Speaker 1: What is up, Fellasiko's I am Dampa Valley coming at
you with as always the certified fantabias Grant, who's end
super excited to be joined by as we are now
every year Bleacher Report Draft guru Jonathan Wasserman follow him
on the social media machine at NBA Draft wass w
A S S spelled exactly as it sounds. Mister Wasserman,
thank you so much for making time for us. I
know it's a busy time of year for you around
these there might be a draft or something coming up.
Speaker 2: Rumor has it? How the heck are you doing?
Speaker 3: I'm good, I'm good. I'm always joined for you guys,
But yeah, I'm good. I'm It's cool that we go
straight from the files and like two days later we're
into draft bote.
Speaker 2: I don't know. Cool is the word I use for it?
What do you use? Grant?
Speaker 4: I would say punishingly, relentless, I'd use two. But hey, also,
I don't know if you caught that, but Dan definitely
just verbal contracted you into doing every year, he said,
as we will do every year.
Speaker 5: So sorry, but that.
Speaker 1: Perpetuity too, Yeah, you're stinding, He didn't reject it.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I'm good.
Speaker 1: I'm good for an hour, So I wanted to start here.
We're actually grant you want to take this one.
Speaker 4: Yeah, so this is this is helpful for us non
draft experts that follow the league, but just don't. I
don't have anywhere near the sort of perspective on this
that you do. Last year, the narrative was, and I
think it turned out to be accurate, like there's not
a superstar in this draft. It's it's a It was
just even leading up to it, you know, eighteen months
prior to that draft, Oh, this class just isn't isn't great?
And just some people were even yeah right, actually I did.
I was like, was it Alex sar Like, so what
is the from from more of an inside like really
following this this type of thing perspective, how does this
class stack up and take that any direction you want?
Speaker 5: Is there a superstar?
Speaker 3: Like?
Speaker 5: Probably?
Speaker 4: But like where does this draft class sit relative to
last year, relative to like the last ten or a
dozen or however far back you want to go?
Speaker 3: All right, So it's like always hard to measure draft classes,
Like you could have like a couple of stars at
the top and then nobody or then you could have, like,
you know, twenty five really good role players. It is
that better than the class that has a couple of
starts at the top. I would just if we're to good,
separate into like a good and bad. This is definitely
a good, like this is a a There's obviously potential
stars at the top, way more than last year, of course,
And I think Cooper is the real deal, somebody that
he's been like in front of our faces since he
was fifteen years old. It's not like he just like
blew up out of nowhere or even like Wemby where
people didn't really get to see him, you know, on
like a big stage until you know, like the year
before the draft. We've seen Cooper flag with USA basketball
for so long, and every year he gets better and
every year the hype goes higher. So we're all good
with him. And dyl Harper is the same way he's been,
like he's been a big name for so long, and
he's never really let us down. Every you know, he's
always getting a little bit better. And then it gets
a little bit tricky with the next handful of guys,
but I still think that there's a lot of confidence
in them. And then as you move down the board
like there's this is a good year to have a
first round pick. I mean, I really don't see much
of a difference between some of the guys in the
twenties and some of the guys in the teens and that,
And I'm saying that as a as a positive, right,
Like I think that you can have you can get
a lottery caliber guy in the early twenties. So I'm
usually I feel like I've become like over my older years,
as I get gray in my beard, like more of
a pessimist. But I'm feeling good this year, Like I
think there's a lot of good a lot of good players.
And even with you know, I'm sure we're going to
get into nil and a lot of these guys going back,
which naturally reduces the depth of this of this class
or whatever. I still think this is you can get
like good players in the second round.
Speaker 1: Well let's go there, since you mentioned the nil stuff
and guys going back, and I think in the long
run that might be bet It's better for agents, I'm sure,
but also better for college basketball if you want people
to be sort of married to their fandom of a
program rather than a turnover is it maial. Some people
say that it's materially impacted though the depth of this class,
and they think it's gonna get even more impactful moving forward.
When you're looking at maybe end of first round, second
round type guys, do you do you agree with that?
Speaker 3: I think every year it's going to change. Like this
year there happens to be a lot of really good freshmen.
Next year there might not be as many good a
freshmen and guys might not go back to college because
they have a much better chance of going first round.
So this year, by the way, the models, I'm into
the model, Like, I think it's pretty cool. I mean,
next year, as a college basketball guy and somebody who
wants other people to watch college basketball, and I can't
even get my best friends to watch five minutes of it,
you know, it's it's gonna be much better next year.
There's like some big names that came back. First round
caliber guys will be back. I'm so into the transfer
portal thing, like with I know, like old heads are
going to be like you know, there's no continuity and
you never know who's on what team, but it's fun.
It's like fantasy sports. It's like every year these guys
are building new teams and new players are playing with
different guys. But yeah, I mean this year, a lot
of guys that that would be considered like first round
caliber prospects went back because they're going to make more money,
you know, to make Some of these guys are making
like two million dollars and they're just and they're like
borderline first round picks. So there's no doubt that there
will make more money in college than they will in
the NBA. So a lot of these decisions made sense.
And uh, you know, it's guys pros and cons, but
I'm into it. I think the pros that way the
cons do.
Speaker 1: I like it better when they only did it for
the love of the game. It's just such a mistake
for the love of the game.
Speaker 5: This is an issue.
Speaker 4: I am one of those people that, just like you know,
with following the NBA, following college basketball has become like,
I don't know where it falls on my list of
non NBA sports, but it's gotten harder and harder. But
doesn't it doesn't it stand to reason that if these
borderline guys that are that are going back because I
can make two million dollars versus maybe I'm a second
round or will there be a class at some point,
you know, the you know, the next handful of years. Well,
those guys do go back and they get better and
they make money, which is great for them. And then
it's like, oh my god, we have six juniors in
the lottery, like, which is just unheard of because those
guys do you Like, isn't that a possibility where you
have more upperclassmen actually? And then maybe teams are like, great,
this guy's ready, he can actually help us, like that
does just have that type of player.
Speaker 3: If that does happen, then then it's a really bad
freshman class.
Speaker 5: Right, Okay, people are still going upside right.
Speaker 3: I mean like yeah, I mean that's still the case, right,
there's still a lot of freshmen in this in this
first round. But I was looking at the numbers. It's
really more about like the back end of the first
round in the second round, Like a couple of years ago,
for like, there was like a six year stretch where
only like maybe four to six seniors will be taken
in the second round. Last year it was much more.
I think this year it'll be like in the teens.
So it's it's it changes things, but but still upside wins,
youth wins, but you got to show enough of it
during that one year. But this year there happens to
be this is a very strong freshman class. Next year
there's a couple of big guys at the top, and
then it's unclear, like right, like to your point, next year,
if the guys who are like, you know, the four, five,
six freshmen on the board are not as advertised, yeah,
that it could be a weird thing where we see
a lot of older guys you know, go higher at
the board and.
Speaker 2: Can grant you had an archetypal question, right.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I don't know if this is like a fair
question to ask because it's kind of esoteric too, Like,
but you know, seven eight years ago, you're looking at
the types of players everybody wants, and it's, well, how
do we keep up with the Warriors and the rockets
that play six foot six centers and space the floor
and everybody's got a switch and all that stuff. And
then you've cut to last year and maybe this is
class specific, but you have Edie and Klingon going pretty high,
and those guys are like they can't those guys feel
closer to Roy Hibbert, you know than like some of
the guys that have been drafted high more recently. So
trends change and the way the game is played changes.
I'm wondering if you maybe the best way to phrase
it is like, all things being equal, what kind of
skill set is like the tiebreaker now? And is that
it's like is it still just we want wings that
can do everything? Or is it like is there a
type of player you're seeing maybe just in this class
specifically or the last couple that maybe is regarded more
highly now as more of like the trendy player type
that teams are coveting, or is there just it's always
best player available.
Speaker 3: It's definitely always best player available. But yeah, there are trends.
