Looking ahead to the 2023 Draft
- Thread starter Tetsujin
- Start date
This player has been all over the draft boards. Some have him in the top of the 2nd rd, while some have him somewhere in the bottom of the 1st rd. Taking him somewhere between 16 and 20 would appear too high, but he's having a breakout year, and at times this year he's been the best player on his Arkansas team.
Ricky Council IV: SF/SG, 6'6", 205 Lb's, Wngspan NA, Junior, Arkansas.
35.3 mpg - 18.3 ppg - 51.6% fgp - 30.8% 3pp - 81.4% ftp - 2.1 rpg - 2.8 apg - 1.7 stl's
The one flaw, or the main thing he needs to improve is his 3pt shot. Ironically, when he steps inside the arc, he's a very good shooter. He has an excellent midrange jumper. Where he excels though is at the basket. He's an excellent finisher, and is one of the most creative shot makers at the basket I've ever seen. There are times he leaves his feet to score, and while in the air, you can see him change his mind and make some ridiculous shot that belongs on the ESPN highlight reel.
He's very hard to guard in the paint because of his herky-jerky way of attacking. He gets you off balance and then blows by you. The result is that you never seem to know where he's going, and I'm not sure he knows. He has good handles, and he's a capable passer, something I think he can do more of. He's just a decent rebounder, another area I think he can improve on. About half of his rebounds come from following his own shot. Offensively, he's an explosive player and an excellent athlete, quite capable of playing above the rim.
Council is a good and willing defender with good lateral quickness. He's better on the ball than off, but that's fairly common in college and correctable. He does a good job of keeping his man in front of him. And he doesn't quit on the play when he does get beat. And everybody gets beat at some time or other. It also helps that he's surrounded by other excellent defenders at Arkansas, like Black, Walsh, and Smith. That brings me back to his 3pt shot. In open, or non-contested catch and shoots, he's shooting near 40%. But off the dribble, or even contested catch and shoots, his percentage takes a nose dive. Once again, none of that applies when he steps inside the arc. Council is a transfer from Wichita St. If memory serves, he shot around 40% from three his freshman year. Point being, I think he's a better shooter than his stats show.
Obviously Council isn't my first choice, but I do think he'll become a solid rotational player in the NBA, and perhaps more. He's certainly fun to watch!
Ricky Council IV: SF/SG, 6'6", 205 Lb's, Wngspan NA, Junior, Arkansas.
35.3 mpg - 18.3 ppg - 51.6% fgp - 30.8% 3pp - 81.4% ftp - 2.1 rpg - 2.8 apg - 1.7 stl's
The one flaw, or the main thing he needs to improve is his 3pt shot. Ironically, when he steps inside the arc, he's a very good shooter. He has an excellent midrange jumper. Where he excels though is at the basket. He's an excellent finisher, and is one of the most creative shot makers at the basket I've ever seen. There are times he leaves his feet to score, and while in the air, you can see him change his mind and make some ridiculous shot that belongs on the ESPN highlight reel.
He's very hard to guard in the paint because of his herky-jerky way of attacking. He gets you off balance and then blows by you. The result is that you never seem to know where he's going, and I'm not sure he knows. He has good handles, and he's a capable passer, something I think he can do more of. He's just a decent rebounder, another area I think he can improve on. About half of his rebounds come from following his own shot. Offensively, he's an explosive player and an excellent athlete, quite capable of playing above the rim.
Council is a good and willing defender with good lateral quickness. He's better on the ball than off, but that's fairly common in college and correctable. He does a good job of keeping his man in front of him. And he doesn't quit on the play when he does get beat. And everybody gets beat at some time or other. It also helps that he's surrounded by other excellent defenders at Arkansas, like Black, Walsh, and Smith. That brings me back to his 3pt shot. In open, or non-contested catch and shoots, he's shooting near 40%. But off the dribble, or even contested catch and shoots, his percentage takes a nose dive. Once again, none of that applies when he steps inside the arc. Council is a transfer from Wichita St. If memory serves, he shot around 40% from three his freshman year. Point being, I think he's a better shooter than his stats show.
Obviously Council isn't my first choice, but I do think he'll become a solid rotational player in the NBA, and perhaps more. He's certainly fun to watch!
