[Celtics3178Participant]

the feeling was during the lottery that Fultz and Ball were locks 1 and 2. The celtics and lakers have a historic rivalry and what better thing then to have 2 rookies with all star talent at the same position go 1 and 2. Right when the Warriors are falling off you have two huge markets with the chance of rekindleing the rivalry. If the Lakers don’t select Ball and they take say Jackson or Fox. Moving forward it just wouldn’t be the same. I’m not a big fan of Ball but I never wish bad on anyone and think of him and Markell could both become superstars it be great for the league. I know Lavar is an absolute clown and myself am guilty of blaming Lonzo for some of the things he says but it’s his dad can anyone control there parents? I’m curious if people would be intrigued by a Fultz And Jackson rivalry the same way they would Fultz and Ball.

[nill650Participant]

 from a marketing standpoint the lakers will sell more lonzo ball items before they give up on him half way through the season than they will in 3 years with anyone else.

From a basketball standpoint and a winning future contender standpoint, they will sell more tickets in those 3 years with somebody else than with Lonzo.

Unless he has been sandbagging it his entire life and has the ability to immediately repair all of the holes in his game,I doubt it.

He is a top 5 pick but man he is not the 2nd best prospect in this draft without making those improvements. I believe it will kill the best parts of his game not having them. You cannot be drafted #2 overall to a storied franchise and not be able to doi the things he can’t : He doesn’t attack the rim in traffic off the dribble,has neither the resemblence of a mid range game nor the ability to create space to get off that shot if he did ,& he doesn’t play defense.

His Curry longrange 3’s and elite passing /court vision get him a shot at making those improvements over time, but those 2 things alone are not enough to go #2. 

If they do take him there, they know something noone else has seen,or they are fools.

[sheltwon3Participant]

 You just said he was a top  pick in this deep draft yet he has all these holes in his game.  Almost every player has holes in their game.  The so called best player in the world has many holes in his game despite being a freak athlete and highly skilled player.  Durant is probably the closest you get to a player with not many holes in his game except for strength which in this NBA now is not that big of a deal.

[nill650Participant]

 I said he was a top 5 pick. his skillset in hot & cold. He has elite skills as a high IQ passer and can make a high% of bombs . However then he goes cold …ice cold.

 Fultz is mutiskilled in virtually every dept with very few deficiencies and none of them are completely missing from a prospect arsenal.

Jackson ,Fox and Smith are all much more well rounded prospects with 1 elite skill instead of 2 like ball but also with only 1 hole in their game.

It’s not a head scratcher to me if Ball falls to 4 or 5.  He would be fun to watch in LA and would make them better, but that backcourt would give up more points than they create or make , so the only question really, is does Ball have what it takes with just those 2 elite skills to make that roster relevant? I doubt it.

[Memphis MadnessParticipant]

 Glad I am not making that decision.  3rd pick is better from a risk/reward perspective.  

You take Lonzo at 2 and he burns the place down, then heads will roll…

You are Philly sitting at 3 you can basically take ANYBODY.  Well, unless you take Markannen and he turns into the next Great White Bust.

Probably not much separation in terms of raw talent between Ball and Jackson.  They have different games, and they aren’t SUPER POLISHED.  You can find flaws OR you can be a TRUE BELIEVER in their YouTube videos.

If I am LA, I draft Lonzo Ball AND try to get another guy.  Either trading for Philly’s pick at 3. Or, throwing everybody else other than Brandom Ingram for Sacto’s picks at 5 and 10.

Does Philly get enough for the 3rd pick if LA sends them Russell, Clarkson, Randle, Zubac, and 28 for Josh Jackson?

Ok, JJ has UPSIDE, but he is not TOTALLY polished.  He has some flaws, and there is some risk there.

D’Angelo Russell: You know what you are getting.  A classic pick and roll point guard who can score, shoot from distance, handle the ball, and pass.  With Ben Simmons you can mix and match a bit… 

Then Clarkson gives you a legit 3 guard rotation along with Russell and TJ McConnell.  Julius Randle gives you a LEGIT power forward who can score, board, and also make some plays.  Zubac gives you a replacement for Okafor if they eventually move him.  Or, if I am the Lakers I try to get Okafor too, even if I have to throw in that 2018 first rounder…

Basically, if I am LA I want to CLEAN HOUSE for a FRESH START.  

Lonzo Ball at point guard.

Josh Jackson and Brandon Ingram on the wing.

Larry Nance, Jr. at power forward throwing down lobs.

If I can get Okafor, too, then he looks like a center of the future… a bit of a throwback but probably worth the gamble.

I give the keys to Lonzo, try to get a "splash" free agent like Paul George next year, run the ball, and have some fun.

From a marketing perspective you want THAT.  A loaded, Showtimesque Lakers squad.  A Celtics team on the rise that adds Markelle Fultz.  A super deep young Sixers squad.  Sixers would have Russell-Simmons on the perimeter with Embiid, Saric, and Randle as the big man rotation.  Russell might not have the "athletic upside" as Josh Jackson but he is a heck of a player.  Maybe a better FIT next to Ben Simmons.

The NBA marketing team WANTS/NEEDS a MONSTER draft night trade.

This one would be IT.