I'm always under the belief and I have a good question,
Like I have a question for you guys, And this
is the same type of It's the same idea like
if Shack played in today today's league, like would Shack dominate?
Like in my mind, like if you give Shack the ball,
he's still going to dominate even though he's technically doesn't
have that like shoot dribble skill set. Teams wrong. I
don't know, Maybe I'm wrong but it's like one of
those theoretical questions that I.
Speaker 5: Just don't know.
Speaker 4: I mean, I think, like seven eight years ago, I
think that question would have been met with a lot
of like I don't I don't know. You know, the
way the game's played now, it's pays in space and
if you're a if you're a non stretch, non switch
big guy, you're just again Roy Hibbert's the comp but
it's like that guy's dominating the league and then two
years later he's out.
Speaker 5: But then I think, go ahead, I.
Speaker 3: Know, on the other hand, and it's like, you know,
the same thing with like mid range isn't cool anymore.
You know, it's threes in laps, but webs if you're
really really good in the mid range, and like you know,
like nobody plays post game, but like think of Embid
and his way, he's actually healthy. Like yeah, post, no
one's gonna feed you the ball on the post and
like everything slows down, but like if you're dominating the post,
you could still be good in the post. So you know,
I don't know if there is yes, the like Klan
and Edie going first going lottery last year was kind
of surprising, and I think it's become more accepted to
take guys like that who don't have that classic modern
skill set, and we're seeing every year, we're seeing like
a seven footer who's who is like the you know,
the Mitchell Robinson we're in New York, Damn. Like the
guy who just cat who took dunks and block shots
and he's not modern. But like those guys, that skill
set translates like almost feel like you can you know
exactly what you're getting and what you're getting carries over,
and I think that that holds weight. So you know,
Derek Lively and Mark Williams, like those guys all.
Speaker 1: Went, Stephen Adams, Steve Adams.
Speaker 3: I think there's there's something about there's something value about.
But we're just talking about big guys, that particular skill
set and just the fact that like you know, you
know it's going to carry over.
Speaker 1: Are we ready to dig in some specific prospects? And
I think I don't know loss if you're aware, but
there's someone named Cooper Flag. I think it's projected to
go number one.
Speaker 3: It's in my contract. I don't have to talk about
Cooper Flag for another year. But yeah, let's you talking
about it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, can you grade Brownie's rookie year performance.
Speaker 3: I'm surprised they didn't make me do a rookie report
on it.
Speaker 1: So I think this criticism feels like it's probably winnowed
a little bit. But are you do you subscribe to
the critique that maybe Flag is not a best player
on the best team type and is more of just
a guy who doesn't have a major weakness. Or is
that just a you know, a misrepresentation of what he
could do, especially after his empty gym shooting workout with
the Mavericks.
Speaker 3: Apparently, Listen, I think there are I think he can
be the best player on the best team as long
as you have a good supporting cast, right, there's so
many other variables he doesn't have that. I think we
get so caught up and like, can he be Jason Tittam,
you know, five seconds on the shot clock, give him
the ball and go get a bucket? Like can you
do that? Traditionally? Like that's not his strength. That doesn't
mean he can't be the best player on the team
because of how many other ways he impacts the game.
But but yeah, I think that that that question and
that concern really comes down to everyone's an obsession over
self creation, and I've kind of like over the years
devalued it a little bit, and it reminds me. I know,
there's obviously a lot of differences between the guys we
want to mention, but like Yiannis and Zion, I mean,
healthy Zion is dominant and he's not a great self creator.
They'll still give you, you know, a health design is
still going to dominate a game without being a guy
who is going to like work you on one on
one and pull up, you know, step back off the dribble.
So I think he can be the best player on
the best team of a good team, but you do
have to have some maybe better creators around him. You know,
there's there's other things involved there, But man, he is
he is like as complete as a prospect, both in
terms of skill, physical tools, athleticism, his his mind and
tangibles and stuff. Like I know, it's like a cliche
to say he doesn't have a weakness, Like he really
doesn't have anything to worry about with him. And of
course the other side of it is like how high
is the ceiling then? But I love those guys who
just get better every year, Like the big question kind
of grant what you said, Like the big question coming
into this year at Duke was can he be the
best player? Does he have that creation ability? Is he
a good enough shooter to be a number one overall pick?
Every single year he gets better at those things and
knowing who he is, where his background and stuff, And
you're just betting on the same type of development I
saw from fifteen to eighteen, Like if he goes at
the same rate, he is going to be a number
one option by the time he's He's still he just
turned eighteen, and it's like the craziest thing to even
think about, Like he's going to play five years in
the NBA and be twenty two, so he could be
a totally different guy in five years. And just again
his the ability to improve that I guess that could
be a skill too, and he had he aces that test,
like the ability to improve.
Speaker 1: I guess you kind of answered this too, But where
do you I think part of it is the injury
with the team he's going to go to in Dallas
with Kyrie injured, where do you land on him as
just a playmaker?
Speaker 2: Because I think probably because Dallas is the number one pick.
Speaker 1: I went back and watched a bunch of like Cooper
flag passing, and he was a little bit more dynamic
there when I was expecting than I was expecting. But
do you view him as someone who can be the
driver of an offense in that regard? And I guess
the second part of that is, do you think it's
worth like can is he someone who could be trying
by fired in that or through? The Mavericks need to
go get another playmaker while Kyrie's injured, to like sort
of insulate him and ensure his workload isn't too heavy.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean, ideally he's not your like lead playmaker.
It's something he can do, but he's not like a
a point guard, you know. It's it's a it's an
extra layer to his game that that separates him from
guys who are six ten and lockdown defensively and fly
above the rim and we'll play through you, you know,
in the way to the hoop. Like it's a it's
an extra layer that that really is pretty cool because
first of all, he's gotten so much better shooting in
the mid range, which I love for a pick and
roll ball handler. His brain is processing and the passing
has always been there, and the passing to me is
something that always translates, So yeah, you can use him
in that spot. But uh yeah, yeah, he's not I
don't know if his handle is good enough where it's like, okay,
give him, you know, twelve pick give him twelve ball
screens a game, and let's just run everything through him.
So yeah, you're gonna need another another, uh like real
ball handler point guard. But when he's playing, when he's
playing power forward and being guarded against six ten guys,
that ability to create off the balance and make reads
and decisions with the ball, it's like very advantageous and.
Speaker 4: You can't get away with guarding him with a with
a wing or a small right like that's just off
the table because of how he uses his size and like.
Speaker 3: Yeah, all right, maybe early on, maybe like when he's
eighteen and nineteen, but yeah, when he fills out and
gets even stronger, he like loves contact. He's so good
at playing through it, and he doesn't even he's one
of those guys like kind of like Zion where it's
like he doesn't need like these fancy ball handling moves.
He gets, he does the right move to get to
his spot, and then he's just so good at just
like plowing through you and finishing with body control or
tough layups. So yeah, I'm excited about that part of
his game.
Speaker 4: Yeah, you're ready to jump to Dylan Harper? Dan, you
got more on Flag? We've already already had talk too
much about Flag. It's like, what are we doing there?
Speaker 3: Whatever?
Speaker 2: What else do we need to know about Cooper Flag?
Speaker 4: Yeah, Harper's really interesting to me. One because I'm a
I'm a long standing Ron Harper fan, just one of
my favorite deep cut like role player guys ever. But
like so two parter, I guess he can move, he
can get to his spots. The jumper is a question. Uh,
just the numbers are what they are, and the form
is like it feels flat and all this other stuff.
So what are your thoughts on his potential as just
specifically like just say a three point shooter and maybe
we can get it off the dribble three point shooting
if you want to get you know, more granular. And
then assuming he goes to to the spurs, which feels
like if that's what's gonna happen, but who knows, how
does his what's the interplay gonna be?
Speaker 3: Like?
Speaker 4: In your estimation between him and Steph Castle, who's coming
off Rookie of the Year. The questions with him are
about the jump shot too, like which of the two
would you expect to see developed more as like the
on ball guy versus the off ball guy, because if
you both have shooting questions like how does that? What's
what's the likeliest way that shakes out?
