The Lowe post pod with Jonathan givony released recently, talked about how top players are actively trying to avoid Sacramento and not get drafted there. Bagley is the only player to workout and give them medical access. It’s crazy hearing that
I don’t understand why anyone would pick another player over Doncic. The only argument is that he doesn’t have athleticism, and that’s so ridiculous. The Euroleague is full of athletes, It’s a physical league and most of our college players would be lost out there. Bailey put his numbers up against opponents who play below the rim. I’m not sure when we’ve seen a player at 19 that could take the court and command as many minutes as Doncic. It’s been a while. LeBron’s coming out comes to mind. We’re not talking about a taller Jason Williams here or Rubio. The smart team is going to give him the ball and watch the magic happen. I give Phoenix a break because Ayton is out there. But Sacramento? They’ve never been able to evaluate talent.
Agree, the athleticism issue will go away once Luka has a proper offseason and hits the weight room. Some people say he has high floor and low ceiling. Well, imagine doing all the stuf he has been doing now, but twice as faster and stronger once he gets in shape. He hasn't caught a break from games in almost a year and played in number of games that are three times of those in NCAA. What would a guy like Ayton look like if he was in Doncic's place?
All skills and athleticism aside, Doncic also has a really tough mentality, proven in high pressure situations. He's just a winner who elevates his game in the playoffs. That is something I feel is being ignored when evaluating these top picks, and it's something that puts him over the top and makes him a clear cut #1 pick in my opinion.
Absolutely. He is a franchise bedrock. And whichever teams pass on him are stupid. He's the best player to come into the league since Anthony Davis.
That was crazy. Another plus on the kid is that he has euro ball experience and has had it for a while. I'll be honest, I was a bit lukewarm on the kid when hearing about him... but he seems pretty legit. He may get muscled around to begin his tenure in the NBA but I don't see how adding some muscle and getting a bit older will prevent him from becoming a physical kid in the paint and on the block against the likes of James, Russ, CP, and Curry etc. I really don't get the craze about getting another forward in Sacramaneto (Marvin Bagley or Michael Porter) they still have Skal and Harry Giles (who has yet to even step on the court) at that position. I feel like he and D'Aaron (John Wall 2.0) Fox would make a killer tandem in Sac Town. But wtf do I know over Vlade f'n Divac....
To me the most impressive achievement of his is winning the EuroBasket with the Slovenian national men's team. Real Madrid is stacked and almost always makes it to the Euroleague's Final Four, but Slovenia before Doncic was just an average team in the EuroBasket, known for their low IQ and run & gun style, never winning anything (even with NBA talent). The addition of Doncic really elevated that team to the top echelon.
If the Kings aren't deploying a massive smokescreen and Luka actually falls to #3, then Doncic would have luxuries that most of these other prospects can only dream of. These include but are not limited to: A not incompetent franchise (not PHX, SAC, ORL, MEM) A big market (not SAC, ORL, MEM) Owners who aren't cheap as hell (PHX, MEM) Calling it here, if he goes to Atlanta, he and Collins will compete with Harden and Capela for most lob connections.
Apologies if this has been answered, but here goes: Luka Doncic was a professional player in Europe. Why couldn't he sign with an NBA team of his choosing via free agency? Was it simply his choice to enter the NBA via draft? Is it just not how it works?