2018 NBA Draft

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Originally Posted by Underdog

@NBADraftWass: Mainstream view seems to be Bagley as the next-best option in a vacuum after Doncic/Ayton, but I'm hearing a growing sense that Bamba or Jackson could easily go #3.

[tap2390]

If the Grizz take a center we should make a play for Gasol.

[FreshJive]

So if Bagley falls behind Bamba and Jackson you have to take him at 5, right?

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by FreshJive

So if Bagley falls behind Bamba and Jackson you have to take him at 5, right?

Depends on Porter's health... I'm not as high on Bagley as most, still have concerns about his defense and FT shooting.

My top-3 have remained consistent for a couple months now, here's my current order for the Mavs (but I'd be happy with any of these guys):

Ayton
Porter
Jackson
Bamba
Bagley
Doncic

[SMC0007]

Originally Posted by Underdog

Depends on Porter's health... I'm not as high on Bagley as most, still have concerns about his defense and FT shooting.

My top-3 have remained consistent for a couple months now, here's my current order for the Mavs (but I'd be happy with any of these guys):

Ayton
Porter
Jackson
Bamba
Bagley
Doncic

I take your list and place Doncic 2nd and slide everyone down

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Ayton
Bagley
Bamba
JJJ
Doncic
MPJ

[j0Shi]

Lol @ Porter for a big ego without having proven anything. Exactly the type of player that will cause trouble if things don't go as planned. Getting a nice Noel "I'm worth the max" vibe here. No thanks. Still not a top 5 pick by any stretch. I'd be super happy if he impresses some other team and is no longer available for the Mavs.

Not too happy that Bamba's stock seems to be rising though.

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by j0Shi

Lol @ Porter for a big ego without having proven anything. Exactly the type of player that will cause trouble if things don't go as planned. Getting a nice Noel "I'm worth the max" vibe here. No thanks. Still not a top 5 pick by any stretch. I'd be super happy if he impresses some other team and is no longer available for the Mavs.

Nah, MPJ has never been a "me first" type -- he's a leader, very down to earth and humble... The kid just missed an entire year of basketball, so he has to remind everyone who he is. This is the combine, if you're not talking yourself up then you're doing it wrong.

Besides, I fully expect him to be a guy who is obviously worth max after his rookie contract expires... Noel never proved to be a max player.

[tap2390]

Originally Posted by j0Shi

Lol @ Porter for a big ego without having proven anything. Exactly the type of player that will cause trouble if things don't go as planned. Getting a nice Noel "I'm worth the max" vibe here. No thanks. Still not a top 5 pick by any stretch. I'd be super happy if he impresses some other team and is no longer available for the Mavs.

Not too happy that Bamba's stock seems to be rising though.

Lol what’s he supposed to say? “Yeah I’m pretty average. My peers surpassed me while I was on the bench dealing with the injury.”

[hayth.james.g]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdYboUTzWys

Shot at 6:20 from MPJ is another example of his natural smooth shot.

I am torn on MPJ. When people compare him to KD, I think they are greatly overestimating his athleticism. KD is incredibly athletic. He doesn't rely on it, but when he needs to he can do some incredible things. Also, KD is longer. So for me the comparison doesn't really work.

That said, I think if healthy he definitely deserves consideration with JJJ and Bamba. Assuming he is healthy and we feel good about that moving forward, my ranking between the three of them would be:

1. MPJ
2. JJJ
3. Bamba

Truthfully, the difference between the three of them is incredibly small as far as potential goes. I'll stick with my previous comment that I believe culture, development, and team fit is going to be difference maker for MANY of these top 6 guys. Just look at Monk. He does ALL the same things well as he did in college, but he was taken by a team trying to make him a PG. He is NOT that. He is killer scorer and needs to be allowed to shoot 30 shots a game, build confidence, and learn through mistakes.

