2021 NBA Draft Thread

[CTMagicUK 1,476]

7 hours ago, ROCK LEGENDS PHOTOGRAPHERS said:

I like him better than Kuminga. I like Kispert better than a lot of picks at 8 as well. The boy is a great shooter and we need some. I'd be happy with Barnes & Kispert. I like Suggs if he drops but I also have reservations that he may only be as good as Sexton.

You're worried about Suggs' ceiling but you're fine taking a career role player at 8? 

[Albert Lergier 99]

9 hours ago, ROCK LEGENDS PHOTOGRAPHERS said:

I like him better than Kuminga. I like Kispert better than a lot of picks at 8 as well. The boy is a great shooter and we need some. I'd be happy with Barnes & Kispert. I like Suggs if he drops but I also have reservations that he may only be as good as Sexton.

Kispert will be there at 8......hopefully the Warriors with # 7 pick Davion Mitchell allowing the Magic to select a "shooter": Bouknight, Moody, Keon Johnson, etc.

I like Bouknight a lot....from what I've been able to see, his footwork is very similar to Devin Booker's one.....which is awesome !!!!

[TreyMachine 395]

3 hours ago, Albert Lergier said:

Kispert will be there at 8......hopefully the Warriors with # 7 pick Davion Mitchell allowing the Magic to select a "shooter": Bouknight, Moody, Keon Johnson, etc.

I like Bouknight a lot....from what I've been able to see, his footwork is very similar to Devin Booker's one.....which is awesome !!!!

I think people are getting too presumptive that the Warriors will pick Mitchell because he’s more of a polished, “ready now” player - but I think the Warriors are smart enough to be going after high ceiling players now and having them learn under their aging stars to eventually take up the mantle in 4-5 years. 
 

I could see the Warriors going after Bouknight. 

[CTMagicUK 1,476]

Vic Wembanyama absolutely out played potential 2022 #1 pick Chet Holmgren today despite being nearly 2 years younger. 

He's the best prospect not currently in the NBA. If the Magic could draft him at #5 this year and wait two years for him I'd do it without a second thought. 

[Albert Lergier 99]

1 hour ago, TreyMachine said:

I think people are getting too presumptive that the Warriors will pick Mitchell because he’s more of a polished, “ready now” player - but I think the Warriors are smart enough to be going after high ceiling players now and having them learn under their aging stars to eventually take up the mantle in 4-5 years. 
 

I could see the Warriors going after Bouknight. 

I could see the Warriors doing that, however they have Jordan Poole who played SG well for them last year....12 PPG and is under contact. We shall see.

Klay is coming back too, so adding that 3rd SG is in Q.

[A Better DJ & Photographer 456]

10 hours ago, CTMagicUK said:

You're worried about Suggs' ceiling but you're fine taking a career role player at 8? 

A career role player that shoots the lights out like Kispert on a team that sorely needs shooters? Why yes, I would at #8!

[CTMagicUK 1,476]

43 minutes ago, ROCK LEGENDS PHOTOGRAPHERS said:

A career role player that shoots the lights out like Kispert on a team that sorely needs shooters? Why yes, I would at #8!

We desperately need a lot of things. And there are plenty of guys who can hit an open 3. This team needs a star and using one of its best assets on a guy with virtually no chance to become a star would be gross mismanagement of assets in my opinion.

[Albert Lergier 99]

30 minutes ago, CTMagicUK said:

We desperately need a lot of things. And there are plenty of guys who can hit an open 3. This team needs a star and using one of its best assets on a guy with virtually no chance to become a star would be gross mismanagement of assets in my opinion.

Plus we are probably picking a forward with 5, either Barnes or Kuminga....Kirspert is another forward, so I really doubt we go this route. 

[CTMagicUK 1,476]

16 days until the draft. Now we have a coach I kinda just want this to get here. 

[Franchise408 116]

On 7/8/2021 at 4:26 PM, Nwhermit said:

I wish Vuc the best but I think this will be a better team in the long run. With our team before the trade, I think we peaked and over the next few years we will slowly get worse and young guys like Mo, cole, Okeke would just sit on the bench and rot away. It is why Cliff got let go because he dont want to play the young guys. With a healthy team, we will make it to the playoff this coming year as the 8th and will get bounce. But we will get better over the next 3-5 years and be in the top 3 of the east possibly if our guys continue to develop. 5th pick we need BPA and 8th and 33th need to be shooters.I am very excited of the team if we can develop

Which young guys weren't getting playtime under Cliff?

