Post by bundy on Aug 14, 2024 11:45:06 GMT
Dallas got some lotto luck and jumped a couple spots to claim the #1 pick, with most drafts there tends to be a player that standouts outta the pack however this draft wasn’t as clear cut. Face value there were a few names who looked like they could push their case for the top spot, however other factors such as draft notes and scouting definitely played their part in how the lotto played out.
#1 Dallas Mavericks Draft Eddie Jones
Since I made the pick I guess I can give more in detail of my decision, my main aim was to stay in the top 3 as I was mainly interested in Richmond, Schmidt and Jones. I knew Schmidt had dominated a previous version and that Richmond should develop into a high volume scorer, however when Jones was slapped with a very rewarding Draft note and after scouting him and seeing he was very solid in areas I value highly in a young wing, I knew Jones would be getting the call out first. So far it’s fair to say Jones has had a successful first TC in the league going +4, not to mention getting supercamped and having his draft note activated which has allowed him to slot into the starting lineup. I’m expecting him to put up numbers around the 18/5/3 and 2 steals area as well. Overall rating A
#2 Miami Heat Draft Oscar Schmidt
As mentioned previously, I felt it would be a coin toss between Oscar/Richmond/Stoudamire to be called out next, I know leflop had considered taking Osaruyi with the 2nd pick but went with what I think to be the next safest pick in the draft, being overseas for 3 Seasons should give leflop enough time to juice up his bank balance as Oscar is going to need as much camping love as possible. I did scout Oscar prior to picking Jones, there are some very promising areas to his game but a couple that will need work so hopefully his 3 years overseas can progress that. TC was a mixed bag for Oscar, a +1 to outside and defence but drop in potential, the latter was a surprise tbh as he was one of the highest in that category. Moving forward, the next couple of TCs will be very important for the Heat to see what the future holds for Oscar. Overall rating B
#3 Detroit Pistons Draft Damon Stoudamire
Next up the Pistons took their future floor general in Stoudamire, ratings wise Stoudamire looked very promising with a solid foundation and would have been a player I would have looked closer if I didn’t have Peterson at the time. Has yet to receive any camping love due to the Pistons having some financial issues but waiting in the shadows is the newly acquired Haliburton who should take Stoudamire under his wing and help develop him into hopefully a future all star. A nice TC rewarded Stoudamire a +2 to start of with and eventually getting mentored by Haliburton gives him a promising start to his career. Overall Rating B+
#4 Milwaukee Bucks Draft Mitch Richmond
The #1 projected team unfortunately dropped down to #4 however I still think they would still be happy to pick up Richmond, looked like the better scorer outta the class and his scouting report looked solid as well. There are some issues with his handles which hopefully is an area that the Bucks GM does work on, though Bucks have brought in an high tempo all league 1st team SG in Devin Booker to mentor and fast track his scoring. Which the Bucks will be hoping for as they don’t have their 1st rounder next year. An average TC for Mitch with a +1 to his outside scoring wasn’t an ideal start but fingers crossed he has more luck in the future. Overall Rating B
#5 Portland Trailblazers draft Michael Finley
Up at 5 are the Blazers after dropping down from #4 projected, this is an area of the draft where the draft dropped off slightly, Finley looked like a solid pick and was one of my favourite players growing up but underwhelming TC wouldn’t have put a smile on afros face, +1 outside and -1 potential and chances are his B- inside game is possibly inflated due to a higher jumping ability, afro will need to get the heavy camps in sooner rather then later. Overall Rating B-
#6 Houston Rockets draft Paul Osaruyi
The first big on the board and a player who I really don’t know where he could possibly fall in the top 10, with the class starved on decent bigs, Paul was the slightly best available. Had an excellent TC going +4 to all major categories but dropped in potential, which isn’t anything to worry about as his up and coming mentor boost with Giannis should make his game even more promising, maybe leflop was right all along and should have grabbed him at #2. Overall Rating A
#7 Brooklyn Nets Draft PG Brandon McCoy Jr.
