Kings Select in the 2008 NBA DRAFT??

[Capt. Factorial]

Re: Westbrook

He's also an elite athlete with very good lane penetration and finishing skills at the basket.

I agree with most of what you said on Westbrook, but I'm not sure on his finishing skills. He's great, especially for his size, as far as dunking goes. But he seemed to have a very "fragile" layup - easy to disrupt. He seemed to miss a lot of layups in traffic that he should have converted, and blew enough uncontested gimmes throughout the year to give me at least a little pause. That could be fixed, I'm sure.

 

[=LarryLegend=]

But he seemed to have a very "fragile" layup - easy to disrupt. He seemed to miss a lot of layups in traffic that he should have converted

Would fit good on the kings then....not the best when it comes to layups......lol

cough...salmons,brad,kenny

 

[Gary]

Re: Westbrook



I agree with most of what you said on Westbrook, but I'm not sure on his finishing skills. He's great, especially for his size, as far as dunking goes. But he seemed to have a very "fragile" layup - easy to disrupt. He seemed to miss a lot of layups in traffic that he should have converted, and blew enough uncontested gimmes throughout the year to give me at least a little pause. That could be fixed, I'm sure.

His finishing skills were great when he had the starting PG duties at the start of the year. Kind of diminished when Collison came back, because Westbrook needs to ball to be effective.

That's why it would scare me to draft Westbrook. He isn't the purest PG in the draft (although I think he can be taught), and he needs to ball to be effective.

If the whole PG thing didn't work out, and we had a combo guard on our hands w/o true PG skills we might have another ball hog.

 

[BMiller52]

Lets say we trade our 2 2nds for a late 1st, here is my dream draft right now:

12: Anthony Randolph
late 1st: Mario Chalmers(actually reminds me of Chauncey Billups)

 

[=LarryLegend=]

late 1st: Mario Chalmers(actually reminds me of Chauncey Billups)

If he didnt hit that three....we both know he wouldnt even be in the talk of a 1st rd prospect. I am not a fan of his. would rather try to get ty lawson if he stays in draft...or

Dj augustin with our pick and Jason thompson...like i have stated before.

 

[bajaden]

Lets say we trade our 2 2nds for a late 1st, here is my dream draft right now:

12: Anthony Randolph
late 1st: Mario Chalmers(actually reminds me of Chauncey Billups)

I like Chalmers. He's not getting the press, but he had a good shooting percentage and he's a pretty good defender, at least at the college level. He's not as quick as some others, but then neither was Bibby.

 

[BMiller52]

If he didnt hit that three....we both know he wouldnt even be in the talk of a 1st rd prospect. I am not a fan of his. would rather try to get ty lawson if he stays in draft...or

Dj augustin with our pick and Jason thompson...like i have stated before.

No I liked him before the 3, I watched his whole season. He has size that a guy like Augustin doesn't have and handles the ball better than a guy like Westbrook. He's a better shooter and defender than Lawson. This guy is going to be a real sleeper, he's going to explode in the NBA IMO. He's clutch but that's not the only reason I like him.

 

[BMiller52]

I like Chalmers. He's not getting the press, but he had a good shooting percentage and he's a pretty good defender, at least at the college level. He's not as quick as some others, but then neither was Bibby.

Exactly. He also did a much better job on Rose than guys like Collison and Augustin. He shut down Ty Lawson. He went head to head with Augustin multiple times over the last couple years and never backed down. He has nice size, and decent(not great) athleticism. I'm glad you agree with me on this. Dude is underrated.

 

[NewArena]

Would fit good on the kings then....not the best when it comes to layups......lol

cough...salmons,brad,kenny

What? Salmons is one of the absolute best finisher we have in terms of layups and in the Nba period. I dont think i have really seen the guy miss one. And lets not get started on Kenny, that man misses layups like a 5 year old child.

 

[=LarryLegend=]

Salmons is one of the absolute best finisher

I strongly disagree.....dude misses alot of layups....yeah he made that big one against dallas......but he misses a ton!

