Draft prospects - Who do we want?

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

If, IF, we get lucky and get Okafor, do you think Flip will keep Pek? I don't think anybody would take him, and that could potentially be a lot of money tied up into 3 bigs, but maybe not a problem in the short-term so I guess I'd be fine with keeping all 3 for now.

[TheFuture]

Every okafor supporter seems to think his offensive skills will undoubtedly translate, and he will improve on defense once he hits the NBA. Yet those same people assume a towns or Johnsons offensive game will struggle? Those same people say they do not see Towns defensive prowess vs. Okafor. ( Johnsons defense is unquestionable) I really do not understand this thought process. Offensive games are easier to improve once in the NBA, defense not so much. Okafor is a man amongst boys in college. He can bully most college big men to get his position. In the NBA I don't see him having such an easy time. Is he going to bully gasol, Noah, hibbert, cousins, bogut, etc. ? Johnson and Towns will provide you with defense right away, and I see them both learning to provide consistent offense within 2-3 years. I'll take that over another non-athletic scoring big who doesn't assert himself on the defensive side.

Okafor doesn't even rebound that well. He has had some big rebounding games against inferior competition, but look at the games he has played an opposing team with size up front. He generally grabs 5-9 in those games. Not something I want to see from a guy who is much bigger and "more skilled" than all other bigs in the country. 13 pts 6 reb vs Kaminsky in Wisconsin?

He is not a Demarcus Cousins type talent.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Every okafor supporter seems to think his offensive skills will undoubtedly translate, and he will improve on defense once he hits the NBA. Yet those same people assume a towns or Johnsons offensive game will struggle? Those same people say they do not see Towns defensive prowess vs. Okafor. ( Johnsons defense is unquestionable) I really do not understand this thought process. Offensive games are easier to improve once in the NBA, defense not so much. Okafor is a man amongst boys in college. He can bully most college big men to get his position. In the NBA I don't see him having such an easy time. Is he going to bully gasol, Noah, hibbert, cousins, bogut, etc. ? Johnson and Towns will provide you with defense right away, and I see them both learning to provide consistent offense within 2-3 years. I'll take that over another non-athletic scoring big who doesn't play a lick of D.

I agree with the majority of this. I like Okafor, but I do not love him. And I feel confident that Johnson and Towns have enough skill already that they can grow into good NBA offensive players.

Stanley's great at finishing through contact, and uses both hands around the rim. Also has a decent intermediate game with a reliable floater.

Karl has great touch for a big and shows signs of having a great hook in the future. Already is the best passing big in the draft. Can't teach size either, and that paired with his mobility is rare. So many people believed Wiggins would be successful on offense mainly because of his freakish physical features, but Towns and Johnson don't get that same benefit?

I'd be happy with any of that three + Russell, but I won't act like Okafor's a perfect prospect because he's not.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

As Q has pointed out, Towns has dropped out of the top 3 in draftexpress.com and nbadraft.net dropped him to 5th a couple weeks ago. As I pointed out at the end of the year, this was inevitable because of the upperclassmen bigs he is playing behind on that stacked Kentucky team. This is why I think the Wolves will end up with him. Rubio probably returns next week. maybe Monday, and I see them passing up the Sixers, Knicks, Lakers and some other team TBD that either suffers injuries or goes into tank mode. Towns will be available at 5, and Flip will be happy to take him at there as our PF of the future. Yes, he won't have nearly the NBA-ready offensive game that Okafor and Russell have, or the immediate defensive impact that Johnson will have. But his combination of size, athleticism and ability makes him a steal at 5...not to mention a great fit for the Wolves.

Cool has guaranteed we win the lottery, and that means Okafor for sure. But I'm still predicting Towns, and I'm okay with that.

[bleedspeed]

I am not sold on Towns at all and don't think Okafor is perfect, but would still take him first.

Top 3 college prospects pre-Madness are for me today:

1. Okafor - What has he done not to be #1?
2. Johnson - Guy just seems to be good to today and will put in time to be great tomorrow
3. Russell - He is a getting it done

What do people think of Turner and Looney?