This next player is likely to be in the bottom of the lottery, but after checking 4 diffferent mock drafts, only one had him in the bottom of the lottery. Two had him going between 16 and 19 and one had him going around 23. So who knows. I mean I get it. There are only 14 lottery spots, and I could make a case for at least 20 players being lottery picks. So some are going to slide down a bit, and maybe to us. This player is one of my favorite players in the draft. He's a guard, God knows we don't need another guard, but he's extremely talented and would be hard to pass up.
Cason Wallace: SG/PF, 6'4", 190 Lb's, Wingspan NA, Freshman, Kentucky.
32.4 mpg - 11.8 ppg - 50% fgp - 50.0 3pp - 54.5% ftp - 3.9 rpg - 4.4 apg - 2.5 stl's
Cason may be the best defensive player in this draft. He is, a lock down defendeer. Think a taller version of Damion Mitchell. A version who can also shoot the ball. I know you look at the 50% from three and you ask yourself, how can he be shooting that percentage this far into the season. He must have only take 2 all season and made one! Right? Nope, he averages 4 attempts a game. His 3 point percentage has actually gone up as the season has gone on. He's a legit threat from three, and he's good whether off the dribble or catch and shoot. He's a three level scorer with a good mid-range jumper along with floaters, which I wish he would use more often.
He's a good finisher, but he seems to avoid a crowded lane, and as a result doesn't get to the line very often. As you can see his free throw percentage is horrible, barely above 50%. However, I think he's only taken around 14 all season, so it's not a very large sampling. Supposedly in highschool he hit something like 35 freethrows in a row, so I'm betting his current percentage is an abboration. He can create his own shot, and he's very good at creating shots for others.
I don't think that Cason is a pure PG, but he can certainly play the part, as you can see by his 4.4 assists a game. And he's equally comfortable off the ball as on the ball, and that includes defense. His off the ball defense is outstanding. He smothers whomever he's guarding. And like Mitchell he can guard up on small forwards and some power forwards. I would say first, he needs to take more shots, and he needs to attack the basket a little more. Right now I think he's averaging around 9 shots a game, and almost half of them are 3 pointers. In this video, you'll see how good a defender he is.
Cason Wallace: SG/PF, 6'4", 190 Lb's, Wingspan NA, Freshman, Kentucky.
32.4 mpg - 11.8 ppg - 50% fgp - 50.0 3pp - 54.5% ftp - 3.9 rpg - 4.4 apg - 2.5 stl's
Cason may be the best defensive player in this draft. He is, a lock down defendeer. Think a taller version of Damion Mitchell. A version who can also shoot the ball. I know you look at the 50% from three and you ask yourself, how can he be shooting that percentage this far into the season. He must have only take 2 all season and made one! Right? Nope, he averages 4 attempts a game. His 3 point percentage has actually gone up as the season has gone on. He's a legit threat from three, and he's good whether off the dribble or catch and shoot. He's a three level scorer with a good mid-range jumper along with floaters, which I wish he would use more often.
He's a good finisher, but he seems to avoid a crowded lane, and as a result doesn't get to the line very often. As you can see his free throw percentage is horrible, barely above 50%. However, I think he's only taken around 14 all season, so it's not a very large sampling. Supposedly in highschool he hit something like 35 freethrows in a row, so I'm betting his current percentage is an abboration. He can create his own shot, and he's very good at creating shots for others.
I don't think that Cason is a pure PG, but he can certainly play the part, as you can see by his 4.4 assists a game. And he's equally comfortable off the ball as on the ball, and that includes defense. His off the ball defense is outstanding. He smothers whomever he's guarding. And like Mitchell he can guard up on small forwards and some power forwards. I would say first, he needs to take more shots, and he needs to attack the basket a little more. Right now I think he's averaging around 9 shots a game, and almost half of them are 3 pointers. In this video, you'll see how good a defender he is.
really good posts from baja as usual. I was wondering what you thought about Ricky Council IV.
The way I look at it there's no more interesting early season team in the nation than Arkansas some of it has to do with the injury to Brazile and the load management for Smith.
Council has stepped up marvelously, ya love to see the way an upperclassman steadies a potentially rocky start to the season in that style. I'm interested to see how he tests at the combine, seems like he's quite strong and explosive. He's just hyper competitive too, he's certainly not a ballstopper and actually flashes some pretty good vision, those things combined make him well worth tracking as a possible Kings selection, I think we have some peices in place here to get him in spots he does damage.
