Baja Den's way too early, worthless 2023 mock draft:
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This is an interesting question because what is a Monte pick? I was thinking back to all the rumors and talks of previous drafts and if you narrow it down and any of it's true, Monte basically targeted forwards in every draft but other teams interfered for the good and bad perhaps. His first one some talk was centered around Bey until Haliburton fell and we now know Monte apparently offered Bagley for Bey so it's probable. The next draft everyone knew that Monte wanted Wagner but he got scooped up right before. Then Murray was 4 even though many felt that pick was up in the air between a few players. Then there were rumors of the Kings possibly just taking Murphy III higher than expected. Will this trend hold true? This isn't a draft stacked with superstar F's but it's certainly got plenty. And they certainly vary between being more wing and small ball 4. The only issue is like previous years, 24 could be just a few picks too late per usual, lol.
He seems to value more established players. Maybe that changes now that we have a core but until I see otherwise I’ll continue to believe that is his MO. He said after the season that a productive player on a rookie scale contract Is incredibly valuable. Given how short of a time most cores are together my guess is he will look for immediate help. We shall see if that is the right call
He was a dream scenario, too good to be true. lets not downplay Coulibaly now that he's out of reach, when he was first brought up on this forum it was in a wildly speculative capacity and now he's outperformed every step of the way since, and our kings are now left with inferior choices. The fact that not apparent to you at this stage in the game, or even since there's rumors he's 6'8", seems like youve made a big oversight, or some sort of ageism is going on.
It's not like its Monte's final say, I'd imagine if its anyones final say It'd actually be Coach Brown's but surely they will decide as a group/'war room', so really it's a matter of whats best for the team and we could use a spectacular defensive player with length who slashes, gets rebounds n has upside n seems to shoot, to land players like that this late is a coup in any draft, especially when your team is stacked in other areas like the Kings are.
Coulibaly can defend 1-4, when Steph Curry is dropping 50 on our heads in the playoffs we could've Bilal to go keep a hand in his face.
I believe Chris Paul once decades ago used to have trouble with Thabo Sefolosha guarding him. Coulibaly could've functioned for us in that capacity --- but its no longer worth discussing much here as he's simply WAY out of range, for sure.
It's not like its Monte's final say, I'd imagine if its anyones final say It'd actually be Coach Brown's but surely they will decide as a group/'war room', so really it's a matter of whats best for the team and we could use a spectacular defensive player with length who slashes, gets rebounds n has upside n seems to shoot, to land players like that this late is a coup in any draft, especially when your team is stacked in other areas like the Kings are.
Coulibaly can defend 1-4, when Steph Curry is dropping 50 on our heads in the playoffs we could've Bilal to go keep a hand in his face.
I believe Chris Paul once decades ago used to have trouble with Thabo Sefolosha guarding him. Coulibaly could've functioned for us in that capacity --- but its no longer worth discussing much here as he's simply WAY out of range, for sure.
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He seems to go after older NBA ready players in the 1st round.
Haliburton, Mitchell, and Murray were all considered Day 1 starters with high floors and "low" ceilings. They've all had at least 2 years of experience in college.
I think we should expect the same MO for the 24th pick. When you get late in the 1st round, typically all you're left with are the older more experienced college players... the pool is even more limited. Don't think it's a bad thing, but I'm not sure Boulibay was ever really a realistic option for us, even if he was fun to discuss.
Haliburton, Mitchell, and Murray were all considered Day 1 starters with high floors and "low" ceilings. They've all had at least 2 years of experience in college.
I think we should expect the same MO for the 24th pick. When you get late in the 1st round, typically all you're left with are the older more experienced college players... the pool is even more limited. Don't think it's a bad thing, but I'm not sure Boulibay was ever really a realistic option for us, even if he was fun to discuss.
Mitchell I think mighjt be a bit more what your talking about.. But we had Fox here, Mitchell is a suitable defender vs bigger guys so he has multi-position value as a backup and we didnt take him to develop him to be the starter ya know?
Murray last year, I'd say thats kind of an oversimplification to just say "he fits the profile of a guy monte would draft" there was quite a bit more peices to the puzzle, we didnt exactly have a projected starting SF on the roster, which kind of sways decisions about who to take.. So I'd sort of argue the Murray pick would fall much more in the category of a "need" selection more than anything else.. There was this gaping hole on the depth chart to fill that might've cost way more in free agency. We didnt know just how good of a season Fox and Sabonis were in store for then, the roster was under heavy construction.
