Everything Draft 2021

[TrueTorontoFan]

If they reach it will be on Barnes because Barnes looks like a Raptor player. He fits the guys they've drafted in the past.

- Is extremely long
- Has great instincts on defense
- Seems to be a hard worker with the believe in yourself type of attitude.
- Didn't grow up with a father (this is a key trait for a lot of Raptor players that Masai seems to love)

It's kind of why I'm hoping Mobley falls, because if it's between Mobley and Barnes I think they take Mobley. But if it's between Suggs and Barnes for example, I think they take Barnes even though I would probably be really angry if that happened. I've fallen in love with Suggs game.

Between barnes and usggs I take Barnes. Suggs vs kuminga is tougher. I would lean towards kuminga but just barely.

[magoon]

At this point I expect we'll most likely just pick fourth and whichever of Suggs or Mobley is left is who we take and we'll be perfectly happy with either (I personally think they're the actual two best options in the draft). I'm positive Green goes in the top three and so does Cade, and unless something weird happens one of Suggs or Mobley is the other top three pick.

[Hotshot]

If they reach it will be on Barnes because Barnes looks like a Raptor player. He fits the guys they've drafted in the past.

- Is extremely long
- Has great instincts on defense
- Seems to be a hard worker with the believe in yourself type of attitude.
- Didn't grow up with a father (this is a key trait for a lot of Raptor players that Masai seems to love)

It's kind of why I'm hoping Mobley falls, because if it's between Mobley and Barnes I think they take Mobley. But if it's between Suggs and Barnes for example, I think they take Barnes even though I would probably be really angry if that happened. I've fallen in love with Suggs game.

Agreed. You really have to be doing your homework for this draft. I highly doubt that Masai is the kind of executive that will simply wait for Suggs to fall in his lap by the process of elimination & not have a couple of other guys he watches or deals that might be more beneficial in his eyes. Suggs may very well be that guy (I like the sound of a Brandon Roy like player) but you never know how he will develop especially given that he doesn't have high degree of elite skills in his arsenal to fall back on when things get tough.

I can only think in recent memory of the Zion Williamson draft where it's the only draft where you can argue that the top 4 guys selected are giving (at the moment) as closest as possible return as expected from their respective selection . All the other recent drafts had big misses in terms of selecting the right draft order of the players selected & some even missing on better talent farther down.

[grindhouse]

I think it's important that we look at every player's downside. We look at their upside a lot because none of us want to be haters. But they've all got downsides. In rough big board order:

Cade: Turns the ball over more than any other major prospect in recent memory. Not particularly good at getting to the line. Not particularly good at rebounding given his size. Motor is nothing special. NCAA stats were good but not explosively "this is the consensus #1" great. There's a strong argument that his high school play was so dominant simply because he got bigger faster than most of the other kids.

Green: Yes, his upside comp is Devin Booker or Zach LaVine, but that's his ceiling, not his reasonable comp. He's a smaller than average SG and he can score, but he's not really a crafty scorer yet nor an elite shooter and he needs to become one or both to become the star everybody hopes he'll become.

Mobley: His shooting is okay, but nothing special - and comping him to Chris Bosh (which is a fair upside comp) needs to be paired with remembering that Bosh mostly played in a different NBA era and didn't become a good distance shooter until the end of his career. He's skinny and he'll get bullied by other bigs in the paint until - or if - he puts on more muscle.

Suggs: Does a lot of things reasonably well, but he's not really elite at anything, and that's a concern because the easiest path to success for an NBA player is to be elite at something and then bring the rest of the skills up to a competent NBA level. The shooting is a work in progress. His handles tend to be sloppy. We don't know how he'll function running a team full time because Gonzaga ran three point guards and divvied the load between all three of them.

Barnes: The shooting, the shooting, the shooting. The passing and defense are both promising but he'll need good coaching to get them to become NBA elite level, but anyway: the shooting, the shooting, the shooting.