Speaker 3: Yeah? On paper, listen, it's it's a tough fit on paper,
Usually good players figure it out. And so if you're
san Antonio, you just kind of you bet on that.
And I'm always like, take the best player available and
you figure it out later if you have to, if
you have to make a trade later on, like you
make a trade. But one of the things with with Harper,
just based on this one year, he was very efficient
off the ball, like good, good spot up shooter. He
does well with those dribble handoffs. So I'm not as
concerned about the fit between Fox and Uh and Harper.
I guess the bigger concern is does this stunt the
development of Castle because He's gonna suddenly like a big
selling point to Castle coming out of Yukon and I
you guys probably watched way more Castle than I did
this past year, So I know.
Speaker 2: The show the player.
Speaker 3: That's actually not a bad Uh, maybe I should go
that's a good throwback show to get involved in. My
dad always like Castle, but like he's that show, such
a dad show, but like not like a young like
young dad show. That's like a our dad.
Speaker 1: We all used to juice the ratings of it though,
before those TNT games, when it'd be ending just as
the TNT games to be started.
Speaker 3: It's so good, yeah, but like no, he's never like
he's gonna you throw Harper in there, and suddenly Castle
is just naturally gonna be spending more time off the ball,
And I don't know if that's one of his strengths.
I've always thought one of the big selling points to
Castle was like the positional size for a guy who
can play point wing. That's what I remember seeing him
in high school for the first time. It being like,
holy crap, this guy is like powerful, strong, and he's
making these like crosscour passes and that wasn't even his
role at Ukon, but you could see that was an
interesting part of his game. So anyway, I think I
think Harper can play off the ball. I'm not worried
about that. You just worry about what this does to Castle,
who was now obviously a key building block for that
team and somebody who I thought had upside as a creator,
but also a lot more to learn and to get
better at. And you know he's gonna have less chances.
Speaker 1: Ace Bailey, there's wild stuff coming out about him right now.
Speaker 5: You did?
Speaker 1: I saw you post on Twitter, and I think that
was like good perspective of teams understand that this isn't
Ace Bailey, this teenager making all these decisions on his own.
But like, how much does this actually we've now seen
him like slide down a bunch of boards. It's like
before even getting into like what you think he could
be as a prospect or an NBA player, Like, how
much is all this stuff truckling out actually impacting one
NBA teams's view of him and then two where he'll
ultimately get selected.
Speaker 3: So the people I've talked to are like, if Philly
passes non named, Charlotte's not, and I don't even know
if that's until that's just like people are like expecting
him to go top three all year and if he
slides to Charlotte, who is kind of desperate, and everybody
had this idea that Bailey. Most people around the league
always had him as you know, in that in that
same tier with Dylan and and VJ. You know, I
let's let's just say what it is. This is a Jonathan
Cavoni report, and he put it out there and he
changed the narrative. And there's I'm not questioning anything Cavoni does.
I've always had respect for him, but he throughout this
report out there and put him at six and it
changed the whole narrative of the NBA draft conversation. I
don't know if he knows anything of what Charlotte's thinking
or what Utah is thinking from people from and probly
the way this is the problem with draft reporting is
you're always going off rival teams, right like, like if
I hear from a team and they tell me something interesting,
I can't I'm not I can't say that out loud,
right like, I'll lose that connection. So you're always you're
always asking around the league to kind of get a
consensus and feel, but they're not in the same building.
So it's you know, it's like a weird it's it's
it's not like great journalism, but you want to people
want to know what you're hearing. And what I'm hearing
is that there's no way he's going to slide past
Charlotte or Utah. But again, this is like an optic
optics thing, right, It's it's just like it's a bad
look from him, makes Ace Bailey look bad, and now
they're talking about him on like mainstream shows like PTI like,
I think it was a Will bond maybe the other day.
I hope it was well, but I don't want to
put anyone bad. Well they said, like I would never
want to never want to be a part of this kid,
Like I would never want somebody with that mindset on
my team. Like again, he's eighteen, he's listening to Sharif
Cooper's dad, who's never been an agent before he just
started it. He has no NBA players, He was a
grassroots coach and he from Georgia has a connection with
East Bailey. Like obviously there's a trust between them, they
have a deeper relationship. But and also I have you know,
I don't know what's going on inside of I've reached
out to Omar Cooper He's did obviously did not respond,
but like he may have. He may he obviously knows
way more than we do, and so maybe he knows
what he's doing, and maybe he wants him to fall
to Brooklyn. So he is a star in a big
in New York market. Like you know, there's so many
variables involved, But I don't think that. I don't think
teams are like gonna pass on him because he's like
a diva canceling workouts. I mean, there's so much state
on as Bailey. It's not again, this is forget the
thirty games that he played this year. As Bailey has
been such a high profile prospect for so long that
you know, nobody nobody's learning anything new from a workout,
so forget the workout. And and he actually has never
had a bad reputation in terms of character, like he's
always been a good kid. Nobody's ever said a bad
thing about him off the floor. So this is obviously
all agent driven. And I don't think a team, if
they really think Aast Bailey is the best player on
the board, is gonna be like that Omar Cooper. He's
a pain of the s or he thinks he's cocky.
We're gonna take somebody else. Like, I just can't picture
that happening.
Speaker 4: I have a lot of Bailey's Like it's even I think,
independent of this narrative stuff that's come up of the
last couple weeks, I guess Bailey to me, just watching
some of the film, I was wondering if, like, is
he gonna be someone that teams independent of the other
stuff look at and say, like, some of these weaknesses
are like real issues for an NBA player. If we
could imagine that none of this other non basketball stuff
had arisen, do you think it would just be ah,
he's going three and like or are there is it
your sense that there are teams that are looking at
him and like, well, he takes and makes takes and
sometimes makes difficult contested shots, doesn't look on balance all
the time, Like there's real Could you kind of take
us through some of the real questions, because like, I
don't know, maybe I'm just a pessimist, but when I
watched the film, it's like it's really hard for me
to unsee some of the stuff that would concern me
about him as a player.
Speaker 3: He's not top five on my board, so okay, I'm
not pro Bailey in terms of like you know the
comparisons coming into the season where Tracy McGrady and Paul
George and even Brandon Miller was one I used as
like a lighter one. So I'm not comparing him to
like a Hall of Famer, but his is I think
after what we saw like his the weaknesses change his
projected archetype. So now Michael Portera Jr. Is more of
the comp or even more of like a wing version
of Jabari Smith. Yeah, he's not very efficient with the
ball in his hands. He's not like, his moves are
not like super sharp, and they generally result in some
type of difficult jump shot. I don't want to be
all negative on him because again he's still eighteen. He
is going to be six or nine shoes, and he's
an incredibly skilled shot maker. And he also was very
efficient around the rim when he got there. He had
he shot very well in touchdouts around the paint, which
I love for a guy who's not an explosive athlete,
like he's going to need that. But what kills me,
I'm just pulling up right now, and I just I'm
big on this one number, and like historically it's pretty
overwhelming the evidence. So he has an eight point three
as sis percentage. I know his role is not to pass,
but his oraclely wings that have an assist percentage below
ten percent like are never star players. And I think
it says a lot about aside from the fact that
you know, the tunnel vision and can he get rid
of the tunnel vision? And maybe if he had better players,
maybe he passed more. But watch it, but like the
tape matches up, he doesn't even survey the you know,
It's like when he gets the ball, he's already deciding
I'm gonna score. I'm gonna shoot, regardless of what the
defenses is reading what he's seeing, and I think that's
such a bad quality. But also he just doesn't have
the the creativeness off the dribble to make plays for teammates.
And to me, that's going to result in like the
Michael Porter junior role where he's more of an off
ball guy as opposed to I mean, the McGrady comparison
was such a popular one. McGrady was like a point
guard who was like a point win out there. That
was what separated him, I think, aside from obviously the
shot making too, but a guy to give you five
assists per game. I don't think Billy had five assists
in any game he had a whole season, and for
a while it was like he never had more than
one for like the first twenty game or something like that.