Ahh another year we’re calling out Brooklyns name in the lottery, another player who looked like he could go anywhere between 4 and 10. Nets needed a PG for the future and I think McCoy just might be that, hopefully the recent 2 MAX PGs doesn’t get in the way. McCoy comes in a similar mold to previous top PGs with an already solid rebounding and defensive game yet rather raw offensively, will be interesting if McCoy is developed or if Nets flipped elsewhere for an established big to work with Stokes. A +3 in TC was very welcoming news for Nets, hopefully they can find the cash to camp him on top of the other talent on their roster. Overall Grade B
#8 Denver Nuggets Draft Shawn Bradley
In most drafts a player with Bradleys ratings would likely not be a top 10 pick, however due to the lack of depth in the class and the curiosity on his defensive game it wasn’t a real surprise to see him called out at pick 8. TC for Bradley was perfect as well with gains in both defence and rebounding, if the Nuggets GM can manage to get a mentor from a dpoty then Bradley could be scary on the defensive end. After seeing a small glimpse of Preseason it looks like his shot blocking is up to par to his nba numbers which can only be a positive for the Nuggets. Overall Rating A
#9 Timberwolves Draft C Alexander Belov
3rd big to fall in the top 10 only shows the demand for young bigs in the league, while face value Belovs ratings look decent unfortunately it doesn’t look like he moves the needle much defensively, was a bit of mixed bag of a TC as well as his pot dropped but boards improved, moving forward the Wolves will need to decide to try and salvage his defence or just try develop him into an elite rebounder. Overall Rating C+
#10 Dallas Mavericks Draft PG Steve Kerr
The Mavs traded their way up from pick 13 to grab Kerr at 10, a look at his ratings his nothing more then what you expect out of a 2nd rounder however due to Kerrs interesting draft note which allows him to be a mentor and mentor another player at any position with a super mentor stip, his value risen a bit, normally even with his note Kerr should have dropped to the 15-20 area, but the draft wasn’t exactly interesting after lotto so chances were he would have been picked up earlier then usual. I’m not going to bother discussing TC as his only in the league for his note. Overall Rating C
#11 Celtics Draft PG Yuki Togashi
Another player who was called up a little earlier due to his draft note, I think this was a very good pick for the Celtics who are tank mode for at least this Season and can take full advantage of his draft note, shame Sarunas didn’t enter the league this Season as he would be the perfect player to use his note on, Yuki didn’t improve at all during TC which was a shame but he did put up some nice numbers in Preseason. Overall Rating B+
#12 Spurs Draft SF Jeremiah Profit
I didn’t take much notice of Profit in the draft but a player entering the draft with B- in 4 categories to go with A potential would usually land in the top 10, what I think might have pushed spot back was the low demand for his position, he however looked a good fit for the Spurs who are still building their roster up and need as much young talent as possible. TC wasn’t kind to Profit, and it’s fair to say you can see why some GMs might have avoided him. I do expect him to make some sort of recovery as his interim GM will continue to camp him, however he will definitely need the help. Overall rating C
#13 Grizzlies Draft PG Knight Cantin
Traded back for 10 to 13 but still think Grizzlies would have considered Cantlin if they kept the 10th pick, had a nice TC might have dropped in potential but nice gains in outside shot alongside his note which allows a 3rd camp per playoff appearance, while I highly doubt he’ll get the starting role there should be enough for Grizzlies to develop either a solid starter or even a very handy backup if they were to upgrade. Overall Rating B-
#1 Dallas Mavericks Draft Eddie Jones
Since I made the pick I guess I can give more in detail of my decision, my main aim was to stay in the top 3 as I was mainly interested in Richmond, Schmidt and Jones. I knew Schmidt had dominated a previous version and that Richmond should develop into a high volume scorer, however when Jones was slapped with a very rewarding Draft note and after scouting him and seeing he was very solid in areas I value highly in a young wing, I knew Jones would be getting the call out first. So far it’s fair to say Jones has had a successful first TC in the league going +4, not to mention getting supercamped and having his draft note activated which has allowed him to slot into the starting lineup. I’m expecting him to put up numbers around the 18/5/3 and 2 steals area as well. Overall rating A
#2 Miami Heat Draft Oscar Schmidt
As mentioned previously, I felt it would be a coin toss between Oscar/Richmond/Stoudamire to be called out next, I know leflop had considered taking Osaruyi with the 2nd pick but went with what I think to be the next safest pick in the draft, being overseas for 3 Seasons should give leflop enough time to juice up his bank balance as Oscar is going to need as much camping love as possible. I did scout Oscar prior to picking Jones, there are some very promising areas to his game but a couple that will need work so hopefully his 3 years overseas can progress that. TC was a mixed bag for Oscar, a +1 to outside and defence but drop in potential, the latter was a surprise tbh as he was one of the highest in that category. Moving forward, the next couple of TCs will be very important for the Heat to see what the future holds for Oscar. Overall rating B
#3 Detroit Pistons Draft Damon Stoudamire
Next up the Pistons took their future floor general in Stoudamire, ratings wise Stoudamire looked very promising with a solid foundation and would have been a player I would have looked closer if I didn’t have Peterson at the time. Has yet to receive any camping love due to the Pistons having some financial issues but waiting in the shadows is the newly acquired Haliburton who should take Stoudamire under his wing and help develop him into hopefully a future all star. A nice TC rewarded Stoudamire a +2 to start of with and eventually getting mentored by Haliburton gives him a promising start to his career. Overall Rating B+
#4 Milwaukee Bucks Draft Mitch Richmond
The #1 projected team unfortunately dropped down to #4 however I still think they would still be happy to pick up Richmond, looked like the better scorer outta the class and his scouting report looked solid as well. There are some issues with his handles which hopefully is an area that the Bucks GM does work on, though Bucks have brought in an high tempo all league 1st team SG in Devin Booker to mentor and fast track his scoring. Which the Bucks will be hoping for as they don’t have their 1st rounder next year. An average TC for Mitch with a +1 to his outside scoring wasn’t an ideal start but fingers crossed he has more luck in the future. Overall Rating B
#5 Portland Trailblazers draft Michael Finley
Up at 5 are the Blazers after dropping down from #4 projected, this is an area of the draft where the draft dropped off slightly, Finley looked like a solid pick and was one of my favourite players growing up but underwhelming TC wouldn’t have put a smile on afros face, +1 outside and -1 potential and chances are his B- inside game is possibly inflated due to a higher jumping ability, afro will need to get the heavy camps in sooner rather then later. Overall Rating B-
#6 Houston Rockets draft Paul Osaruyi
The first big on the board and a player who I really don’t know where he could possibly fall in the top 10, with the class starved on decent bigs, Paul was the slightly best available. Had an excellent TC going +4 to all major categories but dropped in potential, which isn’t anything to worry about as his up and coming mentor boost with Giannis should make his game even more promising, maybe leflop was right all along and should have grabbed him at #2. Overall Rating A
#7 Brooklyn Nets Draft PG Brandon McCoy Jr.
