more to make his teammates better. He just isnt there yet. IDK if he will ever be TBH, but I see the talent for scoring and defense and it's enough to bet on because I don't really see that level of talent anywhere outside the top 5 or so prospects
What if Donovan Mitchell went to South Carolina and tried to be a first option his Freshman year? What would have happened? Do you think that scenario completely changes his future and prevents him from developing further? I would say no. Part of this game is projecting off **** that isn't clear.
So yeah, you can be completely married to college production for your projections, but that isnt going to get you 100% accurate results (nothing will to be clear). You have to look past a lot with GG, and I get why that's hard. The dude played like a moron at South Carolina. The team was very bad, but he could have done more to make his teammates better. He just isnt there yet. IDK if he will ever be TBH, but I see the talent for scoring and defense and it's enough to bet on because I don't really see that level of talent anywhere outside the top 5 or so prospects
I don’t see the obvious skill. Or at least skills that are not once removed from actual production.
Like you can say he’s good at creating his own shot? But that is useless if you are creating awful offense. His ballhandling is good….but again one of the worst passers in the draft and also doesn’t get to the rim well. What does it amount to? Nothing at all really. Physical tools good (kinda) but completely awful at things those physical tools are supposed to help you with (finishing around the rim, defense, rebounding, stocks).
If GG makes it in the NBA, I think it will be as a spot up shooter/guy who attacks closeouts. But he’s also not a great shooter, and he has to make major developments outside of scoring related things to be NBA level. When you look at guys who really hit later on in the draft, they are almost never of this archetype (the guy who has “talent” but stunk it up). When these guys do make it, it’s as a role player. There are for more guys who become stars that ironically fell because people thought they had low potential. I really do think we have this talent/potential thing a little backwards….or that it’s very easy to miss on.
And to add to this, remember GG's Freshman year age is the typical prospect senior year of HS, hell junior year for some of these dudes.
This is really the best point you can make about GG. He’s super young which is intriguing for sure.
If the Jazz don't draft GG then I suspect Dallas will. The Danny Ainge mindset is not draft super do it all scrubs like Black. He wants scorers usually even flawed ones. Brown has some bad numbers in college but he went with him. If for Black we are going to put in a lot of effort to get him to shoot then Ainge would probably think why not do that kind of effort for GG instead?
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SoberasHotRod
Well-Known Member
I don't like GG, and really hope we don't draft him 9. I think the end of the lottery is when teams start to reach for potential, and end up drafting busts more often than not.
That said, I think this post is why GG would be in the conversation for me at 16 if he is still there. I understand he might not be there.
The overwhelming majority of players who suck their freshman year do make the incredible improvements needed to make it in the NBA. You know about the ones who do, but you don’t consider the overwhelming majority of freshman players who aren’t good and also don’t improve enough to be NBA players. Exceptions are exceptions for a reason.
GG is the same age as as Miller when he was a junior or whatever. Ok…well it would be an insane, incredible development to get to Miller’s level as a college player two years from now. And it’s not just Miller who he would need massive improvements to get to the same level. He would need massive improvements to get to Hendricks level, or Dick, Brice, Jett etc. These improvements do happen sometimes, but not often.
If GG had a ready made skill the NBA that could get him on the court I’d feel differently. Maybe his spot up shooting is that thing, but his defense was also downright horrendous and nowhere near NBA level.
And if you want exceptional talent sometimes you have to make some exceptions happen.
Reads like something you find on a suburban mom's coffee mug.
If you're drafting GG in attempt to get a star, you're betting on exceptions piled upon more and more exceptions. Better bets out there to become stars.