Draft Day GDT

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Wow, Mikkeman came up with some terrific information while we were all sleeping!

I tend to side with monster on speculating how Tyus would have fared in the draft if he had gone somewhere other than Duke. I think that if he had gone somewhere that didn't have Okafor as the main scorer, Tyus would have scored a lot more. But his job at Duke was to find a way to get others involved, and he responded by leading all NCAA freshmen in APG. But in the championship game, when his usual assist targets were on the bench with foul trouble, he became the main scorer. He only had one assist in the game against Wisconsin, but had 23 efficient points on his way to an MVP award.

I don't expect Tyus to replicate what he has done at lower levels...almost nobody does. But there is substantial evidence that he is a winner who always does what his team needs him to do.

[Monster]

One reason I liked Tyus is he is young (turned 19 a few weeks ago) he could have more growth in his game yet. I know there are reasons that may limit his potential but some of the other PGs outside the lottery had their weakness also. It's not just about what a guy does or can't do now how much will they improve down the road? The starting PGs in the Finals both had questions about their defense coming out of college and questions about their athletic abilities. Both to their own extents have overcome that more than was expected. I don't know how Curry's D was on more legit PGs this year but when he switched on to Lebron on the perimeter he never embarrassed himself and he was the MVP of the league. Those guys are some of the outliers (plus they are at least taller) but it will be interesting to see what PGs end up being good or decent for their draft slot. I like Grant to the Knicks that seems like a great fit.

[Carlos Danger]

One reason I liked Tyus is he is young (turned 19 a few weeks ago) he could have more growth in his game yet. I know there are reasons that may limit his potential but some of the other PGs outside the lottery had their weakness also. It's not just about what a guy does or can't do now how much will they improve down the road? The starting PGs in the Finals both had questions about their defense coming out of college and questions about their athletic abilities. Both to their own extents have overcome that more than was expected. I don't know how Curry's D was on more legit PGs this year but when he switched on to Lebron on the perimeter he never embarrassed himself and he was the MVP of the league. Those guys are some of the outliers (plus they are at least taller) but it will be interesting to see what PGs end up being good or decent for their draft slot. I like Grant to the Knicks that seems like a great fit.

Bingo. That's what you do with late picks. Draft a young guy and cross your fingers. My expectations for him are low. He's depth at this point. If he turns out to be better than that - great! You just never know. He's been a winner his whole life. Maybe this will be where Peter Principle kicks in. Or maybe he just rises to the next challenge as he's done all his life so far. Either way - we needed depth at PG and we knew we were not going to have room to carry two 2nd round picks. Good trade.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Flip moved way up in my assessment of him as a GM, and I was already high on him. All reports indicate he wanted Tyus Jones badly, and that could have led to him making a bad deal. But he had the resolve to say no when Dallas offered him #21 and Felton for our two second rounders. We don't know for sure, but it seems that Flip was cognizant of Cleveland's luxury tax issue, and knew they would be more interested than most teams in our second round picks. I suspect he had them targeted all night, and likely had one of the other PG's as a possible choice. But when Tyus kept falling, it made Cleveland deal irresistible. The Cavs deal is so much better than taking on Felton's salary. What a job by Flip to not jump at the Dallas deal!

[bleedspeed]

I am sure it helps that Flip has dealt with the Cavs recently. We gave up three 2nds to get Jones. I think the Cavs blew the picks they got. It was a chance for them to add young depth that they really need. There are certainly some undrafted FA's that they should look at.

[Coolbreeze44]

44% on 2-point field goals. That's a major red flag to me. He will really struggle to score on drives to the hoop and the in-between game with the athletes and length in the NBA. Rubio-esque struggles, wtithout all the good stuff. I do think his outside shooting will be better, but even there.....he was good, but not great.

The "he's a winner" stuff is overrated. We have plenty of guys with a winning pedigree already on the roster (KG in Boston; Pek/Rubio in Europe; Dieng with Louisville, etc.).

Q, It is not so rare that freshman point guards struggle in 2-point FG%. Jeff Teague had 44.8% 2-point FG%, Lowry had 45.4% and Brandon Knight had 46.1%. Some 2nd year point guards struggled even more, Kemba Walker shot 43.0% and Deron Williams 42.1%. Billups had career 2-point FG% 43.7 in Colorado and even the mighty Steve Nash didn't shoot 2-pointers better than 45.3% before his senior year in Santa Clara.

I would be much more concerned about Tyus' shooting if he would be senior or even junior and if he would not have jump shot or if he would be scoring point guard. He seems to be already very good floor general that is only 19 years old. I see that his floor is at least Sessions or CJ Watson with little better playmaking ability and his absolute ceiling could still be in same level than Steve Nash.

I think that Tyus' floor is so high that he will be playing several years in NBA even if he wouldn't improve much.

Teague is quicker, Knight is bigger, and Lowry is stronger. If Tyus had some sort of physical advantage, such as size or quicks, I'd be less concerned. I hope you're right though about him having a high floor. I'm not there.

Well hek, if you don't like how he's performing next year, you can always start ripping him after 20 games. That seems to work out well.

[Coolbreeze44]

I don't understand why Jones has to be a star in the league. He is a late first round draft pick. If you get a solid rotation guy at #24, count your blessings. Sure, if you are expecting him to be Jason Kidd you are probably going to be disappointed. I'm looking at him for what he should be - a good backup point guard who can keep the ship afloat if the #1 guys goes down. What's wrong with that?

Also agree with LST - great job and patience by Flip to get the right deal. Felton would have been a terrible burden.

[Monster]

I am sure it helps that Flip has dealt with the Cavs recently. We gave up three 2nds to get Jones. I think the Cavs blew the picks they got. It was a chance for them to add young depth that they really need. There are certainly some undrafted FA's that they should look at.

I actually sort of like the Osman pick. He sounds like a low floor guy and still young could turn into something more. They probably have more need for a wing than a center to stash. Of course then they got Christmas so they added a big there. Like you said they could end up getting a decent prospect as an UFA. They may have roster spots and players would like to play with that Lebron guy.

[TRKO [enjin:12664595]]

What's Jones comp? Jameer Nelson? I think Jones is a guy that can run your offense. He doesn't have exceptional size or athleticism, but he does the small things that leads to wins. He steps up in big moments. He projects to be a solid role player type. We have our two projected stars in Towns and Wiggins, we need to surround them with role players. If Jones fails big deal. Most late first rounders and second rounders tend to fail. It's a good pick and a good trade by Flip.

[TRKO [enjin:12664595]]

Knick fans are nuts. They get all bent out of shape for picking Porzingis, and he may bust, because he does little to help them win right away. I don't understand their premise. It's not like a 19 year old Winslow or Mudiay would be much of a factor as rookies either. How many rookies come into the league and catapult their teams to the playoffs? I can't think of many if any off the top of my head. I think Porzingis is a good fit for Phil's system. I bet he sees a young Pau. It will take time, but drafting for the next season is always a recipe for disaster when making a top 5 lottery pick. Knick fans need to realize that a team as crappy as they are won't be rebuilt over night. Phil got Porzingis and Grant which I thought was a pretty good haul for him.