Lakers get: Josh Jackson (3rd pick), Jahlil Okafor

Sixers get: D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson, Julius Randle, Zubac, the 28th pick, and the Lakers 2018 first round pick.

That would be a SPLASH DRAFT for the Lakers.  Lonzo Ball AND Josh Jackson.  

Lakers and Philly partisans would have STRONG feelings about that blockbuster trade — either way.

So, following the clash of a SUPER TEAM and a SUPER SUPER TEAM, you have a couple of venerable franchises trying to build superteams of their own (Celtics, Lakers, and Sixers).

Then you have the zany Knicks wheeling and dealing at 8.

Could be a REALLY fun draft!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[MatosParticipant]

Philly will not trade their 3rd pick for the entire Lakers team sans Ingram. Clarkson is a bench player making starter money. Randle is a big who will never take his game to the next level. D-Lo will never be the star everyone expected him to be. Other pieces are just fluff. 

Fact of the matter is the only trades within the lottery are going to be between two teams trading their lottery picks and spicing it up with other pieces OR trades for Jimmy Butler/Paul George. And even those are farfetched. Only likely trade is Kings moving their two picks for a pick within the top 3. 

[Memphis MadnessParticipant]

 I don’t think there is a MOUNT RUSHMORE guy in this draft.  Or, an MVP.  

It is an above average draft, especially from probably 3 to 7 or 8.  The top two picks are pretty good, could get one of the BETTER 2nd picks out of this draft, but note on the KD level.  No MJ at 3 either.  Or, for that matter, Larry Bird at 6.  

Could be the kind of draft where you get a Paul Pierce player at 10.  Maybe that is Tatum if he falls.  Or, Isaac.  If one of the BIG FOUR point guards falls then you could get an All Star caliber point guard at 10.

If Ntilinka is THAT good then he might be the best guy in the draft… so take him.  OR, trade your top 3 pick, trade down get him AND get other assets…

BECAUSE if you don’t LOVE Fultz, or Ball, or Fox, or Jackson, and you pass on the guy you DID want then you could get FIRED.  

I don’t think you get FIRED if you are the Sixers, trade 3 and Okafor and end up with Ntilikina at 5 and another really good player at 10 — even if none of those guys turns into a SUPERSTAR.  

I don’t think it is one of those things where you are passing over Durant and picking Greg Oden.  Or, taking Sam Bowie over Jordan.

The difference between the top 6 or 7 picks will probably be more like taking a fringe All Star guy like a Mike Conley over an All Star Game reserve like an Isaiah Thomas or something.

Then you need guys in the right spots.  Even Bird/Magic wouldn’t have worked out as well (at least from a marketing/branding standpoint) if Magic ended up on the Celtics and Bird ended up on the Lakers.  

I mean, Tiny and Magic would have been a SUPER FUN backcourt in 1980.  Then you forget that Pistol Pete signed on to the Bird Celtics teams but, being the guy he is, quit before they won the title.  So, THAT would have been a TRIO.  Tiny, Pistol, and Magic.  TINY MAGIC PISTOL: NBA DYNASTY/PORN TRILOGY.  Cedric Maxwell as their veteran scorer… then they STILL get McHale and Parish.  

Ok.  Magic went to the WRONG TEAM.  Shoulda gone to the Celtics.  The only thing better than a CELTICS dynasty would be a CELTICS DYNASTY would have been a SHOWTIME CELTICS DYNASTY.

Tiny, Magic, Cornbread Maxwell, McHale, and Parish with Pistol Pete OFF THE BENCH.

WOW.

That’s a 30 for 30.  WHAT IF Magic went to the Celtics and BIRD went to the LAKERS?

Bird isn’t the effusive, magnetic leader that Magic was.  BUT, Bird/Kareem would LITERALLY be unstoppable.  I think Norm Nixon could get a few assists with those guys.  Jamal Wilkes could find a few open shots…

Norm Nixon, Michael Cooper, James Worthy, Bird, and Kareem with Jamal Wilkes, Kurt Rambis, and Bob McAdoo off the bench???? That’s not too shaby either…

So, maybe we need Fultz on the right team.  Ball on the right team.  Josh Jackson on the right team.  Fox on the right team.

OR, we don’t even KNOW who they should be on.  So, instead of Josh Jackson being the next DR J in Philly, maybe he should try to be the next KOBE in LA.  OR, even better, he should be ACTION JACKSON — put Smart, IT, and JJ on the perimeter in Boston for a little BEANTOWN SHOWTIME.  Are they still afraid of putting Len Bias on the leftovers of the ’86 Celtics.  Or, Reggie Lewis?

Philly needs a flat out baller-scorer to pair with the Simmons-Embiid PICK AND ROLL OF DEATH.  Then Saric is a 3rd option.  So, you go Fultz… if you can’t trade UP to get him at 1, then you maybe trade your draft pick (3) for D’Angelo Russell, the 2018 pick, and a bunch of the new look Lakers young guns.

This is an IMPORTANT DRAFT.  Might not determine a champion or even an MVP race, BUT it could shape some of our favorite franchises (Lakers, Celtics, Sixers, and Knicks) and kinda tell us what the future NBA brand will be…

Is it a bunch of fun, young, flash, energetic/photogenic teams chasing the Warriors or is it a bunch of tired old-has beens chasing the Warriors with some potential "youth movements" running off the rails…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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