A closer look at Bradley Beal

[Derek]

Wade is a very strong, very fast guard with excellent body control and a high BBIQ and point guard like skills. Yes he gets a lot of calls, but he is fearless driving the paint, and understands how to get defenders out of balance. It is interesting that if you look at the individual stats, you might not be impressed. But when you look at his impact on the game it is obvious.

I don't see comparing beal and wade at all. I think he is not as big and not as fast, but is a better shooter. I have him as more of an Eric Gordon type. In fact I don't see a clear wade similarity in the draft until you get to tony Wroten.. Who is taller but has a similar game... That said, I would have to be sold on the idea that a wade type and Kyrie would get along in the back court. I am thinking more Reggie miller. Kyrie can get to the rim on any seam. So my thought is at you want a player that works well off the ball, defends well and spreads the floor.

That's Beal

 

[Shakalu M.D.]

I think Kyrie could work better with a "Wade type" than LeBron does. Sure, Kyrie's at his best when he attacks the rim and has the ball, but I've noticed he's actually very adept at moving without the ball. We all know he's a great shooter, so if someone was breaking down the D, Kyrie could catch a breather and be ready to catch and shoot.

Beal's a great shooter too, so I think he'd fit in well with Kyrie.

Barnes was an absolute choke artist last night, 1-12 or whatever until the last couple minutes of the game. My friend knows nothing about how the NBA draft works and thinks it works more like the NFL draft. She asked me, "Is this guy still going in the 1st round after a performance like that?" Obviously he is, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him slip a bit, he hasn't been doing anything in the tourney.

 

[TheISHT]

If you have people that can shoot and get to the rim, any of them would fit fine. The bigger question to ask is, "Do they always need the ball in their hands to be effective (Rivers)?

 

[Douglar]

There's this rumor out there that's he's a good shooter, but Beal shot 33.7% from the college three point line and 44.4% from the floor. If he's a shooter, he's doing a good job of hiding it. He strikes me more as a "volume scorer". Beal avoids the "below average defender" label in college, but I'm not sure he's above average in the NBA. He's not super quick and has his length isn't anything special for a 6'4" player. Beal's very likely to be a solid rotation player somewhere in the NBA, but it seems to me like his upside is limited at decent starter on the right team. I'm not sure the Cavs are the right team for him.

His stock might be high right now, but after all of the draft workouts in May, I think he returns back to the 7-9 spot in the mock drafts.

The Cavs could do worse than picking Beal, but I think they could also do better. I'm not that excited about him.

 

[YuenglingGator]

On the biggest stage he has stepped up his game, that is what I like to see. After playing out of position all year, and playing 3rd fiddle to ball dominant guards such as Walker and Kenny, he was finally given permission by Donovan to step up and take a leadership role over the upperclassman despite being a Freshman. Brad was hesitant all year to step on toes and get out of line, but when Walker, then lone senior, wasn't being a leader all year Donovan gave up on him and gave the Freshman the wheel. He knows Beal is their best player, he has been asked to rebound - where he leads the team - and also sometimes guard PFs since Will Yeguete has been out, and he has certainly be playing bigger then his size.

In the last 4 games, which include their elimination in the SEC tourny to #1 UK, and the first 3 rounds of the NCAA Tourny, he has finally gotten comfortable and is playing his game. While Lamb gets knocked out in the first round and Barnes lowers his draft stock with poor performances (what is he lke 35% over the past month?), guards/wings like MGK and Beal have shown to be the real deal. In those 4 games, which are the biggest 4 games he has played all year, Beal is shooting 61% from the floor, 47.6% on 3s, averaging 17.25 ppg, 8.5 rebounds, 3.25 assists, and 1.5 steals.

I agree that the Cavs could do better than drafting Beal, but that is by drafting A Davis or MKG.

 

[Derek]

There's this rumor out there that's he's a good shooter, but Beal shot 33.7% from the college three point line and 44.4% from the floor. If he's a shooter, he's doing a good job of hiding it. He strikes me more as a "volume scorer". Beal avoids the "below average defender" label in college, but I'm not sure he's above average in the NBA. He's not super quick and has his length isn't anything special for a 6'4" player. Beal's very likely to be a solid rotation player somewhere in the NBA, but it seems to me like his upside is limited at decent starter on the right team. I'm not sure the Cavs are the right team for him.

His stock might be high right now, but after all of the draft workouts in May, I think he returns back to the 7-9 spot in the mock drafts.

The Cavs could do worse than picking Beal, but I think they could also do better. I'm not that excited about him.

Not a rumor, Beal is a very good shooter. He's really hampered at times by playing alongside Walker and Boynton, oth of whom look for their own shots first.

Trust me, "volume scorer" is the last term anybody would use to describe Beal.

Defensively, he's avoided a poor defender label by being a very good defender while playing out of position. He more athletic than I think most people anticipated and he makes up for a lack of length with excellent strength and defensive fundamentals.

Like CavsinFL said, we can do better than Beal, but only with Davis or Kidd-Gilchrist.

 

[metalman213]

Not a rumor, Beal is a very good shooter. He's really hampered at times by playing alongside Walker and Boynton, oth of whom look for their own shots first.

Trust me, "volume scorer" is the last term anybody would use to describe Beal.

Defensively, he's avoided a poor defender label by being a very good defender while playing out of position. He more athletic than I think most people anticipated and he makes up for a lack of length with excellent strength and defensive fundamentals.

Like CavsinFL said, we can do better than Beal, but only with Davis or Kidd-Gilchrist.

im not sure how exactly playing with walker and boynton makes his three point % any lower...

 

[YuenglingGator]

im not sure how exactly playing with walker and boynton makes his three point % any lower...

