[JNixonParticipant]

 8: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, 6’7 233, SF, Kentucky, Fr.

After coming in and being an impact player on the nat’l title team as a Fr., Kidd-Gilchrist checks in…Highly touted recruit out of HS who did everything for UK and lived up to the hype around him with his willingness to accept his role…High character prospect who is extremely coachable and has little ego for a guy who has his fanfare…1^st Team All-SEC and a member of the All-SEC defensive team as a Fr…Physically, Kidd-Gilchrist is excellent…Has good size at 6’7 on the wing, and also has a mature 233 lb frame that is still gaining strength…Possesses a great 7’ wingspan and has great length on the perimeter…Athletically, Kidd-Gilchrist is also very good…Possesses big time speed, explosiveness and good leaping ability, body control, agility and quickness as well…Really has very good physical tools

On offense, Kidd-Gilchrist is versatile but not a true standout…Understands how to use his strengths effectively and is at least a serviceable scorer…Makes most of his hay around the rim, where his physical tools are most visible…Adept at finishing around the rim, as he has the size, athleticism and body control to finish amongst the trees and through contact well…Has the strength to get up shots when fouled…Touch around the rim is not half bad…Plays with a high motor, and is a big threat scoring without having plays run for him…Has a genuine nose for the ball and gets high percentage looks off of that…Very good cutter and moves into defensive seams very well…Could be an alley-oop target when he gets behind the defense, considering his athleticism and size…Willing to do the things necessary to free up teammates and is a really unselfish player with no big ego…Not afraid of doing the dirty work…Scrappy competitor, will go hard after loose balls…Is able to take advantage of smaller defenders by using his frame to get free…Off the dribble, Kidd-Gilchrist is still developing but is an underrated ball-handler…Looks his best handling the ball in the open, where he uses basic handling moves to elude defenders and is comfortable getting the ball in the right spots…Not quite as effective in half-court situations, and doesn’t even look to handle the ball for long periods of time when the defense is set up…Not going to break down guys off the bounce, usually is more predicated on using his quick and rangy 1^st step to slash…Mostly an aggressive straight line slasher…Able to keep defenders on his hip when he slashes with his bigger frame on the perimeter…Needs to make better use of his left hand, clearly favors the right side of the floor… Pretty much not a big factor creating his own offense when basic straight-line slashes aren’t available, and shows limited wiggle with the ball when he’s isolated…As a shooter, Kid-Gilchrist is below average…Has a developing mid-range shot and has raw range out to 22 ft., but he’s clearly better the closer he is to the rim…Teams are going to dare him to shoot in the NBA until he gets better…Doesn’t have the most pleasing form on his shot, shoots with his elbow out which is a bad trait to have for developing shooters (ask Rajon Rondo) and also has a bad habit of releasing shots on his way down from elevating…His touch isn’t great, and he never really shoots a crisp shot…Mostly a spot-up shooter, but does pull-up from mid-range and will sporadically make those shots…Definitely is going to need a lot of time and repetition in the gym shooting jumpers in the NBA,  correcting his fundamental flaws and getting more confident in his range…He would be a much tougher assignment if he made shots with more effectiveness…An underrated aspect of Kidd-Gilchrist’s game is his passing ability…He is a very solid passer within the flow of the offense, and is unselfish even if his less than ideal A:TO (1.9:2.2) may skew that a bit…Most evident is his ability to pass when in the open and when feeding cutters to the hoop…Will eventually be able to have some offense run through him if he goes to a team that is heavy on ball swings and cuts…As I’ve said, Kidd-Gilchrist is a strong transition player…Probably is the best part of his game right now…Makes no mistakes finishing around the rim in these instances, often getting And-1 opportunities…Runs the floor with purpose and is swift afoot when in space…Able to handle the ball and quarterback open-floor opportunites as well…Is a fundamental 2 hand dunker most times in transition…Doesn’t need the ball in his hands much to be effective offensively…Just fine with shouldering limited responsibility, and does so to the best of his abilities…A talented overachiever, which is the best kind…Plays hard, but also doesn’t make too many bonehead/reckless plays

Defensively, Kidd-Gilchrist has great upside and was strong for Kentucky as a Fr., handling some good players and not giving an inch…Defended everything from PG-PF at Kentucky, using his athleticism, length, effort and size to be able to defend just about any position, which is phenomenal for a 1^st year player…Not one to shy away from physical play…Really does a good job moving his feet and showing good fundamentals…More of an on-ball defender than a gambling ball thief, but has the length and reflexes to get a steal a night…Good shot-blocker for a wing prospect…Will be a big factor in pick and roll defense, especially if his coach likes to switch screens…Good rebounder on the wing…His defense might be his most impressive trait as a prospect

Kidd-Gilchrist doesn’t have the gaudy stats, the most fun to watch or the most impressive skills that many top 5-10 worthy picks have, but he will be able to make an immediate impact for a team and has top notch role player potential…He is still developing, but he can do a bit of everything even if he has not mastered 1 particular skill…He needs to improve his shot and handle when he’s not in the open, but he does everything else well…A low risk prospect who can fit in with just about any type of team…Look for him to have a very , very solid NBA career

 

7: Brad Beal, 6’4 205, SG, Florida, Fr.