Mo. That's literally it.

Isaac was a starter. Fultz was a starter. Chuma and Cole were the first players off the bench.

This narrative that Cliff wasn't playing the young guys is just false.

[Franchise408 116]

On 7/10/2021 at 6:00 AM, Originalticketholder said:

You missed  a lot of exceptions.  Granted these picks may not have won a title with their original team, and yes you cannot win with only  one superstar, you definitely need 2 or more, but that does not diminish the value of pick 1, 2 and 3 .  Allen Iverson, Anthony Davis, Shaq,  Magic (a little over 40 years but worthy to be included), James Worthy, Deandre Ayton (probably this year)--Phoenix was a tanker,  Ralph Sampson, Mark Aquirre, and Patrick Ewing (1st round picks).  Let's put Markelle Fultz in there (just hoping).  #2 picks have not been as lucrative unless you got Kevin Durant (multiple titles),  Jason Kidd,  Alonzo Mourning, and Gary Payton.  #3 pick really good obviously due to the GOAT Michael Jordan, Pau Gasol, Al Horford, Grant Hill, Kevin Mchale and a slew of other good players.  So #1, 2, and 3 picks set up that first superstar way more than any others do.  Tanking teams in the playoffs this year--Philly, Phoenix, Dallas, Atlanta, NY Knicks, Memphis, and Wizards (Beal/Wall years). And Cleveland's tanking definitely got them titles.  In the old days you drafted to your success and titles,  Now with the "game of chance" draft (if the opportunity presents itself) you tank yourself (and hope you get lucky) to success. (where would Dallas be without Doncic) Tanking worked for Houston and Detroit (big time) this year and did not favor us (even though 5 and 8 will be good players but just think if our tanking got us Green at 3--how happy wpuld we be) or OKC (even OKC's tanking is isn the future--16 or 17 first round picks in the next 6 or so years). So, yeah tanking works, just not in every case.

 

You are simply looking at the players, but you are not looking at the contexts of the teams and their success (or lack thereof)

If a team's goal is to just get a superstar, then I guess the McGrady years were our peak years as a franchise, right?

Getting a superstar is not the goal. Winning a championship is. There are more teams that have won championships with 0 superstars than there are teams that tanked for a superstar and won a championship.

Allen Iverson - 0 championships with Philly

Anthony Davis - 0 championships (or even any post-season success) in New Orleans. NO is in no different a boat now with Zion.

Shaq - 0 championships in Orlando, and his one shot he had he was swept. That also isn't an example of tanking, as the team was an expansion team that was slowly building and acquiring talent through the draft, via Nick Anderson and Dennis Scott. Shaq also didn't get to the Finals with Orlando until they got a fluke 2nd #1 overall pick and turned that into Penny Hardaway. What kind of team was Orlando the year before they started making playoffs? A "medicore" middle of the pack team that had the best record of all non-playoff teams. The team wasn't tanking. They were building.

Magic - The #1 pick was traded for, so Magic was placed alongside an already winning team.

Worthy - Same as Magic

Ayton - Ayton is not the centerpiece of Phoenix's success. In fact, he was considered to be a potential bust until this year. Booker (#13 overall pick) and Chris Paul are the centerpiece of their success. Phoenix's success came from the opposite of tanking.

Embiid - The 76ers tops out at an ECF appearance the year they had Jimmy Butler. If the goal is getting knocked out of the 2nd round, then yes, Philly succeeded by tanking. But I don't think getting knocked out of the 2nd round is the goal.

Literally all of those other guys except McHale and Jordan have a combined 0 championships with the team that drafted them. And like Magic, Boston had acquired another team's top pick to get McHale. They didn't obtain it by tanking.

There are no examples of a team tanking, and using that philosophy to turn around and turn into a champion via that philosophy. Tanking does *not* work. It is a 0% success philosophy. It might bring you a superstar, sure, but you have completely depleted your team of any semblance of talent that there is nothing around that superstar to work with, and they have left to greener pastures by the time you are able to build up anything around them, and then they are gone and the franchise is back at square 1, having made no ground and are right where they were to begin with.

[CTMagicUK 1,476]

Aggressive defense, pushing in transition and sharing the ball. Those are things Mosley wants to do. Also things Scottie Barnes excels at. 

I'm not super high on Barnes at 5 for us but it seems logical.