[mac222b]

Originally Posted by hayth.james.g

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdYboUTzWys

Shot at 6:20 from MPJ is another example of his natural smooth shot.

I am torn on MPJ. When people compare him to KD, I think they are greatly overestimating his athleticism. KD is incredibly athletic. He doesn't rely on it, but when he needs to he can do some incredible things. Also, KD is longer. So for me the comparison doesn't really work.

That said, I think if healthy he definitely deserves consideration with JJJ and Bamba. Assuming he is healthy and we feel good about that moving forward, my ranking between the three of them would be:

1. MPJ
2. JJJ
3. Bamba

Truthfully, the difference between the three of them is incredibly small as far as potential goes. I'll stick with my previous comment that I believe culture, development, and team fit is going to be difference maker for MANY of these top 6 guys. Just look at Monk. He does ALL the same things well as he did in college, but he was taken by a team trying to make him a PG. He is NOT that. He is killer scorer and needs to be allowed to shoot 30 shots a game, build confidence, and learn through mistakes.

I agree with this. Its revisionist to make Porter out to be some flawless prospect. There are questions about his: handles, playmaking, physicality, build, length. You're right, he isn't as long as KD or as athletic- doubt he'd ever be the weak side defender KD is.

All that said, UD is right in stating that he's one of the few guys in the draft that profiles as a legit 25ppg scorer. And that alone has significant value.

I'll be happy with Porter if he gets the medical ok. I see DSJ as more of a Robin, ideally.

[sefant77]

I didnt watch a lot of Porter etc because i never thought he would be an option for us.

I read some questionmarks about his overall game beside scoring. Able to be an all around player (aka a worse Durant) or is he "just" a scorer.

I also still dont think that Bagley is going to drop until #5. The Hawks loves him and he is a one of the better fits for Memphis. For that to happen the Hawks have to take Bamba and the Grizzlies have to like Porter more than Bagley...

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Originally Posted by sefant77

I also still dont think that Bagley is going to drop until #5. The Hawks loves him and he is a one of the better fits for Memphis. For that to happen the Hawks have to take Bamba and the Grizzlies have to like Porter more than Bagley...

That may be the case now, but there is a ton of time before the draft for that to change. Not like Bamba or Porter going before us is something that couldn't feasibly happen. It's a lot more likely than Smith falling to us last draft IMO.

[BPo001]

Originally Posted by sefant77

I didnt watch a lot of Porter etc because he only played 40 min this year.

FIFY

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Yeah, Porter has a big hill to climb to get his reputation as a top prospect back in line. He seems like a good kid, no doubt. The fact that he basically measured 6'11 in shoes is worth noting.

Still think it would pretty dumb to pass up on a big man in arguably the best big man draft class in history. You just can't go wrong with Ayton/Bamba/Bagley/JJJ.

[sefant77]

I meant old HS games etc

[EricaLubarsky]

Porter could be the biggest risk/biggest reward in the draft

People had him unanimous #1 pick before the injury. He was one of the most remarkable high school prospects since LeBron

Then the injury-- an injury that can diminish overall performance and cause significant health issues later on. There's no guarantee he's the same player now and/or if his back will be re-injured or if the injury to his back will cause other issues.

There's also the issue of going from high school to college. Some guys dominate high school and simply don't in college. I know he was injured, but when he came back, he was absolutely terrible. That's not to say that it proved he was terrible, but there is ZERO evidence that he is capable of dominating at the college (2A) level.

Then again, he was projected as the next Durant/George.

[tap2390]

Would love to see us pick up Josh Okogie from Georgia Tech in the second round if he’s still available. Guy reminds me a lot of Donovan Mitchell. May go as high as late lottery after testing off the charts though.

[hayth.james.g]

Originally Posted by EricaLubarsky

Porter could be the biggest risk/biggest reward in the draft

People had him unanimous #1 pick before the injury. He was one of the most remarkable high school prospects since LeBron

Then the injury-- an injury that can diminish overall performance and cause significant health issues later on. There's no guarantee he's the same player now and/or if his back will be re-injured or if the injury to his back will cause other issues.