Walker has a hard time scoring when he gets in the paint, because of his size he is often blocked. Now, because of his speed and quickness he can penetrate, just can't score consistently while doing this. Because of this, he often kicks out. Now this sounds great because it leads to a lot of 3s for the Gators who are tops in the country, except, after swinging the ball around and running down shot clocks, the smaller guards make their move, and often after being cut off and realizing they can't get a shot off, they kick it to someone like Beal who has to force up a 3 at the end of the clock. I know last game vs MARQ he was 8-10 shooting, I don't know what one of his misses were, but one definitely was what I described. I am not writing off his 3pt shooting to this, it happens on every team. I am just saying it happens more to him because his guards drive, can't score in the lane, and look for a bail out

 

[Derek]

im not sure how exactly playing with walker and boynton makes his three point % any lower...

It's difficult to shoot a good % when you aren't getting shots in rhythm

 

[Giambiwannabe7]

Florida has been shown nationally quite a bit this year and I've been making a point to watch just for the Beal factor. The kid can definitely ball. He seems unselfish and able to still flow in the offense despite not recieiving the ball on rotations as much as he should as well as playing out of position. Unfortunately, I see no way he ends up on our roster. He's not good enough to crack the top 3, yet he's deserving to go between 4 and 7, where we will likely be just outside of. I've stated for quite some time I believe MKG eventually becomes the best player to come out of this draft, so that is the guy I would love to target if we end up 2 or 3. But, if there happens to be some possible way he does fall to us, I think we'd be wise to jump on him. I believe he'd flourish playing with a PG like Kyrie.

 

[metalman213]

It's difficult to shoot a good % when you aren't getting shots in rhythm

ive watched florida a couple of times, and maybe i just caught him on his bad days, but ive seen him clank several wide open threes... his mechanics look nice, but there should be some doubt about his stroke imo...

 

[Derek]

ive watched florida a couple of times, and maybe i just caught him on his bad days, but ive seen him clank several wide open threes... his mechanics look nice, but there should be some doubt about his stroke imo...

I don't know what to tell you, I've watched him in probably 7 or 8 games this year and I have no worries about his jump shot.

For me, his jump shot is a given and it's been very exciting to see the other parts of his game develop.

The only guys I'd take over him are Davis and MKG.

 

[tedginnjr]

There's this rumor out there that's he's a good shooter, but Beal shot 33.7% from the college three point line and 44.4% from the floor. If he's a shooter, he's doing a good job of hiding it. He strikes me more as a "volume scorer". Beal avoids the "below average defender" label in college, but I'm not sure he's above average in the NBA. He's not super quick and has his length isn't anything special for a 6'4" player. Beal's very likely to be a solid rotation player somewhere in the NBA, but it seems to me like his upside is limited at decent starter on the right team. I'm not sure the Cavs are the right team for him.

His stock might be high right now, but after all of the draft workouts in May, I think he returns back to the 7-9 spot in the mock drafts.

The Cavs could do worse than picking Beal, but I think they could also do better. I'm not that excited about him.

Don't see Beal dropping out of the top five. About his shot, here's a take from Draft Express:

Despite being considered one of the best shooters in his high school class, Beal has struggled to hit jumpers consistently all season. Nearly half of his field goal attempts have come from 3-point range, but he's able to connect on just 33% of them thus far. Looking at his mechanics, there's very little not to like about his shooting form, as he gets great elevation, possesses a consistent release point, shows excellent follow-through, and has range that extends well beyond the college 3-point line.

Despite the inconsistent results, it's difficult not to see Beal developing into a very good NBA 3-point shooter in time, especially considering his reportedly stellar work ethic and the fact that this has always been the strongest part of his game. He will need to confirm that in private NBA workouts, but his 33% accuracy rate is likely the lowest percentage he'll shoot his entire career from the 3-point line.

 

[YuenglingGator]

ive watched florida a couple of times, and maybe i just caught him on his bad days, but ive seen him clank several wide open threes... his mechanics look nice, but there should be some doubt about his stroke imo...

I've seen him clank plenty as well, and despite his pure mechanics it concerned me early on. I sat there at games sometimes disappointed wondering why. But all I've seen since then is improvement. The mechanics were there they just weren't falling. Idk if he's gotten more comfortable, confident, rid of the jitters, not scared to think score first, idk what it is. All I know is on the biggest stage he's been a top 5 player in this tournament and he's shooting lately like every one expected him too. People were too hung up on the Ray Ray comparison. I mean that bothers me no one has made more 3s ever then Ray Ray. It was an unfair comparison that every one dwells on.

 

[MirORich]

It could be tricky, but there are some scenario where I could see Beal dropping out of the top 5.

#1: Size. GMs always place a premium on talented big guys. I definitely see Davis, Drummond and Robinson going before Beal. Additionally, depending on team need, other GM's might value Henson, Sullinger over Beal

#2 Team need. Say Sacramento has the #4 pick and Davis, Drummond and Robinson go top 3. Sacramento already has Thornton, Jimmer, and Tyreke at the two. They'd take MKG or even Barnes over Beal all day long, especially since in Isiah Thomas, they're already undersized at the PG.

#3 Freak athletes. Don't discount what workouts will do to blind a GM. Perry JonesIII or Jeremy Lamb could easily get overvalued by some GM and go before Beal.

#4 Foreign player. At this time last year, it was not known how high guys like Jonas V, Vesely, and Bismack were going to go. If we want Beal or less likely MKG to fall to us, we need to hope that some relatively unknown foreign player declares and makes a big impression at the workouts.

Lastly, with how much perceived talent is in this to 14, I don't think I trade up is out of the question at all. I think 1 and 2 will be off limits, but depending on where are 2 picks lay, I think there is at least the possibility of trading our 2 picks for a pick in the 3-6 range for a player we covet.