This topic contains 4 replies, has 3 voices, and was last updated by 
Tyrober 13 years, 2 months ago.
lalaila
Tongue-Out-Like-23
Tongue-Out-Like-23
TyroberWe’ve covered just about everyone you could cover in the past 12 weeks during Stock Watch.
We could remind you again how good Norris Cole is — 40, 20 and nine for a 6-foot-2 point guard is ridiculous. Or we could go back and rehash the Harrison Barnes debate (not so impressive against Duke, better against Clemson).
Chad Ford’s Top 100
Follow Chad’s rankings from now until draft night. Top 100
But this week, we’re going to tackle something bigger than any one player. I’m going to tackle the 2011 NBA draft itself.
We’ve been hearing for months that the draft is weak with no real No. 1 at the top. OK, fair enough. But like any draft, there are some redeeming qualities, too.
Here’s a look at what’s good and what’s not so good about the NBA draft this year:
THE GOOD
Power forwards: NBA GMs have always put a premium on size, and the past few drafts have been weak up front. Last year, five power forwards went in the lottery but only one, Derrick Favors (and maybe Greg Monroe), was considered a potential superstar. In 2009, Blake Griffin was an obvious stud at No. 1, but the next best 4 in that draft was … Taj Gibson? Tyler Hansbrough? 2008 gave us Kevin Love, but that’s about it.
So it’s no small thing that this year’s draft is loaded with power forwards with potential. They are so difficult to find. When a draft is loaded with them, it’s usually reason to celebrate.
None of them seem like a Griffin sure thing. But there’s lots of potential there. We have a whopping 15 power forwards ranked in our Top 30. Perry Jones, Jared Sullinger, Enes Kanter, Jonas Valanciunas, John Henson, Donatas Motiejunas and Thomas Robinson are ranked in the Top 15. Several others like Jan Vesely, Marcus Morris and Mason Plumlee are just outside.
With so many NBA teams struggling to fill that position, it’s one reason to celebrate an otherwise weak draft.
Production: The other good news about this year’s draft is that a number of the prospects on the list are actually producing right now. Jared Sullinger is in the running for Player of the Year. So is Arizona’s Derrick Williams, UConn’s Kemba Walker and BYU’s Jimmer Fredette. A few others, like Kentucky’s Terrence Jones and Texas’ Jordan Hamilton, are putting up big numbers. And Duke’s Kyrie Irving was producing big time before being sidelined by a foot injury.
In other words, in past drafts GMs were drafting solely on potential. This year there are some legitimate prospects who have track records to back up the potential tag.
THE BAD
Centers: The only thing rarer than a good power forward in the draft is a true center. This year isn’t any different. Just one player, Enes Kanter, projects as a lottery center this year, and many GMs feel he’s more of a forward than a center.
The next-best center on our Big Board is Florida’s Patric Young — who’s averaging 3.3 ppg and 3.8 rpg. Yeah, it’s ugly. So if you’re dying to draft the next Dwight Howard, this ain’t your year.
Shooting guards: The shooting guard position is even worse, though GMs don’t care quite as much about it. Colorado’s Alec Burks tops our list this year at No. 26. Nolan Smith, Travis Leslie, Klay Thompson and Doron Lamb are all potential first-round prospects as well, but Burks looks like the only real 2-guard with a real shot at cracking the lottery.
Point guards: We’ve actually had a flood of great point guards in the past few drafts, especially in the amazing 2009 draft, when 11 of them went in the first round. This year, Duke’s Irving leads the pack, though a foot injury has kept him out much of the season.
Walker, Fredette, Josh Selby and Brandon Knight are in the next tier — but the knock on all four is that they are really 2-guards trapped in the bodies of point guards.
Again, if you are a team in desperate need of a point guard, this may not be the draft for you.
THE SLEEPER
It’s been a while since we really had a great international player at the top of the draft. In 2010, France’s Kevin Seraphin was the only international player to go in the first round. Ricky Rubio was all the rage two years ago, but he’s still not playing in the NBA and his game seems to have regressed a bit. Jonas Jerebko, Rodrigue Beaubois and Omri Casspi have shown some promise but likely aren’t stars. Serge Ibaka, Nicolas Batum and Danilo Gallinari all look like keepers from the class of 2008 — but again, not sure there’s a star there. Second-round pick Marc Gasol looks like the best pick out of the draft of 2007.
So I understand your skepticism a bit if you’re not sold on this year’s international class. I’ve been burned enough to join you. But scouts seem genuinely enthused about this year’s crop. Four players — Kanter, Valanciunuas, Motiejunas and Vesely — all look like potential lottery picks, with Kanter and Valanciunas possible top-5 picks.
But it’s deeper than that. Scouts are generally high on Brazilian big man Lucas Nogueira,Bojan Bogdanovic and Nikola Mirotic as possible first-round selections.