Cason Wallace would perform admirably for the Kings year 1 off the bench in many different capacities. He'd be a no-brainer type of pick. Coach Brown would love him.
The way I look at it there's no more interesting early season team in the nation than Arkansas some of it has to do with the injury to Brazile and the load management for Smith.
Council has stepped up marvelously, ya love to see the way an upperclassman steadies a potentially rocky start to the season in that style. I'm interested to see how he tests at the combine, seems like he's quite strong and explosive. He's just hyper competitive too, he's certainly not a ballstopper and actually flashes some pretty good vision, those things combined make him well worth tracking as a possible Kings selection, I think we have some peices in place here to get him in spots he does damage.
Cason Wallace would perform admirably for the Kings year 1 off the bench in many different capacities. He'd be a no-brainer type of pick. Coach Brown would love him.
Jaylon Tyson 6'6" Sophomore SG/SF at Texas Tech is 16/32 from 3 so far this season. I feel like he's flying under the radar. He's a 3-level scorer and he's natural at being shifty n shows nice body control and passing for a wing that size, He's got a good frame too seems like he'll add a lot of strength in the coming years, he might flash enough skill to be selected n groomed in the g-league tho.
Last edited:
Daniel Batcho continues to impress for Texas Tech as well. 68.5% from the field and he's actually 3/4 from 3. 1.6 blocks per game in 27mins.
6'11" 235lb and quite explosive he's starting to creep up mocks into the mid2nd rd range.
I genuinely want to see this Texas Tech team push deep thru the tourney just so we get to see them play a bunch of win or go homes for evaluation purposes, their roster is so loaded...
I'll do a tiger woods style fist pump if we draft Batcho in the 2nd rd. He actually reminds me a bit of Dwight Powell, who has done just nothing short of an incredible job of sticking around the NBA (thru injuries) all these years given what people used to say about him in college.
Last edited:
oh so ESPN's updated it's bigboard. It's much better now (other than Kel'el Ware being updated way out of our range into the lotto). The way I see it/things stand now the Kings sit in mega value territory around pick #20, should have a lot of solid options.
Taylor Hendricks up to #23!
Brice Sensabaugh up to #24
Max Lewis up to #28!
Dariq Whitehead and Lively II down to #20 and #22.
Taylor Hendricks up to #23!
Brice Sensabaugh up to #24
Max Lewis up to #28!
Dariq Whitehead and Lively II down to #20 and #22.
As 2022 comes to a close, I'd have to say Hendricks is the player in range I'd like to see the first rd pick used on. His shotblocking from the PF spot would add a nice wrinkle, I like how he sets his feet and rises on his jumper it looks good n confident, he appears to have good hands and the more footage i watch the more im impressed with his body control, It looks like he can digest the game pretty well and make quick decisions.
He does bite on a bit too many fakes trying to go for volleyball spike style highlight blocks, but I mean thats fairly natural for a player at his stage.
I'd prefer Hendricks over Kris Murray for sure. He just looks to me like a natural fit into the PF spot, and can function as a sort of ultra efficient Brandon Clarke style PF off the bench almost right away. Seems to me like if you put him around good NBA players, like we have, his FG% will go up.
I just have a hunch this player would actually fit in great around here (on offense and defense) I'm going to be watching very closely trying to debunk that the next few months..
Last edited:
Another thing I'll say. so far this season, the PG's names I see thrown around in the 2nd rd of these mocks are not impressive to me the way Bryson Warren, who just turned 18, is.
I would do a backflip if we draft this kid in the latter half of the 2nd round, would be a serious upside pick. Never would I be so excited about a possible 3rd string PG though he's obviously very young and would benefit from extensive PT in the G-League. His game is not like De'Aarons or Davion's he's primarily known for his shotmaking.
I would go as far as to say, that he could actually be an appreciating asset even strictly as a stash in the g-league guy. He's polished well beyond his years, in that regard he's almost got some Darius Garland to him. Even back 2 years ago when this kid was 16 he had a marvelous level of polish to him then and since he's been at OTE. He's not particularly athletic or tall or long but he's very sharp and he has DEVASTATING hesitation moves and if you bite the wrong way he'll just calmly pull up and drain the uncontested J smooth as can be, if the defense shifts he makes the right pass.
He's a favorite of mine but I just feel like he'd win fans over so quickly on the Summer League team he's just got a good pedigree and poise about him for such a youngin. His shot is pure.
