The 2014 draft class, revisited

[nickagneta]

If I am a GM in this draft and have a top 8 pick the players I would be worried about having the most likely chance of being a whole lot less than their pre draft hype are

1. Joel Embiid I have heard a lot about him being the next Hakeem but he could easily be the next Michael Olowakandi

2. Dante Exum - the last time we heard this much hype about a foreign teen age guard was Ricky Rubio and Rubio is no where near being a very good player never mind a great player. He's currently the worst shooter after three years in the game to ever have played the game.

3. Aaron Gordon - too many coincidences not to bring up Derrick Williams name when comparing Gordon to an NBA player. They both went to Arizona. They both are tweeners of the SF/PF type. They both are hustle players that play very good defense. They may both struggle mightily at the pro level.

4. Marcus Smart - he could be the next Rondo/MCW like player that is exceptional in so many ways but shooting. But if he allows his lack of shooting to effect the rest of his game, he could be a whole lot less than that.

5. Andrew Wiggins - the hype has been massive and the comparisons to all time greats have been too numerous to count. But having watched him and having listened to a various amount of television analysts describe him the words I worry about is "Drift", "Passive", "Uninvolved", "Good shooter not great", "Mentally not in the game" and these are direct quotes of the analysts during his games. He could be T-Mac. He could be Jeff Green. He could be worse than Jeff Green. Only time will tell.

I have watched a lot of Kansas and Wiggins gets a bad rep, ( I like Parker and Embiid better ) but he is having a great freshman season?  16pts, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block.  Shooting 47% from the field 75% from the line and 34 % from 3 and playing lock down defense?  On Embiid, he does things on the court right now as a frosh better than the Candy man ever did.  Embiid, is a rare prospect, 7'0 very athletic and he is only going to get better.  I think he goes number 1 come June.

If you watch a lot of Kansas basketball then you know I am not lying about the quotes analysts have said. You also know that like Jeff Green he disappears for long, long stretches of games and takes whole games off.

Stats mean squat when judging college talent as most of the Jayhawks schedule is against inferior teams and talent. One can but see a player and determine if he has what it takes to make it at the next level.

Wiggins has it but like Jeff Green he turns it on and off at will and doesn't appear to have it mentally where in a lot of ways, that's where he needs to be great the most.

[TwinTower14]

If I am a GM in this draft and have a top 8 pick the players I would be worried about having the most likely chance of being a whole lot less than their pre draft hype are

1. Joel Embiid I have heard a lot about him being the next Hakeem but he could easily be the next Michael Olowakandi

2. Dante Exum - the last time we heard this much hype about a foreign teen age guard was Ricky Rubio and Rubio is no where near being a very good player never mind a great player. He's currently the worst shooter after three years in the game to ever have played the game.

3. Aaron Gordon - too many coincidences not to bring up Derrick Williams name when comparing Gordon to an NBA player. They both went to Arizona. They both are tweeners of the SF/PF type. They both are hustle players that play very good defense. They may both struggle mightily at the pro level.

4. Marcus Smart - he could be the next Rondo/MCW like player that is exceptional in so many ways but shooting. But if he allows his lack of shooting to effect the rest of his game, he could be a whole lot less than that.

5. Andrew Wiggins - the hype has been massive and the comparisons to all time greats have been too numerous to count. But having watched him and having listened to a various amount of television analysts describe him the words I worry about is "Drift", "Passive", "Uninvolved", "Good shooter not great", "Mentally not in the game" and these are direct quotes of the analysts during his games. He could be T-Mac. He could be Jeff Green. He could be worse than Jeff Green. Only time will tell.

I have watched a lot of Kansas and Wiggins gets a bad rep, ( I like Parker and Embiid better ) but he is having a great freshman season?  16pts, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block.  Shooting 47% from the field 75% from the line and 34 % from 3 and playing lock down defense?  On Embiid, he does things on the court right now as a frosh better than the Candy man ever did.  Embiid, is a rare prospect, 7'0 very athletic and he is only going to get better.  I think he goes number 1 come June.

