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

[NoPropsneeded]

So, who should the Raptors believe, your friend the Duke fan, or others?

Chris Broussard, on Twitter:

Sam Mitchell compared him to Deron Williams

[Bouncepass]

Sam Mitchell compared him to Deron Williams

Sure, but Sam Mitchell hasn't spoken with that Duke fan friend guy yet.

[NoPropsneeded]

Sure, but Sam Mitchell hasn't spoken with that Duke fan friend guy yet.

lol

[Jclaw]

HAPPY DRAFT DAY EVERYBODY! get some sleep

[NoPropsneeded]

HAPPY DRAFT DAY EVERYBODY! get some sleep

YAAAA! does it start at 7 or 8?

[Jclaw]

YAAAA! does it start at 7 or 8?

pre-show at 7:00, draft at 7:30 that's what I read (TSN)

[NoPropsneeded]

Aaight, Let us all pray for Damien Lillard aka D Rose 2.0

[blackjitsu]

Wolstat says he heard from a dude that's "definitely in the know" that the raps aren't drafting Drummond of he falls to them

@jaysatur Have heard from one person who knows his stuff zero chance Raptors draft Drummond to keep him FWIW

That looks like they would draft him. But they would move him.

[CalgaryRapsFan]

That looks like they would draft him. But they would move him.

I'd be willing to bet that BC has contingency plans in place for all sorts of variations of which top-10 players are available at #8. I'd be more worried about a GM who waited to decide what to do until they were 'on the clock'. For all of BC's faults, the one thing he seems to be is prepared and methodical.

[Chr1s1anL]

Great Read on Austin Rivers

Will Austin Rivers be a bust?

I’ve been asked that question a lot over the past few days.

I’ve poured over game tape, talked to several NBA scouts and GMs and sifted through the various analytics available before coming to a conclusion: Given his rise on draft boards -- in some cases, as high as No. 6 overall -- he’s being overrated.

And I’ve said as much in various places recently.

In my look at the 10 biggest questions in the 2012 NBA draft, I asked whether Rivers was more likely to become the next Kobe Bryant or Jerryd Bayless. I picked Bayless.

During ESPN’s First Take draft special, I took issue with Skip Bayless declaring that Rivers should be the No. 2 pick.

And in a 7,900-word draft debate on Grantland with Bill Simmons, we had the following lively exchange on the difference between Weber State’s Damian Lillard and Rivers:

FORD: Lillard is a willing passer. Rivers isn't and will never be. Lillard made dramatic improvements from year to year. I thought Rivers was the exact player in college that he was in high school. Lillard is a team player. He was the second most efficient player in college basketball DESPITE being the only decent player on his entire roster; teams game planned to stop him and him alone every night. I just don't see Rivers ever being anywhere near as unselfish or efficient. I think Rivers will be shocked at the athleticism and length at his position. He'll try to do the same things at which he excelled in high school, spend a lot of time on the bench, get into it with his coach and teammates, get traded in a year or two to a desperate team, put up huge numbers for a cellar- dweller for a year or two, make some money, and eventually, teams will realize he can't be the alpha dog on a winning team.

SIMMONS: Other than that, you're a huge Austin Rivers fan.

FORD: I honestly think Rivers is the one guy I wouldn't touch in the lottery. Too toxic for team chemistry, doesn't have the same physical tools to make it worth it.


Put all of that together and it sounds like I’m piling on Rivers.

I’m not.

But the perception is there. Rivers’ former head coach at Duke, Mike Krzyzewski, even called me up concerned that I or someone else was questioning Rivers’ character.

I’m not. I’m questioning how his mental approach to the game, combined with his skills and physical tools, translate at the next level.

To be clear, I’m sure Rivers is a nice young man, and I don’t have concerns about his character. In fact, Coach K believes that Rivers’ ultra-competitive personality is what will help him at the next level.

“He is an alpha dog. I think he will succeed in the NBA because of that,” Krzyzewski said. “He believes he’s going to be great. I’d rather have a guy like that, than a guy who doesn’t believe in himself.”

He also acknowledged that Rivers, like every young prospect, still has a lot of work to do.

“He needs to be a better rebounder and a defender on and off the ball,” Krzyzewski said.

“Some players, they learn one punch. When you take that punch away, they get knocked out. He needs to use that aggressive mentality to work on new things about his game.

“When Austin came to Duke I told him that every player is like a house. The more skills you learn, the more windows you have on your house. When he came to Duke, he had one really big window. He was an amazing scorer. The goal was to add more windows to his game. He’s in that process right now.

