blommen
Pissing Excellence
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Buckle up motherfuckers, 'cause we're getting on this train early and we're making good time!
Following a 2019 draft that seemed shallow in terms of high end talent but at least theoretically promises to yield a strong crop of productive Wings with very little to speak of in terms of Guard and Big Man talent, with almost no international talent to speak of, the 2020 class seems to be somewhat of an inverse of this. With almost no high end Wing talent to speak of in the lottery, the big names seem instead to be far more focused around a crop of big, versatile lead guards, a solid crop of international talent and a couple of interesting, if flawed Big Men. With the Cavs drafting ball dominant Guards two years in a row, it would be reeeaaaal tough to stomach picking up another one with a potential top pick, but if none of the top big man prospects project towards being able to play a modern style of basketball it needs to at least be a discussion.
If the Cavs do end up with a top 2-3 pick these are the guys that are going to come up a lot, what I've been able to gather about them and what potential issues they may present.
James Wiseman, C, Memphis
7-2, with a giant fuck-off wingspan somewhere between 7-4 and 7-6, Wiseman has been projected as the top pick for a loooong time, even if his production hasn't always reflected it. He does possess a nice looking jumper and projects as a floor spacer to go along with his absurd physical traits and athleticism, and is very young. The problem with Wiseman is that so far that's really all there is: An incredible frame, good instincts, tremendous athleticism for somebody his size and a jump shot. He's not shown a propensity for defending outside of the paint and while he does seem to have what it takes to develop as a floor spacer it's hard to envision him turning into the type of offensive weapon that would offset the issues he would present by being one dimensional and exploitable defensively, especially at that position.
My take: I could absolutely see a world where Wiseman comes into the league and has the kind of production Ayton just had, grabbing a bunch of boards, scoring points on a lot of lobs and some mid range J's. That's absolutely fine, but I do seriously wonder about the ability of that kind of player to actually impact winning in todays NBA. I don't value post scoring a lot, and I put a premium on my Big men being defensively versatile. stretching the floor is important but it's not enough for me to overlook glaring defensive deficiencies at that position.
Anthony Edwards, SG, Georgia
At 6-5 with a 6-9 wingspan and weighing in at 215 Edwards is more or less at the point where you wouldn't be too surprised if he was already physically developed enough to play in the NBA. He's a disgusting athlete with tremendous bounce and burst to go along with really good finishing ability with either hand. On top of that, he reclassified from 2020 to 2019 and is therefore also one of the youngest players in the draft, which should only further compound the upside factor come draft time. He's also shown improvement in terms of 3-point shooting and attacking from mid range, which from what I've been able to gather is what has basically catapulted him into the #1 talk. The questions about Edwards are manifold, however: he's facing a huuuuuuge leap in competition due to reclassifying, and he's going to a very young Georgia team where he will be counted on to have the ball a lot and carry a lot of responsibility. On top of that the general knocks on Edwards's game, decision making, game feel, consistency, effort, general fundamentals on either side of the ball could all be amplified by the position he will be put in at Georgia.
My take: We've already drafted two ball dominant guards, and it would be really difficult for me to completely stomach going with Edwards.... With that said, Edwards does present a level of defensive upside that neither Sexton or Garland possess, and if he really does project towards that type of 3 level scorer to go along with all NBA level defense can you even entertain not picking him up regardless of what we've been doing the past couple of years? I'm not sure, I think Edwards is one of the very few guard prospects in the class whose potential ceilling is high enough that you should consider picking him up, but it's just way too early at this point. (as is this entire thread but let's not dwell on that)
Cole Anthony, PG, UNC
Son of NBA vet Greg Anthony, he's got fuck you range on his jumper, really explosive bounce, a tight handle and good playmaking instincts. In general Anthony is just really damn polished on offense, he's tremendously skilled and plays the way you expect smart players to play. He's also a fiend on defense, extremely active and shows good fundamentals on that end as well. Sounds like a lay-up right? Well, here's the thing: He's 6-3, with a wingspan that isn't much to write home about and generally doesn't have the kind of frame you expect to fill out extremely well. On top of that he's a good deal older than the norm for the class and you'd have to wonder just how much of his percieved polish and IQ just comes from that.
My take: Nope. I refuse. I don't care if Cole Anthony is the second coming of Tre Young, I just cannot deal with taking more undersized guards. There has to be a limit, a line in the sand. This is my line in the sand. This line I will not cross. This is not up for discussion.
The next couple of names are other guys that I've looked into that have been floated around as slightly lower in the lottery that might be worth a look if we're not loving what is available at the tippy top and are looking for a trade down:
Isaiah Stewart, C, Washington.
6-9 C with a monstrous 7-4 wingspan, who is strong as a bull can really get off the floor and plays with a ton of energy. He's a great rim protector and post defender and has a good skillset for scoring in the post, but needs to improve as a PnR defender and defending on the perimeter in general before his potential as a lottery pick in unleashed. Will also need to improve his range considerably.
Amar Sylla, C, Senegal/played for Real Madrid, just signed with a Dutch club
Yet another smallish C with a 7 foot plus wingspan. Sylla is noticably more raw than Stewart, but the dude fucking flies. He is extremely quick and explosive and has a great frame for packing on more muscle. He's got great instincts as a rim protector and understanding of utilizing his length and verticality to avoid racking up fouls, which should indicate a good natural understanding of the game defensively. Offensively he's approximating what Siakam does, runs the floor, evolving as a ball handler and seems to have a good eye for finding the open man off the drive. 3-point shot very much a work in progress.