 

[bajaden]

I strongly disagree.....dude misses alot of layups....yeah he made that big one against dallas......but he misses a ton!

I wouldn't say he misses a lot. He has some nights that they don't go in just like anyone else in the league. Considering that most of his shots are layups, the odds are he's going to miss some once in a while.

 

[beb0p]

I strongly disagree.....dude misses alot of layups....yeah he made that big one against dallas......but he misses a ton!

Dude, Salmons is one of the better finishers around the rim. Kwame Brown, now that's a bad finisher.

 

[Smills91]

Salmons is a GREAT finisher! In fact he's one of the better finishers in the entire league. That's the strength to his game.

 

[shoedork]

please please please draft russell westbrook. he's not going to dissapoint.

 

[CruzDude]

Update on bunch of Mock Drafts

Reviewed 12 mock drafts that had been updated since 1 May. Some mild surprises, both in who rose and who fell. See below

• Marreese Speights has fallen to #20 or lower in all mocks except 1, ESPN
• Russell Westbrook has fallen a bit but is still in the 12-14 range
• Kevin Love seems to have fallen down to the 13-16 range, apparently could make our Brad seem like he's quick on his feet.
• I personally think O.J.Mayo is overrated, and I'm a USC alum!
• JaVale McGee from Nevada/Reno has risen quite a bit and now seems to be in the 15-16 slot across the board
• Kostas Koufos from Ohio State has risen a bunch an now seems to be in the 13-16 range
• Intriguing at #12 could be Darrell Arthur the 6-10 PF from Kansas.

Tue the 20th will see the draft order set beginning 4pm west coast time.

Mon, 16 June is deadline for college kids without agents to withdraw from the draft which is on Thur, 26 June at 4pm west coast time.

 

[bajaden]

Reviewed 12 mock drafts that had been updated since 1 May. Some mild surprises, both in who rose and who fell. See below

• Marreese Speights has fallen to #20 or lower in all mocks except 1, ESPN
• Russell Westbrook has fallen a bit but is still in the 12-14 range
• Kevin Love seems to have fallen down to the 13-16 range, apparently could make our Brad seem like he's quick on his feet.
• I personally think O.J.Mayo is overrated, and I'm a USC alum!
• JaVale McGee from Nevada/Reno has risen quite a bit and now seems to be in the 15-16 slot across the board
• Kostas Koufos from Ohio State has risen a bunch an now seems to be in the 13-16 range
• Intriguing at #12 could be Darrell Arthur the 6-10 PF from Kansas.


Tue the 20th will see the draft order set beginning 4pm west coast time.

If its Arthur you want, trust me, he'll be available at 12 or even as low as 20th. I don't think he's 6'10" either. We'll find out for sure when they do the measurements. Just my opinion, which is worth what you paid for it.

I think that after the pre-draft camp, and the deadline for pulling out of the draft, we'll get a better idea of who goes where.

 

[Gary]

If its Arthur you want, trust me, he'll be available at 12 or even as low as 20th. I don't think he's 6'10" either. We'll find out for sure when they do the measurements. Just my opinion, which is worth what you paid for it.

I think that after the pre-draft camp, and the deadline for pulling out of the draft, we'll get a better idea of who goes where.

Arthur will measure at 6'7.5 w/o shoes.. Watch

Supposedly those rumors of Love being 6'9 w/o shoes are not totally true either. I was reading up on some UCLA boards, and they had said he's at the most 6'8 w/o shoes. Possibly up to an inch shorter.. Those damn CBS/NBC/ABC sportscasters. They said during the pac-10 tourney that he supposedly measured 6'9 w/o shoes, and is a legit NBA 6'10 w/ shoes on. suuuuuuure.

I think Speights fell because of that report on "winners and losers" in re: to players who entered the draft. Speights was listed as one of the "losers".. Not sure why. He has the tools to make it in the NBA. But you are right. It looks like on every mock that is reputable he has fallen....

