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Following potential 2015 draftees

Handlogten's Heros said:
All it takes is Mudiay out playing him in workouts and a team falling in love with WCS... I think both ny and la could go with WCS.
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Yep. Also bigs rises as we get closer to the draft? I can sorta see this panning out:

1. Okafor
2. Towns
3. Mudiay
4. WCS - to a team that needs a defensive anchor, on the back of Gobert's success in Utah i.e., Minny
5. Johnson - to a team that already has a future PG i.e., Orlando
6. Russell
 
Hi all! Been lurking for a bit, thought I'd join you in your talks about the draft!

I think Okafor and Towns are the clear cut best players in the draft, with Towns having more NBA potential than Okafor. We don't have a chance at either though. :(

I would love to get Russell...seems like he can do everything, except he's not a very good defender and will his athleticism hold him back? And will he have bad habits from playing hero ball for OSU?

Stanley Johnson should be a great defender, but I'm wary of his offensive skills. Same with Winslow. I don't know much about the Europeans, but Hezonja seems like he will be an elite offensive player. I think I would actually prefer him to Russell.

Tell me what you think!!!
 
Howard said:
Hi all! Been lurking for a bit, thought I'd join you in your talks about the draft!

I think Okafor and Towns are the clear cut best players in the draft, with Towns having more NBA potential than Okafor. We don't have a chance at either though. :(

I would love to get Russell...seems like he can do everything, except he's not a very good defender and will his athleticism hold him back? And will he have bad habits from playing hero ball for OSU?

Stanley Johnson should be a great defender, but I'm wary of his offensive skills. Same with Winslow. I don't know much about the Europeans, but Hezonja seems like he will be an elite offensive player. I think I would actually prefer him to Russell.

Tell me what you think!!!
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Welcome bro!!! Great to have you join our discussion!!!


I think Russell might be smart/savvy enough to not let his lack of athleticism bother him at the next level. As long as he can shoot his 3pt shot consistently and continue to find guys for assists I think he'll still be a solid pro!!!
 
Here's some footage from Vezenkov's last game. His shot is really really nice(He's No. 14 in yellow):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aScNa8tkR0
 
stitches said:
Here's some footage from Vezenkov's last game. His shot is really really nice(He's No. 14 in yellow):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aScNa8tkR0
Click to expand...


OK, but is he more Sergei Karasev or Mario Hezonja? The reason we're all jumping up and down when we see Hezonja play is his freakish athleticism, and being able to physically match NBA players defensively and offensively.


Karasev was touted as a great shooter but hasn't done much in the NBA to date.
 
Howard said:
Hi all! Been lurking for a bit, thought I'd join you in your talks about the draft!

I think Okafor and Towns are the clear cut best players in the draft, with Towns having more NBA potential than Okafor. We don't have a chance at either though. :(

I would love to get Russell...seems like he can do everything, except he's not a very good defender and will his athleticism hold him back? And will he have bad habits from playing hero ball for OSU?

Stanley Johnson should be a great defender, but I'm wary of his offensive skills. Same with Winslow. I don't know much about the Europeans, but Hezonja seems like he will be an elite offensive player. I think I would actually prefer him to Russell.

Tell me what you think!!!
Click to expand...

Well Howard, welcome! And if you're someone's alt, welcome just the same.

I think teams at the top of the draft are looking for talent that can't be gotten any other way, but through the draft.

I'm questioning whether guys like Johnson or Winslow are really different and better than talent that's available later in the draft and around the league. For example, are these guys really better than James Young who went mid-1st round last year? Or Harrison Barnes, who has been disappointing. Or even a role player like Demarre Carroll or James Johnson?

I'm not saying these guys don't have value. But why should they get drafted ahead of guys like Porzingis, Turner, Hezonja and others who have elite potential? How much room do they really have to improve if the quickness, explosiveness and shooting touch aren't there?

So I could see Johnson dropping to the 8-10 range and Winslow going late lottery.
 
Catchall said:
Well Howard, welcome! And if you're someone's alt, welcome just the same.

I think teams at the top of the draft are looking for talent that can't be gotten any other way, but through the draft.

I'm questioning whether guys like Johnson or Winslow are really different and better than talent that's available later in the draft and around the league. For example, are these guys really better than James Young who went mid-1st round last year? Or Harrison Barnes, who has been disappointing. Or even a role player like Demarre Carroll or James Johnson?

I'm not saying these guys don't have value. But why should they get drafted ahead of guys like Porzingis, Turner, Hezonja and others who have elite potential? How much room do they really have to improve if the quickness, explosiveness and shooting touch aren't there?

So I could see Johnson dropping to the 8-10 range and Winslow going late lottery.
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Thanks for the welcome!

I understand your points about Johnson and Winslow, and agree to a point. I don't see the elite potential in Myles Turner that you do, he just doesn't seem that great to me. I would say at the minimum, Johnson and Winslow have shown a higher BBall IQ compared to Young or even Barnes. What makes them good prospects to me is their elite defense. I don't remember with Johnson, but I know Winslow played very well with the U18 team that won gold...I do like his talent, although I don't think he'll ever be elite. He'll be a solid starter that plays exception defense. Those guys are why I wish college basketball had rules more like baseball...you can either go pro right away, or go to college for at least 3 years. It would be good for college and pro basketball. I don't know anything about Porzingis, so I can't comment on him.

You make good points though! Thanks for replying :)
 
ONE LOVE said:
OK, but is he more Sergei Karasev or Mario Hezonja? The reason we're all jumping up and down when we see Hezonja play is his freakish athleticism, and being able to physically match NBA players defensively and offensively.


Karasev was touted as a great shooter but hasn't done much in the NBA to date.
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He's neither... he's a 6'9'' stretch 4, with developing post game, who can rebound. He's not very athletic, but he is an efficient volume scorer(at least at the level he's been playing so far). He can possibly play 3, but I don't think he's fast enough to guard 3s in the NBA.

Edit: it's kind of weird for me to describe him as a stretch 4, because in Europe he does it all... He shoots off the dribble, midrange jumpers, 3s, he drives and posts up, he shoots turn around jumpers from the post, but I kind of see him as a stretchy 4 type on NBA level. It's hard to predict how he will translate in the NBA because he is not the most athletic guy on the floor even in his games in Greece, but he's crafty and smart enough to make it all work. If he can translate all he does well in Europe to the US, he'd be a steal in the second round. But that's really the reason he's a second round prospect - his athleticism and defense at the next level are under question.

edit2: BTW, Karasev was shooting 35-36% from 3 in Russia, and 42-44% from the field. Vezenkov is much better shooter than that. He shot 50/39/80 last season as an 18 year old and is shooting 53/43/74 this season on very high usage.
 
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James Young played almost no defense during his one year at UK. I'm not sure how you're comparing him to Stanley Johnson.
 
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