Wolves 2017 Draft Thread

[MinneapolisMatt [enjin:18416495]]

So are you joining me on the dark side?

Malik Monk! (assuming the three SFs are gone...)

Are you counting Isaac as a SF?

[60WinTim]

So are you joining me on the dark side?

Malik Monk! (assuming the three SFs are gone...)

Are you counting Isaac as a SF?

Yeah, if Isaac is there, I grab him.

[Coolbreeze44]

There was a time when Markannen was at the top of my list for our draft slot. But some of you convinced me he wouldn't be the best fit here. He just doesn't check enough boxes, particularly for a coach like Thibs. I really can't see us taking him for that reason. In fact I'd be more than a little surprised if ended up on our team.

So are you joining me on the dark side?

Malik Monk! (assuming the three SFs are gone...)

I'd probably try to move down a bit and still target Zach Collins. Or move down and target Jordan Bell.

[Monster]

I hear you guys on a wing potentially being able to shut him down but doesn't it say something that you have to go back to prime Dirk? Are there any other examples of 7 foot 3 point shooters being shut down by a wing player? Did Dirk even get shut down or just slowed down anyway by Bowen who is a hall of fame defender? I have to say if our PF starts drawing other team's best wing defender opening up Lavine and Wiggins to run roughshod I will take that any day of the week

I can throw it back to you had there been a 7 ft shooter that has been all star caliber besides dirk.

The thing is Markkanen has to get to dirk levels for the offense to run through him. Because it is hard to take the ball out of 3, 20 year old, 20 PPG scorers.

I mean look at love, am elite big man shooter and he is hard to play in the finals and he has another elite skill that Markkanen dosen't have.

We can go get mirotic if we want a big 3pt shooter. I would rather have that then draft a guy who has one skill.

Again Love like Ryan Anderson is nowhere near 7 feet tall it's not an accurate comparison. Are you guys going to start naming 7 foot VOLUME 3 point shooters that can be shut down by wing defenders at some point? All of these anecdotes for players who aren't the same player as Markkanen don't mean anything.

Well Kevin Love came in to the league projected as a top level rebounder. He had a terrific feel for the game as well. He actually has a pretty good post game. What is Markkanen supppsed to do if he can't shoot? He didn't show a lot his freshman year of college in other categories. Does that mean for sure he won't improve? No, it doesn't and there have been some reports (including from Slim) the guy works hard loves the game etc.

Hell look at how good Love became. For a couple years on a bad team he was a multifaceted scorer able to get it done on many levels. He improved his body significantly and was able to play huge minutes effectively. Many here don't feel Markkanen will make a big jump in other areas. Few people thought after his first couple years Love could be a 20ppg scorer. I thought that was silly if Boozer could do it so i thought he had a shot. Love exceeded my expectations significantly and I was huge fan.

Like I said in another post this draft thing is projection and belief. I personally don't believe in Markkanen but that doesn't mean I expect him to suck either. It's plenty possible he turns into a plenty worthwhile all around player.

Ok lets say Markkanen turns into a Ryan Anderson level shooter or even better...to some extent that type of player can get their shot off or hit plenty of jumpers it's doesn't matter all that much how big they are they are good shooters. Good shooter hit contested shots. Obviously the longer and the more lift you have the better. If Markkanen can shoot that well (that's what he is projected to do or better) with more length and not be total crap in any of the other phases of the game (like say Ryan Anderson) then he will be plenty valuable...like Ryan Anderson. I keep saying Ryan Anderson and that's not a knock. He is a good player but for Markkanen's age size etc he does have a higher ceiling than that. If he turned out to be the type of player I described and the Wolves decided down the road that type of player wasn't in their long term plans he would like have plenty of trade value which wouldn't be the worst thing ever.

Now will Markkanen be a liability or an asset? Idk do we actually know what the league will look like in 2-3 years? Maybe enough of these big super skilled guys are in the league teams will have enough of them they play them together because they can't keep them off the floor. Again there is some more projection. If the league stays the way it was this year Markkanen could easily be a liability. We should all realize we are making our best guesses based on many factors.

[60WinTim]

I know I am alone on the Monk island. But the more I research him, the more I like him. Despite the head-to-toe height disadvantage, he has the tools AND skills to be a really good player in the NBA, and one who can shoot the ball.

This as an obvious homer slant, but it's just another pebble on my beach...

https://www.seccountry.com/kentucky/kentucky-nba-draft-2017-lottery-malik-monk-sixers-magic

[BloopOracle]

I hear you guys on a wing potentially being able to shut him down but doesn't it say something that you have to go back to prime Dirk? Are there any other examples of 7 foot 3 point shooters being shut down by a wing player? Did Dirk even get shut down or just slowed down anyway by Bowen who is a hall of fame defender? I have to say if our PF starts drawing other team's best wing defender opening up Lavine and Wiggins to run roughshod I will take that any day of the week

I can throw it back to you had there been a 7 ft shooter that has been all star caliber besides dirk.