Kuminga: Here's something nobody mentions: we think Kuminga is 18. But he's from the DRC, so there is a moderate chance he could be slightly older - the old "lie about your age when you move to America to maximize your chances of getting an NBA career" move. If he's 18 with his current skill profile - sure, he's a lottery pick based solely on his upside (and to be clear, even at this point, he's a massive project with a lot of risk). If he's 19, though, with that skillset? He's not a lottery pick any more, he's maybe a first-rounder. If he's 20 he's a second-rounder at best. I'm not saying he's older than 18 - I'm saying that he's a very very very risky option, and the age thing demonstrates how quickly promise for the future turns into "eh, this is who he is."

Keon: Keon Johnson is young, super-athletic, and can play on both sides of the ball. But he's slightly smaller than average, he's inefficient as a passer, and the shooting game isn't there yet. I would like him as a mid-teens first round pick. As a lottery pick I think he's a reach.

Wagner: There isn't too much downside to Wagner, honestly, except that he's a super-boring pick with no ceiling to speak of. He is who he is, almost certainly. That's fine.

Giddey: Athletic concerns are the issue with him because he's smart and the shot looks to be improving (but is still unproven), but none of that matters if you're a sieve on defense. His most accurate comp is "Lonzo Ball, except the defense is worse right now." That's a huge concern.

Sengun: Plays a game that's become obsolete in the NBA (post-up PF) - I mean, he's really good at it, but can he be good enough at it to basically bring it back? Not a good rim protector either and that's a problem for a big in the NBA.

Jalen Johnson: Strong argument he's a stat-stuffer who doesn't care about his teammates or his team, and that's a major concern.

Great write up 5 stars I agreed with everything except. Green ceiling and kuminga … when you look at him his shot is not broken and he has enough control over the ball the be a better ball handler. My thing with him is he hungry if he wants it he has the tools but from what I watched I don’t know if he wants it.

[grindhouse]

Whoever we take in the first I pray we take queta with our next pick I really like that kids game and attitude

[planetmars]

Whoever we take in the first I pray we take queta with our next pick I really like that kids game and attitude

He's working out with the Raptors

[golden]

He's working out with the Raptors

He'd be a nice second round pick. Queta and Vrenz Bleijenbergh.

[grindhouse]

He's working out with the Raptors

nice!!!!

[Ebonhawke]

He'd be a nice second round pick. Queta and Vrenz Bleijenbergh.

If the Raptors have both Neemias Queta and Vrenz Bleijenbergh on the roster, you're going to really challenge Jack and Leo with the colour commentary. Think Matt will figure it out - the other two...?

[golden]

If the Raptors have both Neemias Queta and Vrenz Bleijenbergh on the roster, you're going to really challenge Jack and Leo with the colour commentary. Think Matt will figure it out - the other two...?

Can we also draft new commentators?

[slaw]

Can we also draft new commentators?

Careful what you wish for...

[TrueTorontoFan]

Careful what you wish for...

not going to lie the women's broad cast was kind of dope

[inthepaint]

Can we also draft new commentators?

Yeah we need that. I'm ok with Jack but another season of Leo's "give it to big fella!" or "simple basketball" will be tough.

[magoon]

If the Raptors have both Neemias Queta and Vrenz Bleijenbergh on the roster, you're going to really challenge Jack and Leo with the colour commentary. Think Matt will figure it out - the other two...?

Neither of these names are particularly hard to pronounce. Bleijenbergh is hard to spell, but it's pronounced - depending on who you hear say it - "bly-en-burg," "blay-en-burgh" or "blay-zhen-burg." Pretty straightforward.

[Hotshot]

Yeah we need that. I'm ok with Jack but another season of Leo's "give it to big fella!" or "simple basketball" will be tough.

I really enjoyed Dan Shulman commentary during the Canadian basketball team Olympic failed qualification tournament. I can only hope he comes back.