2018 NBA Draft

[EricaLubarsky]

that's the problem with the NBA. There's always talent, but the the guys who really change the game are rare and aren't spread out evenly. Some years you get 5-7 stars. Some years you get none.

Scouting and getting a good pick are only part of it. The other half no one talks about is luck and what year you draft in. No matter how good your scouting is and how high your pick, if you get a first rounder in 2003, you are probably getting a star (LeBron, Wade, Melo). If you draft in 2004, your best case scenario is Dwight Howard. In 1997 there was Billups, Duncan, and McGrady, but not a single other player made an allstar game.

This year is going to be one of those years like 2003 and 1998. There will be at least 4-6 stars that change the game that come out in the top 10-15. I'm afraid our ability to tread water at 5-5 will cost us one of those guys who can change the game for the next 10-20 years.

[sefant77]

Originally Posted by EricaLubarsky

that's the problem with the NBA. There's always talent, but the the guys who really change the game are rare and aren't spread out evenly. Some years you get 5-7 stars. Some years you get none.

i read that one GM said that the entire projected 2018 Top-5 probably all go #1 in 2017...

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by sefant77

i read that one GM said that the entire projected 2018 Top-5 probably all go #1 in 2017...

Everyone here knows my #1 pick last year was Dennis Smith Jr, but I think Ayton, Bagley, Doncic, and Porter are all better players than him, with Bamba probably being about on par.

What I wonder is where the 6-14 picks would go in last year's draft... Would guys like Jaren Jackson, Robert Williams, and Miles Bridges crack the top-5, or would they still end up going at about the same place they're projected to go this year? They each have obvious warts, but so did Lonzo Ball and he ended up going #2 overall.... Just wondering if we're underrating some of these guys because they don't have the same franchise-changing potential as the top-5. There could still be some fringe All-Stars in the 6-14 range (Harrison Barnes types).