Official 2016 Draft Thread

[thedoper]

My top picks for us if available:
1. Bender
2. Buddy
3. Murray

If we can't get size get shooting. Otherwise trade down. I don't want Dunn. Chriss and Maker are interesting to me for different reasons, but neither really seem worthy of a #5 pick.

[Mr. Brightside [enjin:16464947]]

Brightside - I am debating on Chriss. I think that is down to the scouts and coaching staff to decide if they can develop him. I think he can be coached to play defense and since he was good on the offensive boards should be able to rebound at Thad levels. I really worry about his BBIQ and not passing. How often do low BBIQ guys workout?

I wonder if he would have went to another school that didn't play with so many young guys if he would have looked better. Here is a good write-up.

http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2016/4/27/11505978/marquese-chriss-nba-draft-2016-scouting-report-washington

Do we really want our PF to rebound at Thad level (which is a great comparison)? I think KAT would benefit greatly from a gritty PF would rebounds like heck on both ends of the floor and defends well.

Nice to see some familiar names on the board. I was Squirrels1314 on the old ESPN board and remember a lot of great discussion involving posters like you, Lip, q, 60WinTim, monster, drew, etc.

[thedoper]

Brightside - I am debating on Chriss. I think that is down to the scouts and coaching staff to decide if they can develop him. I think he can be coached to play defense and since he was good on the offensive boards should be able to rebound at Thad levels. I really worry about his BBIQ and not passing. How often do low BBIQ guys workout?

I wonder if he would have went to another school that didn't play with so many young guys if he would have looked better. Here is a good write-up.

http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2016/4/27/11505978/marquese-chriss-nba-draft-2016-scouting-report-washington

Do we really want our PF to rebound at Thad level (which is a great comparison)? I think KAT would benefit greatly from a gritty PF would rebounds like heck on both ends of the floor and defends well.

Nice to see some familiar names on the board. I was Squirrels1314 on the old ESPN board and remember a lot of great discussion involving posters like you, Lip, q, 60WinTim, monster, drew, etc.

Yes. Agree. Which is why I keep coming back to Sabonis. If it makes so much sense maybe we should just stretch and pick him where we are or make a minor trade a few spots down.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

General thoughts on the players being mentioned in this thread.

1. I'm leaning towards Hield as my favorite for pick #5. He'd add significant shooting and scoring to the bench which will be welcomed with open arms. Can you imagine the open shots he'd get when playing with Rubio? His defense is underrated in my opinion as he has pretty good length and size for the position (6' 9.25" wingspan per DX). The only concern I have with him is that he might need a high volume of shots to be effective. However, shooting/scoring is always welcome. He'd instantly be the best shooter on roster, too. Hield's floor is a more athletic JJ Reddick with a pretty good ceiling, even though he's slightly older than other prospects. I love Hield's fit.

2. Kris Dunn is right behind Hield for me. As others have mentioned, he'd immediately bring an upgrade defensively to the squad. I like Tyus (I think he's a DJ Augustine type player, eventually), but Dunn would easily supplant him as the back-up PG. He would add a totally different dimension to the bench play and could honestly play the 2 spot in some situations (although his shooting is very average). Phenomenal length and size with above average athleticism makes Dunn extremely intriguing. I'm not advocating trading Rubio as I'm a huge Rubio backer, and I believe he has tangibles that cannot be measured in a box score. However, Dunn would give us some insurance if Rubio never improves as a jumpshooter/finisher around the rim. I just love the defensive potential and dynamic Dunn would bring. John Wall is my ceiling for Dunn.

3. Jamal Murray is third for me behind the guys above. He won't be the defender that Dunn will be and wont quite be the shooter/scorer that I believe Hield will turn out to be. Murray would definitely add scoring/shooting, but he just doesn't seem to fit as well as the other two. Reminds me a little bit of Eric Gordon.

I think it comes down to these 3, really. I want absolutely nothing to do with Marquese Chriss due to lack of rebounding and defense. He was historically bad as a rebounder in college and gives little effort on defense. Reports are that his BBIQ is low as well. Skal Labissiere is the big I would take a gamble on if I had to at #5.

