2011 NBA Draft Wants

[Bobcats_Basketball]

I feel the front office needs to draft a big man with their first round pick. I think this is a given anyway, but you never know with MJ running the show. For the second round, I say the bobcats looks for a slasher/scorer with some decent speed. As a University of Virginia fan, watching mustapha farrakhan play basketball makes me think he could be a low risk - high reward player if the Cats can grab him in the second round.

Let's hear what other players are out there.

[SWedd523]

this draft class is going to be very weak as far as big men go. The only true post players that are top 20 talents are Kanter, Sullinger, and Trey Thompkins. We'd have to have a lottery pick to keep our selection so the only guys we could really look at are Kanter and Sullinger. But both of those guys will be top 5ish picks so we'd have to suck pretty massively to get either one. Even still, Sullinger is a pure PF while Kanter doesn't have ideal size for an NBA Center himself.


If we keep our pick, Harrison Barnes should be our target. He seems to be falling due to his lackluster play thus far, and if he's available in the 8-12 range we should go for it. Terrence Jones would be my secondary choice for this slot, though I personally don't like him that much. Barnes can fill in at either spot for Jack/Crash and make both of them equally expendable. Jones is more of a SF/PF combo so he's a bit more post-oriented than Barnes. Kyrie Irving would trump both of them if he declared, but I have doubts that he will--with his injury.


As for late first/early second rounders, we should have four targets, two guards and two big men: Nolan Smith, Klay Thompson ... and JaJuan Johnson, Keith Benson.

[teej]

What about Jan Vesely?

[SWedd523]

From DX:



His ball-handling skills remain mediocre at best. Watching him handle the ball in the open floor is definitely not a pretty sight. He's able to beat his defender off the dribble at times with his first step, but it's still something of an adventure for him trying to create his own shot from the perimeter—you just never know how things are going to turn out. He's not someone you want making decisions with the ball. His feel for the game is just average and it's not rare to see him make bad decisions, particularly in the form of unnecessary turnovers.

If unable to convert with a dunk around the rim, Vesely still has problems finishing through contact due to a distinct lack of strength. He doesn't put good touch on his shots and is definitely not the most fluid or instinctive offensive player you'll find. Many times he seems to just throw the ball up on the rim hoping for the best.

Even with his prodigious athleticism, Vesely still isn't much of a presence on the glass. He grabs just one defensive rebound for every 10 ½ minutes he's on the court, which is a very poor rate. It's here that his lack of girth and poor instincts seem to show the most. He's too skinny to put a body on opponents, and he doesn't pursue the ball off the rim the way you might hope.


We already have a Derrick Brown on our team.

[docend24]

Lol, comparison to Derrick Brown...well, no comment. And "if we keep our pick" - there is no scenario in which we could not keep it...

[SWedd523]

Hyperbole aside, I don't think he brings enough to the table to make him a worthwhile pick that high. He's competing with both Barnes and Jones and he's not on their level. His perimeter game isn't as refined as Barnes, and his post game isn't as good as Jones. Is he a good mix between the two? Yes, but being good at a bunch of things but not really great at anything doesn't help him when comparing him to his competition.

You'll obviously have a better breakdown of him than I would as I only see game clips, highlights, and breakdowns, so if you would like to add something I know everyone here would love to hear it. (I know you posted on him on RGM but I can't seem to find that post)


As for the pick, I don't know why I thought it went into limbo in 2011 when it's 2012. Oh well, ignore the "if" part out of my above post!

[docend24]

http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=53&t=1067422&start=164
I'm not his advocate. With him being a physical specimen with to some extent unorthodox skillset there is a possibility he will be a bust. But he is not one dimensional player like Derrick Brown. I love draftexpress but they didn't underline that his rebounding is influced by him playing SF and not being particularly responsible for defensive rebounds (he oftens guards his player too far from the rim if his man doesn't drive). I'm not really suggesting Bobcats to draft him rather I'm excited where he'll end up as he is one of a generation type of player and I surely want him to do well. On the other hand I try not really valueate him as it is hard to be sure I would not be influenced by wishful thinking homerism. The last thing I want is him being a bust on a Bobcats roster :)

[docend24]

Oh and what's too high? Draftexpress has him at 11 and NBAdraft,net at 20 (but they always suck on getting the order right and cluelessly underrating Euros). If his drops out of a lottery somehow he is nobrainer no matter how risky pick he could be.

