2012 Draft Thursday, June 28th: Raptors select Terence Ross

[Joey]

I don't think Perry Jones will be "Second Tier" by any means.
After watching his combine video, I'm convinced he'll be one of the Top 5 in this Draft class.

[The Coach]

I don't think Perry Jones will be "Second Tier" by any means.
After watching his combine video, I'm convinced he'll be one of the Top 5 in this Draft class.

I hope so for our sake but there are way too many of these reports:

Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld compares Perry Jones III to Jordan Hamilton, who slipped to 26th overall last year because most teams thought the risk outweighed the upside.

[stretch]

I think Barnes' visit to Toronto has more to do with the Raptors being the perfect fit for him, a chance to start right from the get go, and the faint hope that BC could be persuaded to go all out and trade up for him.

[Chr1s1anL]

I think Barnes' visit to Toronto has more to do with the Raptors being the perfect fit for him, a chance to start right from the get go, and the faint hope that BC could be persuaded to go all out and trade up for him.

Yeah, Barnes is the only player in this draft that I could see starting for us. I don't even think MKG and Anthony Davis would.

[themasao]

What I found with the consensus draft is that the break in talent seems to be in between the 7th and 8th spots (thanks coin toss). Here are the top 7:

1. Davis (PF)
2. Robinson (PF)
3. Kidd-Gilchrist (SF)
4. Beal (SG)
5. Barnes (SF)
6. Drummond (C)
7. Lillard (PG)

What I noticed is that by this time in the draft the top player at each position has been selected. That means that you are now arguably settling for 2nd tier players. Here are 8-14:

8. Sullinger
9. Jones
10. Lamb
11. Waiters
12. Zeller
13. Marshall
14. Henson

It is frustrating to think that a couple months ago it seemed we were assured of someone in that top grouping; however, it now may be that we have to choose from this second grouping. I hope Colangelo is right when he said that Toronto may be the first team that will be looking to draft a PG and we do draft Lillard.

Check back for updates: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/feature...aft/index.html

Pretty much says it all. I finally forced myself to do a mock draft of the first round - and forced myself to be brutally honest about it. The fact is, as Coach already mentioned, there is a drop-off in almost every draft, and it looks like this year the drop-off is at 7. There are exactly 7 guys I would be happy with drafting at 8. Uh-oh.

Personally, I see it going
1. Davis
2. Robinson
3. MKG
4. Beal
5. Drummond
6. Lillard
7. Barnes

At which point we are stuck with either Waiters or Lamb or PJ3 or God forbid, Sullinger. I think there are two unfortunate implications from this.
1. We shouldn't expect any of the top 7 players to slip. Even if the top teams weren't going BPA, I don't think it would really matter. There seems to be a good fit for all 7 guys on different teams. Anyways, at the end of the day, for one of the top 7 to slip, one of the teams ahead of us would have to opt for someone like Sullinger or Lamb. Cleveland picking Barnes instead of Beal isn't going to cause him to slip all the way to 8.
2. As a result of 1, we should really be looking to either trade down or up. I really have no preference for which way we trade, but the fact is, in a draft where the talent drop is after 7, #8 is THE WORST place to be. I'd rather pick Terrence Ross 16th than Dion Waiters 8th.

[themasao]

He certainly has top 5 talent. Maybe even top 3. But the amount of risk that comes along with his psychological baggage is scary for even the most cavalier GM. I don't think he gets picked in the top ten for that reason alone. GM's prefer drafting Mo Pete's to Marvin Williams'.

[Chr1s1anL]

Pretty much says it all. I finally forced myself to do a mock draft of the first round - and forced myself to be brutally honest about it. The fact is, as Coach already mentioned, there is a drop-off in almost every draft, and it looks like this year the drop-off is at 7. There are exactly 7 guys I would be happy with drafting at 8. Uh-oh.

Personally, I see it going
1. Davis
2. Robinson
3. MKG
4. Beal
5. Drummond
6. Lillard
7. Barnes

At which point we are stuck with either Waiters or Lamb or PJ3 or God forbid, Sullinger. I think there are two unfortunate implications from this.
1. We shouldn't expect any of the top 7 players to slip. Even if the top teams weren't going BPA, I don't think it would really matter. There seems to be a good fit for all 7 guys on different teams. Anyways, at the end of the day, for one of the top 7 to slip, one of the teams ahead of us would have to opt for someone like Sullinger or Lamb. Cleveland picking Barnes instead of Beal isn't going to cause him to slip all the way to 8.
2. As a result of 1, we should really be looking to either trade down or up. I really have no preference for which way we trade, but the fact is, in a draft where the talent drop is after 7, #8 is THE WORST place to be. I'd rather pick Terrence Ross 16th than Dion Waiters 8th.

