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

[mcHAPPY]

MKG is the second coming of Julian Wright? I've never seen him play, as I don't follow college basketball, but during all the discussions the name of Wright is echoing in the back of my head.

Very possible. The draft is tougher odds than rolling snake eyes.

[saints91]

Say ping pong balls go our way and we get the second pick. Davis will be off the board and it will be a decision between Beal and MKG. Who do you pick? You could make a case for either being the bpa. Which need do you feel the Raptors need to fill the most? SG or SF?

I would strongly consider trading the 2nd or 3rd pick for either both the Hornets picks or both the Trailblazers picks. I'm not all that high on MKG. I would like to see a bit more polish on a player drafted that high. Beal is looking pretty good though.

Hornets could draft from 4 to 6 and then again at 10

Trail Blazers could draft 6th or 7th and then again at 11th.


Player options could be Beal, Barnes, Robinson, Lamb, Illard, Marshall, PJ3, Terrence Jones. A combination of any of these players would be awesome!

[grindhouse]

i personally think that if BC thinks PJ3 can play the 3, we should draft him. We gotta hit this ball out of the park in this draft and PJ3 arguably has the highest potential out of anyone else cept maybe Davis to become a superstar. If Dwane casey can get a lazy bargnani to play D and dunk on danny granger then im sure he can do more with an athletic freak like PJ3.

I agree

[Joey]

IMO anyone who plays basketball has some type of "motor" or else how would you be able to play the game, it requires a lot of running around and awareness on both ends. I think the issue with him is playing an uncomfortable role at baylor, you could visually see it in his play, he didn't know what to do and his points were off lobs, occasional jumpshots and putbacks. He is a guy that is built to play on the perimeter and knock down shots and drive to the basket. if we don't win the lottery and we stay at 8th we should definitely draft him

Haven't been in the draft thread for a while, but I'm glad to see you're fightin' the good fight for PJ3.

And you are spot on about his role at Baylor. The coaches had no idea what to do with him, and it showed on a night to night basis.
To a lesser extent, the same could be said for Miller; and I believe it has been said that that is one of the reasons why he left early.

[Nilanka]

I'm anxiously awaiting PJ3's pre-draft interviews. Curious to see how he explains his sometimes lackadaisical effort.

[Joey]

MKG is the second coming of Julian Wright? I've never seen him play, as I don't follow college basketball, but during all the discussions the name of Wright is echoing in the back of my head.

Hahaha Oh geez.

This is a Scouting report of __________ (guess who).

________ may not have put up the best stat line today, but he was easily the most impressive player on the floor. The athleticism he possesses at his size is simply incredible, and coupled with his ball handling ability, makes him a very intimidating matchup. He put his court vision and passing on display today, getting into the lane at will before kicking out to open teammates for open jump shots. While his passing ability makes him an asset, his other offensive skills are still very much a work in progress. ________ didn’t look great shooting the ball, and needs to continue developing that aspect of his game. Despite his lack of perimeter shooting, ________ is too long and athletic for most of the players in attendance to keep out of the lane. That same length and athleticism provided some of the most impressive highlights of the day, including a couple of big steals for give and go alley oops, and some of the most emphatic blocks we’ve seen all week.
From Draft Extress

Its eerie, really.

ADD Its a Julian Wright report ...

[Nilanka]

In Wright's defense, if he was treated as a project, force-fed minutes, and played under an understanding coach, surrounded by seasoned veterans, he might've turned into a solid NBA player.

A young player's environment plays a huge role in how their career will play out.

[Jon_Wade]

Guess who this is describing "Ball Handling: An impressive ball handler who can break down his defender off the dribble and get to the rack. An aggressive driver who thrives when he looks to attack the basket on straight-line drives with his quickness. Shows great agility, change of pace, and body control on drives with the ability to step around defenders and slice through the lane. Can operate as a serviceable secondary ball handler by bringing the ball up the floor, by pushing the tempo, and even setting up an offense. Excellent at embracing and finishing after contact at the rim, making him lethal offensive weapon because he can get to the free throw line frequently and draw the 'and one.' While he has good body control, with built up momentum, he plays loose and forces plays into defenders at the basket looking to get fouled, but makes him a target for charge takers. Still very right hand dominant and will drive that way a strong majority of the time, but can pull it off with his quickness and strength attacking. Has a nice spin driving left into the lane and spinning across it to finish on the right side of the basket. Displays a solid power dribble in the post to go up strong at the basket and brace for contact."

[Soft Euro]

Hahaha Oh geez.

This is a Scouting report of __________ (guess who).



Its eerie, really.

Wow, hadn't looked at the draftreports yet, but some gm might make a big poo poo in the draft.

[mcHAPPY]

David Aldridge's big board:


http://www.nba.com/news/features/dav...rds/index.html


Some very interesting projections for some of the players.

[ceez]

Case for Lamb over Beal?

Via Insider's Fran Fraschilla

In the next six weeks, NBA personnel offices, especially teams in need of scoring help, will be deciding on drafting Connecticut's Jeremy Lamb or Florida's Bradley Beal. Each shooting guard has their own set of attributes and some flaws. But each is coming off very good, if not spectacular, college seasons and both are expected to contribute early in their NBA careers.

