Might as well talk draft....

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I think trading down is the best option. I'm not sold on Edwards and Ball. Wiseman is seriously dropping on a lot of bigs boards which is interesting. He's dropped to 11 on NBADraft net.

I like Okongwu, Hayes and Haliburton. Trade down to acquire one of them and try get a 2021 1st round pick in the process.

I find it absolutely incredible that NBAdraft.net has him down at #11. It seems impossible that he would drop beyond 3.

[Monster]

Russell hasn't put up consistent percentages to say he is a great shooter but he and Halliburton could really open things up for someone else to put pressure on defenses driving...or maybe for each other. It would be kinda nice to have some guys that didn't get to the rim well but can strike it from 3. Honestly we have had too many guys that weren't exactly great at either one of those things so I'll settle for at least 1.

Huh? Care to expound upon the bolded comment, monster?

What 3 point percentages in your opinion make a great shooter? I don't think 36% or so The last 2 seasons is good enough for that.

Edit: I'm one of the strongest believers in Russell and I think he is going in the right direction especially in terms of shooting. He is good not great...yet. Also I was responding to Abe who stays skeptical.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Russell hasn't put up consistent percentages to say he is a great shooter but he and Halliburton could really open things up for someone else to put pressure on defenses driving...or maybe for each other. It would be kinda nice to have some guys that didn't get to the rim well but can strike it from 3. Honestly we have had too many guys that weren't exactly great at either one of those things so I'll settle for at least 1.

Huh? Care to expound upon the bolded comment, monster?

What 3 point percentages in your opinion make a great shooter? I don't think 36% or so The last 2 seasons is good enough for that.

As I've illustrated previously (specifically, to our good friend Lip), D'Angelo Russell is among the best three-point shooters in the entire league in both volume and efficiency.

Sorted By 3PA/G:

1. James Harden: 4.4 - 12.4 (35.5%)
2. Damian Lillard: 4.1 - 10.2 (40.1%)
3. Buddy Hield: 3.8 - 9.6 (39.4%)
4. D'Angelo Russell: 3.5 - 9.6 (36.7%)
5. Trae Young: 3.4 - 9.5 (36.1%)
6. Devonte' Graham: 3.5 - 9.3 (37.3%)
7. Luka Don?i?: 2.8 - 8.9 (31.6%)
8. D?vis Bert?ns: 3.7 - 8.7 (42.4%)
9. Bradley Beal: 3.0 - 8.4 (35.3%)
10. Kemba Walker: 3.2 - 8.4 (38.1%)
11. Eric Gordon: 2.7 - 8.4 (31.7%)
12. Duncan Robinson: 3.7 - 8.3 (44.6%)
13. Zach LaVine: 3.1 - 8.1 (38.0%)
14. Kyle Lowry: 2.8 - 8.0 (35.2%)
15. Paul George: 3.3 - 7.9 (41.2%)
16. Karl-Anthony Towns: 3.3 - 7.9 (41.2%)
17. Bojan Bogdanovi?: 3.0 - 7.3 (41.4%)
18. CJ McCollum: 2.8 - 7.3 (37.9%)
19. Terrence Ross: 2.6 - 7.3 (35.1%)
20. Bogdan Bogdanovi?: 2.7 - 7.2 (37.2%)

The list looks relatively similar if you check 2018-19 numbers. Russell is objectively one of the top shooters in the NBA. He's not a popular name that comes to mind, no, but when the basketball community widely considers guys like Bradley Beal and Trae Young a few of the best shooters the game has to offer... not putting Russell in that same conversation is just wrong. And while you specifically said "great" shooter I'm making the argument that Russell when compared to his peers around the league is great.

[Lipoli390]

Russell hasn't put up consistent percentages to say he is a great shooter but he and Halliburton could really open things up for someone else to put pressure on defenses driving...or maybe for each other. It would be kinda nice to have some guys that didn't get to the rim well but can strike it from 3. Honestly we have had too many guys that weren't exactly great at either one of those things so I'll settle for at least 1.

Huh? Care to expound upon the bolded comment, monster?

What 3 point percentages in your opinion make a great shooter? I don't think 36% or so The last 2 seasons is good enough for that.

As I've illustrated previously (specifically, to our good friend Lip), D'Angelo Russell is among the best three-point shooters in the entire league in both volume and efficiency.