Came to Florida as a highly touted prospect in the 2011 class, and didn’t disappoint with his production and the fact that he was an impact player in his lone college season…Shows a nicely well-rounded game and could develop into a very good starter in the NBA…Played on a Florida team that was DEEP at the guard spots with little depth in the frontline, forcing him to play time against PF’s, and still managed to play significant time and wasn’t fazed much at all considering his age…Seems to be a mature kid, who will be able to produce immediately for an NBA squad…Physically, Beal has adequate size for a SG at just a hair under 6’5…Physically mature for his age, having a sculpted 205 lb frame that has put on weight beautifully since he was heavily on the scouting radar as a Jr. and Sr. in HS…Also has a solid 6’8 wingspan to make up any petty height issues people may bring up…Athletically, Beal is very solid but not spectacular…He has good leaping ability and body control, and decent explosiveness, but owns just decent quickness and speed…More of a fluid athlete than a live wired one

Offensively, Beal has some well-defined tools, but his perceived weaknesses and strengths were a bit reversed compared to expectations before the season kicked off…Beal was considered a highly effective and talented jump shooter out of high school, one who excelled at scoring off the ball, but that changed a bit at Florida…Beal shot 33% from the 3-point line, which is a modest rate, but it is quite clear that that was probably a fallacy to his potential and likely role in the NBA…Beal is still a good shooter with his feet set and he has textbook form and fundamentals on his shot, which combined with his chronicled work ethic will probably allow him to be a high quality jump shooter in the NBA…Has NBA range and shoots a pretty ball…Does not really change his shot when contested, and can make shots with a hand in his face…Can shoot coming off screens and spotting up effectively…Always has his shoulders squared and elbow and middle finger directed at the back of the rim…It really just seemed like he wasn’t making as many shots as he should’ve, nothing more or less…Got better and more consistent as the year went on…Able to knock down basic 1 or 2 dribble pull-ups in either direction when closeouts out too aggressive…Could’ve really been a prolific scorer if he would’ve shot as well as his reputation suggests…Off the dribble, Beal has progressed every year I’ve watched him and his Fr. season was no different…Able to use his strength and smooth athleticism to create shots off the dribble…Became a threat to get to the rim with some consistency as a Fr…Not going to break down the defense off the dribble the way some SG prospects in this draft can, and has a ways to go before he becomes a true shot-creator, but he is at least adequate enough with his handle to create some shots from himself…Comfortable handling the ball with both hands, although h prefers his strong Has a nice mid-range game, as I said, to make him a factor even if he isnt comfortable getting up shots amongst the trees…Showed some ability to finish around the rim, mostly using his strength and good leaping skills to get a few impressive plays, sometimes even above the rim…Will be able to absorb contact in the NBA as well, given that he is a strong guard…Sometimes gets his shots altered/blocked around the rim because he isn’t a truly explosive leaper…Beal is a good passing SG, and shows nice unselfishness on the wing…Effective ball swinger and isn’t going to be a turnover prone player in the NBA…Wont go outside of the offense much at all to do anything, being a very well-coached and fundamental player…Not a ball-dominant player at all, produces without handling the ball a whole lot or at the risk of stagnating the coaches philosophy…Got to the foul line at a solid rate, especially for a guy who really doesn’t handle the ball a lot (4.7 ftpg), and was respectable when he was there (75%) even if you’d think he’d be more of an 80% guy at the stripe…Good transition player, able to trail for jumpers or use his leaping ability to finish well with a head of steam…Overall, seems to be a low risk high reward prospect who could be able to produce very nicely sooner than later

Defensively, Beal is solid but not spectacular…Fundamentally sound defender…Used his strength and footwork  to do a good job of keeping his man in front of him…Defended PF’s a bit at Florida and didn’t back down, which bodes well for his potential on defense against stronger and athletic NBA SG’s…Has the size and athleticism to get physical…Contests well…Was a great rebounder for his position at Florida, especially having to do so undersized…Nice shot-blocking skills for a guard…Was solid at getting steals, even though he’s a more conservative defender

Overall, Beal might have some learning to do in the NBA as he adjusts his shot once again, but that is the strength of his game and it will certainly come along for him…He’s a very well-rounded offensive option and he can score some at all 3 levels…He will be limited some around the rim by his just adequate size, length and explosiveness, but he finds ways to score efficiently without dominating the ball…He also is a solid defender with nice strength and fundamentals…He could end up being the crowd jewel of the SG prospects in the draft

[RUDEBOY_Participant]

Doug Gottlieb hates MKG and Thomas Robinson..He said both guys will be backups or rotation players….

If MKG works on is shooting mechanics he will be an all star and his post game is underrated…..I love his role player work ethic and his franchise player’s mindset….Those 2 things to me make MKG a top 5 prospect in this draft…

 

[ProudGrandpaParticipant]

I’m getting a sinking suspicion that Robbie Hummel is not going to be on this list…

[TheArtistPaysthePriceParticipant]

I am a big fan of MKG and everybody brings up his shooting but then compares him to Gerald Wallace who was a terrible shooter after his freshman season. He was an athletic undersized 4 with Sacramento those two seasons. I was a big fan of him then, he had a very unorthrodox shot also. He developed into an all around 3.

One think about MKG is never called out on is he rarely dunks. He ussually finishes below the rim. Almost slapping glass alot, especially in transition.

[Author]

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