Start of College Basketball season:

bajaden

Hall of Famer
I could see a playoff team taking him. He's IT, but more of a playmaker. I think in the NBA, he'll have to be a more aggressive scorer in order to succeed. Well worth a 2nd rounder though. Him and Murray single-handily carried UK's season this year. Sucks they fell short.




I'd suggest you guys check out Kay Felder
I think someone will take a flyer on Ulis at the bottom of the first round. The only thing he's lacking is height. Terrific defender for his size.
 
Well, I didn't have House as one of my top five, but as a SG that has to be noted. I was trying to be fair. I think I had him listed as someone that could turnout to be better down the road. And I think that's a fair appraisal of him. As well as some others listed.
Down the road might be key. I agree. Currently, in this game he is 0-9 shooting.
 
Sacramento's own Marquese Chriss is intriguing. 6'9 225lb PF.

He can play above the rim, shoot the 3 ball, handle the ball, attack from outside, and rebound(a bit). He has a ton of athleticism and quickness for a PF. He has an enormous upside. However, he lacks in strength. The good thing? He's only 18.
On defense, he has potential to be a very good all around defender. His quickness allows him to defend the perimeter, and he's shown potential as a shotblocker.

If he declares, he's probably a mid to late 1st rounder.

It's way too soon to look at draft position, but I am going to anyways.
Just looking at the overall picks owed, it seems like Denver has a total of 4 1st round picks. Houston, Memphis, Portland, and their own. If the Kings end up picking 10th, I can see us trading back. There is a drop-off between Dunn/Hield/Murray and Jackson/Valentine/Baldwin.

Chriss is someone to keep an eye on. I know we just drafted WCS, but Chriss has an extremely high ceiling. BPA can't go wrong if we decide to trade back.
 

Capt. Factorial

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Staff member

bajaden

Hall of Famer
Nice young player. Not sure where you play him. He plays SF for Oregon, but at 6'6", he might be better suited for SG. Good outside shooter, very good athlete. Handles the ball well and is a good finisher at the basket. He defends well, but then the entire Oregon team defends well. It's one of the better coached teams in college. I'd be surprised if he didn't stay another year in school. He's a sophmore along with Bell and Benson. You add in Tyler Dorsey and you have a solid core going into next season that could make some serious noise. Of course if they were to win the whole banana this year, that might change their minds.
 
Buddy Hield: Any questions?

Wow, what a display he put on today. He is just an incredible player!
Thanks Baja. Now we definitely have no chance at Hield.

I think the most likeliest destination is the Pelicans and Timberwolves. Pelicans will need a SG no matter what happens with Gordon. Timberwolves have LaVine and Wiggins...but maybe they decide to play LaVine at PG and Rubio to the bench? (I think a trade request would result from Rubio's camp).

I guess you can include the Celtics too. Their draft picks last year made 0 sense. You take Rozier because you needed another tweener defensive PG that can't shoot? You already had IT-Smart-Bradley. Not sure where they were planning to play Rozier...because Smart on KD the last game was clearly very effective. Then for the killshot, they draft RJ Hunter. At least RJ Hunter made a little bit more sense.

Since the Celts haven't found their franchise player yet, I could see them taking Buddy Hield. Their biggest weakness is PF/C...but do they draft Henry Ellenson who conflicts with Olynk and struggles on defense? Maybe they go Marquese Chriss
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
Thanks Baja. Now we definitely have no chance at Hield.

I think the most likeliest destination is the Pelicans and Timberwolves. Pelicans will need a SG no matter what happens with Gordon. Timberwolves have LaVine and Wiggins...but maybe they decide to play LaVine at PG and Rubio to the bench? (I think a trade request would result from Rubio's camp).

I guess you can include the Celtics too. Their draft picks last year made 0 sense. You take Rozier because you needed another tweener defensive PG that can't shoot? You already had IT-Smart-Bradley. Not sure where they were planning to play Rozier...because Smart on KD the last game was clearly very effective. Then for the killshot, they draft RJ Hunter. At least RJ Hunter made a little bit more sense.