Warren's story should serve the OTE well moving forward in recruiting the next classes, it's important for them to have a mix of stories like the Thompson twins and the 'lesser hyped' Bryson's, though in reality Warren was plenty hyped and won best player in the state of Arkansas as a Sophomore.
I'd also say while discussing Warren, as he pertains to this draft, Anfernee Simons should probably be brought up.. Is he on Anfernee Simons type sale, where the talent is clearly a teir or 2 above the projection but teams dont want to wait so he's devalued? Right now the only mock I see Warren in he's listed at #46.
I would do a backflip if we draft this kid in the latter half of the 2nd round, would be a serious upside pick. Never would I be so excited about a possible 3rd string PG though he's obviously very young and would benefit from extensive PT in the G-League. His game is not like De'Aarons or Davion's he's primarily known for his shotmaking.
I would go as far as to say, that he could actually be an appreciating asset even strictly as a stash in the g-league guy. He's polished well beyond his years, in that regard he's almost got some Darius Garland to him. Even back 2 years ago when this kid was 16 he had a marvelous level of polish to him then and since he's been at OTE. He's not particularly athletic or tall or long but he's very sharp and he has DEVASTATING hesitation moves and if you bite the wrong way he'll just calmly pull up and drain the uncontested J smooth as can be, if the defense shifts he makes the right pass.
He's a favorite of mine but I just feel like he'd win fans over so quickly on the Summer League team he's just got a good pedigree and poise about him for such a youngin. His shot is pure.
Warren's story should serve the OTE well moving forward in recruiting the next classes, it's important for them to have a mix of stories like the Thompson twins and the 'lesser hyped' Bryson's, though in reality Warren was plenty hyped and won best player in the state of Arkansas as a Sophomore.
I'd also say while discussing Warren, as he pertains to this draft, Anfernee Simons should probably be brought up.. Is he on Anfernee Simons type sale, where the talent is clearly a teir or 2 above the projection but teams dont want to wait so he's devalued? Right now the only mock I see Warren in he's listed at #46.
Last edited:
The only thing I know for sure is we need to restock the cupboards with at least 2 guys we can develop into rotational players or as trade pieces for a bigger deal down the road. With the team building around Fox and Sabonis we need to play catch up with teams like Memphis and New Orleans who have their core and now a ton of young assets waiting in the wings. I hope Monte uses at least one of the second round picks this year.
I haven't checked ESPN's mock draft for a while. They hadn't updated it and it looked like most mocks looked like at the beginning of the year. So I'll have to check it out. I get the so called potential of Lively, but right now, I have him in the top of the 2nd rd. He may turn out to eventually be a solid rotational player, but right now, he's very raw and mostly a one trick poney. If I had to choose between him and Ware, I would take Ware, who has at least shown flashes of what he might become. Brice Sensabaugh has flown under the radar a bit this season. Terrific shooter and a smart player. He's certainly on my radar. If all three of those players hold around those positions, I'll be happy as a clam!
Since some players have been mentioned for the 2nd rd, I'll use this opportunity to mention a player that while I knew about him, I had never focused on him the same way I do some of the more well known prospects. But this year after tramsferring from VMI after four years, he followed his head coach to Chattanogga Tennessee. So he's a five year senior and 23 years old.
Jake Stephens: Center, 7'0", 275 Lb's, 7'10" wingspan, Senior, Chattanogga Tenn.
31.5 mpg - 21.4 ppg - 54.7% fgp - 43.1% 3pp - 84.7% ftp - 10.4 rpg - 3.3 apg - 0.9 stl's - 2.6 blk's.
Those are impressive stats, and to honest, I'm not sure what to make of them, or him. I've only seen him play twice this year and one game was against Old Miss, a higher conference team. And in that game his numbers went down a bit, but he still put up good numbers overall. He plays in the Southern Conference and obviously, the competition is not as good as the SEC or the Big 10. But when you watch him play, he's impressive, and he's dominate! So lets start with his offense. He's a lights out 3 pt shooter averaging 43.1% from behind the arc. lest you think that's an abberation, he takes over 5 attempts a game. He also has a very good midrange game.
Posting up, he's more of a bully ball post player as opposed to a drop step guru. While he won't dazzle you with his footwork in the post, he's very patient and good at drawing fouls. He's a big boy, and he's not afraid to bang. He seems to have good touch around the basket, but I'd like to see him go up against some bigger, taller and better competition in the post. My gut tells me he would have to make some adjustments, but that he would be fine. He's also a very good rebounder averaging over 10 a game. Against Old Miss, I think he pulled down 8, one of his lowest games of the year, but still not bad.