Just it's not part of his game. I just from
a value standpoint, it's just it's just not it's not there.
So yeah, I got problems with that. I'm not saying
he's gonna be a bust. I just don't think that
he's gonna be. Like the if you're a score and
you don't really add value anywhere else, like you better
be a damn good efficient scorer. It gives you twenty
five plus a night on fifty percent shooting, and it's
the bet on that is a is a tough bet. Also,
knowing his kind of mindset, he also answer some questions,
like at the combine they asked him about like that
shot selection. He's like, no, I'm gonna keep shooting. I'm
a I'm a bucket. I forget exactly what he said,
but something along the lines of, like, you know, I know,
I'm my pet playmaking. He could have said my playmaking
is underrated and it would have been better than whatever
whatever he said, yeah.
Speaker 1: Does he have that ability because like you know the
comps now that you might mention if you're moving away
from the mcgrady's, does he have the ability to scale down?
Then it's not I'm not even talking about a mindset thing.
But when you look at him like the Michael Porter
Junior role, looking all the stuff he does at the ball,
do you think that he has like that bad way
to especially if he winds up with the sixers, like
those shots that he wants to take or those on
ball reps just aren't going to be available to him.
Speaker 3: And maybe that's why canceling workouts and doesn't want to
go there. I mean, I don't know, I don't know
exactly what he wants. It's from again, this is all
Govoni's reporting, So what's his bass on that? And he's
usually good, so he wants to have an easier path
to start him would suggests he's okay with going to
a shitty team and taking thirty shots a game and
playing his own his own game. And so if you
look at the board and you go past Philly, you
get to the Washington's and the Utahs and Brooklyn, and
it's like, man, they're going to give him the ball
right away and he gets to play his own game.
So you know, I don't know if he's going to
be able to how like how much he'll evolve and
how comfortable he'll be because going back to high school,
go watch his high school tape, it's wild. He would
he took some of the craziest shots you've ever seen,
like like you know, pulling up from like remember like
LaMelo ball type high school stuff. And it was he
was such a so much more of a skilled player
than anybody else on the team that it was like
it felt it just felt like like middle school basketball
when you have one really good kid and everyone else sucks, right,
and it was just like let that one kids. Let
that one kid just do whatever he wants. That's like
what it looked like. And so for him to be
in a new environment again, it he went to Rutgers
like he could have gone to a much better school
and had less reps. There's there's a pattern here, and
so uh, you know, I'm not I'm not saying he
doesn't have the skill set to do it, but does
he want to do it? Does he actually is he
willing to change his role? And uh, and and change
his game a little bit.
Speaker 4: I don't know.
Speaker 5: Let's go to VJ. Edgecombe, Dan, unless you want anything
else with.
Speaker 4: Please, well so yeah, this this, this, this will this
will telegraph it. But this is a question from Dan,
why is Edgecomb not just he's the third best guy
in this class? Like, why is he not regarded that way?
Speaker 5: Is it? Is it size? Is it here?
Speaker 4: We are back to self creation stuff? And then is
he someone that like defensively? Obviously the athleticism is there?
Is he someone that you would imagine being just a
like potentially Again we're always talking potential. Is it just
a two way guy that is going to bring it
as a disruptor defensively and be someone that can go
on the other end and and get buckets that way?
Speaker 3: He's number three on my board. I mean I again,
there's also a sense I always knew I like you,
And again it's part maybe it's more of a I
value like I know what I'm getting. You know, once
you start to move down the board, even at three,
there's you never want to you always want to make
sure you're getting something. And I think that with VJ,
like what he does well will translate. Now the question
is is he going to improve on the weaknesses that
will raise the ceiling. And yeah, like you said, I
think if there's questions about him, he's pretty, he's got
his two guard size, and he's not the most creative
player with the ball in his hands. Also, i'd say
if there's a big knock that worries me, there's the
two things that worry me is he's not a good
pull up shooter, and he actually was a very poor
finisher on laps despite the fact that he's crazy athletic.
I'm not gonna nippick And if you watch the tape,
like he obviously can pull off crazy finishes and he's
as explosive as it gets in this draft. But to me,
you're getting a guy who is a very good spot
up shooter, and I'm buying again another guy just keeps
getting better. I love that, So I would bet on
him continue to get better as a shot maker. But
right now he's already He made more threes in X
Bailey this year, by the way, and everyone Nace Bailey
was known to be like the super specialist shot maker,
and VJ hit more threes or average at least the
same amount per game. One point six, So I'm confident
in the shot making will be fine. And then you
throw in that burst off the dribble, the explosiveness, and
then the defense and a good makes good decisions. He
had a very good assistant turnover issue, averaged over three
assists per game, and that was without these creative handles
like he just you know, he doesn't He doesn't make
many unforced errors. And usually guys look like they are
so explosive, will will tap into it too much, right,
they'll try into traffic and they'll lose the ball, and
they'll they'll want to dunk on somebody every five minutes.
But he didn't. You know, he has a very good
feel and he's not crazy selfish, and everybody says great
things about him. And I'm I'm a Low Island guy,
so I've talked to a lot of people at lou
High where he went to high school, and everybody like
raves about his character. Of course, everybody, by the way,
everybody in the draft is high character.
Speaker 6: If you didn't know, but but but VJ from what
I've seen, also but really does And like again, you're
getting a definitely a guard, a guy who's going to
guard two to three positions effectively, and somebody's gonna put
pressure on the rim and make good decisions, make open shots,
like you just can't go wrong with.
Speaker 3: A player like that.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I feel like everybody freaks out. Maybe I'm projecting
anytime there's a guy who in the class that's like
he's a two and that's that's kind of it. And
then you start talking about his pluses and minuses and
it sounds like ben Ben Macklamore, Like Okay, that's that's
not the road we want to go down, because that
that was the first name that came to mine as
I was just kind of looking at the strings. I
think maybe Macklamore was regarded as a better shooter, but uh, yeah, I.
Speaker 5: Want to talk about Jeremiah Fears.
Speaker 4: Sorry Dan to co opt this one, but like he
is so interesting to me, just because one of the
circling back to like, oh, the player types that are
in vogue and are not small guards, it's not their moment.
Speaker 5: Right now, other than like Darius Garland.
Speaker 4: And it's just like I think the way the game's
played now, it's really hard for a smaller guard, even
if you're super quick to see all the passing angles
that you need to be able to see to play
the way the game's played now.
Speaker 5: So he's polarizing for that reason and some others.
Speaker 4: Can you give us the snapshot of Fears and then
if it's not too like, kind of tricky to do this,
who is someone that he reminds you of that overcame
the small guard stuff and succeeded. And who's someone where
you watch Fears and you're like, oh, he kind of
seems like this small guard that didn't like I don't know, tj.
Speaker 5: Ford.
Speaker 4: That's a bad case because he had injuries. But like
I'm doing some deep polls right now, Ben macklamore and
tj uh But who's like, who's someone Fears could be
on the upside and who's someone that you might be
concerned about him resembling on the downside.
