Who will Monte draft with our first round pick?

iowamcnabb

iowamcnabb

Hall of Famer
#1
#1
What’s your best guess, who does McNair take at #24?

Ive landed on Jaime Jaquez. He is said to be the leader type, even as a freshman at UCLA. High IQ. Older. Plays a position of need.

I would probably go in a different direction but I do like him overall and just think he is that sneaky Monte pick we don’t really expect.

You can change your answer as the draft gets closer
 
Sluggah

Sluggah

All-Star
#3
#3
Some dude that the talking heads are down on cuz he’s not a super young human highlight reel but who then becomes a valuable contributor almost immediately.
 
funkykingston

funkykingston

Super Moderator
Staff member
#4
#4
Sluggah said:
Some dude that the talking heads are down on cuz he’s not a super young human highlight reel but who then becomes a valuable contributor almost immediately.
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Both of the first two guesses will likely fit that description.

Trayce Jackson-Davis, Colby Jones, Ben Sheppard, and Olivier-Maxence Prosper too. But those last two have a lot more draft buzz than anyone else on this list. Which sucks a bit because I thought there was a chance a while back that one or both might be options for the Kings at #54.
 
hrdboild

hrdboild

Moloch in whom I dream Angels!
Staff member
#5
#5
Trayce Jackson-Davis definitely fits the profile of an undervalued guy (because of his age and lack of a jump shot) who seems likely to go in the second round but could carve out a nice career as a hard-working energy big.

One prospect who's jumped out for me but isn't really getting talked about much is Freshman Jordan Walsh on Arkansas. He had a poor year shooting the ball but played and measured well at the Combine -- perhaps well enough to go near the top of the second round or maybe even late in the first. He's 6'7" with a 7'2" wingspan and plays an aggressive attacking style of defense which would fit well with what Mike Brown wants to do on that end of the floor.

(Both guys are listed as having worked out for Sacramento)
 
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2

206Fan

All-Star
#6
#6
I want to see who else the Kings bring in before I'll make a final prediction.

My current guess? He swings for the fences and drafts Maxwell Lewis or Dariq Whitehead.
 
See_Hanks

See_Hanks

Bench
#10
#10
Going to be Murray and I think there will be a trade with another team who is a few spots higher than us that will draft for the Kings. We will give them cap space probably and exchange picks.

Something like this... We draft for the Warriors and the Warriors draft for us, and in exchange for the two picks the Warriors send us a player who is underperforming, and over-priced, who has more than 1 year left on their contract, and we send an expiring contract like Holmes who would agree not to exercise his 2024-2025 year before the trade is final. I am not saying we're trading with the Warriors or anything, it was just an example of what we might see, because Murray will probably be drafted before we make our pick.
 
T

The_Jamal

Hall of Famer
#14
#14
Capt. Factorial said:
Monte has so far gone with established college players. We need a back-up big man. We've brought in a dude from Indiana that fits this description. Safe bet says he goes TJD.
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The TJD playmaking jump is eye-opening. 24% Ast rate from a dominant college big man? On both ends? Woah.

He has all the makings of developing into a productive starter and that everyone passes on because he's 23. His stat profile is insanely good in basically all facets. And didn't just have a senior jump; he's been good every single year. Draws a ton of fouls, block shots, rebounds, elite efficiency/USG context. Good wingspan at 7'1.

What am I missing here? That he's 23?
 
funkykingston

funkykingston

Super Moderator
Staff member
#15
#15
The_Jamal said:
The TJD playmaking jump is eye-opening. 24% Ast rate from a dominant college big man? On both ends? Woah.

He has all the makings of developing into a productive starter and that everyone passes on because he's 23. His stat profile is insanely good in basically all facets. And didn't just have a senior jump; he's been good every single year. Draws a ton of fouls, block shots, rebounds, elite efficiency/USG context. Good wingspan at 7'1.

What am I missing here? That he's 23?
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If he really has been shooting well from 3 in workouts it even opens up the possibility of playing him with Sabonis. He could basically become a two way John Collins.
 
T

The_Jamal

Hall of Famer
#16
#16
funkykingston said:
If he really has been shooting well from 3 in workouts it even opens up the possibility of playing him with Sabonis. He could basically become a two way John Collins.
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The creation gives you an out to still do that though, even if he can't shoot or is an unreliable shooter. He's not like a Clint Capela that can't dribble the ball; there's some real on-ball skill with scoring and passing. That's an excellent first step to potentially getting him on the floor with Domas.

