Author Topic: First Impressions of 2018 draft class  (Read 5430 times)

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First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« on: March 30, 2018, 01:51:10 PM »

Offline PickNRoll

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I haven't watched a ton of college ball this year and we're not even sure who's declaring, but I'm curious what people see in this class.  Here's my impression based on what little I've seen.

1. Marvin Bagley - I wasn't high on him, but he just kept getting better.  His motor and his nose for the ball is impressive.  Not the best touch around the hoop or at the FT line, but a powerful finisher with defensive upside.

2. Mo Bamba - reminds me of Bill Russell the way he's relaxed, doesn't waste motion or energy, stays down on pump fakes, and blocks shots in bounds.  Superb instincts. He looks like the type of raw player that maybe hasn't played ball long, but I guess he grew up in PA, not sure his bg.  Has a chance to be a generational defensive talent with that 7'9" wingspan, and better instincts than Gobert. 

3. DeAndre Ayton - basically an Amare Stoudemire clone.  Not as quick, but nice touch and 7 footers this athletic don't grow on trees.  Not my cup of tea as he doesn't impact games as much as you'd like on D and his court presence didn't impress.

4. Mikal Bridges - older than the others, but this kid has seasoned well and he's NBA-ready.  Strong, athletic finisher.  Smooth stroke, plays hard, excellent defender, great size, length and strength.  Reminds me of Pierce.

5. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - Love this kid's game.  Excellent feel, best decision-maker I've seen.  Able to take over games and score when necessary, gets teammates involved, just extremely polished and knows how to win.  Pretty nice stroke, good finisher, good athlete, gonna be a good pro.

No particular order
Porter, Jr.: not impressed.  Low bball IQ, poor lateral speed, doesn't excel at anything
Trae Young: too small, too slow
Doncic: role player. Mike Miller with a bit of Kukoc craftiness
Jaren Jackson:solid, strong, decent shot blocker. PJ Brown

Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #1 on: March 30, 2018, 02:34:35 PM »

Offline JBcat

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That’s the first I’ve heard Ayton compared to Stoudemire.  Amare was more of a PF though, and Ayton seems more of a center.  I’ve seen Patrick Ewing comparisons.

Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #2 on: March 30, 2018, 03:07:07 PM »

Offline PickNRoll

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That’s the first I’ve heard Ayton compared to Stoudemire.  Amare was more of a PF though, and Ayton seems more of a center.  I’ve seen Patrick Ewing comparisons.
I don't see Ewing.  Ewing was a force on both sides of the ball.  High IQ.  Refined back-to-the-basket game.  Great passer out of the post.  Good touch around the hoop. Controlled the paint.  They're physically similar, but Ewing played bigger.  Ayton is somewhere in between, but def doesn't impact games like Ewing.  Ayton is less a traditional big.  Quicker, but not nearly as powerful.  Game has changed a lot tho.  Yeah, I'm old enough to have watched Ewing at Gtown.

Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #3 on: March 30, 2018, 05:34:30 PM »

Offline Eddie20

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You're really overrating Bamba, while underrating others.

Ayton is a lot bigger and longer than Amare. 7'1" vs 6'10" in height, 4 inches longer in wingspan, and about 20 lbs bigger. The comparison that I see is Robinson. As Ayton uses his combination of speed and strength to dominate opponents. He's not the defender Robinson was, but he looks like he's going to be a better passer and he has range out to 3.

PJ Brown is the basement, not even the floor, on Jackson's potential. The kid shot 39.6% from deep and is a lot better than a "decent shot blocker". He averaged 3 bpg in just 21.8 MPG, which is better per minute than Bamba.

The Porter Jr. observations isn't really fair as he missed about 5 months.

As for Luka, "Mike Miller with a bit of Kukoc craftiness" sounds like HOF Ginobili more than it does a "role player".



Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #4 on: March 30, 2018, 06:56:49 PM »

Offline Bucketgetter

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The Jaren Jackson comparison was funny because you said 3 good things about him 1st, that he was "solid, strong, decent shot blocker". But then you roasted him with the PJ Brown comp.

I like Jackson a lot. I think he will be like Serge Ibaka, and be a great role player. But I don't think he has much star potential, so I have a hard time seeing him go super high. But he can still be a very versatile and valuable asset for a team.
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Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #5 on: March 30, 2018, 07:27:46 PM »

Offline nickagneta

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You're completely missing the boat on Doncic. I got him and Bagley as the two best players in this draft.

Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #6 on: March 30, 2018, 08:15:05 PM »

Offline gouki88

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Your Doncic, Jackson and Bamba evaluations are all whack.
Jackson is a better rim protector AND shooter than Bamba, and will be still 18 come draft day. If he declares he'll be 19 for his entire rookie season, that's crazy.

Bamba is a really good ring protector and athlete, but I'm not sure how good his offence can get.

And finally with Doncic, what you say about him makes me question whether you've actually watched him. 15/5/4.5 in 24.6MPG is insane for a 19 year old to be averaging in Europe. He's the best European prospect ever. Mike Miller with Kucoc craftiness is straight up insulting lol
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Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #7 on: April 01, 2018, 02:37:40 PM »

Offline PickNRoll

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The Jaren Jackson comparison was funny because you said 3 good things about him 1st, that he was "solid, strong, decent shot blocker". But then you roasted him with the PJ Brown comp.

I like Jackson a lot. I think he will be like Serge Ibaka, and be a great role player. But I don't think he has much star potential, so I have a hard time seeing him go super high. But he can still be a very versatile and valuable asset for a team.
That's what I meant re: Jackson, solid, but not spectacular.  PJ played 15 years in the league and was a starter from day 1.  There's always a rush to anoint every lotto pick as some former All-star.  That's not how it works.  PJ Brown is a compliment.

Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #8 on: April 01, 2018, 02:52:22 PM »

Offline PickNRoll

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Your Doncic, Jackson and Bamba evaluations are all whack.
Jackson is a better rim protector AND shooter than Bamba, and will be still 18 come draft day. If he declares he'll be 19 for his entire rookie season, that's crazy.

Bamba is a really good ring protector and athlete, but I'm not sure how good his offence can get.

And finally with Doncic, what you say about him makes me question whether you've actually watched him. 15/5/4.5 in 24.6MPG is insane for a 19 year old to be averaging in Europe. He's the best European prospect ever. Mike Miller with Kucoc craftiness is straight up insulting lol
Doncic is the one I've watched the most.  Middling athlete, good court vision, good shooter.  Comparing him to a RoY, 6th man of the year, and 3x champ is insulting?  OK.  Last year, Bender was the best euro prospect in years.  ::)  Doncic will be a solid role player.

I haven't seen Jackson much.  I like Bamba because you can't teach 7'9" wingspan, see Gobert.  I think Bamba has even more upside.

Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #9 on: April 01, 2018, 03:23:14 PM »

Offline PickNRoll

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You're completely missing the boat on Doncic. I got him and Bagley as the two best players in this draft.
I don't hate Doncic, I just don't think his game translates well.   I don't see him as a strong pnr ball handler in the league.  He's a good shooter, but I question whether he can get his own shot.

All that said, he's a very good passer, high-energy player, crafty with the ball.  I see him as an eventual 15/5/5 type of guy... really solid.  Just not the franchise player people are claiming.  There's a long list of skilled wings who tore up D1 but couldn't adjust to NBA athletes.  If you see him being a star, I have to ask how?  e.g He's less athletic than Hayward, not as strong as Pierce, not as quick as Melo, can't get his own like Tatum, doesn't defend like Butler or Kawhi, can't shoot like Durant, and so on.  His passing is his only standout skill, and that puts a ceiling on him.

Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #10 on: April 01, 2018, 05:28:22 PM »

Offline nickagneta

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You're completely missing the boat on Doncic. I got him and Bagley as the two best players in this draft.
I don't hate Doncic, I just don't think his game translates well.   I don't see him as a strong pnr ball handler in the league.  He's a good shooter, but I question whether he can get his own shot.

All that said, he's a very good passer, high-energy player, crafty with the ball.  I see him as an eventual 15/5/5 type of guy... really solid.  Just not the franchise player people are claiming.  There's a long list of skilled wings who tore up D1 but couldn't adjust to NBA athletes.  If you see him being a star, I have to ask how?  e.g He's less athletic than Hayward, not as strong as Pierce, not as quick as Melo, can't get his own like Tatum, doesn't defend like Butler or Kawhi, can't shoot like Durant, and so on.  His passing is his only standout skill, and that puts a ceiling on him.
Wow..an 18 year old who is the best player in the 2nd most competitve league in the world doesn't have the infividual skills of some of the all-time greats and best players in the league. You know who also fit that description when they entered the league, Steve Nash, John Stockton and Steph Curry.

Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #11 on: April 01, 2018, 06:01:36 PM »

Offline Sophomore

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The Jaren Jackson comparison was funny because you said 3 good things about him 1st, that he was "solid, strong, decent shot blocker". But then you roasted him with the PJ Brown comp.

I like Jackson a lot. I think he will be like Serge Ibaka, and be a great role player. But I don't think he has much star potential, so I have a hard time seeing him go super high. But he can still be a very versatile and valuable asset for a team.
That's what I meant re: Jackson, solid, but not spectacular.  PJ played 15 years in the league and was a starter from day 1.  There's always a rush to anoint every lotto pick as some former All-star.  That's not how it works.  PJ Brown is a compliment.

PJ was 24 his first year in the league, after being 29th pick in the second round. Nobody saw a high ceiling player. He averaged 9 points and eight rebounds for his career, on low efficiency. His second year in the league, he scored 8pg and grabbed 6rpg.  If somebody spends a high lottery pick for that production, I guarantee they’ll be disappointed.
« Last Edit: April 01, 2018, 06:08:29 PM by Sophomore »

Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #12 on: April 01, 2018, 06:03:21 PM »

Offline green_bballers13

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You're completely missing the boat on Doncic. I got him and Bagley as the two best players in this draft.
I don't hate Doncic, I just don't think his game translates well.   I don't see him as a strong pnr ball handler in the league.  He's a good shooter, but I question whether he can get his own shot.

All that said, he's a very good passer, high-energy player, crafty with the ball.  I see him as an eventual 15/5/5 type of guy... really solid.  Just not the franchise player people are claiming.  There's a long list of skilled wings who tore up D1 but couldn't adjust to NBA athletes.  If you see him being a star, I have to ask how?  e.g He's less athletic than Hayward, not as strong as Pierce, not as quick as Melo, can't get his own like Tatum, doesn't defend like Butler or Kawhi, can't shoot like Durant, and so on.  His passing is his only standout skill, and that puts a ceiling on him.

You compared Doncic to Mike Miller. I agree w Nick. You're off on that comp. Those players really only have one thing in common.

Comparisons are tough, especially when looking at unique players. I don't think he has a good comp in the current NBA. I've seen him on video and think he'll be a good player.

Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #13 on: April 08, 2018, 11:50:19 AM »

Offline Emmette Bryant

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Re: First Impressions of 2018 draft class
« Reply #14 on: April 08, 2018, 12:15:47 PM »

Offline tazzmaniac

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