I agree that NAW was a great value selection at 17. 3 and D is what everyone is looking for, and he is one of the best 3 and D players in the draft.
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I agree that NAW was a great value selection at 17. 3 and D is what everyone is looking for, and he is one of the best 3 and D players in the draft.
Not to mention he’s a great passerOriginally Posted by Darkhorse985
Is he a 3? To me NAW is much more of a Combo Guard.
Definitely a combo guard. Listed at shooting guard, played a lot of PG too, he's 6'5. Has a 6'9.5'' wingspan though, which is nice, so he can guard up a little.
Basketball.
Yeah I suppose when we're use to running out Moore at 6'3 at the SF position having a 6'5 - 6 6'6 guy feels like a giant for the position. Lol
From the looks of things, they are all in with Gentry (for better or worse) and they are drafting guys that can run the floor and bring quality depth. Hopefully this means the end of the Ian Clark’s and so forth because we are at our best when we run other teams out of the gym. Having a million competent guys will help us in that department while we keep the minutes manageable.
Zion Williamson: A+, He’s the best player on the planet at 18 years old. Has the chance to be an all time great. He’s a mix between Charles Barkley & Blake Griffin. I can’t wait to see him on the court for the Pels. He was a no brainer pick
Jaxson Hayes: A-, he was the best center in the draft. He’s a tremendous shot blocker and athlete. He wasn’t the best rebounder though and I have no idea if he has any kind of jump shot cause most of his points came off dunks. Hopefully he can put on some weight and possibly develop a jump shot. I thought they had a player or two that offered more upside
Nickeil Alexander-Walker: B, he has a great jump shot and think his shooting is why he was selected. We needed a center and 3 point shooting the most and we got both with the picks acquired from Atlanta. The only problem is shooting guard is our deepest position on the team with Jrue Holiday, Josh Hart, and Etwaun Moore. At least Jrue is more of a combo guard and hopefully NAW(wish his name was Nickeil Walker-Alexander cause NWA would be so sweet) is as well. Gentry has shown that he doesn’t mind playing a 3 guard lineup, so we will likely see that when Brandon Ingram is not on the floor. I just wish we had taken Nassir Little or Brandon Clarke cause I thought they were both top 15 talents in this draft, but I think shooting over took the upside here.
The second round guy gets a C+ since they had plenty of really talented players still on the board at 35 & 39. I would of preferred Bol Bol since I viewed him as a top 15 talent who fell cause of a threat of injury and a not so great motor. Not the most motivated player and him falling to 44 may have been a wake up call. The upside there was through the roof and the Nuggets who seem to always take upside guys that fall may have hit pay dirt yet again. They have the best stretch 5 in the game in Jokic that Bol gets to learn from, so a win win for them & him.
I think getting 2 future seconds that look to be in way more deeper drafts was a huge move as well. I’ll give that move an A.
Overall grade: A, we got 3 legit players that fit team needs with a power forward, center, and 3 point shooting. Zion was no brainer and has the chance to be one of the best to have played the game. Hayes was the best center in the draft and we needed a future starter there. NAW is a great shooter and we needed that. We likely didn’t want to bring in 4 rookies, so getting a draft & stash Brazilian small forward with potential was a good move. Then getting 2 future 2nds that could be in the 2021 &/or 2022 drafts was a huge move since both those drafts should be way deeper than this one. Also getting a future Cavs 1st is huge, but I think that pick may never happen. It is top 10 protected next year and I don’t see it transferring. No way the Cavs don’t pick in the top 10 next year. Dumping Solo Hill was huge as well, so that has to be taken in consideration when grading the draft. We now have room to possibly go after a max guy, but I think we should just sign a decent point guard, power forward, and possibly a small forward for a year or 2. Some vets with playoff & maybe even title experience would he nice.
Last edited by DaPelFromHell; 06-21-2019 at 07:32 PM.
Zion: A+
Jaxson Hayes: B+ potential is very high. He needs a lot of coaching and he needs to put on 15-25lbs. I like him better than Jarrett Allen and see him being awesome in the pick n roll because he’s extremely fast. He’s just a puppy right now but I think he’s gonna fill out, his dad was 250lbs football player. I think Hayes will fit great in Gentry’s offense and could be a nice fit next to Zion IF he develops into a starter. My concern is he’s very very foul prone. Still, he was the right pick IMO.
NAW: A++ Steal of the draft. Watch, he’ll be better than Culver. Everyone was so high on Culver which is ridiculous. I think NAW will be a guy who will win games for the PELS. His BBIQ is so obvious. I think GMs will look back at this draft and regret passing on this kid.
Atlanta Trade: A+++ Brilliant. For the big picture it was probably the right move. I can’t even keep track of how many assets we have now!!! I’m dizzy.
AD who??????