If Barnes goes 4 I think that Lillard will fall to us.

[ReubenJRD]

Let's all hope that Beal goes to Portland and GS drafts either PJ3 or Sullinger so we can draft Lillard. He's pooped up my boards at first, Austin Rivers behind.

[Rocky416]

Of the tier two players whats the issue with drafting rivers ive seen the comparisons to monte nd mayo nd i believe they could stand true. Only 19 with willingness to get better which he was showing near end of season. He is everything we are asking for in a sf (spread floor, create own shot, 6'7 wing span, pick nd roll capabilites) but in a sg meaning derozan gets moved to sf so be it. I believe he can do more for our team then waiters or lamb who show no interest in our franchise from outside looking in. If in worst case he turns out to be bayless he doesnt have injuries. Im still voting for lillard or barnes, but as a raps fan ive become use to taking losses

[Sig]

Of the tier two players whats the issue with drafting rivers ive seen the comparisons to monte nd mayo nd i believe they could stand true. Only 19 with willingness to get better which he was showing near end of season. He is everything we are asking for in a sf (spread floor, create own shot, 6'7 wing span, pick nd roll capabilites) but in a sg meaning derozan gets moved to sf so be it. I believe he can do more for our team then waiters or lamb who show no interest in our franchise from outside looking in. If in worst case he turns out to be bayless he doesnt have injuries. Im still voting for lillard or barnes, but as a raps fan ive become use to taking losses

Rivers at SF, interesting...

[Bouncepass]

Of the tier two players whats the issue with drafting rivers ive seen the comparisons to monte nd mayo nd i believe they could stand true. Only 19 with willingness to get better which he was showing near end of season. He is everything we are asking for in a sf (spread floor, create own shot, 6'7 wing span, pick nd roll capabilites) but in a sg meaning derozan gets moved to sf so be it. I believe he can do more for our team then waiters or lamb who show no interest in our franchise from outside looking in. If in worst case he turns out to be bayless he doesnt have injuries. Im still voting for lillard or barnes, but as a raps fan ive become use to taking losses

I like Rivers fine. But he is a combo guard (1/2) or SG, not a SF. It would make more sense to shift DeRozan to SF as a small lineup. You could also probably play Rivers at the 1 for periods of time. Harden plays a lead guard role with OKC a lot --- handles the ball, gets to the hoop, scores efficiently, etc.

[Rocky416]

I apologize for the little attention to grammer, but that's exactly what i ment he fills all the holes our dream sf would but at the sg position and of course meaning DD moves to SF

[The Coach]

For the Perry Jones hopefuls:

Baylor's Jones progressing; Moultrie hoping to land in N.O.

Posted Jun 16 2012 12:51PM
Duncanville, Texas, just south of Dallas, is home. That is where Perry Jones III, as a senior at Duncanville High School who would make several All-America teams and become the focus of recruiting interest around the country, caught his first rocket ride to stardom.
Waco, Texas, some 90 miles away, is where he became a possible lottery pick. Baylor went 30-8 last season and reached the Elite Eight as sophomore Jones was named honorable mention All-America, showing flashes of the versatility at a lanky 6-foot-11 that has drawn comparisons to Lamar Odom, albeit with the inconsistent play that framed his college career.
Santa Barbara, Calif., though, is where he found his NBA direction. Of all places. On a particularly beautiful stretch of California coast, far from his roots and, Jones has come to believe, far from his biggest problem heading into the June 28 draft.
Working out there with several other prospects -- Marcus Denmon, Tony Mitchell, Jeff Taylor, John Jenkins, Festus Ezeli, Orlando Johnson, Drew Gordon -- after the season and before the current tour of team workouts, Jones noticed progress. He felt himself keeping up on defense with quicker players and acquired a shooting rhythm like never before.
Oh, and he learned he has a confidence problem.
"I had a confidence problem," Jones corrected.
Right. Had.
"I don't think I have one anymore," he said. "I've been working out and seeing stuff that I'm capable of doing. Actually seeing the potential that I have is making my confidence level rise."

NBA executives and scouts left Baylor games questioning Jones' heart and whether he truly loved basketball, as opposed to playing just because everyone told him he should with that size and that skill. In the Santa Barbara workouts, he determined, it wasn't a passion thing. It was getting down after stringing together a couple missed shots, hanging his head following a turnover.
The quest in the team auditions, then, has been to show decision makers the new Perry Jones III, while acknowledging that he does have a reputation to live down.
"It was definitely a problem in college," he said. "I didn't have a motor. I think I have a motor now because of my confidence level."
The second half of the lottery remains the likely landing spot.
Elsewhere heading into the final full week before the draft:

Not a motor problem, but a confidence problem? I do know that confidence and motivation are linked... do you take the chance on a guy that's confidence can be built up in a couple of weeks?