Haliburton, this selection SCREAMS "BPA pick", they simply took the safest pick and now with the benefit of hindsight they knew he'd retain trade value and it turned into Sabonis and the rest is history. Haliburton was what, 20 years old? I'm unsure he should be in with the older crowd. He was a guy who everyone knew could handle 20 minutes per game in the NBA watching him in college. hyper-efficient, ultra-consistent and 6'5, and I mean it wasn't experience that made him that way, he was that freshman year too, crazy ast:to ratio.
Are there gaping holes on the depth chart that have 15-25 mins needed to be filled by a rookie currently? I'm not so sure.. and ain't no way it'd be at every position.. Like if we plan on retaining Lyles and Queta we damn sure dont have 15-20 mins for a backup C, damn sure dont have that kind of pt for a 3rd string PG.. So I think that might be a very heavy factor in Monte's taking more experienced players in certain spots --- Need..
We're not looking for future starters in this draft, I dont think, we're looking for players to bolster the defense and rebounding while we keep the offense high octane.
Why not just sign vets in free agency to fill the bench roles? it seems bizarre to me to specifically go after older college players as opposed to actual nba vets, other than potentially locking them in for many years if it works out... who knwos though maybe they've got an idea of how the roster will look and where they can get value.. It'd seem to me we'd like some players on 1 year deals so if things dont work out next seasopn we can quicky cut the fat and try again with new surrounding pieces.
I feel as if those hits on Haliburton, Murray and Mitchell signal more of thats a job well done, we plugged big holes, now its time to move on to the next thing -- not so much we're gonna keep going after upperclassman.. but hey, who knows, Kris Murray sure could be the pick, but like Kieta Bates-Diop could fill that same role, n he's 27 and a multi year vet, 230lbs, improving every year in the NBA..its an interesting discussion, with valid arguments on both sides, the price of a player like KBD wont be determined til after the draft so there's some risk involved with kicking the can down the road too.
Murray last year, I'd say thats kind of an oversimplification to just say "he fits the profile of a guy monte would draft" there was quite a bit more peices to the puzzle, we didnt exactly have a projected starting SF on the roster, which kind of sways decisions about who to take.. So I'd sort of argue the Murray pick would fall much more in the category of a "need" selection more than anything else.. There was this gaping hole on the depth chart to fill that might've cost way more in free agency. We didnt know just how good of a season Fox and Sabonis were in store for then, the roster was under heavy construction.
Haliburton, this selection SCREAMS "BPA pick", they simply took the safest pick and now with the benefit of hindsight they knew he'd retain trade value and it turned into Sabonis and the rest is history. Haliburton was what, 20 years old? I'm unsure he should be in with the older crowd. He was a guy who everyone knew could handle 20 minutes per game in the NBA watching him in college. hyper-efficient, ultra-consistent and 6'5, and I mean it wasn't experience that made him that way, he was that freshman year too, crazy ast:to ratio.
Are there gaping holes on the depth chart that have 15-25 mins needed to be filled by a rookie currently? I'm not so sure.. and ain't no way it'd be at every position.. Like if we plan on retaining Lyles and Queta we damn sure dont have 15-20 mins for a backup C, damn sure dont have that kind of pt for a 3rd string PG.. So I think that might be a very heavy factor in Monte's taking more experienced players in certain spots --- Need..
We're not looking for future starters in this draft, I dont think, we're looking for players to bolster the defense and rebounding while we keep the offense high octane.
Why not just sign vets in free agency to fill the bench roles? it seems bizarre to me to specifically go after older college players as opposed to actual nba vets, other than potentially locking them in for many years if it works out... who knwos though maybe they've got an idea of how the roster will look and where they can get value.. It'd seem to me we'd like some players on 1 year deals so if things dont work out next seasopn we can quicky cut the fat and try again with new surrounding pieces.