Sorted By 3PA/G:

1. James Harden: 4.4 - 12.4 (35.5%)
2. Damian Lillard: 4.1 - 10.2 (40.1%)
3. Buddy Hield: 3.8 - 9.6 (39.4%)
4. D'Angelo Russell: 3.5 - 9.6 (36.7%)
5. Trae Young: 3.4 - 9.5 (36.1%)
6. Devonte' Graham: 3.5 - 9.3 (37.3%)
7. Luka Don?i?: 2.8 - 8.9 (31.6%)
8. D?vis Bert?ns: 3.7 - 8.7 (42.4%)
9. Bradley Beal: 3.0 - 8.4 (35.3%)
10. Kemba Walker: 3.2 - 8.4 (38.1%)
11. Eric Gordon: 2.7 - 8.4 (31.7%)
12. Duncan Robinson: 3.7 - 8.3 (44.6%)
13. Zach LaVine: 3.1 - 8.1 (38.0%)
14. Kyle Lowry: 2.8 - 8.0 (35.2%)
15. Paul George: 3.3 - 7.9 (41.2%)
16. Karl-Anthony Towns: 3.3 - 7.9 (41.2%)
17. Bojan Bogdanovi?: 3.0 - 7.3 (41.4%)
18. CJ McCollum: 2.8 - 7.3 (37.9%)
19. Terrence Ross: 2.6 - 7.3 (35.1%)
20. Bogdan Bogdanovi?: 2.7 - 7.2 (37.2%)

The list looks relatively similar if you check 2018-19 numbers. Russell is objectively one of the top shooters in the NBA. He's not a popular name that comes to mind, no, but when the basketball community widely considers guys like Bradley Beal and Trae Young a few of the best shooters the game has to offer... not putting Russell in that same conversation is just wrong. And while you specifically said "great" shooter I'm making the argument that Russell when compared to his peers around the league is great.

I guess it depends on how you define your terms. I consider truly "great" 3-point shooters those who hit at least around 40% of their threes - players like Curry with a lifetime 43% 3-point percentage along with Damian Lillard and a some others.

I don't consider Russell's 36% "great", but it's definitely good. Is DLO a great shooter, distinct form a great 3-point shooter? DLO is a career 42% FG shooter as well as a 35.6% career 3-point shooter. Russell is a terrific scorer and good shooter, but in my view he's not a great shooter at this point in his career. That's doesn't mean he can't become a great shooter. He's still only 24 years old and hasn't had a stable career to date. If he pans out here with the Wolves for a number of years, then perhaps he'll elevate himself to that status. But I don't think he's there yet.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

What matters more than the raw shooting percentage is the fact that he absolutely has to be guarded out there. He's reliably above a 40% 3-pt shooter when left wide open, so the bigger factor is that he spaces the floor and forces guys to try to fight over screens or switch onto him versus going underneath. That helps the entire offense, whether he's the one taking the shot or not.

My issue is that his defense is so bad it practically washes out whatever good he does with his shooting and passing.

[Lipoli390]

What matters more than the raw shooting percentage is the fact that he absolutely has to be guarded out there. He's reliably above a 40% 3-pt shooter when left wide open, so the bigger factor is that he spaces the floor and forces guys to try to fight over screens or switch onto him versus going underneath. That helps the entire offense, whether he's the one taking the shot or not.

My issue is that his defense is so bad it practically washes out whatever good he does with his shooting and passing.

Fair point, Q. The stat you cited explains why Russell is a much better shooter on the catch than he is off the dribble. I thought some of his best play with the Wolves last season was when he was on the floor with JMac. DLO is a very good offensive player overall, even if we quibble over whether he's a "great" shooter. But as you noted, the real issue with him is his poor defense.

[Monster]

Russell hasn't put up consistent percentages to say he is a great shooter but he and Halliburton could really open things up for someone else to put pressure on defenses driving...or maybe for each other. It would be kinda nice to have some guys that didn't get to the rim well but can strike it from 3. Honestly we have had too many guys that weren't exactly great at either one of those things so I'll settle for at least 1.

Huh? Care to expound upon the bolded comment, monster?

What 3 point percentages in your opinion make a great shooter? I don't think 36% or so The last 2 seasons is good enough for that.

As I've illustrated previously (specifically, to our good friend Lip), D'Angelo Russell is among the best three-point shooters in the entire league in both volume and efficiency.