Since the Celts haven't found their franchise player yet, I could see them taking Buddy Hield. Their biggest weakness is PF/C...but do they draft Henry Ellenson who conflicts with Olynk and struggles on defense? Maybe they go Marquese Chriss
Lets not forget about the best center in the draft. Poeltl. The Celtics could certainly use a player like him. No doubt that we'll need to get lucky to get Hield.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
I need to watch more film on this kid, very impressive
Chriss is a nice young player that will probably stay in school for another year. I doubt he'd get drafted in the first round if he declares, but you never know. If he blows people away in his workouts, he might battle his way into the first round. However, I don't think he's on the radar in the lottery. But hey, if the Celt's want to take him there, more power to him.
 
Chriss is a nice young player that will probably stay in school for another year. I doubt he'd get drafted in the first round if he declares, but you never know. If he blows people away in his workouts, he might battle his way into the first round. However, I don't think he's on the radar in the lottery. But hey, if the Celt's want to take him there, more power to him.
This draft feels like it lacks something....I just can't put my finger on it. I think this is where someone young with a high upside like Chriss could come in and leapfrog boards.

I think he can be a special player.
 
Combination of quick second jump, shooting touch and overall impressive athleticism guarantee, that Chriss will go mid-teens at least.
Biggest problem for Chriss is he doesn't look like a post player, but rather a tall, a bit awkward SF: barely any D or rebounding.
As for Hield he most likely going in 6-10 area and his actual spot will depend on team preference of the players in this draft range, so I wouldn't rule him out just yet.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
Combination of quick second jump, shooting touch and overall impressive athleticism guarantee, that Chriss will go mid-teens at least.
Biggest problem for Chriss is he doesn't look like a post player, but rather a tall, a bit awkward SF: barely any D or rebounding.
As for Hield he most likely going in 6-10 area and his actual spot will depend on team preference of the players in this draft range, so I wouldn't rule him out just yet.
I agree on Chriss. I like Chriss, but although he has a decent jumpshot, most of his scoring is at the basket. He's a terrific athlete that needs to rebound better. But someone will take a flyer on him earlier than I would. I hope your right about Hield. I have him going at seven on my board and I have Dunn at four/five. A player I'd target instead of Chriss is Brice Johnson who I see as a stretch four in the NBA. What's your opinion of him?
 

Capt. Factorial

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Staff member
A player I'd target instead of Chriss is Brice Johnson who I see as a stretch four in the NBA. What's your opinion of him?
Regarding Brice Johnson, what do you see in him that sets him apart in any way from John Henson? Maybe I'm missing something or glorifying Henson too much in my memory but even without the UNC connection they seem like very similar players to me. But Henson can't seem to crack an NBA rotation, so I'm not sure why Brice would fare better. Do you think Brice has more upside? (And on a somewhat tangential note, do you think Brice would be the best use of a pick given that we have WCS? It would probably be hard to play the two of them together and have them be effective, and I think WCS is miles ahead of Brice.)
 
Hey I saw we were getting some hits from this site, so I came over to check it out and say thank you for clicking the link above and visiting! We actually have some really cool stat-driven draft stuff if you like the above article.

As someone who's taken more than one crack at mock draft, what position / players are you guys leaning towards this year? I think I had you guys taking Dunn last mock.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
Regarding Brice Johnson, what do you see in him that sets him apart in any way from John Henson? Maybe I'm missing something or glorifying Henson too much in my memory but even without the UNC connection they seem like very similar players to me. But Henson can't seem to crack an NBA rotation, so I'm not sure why Brice would fare better. Do you think Brice has more upside? (And on a somewhat tangential note, do you think Brice would be the best use of a pick given that we have WCS? It would probably be hard to play the two of them together and have them be effective, and I think WCS is miles ahead of Brice.)
Well first, I wasn't suggesting we draft him. Not a need as far as I can see, and even if he were a need, I wouldn't draft him that high. However, you make a good point with your comparison to Henson. I think Johnson is a better athlete than Henson, but Henson is taller and a little longer than Johnson. What I like about Johnson is his nose for the ball and his aggressiveness. I'm curious to see just how tall he is. Bottom line is that I would rather give Moreland more minutes than draft Johnson.