Speaker 3: I mean, I think the one that I've heard and
I don't agree with it, but but like you know,
John Morant was the same type of like explosive ball
handler who wasn't a great shooter. Murran was a better
passer actually coming Mario State, Like, passing was such a
big part of his game and we don't really talk
about that as much in the NBA, But yeah, I
think that I've I've come to like Dejeante Maray as
his comp is kind of like what the type of
guy I expect who bring the offense and might not
be efficient, you might not play great defense. You know,
somebody who's going to produce. But whether it's whether he's
providing plus value, you're you're kind of unsure. I've I've
really I hate to do it because he's really really
another high character guy. He's also so young, and I
got to stay. I got to he was working out
in the city for his pre draft, so I got
to see him a lot in private settings and meet him,
and he's gonna like these private workouts, he's gonna blow
people away because he's so sharp and explosive, and of
course everybody is such a everybody is Kyle Korver in
an empty gym and he's working out with Mike Miller,
who's got him doing all these like awesome shooting drills,
and like you'd be like, oh, this guy's gonna be
a great. Historically, the guys with high turnover rates and
bad three point shooting who really don't offer off ball value,
it's such an uphill battle and So Scoot Henderson's a
guy I've talked a lot about in terms of comparing
like what his first couple of years are going to
look like. And I guess again, I haven't watched Scoot
really in the NBA. I know he had a better
second year, but still I think based on where everyone
thought Scoot went, everybody loves Scoot because he was like
this big, not big, strong, explosive ball handler, and I
think aesthetically it kind of fools people because he's such
a fun the highlights are so like captivating, but it
doesn't necessarily translate to efficient basketball, and he's the guy
that needs to make all the reads and decisions, and
he's not a great shooter, and he turns the ball
over a lot. So I've moved I hate to do it.
I've moved fares down into the teens for myself for
my board, and I like him enough where again, I
think he's gonna be a guy who puts up numbers,
and if you have him in the right role where
he's not like making all the decisions for your team,
he could be of use. But this idea that and
I know there are scouts out there who think he
is a top five pick in this draft. I know
his camp thinks he's a top five pick in this draft,
for sure. They're very confident that he's going early. I don't.
I would let somebody else take him, you know, but
I like him, Like maybe if he's like a coming
off the bench or you already have an established playmaker.
But yeah, he's got the shot. The range is a problem,
and he makes some crazy decisions. But again, it's tough
because he's so young. He's eighteen, and so he's the
type of guy like if you take him, you got
to accept the fact that he's going to have a
rough couple of first years, right, Like if you're a
point guard and you're not a combo because he's you're
not gonna take him and put him at the two.
He's not gonna guard anybody, and he's not a spot
up shooter like he take him because his one value
is putting pressure on the defense, creating advantages. But with
that are going to come sloppy plays, miss missed pull ups.
But yeah, I'm a little bit lower on him than
where I think he's going to go in the draft.
Speaker 4: As you're describing, he sounds like Rob Dillingham to me
or from from the little we saw this year in Minnesota.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean, I mean I didn't really see him
at all in Minnesota. But going back, like Dillingham was
a guy who they're also very was small, but like
in college, he was very efficient. Like I couldn't he
couldn't believe how efficient he was, especially another guy who's
we've seen so much of fears, we didn't see so
much of coming in, like he was not He was
not on draft boards coming into the year. I don't
even think people thought him as a point guard, to
be honest, but he like the way he moves with
the ball, just look differently when he got to Oklahoma.
And again he's one of those guys just like eye candy,
like so easy to watch, so fun to watch, but
how is it going to translate in a in a
high usage role. And by the way, he had a
lot of usage in Oklahoma and also a bad team
around him, so the mistakes were understandable. But he's gonna
go to the NBA, Like if he's a starting point
guard next year, expect him to shoot a low forty
percent and expect him to like you know, near near
the league leading turnovers.
Speaker 1: Another guy if I'm polarizing, and probably because I don't
think I would draft touch him with a ten foot
pole in this draft, is Trey Johnson. I recognize the
self creation, six', six the shop making Ability i've seen
comps To Tyler hero And Anfrey, simon's and from what
admittedly Little i've seen of, HIM i think his net
his team would be lucky if he turned into that
level of. Passer and So i'm just, like where are
you sort of at on? Him and is this he's
been mocked a lot in the top five if he's
someone who could maybe slip a little bit just because
of those concerns that are attached to his.
Speaker 3: ARCHETYPE i had a team tell me yesterday he's not
going to make it outside the top, six and they
were picking shortly after, that and they like. Him Trey
johnson is, like to, me, actually what's funny is that
the guy who said to, me WHICH i kind of disagree,
with he's, like he's a boom er bust. Guy to,
ME i don't necessarily see. THAT i see a guy who's,
LIKE i, know is gonna give me. Bucket he's going
to put the ball in the. BASKET i think the
question is is He Cam thomas or is he you,
know like a star level type of two. Guard BUT
i think he's good at score in THE nba no matter. What,
again another guy who historically a guy with like a
very low free throw, rate a very well better better
assist rate Than A's, bailey but he's strugg he didn't
get to the rim much and when he, did he wasn't
a great. Finisher so, again he's gonna rely a lot
on shot. Making right, NOW i think he's eleven on my. Board,
AGAIN i value LIKE i know What i'm, Getting LIKE
i Know i'm getting shot. Making i'm also not draft
like WHEN i do big, boards by the, WAY i
REALLY i want to say this every, time Like i'm
Not i'm not drafting FOR i should really do thirty
big boards because it depends on Who i'm drafting for
and so and who's around, him because it does affect
his first couple of years in the league and his
role and like how efficient he's going to. Be so
if he goes to the right team where he doesn't
have to be the number one option or number two
option like he was In, texas THEN i think he
could add really nicely complimentary shot making, Value but, YEAH i.
DO i do have concerns about the fact that he
does not get to the rim. Much he takes some
really tough. Shots Now i'm not buying. That i'm not
buying the playmaking, Either LIKE i. Don't this is not
part of HIS, Dna AND i know he can make
some really nice, passes but that's not enough to the
point where it's like you can even call him a
combo guard or put him in ball screen situations to
make reads and set the table like he's he's gonna make,
Money he's gonna earn his minutes because he can make jump.
Shots AND i questioned the ceiling of a guy like,
that BUT i think on the right team he could
be pretty.
Speaker 4: Valuable speaking of making jump, Shots Conkin, nipple he's gonna
he's gonna shoot.
Speaker 5: It do you or the people that you're talking.
Speaker 4: To what's the confidence level in some of the all
the other stuff that he was able to do at
the collegiate, level like the floor, mapping the way he
can use his physicality even though he doesn't really get
off the floor very, Much like how how much of an,
issue how much of a concern is the athleticism, issue
and and just like is he going to be a
specialist or is he someone that might have the ball
in his hands and do some other stuff at the next.
Speaker 3: Level he really reminds me Of Cam. JOHNSON i think
that's such a fair comp in terms of like ceiling
and what he'll be. Doing he's. Gonna, no he's not
a great. Athlete he's not the sharpest creator with the,
ball but he's such a skilled and like technical shot.
Maker he's very. Smart he's useful in pick and roll
situation is not necessarily a, score but to make passing.
Reads and he's good at like changing speeds and just
like just the cliche classic feel for the. Game he
just gets, it like he knows like what to, do
like how fast to, go what steps to. Take you,
KNOW i don't know how high his upside. IS i
talk to somebody yesterday who said they like. Him you,
KNOW i think a lot everybody likes. Him does anybody love?
HIM i Know gavoni has him four and that's also
creating this new storyline that he, is, like you, know
after the big, names the most coveted. GUY i haven't
tugged to anybody that has him that. High but, again
he's such a safe, Bet like he's a safe bet
who provides something that every team values and what he brings,
translates so that whole package right, THERE i think makes
him at least to, me you, know picking the five
to ten. Range BUT i think the question With nipple
is like how high is the? Ceiling you, know how
good can he really be without you know much? Creation
yet he didn't shoot very well off the dribble this.
YEAR i think like maybe thirty two percent on pull
ups and it was on pretty low. Volume but going
back to high, school that wasn't a problem for. Him
i'm Not i'm not going to hold that against. Him but,
still you, KNOW i Cam johnston me just seems like
a good medium for for where his ceiling. Is how
can how he can? Score he'll give you three and
a half a sis per. Game he's probably, not you,
know ideally a top two.
Speaker 1: Options ready to enter the rapid fire portion of the,
Podcast let's Do.
Speaker 2: IT i was wondering if you could.
Speaker 1: Give your overview quickly on some of these, players and
one of, them no. Pressure i'm very obsessed With Colin
Murray boyles.