The general consensus is that Beal will be drafted in the first five selections while Lamb's stock has slipped. Beal's Gators finished the season strong, coming within a game of the Final Four, and he played some his best basketball of the season then. Lamb, on the other hand, played on a dysfunctional Huskies team that was bounced early from the NCAA tournament.

So what direction do teams go?

The good news for NBA teams is that both Lamb and Beal are in the early stages of their basketball development. In fact, Beal won't turn 19 until the night of the NBA Draft on June 28th. Lamb is a college sophomore with a national championship to his name but who did not start for his high school team until his senior year.

Lamb has prototypical shooting guard size at 6-foot-5, as well as a seven-foot wingspan. Beal is slightly undersized for the position at 6-3, but he is a sturdily built 207 pounds.

Ironically, though both Lamb and Beal are thought to be lights-out perimeter shooters, both shot just 34 percent from behind the 3-point line this season. Beal especially came to college with a reputation as a great outside shooter and there's really nothing major in his shooting technique that tells you that he shouldn't and can't be.

He played this season in a spread screen and roll offense with three and, sometimes, four guards and was the product of more open shots than Lamb because of Florida's great dribble penetration game. Yet Beal surprisingly struggled with his consistency behind the arc. In fact, in 21 of the Gators' 37 games, Beal made only one or no 3-point field goals.

In Lamb's case, his mediocre shooting percentage was a product, I believe, of UConn's poor execution of its halfcourt offense. While Lamb moves very well without the ball, often he wasn't screened for well or he did not read the direction in which his defender moved. That led to Lamb shooting more contested shots than he needed to and his perimeter game, especially behind the arc, suffered for it.

His offensive game will be compared to a couple of Husky shooting guards before him, Ray Allen and Richard Hamilton. Both mastered the catch-and-shoot game at UConn, especially in the midrange off curl screens. Interestingly, though just 180 pounds, Lamb shot 60 percent inside the arc, which I believe bodes well for his NBA future as he adds weight and increases his strength.

Ironically, while Allen shot 47 percent behind the arc in his final season at UConn and has been a Hall of Fame shooter in his NBA career, Hamilton has shot a more pedestrian 35 percent behind the arc in the NBA. Lamb has the ability to surpass that percentage as an NBA player, I believe. And, his 81 free throw percentage will be put to good use as he attacks the rim more.

Beal should have no such issues with strength. He has been compared to the Hornets' Eric Gordon, in part, because of their linebacker-like body types. But Gordon was not only a dominant scorer in his one season at Indiana but he shot 277 free throws, 100 more than Beal. He was an explosive athlete who could play at rim level or above and it has translated well early in his NBA career.

Beal did a good job attacking the rim this season, but needs to learn to finish with both hands around the rim against bigger, longer defenders. In addition, his straight-line ballhanding and speed were excellent in transition, but he was not as effective driving in the halfcourt. He utilized ball screens to open up driving opportunities for himself but he is not yet a great creator in one-on-one or isolation situations.

Beal will never be a point guard but he needs to improve in order to become a secondary ballhandler for his NBA team. It is an area on which he has spent a lot of time since the end of Florida's season.

Defensively, both Lamb and Beal will have typical rookie adjustments to the league. Lamb will be bounced off screens while chasing NBA shooting guards but his length will serve him well as he gets stronger. Beal will have some size and foot speed issues at times as well.

Intangibles

An intangible benefit both Lamb and Beal have had in college is that they have been what I call, "hard coached." UConn's Jim Calhoun is a Hall of Fame coach and the Gators' Billy Donovan is headed there someday. Both players have been held to a high standard in practice every day and hard work will not be a foreign language when they arrive at training camp in the fall.

Because Beal was often matched against bigger, slower forwards, he made a living on the board, averaging almost seven a game. While that number may not necessarily translate to the next level, it is indicative of his toughness.

Teams that have an interest in drafting a shooting guard are scrutinizing Lamb and Beal very closely. From what I can tell, many are split on who will be better. Private workouts and individual interviews with each player will likely tip the balance. Either way teams go on Beal and Lamb, it will be a challenging and not necessarily obvious decision.

Personally, I'm leaning towards Lamb because of his size, length and effectiveness in an NBA offense's "sweet spot," the 15- to 18-foot range. And, I'm willing to overlook the Huskies' dysfunctional season with Lamb as their centerpiece because I can't ignore the poise he played with as a freshman. And, he did go for 23 or more points eight different times this season, despite the team's poor chemistry.

[Chr1s1anL]

Selecting Jeremy Lamb over Beal

In the next six weeks, NBA personnel offices, especially teams in need of scoring help, will be deciding on drafting Connecticut's Jeremy Lamb or Florida's Bradley Beal. Each shooting guard has their own set of attributes and some flaws. But each is coming off very good, if not spectacular, college seasons and both are expected to contribute early in their NBA careers.