If I were looking for a PF/C, I would look at Henry Ellenson or Ivan Rabb. By the way, I watched some game film of Lonzo Ball. All I can say is wow! He's going to be fun to watch next year at UCLA. He definitely needs to put some muxcle on his frame, but what a talented kid he is.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
Hey I saw we were getting some hits from this site, so I came over to check it out and say thank you for clicking the link above and visiting! We actually have some really cool stat-driven draft stuff if you like the above article.

As someone who's taken more than one crack at mock draft, what position / players are you guys leaning towards this year? I think I had you guys taking Dunn last mock.
Love to have Dunn but I doubt he'll last that long. Never know for sure. I can see New Orleans taking him because of all the injuries that Holiday has had. On the other hand, if they know for sure they're losing Anderson, I could see them going in that direction as well.
 

Capt. Factorial

trifolium contra tempestatem subrigere certum est
Staff member
Well first, I wasn't suggesting we draft him. Not a need as far as I can see, and even if he were a need, I wouldn't draft him that high. However, you make a good point with your comparison to Henson. I think Johnson is a better athlete than Henson, but Henson is taller and a little longer than Johnson. What I like about Johnson is his nose for the ball and his aggressiveness. I'm curious to see just how tall he is. Bottom line is that I would rather give Moreland more minutes than draft Johnson.

If I were looking for a PF/C, I would look at Henry Ellenson or Ivan Rabb.
Ah, I guess when you said you would target him instead of Chriss I thought you might be thinking about our pick. I suppose you're right that Henson has always been a bit more passive out there than Johnson, and a bit of fire in the belly is a good thing.

By the way, I watched some game film of Lonzo Ball. All I can say is wow! He's going to be fun to watch next year at UCLA. He definitely needs to put some muxcle on his frame, but what a talented kid he is.
I worry a bit about Lonzo's shooting, but every time I do I remember that he's looking to pass first, so hopefully it won't be much of an issue. It definitely should be a fun year. There's no doubt it's tournament or bust this time around with Ball and Leaf in the fold.
 
Hey I saw we were getting some hits from this site, so I came over to check it out and say thank you for clicking the link above and visiting! We actually have some really cool stat-driven draft stuff if you like the above article.

As someone who's taken more than one crack at mock draft, what position / players are you guys leaning towards this year? I think I had you guys taking Dunn last mock.
The Kings have a few holes on this roster. I think Rondo leaves this offseason, so we'll need a defensive PG. Our biggest weakness this year was arguably our defense from Rondo. He was the weakest link in the starting lineup. I think this is where we'd look towards Kris Dunn or Wade Baldwin IV.

Another big problem for this team is lack of production from our SGs. McLemore is still a bit behind on his learning curve, but he hasn't benefited at all from Karl's approach to his role on the team. He's been asked to stand at corners and wait until the coach decides to call a play for him(not often). He didn't benefit from his role, but I doubt most SGs would. The last time I checked, he's in the bottom 10 of touch % per game (terrible ball movement contrary to our assists).

This is where Hield would come in play. Hield's IQ for the game is ahead of McLemore's, and he's coming into the NBA as a better overall player.

We could also target Murray who's been dynamic for Kentucky. His defense is going to be a big concern, but he's only 19.

We might be open to trading Rudy Gay. He doesn't fit DeMarcus' play style. Too iso-heavy.
Someone like Timothe Luwawu could come in play.

Our primary targets would be: Dunn, Hield, Murray, Baldwin IV, and Luwawu. (No Brown, because his IQ is extremely questionable).

The Kings need a good offensive pair with Cousins, and good defense.