Speaker 3: Ooh i'm. In i'm a. Fan and by the, way
there's people around THE nba who are not fans who JUST.
Speaker 2: I Think john is that what it?
Speaker 3: IS i, MEAN i think it's just like if you
write down like again on, paper he doesn't make any.
Sense he's, uh he's a, small big man who doesn't
shoot like like on, paper it doesn't. Work but WHEN
i watch him, plays he's so good at creating these
angles for. Himself he's, strong he's, Quick he's got instincts
that you can't teach in terms of like how to
again create these like finishing angles with both. Hands he's
very comfortable in the mid. RANGE i think he because
he was so much stronger than everybody else and he
could kind of play. Bullyball in, college he didn't take
a lot of jump shots in the mid, range but
watching him at the, COMBINE i think he was like
maybe the number two guy in mid range. Shooting and
going back and watching the film of all of his jump,
SHOTS i, mean he looked very comfortable with him fifteen.
FEET i don't know how often you get an open fifteen,
footter but like he's got touched and, no his three
ball is not very good right, Now BUT i bet on.
Him he's one of those, guys LIKE i said, before
of like you, know traditionally he doesn't make a lot of,
sense but he's so good at what he, does AND
i think what he does can. Translate and then also
he throws in passing as a side bonus and my
defensive quickness where he can like step out the way
from the. Basket but also because he's so strong two
hundred forty five, pounds he can guard bigs another young
guy for his, class Like i'm. IN i know he's
kind of an, outlier but he's somebody.
Speaker 1: Else been On i'm into in case anybody cares the
defense give. Me he just seems LIKE i know That
draymond comp gets thrown around a, lot but just from
What i've seen of, him like that's one where It's
i've looked at it and, said all, right LIKE i
don't LIKE i could see it. Happening not maybe not
as obviously generational As, draymond but like just the feel
and the reads and the ability to kind of like
col lates with everyone else and tie everything.
Speaker 2: Together it feels like he has.
Speaker 3: That, yeah and it's, like, NO i was gonna, say
he just didn't have like his role was so different
Than South carolina where it's LIKE i would love to
see him next. Year you, KNOW i can't compare him
To draymond right, now but IF i saw him go
to a team where he Had draymond's role and he
wasn't like the guy who had to score twenty points a,
game THEN i could see more of, Like, okay how
does he adapt as you, know a, pastor a guy
who like uses HIS iq you know a.
Speaker 4: Lot, YEAH i was just gonna, say, like if you're
looking for a comp that's favorable to a guy with
his frame and skill, set it's.
Speaker 5: Like you you don't have a lot of.
Speaker 4: Options you kind of you have to Say draymond and
just like pretend as if like some of the superpowers
he has are part of.
Speaker 5: It what About Derek? Queen queen is?
Speaker 3: MAN i think like two days, AGO i was, in
YESTERDAY i was. OUT i might be back in. Today
like it's, LIKE i feel like such an lack of
professionalism When i'm Scouting queen Because i'm so torn on
WHAT i. See and, again he's a mon verg. Gad
it's not like he just came out and we've Watched
Derek queen since he was sixteen years old and watch
him in high. School he's like you'd never you'd never
think of like a big time pro because he's like this,
heavy slow, footed back to the basket guy who doesn't.
Shoot so there's like never nobody talked about him as
a pro, really and then he comes and all of a,
sudden we're seeing he's so skilled in his footwork and
what what really got? ME i LOVE i love bigs
that can face you up and handle AND i didn't
know he really had this part of his. Game but
if you go back and look at all the highlights
of him this year where he can really handle the
ball and make a move and use you, Know euro
steps and footwork to get to those spots and then
finished with body control like The Shan gun comparison is
obviously a best case, one but they their scouting reports
are very. Similar shangun's, bigger so that's obviously a you,
know important piece, here but a weaker version Of shangoon
and you know he's not going to be a plus.
Defender in, fact he's got to go to a team
that can kind of mask those limitations and hopefully you
get like a four man who can block shots and
guys who, are you, know tough around the. Perimeter but,
OFFENSIVELY i, MEAN i know they say defense wins, championships
but like offense is a spread is like like a
really good offensive player who doesn't defense is still pretty.
Speaker 2: Valuable don't Tell Nico harrison that loss this this. PLAYER
i feel LIKE i shouldn't be obsessed.
Speaker 1: WITH i know you in one of your comparison, pieces
you had him listed To Josh, giddy which is why
that should be a red flag for me of all,
people but Jeg Or, Demon i'm that's another Guy i'm obsessed,
With LIKE i see more of just like the way
That Cooper flag plays the game on offense or even
A Luka doncic THAN i do of like A Josh giddy.
Speaker 2: Type but where are you sort of at on?
Speaker 1: Him?
Speaker 3: YEAH i JUST i have trouble with guys who their
ball like, you if you take it's it's Like i'm
not comparing To Ben, simmons BUT i am comparing To Ben,
simmons and, like if you take, him you got to
give him the, ball, Right he's got to be the
guy who's handling for. You you don't take yegor demon
and like put him on the wing and have him
standing around and like make spot up jump shots or like.
Cut what he's good at is being a six' nine
guy who can create and set. THE table i. Love,
THAT again i always say. Passing translates he's a very,
good passer and at, six' nine there's no question in
my mind he's going to be a guy who can,
gets you sevensists eight. Asists or game but there's such
a difference in terms of, The shot making like, when
he's contested the percentages are, So crazy different like he
does not shoot well when, he's under duress and he's
he's not an, off ball guy and he's his turnovers.
Are so frustrating they're so lazy and so casual. It
kills me and that's always kind of been part. Of
his thing like where some people have been hesitant to
jump on the bad wagon is that he just he
doesn't seem like he's always like mentally locked in because
he's so naturally talented as a six to. Nine point,
guard but again for, THE right team i love a
Guy WHO can like i think that that part of
his game carries over whether he adapts and changes and
cuts down on the unforced errors and starts. Making jump,
shots of course that raises his ceiling. A lot more,
But to me i'd let somebody else TAKE him unless
i really had unless he was the perfect, fit FOR
me where i just needed the guy who can, create
for other, for everyone else and just. Focus on that
i'm good with him.
Speaker 5: For That role uh duke? Player, number, three uh Well
who does malowak?
Speaker 4: Remind you Of and And i've, SEEN i've, Seen i
mean i've seen a crazy range of.
Speaker 5: Mocks For him so i'm curious where, YOU'RE at.
Speaker 3: Again, i don't know, like he like we know what
we're gonna. Get with him he's just there's so many
guys in that that archetype of just seven seven footers who,
finish and defend and how many guys. IN the league?
I like, that LIKE you eve, mesi Was right eve
messy went twenty, one, last year right and it kind
of carried, over right away like can he? Continue to
Can there's no malawatch should be able? To DO? What?
Eve mesi? Did you know how high? Is the ceiling
like if if he starts hitting threes because he has
shown it before He got the duke, a global academy
like he did show, flashes to that and of course in,
The workout, setting he's right. He's showing THAT but again
i watched him in games this year and he didn't do.
Any of that and when he did have opportunities like
put the ball on the floor like a little look,
a LITTLE shaky like I can't PICTURE i just i
can't picture. HIM doing that i could only picture the
the catch, and finish, stuff you know the being. A,
lob target again also. LIKE he didn't i get a
little maybe maybe it's. TO my fault i get a
little crazy WITH numbers and i know he's going back
and seeing like he didn't block a, Lot of shots
like how does a guy like that with a seven
to six wings say not block a? Lot of, shots but,
yeah he moved, he moves well like the, eye, test
says yes. The numbers don't but history also says that
his game should translate to that basic catch and finish
and protect.
Speaker 4: The rim roll how would you compare him as a
Prospect To, like derek lively just to use another duke
slash recent center PROSPECT.
