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Reed + Dillingham aren’t my favorites due to size, but I cant help but think how much better the bench would be with a player like Reed (legit defensive ability even though undersized + legit 3PT shooting) in place of Branham for example.
I think, that if Spurs had TOR pick at 7 or 8 and really wanted someone who might not make it past 5 for example, that they could pretty easily trade up…
Reed + Dillingham aren’t my favorites due to size, but I cant help but think how much better the bench would be with a player like Reed (legit defensive ability even though undersized + legit 3PT shooting) in place of Branham for example.
Nah, it's too soon to deduce that Sengun and Green can't play or be optimized together or make a decision on one or the other. The reality is, they need both performing like stars to have a long term ceiling that's potentially higher than low end playoff team.
Let's face it though, if Sengun were black and Green were white, the national media would have been playing the "Ewing theory" game long ago.
The matchups defensively are opponent dependent, but Thompson is essentially playing as the nominal center on offense. He's either the roll man or in the dunker spot.
As much as it might hurt Spurs fans to admit, the Rockets have put together a nice roster of talented young players (Sengun, Green, Jabari, Eason, Whitmore, Amen) and still have another top 10 FRP coming their way this year. exstatic likes to say that they spent a bunch of money to get nowhere, but they're actually exactly where the Spurs need to be a year from now: in play-in contention as their youth continues to develop and grow.
FVV is an overpay at $40MM/year, but it's only a two year deal while the Rockets have the core of their lineup on cheap rookie deals and they don't need the cap space (and they are well below the tax line). I don't like Dillon Brooks AT ALL, but his deal isn't that bad. 4/86 is probably around what a Tobias Harris will cost, and Brooks is 4 years younger. Brooks is on a declining deal that will only be 11.7% of the (projected) cap in the last year.
Short-term overpays is actually a pretty decent strategy while your team is filled with a lot of young dudes on rookie deals. Unfortunately the Spurs are already past that with Devin. The Rockets will have FVV rolling off right when Green and Sengun's extension kick in, it's smart business. You can see this is what the Spurs might have been trying to do with Collins' extension, unfortunately Zach has just stunk up the joint this year.
Houston has taken basically the opposite approach to SA and they have been one of the best drafting teams in the last 5 years. Jabari, Jalen Green, and Amen were consensus picks at their draft slot. But Houston's thing is that they do not give a about any perceived "red flags" that a prospect has as long as he can ball. You can tell with a lot of the Spurs draft picks that they want to play a certain style and get guys who can either play that style or that they can develop to play that style. Derrick White. Luka Samanic. Josh Primo. Jeremy Sochan. They want to emphasis positional size with + passing for position and guys with good "feel". They basically want OKC's dribble-pass-shoot system but with positional size defensively, and they've tried to get guys to fit that. Sometimes it works out, but we've seen that many times it doesn't. Even when it does work out, it often take years before we know because the spurs prioritize development and fitting into a system.
Houston is the opposite. I think they just draft talent and figure out a system later. Alperen Sengun (monster production in a great league but short arms, not an ideal defender, positionally awkward). Tari Eason (monster defensive production and versatility, great frame, but possibly low feel with very low AS:TO, plays out of control). Cam Whitmore (youth, athleticism, scoring but possibly low feel, very low AS:TO, injury concerns). These guys were all ballers who slipped due to perceived "red flags" that Houston just does not give a about, and it's worked out quite well for them. Even other acquisitions - Dillon Brooks (great defender, tough, but sort of a clown). Ime Udoka (great coach, brings culture, but apparently a womanizer and questionable human being). Houston's been one of the best talent acquisition teams over the last 5 years because of that philosophy, which is exactly what you have to do if you don't luck into a generational prospect.
Last edited by SpursBills; 4 Weeks Ago at 04:44 PM.
Didn’t anticipate them going on a heater, minus Sengün. They were a solid 4-5 games out of the play in. I still think they should have tanked to protect the final year of a 1-4 protected pick that goes to OKC if outside that range.
I like Sengün and Smith, but Eason and Green are ding dongs. I dont want ballers. I’m not looking for crowd pleasing plays. I’ve lived through the early Robinson years, when that’s all we were. I want guys who understand the rocker step,the triple threat position, how to reverse the ball, how to set AND come off of a good pick.
I am one of the biggest Topic supporters on here but even I am now getting annoyed by this injury. He could be everything we could be looking for at the PG position if his biggest concerns -- 3 point shooting & defense -- are at least average.
Castle is starting to get my attention again...