There's also the issue of going from high school to college. Some guys dominate high school and simply don't in college. I know he was injured, but when he came back, he was absolutely terrible. That's not to say that it proved he was terrible, but there is ZERO evidence that he is capable of dominating at the college (2A) level.

Then again, he was projected as the next Durant/George.

Go back to the comments Pre injury. He was NOT the unanimous number 1 pick. He had major hype going for him very early on (3 years ago). I would agree that he was in the conversation for number 1 pick and a consensus top 5.

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally Posted by hayth.james.g

Go back to the comments Pre injury. He was NOT the unanimous number 1 pick. He had major hype going for him very early on (3 years ago). I would agree that he was in the conversation for number 1 pick and a consensus top 5.

He absolutely was unanimous 1st for a time -- at least with DraftXpress, nbadraft.net, and ESPN

Not saying it lasted into the NCAA season, but he was projected #1 across the board for a while.

[dirt_dobber]

Wonder where Texas Tech small forward will land...
TT player small forward Zhaire Smith at NBA combine score/grade
...........................................positio n rank#
Max Vertical..............41.5".......1st
Standing Vertical........33".........1st
Lane Agility............11.02 sec....2nd
3/4 court sprint.......3.05 sec.....1st
NBA shuttle drill......3.15 sec.....2nd
.

[saclare]

Originally Posted by dirt_dobber

Wonder where Texas Tech small forward will land...
TT player small forward Zhaire Smith at NBA combine score/grade
...........................................positio n rank#
Max Vertical..............41.5".......1st
Standing Vertical........33".........1st
Lane Agility............11.02 sec....2nd
3/4 court sprint.......3.05 sec.....1st
NBA shuttle drill......3.15 sec.....2nd
.

Zhaire is more a SG, but he's definitely showing his athleticism. Clippers hold some good ammo for about where he'd go, too. This whole lotto can produce some really good picks.

[tap2390]

Originally Posted by dirt_dobber

Wonder where Texas Tech small forward will land...
TT player small forward Zhaire Smith at NBA combine score/grade
...........................................positio n rank#
Max Vertical..............41.5".......1st
Standing Vertical........33".........1st
Lane Agility............11.02 sec....2nd
3/4 court sprint.......3.05 sec.....1st
NBA shuttle drill......3.15 sec.....2nd
.

One of my fav players in the draft. Would love to pick up a second pick and take a flyer on him.

[BPo001]

Originally Posted by tap2390

One of my fav players in the draft. Would love to pick up a second pick and take a flyer on him.

We already have 2 2nd round picks. With those numbers though I doubt he makes it that far.

Edit: misread your post. Not sure what we would have to give up to move back into the 1st.

[tap2390]

Originally Posted by BPo001

We already have 2 2nd round picks. With those numbers though I doubt he makes it that far.

Edit: misread your post. Not sure what we would have to give up to move back into the 1st.

JJB + 33

for

Bayless + 10
?

Sixers shed little under $5 million going from Bayless to JJB, and I believe a little over $2 million going from 33 to 10. They gain $7 million in their pursuit of Lebron, upgrade at point, and still get a decent young guy. JJB gets to finish his contract on a contender.

Probably contingent on who’s their at #10 and how the Sixers feel about their chance to draw Lebron. He was definitely in the city looking at schools for his kids this past season, and is a savvy enough person to make these decisions ahead of time. Wouldn’t be surprised if he puts on a dog-and-pony show, but my guess is he already knows.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Originally Posted by tap2390

JJB + 33

for

Bayless + 10
?

Sixers shed little under $5 million going from Bayless to JJB, and I believe a little over $2 million going from 33 to 10. They gain $7 million in their pursuit of Lebron, upgrade at point, and still get a decent young guy. JJB gets to finish his contract on a contender.