Players who should probably be looked into:
Theo Maledon
Deni Avdija
Precious Achiuwa
Wendell Moore
Isaac Okoro
Oscar Tshiebwe
Following a 2019 draft that seemed shallow in terms of high end talent but at least theoretically promises to yield a strong crop of productive Wings with very little to speak of in terms of Guard and Big Man talent, with almost no international talent to speak of, the 2020 class seems to be somewhat of an inverse of this. With almost no high end Wing talent to speak of in the lottery, the big names seem instead to be far more focused around a crop of big, versatile lead guards, a solid crop of international talent and a couple of interesting, if flawed Big Men. With the Cavs drafting ball dominant Guards two years in a row, it would be reeeaaaal tough to stomach picking up another one with a potential top pick, but if none of the top big man prospects project towards being able to play a modern style of basketball it needs to at least be a discussion.
If the Cavs do end up with a top 2-3 pick these are the guys that are going to come up a lot, what I've been able to gather about them and what potential issues they may present.
James Wiseman, C, Memphis
7-2, with a giant fuck-off wingspan somewhere between 7-4 and 7-6, Wiseman has been projected as the top pick for a loooong time, even if his production hasn't always reflected it. He does possess a nice looking jumper and projects as a floor spacer to go along with his absurd physical traits and athleticism, and is very young. The problem with Wiseman is that so far that's really all there is: An incredible frame, good instincts, tremendous athleticism for somebody his size and a jump shot. He's not shown a propensity for defending outside of the paint and while he does seem to have what it takes to develop as a floor spacer it's hard to envision him turning into the type of offensive weapon that would offset the issues he would present by being one dimensional and exploitable defensively, especially at that position.
My take: I could absolutely see a world where Wiseman comes into the league and has the kind of production Ayton just had, grabbing a bunch of boards, scoring points on a lot of lobs and some mid range J's. That's absolutely fine, but I do seriously wonder about the ability of that kind of player to actually impact winning in todays NBA. I don't value post scoring a lot, and I put a premium on my Big men being defensively versatile. stretching the floor is important but it's not enough for me to overlook glaring defensive deficiencies at that position.
Anthony Edwards, SG, Georgia
At 6-5 with a 6-9 wingspan and weighing in at 215 Edwards is more or less at the point where you wouldn't be too surprised if he was already physically developed enough to play in the NBA. He's a disgusting athlete with tremendous bounce and burst to go along with really good finishing ability with either hand. On top of that, he reclassified from 2020 to 2019 and is therefore also one of the youngest players in the draft, which should only further compound the upside factor come draft time. He's also shown improvement in terms of 3-point shooting and attacking from mid range, which from what I've been able to gather is what has basically catapulted him into the #1 talk. The questions about Edwards are manifold, however: he's facing a huuuuuuge leap in competition due to reclassifying, and he's going to a very young Georgia team where he will be counted on to have the ball a lot and carry a lot of responsibility. On top of that the general knocks on Edwards's game, decision making, game feel, consistency, effort, general fundamentals on either side of the ball could all be amplified by the position he will be put in at Georgia.
My take: We've already drafted two ball dominant guards, and it would be really difficult for me to completely stomach going with Edwards.... With that said, Edwards does present a level of defensive upside that neither Sexton or Garland possess, and if he really does project towards that type of 3 level scorer to go along with all NBA level defense can you even entertain not picking him up regardless of what we've been doing the past couple of years? I'm not sure, I think Edwards is one of the very few guard prospects in the class whose potential ceilling is high enough that you should consider picking him up, but it's just way too early at this point. (as is this entire thread but let's not dwell on that)
Cole Anthony, PG, UNC
Son of NBA vet Greg Anthony, he's got fuck you range on his jumper, really explosive bounce, a tight handle and good playmaking instincts. In general Anthony is just really damn polished on offense, he's tremendously skilled and plays the way you expect smart players to play. He's also a fiend on defense, extremely active and shows good fundamentals on that end as well. Sounds like a lay-up right? Well, here's the thing: He's 6-3, with a wingspan that isn't much to write home about and generally doesn't have the kind of frame you expect to fill out extremely well. On top of that he's a good deal older than the norm for the class and you'd have to wonder just how much of his percieved polish and IQ just comes from that.
My take: Nope. I refuse. I don't care if Cole Anthony is the second coming of Tre Young, I just cannot deal with taking more undersized guards. There has to be a limit, a line in the sand. This is my line in the sand. This line I will not cross. This is not up for discussion.
The next couple of names are other guys that I've looked into that have been floated around as slightly lower in the lottery that might be worth a look if we're not loving what is available at the tippy top and are looking for a trade down:
Isaiah Stewart, C, Washington.
6-9 C with a monstrous 7-4 wingspan, who is strong as a bull can really get off the floor and plays with a ton of energy. He's a great rim protector and post defender and has a good skillset for scoring in the post, but needs to improve as a PnR defender and defending on the perimeter in general before his potential as a lottery pick in unleashed. Will also need to improve his range considerably.
Amar Sylla, C, Senegal/played for Real Madrid, just signed with a Dutch club
Yet another smallish C with a 7 foot plus wingspan. Sylla is noticably more raw than Stewart, but the dude fucking flies. He is extremely quick and explosive and has a great frame for packing on more muscle. He's got great instincts as a rim protector and understanding of utilizing his length and verticality to avoid racking up fouls, which should indicate a good natural understanding of the game defensively. Offensively he's approximating what Siakam does, runs the floor, evolving as a ball handler and seems to have a good eye for finding the open man off the drive. 3-point shot very much a work in progress.
Players who should probably be looked into:
Theo Maledon
Deni Avdija
Precious Achiuwa
Wendell Moore
Isaac Okoro
Oscar Tshiebwe
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