Jump to content
Washington Football Team Logo
Extremeskins

The Official Washington Basketball Thread: Wizards, Mystics etc


BRAVEONAWARPATH

Recommended Posts

Hayes is a safe pick.  I think he is pretty much a sure thing to be a Jarrett Allen type player of he adds about twenty pounds of muscle.  He has a clear NBA position and role and players like him tend to add six to eight wins to their teams.

 

I think he is unusually quick and explosive and has elite hands for a paint bound pick and roller.  He might have a jumper in his future because the touch is soft.

 

But he's soft too.  His lack of strength defines his playing style and that lack of rebounding ability gets to his personality on the court.  That is never changing IMO.  And it significantly limits his value.  I also think that the issues with court vision and IQ are virtually permanent weaknesses.  We just went through a song and dance with a player who sees the floor through a straw in Oubre.  I kept hoping for the lightbulb to turn on and it never did.  Not sure BBall IQ grows that much over the course of a career.  To be an elite PnR finisher you have got to be able to feel the double coming and make that corner kick.

 

Maybe I am dead wrong and he has a ton of growth ahead of him.  But I can't see it.  I like him a good deal, and would be fine with the Wizards picking him.  He is a good foundation for defense.  But I don't love him.  And I think it's very clear that Bol is a much better player than him.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hachimura has a little too much Jeff Green in him for my liking.  He is highly skilled and is a natural shooter from mid range.  I think he will be a strong three point shooter at the next level.  But the BBall IQ just isn't very good.  I don't think he's that good of a defensive player, I think he was just strong and big for a college player, and was well hidden between superior defensive players in a good system.  And the shot selection and passing vision are far more of an issue for him as a 6'8 combo forward than they are for Hayes as a 6'11 center, where you can get away with being a limited passer without bogging down the offense.

 

I think Hachimura will have a long career as a role player, and he will certainly be popular among Asian fans.  But I don't think he has a ton of upside.  Gunner forwards who aren't good at defense are a dime a dozen.  They don't have a ton of value over replacement level players.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

People are giving Leonsis the benefit of the doubt when he has done nothing to deserve it.  He left EGGM in place for YEARS when his incompetence was painfully obvious to everyone in the free world who was paying attention …except for the owner.  The same guy who turned a blind eye to Grunfeld’s complete incompetence is now this wise guru who is going to lead us into something new and better?  I’m not buying that ****.   

  • Like 3
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

If any of the top 8 fall out, you pick one of them: I.e Culver, Hunter, White, Garland, Reddish. Since I don’t see that happening, my top 3 would be:

 

Sekou

Little

Hayes 

 

First two are swing for the fences and the last is a safer complimentary player. Hayes would be a boring but solid pick. If Wall was full strength, I’d lean going with a safer pick but I think they need to go high upside.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Bol won’t be a disaster if he stays healthy. 

 

Javale McGee is still playing in the NBA simply for his size and athletic ability. 

 

Bol’s size and athleticism is rare, and he already is far more skilled than someone like McGee.

  • Like 2
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

33 minutes ago, Fight4RGIII said:

First two are swing for the fences and the last is a safer complimentary player. Hayes would be a boring but solid pick. If Wall was full strength, I’d lean going with a safer pick but I think they need to go high upside. 

 

Doumbouya I agree.  He's a swing for the fences type of guy.  But I'm not sure I agree that Nassir Little is a high upside swing for the fences type of pick.  To me he's a safe role player type pick like Hayes.  A lower IQ version of Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is who I think of when I see him.  Maybe a less aggressive and assured Rondae Hollis-Jefferson?  The word is he absolutely kills it in interviews, and Fred Katz compared him to Troy Brown in his maturity and intangible make up.  So you're basically guaranteed to get a really nice role player with him, but the lack of handle and consistent shot means he will never really be more than a fourth or fifth option for a decent NBA offense.  I wouldn't hate the pick at all, because I'm pretty sure what you get is what you see with him.  And he could be a solid culture pick.  Kind of like the Terry McLaurin pick for the Redskins.  But it wouldn't move the needle for me.  In a stronger class, he wouldn't see the lottery.  I would feel like a Nas Little pick is an indication of Sheppard being an overly cautious personnel man who will pass over superior talent for safety and who doesn't necessarily project growth well, like the very best GMs do.

 

But I could also be dead wrong.  I have a hard time gauging the true potential of some of these kids.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 minutes ago, StillUnknown said:

 

1. Sekou

2. Hayes

3. Bol/Langford

 

That's not too different from how I'm feeling.  I have a man crush on Brandon Clarke though.  That's just a gut take from me that I can't necessarily back up, but I think he might be special in a very unconventional way, and defy past comparisons.  I think we might be giving the benefit of the doubt to Zion and not him when they each deserve it, and that they aren't that different as players.  But I could also be way off on him.