Defensively he's a very good rim protecter with a huge wingspan, and excellent timing on his blocked shots. On the perimeter, not so much. He's not terrible, and certainly puts out the effort, but caught in a switch against one of the top PG's in the NBA I think he would be toast. But it's an area he can probably improve on to some extent, and perhaps in a team defense concept he could be hidden a bit. He did some nice recovery in pick and roll defense which was encouraging. Thing is, he has some abilities that are rare in a 7 footer that should translate to the NBA. Oh, I forgot to mention that he's a very good passer. In short, he has a very good feel for the game. I think there's something there!
At an early age he was a baseball player, who also dabbled in football. He didn't start to play, and take basketball serious until his freshman year of highschool. Partly because he kept growing. So he's sort of a late bloomer, who says he's come to love the game, and he looks like he's having fun when playing. Because of his age, and the conference he plays in, he's likely to be a 2nd rd pick at best, and it's possible he's goes undrafted. I think he's worth a look in the 2nd rd, and I wouldn't hesitate to use a two way contract on him if he goes undrafted.
Jake Stephens: Center, 7'0", 275 Lb's, 7'10" wingspan, Senior, Chattanogga Tenn.
31.5 mpg - 21.4 ppg - 54.7% fgp - 43.1% 3pp - 84.7% ftp - 10.4 rpg - 3.3 apg - 0.9 stl's - 2.6 blk's.
Those are impressive stats, and to honest, I'm not sure what to make of them, or him. I've only seen him play twice this year and one game was against Old Miss, a higher conference team. And in that game his numbers went down a bit, but he still put up good numbers overall. He plays in the Southern Conference and obviously, the competition is not as good as the SEC or the Big 10. But when you watch him play, he's impressive, and he's dominate! So lets start with his offense. He's a lights out 3 pt shooter averaging 43.1% from behind the arc. lest you think that's an abberation, he takes over 5 attempts a game. He also has a very good midrange game.
Posting up, he's more of a bully ball post player as opposed to a drop step guru. While he won't dazzle you with his footwork in the post, he's very patient and good at drawing fouls. He's a big boy, and he's not afraid to bang. He seems to have good touch around the basket, but I'd like to see him go up against some bigger, taller and better competition in the post. My gut tells me he would have to make some adjustments, but that he would be fine. He's also a very good rebounder averaging over 10 a game. Against Old Miss, I think he pulled down 8, one of his lowest games of the year, but still not bad.
Defensively he's a very good rim protecter with a huge wingspan, and excellent timing on his blocked shots. On the perimeter, not so much. He's not terrible, and certainly puts out the effort, but caught in a switch against one of the top PG's in the NBA I think he would be toast. But it's an area he can probably improve on to some extent, and perhaps in a team defense concept he could be hidden a bit. He did some nice recovery in pick and roll defense which was encouraging. Thing is, he has some abilities that are rare in a 7 footer that should translate to the NBA. Oh, I forgot to mention that he's a very good passer. In short, he has a very good feel for the game. I think there's something there!
At an early age he was a baseball player, who also dabbled in football. He didn't start to play, and take basketball serious until his freshman year of highschool. Partly because he kept growing. So he's sort of a late bloomer, who says he's come to love the game, and he looks like he's having fun when playing. Because of his age, and the conference he plays in, he's likely to be a 2nd rd pick at best, and it's possible he's goes undrafted. I think he's worth a look in the 2nd rd, and I wouldn't hesitate to use a two way contract on him if he goes undrafted.
Admittedly haven't been watching too much international prospects this season (The Kings being good has alleviated my compulsive need to scour the internet for random prospects with a 1% chance of changing the Kings' fortunes) but talking about Mega Basket in another thread had me looking at Nikola Durisic highlights.
It's an extremely lazy comp because, well, they're both Serbian two guards with good size but less than explosive athleticism but so much of Durisic's game reminds me of a less accurate shooting Bogi. Kid's only 18 so the shot will probably improve (it's not like his stroke is broken as it is) and his defense isn't terrible in the clips I've seen. Could see him creep into the late lotto with some strong play/good measurements at the combine.
