17 Years later the next Duncan is here. J. Okafor

[sofutomygaha]

KLL and Jahlil, sittin' in a tree...

[greece66]

 Call me crazy. This kid is not even fair. Keep Wiggins, Keep Parker, This kid is 18, he's 6'11" 275 pounds he's got a 7'5" wingspan and best of all It's not because he's the best athlete you have ever seen in your life, It's because he plays like a super strong super sized  Tim Duncan, This kid will be so good barring injury it's scary.

 If we get Okafor we win a title within five years. Heck maybe sooner if we could lure someone else here, hell, a Celts fan can dream, Can't he?

I agree that Okafor is great. Problem is that even if we finish as bad as 5th from the bottom (really unlikely considering that Philly has already established itself as the worst, and then you have Utah, LAL, NYK, Pistons, Minny, Charlotte and Orlando) this gives us only a 8.8% chance of getting Okafor.
Even if Okafor is not nr1, the chance of getting a top-3 pick will be 29.1%. I wouldn't get myself too excited.

[manl_lui]

 Call me crazy. This kid is not even fair. Keep Wiggins, Keep Parker, This kid is 18, he's 6'11" 275 pounds he's got a 7'5" wingspan and best of all It's not because he's the best athlete you have ever seen in your life, It's because he plays like a super strong super sized  Tim Duncan, This kid will be so good barring injury it's scary.

 If we get Okafor we win a title within five years. Heck maybe sooner if we could lure someone else here, hell, a Celts fan can dream, Can't he?

I agree that Okafor is great. Problem is that even if we finish as bad as 5th from the bottom (really unlikely considering that Philly has already established itself as the worst, and then you have Utah, LAL, NYK, Pistons, Minny, Charlotte and Orlando) this gives us only a 8.8% chance of getting Okafor.
Even if Okafor is not nr1, the chance of getting a top-3 pick will be 29.1%. I wouldn't get myself too excited.

Cleveland against all odds won the #1 pick last year, and I believe the Bulls in 08 did as well

[knuckleballer]

 Call me crazy. This kid is not even fair. Keep Wiggins, Keep Parker, This kid is 18, he's 6'11" 275 pounds he's got a 7'5" wingspan and best of all It's not because he's the best athlete you have ever seen in your life, It's because he plays like a super strong super sized  Tim Duncan, This kid will be so good barring injury it's scary.

 If we get Okafor we win a title within five years. Heck maybe sooner if we could lure someone else here, hell, a Celts fan can dream, Can't he?

I agree that Okafor is great. Problem is that even if we finish as bad as 5th from the bottom (really unlikely considering that Philly has already established itself as the worst, and then you have Utah, LAL, NYK, Pistons, Minny, Charlotte and Orlando) this gives us only a 8.8% chance of getting Okafor.
Even if Okafor is not nr1, the chance of getting a top-3 pick will be 29.1%. I wouldn't get myself too excited.

Towns is a nice prospect as well.  Detroit and Philly have the two worst records so far and neither needs a center.  There may be a good chance the Celtics could trade up considering all the picks we have.

[ddb]

What I've been saying for over a year.  I agree with you and have posted about it over on realgm quite a bit. 

the 2015 draft is top heavy with Jahlil at the top.  He has franchise player written all over him.  10-12 years of 50 wins plus and a couple titles.  That's the type of career he could have if he wants it

[loco_91]

a bit premature no? Kid has clear potential but at this point there's really no evidence he's better than an average #1 pick, if he even goes #1. I could easily see Towns going first. Duncan is a good comparison for him the same way that DWade is a good comparison for Smart.

[D.o.s.]

Remember when Harrison Barnes was the next Kobe?

[wayupnorth]

Remember when Harrison Barnes was the next Kobe?

No, actually, that is not something I ever recall hearing, even once.

[D.o.s.]

Remember when Harrison Barnes was the next Kobe?

No, actually, that is not something I ever recall hearing, even once.

Well then today you can either say you learned something, or you can start to worry about your memory. 