The thing is Markkanen has to get to dirk levels for the offense to run through him. Because it is hard to take the ball out of 3, 20 year old, 20 PPG scorers.

I mean look at love, am elite big man shooter and he is hard to play in the finals and he has another elite skill that Markkanen dosen't have.

We can go get mirotic if we want a big 3pt shooter. I would rather have that then draft a guy who has one skill.

Again Love like Ryan Anderson is nowhere near 7 feet tall it's not an accurate comparison. Are you guys going to start naming 7 foot VOLUME 3 point shooters that can be shut down by wing defenders at some point? All of these anecdotes for players who aren't the same player as Markkanen don't mean anything.

Well Kevin Love came in to the league projected as a top level rebounder. He had a terrific feel for the game as well. He actually has a pretty good post game. What is Markkanen supppsed to do if he can't shoot? He didn't show a lot his freshman year of college in other categories. Does that mean for sure he won't improve? No, it doesn't and there have been some reports (including from Slim) the guy works hard loves the game etc.

Hell look at how good Love became. For a couple years on a bad team he was a multifaceted scorer able to get it done on many levels. He improved his body significantly and was able to play huge minutes effectively. Many here don't feel Markkanen will make a big jump in other areas. Few people thought after his first couple years Love could be a 20ppg scorer. I thought that was silly if Boozer could do it so i thought he had a shot. Love exceeded my expectations significantly and I was huge fan.

Like I said in another post this draft thing is projection and belief. I personally don't believe in Markkanen but that doesn't mean I expect him to suck either. It's plenty possible he turns into a plenty worthwhile all around player.

Ok lets say Markkanen turns into a Ryan Anderson level shooter or even better...to some extent that type of player can get their shot off or hit plenty of jumpers it's doesn't matter all that much how big they are they are good shooters. Good shooter hit contested shots. Obviously the longer and the more lift you have the better. If Markkanen can shoot that well (that's what he is projected to do or better) with more length and not be total crap in any of the other phases of the game (like say Ryan Anderson) then he will be plenty valuable...like Ryan Anderson. I keep saying Ryan Anderson and that's not a knock. He is a good player but for Markkanen's age size etc he does have a higher ceiling than that. If he turned out to be the type of player I described and the Wolves decided down the road that type of player wasn't in their long term plans he would like have plenty of trade value which wouldn't be the worst thing ever.

Now will Markkanen be a liability or an asset? Idk do we actually know what the league will look like in 2-3 years? Maybe enough of these big super skilled guys are in the league teams will have enough of them they play them together because they can't keep them off the floor. Again there is some more projection. If the league stays the way it was this year Markkanen could easily be a liability. We should all realize we are making our best guesses based on many factors.

I don't have a lot of faith in his other tools but I think he will prove to be much more than a jumpshooter, he can drive and finish with either hand. Isn't Markkanen the highest rated big man this year? I don't see an big influx of skilled big men any time soon we are just getting to the point where we can argue to have a center in the all star game again. He in my opinion will be lethal offensively for years to come, I just hope he can become a league average defender because he won't ever improve his rebounding that much.

[BloopOracle]

I know I am alone on the Monk island. But the more I research him, the more I like him. Despite the head-to-toe height disadvantage, he has the tools AND skills to be a really good player in the NBA, and one who can shoot the ball.

This as an obvious homer slant, but it's just another pebble on my beach...

https://www.seccountry.com/kentucky/kentucky-nba-draft-2017-lottery-malik-monk-sixers-magic

This draft is so much fun this year, stacked class, we're in the top tier but towards the end of it so we have to worry about all the picks ahead of us, and that it is wing heavy. There are so many ways this board wants to go and multiple same position players so we can compare right out of the gate next season

[khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]]

The problem I have with all the Markkanen arguments are the comparisons to guys like Dirk and Love. He and Love are nothing alike. Love added his ability to stretch the floor. He didn't come into the league with it. Love was an elite rebounder in college and made himself into an elite scorer in the NBA. Love is a 1% scenario. Same with Dirk. Dirk came in as a scrawny wing and developed into a fantastic 7 foot scorer who could do it from any spot on the court. That's a 1% improvement. Banking on a 1% type improvement from Markkanen just isn't smart and that's the only way I see him being worth a top 10 pick. Getting Ryan Anderson at 7 isn't good enough for this team. If you added the actual Ryan Anderson to this team we still don't improve much.

[Monster]

I hear you guys on a wing potentially being able to shut him down but doesn't it say something that you have to go back to prime Dirk? Are there any other examples of 7 foot 3 point shooters being shut down by a wing player? Did Dirk even get shut down or just slowed down anyway by Bowen who is a hall of fame defender? I have to say if our PF starts drawing other team's best wing defender opening up Lavine and Wiggins to run roughshod I will take that any day of the week

I can throw it back to you had there been a 7 ft shooter that has been all star caliber besides dirk.