Ahh another year we’re calling out Brooklyns name in the lottery, another player who looked like he could go anywhere between 4 and 10. Nets needed a PG for the future and I think McCoy just might be that, hopefully the recent 2 MAX PGs doesn’t get in the way. McCoy comes in a similar mold to previous top PGs with an already solid rebounding and defensive game yet rather raw offensively, will be interesting if McCoy is developed or if Nets flipped elsewhere for an established big to work with Stokes. A +3 in TC was very welcoming news for Nets, hopefully they can find the cash to camp him on top of the other talent on their roster. Overall Grade B
#8 Denver Nuggets Draft Shawn Bradley
In most drafts a player with Bradleys ratings would likely not be a top 10 pick, however due to the lack of depth in the class and the curiosity on his defensive game it wasn’t a real surprise to see him called out at pick 8. TC for Bradley was perfect as well with gains in both defence and rebounding, if the Nuggets GM can manage to get a mentor from a dpoty then Bradley could be scary on the defensive end. After seeing a small glimpse of Preseason it looks like his shot blocking is up to par to his nba numbers which can only be a positive for the Nuggets. Overall Rating A
#9 Timberwolves Draft C Alexander Belov
3rd big to fall in the top 10 only shows the demand for young bigs in the league, while face value Belovs ratings look decent unfortunately it doesn’t look like he moves the needle much defensively, was a bit of mixed bag of a TC as well as his pot dropped but boards improved, moving forward the Wolves will need to decide to try and salvage his defence or just try develop him into an elite rebounder. Overall Rating C+
#10 Dallas Mavericks Draft PG Steve Kerr
The Mavs traded their way up from pick 13 to grab Kerr at 10, a look at his ratings his nothing more then what you expect out of a 2nd rounder however due to Kerrs interesting draft note which allows him to be a mentor and mentor another player at any position with a super mentor stip, his value risen a bit, normally even with his note Kerr should have dropped to the 15-20 area, but the draft wasn’t exactly interesting after lotto so chances were he would have been picked up earlier then usual. I’m not going to bother discussing TC as his only in the league for his note. Overall Rating C
#11 Celtics Draft PG Yuki Togashi
Another player who was called up a little earlier due to his draft note, I think this was a very good pick for the Celtics who are tank mode for at least this Season and can take full advantage of his draft note, shame Sarunas didn’t enter the league this Season as he would be the perfect player to use his note on, Yuki didn’t improve at all during TC which was a shame but he did put up some nice numbers in Preseason. Overall Rating B+
#12 Spurs Draft SF Jeremiah Profit
I didn’t take much notice of Profit in the draft but a player entering the draft with B- in 4 categories to go with A potential would usually land in the top 10, what I think might have pushed spot back was the low demand for his position, he however looked a good fit for the Spurs who are still building their roster up and need as much young talent as possible. TC wasn’t kind to Profit, and it’s fair to say you can see why some GMs might have avoided him. I do expect him to make some sort of recovery as his interim GM will continue to camp him, however he will definitely need the help. Overall rating C
#13 Grizzlies Draft PG Knight Cantin
Traded back for 10 to 13 but still think Grizzlies would have considered Cantlin if they kept the 10th pick, had a nice TC might have dropped in potential but nice gains in outside shot alongside his note which allows a 3rd camp per playoff appearance, while I highly doubt he’ll get the starting role there should be enough for Grizzlies to develop either a solid starter or even a very handy backup if they were to upgrade. Overall Rating B-
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