 

[CruzDude]

Did a quick check of the "bigs" in the west that the Kings have to play 4 times a year and see that every team in the west has a better defender/rebounder "big" than any of the Kings (except maybe Dallas and Memphis) and most of them are 10-15 ppg who also block shots and reduce layups and points-in-the-paint. At least IMHO. A quick look at the "bigs" in the west with those more prominent ones in bold:

"BIGS" in west conf

• Mavs Diop, Dampier, Fazekas, Juwan Howard
• Nugs Camby, Nene, Hunter
• Warriors Biedrins, Croshere, Mbenga, Harrington
• Rockets Yao, Scola
• Clips Brand (6-8), Kaman, Thomas
• Lakers Turiaf, Odom, Mihm, Bynum
• Wolves Doleac, Jefferson, Ratliff
• Hornets Chandler, Armstrong, Ely
• Suns Stoudemire, Skinner, Marks, Shaq
• Blazers Aldridge, Oden, Frye, LaFrentz, Przybilla
• Spurs Duncan, Oberto, Elson, Bonner
• Sonics Durant, Petro, Sene, Swift, Wilcox, Collison
• Jazz Boozer, Okur, Millsap(6-8), Kirilenko

Kings = Brad, Mikki, Shelden, Hawes, SAR?

bold = "bigs" equal or better than Kings "bigs" for rebounding, blocks, defending the paint

Offensively, Brad is in the top 3-4 in the west. Whether Hawes becomes a "presence" in the middle or not is a year or two down the road. Shelden could be "a presence" in the middle but only see flashes. Soooo, if Beno is the PG for awhile, and second round or free agent gets us decent backup PG then a PF who can bang, leap, and work the paint is what is needed.

 

[beb0p]

A Florida newspaper talked to an NBA scout (not named) and reported how his team rank the prospects:

Tier 1:
Rose over Beaseley

Tier 2: (no particular order)
Bayless, Brooke Lopez, Kevin Love

Tier 3: (no particular order but said Anthony Randolph is the stud in this group)
Randolph, Mayo, Gallinari, Augustin, Arthur, Greene

Not mentioned: DeAndre Jordan and Eric Gordon.

Just one scout's opinion, I still doubt Arthur will go that high but I don't think he'll fall past #15.

I'm too lazy to find a link now, maybe later.

 

[beb0p]

Arthur will measure at 6'7.5 w/o shoes.. Watch

Supposedly those rumors of Love being 6'9 w/o shoes are not totally true either. I was reading up on some UCLA boards, and they had said he's at the most 6'8 w/o shoes. Possibly up to an inch shorter.. Those damn CBS/NBC/ABC sportscasters. They said during the pac-10 tourney that he supposedly measured 6'9 w/o shoes, and is a legit NBA 6'10 w/ shoes on. suuuuuuure.

NYT reported that Love "supposedly" measured 6'8.5' in socks and 6'9.5" in shoes. Love said his doctor told him he still has two more yrs of growth in him. Take it for what it's worth.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/17/s...Georgetown University&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

 

[Gary]

Yah, I was thinking the same thing when those reporters in the pac-10 tourney said that.. There was a big thread about it in the UCLA forum a couple weeks back where they said he was no more than 6'8 w/o shoes. This was coming from people who knew him personally, and go to class with him. (allegedly).

So I dunno what to think now. I am not sure if the NYtimes is taking what they had discussed on TV or if they are doing their own measurements.

 

[Vlade4GM]

Why don't we just wait for the combine results, then the mystery will be over.

Of couse Love is going to say that he has more growth left, he wants to raise his stock. It may be true, but I wouldn't trust it coming out of his mouth.

