[bt102Participant]

Who are some underrated prospects in your opinion, I have a couple:

Herb Jones: I think he’s an NBA player. He struggled early on at Alabama but learned how to really play. I think he could really come into an NBA team as a defensive player and could be a really nice 3-N-D wing for a contending team. I honestly have him in the mid-late first round.

Trey Murphy: To me this looks like a riser waiting to happen if he returns to school. I could see him in the lottery in 2022. Hes a really good defender and elite shooter. The rest of his game is a huge question mark I will admit but he’s got a defined skillset that’s wanted in the NBA and I think that’s enough

Matthew Mayer: If you haven’t heard of this guy, youre not alone, but I think he’s a top 20-25 guy this year. This could be another 2022 guy but hes a Junior at Baylor that hasn’t started a single game for them. But he’s a gunslinger. 5 3PTA a game in 18 minutes is very interesting. That’s like Isaiah Joe level of 3PT shooting. There are moments he looks really special too and others were he looks horrible. I could see him developing into a Bojan Bogdanovic, Davis Bertans, Ryan Anderson mold of player. If he comes out in 2022 I could easily see lottery if not top 10. He can handle the ball a bit too.

But what are some of yours?

[RUDEBOY-Participant]

I’ve Talked to Several people that claimed to have watched Baylor play this season and swear they never heard of Mitchell Mayer. But u r right, I think he’s a 1st rounder this year. 1.Raiquian Gray- A 6’6 Anthony Mason Clone from FSU .Heard a lot gms really like him. 2 Filip Petrusev- Former Gonzaga big man got little interest last year, but gained the attention of scouts with his outstanding play overseas. Late 1st or early 2nd round. 3.Jason Preston 6’4 guard from Ohio University.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I like a lot of those players listed for this topic, in fact only not sold on Murphy. I would add Vrenz Blijenberg, Mario Nakic, Marc Antoine Loema, and Carlos Alocen as slightly underrated and the obvious college players I see low or not on draft boards would be Hunter Dickinson, Luka Garza, DJ Stewart Jr., Drew Timme, Joe Wieskamp, David Duke, Nah’Shon Hyland, RJ Nembhard, Romeo Weems, Joshua Primo and Jericho Sims.
IMO most these players should get drafted, but the way draft boards are looking, it may not happen that way. Apparently guys like Marcus Bagley, BJ Boston “scream upside” to some people though that much more than a guy like Primo. And Keon Johnson I might consider in the lottery-but not 6th overall like some think. This draft has been a weird evaluation process for sure. Guess that’s my overrated list too.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I dont know what to think anymore about the draft. Maybe its just me but these NBA teams need to address their Center positions. Weve got Kanter getting 30 rebounds in a game, Robin Lopez dominating games with a hookshot and the Raptors losing 40 games after losing Gasol and Ibaka. When are GM’s gonna get a clue you still need Centers to win in the NBA. This years top MVP candidates for each conference are 7-footers that weigh 300 pounds. Your gonna tell me Enes Kanter’s rebounding and physical play does not make up for his lack of mobility on the perimeter if used in the right situation? That him and Nurkic don’t win games for Portland? Coaches can’t figure out how to use players situationally anymore?

Goes without saying…or at least it should. Luka Garza. Best player in college basketball for 2 years. I hope all of you are right and nobody wants him so my Raps snag him in the 2nd round because this kid is gonna bully the entire league no doubt. He will get a chance and he will produce. Not in the mock draft.

And if teams dont draft Garza because they want a Center with gaurd skills then Sandro Mamukelashvili should go in the first round. Has all the pointforward skills and is a legit 7 footer that balled out last year. Hes not in the mock draft. A senior.

Another 7 footer Neemias Queta. Lead the country in blocks, shows he can switch on smaller guards and he can pass the ball. Thats really what you need from a Center in todays NBA. Also has the height to “matchup” with Embiid, Jokic, Valanciunas, Towns. a bit of a jumpshot developing. Not in the mock draft. He has declared.

Max Abrams. Somebody please explain what about his game is not translatable. I hear so much about Jaden Springer and Keon Johnson but nothing about Abrams after he tore up the tournament. He entered the draft and has retained elegibility. He said his plan is to get a 1st round promise or he pulls out. Why is this dude not on a mock draft, someone please explain.

Moses Wright- Undersized C in the mold of Serge Ibaka. ACC MVP. Just look back at all the past ACC player of the year winners. They are all NBA players and they all get drafted. You don’t win this award without being an NBA player. Not in mock.