It's an extremely lazy comp because, well, they're both Serbian two guards with good size but less than explosive athleticism but so much of Durisic's game reminds me of a less accurate shooting Bogi. Kid's only 18 so the shot will probably improve (it's not like his stroke is broken as it is) and his defense isn't terrible in the clips I've seen. Could see him creep into the late lotto with some strong play/good measurements at the combine.
So Azuolas Tubelis is 7/16 from 3 in 14 games so far and he's had a big uptick in scoring from 14 to 20ppg shooting over 60% from the field on over 13fga's
He's shooting 80% from the FT line too after shooting 69% and 67% Freshman and Sophomore year.
Seems like he'd be great value in the 2nd. But I mean if he keeps these sorts of stats up I'd imagine he's going to creep out of range.
Obviously he doesnt really have a long wingspan and neither does Sabonis, but this is really a matter of can he help us off the bench ASAP. He's certainly not a stiff either he's mobile and he's got a solid 250lb frame to him. He does seem to like to get out in transition.
Don't think he's a perfect fit with the roster we have exactly at this moment but if some of the bigs get shuffled around (expire), he could actually be able to fill a role for us for cheap n also continue to strengthen up n work on skill.
He's shooting 80% from the FT line too after shooting 69% and 67% Freshman and Sophomore year.
Seems like he'd be great value in the 2nd. But I mean if he keeps these sorts of stats up I'd imagine he's going to creep out of range.
Obviously he doesnt really have a long wingspan and neither does Sabonis, but this is really a matter of can he help us off the bench ASAP. He's certainly not a stiff either he's mobile and he's got a solid 250lb frame to him. He does seem to like to get out in transition.
Don't think he's a perfect fit with the roster we have exactly at this moment but if some of the bigs get shuffled around (expire), he could actually be able to fill a role for us for cheap n also continue to strengthen up n work on skill.
Keyontae Johnson 6'5 senior Swingman at KSU is interesting for the Kings, in a world where Lu Dort goes undrafted then gets a huge contract years later he's interesting for most teams TBH, for the Kings he'd step right into the Terrence Davis spot in the rotation. 43% from 3 so far on 3attempts per..
He is the player who famously collapsed on the floor for Florida a few years back.. He's 22.. Obviously teams are going to quite eager to have doctors examine him.. I believe the story goes a cardiologist was sitting courtside n might have saved his life..
he's strong n active n can pass n shoot n defend.. he's 230lbs.. checks a lot of the boxes.. he can do some dirty work as well too.. Has some PJ Tucker like qualities. He can back down smaller players too.
This is a player who was projected by some as a lottery pick in 2021 (before the collapse), he was the preseason player of the year in the SEC.
This is a player who was projected by some as a lottery pick in 2021 (before the collapse), he was the preseason player of the year in the SEC.
Last edited:
Matthew Cleveland has been going berserk for FSU recently.. Also FSU is listing him at 6'7 I wonder if there's any truth to him growing, he sure looks stronger though in 2 years at FSU, he actually looks wider to me like he really developed his shoulders and back.
He's shooting 8/17 from 3. 43% which is completely unsustainable. This is not a '3 and d' player we're really discussing here --- In the event that he somehow is, we're talking about a surefire first round pick. His wingspan is about 6'11 or 7'. He potentially could be a valuable peice for either a smallball lineup or an anti-smallball lineups. If you go too small at the PF spot Cleveland's rebounding could hold a lot of weight, he has a nose for those offensive boards/highpointing the ball..
There;s been a big uptick in his assists recently too, he keeps getting 2 or 3 every gaem.
For those unfamiliar with Cleveland see the defense-to-rebound-to-offense sequence starting at 1:26 in the above highlight, those are the types of plays this kid makes n more consistently than you'd think. he's a ridiculous athlete, all the big schools recruited him and he's tough as nails he's particularly adept at navigating amongst the trees and grabbing rebounds n throwing down big putback dunks. Has some Miles Bridges type qualities (on court) maybe even a little shawn marion.
this is from last season but its such a good highlight its worthy of mention here
He's shooting 8/17 from 3. 43% which is completely unsustainable. This is not a '3 and d' player we're really discussing here --- In the event that he somehow is, we're talking about a surefire first round pick. His wingspan is about 6'11 or 7'. He potentially could be a valuable peice for either a smallball lineup or an anti-smallball lineups. If you go too small at the PF spot Cleveland's rebounding could hold a lot of weight, he has a nose for those offensive boards/highpointing the ball..
