Of players who are testing the waters or signed agents:
Travis Leslie (signed agent) is a late first round pick, with a slight off chance of falling into the 2nd. His current offense is quite poor, but he's got significant offensive upside and even has court vision to boot--might be understated, in fact. Defensively he's got the clamps--he's really good at making defensive plays, and for a guy standing 6'4" rebounds well. He has little bust potential, as an accomplished college player with a wide swath of skills, and has offensive growth potential in the league. Tony Allen's getting the All-D accolades right now, and Leslie is absolutely in that mold--might actually help his stock. Can be a real sleeper, and has draft steal potential.
Tobias Harris (testing waters) could theoretically use another year, but I sort of think he might have peaked--physically and game-wise, he's mature enough for the league and probably made the right choice. I'm not very high on him given what I think is his lack of upside--he's a decent college scorer but his brand of offense should suffer in the league, and his passing ability and defensive playmaking are lacking. But he has little bust potential, and should best be classified as rugged--he's a roleplaying guy who can rebound decently and score at spurts, and that's what guys like Landry Fields do with the Knicks. He could carve a similar trajectory in his career. He's a freshman however (unlike Fields) which works to his favor, and that could put him in the late 1st.
Malcolm Lee (signed agent) should look slightly better offensively in the league and fits in well as a combo guard, so despite his current undraftable offense there's slight hope. Defensively he's pretty lockdown--he's vertically athletic, has quick feet, and a pest's mentality, and he's pretty much virtually a contain defender in the mold of Keith Bogans/Bruce Bowen. He might need to crossmatch, however, since he's a SG offensively but only has the height to defend PGs. However, for someone this athletic, he's really terrible at making defensive plays and rebounding. He has quite a bit of bust potential if he's drafted say early 2nd round--his offense is poor and he wastes his athleticism. I want to like him given that PGs/combos coming out of UCLA do way better in the league than at UCLA, but I don't have a good feeling about this one.
Shelvin Mack (testing waters) looks very good at the offensive side of the court at first glance--he should be a good offensive player in this league (even better than in college) and he can play PG decently for extended periods, having the court vision to do so. All-around offense is his calling card. But I'm still hesitant whether he can fully accomplish this goal in the league, as his NBA-readiness in terms of overall game isn't on par with his offense. He'll probably make a useful offensive player in some capacity, but accounting for the NBA-readiness, it might be more good rather than very good.
Tristan Thompson (signed agent) is quite accomplished at college despite only being a first year, so he doesn't have that much bust potential--in fact, he's NBA-ready in terms of making defensive plays in particular, which is lotto material. He's a decent rebounder, but should be better. His offense is all kinds of mediocre for the league. He isn't an intimidating brute given the lack of height, and the offense won't make him a star, but a pre-arthoscopic surgery Kenyon Martin role seems feasible, and with his NBA-ready defensive playmaking as the selling point.
Reggie Jackson (testing waters) will probably be a better scorer at college than in the NBA, but he has good PG skills which is an asset given that he's 6'3". Very good rebounder too, and he potentially can be a stat stuffer in the league. There's not much bust potential with him either, as he's really the definition of a NBA-ready player. There isn't much upside to his overall game, but should be a contributor.
Travis Leslie (signed agent) is a late first round pick, with a slight off chance of falling into the 2nd. His current offense is quite poor, but he's got significant offensive upside and even has court vision to boot--might be understated, in fact. Defensively he's got the clamps--he's really good at making defensive plays, and for a guy standing 6'4" rebounds well. He has little bust potential, as an accomplished college player with a wide swath of skills, and has offensive growth potential in the league. Tony Allen's getting the All-D accolades right now, and Leslie is absolutely in that mold--might actually help his stock. Can be a real sleeper, and has draft steal potential.
Tobias Harris (testing waters) could theoretically use another year, but I sort of think he might have peaked--physically and game-wise, he's mature enough for the league and probably made the right choice. I'm not very high on him given what I think is his lack of upside--he's a decent college scorer but his brand of offense should suffer in the league, and his passing ability and defensive playmaking are lacking. But he has little bust potential, and should best be classified as rugged--he's a roleplaying guy who can rebound decently and score at spurts, and that's what guys like Landry Fields do with the Knicks. He could carve a similar trajectory in his career. He's a freshman however (unlike Fields) which works to his favor, and that could put him in the late 1st.
Malcolm Lee (signed agent) should look slightly better offensively in the league and fits in well as a combo guard, so despite his current undraftable offense there's slight hope. Defensively he's pretty lockdown--he's vertically athletic, has quick feet, and a pest's mentality, and he's pretty much virtually a contain defender in the mold of Keith Bogans/Bruce Bowen. He might need to crossmatch, however, since he's a SG offensively but only has the height to defend PGs. However, for someone this athletic, he's really terrible at making defensive plays and rebounding. He has quite a bit of bust potential if he's drafted say early 2nd round--his offense is poor and he wastes his athleticism. I want to like him given that PGs/combos coming out of UCLA do way better in the league than at UCLA, but I don't have a good feeling about this one.
Shelvin Mack (testing waters) looks very good at the offensive side of the court at first glance--he should be a good offensive player in this league (even better than in college) and he can play PG decently for extended periods, having the court vision to do so. All-around offense is his calling card. But I'm still hesitant whether he can fully accomplish this goal in the league, as his NBA-readiness in terms of overall game isn't on par with his offense. He'll probably make a useful offensive player in some capacity, but accounting for the NBA-readiness, it might be more good rather than very good.
Tristan Thompson (signed agent) is quite accomplished at college despite only being a first year, so he doesn't have that much bust potential--in fact, he's NBA-ready in terms of making defensive plays in particular, which is lotto material. He's a decent rebounder, but should be better. His offense is all kinds of mediocre for the league. He isn't an intimidating brute given the lack of height, and the offense won't make him a star, but a pre-arthoscopic surgery Kenyon Martin role seems feasible, and with his NBA-ready defensive playmaking as the selling point.
Reggie Jackson (testing waters) will probably be a better scorer at college than in the NBA, but he has good PG skills which is an asset given that he's 6'3". Very good rebounder too, and he potentially can be a stat stuffer in the league. There's not much bust potential with him either, as he's really the definition of a NBA-ready player. There isn't much upside to his overall game, but should be a contributor.
If we can't get Irving or Walker and Barnes is not available I'm a little perplexed. Given the makeup of the team and its needs and assuming we sign or trade for that SF that plugs the only hole on this now awful team, Fredette looks interesting. I personally want a guy who isn't good enough to be a starter as I am locked into Reke and Thornton and will always believe that a starting type little guy will only cause a problem in the future as he will be unhappy.