 

[hrdboild]

Regardless of what the mock drafts are saying, I still think Speights looks like the ideal choice for us -- big strong PF with some developing post skills who can move his feet well and rebound. Physically he has the best frame of any PF in the first round. I think for the most part mock drafts are trying to judge where they think players will end up rather then simply ranking the players from best to worst. It doesn't mean a whole lot that some guys are slipping and others are rising other than there is a perception that certain players have become more desirable. If anything I want to see the guys I like slipping on the mock draft websites because hopefully that means he's slipping on other teams' draft boards as well.

 

[bajaden]

Regardless of what the mock drafts are saying, I still think Speights looks like the ideal choice for us -- big strong PF with some developing post skills who can move his feet well and rebound. Physically he has the best frame of any PF in the first round. I think for the most part mock drafts are trying to judge where they think players will end up rather then simply ranking the players from best to worst. It doesn't mean a whole lot that some guys are slipping and others are rising other than there is a perception that certain players have become more desirable. If anything I want to see the guys I like slipping on the mock draft websites because hopefully that means he's slipping on other teams' draft boards as well.

I couldn't argue with anything you said. Last year, everyone was high on Noah, who Speights played behind. I think that Speights has a bigger upside than Noah, and is more fundamentaly sound.

 

[BawLa]

Regardless of what the mock drafts are saying, I still think Speights looks like the ideal choice for us -- big strong PF with some developing post skills who can move his feet well and rebound. Physically he has the best frame of any PF in the first round. I think for the most part mock drafts are trying to judge where they think players will end up rather then simply ranking the players from best to worst. It doesn't mean a whole lot that some guys are slipping and others are rising other than there is a perception that certain players have become more desirable. If anything I want to see the guys I like slipping on the mock draft websites because hopefully that means he's slipping on other teams' draft boards as well.

Agreed. At this point not much has changed for me. I'm still up for any one of the three: Speights, McGee and Thompson.

 

[=LarryLegend=]

What about Maarty Leunen with the 45th pick?

He avg 15.2pts, 9.2rbds, 2.8 asts while shooting 55.9% fg, 49.8% from three.

Hes LISTED at 6'9" 215lbs a senior, 22 y/o

not to bad or a rebounder out of Oregon

Good motor, but He’s also a poor athlete.

 

[BMiller52]

Arthur will measure at 6'7.5 w/o shoes.. Watch

Supposedly those rumors of Love being 6'9 w/o shoes are not totally true either. I was reading up on some UCLA boards, and they had said he's at the most 6'8 w/o shoes. Possibly up to an inch shorter.. Those damn CBS/NBC/ABC sportscasters. They said during the pac-10 tourney that he supposedly measured 6'9 w/o shoes, and is a legit NBA 6'10 w/ shoes on. suuuuuuure.

I think Speights fell because of that report on "winners and losers" in re: to players who entered the draft. Speights was listed as one of the "losers".. Not sure why. He has the tools to make it in the NBA. But you are right. It looks like on every mock that is reputable he has fallen....

No chance. Here I'll make a bet with you and you can put it in your sig or bookmark it to prove it when someone is right after the combine.

Arthur is 6'8'' or above without shoes
Love is not .5 of an inch taller than Arthur without shoes

you win and I won't say anything bad about Love for the next 5 threads about him(and 5 pages more of this thread) or anything good about Arthur for 5 threads+5 pages of this thread(the 5 pages are the pages after whatever page the thread is once the combine is over)

I win and you stop dissing Arthur+praising Love, deal?

 

[Gary]

hahhaaaa.. Ok so what's the deal? Arthur is no more than .5" less than Love? Or is Arthur 6'8+? Which one?

 

[BMiller52]

hahhaaaa.. Ok so what's the deal? Arthur is no more than .5" less than Love? Or is Arthur 6'8+? Which one?

Both. I'm guessing Arthur is atleast 6'8'' without shoes AND he is no more than.5 shorter than Love.

 

[Entity]

Right now DraftX has DeAndre Jordan falling to us at the 12 spot. Just wondering what the scoop is on this guy other than what I see on the site. What would be the pro and cons of us getting him?