[Miekenstien]

For the Perry Jones hopefuls:



Not a motor problem, but a confidence problem? I do know that confidence and motivation are linked... do you take the chance on a guy that's confidence can be built up in a couple of weeks?

still say no.. empty words to me. he is all over the mocks and its millions of dollars. i think i'm most reminded of jonathon bender when i think pj3 now. another kid with all the height and skill in the world and no heart. i doubt that pj also blows out his knees but these are all just empty words the agents put into his mouth for monetary gain.

[Chr1s1anL]

Blazers did NOT give Dion Waiters the promise

As the June 28 NBA draft nears, rumors and speculation run rampant, and the latest involving the Trail Blazers is that Syracuse shooting guard Dion Waiters has been given a promise by the Blazers that they will select him with the 11th pick.

I asked Blazers general manager Neil Olshey about it, and I've never heard him laugh so hard.

"I got the job on a Tuesday, and by the time I landed in Chicago the next day (for the predraft camp), I had convinced an owner (to pick a prospect), a player to shut down his workouts ... I mean, I hadn't even talked to my scouts yet."

Olshey said he hasn't given Waiters a promise, or any player, for that matter. But that's not to say Olshey is against the practice. He said he has done it before as an executive with the Clippers, and when he worked in a sports agency under Arn Tellem, he said it was not uncommon for one of their clients to get a promise from a team.

As draft prospects are spanning the country working out for teams -- Connecticut center Andre Drummond was the latest to come through Portland on Saturday -- Waiters 10 days ago cancelled his workouts and interviews with teams, usually a telltale sign a promise has been given. It was speculated that either Toronto (No.8), Portland (No.6 and No.11) or Phoenix (No.13) gave Waiters the promise.

"(The media) puts it out there that 'it had to be them' and then they want you to admit it, or say you didn't," Olshey said. "But at the end of the day, everybody is going to lie anyway."

Such is the life in the NBA these days, where it is so hard to get a straight answer, and where deception is used to gain an advantage. That's why it's virtually useless to believe anything you hear these days regarding who a team likes, or what a team is going to do. The "news" usually stems from an agent, general manager or player who has an agenda.

But promises do exist -- Olshey said when he was working for Tellem, they received promises for Shelden Williams, Marcus Banks, Kendrick Perkins, Kedrick Brown and Robert Swift. Sometimes, the promises don't work out -- Swift in 2004 got a promise from Boston at No. 14, but he was chosen by Seattle at No. 12.

"And like last year, Reggie Jackson had a promise," Olshey said of the Oklahoma City guard. "I don't know if it was Oklahoma City, but I know he had a promise. Because he had a few medical issues, he didn't finish his season at Boston College, and nobody got to review that medical information, nobody got to interview him ... the rest of the league was flying blind."

That's the whole point of giving promises -- to shut down the information gathering process of other teams. But Chad Buchanan, who directed the Blazers' draft last year, said it was his policy to never give a promise to a player. He felt it handcuffed the team in case something unexpected came up, be it a trade opportunity or a player slipping.

Although Olshey said he is not against the practice of giving promises, he realizes the pitfalls. When he was an assistant general manager with the Clippers, his boss, Mike Dunleavy promised Russian forward Yaroslav Korolev the Clippers would take him at No.12. The problem was, a kid from New Mexico named Danny Granger was unexpectedly slipping out of the top 10. When it came time for the Clippers to pick at 12, Dunleavy honored his promise to Korolev, even though Olshey said they knew Granger was the better player. Granger was taken 17th by Indiana and became an All-Star. Korolev played 34 NBA games.

"I will say this: Very rarely does the promise work out in the best interests of the team," Olshey said. "What it does in my opinion is you are chasing the draft instead of letting the draft come to you. And it takes you out of that the world-comes-to-an-end scenario where a guy you didn't expect plummets. Like Brook Lopez slipping to 10. If New Jersey had promised somebody, what in the world do you do? Because in our business, your word is everything."

Olshey said promises happen more often with international players who will go in the second round, because teams want that prospect to remain hidden.

"But when you are picking 6 and 11 like us, you are looking at guys so over scouted that you are not hiding them," Olshey said.

http://www.oregonlive.com/blazers/in...s_not_mad.html

Seems like his learned from the Dany Granger situation. Like he said he wouldn't of had time to make a promise after just being hired the day before. You really think on your second day on the job your going to promise one of your lottery picks away? I don't think so.