Speaker 3: Similar THAT'S i mean I think THAT i think i
use him as my As My comp and lively is
a guy who also, in high school. We're shooting threes not,
all the time but like and if you Will ever
watch lively warm up in high SCHOOL and and i do,
practices and stuff he shoots threes and he looks like
he Can make him and that's the. Same with male
watch now does TRANSLATE to the nba or coach is
gonna be like get out there and, Start launching away
like probably not at least not in the first, couple
of years, but UH yeah that's i think THAT'S the.
Comp i use and it's like, THERE'S you know i
don't even KNOW in the nba how to separate like
who's had to really distinguished like the tiers of the
of that archetype of like who's really WHO'S in the
a one tier of the finisher, shop blocker Archetype who's
IN but he's i don't know he can he be
a starting? Center doing that. Yeah he can't but there's
also so many, Of those guys like every year another,
one comes around you could probably, pay for him, get
you know pay pretty cheap for them in the. Free
AGENT market so i do think a team is going
to reach. On, him early also he like another, high
character guy like everybody raves. ABOUT his intangibles i think
he's like a so he's got a great you know
Story Coming from souse dan and his journey to be
a duke. Center is WILD and but i think he's like,
a fun. Loving charismatic kid so locker rooms are. Gonna
love him, AND and uh i think he's kind of
got that contagious like just a lovable.
Speaker 1: Type of kid this player wasn't on, my initial list
but we actually had a listener urged me to, go
WATCH him. So I, DID carter bryant i came away
thinking that a highest end outcome would be Like What
if Herb Jones and trey murphy merged into the.
Speaker 2: Same, human, Being.
Speaker 3: Yeah listen carter bran Has that classic he's just like
your CLASSIC three. AND d guy. I do again i
talked to somebody. The other day it was like, he's going,
lottery you know he's just everyone is like so drawn
to that big wing shooter who could, defend multiple positions
and that's. What he does he averaged six points a.
Game this Year he didn't all he did was kind
of stand around, and you, know get out you try
and use his athleticism around the rim and make spot
up jumpers and, sell himself defensively which he. Did pretty,
well so that again is. A valued archetype and if,
THAT'S his floor i guess another selling, point is well
like if this is what we can get, As, a
freshman like what does he do in the next five
years in? Terms of development does he add more? Off,
THE dribble again i think people get too too excited
about THE three and d thing and somebody is going to.
Reach ON him. But, I can't. Again i can't haven't
seen him. IN high school i just can't picture him
being like a go to guy. In the, offense you
know he kind of like, What's His name Caleb, Houston
on orlando like that's it's like the type of guy
here writs.
Speaker 1: A little bit less of A player than dan Is
Describing peak paul george and, you.
Speaker 3: Know it there's no but there's no but there's no
like evidence to suggest that he is like a guy
who can give the, ball to him make. Plays and
reach it's just not part of. His game now if
it does become part, of, his GAME then LIKE i
guess i missed that behind, the scenes flashes but from
gameplay it's just it's not something.
Speaker 1: He really does this is going to be Coming Out
of coldy williams, Disaster for me Isn't?
Speaker 3: It just wills BUT at Least I know coldy williams
didn't really have any go To Strength. Like cody williams
like there was like little flashes. In every, department you know,
you saw versatility but you never saw one thing that you.
CAN bank on i think you Can with car like
there's Definitely, safety with carter like his, his physical, tools
his athleticism and his shot making are real and that
again is a. Very translatable, PACKAGE so. Yeah i Do
sorry the caleb thing was, A little rough. I think,
sometimes i mean if you take that was the worst case,
out of course but somebody's gonna reach ON him. And
i would but also theme, of the day. High character
kid you got to listen. To him talk he's. Very
spiritual kid he's very well spoken and LIKE intellectual and
i really like. Listening TO him SO i think i
think he's going to be there's a professionalism about him
that's that's going to come off really.
Speaker 5: Well in interviews who's got. The lowest character i'm just gonna.
Speaker 1: If your worst case outcome is Getting Minutes, over jet
howard that's probably.
Speaker 2: NOT the worst i guess there.
Speaker 3: Is work there there are. Lowest lower floors.
Speaker 5: Uh shiftings, a little.
Speaker 1: BIT you know i, was gonna say we have lost
for a. FEW more minutes i, was gonna say do
you want? To take us do you want to take
us through some of those like? Quick, Fire superlatives.
Speaker 5: Yeah so who, Would, you say oh you? Want TO
superlatives who's.
Speaker 2: I could see you want to ask? The other one Ask,
the other.
Speaker 4: Yeah who do you feel like is the highest variance
player in? The lottery range? And then even and then
if you want to extend that to even in like,
the first round it's like you could have you could
realistically see this guy going, Five or nineteen like that's.
Speaker 5: A hyperbolic range but who is that guy to? You
right now you.
Speaker 3: Mean in draft stock or in terms of like, Ceilings
and floors.
Speaker 4: Let's, say draft stock like WHO Is, The, NBA like
oh i don't know if he needs to be in
the green room because this.
Speaker 3: COULD get Ugly, I Think queen derek queen is A
guy who i think could go like, five or SIX
but then I have, other but, then you know having
talked to skeptics, around the, league they're LIKE how do
i take a six to nine center who doesn't play? Defense,
or shoot yeah so queen And so queen queen would.
Be THE answer but I think if i, had to
bet somebody would take him early because he everybody loves
skill and feel and.
Speaker 2: He's, got that okay do you want to take us
through some? Of? The, superlatives now.
Speaker 5: Yeah LET'S yes. NOW i will i just had to. Get,
that answer uh give me.
Speaker 4: Your three most skilled like pick guy you could put
the ball in his hands and he's gonna. Run picking
rolls who are the three guys you pick in this
draft to to kind of?
Speaker 3: HEAD that, List I mean dylan harper with the ball
in his hands. And picking rolls he's so good at
splitting defenses and getting the spots. And getting, downhill you
know he's not your natural like pick and roll passer
Or Like a, steve nash type but put him like
if you give him, a ball screen he's going to.
Create an advantage and he's so good at getting to
a spots and kid and finishing. An Amazing finisher so
i'm harper from, a Passing Standpoint like nolan Treori, from
from france he is a he's a he's a different
type of, ball screen GUARD but like i set the
table ball, screen guard like he just plays at, his own,
pace slow down but he's going To find the you
use his change of speed and stuff to to uh
to free guys up and then he'll make that pass
that that. SETS everybody up i guess let's give a
Shout from from illinois another guy who's. REALLY good size
i love again for a, ball SCREEN guard like. I
love guys you can shoot. Off the dribble that's such
a big that's such a big thing because you always got.
Defenses back pedaling if you could just stop and pop
like you're always going to get. An Uncontested LOOK and
yas i think is a good shot maker, very different
ways but also a very heady passer and can make
those classic. Point guard READS and again i Also think
cin nipple is not going to get as many of
the ball screens as that ALL the guys. I just mentioned,
he'll get those, like you know maybe a. Couple of
game but he reads. Him so well he's so good
at like freeing up the big man and putting in
a position to get, an easy.
Speaker 4: Bucket and then just we're going to run through some,
skill sets here who's the best room protector? In this
class and then who else is in that conversation short, list.
Speaker 3: By numbers, it's it's well not, by NUMBERS technically but
i guess if you think of. Numbers And age baron
jay from another guy overseas who is just got an
invite to, the green, room super young like has no
idea what he's, doing out there but so, he's six'
eleven moves extremely well and just like even without, knowing
what he's doing eight and a half percent block rate
and he just has like natural shot blocking ability and
moves really really well away from the basket almost like
look his switch ability more Than The shot Blocking thomas
sorber from georgetown seven. TO six wings span i don't
know how useful it's going to, be or relatively speaking
when he's only, six' nine in socks but he. Blocked
a lot of shots he may created, a lot of defensive.
Events As The Kids say and kalkbrenner ryan colchbrenner also
has always been a very, good PICK and roll defender
and i think he's GOING to, carve out an nba
career maybe even. If it's as a backup but his.
Defensive room protection's pretty?
Speaker 4: Good how about Movement Shooters got like your jordan hawkins
is to go.
