Minnesota Sports Forum

So Jamal isn't even the best Murray available? This is getting confusing. Maybe we should try and move down to the 12-15 range and take a backup big.

I was watching some workout videos including Kris Dunn and noticed Poeltl working out with him. Below is Poeltl's interview and workout video from DX.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=piUXm_wy7ek

What made me interested in watching the workout video is Poeltl doesn't have the body of a strong center. He looks more like a PF. He has legit height though he is clearly taller than Towns when they are standing next to each other. So the fact that he got pushed around make sense at times. Think about this though. He is a 20 year old legit 7' guy that's already 242lbs. What happens when this guy puts on 20lbs or more? Will he then be able to hold his ground more?

I'm not suggesting he will be a 3 point shooter but I was a little surprised at how his shot looked. He isn't wildly skilled but he isn't just a shot blocker rebounder type either.

He moves well he isn't explosive (which might limit his offensive upside as much as anything) but very fluid and fairly light on his feet. I think he has a chance to do a lot of positive things defensively both as a PF and as a center. Remember bigs tend to come along more slowly and he has a lot of nice attributes for a guy that size and age. I would t take him at #5 but in a trade down scenario I certainly wouldn't mind ending up with him.

monsterpile wrote:I was watching some workout videos including Kris Dunn and noticed Poeltl working out with him. Below is Poeltl's interview and workout video from DX.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=piUXm_wy7ek

What made me interested in watching the workout video is Poeltl doesn't have the body of a strong center. He looks more like a PF. He has legit height though he is clearly taller than Towns when they are standing next to each other. So the fact that he got pushed around make sense at times. Think about this though. He is a 20 year old legit 7' guy that's already 242lbs. What happens when this guy puts on 20lbs or more? Will he then be able to hold his ground more?

I'm not suggesting he will be a 3 point shooter but I was a little surprised at how his shot looked. He isn't wildly skilled but he isn't just a shot blocker rebounder type either.

He moves well he isn't explosive (which might limit his offensive upside as much as anything) but very fluid and fairly light on his feet. I think he has a chance to do a lot of positive things defensively both as a PF and as a center. Remember bigs tend to come along more slowly and he has a lot of nice attributes for a guy that size and age. I would t take him at #5 but in a trade down scenario I certainly wouldn't mind ending up with him.

Add to the list of things that make him a PF rather than a C the fact that he has really short arms that give him an 8'9" overhead reach. That renders his 7'0 height pretty meaningless.

I feel like the best player for the Wolves is Sabonis. It is just do we have the balls to take him. Can we make a move to move down to get him? He is a jackknife type player that does everything this team needs. He plays smart and does the dirty work. He will make everyone on the team better.

bleedspeed177 wrote:I feel like the best player for the Wolves is Sabonis. It is just do we have the balls to take him. Can we make a move to move down to get him? He is a jackknife type player that does everything this team needs. He plays smart and does the dirty work. He will make everyone on the team better.

Yeah, from a fit perspective he seems like just the kind of guy we could use. A banger and rebounder that can do a lot of the dirty work, but also has some real skills that don't make him an offensive liability.....tough to justify taking him at #5 though when guys like Dunn, Hield, or Murray could be there.

Q12543 wrote:

bleedspeed177 wrote:I feel like the best player for the Wolves is Sabonis. It is just do we have the balls to take him. Can we make a move to move down to get him? He is a jackknife type player that does everything this team needs. He plays smart and does the dirty work. He will make everyone on the team better.

Yeah, from a fit perspective he seems like just the kind of guy we could use. A banger and rebounder that can do a lot of the dirty work, but also has some real skills that don't make him an offensive liability.....tough to justify taking him at #5 though when guys like Dunn, Hield, or Murray could be there.

Sabonis seems to be the only guy in this draft who is universally liked by this board. He just needs to be picked in the right slot though. DraftExpress is generally the most reliable mock draft in my opinion, and he is still sititng down at 17 in their latest. A trade with Boston or Denver could bring us 2 non-lottery picks, one of which could be used to get Sabonis. I'm warming to some of the players that are likely to be there at 5, but I still prefer a trade down strategy that includes Sabonis.

lipoli390 wrote:

monsterpile wrote:I was watching some workout videos including Kris Dunn and noticed Poeltl working out with him. Below is Poeltl's interview and workout video from DX.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=piUXm_wy7ek

What made me interested in watching the workout video is Poeltl doesn't have the body of a strong center. He looks more like a PF. He has legit height though he is clearly taller than Towns when they are standing next to each other. So the fact that he got pushed around make sense at times. Think about this though. He is a 20 year old legit 7' guy that's already 242lbs. What happens when this guy puts on 20lbs or more? Will he then be able to hold his ground more?