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Now with a day to analyze the picks, Nickeil Alexander-Walker may have been the perfect pick. I wanted Nassir Little or would of been happy with Brandon Clarke cause both those guys have more upside and value since they were both seen as top 15 talents in my eyes. We are stacked at shooting guard, but don’t really have a young future starter like we have at the other 4 positions with Zion, Ingram, Ball, & Hayes. His shooting was top notch and with their starter at point Justin Robinson out a good bit of time last year he played point guard showing his combo guard capabilities. He’s also a pretty damn good defender as well. If his shooting translates to the NBA he could be a sneaky great pick for us.
Might have to call him NAWlins!!
Last edited by DaPelFromHell; 06-21-2019 at 10:38 PM.
Okay so, follow up question
Since everyone seems pretty positive on our draft night (which is pretty much guaranteed just because we got Zion) I'd like to know who, if anyone, you guys think LOST the draft? Who do you think drafted poorly? Obviously in reality we won't know for like, 2 years, but just gut feeling and instinct.
To me, the biggest losers of the draft were Washington and Oklahoma City. There are other teams who I think drafted poorly (Cleveland) but none who I think had just such a debacle as those two.
Edit: Also, Phoenix just bungled it too.
Last edited by Pelicanidae; 06-22-2019 at 04:43 AM.
I agree that Washington's pick of Rui was not a good one. Seems to be a great kid, but I think he is going to have tons of problems trying to translate his skillset to the NBA. At least all of those second round picks that the Pelicans own from the Wizards should be almost first rounders.
Phoenix had a lot of needs going into the draft and might have a good player in Cam Johnson if they can keep him healthy. If only they had someone like Aaron Nelson watching over him.
The Suns needed a point guard to run the show and I just don't think Ty Jerome is the answer. IMO they will still be looking for a PG.
The two teams that I would add to the list are Boston and Golden State. Boston had three first round picks, enough ammunition to trade up for players they really like. I can't imagine that they went into the draft hoping to come out of it with Romeo Langford, Grant Williams, Carsen Edwards and Tremont Waters. Oh, and they trade out of #20 with the hated Sixers, allowing them to take a guy they should have been high on in Matisse Thybulle. A real downer for Celtics fans. Golden State was picking late, so not a lot was expected. Maybe they are smarter than everyone else, but with their late first round pick they take Jordan Poole, who most expected to go undrafted. Then they trade up twice in the second round to take an extremely raw guy they had on their G league team and another guy that many thought would go undrafted. Again, they might be geniuses and the players all work out for them. After you get to a certain point, it's all a matter of "the eye of the beholder" anyway, but I wasn't a fan of what they did.
Most people would give Portland a pass on Nassir Little -- just on potential alone he is worth the pick. But with only one pick in the draft, that was the guy they chose to roll with. I wouldn't have done it, because I don't have any faith in Little, but there really isn't anyone else I can point to as a better choice at that point in the draft. That's why I am not as hard on OKC either.
The worst to me are the Wizards, Suns, Celtics and Warriors.
I like Rui as a person, he seems to be very nice and have a positive personality. I wish him all of the best, and he does seem like he could have a legitimate offensive game. It's just unfortunate that he's a calamitously bad defender and passer. I guess that's what happens when a franchise drafts someone they've never even spoken to on the phone. I saw Rui's press conference, and they literally asked him to double-check if he could shoot the three. Not the media: the management. Absolute incompetence.I agree that Washington's pick of Rui was not a good one. Seems to be a great kid, but I think he is going to have tons of problems trying to translate his skillset to the NBA. At least all of those second round picks that the Pelicans own from the Wizards should be almost first rounders.
Phoenix had a lot of needs going into the draft and might have a good player in Cam Johnson if they can keep him healthy. If only they had someone like Aaron Nelson watching over him.
The two teams that I would add to the list are Boston and Golden State. Boston had three first round picks, enough ammunition to trade up for players they really like. I can't imagine that they went into the draft hoping to come out of it with Romeo Langford, Grant Williams, Carsen Edwards and Tremont Waters. Oh, and they trade out of #20 with the hated Sixers, allowing them to take a guy they should have been high on in Matisse Thybulle. A real downer for Celtics fans. Golden State was picking late, so not a lot was expected. Maybe they are smarter than everyone else, but with their late first round pick they take Jordan Poole, who most expected to go undrafted. Then they trade up twice in the second round to take an extremely raw guy they had on their G league team and another guy that many thought would go undrafted. Again, they might be geniuses and the players all work out for them. After you get to a certain point, it's all a matter of "the eye of the beholder" anyway, but I wasn't a fan of what they did.
Most people would give Portland a pass on Nassir Little -- just on potential alone he is worth the pick. But with only one pick in the draft, that was the guy they chose to roll with. I wouldn't have done it, because I don't have any faith in Little, but there really isn't anyone else I can point to as a better choice at that point in the draft. That's why I am not as hard on OKC either.
The worst to me are the Wizards, Suns, Celtics and Warriors.
Cam Johnson is a good player. When I say Phoenix did an awful job, I don't necessarily mean that Cam was a terrible selection. I mean that there was NO reason to pick him at #11. Nobody had him going that high. They could have easily traded down, secured two later picks (like we did, for example) and their man would still have been right there, but giving them another pick as well. Combine that with the fact that they basically gave TJ Warren away for nothing, and it was a bad night.