The thing is Markkanen has to get to dirk levels for the offense to run through him. Because it is hard to take the ball out of 3, 20 year old, 20 PPG scorers.

I mean look at love, am elite big man shooter and he is hard to play in the finals and he has another elite skill that Markkanen dosen't have.

We can go get mirotic if we want a big 3pt shooter. I would rather have that then draft a guy who has one skill.

Again Love like Ryan Anderson is nowhere near 7 feet tall it's not an accurate comparison. Are you guys going to start naming 7 foot VOLUME 3 point shooters that can be shut down by wing defenders at some point? All of these anecdotes for players who aren't the same player as Markkanen don't mean anything.

Well Kevin Love came in to the league projected as a top level rebounder. He had a terrific feel for the game as well. He actually has a pretty good post game. What is Markkanen supppsed to do if he can't shoot? He didn't show a lot his freshman year of college in other categories. Does that mean for sure he won't improve? No, it doesn't and there have been some reports (including from Slim) the guy works hard loves the game etc.

Hell look at how good Love became. For a couple years on a bad team he was a multifaceted scorer able to get it done on many levels. He improved his body significantly and was able to play huge minutes effectively. Many here don't feel Markkanen will make a big jump in other areas. Few people thought after his first couple years Love could be a 20ppg scorer. I thought that was silly if Boozer could do it so i thought he had a shot. Love exceeded my expectations significantly and I was huge fan.

Like I said in another post this draft thing is projection and belief. I personally don't believe in Markkanen but that doesn't mean I expect him to suck either. It's plenty possible he turns into a plenty worthwhile all around player.

Ok lets say Markkanen turns into a Ryan Anderson level shooter or even better...to some extent that type of player can get their shot off or hit plenty of jumpers it's doesn't matter all that much how big they are they are good shooters. Good shooter hit contested shots. Obviously the longer and the more lift you have the better. If Markkanen can shoot that well (that's what he is projected to do or better) with more length and not be total crap in any of the other phases of the game (like say Ryan Anderson) then he will be plenty valuable...like Ryan Anderson. I keep saying Ryan Anderson and that's not a knock. He is a good player but for Markkanen's age size etc he does have a higher ceiling than that. If he turned out to be the type of player I described and the Wolves decided down the road that type of player wasn't in their long term plans he would like have plenty of trade value which wouldn't be the worst thing ever.

Now will Markkanen be a liability or an asset? Idk do we actually know what the league will look like in 2-3 years? Maybe enough of these big super skilled guys are in the league teams will have enough of them they play them together because they can't keep them off the floor. Again there is some more projection. If the league stays the way it was this year Markkanen could easily be a liability. We should all realize we are making our best guesses based on many factors.

I don't have a lot of faith in his other tools but I think he will prove to be much more than a jumpshooter, he can drive and finish with either hand. Isn't Markkanen the highest rated big man this year? I don't see an big influx of skilled big men any time soon we are just getting to the point where we can argue to have a center in the all star game again. He in my opinion will be lethal offensively for years to come, I just hope he can become a league average defender because he won't ever improve his rebounding that much.

I won't disagree with that assessment of Markkanen's game. I think he does have a little more to his offensive game than some give him credit for. That draft guru I linked a couple articles to actually said he has potential to be a #1 type offensive player.

I think the influx is just how guys like Jeenne are crazy huge but can shoot 3's. It's basically becoming a normalized part of a big's skill set. Maybe that doesn't keep happening but there are a lot of young 6'10" or taller bigs in the league arlready that look plent promising. Who would have ever thought Marc Gasol would be jacking up 3's? It's a crazy time we are living in. I'm not saying that suddenly we go back to the KG Amare Webber etc days of 6'10" PFs but they are jacking up 3's but I do think it's a possibility. If you think Markkanen is gonna be the best player out of the options then pick him if he makes sense with the roster and to some extent he probably does for the Wolves. The names of top level knock down 3 point shooters this franchise has had since 1989...might be able to be counted on 2 hands.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

I know I am alone on the Monk island. But the more I research him, the more I like him. Despite the head-to-toe height disadvantage, he has the tools AND skills to be a really good player in the NBA, and one who can shoot the ball.

This as an obvious homer slant, but it's just another pebble on my beach...

https://www.seccountry.com/kentucky/kentucky-nba-draft-2017-lottery-malik-monk-sixers-magic

You're pretty much alone on the Monk island on this board, but you have some company with scouts and analysts. I pointed out in the Isaac thread that Monk is appearing more frequesntly in some mocks in the the top 6. I"m not sold on him yet, but if he is the guy who gets us Isaac, he'll be my new favorite player!