Good stuff Mr. Brightside and welcome aboard. Many of us kept our ESPN monikers as you can tell! Have you been lurking this whole time or did you just recently stumble into us here? This is a fairly obscure place for a Wolves board and doesn't have a huge crowd, but the discussions are robust and intelligent for the most part.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I think Buddy is the best of those three (Hield, Dunn, Murray). Can somebody convince me otherwise?

I'm willing to be convinced. I just think it would be interesting to hear the most sound, logical, convincing arguments we could put together for these guys.

Flip's vision was to build a team of two-way players, and it is hard to make an argument that Thibs will differ from that route. I'd argue he will put more weight to the defensive side of a prospect. I'm also slightly confused about the huge desire for a shooter. The playoff effect/warrior effect is obviously having an influence on this. I disagree on following a current trend, when we are likely at least 2 more full seasons away from being a real threat in the west. I am all for sticking to a plan that has this team on a path to success for the first time in a decade, with more hope than we ever have had in the organizations existence. We showed last year that we can hang offensively with anybody. On the other hand, defense is a completely different story, and our 2nd unit was so bad defensively that you wished our starting 5 could play all game.

Dunn is the only player in that group of three that possesses a known commodity on the defensive side of the ball. Murray/Hield may progress into decent defenders, but Dunn will be at least an average defender right away in the NBA, with the potential to be a shutdown defensive player. He possesses the ability to not cause a catastrophic drop-off on defense when Rubio has to take a breather. That would be huge for this team. On offense, Dunn is no slouch. When he's compared to two great scoring prospects, sure he leaves something to be desired. It's hard to argue that Dunn is not capable on offense though when he has more length than both, is more athletic, is a better ball-handler, and thus is a much better bet to create offense off the dribble than either Hield or Murray.

Murray and Hield will bring shooting, there is no denying that. Everything else about them is really up in the air. Murray may be able to play some PG, Murray and Hield may be able to defend. Hield and Murray may be able to develop better ball handling skills. Murray and Hield may be able to develop better vision/passing ability. Murray and Hield may be athletic enough. You get the idea. There are more questions than proven ability around them than people are admitting.

Agree with a lot of what Future says here.

What I would add on Murray though is that there is one very simple number that has predictive characteristics when it comes to future upside: Age. He's a few years younger than Hield and Dunn with much less college experience. In light of how he produced as a freshman, that's a pretty big factor to consider. If he stayed in school as long as Hield did, would he have have put up similar shooting/scoring numbers as a senior, with better defense and passing to boot? Perhaps so.

[bleedspeed]

I like both Buddy and Sabonis a ton. Sabonis just seems like he would be the glue on this team.

[Mr. Brightside [enjin:16464947]]

General thoughts on the players being mentioned in this thread.

1. I'm leaning towards Hield as my favorite for pick #5. He'd add significant shooting and scoring to the bench which will be welcomed with open arms. Can you imagine the open shots he'd get when playing with Rubio? His defense is underrated in my opinion as he has pretty good length and size for the position (6' 9.25" wingspan per DX). The only concern I have with him is that he might need a high volume of shots to be effective. However, shooting/scoring is always welcome. He'd instantly be the best shooter on roster, too. Hield's floor is a more athletic JJ Reddick with a pretty good ceiling, even though he's slightly older than other prospects. I love Hield's fit.

2. Kris Dunn is right behind Hield for me. As others have mentioned, he'd immediately bring an upgrade defensively to the squad. I like Tyus (I think he's a DJ Augustine type player, eventually), but Dunn would easily supplant him as the back-up PG. He would add a totally different dimension to the bench play and could honestly play the 2 spot in some situations (although his shooting is very average). Phenomenal length and size with above average athleticism makes Dunn extremely intriguing. I'm not advocating trading Rubio as I'm a huge Rubio backer, and I believe he has tangibles that cannot be measured in a box score. However, Dunn would give us some insurance if Rubio never improves as a jumpshooter/finisher around the rim. I just love the defensive potential and dynamic Dunn would bring. John Wall is my ceiling for Dunn.

3. Jamal Murray is third for me behind the guys above. He won't be the defender that Dunn will be and wont quite be the shooter/scorer that I believe Hield will turn out to be. Murray would definitely add scoring/shooting, but he just doesn't seem to fit as well as the other two. Reminds me a little bit of Eric Gordon.