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Turner and Looney are both possibilities for me, bleed, but only if the Wolves end up drafting somewhere in the 6-8 range. Turner has surprised me with his shooting, but his athleticism is sub-par. Looney is an exceptional rebounder, but I see him struggling to rebound as a PF at the next level due to his leaner frame (see Young, Thadeus) and not versatile enough offensively to play SF. I rank them both behind Towns in terms of upside.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Wouldn't take Looney in the top-10, but that's just me.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Turner intrigues me so much. The size/shooting/shot-blocking ability is enough reason to get excited with him. I'm not sure about his toughness and mobility, though. I can't seem to get past those two issues.

[khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]]

Okafor is shooting 65% and he gets doubled most of the game limiting what he can actually do in terms of volume scoring. As much of a beast as Cousins was, he still only shot 55% in college. Okafor isn't bullying guys on the court. He is beating them with an unmatched versatility of post moves. You might be able to push him out of position in the NBA before he gets the ball (still a hard feat because he is 270) but he's going to get around you based on your defensive pressure once he gets it and get up a layup with that length. It is extremely hard to be a dominant post player in college because the paint is always packed and you spend most of the time double teamed when you are any good. NBA teams will either have to double to take him out of the game which gives us an advantage or they'll let him go and we have a good post scorer to go to as part of our offense. If he was shooting 55% or lower I'd question how he translates against NBA competition in the post, but he's shooting 65% right now so I think at worst that drops to 55% in the pros which is still really good. There's also an extreme gap between Okafor learning to keep his hands up, challenge shots and how to be in the right spot defensively and learning how to shoot from NBA 3 pt range (Johnson) and learning any form of post game (Towns). Okafor can fix his weakness just by watching tape and through normal NBA team practices. The other two are going to have to dedicate time outside of normal practices to increase those abilities. Okafor has the size and an offensive skill set most big men can only dream of. Now he just needs to learn the rest that most young guys need to learn anyway in how to play in our system on offense and defense. I don't see that as needing dedicated practice time to develop like shooting or developing a post game which is why I am comfortable saying it will be there given time just as most rookies who need to learn how to play basketball in the NBA team concept.

Also just for clarification, I don't think he'll ever be an elite defender, but I think he will just need to be in position with his hands up to help our defense out that much more. If Pek had a 7'6 wingspan, we'd be a much better defense because Pek is usually in the right spot, he just doesn't have the length to bother any shots.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

"Okafor isn't bullying guys on the court."

It's almost like you haven't watched college basketball this year.

"I think at worst that drops to 55% in the pros"

Well, that'd put him in the top-10 in the NBA in FG%. At worst? Come on now. Listen to yourself.

"Okafor learning to keep his hands up, challenge shots and how to be in the right spot defensively"

So, basically, he has to learn how to play defense? Got it.

"Okafor can fix his weakness just by watching tape and through normal NBA team practices."

What world do you live in? If it was that simple, every big in the NBA would be good on defense. Okafor has slow feet (and poor instincts) on defense. He'll need more than just watching tape and team practices. Doubt he ever fixes his feet honestly.

You make Okafor's weaknesses sound so easy to correct, but in reality, Towns' and Johnson's issues are easier to fix.

Shooting is largely the one thing that anyone can improve on simply by practicing. Is there anyone that would disagree with that? I doubt it, and Johnson has already shown a much better shot than he had with Team USA. He's getting results already. Thumbs up. You continue to overlook the FACT that Stanley still scores in other ways. I guess it's easier to overlook that when you're arguing against him.

Towns has everything needed to be effective in the post. Big body with length, good touch, jumper, good BBIQ. He just needs moves. He's never needed them in all honesty. Going back to HS he just beat the opponent with his physical gifts and occasional jumper, and in college he isn't asked to be "the guy". Hell, we've seen Gorgui develop good post moves. Why couldn't Towns?