0
TyroberWe’ve covered just about everyone you could cover in the past 12 weeks during Stock Watch.
We could remind you again how good Norris Cole is — 40, 20 and nine for a 6-foot-2 point guard is ridiculous. Or we could go back and rehash the Harrison Barnes debate (not so impressive against Duke, better against Clemson).
Chad Ford’s Top 100
Follow Chad’s rankings from now until draft night. Top 100
But this week, we’re going to tackle something bigger than any one player. I’m going to tackle the 2011 NBA draft itself.
We’ve been hearing for months that the draft is weak with no real No. 1 at the top. OK, fair enough. But like any draft, there are some redeeming qualities, too.
Here’s a look at what’s good and what’s not so good about the NBA draft this year:
THE GOOD
Power forwards: NBA GMs have always put a premium on size, and the past few drafts have been weak up front. Last year, five power forwards went in the lottery but only one, Derrick Favors (and maybe Greg Monroe), was considered a potential superstar. In 2009, Blake Griffin was an obvious stud at No. 1, but the next best 4 in that draft was … Taj Gibson? Tyler Hansbrough? 2008 gave us Kevin Love, but that’s about it.
So it’s no small thing that this year’s draft is loaded with power forwards with potential. They are so difficult to find. When a draft is loaded with them, it’s usually reason to celebrate.
None of them seem like a Griffin sure thing. But there’s lots of potential there. We have a whopping 15 power forwards ranked in our Top 30. Perry Jones, Jared Sullinger, Enes Kanter, Jonas Valanciunas, John Henson, Donatas Motiejunas and Thomas Robinson are ranked in the Top 15. Several others like Jan Vesely, Marcus Morris and Mason Plumlee are just outside.
With so many NBA teams struggling to fill that position, it’s one reason to celebrate an otherwise weak draft.
Production: The other good news about this year’s draft is that a number of the prospects on the list are actually producing right now. Jared Sullinger is in the running for Player of the Year. So is Arizona’s Derrick Williams, UConn’s Kemba Walker and BYU’s Jimmer Fredette. A few others, like Kentucky’s Terrence Jones and Texas’ Jordan Hamilton, are putting up big numbers. And Duke’s Kyrie Irving was producing big time before being sidelined by a foot injury.
In other words, in past drafts GMs were drafting solely on potential. This year there are some legitimate prospects who have track records to back up the potential tag.
THE BAD
Centers: The only thing rarer than a good power forward in the draft is a true center. This year isn’t any different. Just one player, Enes Kanter, projects as a lottery center this year, and many GMs feel he’s more of a forward than a center.
The next-best center on our Big Board is Florida’s Patric Young — who’s averaging 3.3 ppg and 3.8 rpg. Yeah, it’s ugly. So if you’re dying to draft the next Dwight Howard, this ain’t your year.
Shooting guards: The shooting guard position is even worse, though GMs don’t care quite as much about it. Colorado’s Alec Burks tops our list this year at No. 26. Nolan Smith, Travis Leslie, Klay Thompson and Doron Lamb are all potential first-round prospects as well, but Burks looks like the only real 2-guard with a real shot at cracking the lottery.
Point guards: We’ve actually had a flood of great point guards in the past few drafts, especially in the amazing 2009 draft, when 11 of them went in the first round. This year, Duke’s Irving leads the pack, though a foot injury has kept him out much of the season.
Walker, Fredette, Josh Selby and Brandon Knight are in the next tier — but the knock on all four is that they are really 2-guards trapped in the bodies of point guards.
Again, if you are a team in desperate need of a point guard, this may not be the draft for you.
THE SLEEPER
It’s been a while since we really had a great international player at the top of the draft. In 2010, France’s Kevin Seraphin was the only international player to go in the first round. Ricky Rubio was all the rage two years ago, but he’s still not playing in the NBA and his game seems to have regressed a bit. Jonas Jerebko, Rodrigue Beaubois and Omri Casspi have shown some promise but likely aren’t stars. Serge Ibaka, Nicolas Batum and Danilo Gallinari all look like keepers from the class of 2008 — but again, not sure there’s a star there. Second-round pick Marc Gasol looks like the best pick out of the draft of 2007.
So I understand your skepticism a bit if you’re not sold on this year’s international class. I’ve been burned enough to join you. But scouts seem genuinely enthused about this year’s crop. Four players — Kanter, Valanciunuas, Motiejunas and Vesely — all look like potential lottery picks, with Kanter and Valanciunas possible top-5 picks.
But it’s deeper than that. Scouts are generally high on Brazilian big man Lucas Nogueira,Bojan Bogdanovic and Nikola Mirotic as possible first-round selections.
0
| You must be logged in to reply to this topic. | Login |