There;s been a big uptick in his assists recently too, he keeps getting 2 or 3 every gaem.
Last edited:
Well obviously Wembanyama can hold major weight in this and so the Centers stick out even with Lively disappointing bigtime. The C's are indeed strong.
In the scope of a team like the Kings with two 2nd rd picks n playing above 500 ball My answer is definitely --- these new age NBA multi-positional players that are sort of wing-y and sort of forwardy, some are even a bit guard-y that fall between 6'7 and 6'9. Which is casting a wide net (that ofc includes Kris Murray) n sorta cheating the question I know, but there's so much talent in that wide chunk its easy to see how a good young prospect can fall down to the Kings. This particular part of the field will surely push into the 2nd rd. There are some real names to watch in this group who just established footing n now we'll see if they can jump up mocks further, many r posted on this page already.
I'd also note the PG position is topheavy in this draft, including 2 that are 6'7, things get blurry very quickly once you start to approach the 20's and beyond, and obviously some of these "PG's" are not pure PG's like De'Aaron and their really more natural combo guards.
In the scope of a team like the Kings with two 2nd rd picks n playing above 500 ball My answer is definitely --- these new age NBA multi-positional players that are sort of wing-y and sort of forwardy, some are even a bit guard-y that fall between 6'7 and 6'9. Which is casting a wide net (that ofc includes Kris Murray) n sorta cheating the question I know, but there's so much talent in that wide chunk its easy to see how a good young prospect can fall down to the Kings. This particular part of the field will surely push into the 2nd rd. There are some real names to watch in this group who just established footing n now we'll see if they can jump up mocks further, many r posted on this page already.
I'd also note the PG position is topheavy in this draft, including 2 that are 6'7, things get blurry very quickly once you start to approach the 20's and beyond, and obviously some of these "PG's" are not pure PG's like De'Aaron and their really more natural combo guards.
Last edited:
Tyson is only taking 2.8 three's a game, and with the way he's shooting the ball I would like to see the volume go up. He has a nice stroke, and I've been impressed with his confidence for a Sophomore, who is really a Freshman experience wise, since he only played in a handful of games for Texas last season and just a few minutes in each.. He just looks like a top draft pick, even though he won't be. He seems long enought to play both the SG and SF positions. He needs to add some muscle to his frame. He has good handles. I need to see him more on the defensive side of the ball, but so far, I like what I see from him.
I would definitely say wings. There are a majority of players in the 6'6" to 6'10" range in this draft, and a high percentage of those players are in the first round. In the lottery alone, I see only three guards, maybe four. Scoot Henderson, Nick Smith, Keyonte George, and maybe Cason Wallace. all the remaining players are 6'7" or taller, and while some like Black are multi-talented enough to play three positions, SF is certainly one of them. One could make an arguement that Jarace Walker is purely a PF, but the SF and PF position gets a little blurry in todays league.
so New Mexico is the last unbeaten squad in the land
They probably dont have anyone whos gonna get drafted BUT 6'0 Senior PG Jaelen House is going to be on teams radars for SL n the G-League, especially if he keeps up this 3pt shooting 28/59 on the season so far (48%).
House is also averaging 2.9 steals per game. His stats are just really really good across the board, drawing and making lots of FT's. Solid AST:TO ratio.
and it's really a double-headed guard attack with Jamal Mashburn Jr. who's a 6'2 SG.
They probably dont have anyone whos gonna get drafted BUT 6'0 Senior PG Jaelen House is going to be on teams radars for SL n the G-League, especially if he keeps up this 3pt shooting 28/59 on the season so far (48%).
and it's really a double-headed guard attack with Jamal Mashburn Jr. who's a 6'2 SG.
Marquette is actually one of my favorite teams on the east coast to watch because of their frontcourt. Maxence-Prosper is an NBA player, I suspect he's going to end up on the Canadian national team as well. Before Marquette this player was at the NBA Academy in Latin Amercia (Mexico City) so he's taken quite the interesting path.
Really solid on-ball defender. at 6'8 Plus wingspan, plus athlete. wide shoulders, hes added massive strength in a few years. Honestly I'd go as far as saying he might have some poor mans OG Anunoby thing going, which ofc would mean some team could really fall for him.
If I'm being a greedy Kings fan I'd hope this player definitely keeps his name in the draft, to land someone like this undrafted would be a major coup.