2024 NBA Draft Mega Thread

[Saint Cy of JFC]

The Ringer put Stephon Castle at #4 in their latest mock. I'm going to be honest, I think Brice Sensabaugh is a better player. Brice is a more confident and versatile offensive player. His ability to get to his spots and create scoring opportunities for himself also opens up passing opportunities. He's able to use his bigger frame to compete for rebounds at a high level. So for me, the question becomes: how remarkable does Stephon Castle's defense need to be in order for the Jazz to want to play him ahead of Brice?

I guess we'll see what happens, but I'm not sure I'd make Castle a high priority if I'm the Jazz.

Famously you can only play one wing at a time, especially if they are skilled with the ball.

 

[sip]

The Ringer put Stephon Castle at #4 in their latest mock. I'm going to be honest, I think Brice Sensabaugh is a better player. Brice is a more confident and versatile offensive player. His ability to get to his spots and create scoring opportunities for himself also opens up passing opportunities. He's able to use his bigger frame to compete for rebounds at a high level. So for me, the question becomes: how remarkable does Stephon Castle's defense need to be in order for the Jazz to want to play him ahead of Brice?

I guess we'll see what happens, but I'm not sure I'd make Castle a high priority if I'm the Jazz.

I completely disagree. I was a huge fan of Brice last year and if he stays healthy he has a very bright future here but that doesn't mean that we don't desperately need a guy like Castle. Defensively he is that good but also offensively he is pretty damn good and can play 3 positions comfortably. There shouldn't be a decision of having to choose Castle or Brice for minutes with the position versatility that Castle brings to the table. There are plenty of minutes to go around with hopefully Clarkson and Dunn out of the rotation.

 

[rocfan1]

KOC writing like Sexton not in the future Jazz plans.

Is he!?

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

Is he!?

Justin Zanik said he had grown into a top 50 player. Make what you want of that. So if they do move him I’d expect it to be for a lot. Even if they took Topic you could see what you had before making major roster decisions. Plenty of duos were theoretically electric but one player or the other was a disappointment .

 

[whatthe]

I am liking Cody Williams. He moves fast and light for his size (which is what I liked about Bilal initially). Ferg is right, this guy will be pretty good.

 

[Ferguson_Mellochill]

Famously you can only play one wing at a time, especially if they are skilled with the ball.

You can only start one of them at the 2. The Jazz are also invested in Lauri and Taylor at the forward spots. It would seem to be less of a priority to draft a top 10 guy to be a backup 2/3, at least at this stage of the rebuild. Plus, I just don't think Castle is that compelling a prospect in general.

 

[Ferguson_Mellochill]

I am liking Cody Williams. He moves fast and light for his size (which is what I liked about Bilal initially). Ferg is right, this guy will be pretty good.

He's not the explosive athlete or two-way presence that Bilal is, but he's the slinky, smooth, versatile scorer in this draft, more like a Brandon Ingram. He has the potential to create advantages with the ball in his hands. That's something the Jazz desperately need.

 

[Ferguson_Mellochill]

Wow, I don't agree with the way you look at this. If a guy can't play defense, it's extremely difficult to be a positive impact player in the NBA. Brice has been a little bit ok and a little bit awful on defense so far. I would say it's still a question mark whether or not he can be a good enough defender to get more than spot minutes on a good NBA team.

If a guy is a liability on defense, then he needs to not only be a great offensive player, but he has to be better than the other offensive players on the court to make a difference. In other words if Brice is on the floor with Lauri and Sexton he would have to be such a great offensive player that taking possessions out of their hands would make a positive impact. A great defensive player only needs to be average on offense to still be an impactful player in the NBA.

Is Castle really going to be at least an average offensive player? Or is he a big guard who's a reluctant shooter and slightly below average from 3pt range? I understand he's playing on a top-ranked team and not overly asserting himself as a result, but some of his comparables include guys like Bruce Brown, Justise Winslow and Troy Brown Jr. I think he's a backup, defensive-minded 2/3, at least on a high-level playoff team.

If you look at who the Jazz prioritize in their rotation and in their last draft, they want guys who can really shoot.

 

[rocfan1]

Justin Zanik said he had grown into a top 50 player. Make what you want of that. So if they do move him I’d expect it to be for a lot. Even if they took Topic you could see what you had before making major roster decisions. Plenty of duos were theoretically electric but one player or the other was a disappointment .

Agree, I don't think that comment means we intend him to be part of our core. The issue I am still wrestling with is the fact that our Backcourt is bad defensively, and we will not take a significant step forward until we improve our backcourt defense. Turnover in our backcourt is inevitable. Our coaching staff is great but I'm not sure how much they can maximize this roster defensively. We can't just rely on the Kris Dunn boost for long.

 

[sip]

Is Castle really going to be at least an average offensive player? Or is he a big guard who's a reluctant shooter and slightly below average from 3pt range? I understand he's playing on a top-ranked team and not overly asserting himself as a result, but some of his comparables include guys like Bruce Brown, Justise Winslow and Troy Brown Jr. I think he's a backup, defensive-minded 2/3, at least on a high-level playoff team.

If you look at who the Jazz prioritize in their rotation and in their last draft, they want guys who can really shoot.

He will be an above average offensive player within a few years. He has become underrated on that end of the court because he has bought fully into being a team guy.

 

[SoberasHotRod]

Is Castle really going to be at least an average offensive player? Or is he a big guard who's a reluctant shooter and slightly below average from 3pt range? I understand he's playing on a top-ranked team and not overly asserting himself as a result, but some of his comparables include guys like Bruce Brown, Justise Winslow and Troy Brown Jr. I think he's a backup, defensive-minded 2/3, at least on a high-level playoff team.

If you look at who the Jazz prioritize in their rotation and in their last draft, they want guys who can really shoot.

Yes, I believe Castle will be at least an average offensive player. When I look at his shot, I don't think it's broken, and I think he has a chance to be a good/great offensive player as well. Even if he's just ok then he can still fit in as a 5th starter and play an important role on the team. I think it's far less likely that Brice becomes an effective starter quality player in the league for the reasons in my other post.

I disagreed then, and disagree now with the Jazz's priority of drafting shooters vs getting all around players. We are currently one of the worst defensive teams in the NBA. We currently don't have the players to put together competent defensive lineups.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

Agree, I don't think that comment means we intend him to be part of our core. The issue I am still wrestling with is the fact that our Backcourt is bad defensively, and we will not take a significant step forward until we improve our backcourt defense. Turnover in our backcourt is inevitable. Our coaching staff is great but I'm not sure how much they can maximize this roster defensively. We can't just rely on the Kris Dunn boost for long.

Yeah I think you have to live with it though until an obvious upgrade is available or in the development pipeline. I asked some folks for potential Sexton deals several times and no one was able to put one out there. I think you’d almost surely be taking a step back or two talent wise and if we are doing that then what exactly is the plan.

If Topic fell that far you’d probably just have to take him whether you wanted a guard or not. Would fit our opportunistic mode of operation.