[Fred Williamson]

I would love to package either Crash or Jax and our pick for a top10 lotto pick to get Sullinger

[Chef]

if the class is weak and we can't get a player we need or highly want within the lotto, i would definitely be all for trading the pick for bad contracts, younger talent and/or picks for the 2012 draft to replace our potential loss of pick to chicago.

bellichek style.

[GoBobs]

We can't trade the pick until after we pick someone because we traded last years pick and are already on the hook for next years. You can only trade your first round pick away every other year.

[Chef]

We can't trade the pick until after we pick someone because we traded last years pick and are already on the hook for next years. You can only trade your first round pick away every other year.

that's fine. just work it out with the other team before hand.

[CatNation]

Harrison Barnes has no talent. Dudes one of the worst starters in the ACC. He'll be staying now that he's played his way out of the lottery though. Draftexpress has Derrick Williams at 15th but I don't see how he could go that low, dude is sick. Unfortunately this draft is completely dry of centers. I wouldn't mind LaceDarius Dunn in the 2nd round. Assuming we trade Jackson

[sc_11]

the thing is that players might stay in college for another year because of the potential lockout. Hopefully there isnt one because if NFL and NBA do it, i might actually have to watch hockey, which is fine, only when Hurricanes are on. I am predicting bobcats get pick between 14-18. In that range there will probably be someone like Kyle Singler who will be solid in the league (i hate Duke just in case you were wondering). I mean singler does everything well and he is upgrade over derrick brown. He can shoot, defend, hustles, high IQ.. why not have him on our team. Possibly someone like Keith Benson from Oakland, whenever he plays against top teams in NCAA he plays well, 6-11 about 230.. he is good defender and low-key post moves, we need someone like that to pair with Diaw. in second round we should grab shelvin mack, who was killing it this year against team USA and can light up scoreboard. Durrell Summers possibly too just for depth, i mean it is second round so it is always a hit or miss.

[sc_11]

Chef... you can trade your first rounder as long as it is for another first rounder in same draft.. so we could trade up or down

[Pepperz]

I like me some Jan Vasely. I would not call him a Derrick Brown since he has a little more to his game then Brown. His potential is very high and for a pick just right out of the lottery, he can be a good choice.

[teej]

since he has a little more to his game then Brown.

That's not hard to do.

[docend24]

http://www.acapela-group.com/text-to-speech-interactive-demo.html for correct pronounciation (select czech speaker); the surname is 3 syllable word, best I could get was "yun ve-se-leeh"; check yourself (there is a longer pause between the names, in this demo the native speaker says it almsot as a one word)

[BRNC]

I doubt any big worth anything falls to us...I'm looking at Alec Burks from Colorado if he declares...he's a much better shooter than Hendo...and we could certainly use a solid back-up PG since Livingston could have knee issues at any given time so a PG might be possible...but bigs next year...doubtful...maybe Keith Benson in the second or J. Johnson (as SWedd has already mentioned)...but I have doubts about a lot of underclassmen even declaring...I expect a pretty weak draft...it's going to take major luck IMO to even get a bench player...

[ohara831]

Now that we are currently out of the 8th spot, I have been hitting on the ESPN Lottery Machine. We are currently in the #10 pick. #10 - #13 are pretty consistently coming up:
John Henson SF/PF from UNC - no thank you. 6'10 and 200 lbs? Too big for a SF and too skinny for a PF
Jordan Hamilton SF from Texas - I'd be fine with it
Donatas Motiejunas - PF with nice touch. Been playing in Europe. Not great on Defense but strong offensive game
The Jimmer - Not sure if this would be another Adam Morrison pick or if he is the real deal. But he does seem to be able to create his shot better than Morrison.

Right now, Henson is the only one I would not be happy with drafting. But our position can go up or down right now, so we have to see how the team responds to this downturn.

[Ampsportsduo]

A guy that people might want to check out is Alec Burks. 6'6" SG out of Colorado. I really feel a DJ/Hendo backcourt would be too small to compete. Eseentially we fall into the Warriors dilemma and I think we'd all agree we'd trade 2 for 2 straight up. Burks may be at the end of the lottery or a little later and could fit well in Silas's up and down system.

[BRNC]

Luke Byrnes is a senior writer at Hoopsworld...a good hedge between NCAA and NBA...I posed this one to him today about Keith Benson (who I like)...


