Welcome Justin James!

Tetsujin said:
They play completely different positions and are nothing alike.
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I'm not referring to his position or size. Kuzma was a 3 year college player with a smooth stroke, good scoring ability and can attack the rim. He was overlooked because he was older and came from a non-power team in Utah.

James, from his highlight videos, also seems to have a smooth stroke, can score and attack the rim. Coming from a small school, a little older and he was overlooked too.
 
ockingsfan said:
I'm not referring to his position or size. Kuzma was a 3 year college player with a smooth stroke, good scoring ability and can attack the rim. He was overlooked because he was older and came from a non-power team in Utah.

James, from his highlight videos, also seems to have a smooth stroke, can score and attack the rim. Coming from a small school, a little older and he was overlooked too.
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And if James played SF/PF he'd have a much better shot at making it. As it is he's a pure and sure SG. Maybe he can slide up to play some small SF's. Maybe he can slide down to play some PG's. His game reminded me of Josh Hart. Maybe a bit taller and not as bulky but kind of a do it all volume guard at the end of the day. I think Vlade called him a combo G if I'm correct. As a four year player in a non power conference, a 1:1 assist to turnover ratio is concerning. If he is going to stick it will have to be by showing some intangibles which he did at times apparently.
 
Tetsujin said:
Over/under on everyone immediately loving the dude and pretending not to hate the pick after he comes out strong in summer league?
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The question is what will he be in summer league and if it's something that will translate to the big team. You can't fall in love with volume types if you don't have the opportunity for them to succeed in that role. He could be a good player but it still doesn't change anything about the fact that they could have had him and an Eric Paschall, Admiral Schofield, or Bol Bol or you name it.
 
John Galt said:
I find it really hard to believe that most people who "hate" the pick have any legit basis for hating it. Because it wasn't in some sportswriters top 100??
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As I tried to express in the draft thread, a lot of fans are basing their opinion off player rankings/evaluations from another 3rd party fan site! How effing brilliant is that?

I mean, just because an online website or whomever else didn't have this guy rated highly because their info and resources are far more limited than the scouting department of an actual NBA franchise, that somehow means he wasn't worthy.

There are thousands of high schools and colleges across the Nation. Thousands of prospects. That's not even including overseas. The NBA has become pretty good at identifying needles in the haystack. But they have the time, resources and personnel to do it. However, Joe Blow fan believes he can scour hours of youtube highlights and study advanced stats and player rankings on 3rd party fan draft sites to accomplish the same. SMH.

Having said all that, I don't pretend to know whether Justin James will develop into a legit prospect or not. History suggests that the odds are long for 2nd round picks. But I do have faith that the KINGS scouting department did their homework on the kid. Vlade and his staff obviously feel he was the best option when the 40th pick went on the clock. We'll see how it works out.
 
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Apparently Justin played PG in high school. Can’t find any measurements for him but a lot of scouting reports mention he has long arms and explosiveness.
 
Having opinions about draft should be perfectly fine. This exact organisation is a perfect example on why blindly trusting the FO is probably not a great strategy. From the Jimmer draft to this date, an average fan in here could've drafted better than this team.

That being said I havent really focused on 2nd round prospects that much but I have to say that passing on guys like Roby, Horton-Tucker, Schofield or not taking a flyer on Bol seems weird but I dont know practically anything about Justin James so hard to say but definetly doesnt look great atm
 
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ockingsfan said:
I'm not referring to his position or size. Kuzma was a 3 year college player with a smooth stroke, good scoring ability and can attack the rim. He was overlooked because he was older and came from a non-power team in Utah.

James, from his highlight videos, also seems to have a smooth stroke, can score and attack the rim. Coming from a small school, a little older and he was overlooked too.
Click to expand...
The problem is when you say "poor man's Kyle Kuzma" that means you see Kuzmas skillset on a worse player. They are completely different based on these highlights. I see maybe an Alec Burks type here with a thinner frame. Shows handle and ability to create off pick and roll, decent first step and pretty athletic. The shooting will be the key for him. Apparently he was the only good player on his team so the shooting numbers may be skewed negativity because of the volume.
 
KingsFanSince85 said:
As I tried to express in the draft thread, a lot of fans are basing their opinion off player rankings/evaluations from another 3rd party fan site! How effing brilliant is that?

I mean, just because an online website or whomever else didn't have this guy rated highly because their info and resources are far more limited than the scouting department of an actual NBA franchise, that somehow means he wasn't worthy.

There are thousands of high schools and colleges across the Nation. Thousands of prospects. That's not even including overseas. The NBA has become pretty good at identifying needles in the haystack. But they have the time, resources and personnel to do it. However, Joe Blow fan believes he can scour hours of youtube highlights and study advanced stats and player rankings on 3rd party fan draft sites to accomplish the same. SMH.