The general consensus is that Beal will be drafted in the first five selections while Lamb's stock has slipped. Beal's Gators finished the season strong, coming within a game of the Final Four, and he played some his best basketball of the season then. Lamb, on the other hand, played on a dysfunctional Huskies team that was bounced early from the NCAA tournament.

So what direction do teams go?

The good news for NBA teams is that both Lamb and Beal are in the early stages of their basketball development. In fact, Beal won't turn 19 until the night of the NBA Draft on June 28th. Lamb is a college sophomore with a national championship to his name but who did not start for his high school team until his senior year.

Lamb has prototypical shooting guard size at 6-foot-5, as well as a seven-foot wingspan. Beal is slightly undersized for the position at 6-3, but he is a sturdily built 207 pounds.

Ironically, though both Lamb and Beal are thought to be lights-out perimeter shooters, both shot just 34 percent from behind the 3-point line this season. Beal especially came to college with a reputation as a great outside shooter and there's really nothing major in his shooting technique that tells you that he shouldn't and can't be.

He played this season in a spread screen and roll offense with three and, sometimes, four guards and was the product of more open shots than Lamb because of Florida's great dribble penetration game. Yet Beal surprisingly struggled with his consistency behind the arc. In fact, in 21 of the Gators' 37 games, Beal made only one or no 3-point field goals.

In Lamb's case, his mediocre shooting percentage was a product, I believe, of UConn's poor execution of its halfcourt offense. While Lamb moves very well without the ball, often he wasn't screened for well or he did not read the direction in which his defender moved. That led to Lamb shooting more contested shots than he needed to and his perimeter game, especially behind the arc, suffered for it.

His offensive game will be compared to a couple of Husky shooting guards before him, Ray Allen and Richard Hamilton. Both mastered the catch-and-shoot game at UConn, especially in the midrange off curl screens. Interestingly, though just 180 pounds, Lamb shot 60 percent inside the arc, which I believe bodes well for his NBA future as he adds weight and increases his strength.

Ironically, while Allen shot 47 percent behind the arc in his final season at UConn and has been a Hall of Fame shooter in his NBA career, Hamilton has shot a more pedestrian 35 percent behind the arc in the NBA. Lamb has the ability to surpass that percentage as an NBA player, I believe. And, his 81 free throw percentage will be put to good use as he attacks the rim more.

Beal should have no such issues with strength. He has been compared to the Hornets' Eric Gordon, in part, because of their linebacker-like body types. But Gordon was not only a dominant scorer in his one season at Indiana but he shot 277 free throws, 100 more than Beal. He was an explosive athlete who could play at rim level or above and it has translated well early in his NBA career.

Beal did a good job attacking the rim this season, but needs to learn to finish with both hands around the rim against bigger, longer defenders. In addition, his straight-line ballhanding and speed were excellent in transition, but he was not as effective driving in the halfcourt. He utilized ball screens to open up driving opportunities for himself but he is not yet a great creator in one-on-one or isolation situations.

Beal will never be a point guard but he needs to improve in order to become a secondary ballhandler for his NBA team. It is an area on which he has spent a lot of time since the end of Florida's season.

Defensively, both Lamb and Beal will have typical rookie adjustments to the league. Lamb will be bounced off screens while chasing NBA shooting guards but his length will serve him well as he gets stronger. Beal will have some size and foot speed issues at times as well.

Intangibles

An intangible benefit both Lamb and Beal have had in college is that they have been what I call, "hard coached." UConn's Jim Calhoun is a Hall of Fame coach and the Gators' Billy Donovan is headed there someday. Both players have been held to a high standard in practice every day and hard work will not be a foreign language when they arrive at training camp in the fall.

Because Beal was often matched against bigger, slower forwards, he made a living on the board, averaging almost seven a game. While that number may not necessarily translate to the next level, it is indicative of his toughness.

Teams that have an interest in drafting a shooting guard are scrutinizing Lamb and Beal very closely. From what I can tell, many are split on who will be better. Private workouts and individual interviews with each player will likely tip the balance. Either way teams go on Beal and Lamb, it will be a challenging and not necessarily obvious decision.

Personally, I'm leaning towards Lamb because of his size, length and effectiveness in an NBA offense's "sweet spot," the 15- to 18-foot range. And, I'm willing to overlook the Huskies' dysfunctional season with Lamb as their centerpiece because I can't ignore the poise he played with as a freshman. And, he did go for 23 or more points eight different times this season, despite the team's poor chemistry.

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/blog/...b-bradley-beal

Interesting read, let the debate begin!

[mcHAPPY]

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/blog/...b-bradley-beal

Interesting read, let the debate begin!

I am undecided between the two now. That has changed from "Beal - no more questions." I think Lamb could be REALLY good in Toronto on offense with his ability to score off the dribble, pulling up, and from deep and on defense with his 7-foot wingspan and Casey's coaching.

*EDIT* Oh yeah, and don't forget Alex McKechnie making everyone forget about those "size" issues!

[Nilanka]

Thanks for posting this. I was heavily in the Beal camp, but after reading this, Lamb would seem like a very solid consolation prize.

[NoPropsneeded]

thing is does he have franchise player or all star potential?