If you watch a lot of Kansas basketball then you know I am not lying about the quotes analysts have said. You also know that like Jeff Green he disappears for long, long stretches of games and takes whole games off.

Stats mean squat when judging college talent as most of the Jayhawks schedule is against inferior teams and talent. One can but see a player and determine if he has what it takes to make it at the next level.

Wiggins has it but like Jeff Green he turns it on and off at will and doesn't appear to have it mentally where in a lot of ways, that's where he needs to be great the most.

he is also 18 and Jeff Green is 27, a lot of time for the light to go on.  He has played 2 real good college teams this year and he was dominate in both games.  I like Wiggins but I wouldn't take him number 1 because I think Parker and Embiid are special.  I think Wiggins will be multiple all star and a guy that can score 20pts a night and play elite defense but I think Parker / Embiid are franchise / corner stone players. 

[Yoki_IsTheName]

A #2 gets you a Kevin Durant.

A #5 gets you Jeff Green.

In 2007.

Exactly.

A number 7 can land you a Steph Curry and a number 10 can land you a Paul George.

Talent evaluation is really important too.

[LatterDayCelticsfan]

A number 50 something landed someone a Ginobli. Talent evaluation is everything. Anyway, is this draft deep, or top heavy?

[Moranis]

A number 50 something landed someone a Ginobli. Talent evaluation is everything. Anyway, is this draft deep, or top heavy?

It should be pretty deep depending on who comes out. 

[Fafnir]

When I watch Wiggins I don't see a guy who turns it on and off. He defends the whole game and defends with a lot of effort.

He doesn't try to dominate the ball offensively most games, but I don't think that's a bad thing. Looks like he is playing within the offense. Bill Self doesn't coach offense worth a dang either, not the coach who will highlight an individual offensive talent (or even get elite scoring as a team)

[nickagneta]

When I watch Wiggins I don't see a guy who turns it on and off. He defends the whole game and defends with a lot of effort.

He doesn't try to dominate the ball offensively most games, but I don't think that's a bad thing. Looks like he is playing within the offense. Bill Self doesn't coach offense worth a dang either, not the coach who will highlight an individual offensive talent (or even get elite scoring as a team)

Let me just say that I disagree with the fact he defends the whole game. He drifts on that end as well and I have seen many a player just drive right past him with little to no effort on Wiggins part in the 5-6 games I have watched of him this year.

[D.o.s.]

This thread is adorable.

[winsomme]

A #2 gets you a Kevin Durant.

A #5 gets you Jeff Green.

A #5 gets you Ray Allen actually. That's something that people are forgetting here. Potential may never be revealed in a draft pick, but that is not the only way to get value out of said pick..

As for the talent in this upcoming draft I would say it's actually expanding. Randle, Parker, Wiggins, and Embiid have shown why there was so much talk about them and Exum is still incredibly  enticing to scouts and GMs alike. Additionally, you have guys like  Vonleh and LaVine who weren't originally in the discussion but who are now there based on their play.

There's no way around it. Right now this draft is stacked. Granted it's still all potential, but again potential may be all you need to land you a KG or a Ray Allen via trade..

[Celtics18]

This thread is adorable.

Thanks.  Always striving for adorability. 

[More Banners]

A #2 gets you a Kevin Durant.

A #5 gets you Jeff Green.

A #5 gets you Ray Allen actually. That's something that people are forgetting here. Potential may never be revealed in a draft pick, but that is not the only way to get value out of said pick..

As for the talent in this upcoming draft I would say it's actually expanding. Randle, Parker, Wiggins, and Embiid have shown why there was so much talk about them and Exum is still incredibly  enticing to scouts and GMs alike. Additionally, you have guys like  Vonleh and LaVine who weren't originally in the discussion but who are now there based on their play.

There's no way around it. Right now this draft is stacked. Granted it's still all potential, but again potential may be all you need to land you a KG or a Ray Allen via trade..

