Agreed. Give him to a real coaching staff and he'll learn to be a decent defender. Hopefully this current staff is almost gone.
I doubt they do that next year. The only thing i could see them doing is trying to lose the last 7-8 games depending on standings. If that can move you down 1-3 spots or something. After next season it is on though! : )
there needs to be some genuine improvement and some semblance of competitive play this upcoming season they can’t be the 3 peat L champions with a point differential of damn near minus 10 getting beat down every night for yet another season
Paolo or Ivey most likely will be a Rocket. Gary Parrish from CBS Sports has Chet at 1, Paolo at 2, and Jabari at 3. @Clutch
We’ve now beaten the odds two years in a row. This year the odds were 60% that our pick would fall outside the top 3. The odds were similarly bad last year—in fact we could easily have lost the pick to OKC. The Rockets did great tonight.
True, but defense wasn't his calling card at high school either. I do think he will be a better defender than Wood.
I think you try to move Wood, Gordon, and Tate ideally to a team for a pick this year (Sac or Portland seems the most likely possibilities, Pels would be great but little cap room) and see if you can improve 17 to a top 10 pick. If you end up with Paolo you're happy. If AP can improve his 3 point shot, I get shivers thinking about the passing between AP, Paolo, Green, KP3 and JC on the floor together. All those guys can shoot, put the ball on the floor, get to the rim, and pass. That could turn into some really pretty and fun basketball to watch - big if is on the bigs getting their 3 point shot down.
the most encouraging thing to me tonight was hearing Stone. Very mature attitude and the type of mentality we need. Best player available is absolutely what we should do. This team isn't good enough to be thinking of "fit." We have one guy on this roster who is mostly indispensable, and everyone else is expendable. Beyond that, the openness to moving and trading the pick is wise. Not that we'll do it, but you want to let others know that the offer's on the table. And who knows, maybe the Magic decide they're not in love with Smith or Holmgren and want to trade down if it means they get Wood too as a possible pair with Banchero? Or maybe the Pistons or Kings want to move up to our spot and are going all-in on a Banchero-Cade pair, or Fox-Banchero pairing, and we're able to get a good trade with future picks while adding Sharpe or Ivey to the team. Every scenario is a win here.
1 of the 3 and Sochan or Eason would be a good haul there at 3 and 17. Can't go wrong with any of the 3. We should keep this pick unless we can get a haul to trade back.
Wood might start ahead of Carter... possibly 17, gordon, and 3 for 1 and salary filler? I'm thinking bust on Suggs...
Not necessarily. It’s possible that OKC trades down if they want Sharpe or someone else. It’s also possible OKC likes a couple players nearly equally. Im not saying it will happen, but drafts like this where there are a few guys similarly valued at the top sometimes lead to trades like the Tatum deal. If Orlando decides they like Jabari Smith the most (which is possible), that could cause teams to trade for the #2 pick to get Holmgren. If OKC likes Shape the most, they may trade down to 4-5 and add a future lottery pick. Whoever trades up to #2 would then likely try to take Holmgren. The Rockets could then attempt to trade up to #1 and take Holmgren or OKC may be afraid that the Rockets would take Sharpe at #3 and agree to a swap at #2 and #3 with OKC picking up #17…. So many possibilities. If OKC or ORL decide they want Paolo, then Holmgren or Smith is a Rocket. It’s too early to tell at this point what happens… last year the top 2 guys in the draft were pretty clear early so neither team wanted to trade. That made the #3 pick obvious. At #4 Barnes was a surprise to some but he was never going lower than 5, so they were locked in as well. Let’s wait and see how workouts go.
He has just about all of the athletic and physical attributes you want from a star combo/swing. He is strong with a wide frame. He is very young and has a 7’0” wing span. He has a strong first step, he is explosive, he can shoot well and has excellent instincts driving to the basket. His handle is strong for his age as well. He isn’t a bad passer, he doesn’t have tunnel vision and finds the open man….. there is nothing physical or skill wise that will hold him back from being a star…. That’s what his appeal his… the concern is his lack of exposure, that he may take a couple years to develop and he can look lackidasical….. so there is a bust potential.
I don’t care about his low waist, just like I don’t care about Mobley having a high center of gravity. Banchero is chiseled, he has a 7’0” wingspan, he has a 40+ inch vertical with strong foot work and he has some degree of natural playmaking. There is a lot to like, especially on the offensive side. My concern is his motor and some limitations defensively…. There is nothing that is going to keep him from being at worst the #4 pick in this draft and possibly as high as #1-2.
Ayton and Gobert are not a lot like Holmgren…. Holmgren’s strength is his ability to switch, close out angles, anticipate plays… etc. Those things are what Gobert and Ayton struggle with.
He will likely never gain 50 pounds, and if he does it will be at the tail end of his career when he is slower and more stationary. Gaining that much weight is asking for injuries and will limit him on the perimeter. He moves very well defensively off screens and switching and can block shots from the strong or weak side and overall is solid defending in the post. This isn’t 1995, he can rely on finesse and toughness and not brawn.