I feel as if those hits on Haliburton, Murray and Mitchell signal more of thats a job well done, we plugged big holes, now its time to move on to the next thing -- not so much we're gonna keep going after upperclassman.. but hey, who knows, Kris Murray sure could be the pick, but like Kieta Bates-Diop could fill that same role, n he's 27 and a multi year vet, 230lbs, improving every year in the NBA..its an interesting discussion, with valid arguments on both sides, the price of a player like KBD wont be determined til after the draft so there's some risk involved with kicking the can down the road too.
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The Pels ran kind of a 4 F lineup and it looked a bit janky at times IMO. They do have a lot versatility though. I hope Lively goes a little higher. Not bad positional value at 24, I'm not really a fan though. It's strange how he did compare himself to Willie Cauley-Stein. I can see it. Better potential as a paint protector though.
You simply can't keep victory lapping Holmes. That's just not fair in context. He was signed well below market value as a quality starting C and basically just had the nut-low in terms of run-out on his contract. We had no idea we'd be trading for Sabonis. We had no idea he'd get poked in the eye like 15 times. We had no idea he'd have some serious off-court family things with his son going on in his life that very likely affected him on the court. You just can't say he was a bad signing when he was honestly the best player on the Kings for a 2 year stretch. Or at least right there with him and Fox in that Walton era.
Lyles made himself indispensable for this core. Even if it's the exact same role he played this season and we don't fully increase his role to include some small-ball 5. He proved he can be successful off the two franchise pillars; something you absolutely need from your role players. You keep those guys at all costs, you don't go dump them.
Lyles made himself indispensable for this core. Even if it's the exact same role he played this season and we don't fully increase his role to include some small-ball 5. He proved he can be successful off the two franchise pillars; something you absolutely need from your role players. You keep those guys at all costs, you don't go dump them.
Absolutely.
I have high hopes for Vezenkov, but he's still a question mark as an NBA player. We saw exactly what Lyles brings to this team, and the little peek at him as a small ball center makes me believe there's even more untapped value with him.
The idea of a 2nd unit led by Lyles and Sasha in the front court along with Monk as the sixth man/playmaker could be hugely potent, especially if Davion improves his shooting a bit.
I have high hopes for Vezenkov, but he's still a question mark as an NBA player. We saw exactly what Lyles brings to this team, and the little peek at him as a small ball center makes me believe there's even more untapped value with him.
The idea of a 2nd unit led by Lyles and Sasha in the front court along with Monk as the sixth man/playmaker could be hugely potent, especially if Davion improves his shooting a bit.
Yeah, absolutely. Also, I'm still imagining we keep that same rotation where Fox got the early hook and then lead the 2nd unit. Fox-Monk-Kessler?-Vezenkov-Lyles type of unit? Oh yeah, I'm in on that. Let's remove our lack of spacing from the back-up C slot (Metu/Holmes/Len) and giving Fox/Monk more room to operate to attack the rim. I really liked what we saw from Kessler defensively as well and think he'd be real successful in that unit.
The chances that Clowney is ultimately the pick seem to have increased quite a bit recently. Especially on that board/mock, there's a strong case to be made he's the BPA.
That would be a solid A type of draft. Podziemski represents crazy risk/reward for us on a cheap restricted deal, I say we could just fill his name in as the 3rd string PG, wouldnt need to use him there but he fits on the depth chart.
Walsh falling that low seems highly unlikely, dont get ur hopes up for that one. 10 spots below Ricky Council IV?
Also what sticks out like a sore thumb in this mock is Colby Jones falling to 49, havent seen him nearly that low anywhere else, or for quite some time.
That would be a solid A type of draft. Podziemski represents crazy risk/reward for us on a cheap restricted deal, I say we could just fill his name in as the 3rd string PG, wouldnt need to use him there but he fits on the depth chart.
Walsh falling that low seems highly unlikely, dont get ur hopes up for that one. 10 spots below Ricky Council IV?
Also what sticks out like a sore thumb in this mock is Colby Jones falling to 49, havent seen him nearly that low anywhere else, or for quite some time.
I never said Holmes was a bad signing. The lap isn't based on Holmes being re-signed, it's his value to the Kings once they TRADED for Domas. Holmes was signed below what he wanted. Apparently no team thought he was worth more, that's a fact, otherwise he would've signed another deal instead of back peddling to the Kings. This is the same stuff we discussed with JT back in the day too. Holmes as a starting C wasn't terrible value. As soon as they traded for Domas, well, you now see why he needed to be dealt immediately. No team has a backup 5 at his contract value regardless of any circumstances. That says everything you need to know and also kind of where the value of someone like Lyles should lie potentially.