Larry in Blowing Rock, NC:
Good morning Luke...what kind of NBA player do you think Keith Benson (Oakland Center) will be...bench, rotation, eventual starter? Thanks for the time...
http://www.hoopsworld.com/images/hw_icon.gif
Luke Byrnes:
Bench early on with the potential to be a rotation player. He'll really need to get stronger to play meaningful minutes in the NBA and he'll have change the way he plays the game. At Oakland, Benson is the guy. They run their offense through him. That will not be the case in the NBA. He is going to have to bang with the big boys and do the dirty work. Benson is a shot-blocker and a solid rebounder, which gives him a chance at the NBA level. Can you imagine him trying to stop Dwight Howard or Andrew Bynum on the block? Benson would get abused physically in one on one situations right now. He needs to get stronger, but he's an NBA-caliber player.

Read more NBA news and insight: http://www.hoopsworld.com/Chat.asp?CHAT_TOPICS_ID=1434#ixzz1E41HQJfH

[TheGayKid]

Preferably someone who won't soil the team's name with idiotic comments...I.E. Shavlik Randolph

[TheGayKid]

Jared Sullinger:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6du8UQZJAhI

[frontpager]

Alec Burks is the truth! I agree with dude uptop, he is 6'6 and will go in the 15-25 area. He can do everything and we need depth at the 2. Also, with the lottery pick we get for our own pick we could get Harrison Barnes to play backup 3 to Jax for a year before Jax gets traded. Harrison Barnes just needed to get adjusted to college and will be the truth in the league!

[dav7z]

H Barnes , with our first pick is all star talent. N Smith with our second first round pick. Dude can play both guard spots , score and defend . Curry could be got second round. If we could land just two of those three . It would be a great draft .
Henson is another thought late first round . But we have no need at all for another PF

[SWedd523]

Harrison Barnes
Terrence Jones
Marcus Morris
Jordan Hamilton
Kawhi Leonard


Work those 5 out HARD predraft and take the one we think is best. One of them can be a nice young replacement for Crash. With the second pick, we absolutely have to go big. The only big is JaJuan Johnson (and maybe Keith Benson) so we have to pray to God that he's available for us

[BRNC]

Johnson would be a solid addition...I like Benson but I think he ends up (at best) a rotation player 3 years from now...but still hard to coach height and he has some skills...

[Pepperz]

Lucas Nogueira has captured my attention. He is very raw but with the right polishing (aka Oak Tree) he can become a real STUD.

[WFU4LIFE]

H Barnes , with our first pick is all star talent. N Smith with our second first round pick. Dude can play both guard spots , score and defend . Curry could be got second round. If we could land just two of those three . It would be a great draft .
Henson is another thought late first round . But we have no need at all for another PF
So you just named all UNC and Duke guys. DO NOT WANT! There should be a rule for this team to never draft another player from UNC. Henson is never going to be anything in the league. Brandan Wright redux. I wouldn't be as upset with Barnes. As for N Smith, why in the world would we draft him? Our biggest needs are at SF and C. Smith doesn't help us at all. My top targets for around the 10th pick, which is where we are projected (Barnes and Terrence Jones will already be taken by then):

Jordan Hamilton
Jan Vesely
Kawhi Leonard
Tyler Honeycutt
Donatas Motejunas (if available)
Marcus Morris

For around the 20th pick I would go with:

Trey Thompkins
Lucas Nogueira
Jonas Valanciunas
Chris Singleton

[Ghost Kat]

I don't know who any of those people are.

[Marvel]

Honeycutt
Leonard
Hamilton
Morris with our 10th

then see if we can get a big at 21ish with the Hornets pick.....Benson and that's really it.

[Dcarnys]

All I know is Im cool with Honeycutt. Mainly because besides Jimmer and Barnes those are the only rookies I really know.

Damn me and my non-knowledge of draft prospects.

[teej]

I know MJ will never allow it, but getting Donatas Motiejunas or Jonas Valanciunas would be great if either fell to our pick, and then look for a swingman with the other.

[dav7z]

We have to take a s/f with our first pick . Thats our main need and that seems to be where the most talent is. This draft is weak over all and not many bigs at all . Why waste a pick on some one we know wont work out. TT, Doris , White , Cunningham rules out a p/f .
Thats why i like N Smith with the late pick. He has the ability to spread the floor and get to the rim . Can play the one and the two. Has four years experiance so we would know what we getting.
Signing K Brown and another free agent center seems to be a better option for us next season.
Unless some one can name a midround center just waiting to become a star?

[dav7z]

I know MJ will never allow it, but getting Donatas Motiejunas or Jonas Valanciunas would be great if either fell to our pick, and then look for a swingman with the other.
I don/t think either falls that far, Agreeded that would be a option

[WFU4LIFE]

NBADraft.net has Jonas going 18, while DraftExpress has him going 3. Quite a difference there, but if he did fall to our first pick then I hope we would take him.

