2018 NBA Draft

[madape]

Mavs should draft Mobamba

[Magnum_3_Ball]

Originally Posted by madape

Mavs should draft Mobamba

I'm only going to be happy with Bamba if Doncic, Ayton, Jackson Jr, and Trae Young are already off the board. I think I'd rather have Mikal Bridges over him too.

Bamba is a project. The talent is unquestioned, but he's at least 1 year & probably 2 years away from developing an NBA body, and that's if he works at it because there are questions about his work ethic.

Here's an article the Ringer did on him last month:

https://www.theringer.com/nba/2018/1...2018-nba-draft

Check out these quotes from the article...

Bamba needs to strengthen his lean legs. The 6-foot-11, 225-pound center gets pushed around by stronger players when defending the post or boxing out.

He needs to hit the weight room. Big time.

Bamba also lacks the intensity and toughness you’d prefer in a defensive anchor. He rarely boxes out and relies primarily on his length to grab rebounds that come near him

Despite being a top 15 rebounder in college basketball, he's only tied for 27th in defensive rebounds. He doesn't do as good of a job digging in, boxing out & fighting for boards.

When other players are sprinting, you might find Bamba in cruise control.

Like other posters have said on this forum regarding Nerlens Noel. You can't make a guy want to try. Check out that link & look at his lazy efforts getting back on D. Troubling.

[MavzMan]

Originally Posted by Magnum_3_Ball

I'm only going to be happy with Bamba if Doncic, Ayton, Jackson Jr, and Trae Young are already off the board. I think I'd rather have Mikal Bridges over him too.

Bamba is a project.

OK, you've got my curiosity. What is your reasoning for taking Trae Young ahead of Bamba when we already have DSJ? Do you consider Bamba to be that much of a project? If we were to draft TY, how does a TY and DSJ work?

[Magnum_3_Ball]

Originally Posted by MavzMan

OK, you've got my curiosity. What is your reasoning for taking Trae Young ahead of Bamba when we already have DSJ? Do you consider Bamba to be that much of a project? If we were to draft TY, how does a TY and DSJ work?

I think people make too much of the we already have X, so we can't have Y notion. If Portland thought that way, they never would of drafted CJ McCollum after they already had Damian Lillard. There's proof two 6-3 guards can work together.

It's not ideal, but it can work, and taking a player who works out is always better than taking a player who doesn't even if there's some redundancy.

Imo, Trae Young has one of the highest ceilings of anyone in this draft. I don't see comparisons to Steph as unattainable for him. If I'm going to miss on a guy, I'd rather miss on someone with that type of ceiling because championships are won by teams with top 10 players in the league, not the center for the 3rd string All NBA defensive team.

I also think comparisons to Gobert for Bamba aren't as realistic. Gobert had more of an NBA body from day 1. Bamba is going to need his rookie season just to get to where Gobert's body was his rookie year. And Gobert didn't do much his rookie year, he was still adding muscle & getting accustomed to the NBA.

How is Bamba going to do mentally & emotionally when he comes in as a top 5 draft pick & doesn't experience much success his first 2 years? He might have the maturity to keep grinding away & be just fine. His potential is still multi-year All Star, but there's also the potential that he cracks under that type of pressure. I don't think it's a good sign that in college he already is taking plays off & doesn't box out. I also think his shot needs a major overhaul & if he doesn't have an above average work ethic, then he's not going to develop an NBA jump shot.

[MavzMan]

Originally Posted by Magnum_3_Ball

I think people make too much of the we already have X, so we can't have Y notion. If Portland thought that way, they never would of drafted CJ McCollum after they already had Damian Lillard. There's proof two 6-3 guards can work together.

It's not ideal, but it can work, and taking a player who works out is always better than taking a player who doesn't even if there's some redundancy.

I would argue that CJ+DL and DSJ+TY is more like X+X rather than X+Y. And the CJ+DL is not entirely working out either as POR is hanging onto the 6th seed, is definitely in the 3rd tier of WCF playoff teams and there was even talk about them trading off CJ to find a more complimentary piece. The biggest argument against drafting TY and going with DSJ+TY long term is just that small ball is exciting and will win you regular season games, but when defenses crank up in the playoffs and referees choke their whistle, the little guys get more abused. However, I'm playing devil's advocate here and I'm not really a big fan of Bamba either.

[Magnum_3_Ball]

Originally Posted by MavzMan

I would argue that CJ+DL and DSJ+TY is more like X+X rather than X+Y. And the CJ+DL is not entirely working out either as POR is hanging onto the 6th seed, is definitely in the 3rd tier of WCF playoff teams and there was even talk about them trading off CJ to find a more complimentary piece. The biggest argument against drafting TY and going with DSJ+TY long term is just that small ball is exciting and will win you regular season games, but when defenses crank up in the playoffs and referees choke their whistle, the little guys get more abused. However, I'm playing devil's advocate here and I'm not really a big fan of Bamba either.

Don't get me wrong. I agree with you that pairing DSJ & Trae Young is not ideal or even really a good idea. However, I'm coming at it from the perspective of, "What's worse?"

If Bamba or some other player who "fits" is a bust, then what's the upside of drafting them because they fit better with DSJ? At that point wouldn't it be better to have an actual asset, then a guy who missed?

That's how I'm looking at it. Like let's say worse case scenario Bamba is a glorified Hasheem Thabeet. Wouldn't it be better to literally draft DSJ's clone again over Thabeet? Yes, there's redundancy, but you have an asset you can use to acquire a better fitting part.

Imo, Trae Young will have more value 3 years from now than Mo Bamba will. So, if I'm the Mavs, I take the most valuable player on the board when I pick. I mean, because I see a roster with lots of open spaces. We're not 1 or 2 or 3 players away, so I don't think we need to be looking at "best fit" with a potential top 3 or even top 7 draft pick. I want to look at best player available only & make it work from there whether that's a trade or adding different pieces, etc.

Not to mention, if POR had different pieces around McCollum & Lillard, then it might work better. Say they had Robert Covington, then they could hide McCollum better on defense, or if they had a shot blocking center then, it could work better too. Not to mention, McCollum & Lillard create a lot of mismatches for opposing defenses too. That's part of what makes it work for them.

[saclare]

Originally Posted by Magnum_3_Ball

I'm only going to be happy with Bamba if Doncic, Ayton, Jackson Jr, and Trae Young are already off the board. I think I'd rather have Mikal Bridges over him too.

Bamba is a project. The talent is unquestioned, but he's at least 1 year & probably 2 years away from developing an NBA body, and that's if he works at it because there are questions about his work ethic.

I'm not sure that's a knock when considering this team is not winning, much less competing for, a championship within the next 2-3 years. I do not argue the fact that he is a project, just the notion that is a knock against him. I absolutely take him over Trae Young and Mikal Bridges. The tougher call is between him and Jaren Jackson Jr.

But it is my hope that the Mavs FO isn't viewing these prospects for what they are today, but what they can be for this team in the future. And I think Mo Bamba can be a stud.

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by madape

Mavs should draft Mobamba

Stretch Armstrong...