Mostly, I agree about the Celtics. I'm not high on Langford at all, and as much as I think Edwards' shooting is real, his game is otherwise pretty unlikely to translate to the NBA. I have to disagree about Grant Williams though: he's a fantastic pickup for them. His game is well rounded and developed, and he is a smart, smart basketball player. He's probably instantly the smartest guy on their team, with Horford leaving. They're going to absolutely love him, and he'll be a very good player for them for a long time.
Golden State were pretty mediocre to me. I don't think they did great, but they also didn't have a lot to work with. I give Griff bonus points for sort of bending them over the barrel though. Everyone knew GS were selecting Smailagic, it was beyond obvious to anyone who had followed their draft aims for the last few years, and obviously Griff noticed too. Traded to #39, picked him up, and then basically held him ransom to Golden State for 2 future seconds. Just a crafty move, with long term payoff.
How does the heavily protected Cleveland 1st rounder that we got work again?
BI, Zion, and CJ had a net rating of +3 when on the court together. BI and Zion had a +13.4, BI and CJ had a +13.2, Zion and CJ was just +5.4.
BI and Zion worked. BI and CJ worked. It was CJ and Zion and all three together that didn't work.
Top 10 protected next year, then converts to 2021 and 2022 seconds
Last edited by AusPel; 06-24-2019 at 10:30 AM.
The Suns were by far the worst in my opinion. I'll get drafted in the first round before I understand the TJ Warren move.
Everything the Suns do makes more sense when you just assume their entire front office is permanently drunk.
I've got mates who are hardcore Suns fans. Feels sad for them.
Booker is asking out in 3....2...1...
Somebody got to be the NBA's New York Giants lol
It just makes no sense.
I heard someone say on a podcast (I think it was Gribanov, for The Stepien) that part of the reason that the Suns took Cam Johnson is that they're run by a player now, in James Jones, and former players have a very weird perspective on other young players. He argued that if Cam Johnson was 18, it wouldn't be a bad pick because his shooting skill is elite: it's just the rest of his game that's really shaky. But Cam Johnson is 23, and will turn 24 turning his rookie season. It's a bit too old to be hoping he learns to dribble properly, or to hope that he'll pick up defensive fundamentals.
Gribanov was saying though that former players generally don't seem to see age as a factor in evaluating other players because they feel that even when they themselves were aging, their game was always improving, because they were on the inside and could see the minute evolution in their game, especially mentally. So they seem to undersell the importance of age when evaluating a prospect without realising that most players don't actually add that much to their fundamental skillset after the age of 24 or 25. They don't seem to realise the difference in potential between a guy that's 18 and a guy that's 23.
I think Hayes will be a fine shooter. I think he has some good mid range potential to be completely honest.
For a guy that was a wide receiver turn basketball player. I'm honestly impressed. I don't know why the pick is so polarizing. We have to gamble high ceiling players with the overabundance of picks.
He has a good shot for a center to be honest. I think you take college style of play too face value. Nobody in college is gonna use a high efficiency paint player as a jump shot shooter on a team with very bad shooting. They are gonna take what they can get and try to use players in the most efficient style.. So, I think Hayes wasn't given the chance to do more, because he wasn't on a good Texas squad to allow them to more creative... And to be frank... That Texas Offense was awful..
It's a pick that splits the draft guys and the box-score-stat people.
Pretty much every ''draft guy'' I know, that is, people who understand the draft, drafting, and the evaluation of college talent, think he's great. By contrast, pretty much every guy who just looks at box score stats hates him because he wasn't that statistically productive college.
I've made the argument that it should be a goal of ours, if possible, to have two picks in the first round of every draft. With the first, you select the best consensus prospect: for this year, that would be Zion, but if we had the #3 pick then it would have been Barrett or something like that. That ''guarantee'' (of course no rookie is actually a guarantee) then gives you the freedom to make a slightly riskier play with the other pick, for someone with super high upside but who perhaps needs more work long term.
Last edited by Pelicanidae; 06-24-2019 at 12:09 PM.
Hayes was projected top 10 pick in every mock. Plus his jumper mechanics seem fine.
There's this weird idea out there, I think, that says you draft for median outcome. Like, ''oh, don't draft Hayes because if he doesn't live up to his potential he'll be bad, you should draft X player instead. His ceiling might be lower, but his floor is higher!''
Like, that's such a terrible strategy.
Nobody can name one player who just hit their floor and was a difference maker on a team that wasn't already a contender. Players who actually make an impact in the league are players who exceed their ''floor'', unless they're players who are so insanely promising that their floor is absurdly high anyway (Zion would be a good example of that, here).
If you are a rebuilding team, you shouldn't be drafting for ''floors'', at least not very often, because if you get X player and all they do is live up to their floor then it won't turn you into a winning team. You need people with real upside who can exceed their potential floor. Hayes is one of those guys.
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