[SWedd523]

I don't think we'll ever draft a Euro while we're "rebuilding". Way too much risk going with one. Losing Crash, only having Jack's old butt in that spot now, and having a good young player at egery other available position puts us in a position of need to get as close to a surefire building piece at the SF.

So that means the players I listed in my last post will probably be the targets at ~10. Add Honeycutt to the list if you want, but I'm not convinced about him just yet.

[teej]

So that means the players I listed in my last post will probably be the targets at ~10. Add Honeycutt to the list if you want, but I'm not convinced about him just yet.

Just wondering, why are you saying 10? Pessimist :p

Unless we combine both picks to trade up.

[SWedd523]

Because as it stands, we have the 10th worst record in the league

[frontpager]

Jordan Hamilton! either Hamilton or Harrison Barnes will be a great pick for our team. in the twenties we could definetly grab a 4, however we do not need one unless we trade Diaw. We could get Keith Benson who has height and defense. Nolan Smith will not be a player in the NBA. He is too small for the 2 spot and is not a point guard, no PG abilities. We dont need a PG through the draft anyway. A possible second round pick could be Chris Wright from Dayton, or Kyle Singler if he falls to second round. Singler will be solid 3 man in league

[stun704]

http://www.nbadraft.net/players/jonas-valanciunas

comparisons - Primoz Brezec
383


I would never draft a player whos name I can't pronounce, there has been so many euro PF/C Busts, I would never draft them in the first round. Just 2 years ago Kosta Kufos was projected to go 6th.. Kosta...Kufos...

[SWedd523]

We wont draft a four anytime soon so long as we have 5 on the roster. Even if we trade Diaw and get rid of Eddy.

Our needs go: C, SF, SG, PG, PF

[ALong13]

Despite all the European busts that have occurred in the NBA, I think C Jonas Valanciunas could be really good after a year of coaching from Oakley, but he is projected in some mocks as a top 5 pick so he will not be there unless we move up. I do like Maurice Morris from Kansas University, but he is projected as more of a PF than SF and we don't need that. This years draft is really weak, but I'm hoping we can land some talent. I've seen draft put us with PsF and PGs, but I think C and SF should be our main focus

[docend24]

http://www.nbadraft.net/players/jonas-valanciunas

comparisons - Primoz Brezec
383


I would never draft a player whos name I can't pronounce, there has been so many euro PF/C Busts, I would never draft them in the first round. Just 2 years ago Kosta Kufos was projected to go 6th.. Kosta...Kufos...
Ignorance is a bliss I guess.

[stun704]

Despite all the European busts that have occurred in the NBA, I think C Jonas Valanciunas could be really good after a year of coaching from Oakley, but he is projected in some mocks as a top 5 pick so he will not be there unless we move up. I do like Maurice Morris from Kansas University, but he is projected as more of a PF than SF and we don't need that. This years draft is really weak, but I'm hoping we can land some talent. I've seen draft put us with PsF and PGs, but I think C and SF should be our main focus
larry brown could have said the same thing about darko millcic

[polarcat]

Harrison Barnes
Terrence Jones
Marcus Morris
Jordan Hamilton
Kawhi Leonard


Work those 5 out HARD predraft and take the one we think is best. One of them can be a nice young replacement for Crash. With the second pick, we absolutely have to go big. The only big is JaJuan Johnson (and maybe Keith Benson) so we have to pray to God that he's available for us

Agreed :yeahthat: One of Terrence Jones, Jordan Hamilton, Harrison Barnes or Chris Singleton need to be in a Bobcat uniform next year. SF, C and backup SG are our needs. I hope we can somehow get Marc Gasol here via free agency and then go SF and SG with our picks.

[frontpager]

Terrence Jones jump shot is too slow for the league and is shot beneath his chin. He is a project, while the other (Barnes, Hamilton, Burks). Gasol wont be leaving Grizzlies anytime soon, they will overpay him if they must, look at Rudy Gay. I think we should possibly take a look at Greg Oden. Get him for low amount on two year deal with team option for the second. Oden is injury prone, but a two year deal at 3 mill a year would be worth it if he stays healthy. Look at how many people get hurt in Portland, maybe it is just their training staff/bad luck. When he has been healthy, for the short duration, he has been one of best 10 centers in league. the risk would be worth the potential payoff. no different than drafting a player based on potential.