“I hope he gets a demanding coach at the next level who pushes him to keep adding to his game. That’s how he’ll become great. If he reverts back to just doing the thing he does well, his chances lessen that he’s a good player in the NBA.”

He also noted that despite rumors to the contrary, he liked working with Rivers.

“He was very coachable and he’s a very good young man,” Krzyzewski said. “I like him. He was never a problem. He fit in well. He likes the game. He was a good kid to coach.”

Coach K said that any chemistry issues with the team this past season, which ended with the No. 2-seeded Blue Devils being knocked out in the first round of the NCAA tournament, probably had more to do with its lack of seniors. He said that as players get older, they get more secure in who they are and what they can do and don’t feel as threatened by newcomers with the skills of someone like Rivers.

“We had a young team maturity-wise this year,” Krzyzewski said. “I would’ve rather had him playing with Nolan Smith and Kyle Singer. I think they would’ve reacted better to his aggressive attitude. We didn’t always use his attitude properly.”

Fair enough. Other than his father, Doc Rivers, no one knows him better.

http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/pos...-rivers-future

[KingMaxwell47]

So Chad Ford just dropped Mock Draft 10.0 at 3 A.M. for some reason.

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/draft...aft-version-10

Here's how picks 1-7 play out:

Anthony Davis
Thomas Robinson
Bradley Beal
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist
Andre Drummond (!)
Damian Lillard
Dion Waiters

And with the 8th pick in the 2012 draft, the Toronto Raptors select...

Harrison Barnes! From the University of North Carolina

Here's what Ford had to say:

Analysis: This is actually Plan B for the Raptors and it's a great one for them. They need shooting and looked at a number of veteran small forwards at this spot. They really like Barnes, and he's a very easy fit for them. This is a home-run scenario for Toronto.

Trade Scenarios: The Raptors have discussed getting a veteran small forward or point guard here. There has been talk that they would like the Rockets' Kyle Lowry, but they want to keep their salary flexibility going into the summer. They've also explored moving up to No. 5 to get their hands on Waiters or Barnes.

Raptors' Big Board:
1. Dion Waiters
2. Harrison Barnes
3. Damian Lillard
4. Austin Rivers
5. Jeremy Lamb

I think a lot of people would be pleased if the draft turned out this way.

[torch19]

Rumour has it that Dion Waiters is being strongly considered by Cleveland with the 4th overall selection.

I guess that would be the wtf pick, seems like a reach. Someone tell me HOW SOMEONE WHO DID NOT WORK OUT FOR ANY TEAM, WHO DID NOT PARTICIPATE IN MEASUREMENTS IN THE COMBINE, see his stock rise as much as him?

I like Dion Waiters, but this is puzzling. Maybe from here on out, prospects should decline to work out. They become more of an enigma & we all know we want to see what's in that mystery box, almost 80% of the time.

This would change the whole landscape, but as I said earlier, the top 8 selections would include:

DAVIS
ROBINSON
BEAL
MKG
BARNES
DRUMMOND
LILLARD
WAITERS

We should be able to land 1 of these guys & we might just land either Barnes or Kidd-Gilchrist, seeing GState is very interested in Drummond. (makes sense: Bogut has like 1 working leg)

I honestly wouldn't mind Lillard, Barnes, MKG & even Drummond (another asset to trade away)

[Fanchie]

Trade up for Waiters

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap...Select_Waiters

Raptors Trying To Move Up To Select Waiters
Jun 28, 2012 1:55 AM EDT


The Raptors have been aggressive in their efforts to move up from the eighth overall selection ahead of the Warriors at seven to draft Dion Waiters, according to sources.

Both Toronto and Phoenix have expressed to Waiters' agent that they would select him with their picks, according to league executives.

Waiters was initially projected as a mid-first round pick, but climbed into the lottery.

Cleveland could select Waiters with the fourth pick if Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Bradley Beal are off the board.

How do you feel about this ? Trading up for Waiters would really mean he's the #1 prio for ES and BC. Is he that good ?

[omgsomuchpotential]

Please no. I think Waiters climbing up the lottery is a pretty good thing for Raptors after Sullinger was red-flagged. This would almost for sure mean Lillard is ours for taking.

[mcHAPPY]

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap...Select_Waiters



How do you feel about this ? Trading up for Waiters would really mean he's the #1 prio for ES and BC. Is he that good ?

What is the best way to see that Barnes slides past GSW?

Create a sense of demand and urgency for Waiters.