If Lyles was indispensible, or a gold standard to be re-signed, what's his fair value? At what point does a team like Sac tap out contractually in your opinion?
Lyles certainly has value, and as I said, if he's going to be the backup 5 from here on that changes a lot, but the question is what is that value? To me, I think that value is largely dependent on position, Sasha coming over, Barnes re-signing, or cap space being sought by Monte.
If Lyles was indispensible, or a gold standard to be re-signed, what's his fair value? At what point does a team like Sac tap out contractually in your opinion?
Lyles certainly has value, and as I said, if he's going to be the backup 5 from here on that changes a lot, but the question is what is that value? To me, I think that value is largely dependent on position, Sasha coming over, Barnes re-signing, or cap space being sought by Monte.
I don't think I can blur my vision that much.
When Tatum came out he had one of the most polished offensive games and elite footwork I've seen from a freshman. My only concerns with him as a prospect were if he was too midrange focused for the NBA game and if his first step would be quick enough on the NBA level. Clearly neither was an issue at all.
With Jackson he's just so raw that it's hard to even say what he can hang his hat on in the NBA. Very good athlete, hard worker on defense, but not elite on that end. He's definitely an upside swing.
When Tatum came out he had one of the most polished offensive games and elite footwork I've seen from a freshman. My only concerns with him as a prospect were if he was too midrange focused for the NBA game and if his first step would be quick enough on the NBA level. Clearly neither was an issue at all.
With Jackson he's just so raw that it's hard to even say what he can hang his hat on in the NBA. Very good athlete, hard worker on defense, but not elite on that end. He's definitely an upside swing.
I've soured on Jackson at 24, we'd be better off with Kris Murray I think.
Leonard Miller is the forward I'd want, he seems safer and a better fit -- 3.3orebs for Miller in 30mpg in the g-league this season , 11 rpg. 79% ft's! Followed by Noah Clowney then James Nnaji and O-Max Prosper followed actually by Tristan Vukcevic.
Vukcevic now is above TJD on ESPN's best available list, and I gotta say I dont hate that. At this point too, I think I'd take Jordan Walsh over TJD but thats just me.
Vukcevic is interesting for the Kings, 7 footer who shoots 3s n blocks shots.
Leonard Miller is the forward I'd want, he seems safer and a better fit -- 3.3orebs for Miller in 30mpg in the g-league this season , 11 rpg. 79% ft's! Followed by Noah Clowney then James Nnaji and O-Max Prosper followed actually by Tristan Vukcevic.
Vukcevic now is above TJD on ESPN's best available list, and I gotta say I dont hate that. At this point too, I think I'd take Jordan Walsh over TJD but thats just me.
Vukcevic is interesting for the Kings, 7 footer who shoots 3s n blocks shots.
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Sidy had a stretch of games where he looked like a lotto prospect, but then reality hit, and he had some really ugly games to close out his season where we saw his shooting struggles on full display. His poor shooting has led him to being mocked in the 2nd round.
3pt shooting is his biggest improvement area needed. I think he's an option at #38, but I could see the Kings passing on him because he's a multi-year project with more of a role-player ceiling. If you're the Kings, do you draft an NBA-ready player like Keyontae Johnson or Julian Strawther who can contribute Day 1.... or you draft a raw kid like Sidy and hope that he can get to Keyontae/Strawther level by year 3?
I might need to go back and watch my Sidy film because I was really high on him at one point. I soured on him after watching consecutive games where Leonard Miller tried to carry the entire team because he had no help from Sidy who looked completely lost and overwhelmed.
3pt shooting is his biggest improvement area needed. I think he's an option at #38, but I could see the Kings passing on him because he's a multi-year project with more of a role-player ceiling. If you're the Kings, do you draft an NBA-ready player like Keyontae Johnson or Julian Strawther who can contribute Day 1.... or you draft a raw kid like Sidy and hope that he can get to Keyontae/Strawther level by year 3?
I might need to go back and watch my Sidy film because I was really high on him at one point. I soured on him after watching consecutive games where Leonard Miller tried to carry the entire team because he had no help from Sidy who looked completely lost and overwhelmed.