#2 (or rather, an unprotected 1st) gets you Gerald Henderson Sr. coming off starting for the champs.

#5 gets you Ray Allen coming off double-ankle surgery and no longer a #1 option.

 

[celticmania]

I think if there are 2 franchise players and 6 more guys that are consistently all-stars (Parker, Embiid, Smart, Randle, Exum, Wiggins, Vonleh, Hezonja, Lavine, Gordon all have all-star and or franchise player potential )this will be a great draft. I think people expect too much from players selected in the 20. If the player you draft outside of the lottery is a starter or is in your rotation within 3 years, i dont think you can complain. What makes this draft so good is the 6 prizes (Wiggins, Embiid, Parker, Randle, Exum, Smart) but also an unusual amount of players who will play important roles on their respective teams. Guys like Montrezl Harrell, Glenn Robinson, Andrew Harrison, Spencer Dinwiddie, Chris Walker and many others will probably get drafted outside of the lottery but these guys have potential to be more than just role players...

[winsomme]

A #2 gets you a Kevin Durant.

A #5 gets you Jeff Green.

A #5 gets you Ray Allen actually. That's something that people are forgetting here. Potential may never be revealed in a draft pick, but that is not the only way to get value out of said pick..

As for the talent in this upcoming draft I would say it's actually expanding. Randle, Parker, Wiggins, and Embiid have shown why there was so much talk about them and Exum is still incredibly  enticing to scouts and GMs alike. Additionally, you have guys like  Vonleh and LaVine who weren't originally in the discussion but who are now there based on their play.

There's no way around it. Right now this draft is stacked. Granted it's still all potential, but again potential may be all you need to land you a KG or a Ray Allen via trade..

#2 (or rather, an unprotected 1st) gets you Gerald Henderson Sr. coming off starting for the champs.

#5 gets you Ray Allen coming off double-ankle surgery and no longer a #1 option.

 

In his first few years in Boston, Ray was definitely capable of being a first option if needed. Any way you slice it, he was a huge get for DA and it would not have been possible to score both KG and Ray if not for our terrible 2007 season. And that was with the worst possible pick we could have had coming out of that lottery..

[KG Living Legend]

 Disagree although I've never liked Gordon all the other top guys are legit and I'd loved to have them. Would love Embid even though he needs lots of work you almost never see a 7 footer like him. Smart I would be fantastic. Randle although we don't need him will eventually be a 20 and 10 guy. Exum would be an upgrade over Bradley. Parker would be a dream and Wiggins I'm not sold but I'd be more than happy to take a flyer on him.

 Hell of a draft. Overrated maybe a little.

[More Banners]

A #2 gets you a Kevin Durant.

A #5 gets you Jeff Green.

A #5 gets you Ray Allen actually. That's something that people are forgetting here. Potential may never be revealed in a draft pick, but that is not the only way to get value out of said pick..

As for the talent in this upcoming draft I would say it's actually expanding. Randle, Parker, Wiggins, and Embiid have shown why there was so much talk about them and Exum is still incredibly  enticing to scouts and GMs alike. Additionally, you have guys like  Vonleh and LaVine who weren't originally in the discussion but who are now there based on their play.

There's no way around it. Right now this draft is stacked. Granted it's still all potential, but again potential may be all you need to land you a KG or a Ray Allen via trade..

#2 (or rather, an unprotected 1st) gets you Gerald Henderson Sr. coming off starting for the champs.

#5 gets you Ray Allen coming off double-ankle surgery and no longer a #1 option.

 

In his first few years in Boston, Ray was definitely capable of being a first option if needed. Any way you slice it, he was a huge get for DA and it would not have been possible to score both KG and Ray if not for our terrible 2007 season. And that was with the worst possible pick we could have had coming out of that lottery..

Ray came back well of course, but hadn't played since surgery and was past 30; his value was diminished.

Obviously, high picks have value, but higher is better, and there is likely a difference between 5 and 2.  I wouldn't "tank" for a shot at #5 overall.