[he_gets_bucketsParticipant]

 PLEASE do not pick Lauri Markannen.

I know, I know. He’s a European big guy whose got range and is generally good on offense- he’s not Dirk. He’s never gonna be Dirk. Stop telling yourself and buying into the hype that he can be a successor to Dirk. He could be a guy who takes over for Dirk after he leaves, as in, becomes our starting 4, but becoming a centerpiece player? Not happening. In fact, I don’t see him being an All-Star calibre player. 

Don’t get me wrong, he’s got a very good skillset on offense. Some less educated people try to push the narrative that he’s just a shooter- that’s not true. He can score on 3 levels. He can post, he can face up, and he’s good both on the roll and the pop. He’s also adept at attacking close outs and has a decent handle. Great talent! But he lacks athleticism and length. That’s going to butcher his ability to score on the inside at the next level, not to mention exacerbate his already poor defensive fundamentals. 

This is probably the only top 10 pick we’re gonna have for a while. This was the season we tanked, Cuban recently said in an interview after we were eliminated from contention we went full tank. That’s not going to happen again for a while. We need to make something of this, and Lauri even as a best case scenario is probably just a very high level 2nd or 3rd option on a contender, a guy who can get you 20 points, but not be a spectacular rebounder or defender. I have full faith that Rick Carlisle would get the best out of Lauri but I just don’t see him developing into much when similarly built guys with similar skills have done little to nothing in the league (see; Jon Leuer).

The guy I really hope we get is Dennis Smith- purely because I’ve been inlove with him as a prospect since I saw him play in his Sophomore year, and really want to root for him on my team. But besides from that bias, he’s being slept on a LOT and looks like he might slip, and we don’t have any pieces at the guard spot that are going to be around long term (sorry Yogi/Seth fans).

However, I don’t think after private workouts and interviews that Dennis falls past Sacramento, as the main crux of the criticism his way has been character driven, and I truely believe thats one of his best attributes and when teams actually meet him they will be able to guage that better than reading articles about it. So my guy I think is realistic to be there and we could get is Frank Ntilkina.

First off, this guy has got fantastic measurables- he’s got an enormous wingspan, huge hands, he’s built, and he’s athletic as all hell. Combine that with his high skill level- he’s got a bit of a loose handle but he’s got a really good stroke and has really good vision, you have all the makings of a guy who can be a multiple time All-Star. Give him to Coach Carlisle and I guarantee you he is an All-Star by the end of his rookie contract. 

Mostly, I just don’t want us to take Lauri and have the hype machine pump him up as the next Dirk and for an enormous amount of expectation to be dumped on the kid that he just can’t live up to. Besides that, I’d much rather have an All-Star point guard than an All-Star stretch four in this day and age. I’d much rather have a lunch pail, athletic defense and rebound guy at my big spot with an All-Star guard than vice versa, because one of those teams is the Clippers and one of them is Minnesota with Kevin Love. I know who I’m picking.

 

[Robb_CParticipant]

 Lauri will be closer to Bargnani.. Both couldn’t guard a parked car.

[jabbar_medvedenkoParticipant]

 And what if, hypothetically, Smith goes to Sactown, and Ntilikina is picked by the Knicks? Who do you draft? Markkanen, Monk, Collins? 

If you can get, as you say, a 20 ppg scorer at no. 9, you do it no matter what. Even if he doesn’t come close to what Dirk is.

 

 

[Jr. ROXASParticipant]

Yea I agree with you. Lauri is an offensive monster, one of the most advanced I’ve seen for a 7’0 230/240 pounder due in large part not only to his shooting but also his dribble drive game.

With the 9th pick, you’re not expecting any franchise player anyway, unless say Dennis Smith were still available imo. Guys like K-Love and Brook Lopez both have similar defeciencies when it comes to defense as Markannen, but they contribute in the league at a very high level.

Markannen though can still be a presence INSIDE the paint with his size buy just following the verticality rule. Not as great as Gobert obviously, but with some training, good enough to be an intimidation out there. Noel can then be tasked to guard pick and rolls. Now the only issue then I have with Markannen is his lack of rebounding. With the size he has, he should be a lot better rebounder. But his offensive game is just too good to look over especially with a pick as low as 9 despite the deficiencies.

All in all, I think the Mavs should get Markannen, the only exception being if Smith or to a slight degree Ntilinka or Isaac were still available, which I doubt. Maybe they can take a slight risk with Zach Collins which I am fine with, but Lauri’s offensive skill is just to advanced to pass up.

 

 

[he_gets_bucketsParticipant]

 I just don’t see him doing all that much outside of scoring- hes not a particularly good passer, doesn’t play D well, and rebounds very poorly. The above comparison to Bargnani I think is quite apt. I’ll definitely change my tune if we draft him and root for him, but i’m firmly hoping we take one of the guards at this point.

[he_gets_bucketsParticipant]

 Personally I quite like Monk as a prospect, and historically Carlisle has maximised the hell out if combo guards so I’d take him. I think he has just as much of a chance as becoming a 20ppg scorer as Lauri

[LovebugParticipant]

 Why do you think the Mavs won’t be in the lottery for awhile?

[he_gets_bucketsParticipant]

 Because we are going to reload at least somewhat this offseason and Rick Carlisle has dragged some turrible teams into the playoffs, so one average free agent signing and a top 10 pick should be enough for us to at least be picking above 13/14

[Dog_ShammdogParticipant]

 I’m not saying Lauri’s a good rebounder in any way, but he did spend the majority of his time on offense floating around on the perimeter and shot alot of threes from the top of the key/in the pick and pop, so he was getting back on D more than almost any NCAA prospect of his size that you’ll ever see. So his awful rebounding numbers aren’t ENTIRELY inexplicable for a player his size, but definitely well below what they should be all things considered.

 

 

[khaled_a_dParticipant]

A a Mavs ffan I have few things to say here:
1- beggars can’t be choosers, we are drafting with the 9th pick,last 4 players drafted there was Jakob Poeltl, Frank Kaminsky, Noah Vonleh and Trey Burke. And even if we rightfully ignored history. our selection will be decided based on 8 teams preferance,we don’t have control on who we pick
2-I wwould like Laure tbh,he can be a piece of a good team IMO,high bbiq,gr8 scoring talent and gr8 physical profil. fill the PF place for the future as good fit for Barnes and Noel.coach Rick knows how to hide his PF defensive limitations and Lari is an upgrade as PF on Barnes in terms of rebounding,while he also allows Barnes to play his game on offense. He isn’t bad fit at all IMO
3-Mike Fisher of dallasbasketball reported that Mavs aren’t high on either Monk or Lauri btw,same for DSJ as it seem the Mavs think he is a locker room problem(his word not mine). but tbf in most of his reporting he didn’t say which player the Mavs really like,he said they had the obvious name in Fultz,JJ,Fox &Ball in that order but this is gone after the lottery.
So back to 1st point,The Mavs will have to pick a player they don’t absolutely love,that what happens when you after the illusion of making the play offs with such limited squad. You can make a case for every player that he is a bad pick. Frank limited role in france and poor ball handling,DSJ size/injury history/fit in our system,Monk being undersized shooter etc. Not saying those are gonna be bad or that we can’t get a good player here. but whoever we are gonna get will need to work on his game and probably isn’t the 1st name in our board
4-The Mavs might very well be in lottery next couple of years,I can’t see us passing any of the teams that were ahead of us and the Wolves are young and upcoming team,may be the Suns too. We have just started our rebuild and will take some time.

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