I think it comes down to these 3, really. I want absolutely nothing to do with Marquese Chriss due to lack of rebounding and defense. He was historically bad as a rebounder in college and gives little effort on defense. Reports are that his BBIQ is low as well. Skal Labissiere is the big I would take a gamble on if I had to at #5.

Good stuff Mr. Brightside and welcome aboard. Many of us kept our ESPN monikers as you can tell! Have you been lurking this whole time or did you just recently stumble into us here? This is a fairly obscure place for a Wolves board and doesn't have a huge crowd, but the discussions are robust and intelligent for the most part.

Funny you ask. I've been a member of the KFAN board for quite a while now and was my main board after the ESPN board was shut down. I'm totally serious when I say that yesterday I said to myself "I wonder if the old ESPN posters have a board." So I googled "Minnesota Timberwolves message boards" and this was the first one that came up. I clicked on it and noticed some familiar names. Because of the great discussions on the old ESPN boards, I figured I'd join today and add some discussion from time to time. Good to be back with you all.

[TheFuture]

I like both Buddy and Sabonis a ton. Sabonis just seems like he would be the glue on this team.

Yeah, with Sabonis' Individual defense, team defense, advanced offensive game, elite rebounding there is a lot of promise. There is reason to believe he will bring consistent 3pt range within a few years as well. Outside of bringing rim protection, what is he bad at? His advanced numbers may be the best in the whole draft. It is very difficult to make an argument that any of Chriss, Davis, or Ellenson deserve to be drafted ahead of him. Poeltl and Sabonis should be locks for the top 10.

[TRKO [enjin:12664595]]

General thoughts on the players being mentioned in this thread.

1. I'm leaning towards Hield as my favorite for pick #5. He'd add significant shooting and scoring to the bench which will be welcomed with open arms. Can you imagine the open shots he'd get when playing with Rubio? His defense is underrated in my opinion as he has pretty good length and size for the position (6' 9.25" wingspan per DX). The only concern I have with him is that he might need a high volume of shots to be effective. However, shooting/scoring is always welcome. He'd instantly be the best shooter on roster, too. Hield's floor is a more athletic JJ Reddick with a pretty good ceiling, even though he's slightly older than other prospects. I love Hield's fit.

2. Kris Dunn is right behind Hield for me. As others have mentioned, he'd immediately bring an upgrade defensively to the squad. I like Tyus (I think he's a DJ Augustine type player, eventually), but Dunn would easily supplant him as the back-up PG. He would add a totally different dimension to the bench play and could honestly play the 2 spot in some situations (although his shooting is very average). Phenomenal length and size with above average athleticism makes Dunn extremely intriguing. I'm not advocating trading Rubio as I'm a huge Rubio backer, and I believe he has tangibles that cannot be measured in a box score. However, Dunn would give us some insurance if Rubio never improves as a jumpshooter/finisher around the rim. I just love the defensive potential and dynamic Dunn would bring. John Wall is my ceiling for Dunn.

3. Jamal Murray is third for me behind the guys above. He won't be the defender that Dunn will be and wont quite be the shooter/scorer that I believe Hield will turn out to be. Murray would definitely add scoring/shooting, but he just doesn't seem to fit as well as the other two. Reminds me a little bit of Eric Gordon.

I think it comes down to these 3, really. I want absolutely nothing to do with Marquese Chriss due to lack of rebounding and defense. He was historically bad as a rebounder in college and gives little effort on defense. Reports are that his BBIQ is low as well. Skal Labissiere is the big I would take a gamble on if I had to at #5.

You've summed up why I have Heild over Murray. While Murray is younger and you would think would have more room to grow and develop, Heild is longer and more athletic and that's something that you can work on. I think Heilds length and work ethic lead me to believe he will be able to develop into a two way player. I don't really have a dog in the fight at 5. We have some nice options.

[TRKO [enjin:12664595]]

I think some people give too much benefit of the doubt that the 18/19 year olds are going to get better while the senior and junior prospects are low upside. A guy like Heild didn't improve just because he got older. He improved because he worked his butt off at his craft. To me that is the number one trait in drafting a guy. Heild has a very nice offensive game, he is a good athlete, and he has good length. With his tireless work there is no reason the think the guy won't be a very good two way player in the league. I would love to have him on this team even if he doesn't really fit minutes wise with having Zach here.