Speaker 5: Back a couple of years what that's?
Speaker 2: THE name you Went To i think.
Speaker 5: ABOUT jordan hawkins a lot i keep. Waiting, for him TO.
Speaker 3: Pop yeah How About i mean canipple, ca nipple's an,
obvious one just like again he's just picture perfect with
the form. And Stuff and the balance kobe, brass probably
by the numbers the. Best shooter in the draft, he
doesn't do, anything else literally nothing else but, he's such
a good shooter and. He's sixty six a socks and
if there's anyone that has a Chance To, be like
A duncan robinson IT'S it's cod, and uh i mean
listen we we Said Some, negative things about trey johnson
but he is another very fundamentally. Sound shooter off off
movement you?
Speaker 2: Want?
Speaker 5: To take him down.
Speaker 1: Yeah so who who is the best like odd? Ball
defender in your book and anyone else that would you'll
fall into?
Speaker 2: THAT same CATEGORY. For you.
Speaker 3: I mean vj. VJ'S quickness IS so crazy i mean
i would hate. To be, guarded by him you know
he makes, some mistakes here and there but like he
has the chance to be a especially, If HE'S guarding
point guards like i would put. HIM on, a point
guard i mean he's just gonna. Be, So Hard to
shake yeah maray boyle's is very interesting just because of the,
body type and the feet like. That combination is pretty
rare like we Talked him OUT with The draymond and
i think cooper. Could be very tough too cooper is
he's like one of those like crazy intense guys where
it's like if he if it's, the end of the.
Game HE'S gonna lock in like i wouldn't Want to
Be guarded by, cooper, flag, he is big, quick physical
it's crazy intense like one of those guys who's probably
like salivating and got. LIKE red in his eyes i
wouldn't want. To be guarded by him let's Give A
shout out to hugh gonzales because we. Probably Won't talk
about him Hugh Gonzales. From, playing with real madrid also
it was always been since. He was a, younger kid
by the, way is still the kid but very good
combination of. Physical tools and defensive intensity.
Speaker 2: And are there.
Speaker 1: Any, specific couple of names however many names you, want
to through out there whether they're going to, be end
of first, round in the, second round or maybe undrafted
just gems that we should keep.
Speaker 3: An.
Speaker 2: EYE on Moving Forward.
Speaker 3: Yeah I, like kobe sanders from nevada who not many people.
Talked about throughout the year he was my my first.
Tweet of the whole season it was it WAS like
a guy who. I didn't really know Before it, was
a cal poly transfer and he played this game His
first game in the vada he scored twenty nine, POINTS
and he, was like i was like who? The hell
is this kid and then he Became The best player
at portsmouth invitational and then he SUSPICIOUSLY. Didn't play at
the nba. He skipped the elite Camp usually you go
from portsmouth and you getting him.
Speaker 1: By to.
Speaker 3: A elite camp that's great if you're, really good at
league CAMP you. Go to the nba combine BUT He
went straight to nba combine and then. Didn't PLAY from an.
INJURY so i don't know i. Wonder if he heard
something but he's a six to nine six' nine guy,
who averaged like eighteen a, game four and a half.
Assists shot them three PRETTY well and as somebody who
i think was just. Like Totally, overlooked throughout the year
javon small a little tough point guard, who's gonna go mid,
second round probably good at everything who's probably. Just Overlooked
Because of His size and amari williams from kentucky is
a seven footer who is a very very good passer and. Somebody,
Who will initiate fast breaks offensively he's probably not going
to ever score, more than ten, points a game but,
you know good. Seven foot athletic, he'll finish, plays he'll
be like you Know, Kind of like like early heartenstein
like that's kind of where reminded he was like a
guy who can like, at the top of, the, key who,
like you, know pass you know, fine cutters facilitate a
little bit and bring. You That Bring some defensive toughness
SO amari Williams is a guy i think i'm, higher
on the.
Speaker 4: Most most important most important, question i'll ask for Selfish
Purposes who is this year's quinton Post and where?
Speaker 2: How?
Speaker 5: Can the warriors, acquire Him.
Speaker 3: Yeah maxim right now from stanford that's, Your, answer in.
Speaker 5: The backyard perfect.
Speaker 3: YEAH he's uh seven to one i don't know if
the inside, the ARC game translates as well but i
feel like he can kind of adapt a little bit and.
Become a stretch five he was he have his twenty
ten and sixty seven threes this. And made sixty seven
threes here there's only two guys that have ever done
that have averaged twenty, Ten AND made, OVER fifty threes
So i know i think he's he was the star
of the combine moved, him into the first round conversation
although he didn't get. An ENVIT to the green room,
but i think, between his size his shot making and
he's a skilled enough player to compensate for the, fact
that it's not very explosive. Suggests he can.
Speaker 1: Play that role, Sounds, very familiar our final question nat
is you're, DOING this, gauntlet of podcast. Appearances tv appearances
the whole nine what, is something about this, draft class,
whether it's a theme a player just anything that you
wish people asked you about that you.
Speaker 2: Don't? Get to talk enough about hmm is it who the?
Nick Should take at number fifty because i'll sit, Here,
for thirty. Minutes, AND listen.
Speaker 3: Yeah that's true no i mean that's there's a lot
of teams. With like multiple first, round picks i'm always,
fascinated with like what you know, teams with most first
round picks, how often they talk about packaging packaging them
and all the different like situations and kind of like
just the. Idea of LIKE what goes on not that
i REALLY have the best answer because, i don't work
for a team but like what are these teams. ALL
talking ABOUT behind THE scenes i mean i think i
have just over the years have a. Decent idea of
what goes on and they got To make some type
of like netflix reality show on this of like what
the draft process is like, Behind the scenes, FOR a
team and you know i think they do. THE player
coms thing they do i, know they do things like
okay like like put everybody, in, your room and it's
like okay the fourth pick was just traded and Somebody
Moved up to, Take, like derek queen of four like
how do we? Ract we have the fifth? Pick what,
do we do now you know like all these hypothetical
situations like almost like the scouts are like trainees learning
like a, new craft and like you. KNOW lifeguards and
like these situations i always. Think that's, such a cool
thing but yeah wish it was more accessible for us
to see like, what GOES on behind the scenes and
i always try and get a. Look from behind, the
closed door but but yeah it's just like what can
we what can we do with what are? The different
things we can do how can? We be creative in
this draft and not just like wait? For whoever the
best player availoped it is? Like how can we move
up what? Are the offers we can make. Stuff, like
that Always fascinates me.
Speaker 4: Yeah well the Kings, Did THAT when they picked nickstauskas
so i think that's why you're.
Speaker 5: Never going To see it again.
Speaker 1: Didn't the hornets Do That last, Year with t john
salon too so that might be more.
Speaker 2: Evidence, that we're not gonna leave yeah things aren't.
Speaker 3: Working, out when you do that yeah that was.
Speaker 1: That was not a good, picks, could, you tell our
listeners subscribers watchers whatever where they can find you and all.
Speaker 2: The, FANTASTIC Work That, You.
Speaker 3: Do yeah Nba Draft, boss Twitter or except bleacher report
And i'm doing some stuff On I've. Got To help
out seth davis seth davis. Started a new a new project.
He's trying to get it going i'm. Helping him out
Some content there BUT NEXT week i'll Be On, nba
tv a lot tuesday wednesday and Then We'll be live
on the bleach. Report app for for both rounds so that. Should, That,
you cover.
Speaker 5: Next week awesome well thanks.
Speaker 4: For thanks for doing this again you are officially. Unofficially,
roped into this every year. Sorry, you don't have. A
CHOICE everybody please FOLLOW us he's i kind of i
cram for the draft by just checking out your mocks
and like seeing what how they've, changed OVER the weeks
and months and. I find it very very useful, So
thanks for, Doing this everybody Thanks For listening thanks.
Speaker 5: For watching rate.
Speaker 4: Review Sub Tribe all, That Stuff shouts frank milotin apologies
jared allen