 

I haven't looked at Langford yet.  His name was up there during the season and he seems to have just steadily dropped in mock drafts ever since the season ended, and i'm not sure why.  What's your read on him?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 minutes ago, stevemcqueen1 said:

 

I haven't looked at Langford yet.  His name was up there during the season and he seems to have just steadily dropped in mock drafts ever since the season ended, and i'm not sure why.  What's your read on him?

 

More potential than player at the moment. Really hard to get a read on his time at Indiana because he played with a torn hand ligament that certainly affected his shot. Prototypical measurables that should allow him to be a good defensive player with time. He would be a swing towards upside.

 

Thats ultimately where i'm at in this draft. Take the guy with the highest upside. Its why i dont really want Clarke, not much space between his floor and ceiling. If we miss, so what, it doesnt make or break us in the immediate future. Swing for the fences and hope that being stuck with grunfeld for 15+ years has stored us a reserve of goodwill that will be paid.

Edited by StillUnknown
Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 minutes ago, No Excuses said:

Bol won’t be a disaster if he stays healthy.  

 

Javale McGee is still playing in the NBA simply for his size and athletic ability. 

 

Bol’s size and athleticism is rare, and he already is far more skilled than someone like McGee.

 

Agreed.  I was very hesitant about Bol because he has a bad reputation of entitlement and uncoachability.  But his cut ups won me over.  They show some spectacular stuff.  He's a 7'2 born shooter who can beat double teams and score off the dribble with comfort.  We're talking about someone who could give you 20 & 10 with 2+ blocks and ~4 assists per game on 50-40-85 shooting splits.

 

At a certain point, the talent level is so good that you kind of have to take a chance on him and hope you can either live with his personality issues, or hope that he grows up.  IMO he's got Kristaps Porzingis type talent, and he is the only guy other than Zion and Morant with the gifts to become a superstar.  He could grow into a top ten player.

10 minutes ago, Warhead36 said:

Go for the highest upside guy, risks be damned. We need to swing for the fences if we want to get out of this hole. 

 

I don't think we're going to do it.  Fred Katz was absolutely certain that we're not going to take Bol.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, stevemcqueen1 said:

 

Agreed.  I was very hesitant about Bol because he has a bad reputation of entitlement and uncoachability.  But his cut ups won me over.  They show some spectacular stuff.  He's a 7'2 born shooter who can beat double teams and score off the dribble with comfort.  We're talking about someone who could give you 20 & 10 with 2+ blocks and ~4 assists per game on 50-40-85 shooting splits.

 

At a certain point, the talent level is so good that you kind of have to take a chance on him and hope you can either live with his personality issues, or hope that he grows up.  IMO he's got Kristaps Porzingis type talent, and he is the only guy other than Zion and Morant with the gifts to become a superstar.  He could grow into a top ten player.

 

Yup. If you are drafting late in the lottery, are saddled with poor cap space, no chance of attracting top talent, you swing for the player that has the highest upside and that is Bol. 

 

I am far more concerned that we don’t have the right coaching staff and organizational structure to develop him than his character issues. A good organization can provide structure and discipline. The Wizards track record here is awful. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 minutes ago, stevemcqueen1 said:

The word is he absolutely kills it in interviews, and Fred Katz compared him to Troy Brown in his maturity and intangible make up. 

 

I hope this doesnt develop into a crutch for the team. I dont want them overlooking glaring holes in their games on the grounds of "he's a great guy". I'm not dismissing the importance of high character, but it shouldnt be the first thing you talk about when explaining a players positive attributes

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, StillUnknown said:

  I hope this doesnt develop into a crutch for the team. I dont want them overlooking glaring holes in their games on the grounds of "he's a great guy". I'm not dismissing the importance of high character, but it shouldnt be the first thing you talk about when explaining a players positive attributes

 

Agreed.  Martell Webster had great character.  Didn't change the fact he was a journeyman role player and a big reach at 6th overall.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, No Excuses said:

You can draft high character, gritty role players when you have transcendent talent on your roster. Otherwise, you are building a scrappy 6-8 seed that routinely gets demolished by elite talent.  

 

Yep.  Your best case scenario is you get one of those unicorn years like the Hawks had where everyone stays completely healthy and totally dialed in the entire year and the coaching is great and you massively overachieve.  And then you fall back down to Earth the next season.

 

In order to compete at the highest level year in and year out, you've got to have that guy who can be your leader and who the other guys can lean on when things aren't going right for your team.  Leadership is crucial for team sports.  The best basketball teams have their best players lead by example on the court.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...