Sorted By 3PA/G:

1. James Harden: 4.4 - 12.4 (35.5%)
2. Damian Lillard: 4.1 - 10.2 (40.1%)
3. Buddy Hield: 3.8 - 9.6 (39.4%)
4. D'Angelo Russell: 3.5 - 9.6 (36.7%)
5. Trae Young: 3.4 - 9.5 (36.1%)
6. Devonte' Graham: 3.5 - 9.3 (37.3%)
7. Luka Don?i?: 2.8 - 8.9 (31.6%)
8. D?vis Bert?ns: 3.7 - 8.7 (42.4%)
9. Bradley Beal: 3.0 - 8.4 (35.3%)
10. Kemba Walker: 3.2 - 8.4 (38.1%)
11. Eric Gordon: 2.7 - 8.4 (31.7%)
12. Duncan Robinson: 3.7 - 8.3 (44.6%)
13. Zach LaVine: 3.1 - 8.1 (38.0%)
14. Kyle Lowry: 2.8 - 8.0 (35.2%)
15. Paul George: 3.3 - 7.9 (41.2%)
16. Karl-Anthony Towns: 3.3 - 7.9 (41.2%)
17. Bojan Bogdanovi?: 3.0 - 7.3 (41.4%)
18. CJ McCollum: 2.8 - 7.3 (37.9%)
19. Terrence Ross: 2.6 - 7.3 (35.1%)
20. Bogdan Bogdanovi?: 2.7 - 7.2 (37.2%)

The list looks relatively similar if you check 2018-19 numbers. Russell is objectively one of the top shooters in the NBA. He's not a popular name that comes to mind, no, but when the basketball community widely considers guys like Bradley Beal and Trae Young a few of the best shooters the game has to offer... not putting Russell in that same conversation is just wrong. And while you specifically said "great" shooter I'm making the argument that Russell when compared to his peers around the league is great.

I guess it depends on how you define your terms. I consider truly "great" 3-point shooters those who hit at least around 40% of their threes - players like Curry with a lifetime 43% 3-point percentage along with Damian Lillard and a some others.

I don't consider Russell's 36% "great", but it's definitely good. Is DLO a great shooter, distinct form a great 3-point shooter? DLO is a career 42% FG shooter as well as a 35.6% career 3-point shooter. Russell is a terrific scorer and good shooter, but in my view he's not a great shooter at this point in his career. That's doesn't mean he can't become a great shooter. He's still only 24 years old and hasn't had a stable career to date. If he pans out here with the Wolves for a number of years, then perhaps he'll elevate himself to that status. But I don't think he's there yet.

Cam you made your point but I stand by what I said and if you say he is a great shooter it makes the case of my original point even stronger about him paired with Haliburton. Those 2 shooting especially as you point out Russell's volume could be plenty good enough to offset them not being attacking guards. Russell also took some steps last season towards being a guy that got to the line which was an important development. It could be a part of a really interesting perimeter group of guys all getting guard and wing minutes of Russell Haliburton, Culver and Okogie with J-mac too. Even Okogie has some playmaking ability out of his feverish attaching game. Everyone but Okogie could initiate offense etc. Halliburton's defense and shooting and length would fit well with a bunch of those guys and you could do alot of switching. You could play him next to J-mac as a SG. I'd love to walk away from this draft with Halliburton especially now that Beasley is a question mark.

[KG4Ever]

DLO has a lifetime 3 point shooting average of 35.6% and in the playoffs it drops to 32.4%. That is not great three point shooting at all. Zach Lavine has a life time shooting percentage of 37.5%. Zach is a better shooter than DLO. But neither DLO nor Zach contribute much in terms of positive on court presence as they both have horrid plus/minus stats.

[Lipoli390]

DLO has a lifetime 3 point shooting average of 35.6% and in the playoffs it drops to 32.4%. That is not great three point shooting at all. Zach Lavine has a life time shooting percentage of 37.5%. Zach is a better shooter than DLO. But neither DLO nor Zach contribute much in terms of positive on court presence as they both have horrid plus/minus stats.

DLO's plus/minus stat is troubling. I see DLO's talent, but he has a lot to prove - playing defense and having a net positive impact on both ends of the court. That's his challenge. Rosas obviously wanted him badly. Now that Rosas has his guy, it's up to Russell to reward Gersson's faith in him.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

DLO has a lifetime 3 point shooting average of 35.6% and in the playoffs it drops to 32.4%. That is not great three point shooting at all. Zach Lavine has a life time shooting percentage of 37.5%. Zach is a better shooter than DLO. But neither DLO nor Zach contribute much in terms of positive on court presence as they both have horrid plus/minus stats.

DLO's plus/minus stat is troubling. I see DLO's talent, but he has a lot to prove - playing defense and having a net positive impact on both ends of the court. That's his challenge. Rosas obviously wanted him badly. Now that Rosas has his guy, it's up to Russell to reward Gersson's faith in him.

It is troubling. We all hear about how defense isn't as important for a PG versus a big, but there is a big difference between mediocre defense and complete matador. DLO has been more on the matador extreme of the spectrum and it basically cancels out all the good things he does on the offensive end. Great players don't consistently post those kind of net negative On/Off numbers.