From the blogo/forumosphere:
www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?t=170184
https://asubstituteforwar.wordpress.com/2011/10/09/harrison-barnes-o-j-mayo-and-the-perils-of-illogical-projections/
http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?p=39866949&sid=bfe1f244caa8730d4147cb250158969d#p39866949
http://forums.prosportsdaily.com/showthread.php?474486-An-unnamed-NBA-scout-suggests-Harrison-Barnes-is-the-next-Kobe-Bryant


And from Chad Ford:

It's been several years since I've compared a player to Kobe Bryant. Barnes is as close as you're going to get.

http://m.espn.go.com/ncb/story?storyId=5710090&insider=&wjb=

Barnes came into the matchup with an enormous amount of hype. Not only is he ranked as the No. 1 player on ESPNU's top 100 list, I have him projected as the top prospect in the 2011 NBA draft, and scouts have compared him to Kobe Bryant.

http://m.espn.go.com/general/story?storyId=5078028&pg=1&lang=ES

IIRC it was also mentioned on the broadcast of the Team USA vs. Team World game in 2010, when Barnes was still in high school.

If you didn't hear about it, I'd wager it's because you weren't paying attention.

[hpantazo]

 Call me crazy. This kid is not even fair. Keep Wiggins, Keep Parker, This kid is 18, he's 6'11" 275 pounds he's got a 7'5" wingspan and best of all It's not because he's the best athlete you have ever seen in your life, It's because he plays like a super strong super sized  Tim Duncan, This kid will be so good barring injury it's scary.

 If we get Okafor we win a title within five years. Heck maybe sooner if we could lure someone else here, hell, a Celts fan can dream, Can't he?

I agree that Okafor is great. Problem is that even if we finish as bad as 5th from the bottom (really unlikely considering that Philly has already established itself as the worst, and then you have Utah, LAL, NYK, Pistons, Minny, Charlotte and Orlando) this gives us only a 8.8% chance of getting Okafor.
Even if Okafor is not nr1, the chance of getting a top-3 pick will be 29.1%. I wouldn't get myself too excited.

Towns is a nice prospect as well.  Detroit and Philly have the two worst records so far and neither needs a center.  There may be a good chance the Celtics could trade up considering all the picks we have.

Phili doesn't need a center but they already stated they would take one of those two guys, and I believe them. They stockpile talent rather than build a team. Detroit could use a center, Monroe will likely bolt this summer and Drummond is no sure thing.

[hpantazo]

As for Okafor being the next Duncan, no, we missed out on him, his name is Anthony Davis.

[puskas54_10]

I don't get it. Last year was supposed to be THE draft with transcendent talent. Wiggins, Parker, Embiid. We need one of them! Now: Next year is THE draft with Okafor, Towns,... Who will be in the 2016 draft? I'm curious who will be the next messiah?

[knuckleballer]

I don't get it. Last year was supposed to be THE draft with transcendent talent. Wiggins, Parker, Embiid. We need one of them! Now: Next year is THE draft with Okafor, Towns,... Who will be in the 2016 draft? I'm curious who will be the next messiah?

Thon Maker and Ben Simmons.  As long as we stink, there will always be a next messiah that we need to get in the draft.

[sofutomygaha]

I don't get it. Last year was supposed to be THE draft with transcendent talent. Wiggins, Parker, Embiid. We need one of them! Now: Next year is THE draft with Okafor, Towns,... Who will be in the 2016 draft? I'm curious who will be the next messiah?

Yeah, Thon Maker is the anointed one. Start looking at 2017 =)

[jpotter33]

 Call me crazy. This kid is not even fair. Keep Wiggins, Keep Parker, This kid is 18, he's 6'11" 275 pounds he's got a 7'5" wingspan and best of all It's not because he's the best athlete you have ever seen in your life, It's because he plays like a super strong super sized  Tim Duncan, This kid will be so good barring injury it's scary.

 If we get Okafor we win a title within five years. Heck maybe sooner if we could lure someone else here, hell, a Celts fan can dream, Can't he?

I agree that Okafor is great. Problem is that even if we finish as bad as 5th from the bottom (really unlikely considering that Philly has already established itself as the worst, and then you have Utah, LAL, NYK, Pistons, Minny, Charlotte and Orlando) this gives us only a 8.8% chance of getting Okafor.
Even if Okafor is not nr1, the chance of getting a top-3 pick will be 29.1%. I wouldn't get myself too excited.

Towns is a nice prospect as well.  Detroit and Philly have the two worst records so far and neither needs a center.  There may be a good chance the Celtics could trade up considering all the picks we have.

Phili doesn't need a center but they already stated they would take one of those two guys, and I believe them. They stockpile talent rather than build a team. Detroit could use a center, Monroe will likely bolt this summer and Drummond is no sure thing.

Umm, other than Anthony Davis, I'm not sure I'd rather have another young center prospect than Drummond.