Not sure how you do that though without going to even more parity in ball distribution for the lottery, and the teams hated that. It is too risky to have it fully random for teams. Especially, in the NBA that normally requires having one of the greatest 25 players of all time. So much is riding on being able to draft a Lebron, Steph, Jokic, Giannis, or Wemby-like talent for all these franchises. Plus it just feels that professional sports in general seem to have become title or bust, even those most franchises only win a title(s) every few decades or so. Most fans just don't care about teams unless they are title contenders, or already won. It makes it hard from a business perspective to force those teams to pursue being "middling fodder" or have ceilings that will honestly never win titles, when fanbases generally don't care about teams of that quality.
We will have to wait and see. From the film I have seen, Topic is the best prospect in this draft. He has the upside of being a high level creator and scorer with size. If I had the #1 pick, that’s who I would target if the draft was today. There are other possibilities - but Topic has the best upside and plays smart and hard. I’m sure I’m in the minority - but if the Rockets won the lottery, I would take Topic and let him compete with Thompson and Green for minutes long term.
Considering where some of the most recent MVPs have been drafted... seems like scouting and development matter more than draft position... just saying.
Portland wants draft assets. I was lurking their fan forum after the game and they’re fully embracing the tank. I would kick the bucket on trading that lottery pick for Malcolm Brogdon. I still believe we need a backup pg who can also spot start if needed. Tate and Stephen Adams would get the math right
I just have a feeling that we aren't keeping the pick. Too many young guys on this team. Having the veterans on this squad made it what it is now.
Interesting. I would have thought you would favor Sarr since you've been vocal about wanting a mobile, shotblocking center to play next to Sengun. I don't know who I'd favor right now if we land at #1 personally. This draft really lacks clarity at the top and a lot of the top prospects have been underperforming in recent games. But I will say that I would be wary of adding "project" type of players at this stage and would favor a high floor guy this time around. I think we're at the stage where we want to take the next step and get ourselves a cost-controlled roleplayer who can contribute right away and doesn't have glaring flaws that hold him back from playing his role. If we end up in the mid-lottery, I've been thinking about Sheppard, Clingan, Knecht, or maybe even Devin Carter. Guys I think could step in and contribute valuable minutes right away.
What you say would make sense if certain teams can replicate later draft success over a long stretch of time. But to this point, no one has ever done so. The Nuggets did nothing of note in the 2nd round before Jokic and nothing subsequently either. Same with Milwaukee and Giannis. Both teams have since been trading away picks for established players for their runs. So yeah, draft position still matters.
If we were to get the #1 or #2 pick, I would trade down...for a bushel of assets. Make the pick, and use the ammo in a deal later.
given how well Stone has drafted (Sengun/Eason/Thompson/Whitmore/Jabari and maybe even Green now are all good to great picks), I would prefer they keep the Brooklyn pick his track record on trades is less reliable
If we got the #1 or #2 pick and Sarr is available I would just take Sarr and that's it. Perfect rim running backup to Sengun and cost controlled for the foreseeable future. Not sure what the point of trading down would be. Reed Sheppard is the only other player I like for the Rockets outside of maybe the kid from Baylor as movement shooters. Issue with trading down is....for what? To get more picks or something? This team still needs an alternative SG if Jalen Green does his 60 game stink-a-thon next year so that's the only thing I'd want to trade the pick for. Maybe trade the pick for Simons or White and have them backup Green.
No disrespect but this is the worst proposal i've seen in a long time. A top 10 pick for a player that expires next year, who's injury prone and turning 32.
I don't even know what kind of immediate help we could trade the 2024 pick for. No team is giving up a star for a #8-10 pick. Do we need another steady vet? We might be three deep at the center position next season if we pick up Landale's $8M option, who looks good at the moment. We're have a lot of depth at the wings in Brooks, Tari, Cam, and Tate. At guard we have FVV, Jalen, and Amen. We're a very deep team. The only position we could use help in is at backup PF if Jeff Green does not return. Even then, Jabari has improved to the point where he deserves the lion's share of the minutes and still has room to grow. A rookie would be hurting for playing time, but minutes could come later in the case of injuries or trades. Trey Murphy III and Jalen Johnson were not drafted onto teams with a lot of opportunity for playing time in the 2021 draft, but now are major rotation players for their franchises. Our pick would still gain value over time if we select even a minor contributor. Barring picks, prospects on rookie scale contracts are still valuable trade assets for a superstar. Any team that trades away a superstar will look to rebuild around picks and young players. We need to stock up on those. Trading picks for vets doesn't make sense for our team. We could free up $16M in cap space this summer if we wanted, more if we trade away some of our deeper roster for non-guaranteed contracts. Why trade a pick for a vet when we could just sign a vet?
I would be looking at trading back and getting future 1st assets with the #8 pick this year. Two Candidates we could trade with: Portland #13 Toronto #17 Atlanta #10 or #18 (maybe both?)
Sarr just isn't developed offensively at all & he's not really this explosive athlete like a young DeAndre Jordan either. There's no telling what you end up with him. If he tops out at a rim running big, you can get that much later in the draft or cheaper some other way. Having him at #1 is a projection of best case scenario in his development and I think the odds are against that. If I had the #1 it's either Risacher or Topic.
I would push the pick. Sell it for multiple future firsts. Unless they have a bigger trade in mind, there isn’t any more room on the roster for young players or veteran additions.
Sarr might be better offensively than you think. But I agree there is some risk with him (as with any of the the top picks). For mine he has a huge upside, but at the same time it won't surprise if he is one of those #1 picks that fails to live up to the hype. Offensively - he can rim run - good athlete and very mobile and strong finisher close - nice unblockable turnaround from the elbow - can put the ball on the floor - confident in taking 3s (his % fell off late in the season)