It doesn't even need to be good, he just has to be Naz Reid-esq and willing to pull open jumpers.

And even if that doesn't develop... 12-15-18 MPG back-up that keeps Domas fresh and healthy who you can give some playmaking responsibility, and be an elite rim runner/athlete to pair with Monk in the PnR? That doesn't sound too bad for 4 years on a rookie scale deal at pick 24.
Back-up C was the biggest hole on the team last year and I do think forced Domas into playing way too many 38+ minute games because the team crumbled when he left the floor. If TJD can plug that, that's immensely valuable.
 
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iowamcnabb

iowamcnabb

Hall of Famer
#17
#17
If the rumors are true that Jaquez is rising we might find ourselves in a position to draft an upside guy. Hollinger has us taking Miller even with Kris on the board.
 
E

ESP47

All-Star
#18
#18
The_Jamal said:
The TJD playmaking jump is eye-opening. 24% Ast rate from a dominant college big man? On both ends? Woah.

He has all the makings of developing into a productive starter and that everyone passes on because he's 23. His stat profile is insanely good in basically all facets. And didn't just have a senior jump; he's been good every single year. Draws a ton of fouls, block shots, rebounds, elite efficiency/USG context. Good wingspan at 7'1.

What am I missing here? That he's 23?
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I think it's just the fear that he winds up being a tweener that can't shoot who will be playing in a league where one of his main skills, post work, isn't used.

I wouldn't take him at 24 but I'm definitely taking him at 38 if he's on the board. I don't buy the talk about him shooting from deep in workouts at all. We hear that kind of talk on non shooting NBA bigs every year and they rarely actually turn into shooters.

IMO his defense should translate solidly. His passing will translate and is very underrated. I think his rebounding and shotblocking will somewhat translate but not at the level he's at in college. The shooting will have to be built from absolutely nothing. We're talking 3 attempts in college with a 68% stroke from the line. I wouldn't bet anything that he will wind up being a shooter.

I don't think your backup C needs to be a shooter anyway. Especially when your starting center is pretty good at most things other than defense. I'd rather have a TJD type defender off the bench because most teams aren't bringing Embiid size centers off the bench. Sabonis can body up on the big dudes while TJD can matchup better with the backups. Then you've always got a guy like Len or someone similar as a big bodied bench C who can play spot minutes when matchups call for it.
 
T

The_Jamal

Hall of Famer
#19
#19
ESP47 said:
I think it's just the fear that he winds up being a tweener that can't shoot who will be playing in a league where one of his main skills, post work, isn't used.

I wouldn't take him at 24 but I'm definitely taking him at 38 if he's on the board. I don't buy the talk about him shooting from deep in workouts at all. We hear that kind of talk on non shooting NBA bigs every year and they rarely actually turn into shooters.

IMO his defense should translate solidly. His passing will translate and is very underrated. I think his rebounding and shotblocking will somewhat translate but not at the level he's at in college. The shooting will have to be built from absolutely nothing. We're talking 3 attempts in college with a 68% stroke from the line. I wouldn't bet anything that he will wind up being a shooter.

I don't think your backup C needs to be a shooter anyway. Especially when your starting center is pretty good at most things other than defense. I'd rather have a TJD type defender off the bench because most teams aren't bringing Embiid size centers off the bench. Sabonis can body up on the big dudes while TJD can matchup better with the backups. Then you've always got a guy like Len or someone similar as a big bodied bench C who can play spot minutes when matchups call for it.
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Yeah I just spent the last hour watching TJD videos and I don't think I saw a single jumper lol. Which, is slightly concerning if you want to be a starting NBA player.

But man, this dude is an elite fluid athlete. Moves with purpose, has an excellent understanding of verticality and defensive timing on contests at the rim. Has the athleticism to switch out onto big wings or even some guards. He likes operating most of his offense through a post-up, but him being able to pass out of the double, work through a DHO, work as an elite rim-runner, etc is all very translatable to the NBA. He's not just some bruiser that's bullying people in post-ups.

