Phx-Suns.Net

Marty [Mori Chu] wrote:

ShelC wrote:Exactly. There are two kind of players in the league: Guys that play basketball and basketball players. Give me the basketball player every single time. And don't feed me BS about some kid's untapped potential because he just started playing at 16 and has so much more room to grow. Give me the kid who's been playing since he's 6 years old because he loves it.

I generally agree with this thinking. But I don't think you can be too religious about such a rule. If you had this as a must-have quality in the draft, you'd have passed on the Greek Freak, who began playing relatively late in his life. And wasn't the same true for Joel Embiid? Again, I mostly agree with this mindset, just saying that there are some really good exceptions to it.

That's a good point. I wouldn't eliminate a guy because he didn't grow up playing basketball. It's more about their work ethic and whether or not they fell in love with the game or if they just started playing because they were tall. We don't really know where Chriss falls, he started playing basketball late, was he just not exposed to it or did he just get too tall for football. Does he love basketball now? How much work is he willing to put in? It seems like the suns have the same questions, I think Triano asked Chriss if he loved basketball. Hopefully Chriss figures out he loves it and is willing to work.

Embiid, Giannis, Hakeem all grew up in countries where basketball wasn't as big. They got into basketball later not because they just outgrew soccer but because they loved basketball. You saw ridiculous development from those guys because they were athletic freaks that developed a love for basketball later and their skills grew like crazy compared to other prospects their age because most prospects had already started developing their skills.

Bagley loves basketball. Don't put him in that box. He also has an insane work ethic that will keep him from failing.

Chriss had the opportunity to play basketball at a younger age. It wasn't like he was never exposed to it growing up in the US. This is why I would question his love too. I don't think he understands how much love for the sport and amount of work it takes to become the best at it.

In2ition wrote:Bagley loves basketball. Don't put him in that box. He also has an insane work ethic that will keep him from failing.

I wasn't making any statements about anyone in particular. I mentioned Ayton/Bagley/Bamba because they are the ones but that have a physical/athletic advantage over the other top guys. I don't know anything about their work ethic or their love of basketball.

Split T wrote:

In2ition wrote:Bagley loves basketball. Don't put him in that box. He also has an insane work ethic that will keep him from failing.

I wasn't making any statements about anyone in particular. I mentioned Ayton/Bagley/Bamba because they are the ones but that have a physical/athletic advantage over the other top guys. I don't know anything about their work ethic or their love of basketball.

Yeah, I assumed that.

https://twitter.com/Mike_Schmitz/status/979794932146851841 Yes please.

Luka looks to me like a true #1 pick, and mock drafts are just giving us Ayton and Bagley because they know we need a big guy.

https://twitter.com/Cosmis/status/967838429751992320 https://twitter.com/Cosmis/status/967845806337388544

Daniel Gafford returning to Arkansas.

http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2018 ... more-seas/

Brandon McCoy entering the draft.

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/2293 ... man-season

Split T wrote:https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/979442768962641924 Very interesting to see if this becomes a trend. I would love if the g league starts to get more top recruits

I think this is cool and was giving it some more thought earlier. Would like some feedback from you guys

I only peeped Shaq and Trey Burke to see if they were signed from the respective G League Affiliate because I was wondering if that is always the case. Reason being , let's use Bazley in a hypothetical and he signs with NAZ Suns. Develops well next season, we like him as a player but although he would basically "grow" with us that would have no bearing on the draft and he can still be anyone's pick.

I just think that could be an interesting twist if this does become a trend. In the Burke article I read the Westchester Knicks said because Burke had been with them in training camp they made sure to sign him before the G League showcase before other execs and teams could get a good look at him. So yes the idea of the G League is to ready the players for the NBA but it might be bitter sweet losing these high school talents after working with them for a full season. Like when you draft the Euro player and let him stay in Europe "to grow/develop" at least you monitor him and it's your choice when he's ready and if you keep him.
Anyone else looked at it from this angle ?

Interesting take, Bajan. You could see some missed opportunities. It could go the other way, too. You get a chance to see a guy's work ethic before you sign him.

The thing with JJJ's advanced stats, is that he doesn't shoot any tough shots. So of course his TS% is high.

He might still be a great do-it-all role player, but I no longer think he'll grow into a star.

If Doncic is the true #1, can we take him and make it work with Booker, Jackson, Warren? I do believe in drafting for talent and trading for need and would hate to take Ayton or Bagley, who may be really good players in their own right, just to fill a need up front. I'd rather take a winner in Doncic and package Warren and our later picks to try and snag maybe snag 8, 9 or 10 and take a solid big like Wendell Carter.

ShelC wrote:If Doncic is the true #1, can we take him and make it work with Booker, Jackson, Warren? I do believe in drafting for talent and trading for need and would hate to take Ayton or Bagley, who may be really good players in their own right, just to fill a need up front. I'd rather take a winner in Doncic and package Warren and our later picks to try and snag maybe snag 8, 9 or 10 and take a solid big like Wendell Carter.

You think Warren is too good to come off the bench?

Is he a luxury we can afford to package to get another late lotto pick? Will he accept a bench role? Do we have a true need for a slasher like him with Jackson playing and getting 35minutes a night? Can we replace him with a player who provides more of a need, such as 3pt shooting? Should we sell high on a young 20ppg scorer on a good deal?

I honestly like Warren and his ability to get such easy baskets. But I think he's a luxury and we have more pressing needs, especially if we take Doncic at #1. Hell if we take Doncic, we'll have to find minutes for him and Jackson.

ShelC wrote:Hell if we take Doncic, we'll have to find minutes for him and Jackson.

I don’t see that as a problem. Booker-Jackson-Doncic works fine as a 1-2-3. Jackson would guard the opposing PG most of the time, Doncic would take the bulk of the point duties on offense.

ShelC wrote:If Doncic is the true #1, can we take him and make it work with Booker, Jackson, Warren? I do believe in drafting for talent and trading for need and would hate to take Ayton or Bagley, who may be really good players in their own right, just to fill a need up front. I'd rather take a winner in Doncic and package Warren and our later picks to try and snag maybe snag 8, 9 or 10 and take a solid big like Wendell Carter.

I would really love that scenario.

O_Gardino wrote:Interesting take, Bajan. You could see some missed opportunities. It could go the other way, too. You get a chance to see a guy's work ethic before you sign him.

Yea kool, was just throwing that out there

I haven't watched nearly as much as some of you guys but I like Doncic.
This is an interesting scenario with trading TJ to try get another Top 10 pick and if it would be best to go Big first then Guard or the Doncic route. I honestly have no clue, I'm in the category of fans who trying not to think about the draft too much because I paranoid it will get messed up sigh.