I'm not suggesting he will be a 3 point shooter but I was a little surprised at how his shot looked. He isn't wildly skilled but he isn't just a shot blocker rebounder type either.

He moves well he isn't explosive (which might limit his offensive upside as much as anything) but very fluid and fairly light on his feet. I think he has a chance to do a lot of positive things defensively both as a PF and as a center. Remember bigs tend to come along more slowly and he has a lot of nice attributes for a guy that size and age. I would t take him at #5 but in a trade down scenario I certainly wouldn't mind ending up with him.

Add to the list of things that make him a PF rather than a C the fact that he has really short arms that give him an 8'9" overhead reach. That renders his 7'0 height pretty meaningless.

I propose we have some sort of drinking game* for when Lip mentions overhead reach like they do for Jay Bilas during draft coverage. I respect both Bilas and Lip so In just giving Lip a hard time here.

In all seriousness I can't remember where I read it but someone mentioned how having that height will help guys see over defense and just mentally it makes you feel like you have an advantage over a guy. Portly will literally be looking down at a number of bigs he faces on the NBA. He is 2" taller than Towns. If he could really play as a traditional PF defensively wow he would be a monster in a lot of ways. I'm not saying he is a target of we trade down but I think he would be a very solid player both starting out and as he gets better.

*some of us here don't drink so we will have to find and alternative.

longstrangetrip wrote:

Q12543 wrote:

bleedspeed177 wrote:I feel like the best player for the Wolves is Sabonis. It is just do we have the balls to take him. Can we make a move to move down to get him? He is a jackknife type player that does everything this team needs. He plays smart and does the dirty work. He will make everyone on the team better.

Yeah, from a fit perspective he seems like just the kind of guy we could use. A banger and rebounder that can do a lot of the dirty work, but also has some real skills that don't make him an offensive liability.....tough to justify taking him at #5 though when guys like Dunn, Hield, or Murray could be there.

Sabonis seems to be the only guy in this draft who is universally liked by this board. He just needs to be picked in the right slot though. DraftExpress is generally the most reliable mock draft in my opinion, and he is still sititng down at 17 in their latest. A trade with Boston or Denver could bring us 2 non-lottery picks, one of which could be used to get Sabonis. I'm warming to some of the players that are likely to be there at 5, but I still prefer a trade down strategy that includes Sabonis.

I like all the guys at #5 to some extent but I'm not sold on any of them to a strong degree and I like Murray a lot and have warmed up to Buddy. I think I would prefer to trade down IF you got a good deal and went down to a spot where you felt positive you were going to get a player you really liked AND a 2nd worthwhile piece either a draft pick this year next year both or some sort of young vet player. I don't know if any team will be willing to pay that price or if the Wolves will want to pass on the guys who are available at #5.

Sabonis is a guy I do want and trading down would likely mean we could get him. If we could get Sabonis AND another talented player out of this draft that sounds good. Of course picking a guy at #5 and buying a 2nd rounder to pick a guy they like sounds good too. There are some good possible options however they decide to go

Well, I have no interest in trading down for Sabonis...

I want Thibs to take BPA at #5 and fill out the rest of the roster with trades and/or free agency. And when he fills out the roster, he will need to decide whether the player he drafts at #5 will be ready to contribute next year. It's one of the reasons I like Dunn or Hield, but I will be happy with whoever they draft. Even if it is Brown...

60WinTim wrote:Well, I have no interest in trading down for Sabonis...

I want Thibs to take BPA at #5 and fill out the rest of the roster with trades and/or free agency. And when he fills out the roster, he will need to decide whether the player he drafts at #5 will be ready to contribute next year. It's one of the reasons I like Dunn or Hield, but I will be happy with whoever they draft. Even if it is Brown...

Just curious Tim what you would think if the Nuggets called up on draft night and said they wanted to move up to #5 and were willing to give up #7 and #15 or #19? If Bender was gone I'd do that deal especially if it was 7 and 15. What do you think?