I had a dream...I met someone who thought JJB would get us the 10th pick...a most amazing man...

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by tap2390

JJB + 33

for

Bayless + 10
?

Sixers shed little under $5 million going from Bayless to JJB, and I believe a little over $2 million going from 33 to 10. They gain $7 million in their pursuit of Lebron, upgrade at point, and still get a decent young guy. JJB gets to finish his contract on a contender.

Probably contingent on who’s their at #10 and how the Sixers feel about their chance to draw Lebron. He was definitely in the city looking at schools for his kids this past season, and is a savvy enough person to make these decisions ahead of time. Wouldn’t be surprised if he puts on a dog-and-pony show, but my guess is he already knows.

This three-way trade is the closest you'll get to making that work...


@LockedOnMavs: A trade we discussed on the latest pod:

- Mavs get 9th pick, Hardaway Jr., Bayless

- Knicks get 10th pick, W. Matthews, J.Anderson

- Philly get Mavs 2019 top-10 protected pick


Mavs - Get another top-10 pick but costs long-term money in Hardaway Jr. (3 years, $53 million) Bayless 8.5 cuts into cap this summer. Also lose future 1st.

Knicks- Trade out Hardaway Jr. for Matthews. Opens up massive cap space for 2019. Still get 10th pick.

Philly- sheds 10 million in cap for this summer but still gets 2019 first (top-10 protected) from Mavs. Basically pushes back pick a year while opening up 10 mill in cap this year.

[saclare]

I'm going to stop listing the obvious caveat for Porter, that being his health. I'm assuming for this sake that he is healthy and is checked off by the Mavs medical team.

It all boils down to what this team needs most. To me, it's super close in terms of a 1a/1b type scenario. Those two needs are a scoring threat and a big that can provide defense/boards. I think the direction of the NBA has me leaning taking MPJ to shore up scoring deficiencies. It would be mighty hard to stop both he and DSJ, in addition to the shooters on this team.

Then again, having JJJ or Bamba take over in the middle would be great, too. We need to look at the landscape of the NBA in 3-4 years and ask if this draft pick will be worth a big contract.

I can see MPJ/JJJ/Bamba all fitting into that scenario, which will make it an even harder decision. We can only hope Donnie and Co. make the right one. Best of luck to them should Bagley slide down, too...

[saclare]

https://twitter.com/DXContent/status/997502518639976448

I like it. Projects as a better defending LaMarcus Aldridge or Myles Turner type. Maybe somewhere in between on their offensive games, given JJJ's ability to knock down 3 pointers.

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by saclare

https://twitter.com/DXContent/status/997502518639976448

I like it. Projects as a better defending LaMarcus Aldridge or Myles Turner type. Maybe somewhere in between on their offensive games, given JJJ's ability to knock down 3 pointers.

JJJ is my next choice after MPJ... And I don't really like any of the comparisons I've seen so far, since there really hasn't been anyone like him in the league yet. We're talking about a dominant rim-protecting stretch five that can defend out to the arc, plays above the rim, and could hit the three at a 40% clip in college... That's a unicorn, my friend.

[Melonhead]

MPJ measured in at 6 foot 10.5...

So hard to pass up on that.

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by Melonhead

MPJ measured in at 6 foot 10.5...

So hard to pass up on that.

Yeah, he's starting to lean more PF than SF, just gotta bulk up a bit more (which tends to come naturally with age/NBA training).

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Originally Posted by Melonhead

MPJ measured in at 6 foot 10.5...

So hard to pass up on that.

Actually 6'10.75 which is strange because he definitely doesn't look it.

Still, it means he is definitely a PF in today's NBA, but you have to get a center to pair with that.

So who will that be? If the Mavs want to win now, then they absolutely have to consider Jordan. It might be unpopular, but who else could man the middle right away with those kinds of stats? Team can't wait til next year or trade deadline for it to happen.

