Willie Cauley-Stein is your newest Sacramento King

Don't get me wrong...I'm a huge fan of the pick...it was the wording of why Mudiay was not drafted that bothered me
fair enough. one thing to keep in mind, though, is that vlade divac was answering a question on-the-spot after a long (and likely exhausting) 72 hours in which his mettle as a new front office executive was being tested. throw on top of that the fact that vlade's first language isn't english, and i don't think it's a stretch to believe that his wording may not have been precise, and that it may not be terribly useful to treat his wording as if it came from a great orator who was delivering a carefully-constructed speech. it seemed to me that vlade was simply saying that he felt he couldn't judge mudiay effectively without a greater and more comparable body of work with which to judge him, because there just isn't a lot to judge beyond mudiay's physical gifts and his clear drive/love of the game...
 
I also don't buy the "not enough out there" on Mudiay argument. He played 12 games in China which is one more than Kyrie Irving played at Duke. Every single one of those games was televised which means every NBA front office has a copy of them.
You can also watch all three of the big HS All-Star games.
Arguably, those games mean NOTHING.

China's defense is a joke, so those games are completely unrepresentative of how he would play in the NBA.
http://www.csnphilly.com/blog/700-level/want-sixers-draft-mudiay-his-cba-stats-may-be-misleading

All the high school footage is of him playing against boys (and exploiting the physical advantages he won't have over NBA players).

Your arguments for him are falling flat, and you've seriously over-exaggerated the supporting evidence for Mudiay's real level of play.
 

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
Arguably, those games mean NOTHING.

China's defense is a joke, so those games are completely unrepresentative of how he would play in the NBA.
http://www.csnphilly.com/blog/700-level/want-sixers-draft-mudiay-his-cba-stats-may-be-misleading

All the high school footage is of him playing against boys (and exploiting the physical advantages he won't have over NBA players).

Your arguments for him are falling flat, and you've seriously over-exaggerated the supporting evidence for Mudiay's real level of play.
It should be noted that Mudiay COULD be what some say he will be. would not surprise me at all if he is better than WCS.

The problem is just how hard it is to know that, and the further restriction of our ability to gain that knowledge orchestrated by his agents. A bird in the hand...
 

hrdboild

Moloch in whom I dream Angels!
Staff member
Haven't you done the exact same thing?
I've acknowledged that other people have different opinions than I do. That doesn't make me wrong. :) In the "who would you draft" poll only 1 other person on this board wanted Stanley Johnson at #6. If this had been reversed and we actually picked Stanley Johnson just as many people would be disagreeing with me now only I'd be the one saying "Y'all are crazy, that was a great pick". It is what it is. I also thought it was fair to point out that the reason Vlade made or didn't make a particular pick is just as important as the pick itself. Especially if he's going to be making the decisions for us for a long time.
 
I just want people to understand that we drafted a guy who will most likely be limited to 20-25 max minutes for his career. He's going to have times where he will be on the bench during the games and will be inactive for games throughout the season due to the sickle cell trait flaring up. College season is not comparable to the NBA and he didn't play big minutes in college.
You don't believe with professional help, his condition can be better managed? Is 20-25 minutes the ceiling for basketball players with the same condition?
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
What happened to Webber? Loved him while he was here but has been borderline embarrassing since he left.
Carmichael Dave was asked about Webb's assessment of WCS on Periscope last night. CD had one thing to say, "Webber's a fraud."

I loved C-Webb while he was here and afterwards, right up until the crapstorms started with all the various potential owner groups shuffling for position. I think Webb still adores the fan base, but there's no love lost between him and our current ownership.
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
Agree... I don't get the Mudiay love on this forum.. I like the guy and he was my second choice but lets not talk about him as the next superstar in the league when most people here hasn't seen anything more than a few highlights. I looked all over for game footage (complete game) and I found one game.. Wasn't even in its entirety. There wasn't that much stuff out there on Mudiay after high school.
To be honest, I think that's a little misleading. There are a few pretty vocal members who are upset that we didn't draft Mudiay but I think most of us agree with Vlade's rationale. Remember, this board NEVER totally agrees on anything...ever.
 
Did Mudiay workout for Denver? I believe he worked out for a few of the top teams. He was projected 3rd or 4th just a few months ago. He slid (rightfully so IMO) past the teams that worked him out. Now, some of them may have just thought the player they picked was better, or they didn't believe he was this potential All Star that he is being portrayed. Point is, we have no idea, and neither did Vlade. His information was probably not much better than what ours was from watching DX videos.
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
Find another one first. How do you manage your bodies production of blood cells?
So are you a doctor or a sickle cell specialist? This is a pretty complicated issue, from what I've read and heard from one friend who is a doctor. The fact WCS has the trait does NOT mean he'll ever develop the actual disease.
 

hrdboild

Moloch in whom I dream Angels!
Staff member
Arguably, those games mean NOTHING.

China's defense is a joke, so those games are completely unrepresentative of how he would play in the NBA.
http://www.csnphilly.com/blog/700-level/want-sixers-draft-mudiay-his-cba-stats-may-be-misleading

All the high school footage is of him playing against boys (and exploiting the physical advantages he won't have over NBA players).
Those three All-Star games were playing with and against the exact players in this draft: Towns, Okafor, Russell, Johnson, Winslow, Turner, Lyles, Booker, Oubre. You say the CBA is a joke, but those players at least aren't boys. I agree it's a huge step down in level of competition from any of the European leagues. The NCAA though? It's debatable. All the best talent in the NCAA leaves after one or two years for the draft. The top 17 picks this year featured 1 senior, 1 junior, 3 international teenagers, and 12 underclassmen. Had he gone to the NCAA he would have been competing against the same players he did in the HS All-Star games plus a bunch of upperclassmen who have no NBA career in their future. It's not as big of a talent gap as you're making it out to be. There's a reason Coach Cal wins almost every year with a roster full of blue-chip freshmen.

