So I've been thinking about the whole Win-now vs Upside debate (plus Monte's draft history)
What I get really hung up on is, we had major holes to fill(do we still?).. Keegan Murray starts, Davion Mitchell is the backup PG, Haliburton was a BPA selection plus a no-brainer plus we had a big chunk of minutes to give him, n Haliburton eventually gets flipped to fill another major hole.
So IDK.. the idea that Monte drafts experienced players, it makes me a bit uneasy to assume that, I believe there's more layers to the onion. I'd argue if you made a case that Monte drafts for need, you'd find quite a bit of overlap.
Also when you draft 'for need' sometimes it's actually a bit of a cost-cutting/roster flexibility maneuver. Having a reliable backup PG on a restricted rookie deal is nice, having a reliable starting forward on a restricted deal like Keegan's is even better.
Keegan Murray vs Jaden Ivey was a big debate around here last summer.. It often boiled down to a potential vs need discussion.. Now looking back I'd say clearly Keegan falls more under the category of necessity, he's a key kog here... I'd also say trading the future pick for Huerter, that would fall more under necessity now that we have time to see the aftermath of the trade.. so many hawks fans still lament losing Huerter btw.
So Monte's solving major problems with these picks..n there's no debate to be had about that.. the question however is more about the roster that he's NOW tasked with upgrading... A roster which surely the obvious needs, the necessities, many of them are vouched for and taken care of.
Plus I'd offer, do Monte's 2nd rd picks really follow these win-now trends? Queta once again surfaces as a wildcard in a draft discussion. I'd certainly argue in the case of Jah'mius Ramsey, thats a swing for the fences type of pick, he was a one-and-done guy, taking him was a gamble on an athlete to be decently efficient and skilled and defensively stout, Woodard II had more experience, he wasnt anywhere near 'complete' either, big strong player who you'd hope his tools would sharpen quickly.
Queta's shown ample promise in the g-league and still gets no burn here. Turns 24 this summer. The Pistons traded decent assets for James Wiseman and Queta blasted him twice this season. Queta's played like 150 (garbage) minutes here in a few seasons, basically Bruno Caboclo with the Raptors status..But when I look at the Centers on the Free Agent to be list, It always makes me think we'd like to resign Queta. So while we cant say for sure, he's obviously a possible draft and develop feather in Monte's hat that we just havent credited him with yet. In the event we let Queta walk some other team will pounce on him IMMEDIATELY. Is Queta a solid player who we've just deemed not a good fit? whos to say.
I think my question is; How many minutes do we have for the "win-now" 1st rd pick and at what position? I think this line of questioning will lead us to some good draft discussion so I'm hoping I get an answer, lemme cut this rant off here.