2018 NBA Draft

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by sefant77

But again: Ayton is a man playing against kids...so im a little bit careful with the hype. The skills are all there but for him its pretty easy right now to look great and pile up stats

You keep saying he's a "man playing against kids," but he only LOOKS like a man -- dude is just 19, it's not like he's going to be a 27-year-old rookie like Bernard James or something... He'll continue to develop his mind, game, and body before he gets into the NBA -- no reason to expect any sort of drop off when he starts facing equal competition... You can't overhype his stats when he passes the eye test.

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally Posted by Underdog

You keep saying he's a "man playing against kids," but he only LOOKS like a man -- dude is just 19, it's not like he's going to be a 27-year-old rookie like Bernard James or something... He'll continue to develop his mind, game, and body before he gets into the NBA -- no reason to expect any sort of drop off when he starts facing equal competition... You can't overhype his stats when he passes the eye test.

I think you're mostly right. Dude is (probably) 19, even though he looks 30 just like LeBron and Oden before getting drafted. If he can stay healthy, then there's absolutely no reason to believe that he won't improve as much or more than the average player does. He has less to do to get his physical tools to an NBA level and there's no reason to believe that he won't get the rest with time just like Smith Jr.

I really like his passion. There are talented players that don't seem to care. Dude gets fired up and I like that. Even though Mejri isn't consistent, I just love that he cares and plays with passion.