Your arguments for him are falling flat, and you've seriously over-exaggerated the supporting evidence for Mudiay's real level of play.
Falling on deaf ears is a more accurate description. :) But then I don't actually expect anyone to change their mind because of what I say. I've articulated my stance as best I could. You'll change your mind only after you see these guys play in the NBA.
 
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hrdboild

Moloch in whom I dream Angels!
Staff member
Carmichael Dave was asked about Webb's assessment of WCS on Periscope last night. CD had one thing to say, "Webber's a fraud."

I loved C-Webb while he was here and afterwards, right up until the poopoostorms started with all the various potential owner groups shuffling for position. I think Webb still adores the fan base, but there's no love lost between him and our current ownership.
And people wonder why I don't like Dave :)
 
So are you a doctor or a sickle cell specialist? This is a pretty complicated issue, from what I've read and heard from one friend who is a doctor. The fact WCS has the trait does NOT mean he'll ever develop the actual disease.
http://www.nata.org/sites/default/files/SickleCellTraitAndTheAthlete.pdf

Read it.

The harder and faster athletes go, the
earlier and greater the sickling, which likely explains why exertional collapse
occurs “sooner” in college football players sprinting than in military recruits running longer distances. Sickling can
begin in only 2-3 minutes of sprinting – or in any other a
ll-out exertion – and sickling can quickly increase to grave
levels if the stricken athlete struggles on or is urged on by the coach.
He's already experience it in 2013.
 
when vlade says he doesn't know enough about him, i don't think he means that he didn't do his research. i think he means that there's a dearth of research available on emmanuel mudiay, and that it was simply too difficult to even know enough about him. mudiay played in high school. he played in a handful of games in china. he didn't workout for the kings. he didn't interview with the kings. sure, there's a bit of game/scouting tape to review, but i'd hardly call that a sufficient amount of information with which to make a legitimately informed selection. the kings are on the clock with demarcus cousins; they need to add talent that they can count on to produce. if you're a team like denver that's about to embark on a full-scale rebuild, then there's every reason to snatch mudiay when he falls to you at 7. but vlade determined that it wasn't worth the risk, and i agree with his pick 100%...
Seconded. But I also want to add:

With the #6, the Kings should be looking at selecting whoever gives the team the most holistic value. That means looking at the context of the *entire* team before making a decision. It may turn out to be that Cauley-Stein is not the best player available at #6, but still gives the team the most value when considering the situation the entire franchise is in.

Let me illustrate. Lets say that the Kings take Mudiay. He’s not going to be ready to run the Kings day one. He’s just not. He’s a high school kid who played a few games against mediocre competition in China. He’s going to have growing pains. He’s going to make mistakes. NBA teams are going to exploit his weaknesses when he has the ball more aggressively than he’s ever experienced before.

Lets face it: Cousins and Karl are on thin ice together. Vlade is determined to stay the course and have coach and star work it out. They HAVE to win now. Just have to. If they don’t, Boogie will be gone, Karl may be gone, and the Kings are razed to ground zero. Boogie-type talents don’t grow on trees.

So, even in the BEST case scenario, and Mudiay eventually becomes an All-Star, he won’t help the team as a rookie as much as a win-now prospect. The Kings will have an All-Star guard, but the All-NBA center and Hall of Fame coach are gone. That’s a net negative.

Contrast that to if the Kings take Cauley-Stein and he helps the team win more games year one. Winning calms the Boogie/Karl tempest and the team has a future together. Cauley-Stein may not be the same caliber of player as Mudiay, but they keep their franchise center and coach.

And this is Mudiay’s best case scenario. Forget about if he flat out busts. Its over.

This is it. It’s the final countdown for Boogie in Sacramento. Vlade needs it to work now, or it will be over for good. The #6 should be single-mindedly spent in achieving that goal.
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
Did you see this part:

Knowledge of sickle cell trait status can be a gateway to education and simple precautions that may prevent sickling collapse and enable athletes with sickle cell trait to thrive in sport.
My friend, a doctor, says there's always reason for concern but that it shouldn't preclude someone with the proper knowledge of their situation from participating in sports, even professional sports such as the NBA.
 

hrdboild

Moloch in whom I dream Angels!
Staff member
So, even in the BEST case scenario, and Mudiay eventually becomes an All-Star, he won’t help the team as a rookie as much as a win-now prospect. The Kings will have an All-Star guard, but the All-NBA center and Hall of Fame coach are gone. That’s a net negative.
People said the same thing about Elfrid Payton and Nik Stauskas last year. Which one had the better rookie year?
 
Find another one first. How do you manage your bodies production of blood cells?
Well you are the one who said he's limited to 20-25 minutes a game, so I'm assuming you are basing this number on previous instances of athletes with a similar condition. Is the number you threw out something you grabbed out of thin air?
 
The Kings probably had their draft board in order like this: WCS, WINSLOW, MUDIAY

This is factoring in everything they've seen and heard about all 3 players.

They obviously had their order like that and they just didn't rank Mudiay that high.

They wanted to bring in Mudiay to see if he would be able to surpass WCS or Winslow on their draft board.

The Kings did not get a chance to workout Mudiay.

Therefor, Mudiay stayed exactly where he was on their draftboard.

The Kings proceeded to draft their #1 guy on their draftboard.

The Kings drafted WCS.

I think that's the simplest way I can put his.
 
Find another one first. How do you manage your bodies production of blood cells?
Well in terms of another example and a person who had the actual sickle cell disease, I can tell you when Ryan Clark played Safety for the Steelers , the only time it was a problem was later in his career and he started holding himself out of games up in DEN.