Justin Champagnie. It will be very interesting to see his combine results. He plays alot like Brandon Clarke as an undersized PF that is highly skilled and efficient but will just go out there and play whatever role you need. He’s listed at 6’6 and teams will be wondering if he has the ball handling and shooting skills to play on the wing. Hes not a terrible shooter, has good form and I think he could have a Clarke like impact as a super efficient role player. Averaged 18 ppg and 11 rpg. Rebounding is the most translatable stat from the college to pro levels despite size. Not in mock.

Terry Taylor. 6’5 230 pound senior. He’s a monster physically and a freak athlete. Averaged 20 ppg and 10 rpg over his 4 years so he’s very used to producing. Needs to rework his jumpshot but he isn’t scared to shoot it. Spent alot of time in the paint and has an unorthodox style so teams may question how he fits. I think he would be a great energy guy like Lou Dort or Bruce Brown. Won back to back Ohio Valley Conference MVP’s. Last guy to win it was Ja Morant. Not in mock.

Jose Alvarado
Chandler Vaudrin
Anthony Tarke
Herb Jones
Fardaws Aimaq

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

The smallball fad is a wave that has largely come out of thinking Draymond Green is something other than a once in a generation freak. Take him out, the best “smallball” teams have been the ones where their frontline still goes 6’7″ with a big wingspan, 6’9″ with a big wingspan, and 6’9 to 6’11” with a big wingspan. Still, basketball is more like football than baseball. If NFL defenses go light, offenses benefit from utilizing two tight ends or a full back. It is a game of matchups. Right now, teams who are small can’t keep Zion from getting to where he wants (the rim). Zubac, Holmes, and Robin Lopez aren’t special from a skills standpoint, but if you give them a few inches and 20-40 lbs over the man guarding them, they will tear it up. The numbers certainly show that they are.

As for this incoming crop, I think everyone will benefit from a relatively normal combine. Neemias Queta would benefit from a good showing there. The Mountain West is a good league, but what makes it a mid-major is that they don’t the size. He had a solid year, and seemed to progress as a passer and somewhat as a mid-range shooter. He is definitely a bit of a zoolander turner. He is not going to turn over his right shoulder in the post. I’m not sure he is big enough to get where he wants in the NBA. That said, I do think his defensive instincts will keep him around. Moses is one where I want to see where he comes in measurement-wise. I don’t necessarily mind the late developing part. I remember reading somewhere that he showed up at GT and wanted to be a college kid who was on the basketball team, and it took time for him to wanting to be a basketball player. As long as light switched on, I wouldn’t sweat the time it took for it to happen, but he didn’t pass the eye test when it came to size. Sometimes the eye can be wrong about that through the tv.

I hope Colbey Ross gets a combine invite. He is the point out of Pepperdine. Coming out of Pepperdine, I think it would be good to see him in the 5on5s against the rest of the draft class to confirm the hunch that he can make the leap. Also, I wrote this before, but the Keon Johnson/Ayo Dosunmu gap makes no sense to me. Keon Johnson basically had the same freshman season as Dosunmu. Same size, athleticism, get after it style, but with Dosunmu you know he developed as a shooter, ballhandler, and overall creator. There is no guarantee Johnson develops in the same way Dosunmu did, and it is not as if the athleticism and size merits a case for greater upside. You just get more assurance with one than the other because he is further along. And as always, #PetrusevNation.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Nothing against Keon, I hope the kid continues to develop and has an extremely successful and lucrative career but I just have no clue why he is so high on draftboards. I didn’t get to watch too much basketball this year (which is why noone on my list is a freshmen) but I watched a bit. If Toronto picks Keon Johnson I will be pretty upset.

[bt102Participant]

Interesting. Neemias Queta is absolutely someone to watch and I have him in the first round too. I wouldn’t say the center position is going anywhere, but more the more talented centers are getting valued way higher and everyone else kinda sits in this backup center role. Also the NBA needs centers that can do handoffs well and defend the pick-n-roll. I honestly think that’s more important right now than being fast and shooting 3’s.

Interesting notes on Abmas though. I don’t think he gets a first round promise but I think he gets a top 40 promise and takes it. My main concern with him is the size. If he can figure out how to play while being small, then hes an immediate steal. Otherwise hes like…Tyler Ulis? But he should absolutely be somewhere in a mock.

Sandro should get drafted too. Hes skilled. Surprised I don’t hear his name more around the second round. And both Champagnie bros are worth watching tbh. I think Vrenz is a guy for next year but I could see him coming out and going in the mid second. He’s intersting too.

[Author]

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