Having said all that, I don't pretend to know whether Justin James will develop into a legit prospect or not. History suggests that the odds are long for 2nd round picks. But I do have faith that the KINGS scouting department did their homework on the kid. Vlade and his staff obviously feel he was the best option when the 40th pick went on the clock. We'll see how it works out.
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But also this is the FO that drafted Papagiannis and said he could be like a Marc Gasol, so can you blame anyone for being pessimistic? Everyone is gonna give these picks a shot but for instance, Sam Vecenie who is legit one of the best in the draft scouting business and didn't have this guy in his top 100.
 
KingsFanSince85 said:
As I tried to express in the draft thread, a lot of fans are basing their opinion off player rankings/evaluations from another 3rd party fan site! How effing brilliant is that?

I mean, just because an online website or whomever else didn't have this guy rated highly because their info and resources are far more limited than the scouting department of an actual NBA franchise, that somehow means he wasn't worthy.

There are thousands of high schools and colleges across the Nation. Thousands of prospects. That's not even including overseas. The NBA has become pretty good at identifying needles in the haystack. But they have the time, resources and personnel to do it. However, Joe Blow fan believes he can scour hours of youtube highlights and study advanced stats and player rankings on 3rd party fan draft sites to accomplish the same. SMH.

Having said all that, I don't pretend to know whether Justin James will develop into a legit prospect or not. History suggests that the odds are long for 2nd round picks. But I do have faith that the KINGS scouting department did their homework on the kid. Vlade and his staff obviously feel he was the best option when the 40th pick went on the clock. We'll see how it works out.
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Your post should be required reading for Kingsfans.
 
jcwkings said:
But also this is the FO that drafted Papagiannis and said he could be like a Marc Gasol, so can you blame anyone for being pessimistic? Everyone is gonna give these picks a shot but for instance, Sam Vecenie who is legit one of the best in the draft scouting business and didn't have this guy in his top 100.
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At the same time another draft expert in Givony also devoted a surprising amount of time on the guy and seemed to come away with a positive impression of him. It really is a crap shoot in the second round.
 
Tetsujin said:
At the same time another draft expert in Givony also devoted a surprising amount of time on the guy and seemed to come away with a positive impression of him. It really is a crap shoot in the second round.
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I agree and from the highlights he shows that he is a pass, dribble shoot?, good IQ guy and I love me some of those so I am interested in how he looks in SummerLeague.
 
Tetsujin said:
At the same time another draft expert in Givony also devoted a surprising amount of time on the guy and seemed to come away with a positive impression of him. It really is a crap shoot in the second round.
Click to expand...

Link? Or where did Givony devote time to him? I'm not doubting you, I just haven't seen it and would like to read it. I've only seen his tweet posted above.


From watching clips of James, he does look like he has talent. He definitely wasn't my first choice, but I'll be rooting for him in SL.
 
Dime Dropper said:
Link? Or where did Givony devote time to him? I'm not doubting you, I just haven't seen it and would like to read it. I've only seen his tweet posted above.


From watching clips of James, he does look like he has talent. He definitely wasn't my first choice, but I'll be rooting for him in SL.
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Tetsujin said:
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Like this kid’s attitude. He seems very coachable.

Like most, I knew nothing about him prior to his name getting call last night. It’s hard to tell from highlights, but he looks like he has a well rounded offensive game. He can handle the ball, seems to have a decent jump shot and is athletic and can finish. No clue what type of defense he can provide.

It’ll be interesting to see him in SL. Typically guys his size tend to perform well in SL as it’s very guard friendly. I imagine he’ll get some opportunities to handle it and possibly even initiate the offense at times.
 
Tetsujin said:
In a way it's refreshing in this day and age that we drafted a guy so obscure that we actually have to do some digging to learn more about him.
:cool:
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Yeah, right?

If he ends up being a player, I think the fact that he seemed to fly under the radar shows that the pundits aren’t as great at doing their job as some seem to think and the KINGS might be a bit better than those same people give them credit for.

We shall see.
 
jcwkings said:
But also this is the FO that drafted Papagiannis and said he could be like a Marc Gasol, so can you blame anyone for being pessimistic? Everyone is gonna give these picks a shot but for instance, Sam Vecenie who is legit one of the best in the draft scouting business and didn't have this guy in his top 100.
Click to expand...

People like Sam build their draft boards by talking to league scouts and executives. If ESPN had zero notes on him, it wasn’t just fan boy journalists that didn’t know who he was.

If you are so certain, call him before the draft and tell him you will offer a 2 year guaranteed contract and draft THT, Pascall or Roby who all play positions with zero depth. Or trade up (for once) with your many 2nd round picks and get Kapala.

If I managed my money the way Vlade manages his picks I would be broke.
 
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