The guy who came to mind was more athletic Mason Plumlee. Fringe-starter C, elite back-up that's just a super impactful NBA rotation player. Gives you everything on the floor, including excellent energy, but unfortunately can't shoot.
 
Capt. Factorial

Capt. Factorial

ceterum censeo delendum esse Argentum
Staff member
#20
#20
The_Jamal said:
Yeah I just spent the last hour watching TJD videos and I don't think I saw a single jumper lol. Which, is slightly concerning if you want to be a starting NBA player.

...

The guy who came to mind was more athletic Mason Plumlee. Fringe-starter C, elite back-up that's just a super impactful NBA rotation player. Gives you everything on the floor, including excellent energy, but unfortunately can't shoot.
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Maybe can shoot a little? Word seems to be that he has shown a shot in workouts, but that he was not really given the green light to shoot in Indiana. I suppose we'll find out about that eventually, because if he can shoot he'll definitely get the green light in the NBA.

Right now I'd say that if I'm ranking for the Kings at #24, out of the players I think have a snowball's chance in hell of being available I'd go:

Whitehead
Jaquez
Miller
TJD

After that it's catch as catch can as far as my preferences. Apologies to Prosper but he rose so late I didn't get a chance to catch even one full game of his, and the stats don't jump out at me. Highlight tapes are basically useless, I think we all know that. Not saying he won't be good, just saying I can't make a judgment, so he's not on my list.
 
PurpleHaze

PurpleHaze

All-Star
#22
#22
KainLear said:
Thanks for that upsetting reminder...
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Lots of different upsetting reminders (too damn many!) from past Kings blown drafts but let's try to stay positive today. But names like Kawhi Leonard, Luka Doncic and yes, Nikola Jokic floating in my head. I could go on and on but again trying to stay positive as time counts down for our first round selection.
 
M

midtowner

Starter
#25
#25
I’m on board with the Captain’s list:

Whitehead
Jaquez
Miller
TJD

No frail players allowed.

Question - If Kris Murray we’re on the board - would you take him ahead of these prospects?
 
Capt. Factorial

Capt. Factorial

ceterum censeo delendum esse Argentum
Staff member
#26
#26
midtowner said:
I’m on board with the Captain’s list:

Whitehead
Jaquez
Miller
TJD

No frail players allowed.

Question - If Kris Murray we’re on the board - would you take him ahead of these prospects?
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I don't think so, and when I made that list I was including him among the players available. It seems pretty clear that Kris is not as good as Keegan. Now, he's good enough to play in the league, but I just feel there's enough overlap in skill sets there that he's not the best fit. I don't think he's bad value in the early 20s by any means, but I just think his value for us is depressed a bit, so I kind of hope somebody snatches him up before we have to make that decision.

That said, it looks to me like the first three guys on my list could easily be gone. I'm higher on TJD than Kris - he's been getting it done at Indiana for so long and then just not going into the draft. His body of work is just so much better. I don't anticipate getting up in arms tonight about whatever we do, and I guess Kris over TJD probably wouldn't make me blow a fuse. There's obviously something NBA scouts don't love about TJD that I'm not seeing or he'd already be in the league.
 
QWERTYLICIOUS

QWERTYLICIOUS

Starter
#27
#27
I will be honest with everyone here for a sec (or a few secs...or a few mins...)

I'm not feeling as good as I would like to feel about the prospects of drafting Kris. Not because I don't think he's a solid player. He is. But because I feel like that will put more pressure on the kid than he needs. Playing alongside his brother might add an extra level of pressure that wouldn't be there if he were to play elsewhere.

Also, people would definitely hype the Kings because "Keegan and Kris being able to play alongside each other"...So much so that, if Kris doesn't produce, the media will look at it as a total dud of a pick.

We're in a position to contend in the West in the coming years. Any way we can get away from adding extra pressure on the guys outside of the norm (i.e. going deeper into the postseason) I am a fan of.

If we end up with Kris, I won't complain. But I will definitely be approaching it with extreme caution, and just hope the pressure of playing alongside his brother doesn't catch up to him.
 
J

jiimbob

Starter
#28
#28
I agree with Capt. and hope someone else picks Kris before us, spare us some potential questioning the decision down the road.
If we keep the pick, I'm kinda leaning Lewis or Prosper. Also a bit intrigued by Clown's.
 
ockingsfan

ockingsfan

Starter
#29
#29
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