Name me a center you pair with him that is obtainable? Because if you aren't taking the center position seriously, then I think it's all going to be the same again next season record-wise.

[SMC0007]

Originally Posted by DevinHarriswillstart

Actually 6'10.75 which is strange because he definitely doesn't look it.

Still, it means he is definitely a PF in today's NBA, but you have to get a center to pair with that.

So who will that be? If the Mavs want to win now, then they absolutely have to consider Jordan. It might be unpopular, but who else could man the middle right away with those kinds of stats? Team can't wait til next year or trade deadline for it to happen.

Name me a center you pair with him that is obtainable? Because if you aren't taking the center position seriously, then I think it's all going to be the same again next season record-wise.

Win now? Not happening. The quicker people forget that notion the better.

F*ck Jordan actually. A center to pair with MPJ, perhaps Motley. I want to see much more of what he has. He's likely not going to become the defensive stopper that some others might, but he was more than intriguing. I'd rather see what we have than watching that douche Jordan. It's still frustrating because we should already have known much more of what Motley could do in the league by now.

[Underdog]

We need a #1 scorer on this team worse than anything else... Rim protection is fantastic, but getting another Tyson doesn't mean squat until we get another Dirk... At #5, Porter is probably the only player that has 25 PPG potential. If our medical staff signs off on him, then there's no reason to overthink this.

Sure, the Durant comparisons might be a little overblown, but they're not far off. Kinda like comparing Kobe to Jordan... This kid can be special if he's fully recovered from his injury.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

So here is how we can easily map this out.

1. Mavs desperately need a superstar 2. Mavs desperately need defense and rebounding

There are many ways to go about getting both and wondering what the future holds for the guys currently on the roster.

So one angle...Dennis Smith is a superstar waiting to happen but definitely needs more help around him to do that. I honestly believe that fixing the rebounding and defense issue will open up the offense more for him and Barnes. I honestly am not sure we can develop any young player into that star as long as the rebounding and defense stay where they are.

The other angle is saying Smith is more of a Robin and he needs a batman to play with. You have to find that before you care about guys who can help defend and rebounding.

My take is that I believe guys like Bamba and JJJ actually can provide both if they live up to their potential. Certainly Bagley has two of the three that you're looking for in superstar potential and rebounding, but he might not be there at 5.

With all of this though, you're dealing with the unknown. If you draft MPJ and he isn't a superstar, then it's a completely wasted pick. If you draft Bamba or JJJ, and they don't turn into superstars, well at least they'll tremendously help the team with defense and rebounding.

If you add that to MPJs back, then I think there is no question you go with one of the big guys.

[saclare]

Another angle to ponder, is it easier to fill defense/rebounding or elite scoring via free agency? With the 33rd pick? With next year's crop of FAs and draftees? I think either direction we go will have us at best as a middle of the pack team next year, with a real shot at finishing bottom 10 again. A lot of factors to consider, but in the end, pick the best player you think has the highest potential. There are very good arguments on either side.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Proof that this draft has a loooooong way to go...

Hoops Rumors
@HoopsRumors
Grizzlies To Explore Trading No. 4 Pick? https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2018/05/...no-4-pick.html …

8:37 AM - May 18, 2018
20
17 people are talking about this

[Underdog]

@IsaacLHarris: I’m all in on Bamba, but I will say this

Bamba needs Dallas more than Dallas needs him. The system, role & roster in Dallas is built to maximize Bamba’s full potential & I’m not sure he would excel quickly in places like ATL or ORL because of that

@IsaacLHarris: Dallas “needs” him for sure, but Dallas could go in plenty of directions at 5 & be fine.

If Bamba is asked to be one of the best players on his team next season (like ATL, ORL, SAC) then he might struggle.

Imo, Dallas’ role with him alongside Dennis, HB, etc is the best for him

[mac222b]

I feel like Philly has many other avenues to open up requisite cap space. They have young talent stashed and other picks