As far as draft position, as long as we are picks 3 or 4. I think the Spurs will get their #1 or at worst #2 guy, as I think Sarr will be a top 2 pick and don't think the Spurs will have any interest in him unless he falls to the TOR pick (If we get it this year).
Risacher and Castle would be a nice outcome. Castle has grown on me as well. or if we wind up picking like 6 and 8 then castle + knecht/sheppard or somethin. i know rascal has been high on castle all along
Last edited by spurraider21; 4 Weeks Ago at 05:52 PM.
With the Spurs going on a super HOT streak people need to be realistic with our first pick being in the 4 to 6 range which makes it even harder to find someone I really like.
I think in evaluating the "Houston model" in how it might apply to the Spurs, I think we can ignore the exact players. The Spurs are gonna draft "Spursy" guys while the Rockets will draft guys who fit their mold (ballas, don't care about red flags).
Beyond that, assuming the Spurs successfully hit on their picks, I think the Spurs should be thinking similar to what HOU did this last season: short term overpay on a transitional player (while the rest of our roster is cheap), moderate contract for a useful vet. For the Spurs, maybe that's something like a two-year overpay for Chris Paul (yuck, but don't focus so much on Paul, he's just an example here) while someone like Topic backs him up and learns, and a 4/70 deal for a Grayson Allen type.
Again, not so much advocating for certain players as much as I am trying to find the path forward, because I don't think just sitting and drafting and hoping it works out is the way to go. We need a mix of vets in meaningful roles to help keep this ship going in the right direction.
Yeah, I think it'll be really interesting to see in a couple years how Jeremy Sochan compares to Tari Eason.
Eason was 2 years older when they got drafted but was both subjectively and objectively a better defender, more athletic, and had far better defensive statistical indicators and a better frame as well as a better shooting signal. Before he got injured, he was crushing Sochan this year in terms of impact.
Personally, I'm very optimistic regarding Sochan's development and I think he ends up as the better player in the long run, but it will be an interesting to follow them assuming both stay healthy as they were both defense-first forwards who were mocked in a similar range (late lottery to mid first) at the time.
nbadraft.net have Spurs selecting Dalton Knecht, 23 yrs old guard from Tennesse. Who the is that ?
Umm that is like one of the worst mocks to look at..........
I wouldn't be mad Castle is our pick. He's a solid floor of a decent role player, but, might have some "it" factor. Plays with a ton of composure for a Freshman.
Great shooter, but their mock is horrible. Last time I looked at it they had Cody Williams #1, which would be the most shocking #1 pick since Anthony Bennett.
23 year old guard from Tennessee.
Joking aside, he's a high floor, low ceiling smart player who can help a team sooner rather than later.
I've been on Castle for a minute. It's either Dillingham or Castle for me. Each has a major hole, but if you believe Dillingham can be coached to be close to neutral on defense you've got to take him. Or, if you believe Castle can get his shooting on track, you take him. I don't think any of the wings come close. The team doesn't need a dribble-heavy playmaker like Topic. It needs either an offense creator and shooter or a strong defender with a basket of other skills and Topic provides neither.
Someone asked a while back who we'd pick if we got both picks and I'd still take both of them.
One of the most well-known college players in the country.
DWhite could be a nice overpay candidate. How about 2/70 for Derrick and and 3/58 for Allen?
Would honestly love that. Might work if Boston wins the le this year. Do the Spurs have the cap room? I didn't think they did.
White is happy in Boston and Boston is happy with him. He's going no where.
I think we will be picking at 5 and then your looking at those two and probably Holland and Batas and maybe Topic depending on injury - To be honest I have no idea what the Spurs will do as I think the players with the highest upside may also have the lowest floors
Is Grant Nelson of Bama going to be an undrafted roster spot guy?
I don't see him on the Spurs but i like how he plays and his at ude.
Would make good 15th guy on bench imo.
OK.Why would you call "wrong" something that is factually correct and so easy to verify? Wemby played his entire career, ever since he was a kid, at the center positon. The skills he developed are a different matter. Just because you play center, it doesn't mean you can't shoot 3's if you're good at it. Jokic and Embiid developed "perimeter" skills too and you wouldn't say they aren't centers, would you?
You clearly haven't seen Wemby play in Mets 92, nor have read anything about Wemby coming up if you think he's been playing center for only 3 months.
Read and Google translate this about how he played center in FNT and never liked it.
Read this, I translate for you:
"The coach of the France team [Vincent Collet] knows how to combine these two interior profiles [Gobert & Wembanyama]. In [Mets] Levallois, his playing pattern placed Ibrahima Fall Faye (then Anzejs Pasecniks) under the basket, in support position 5, very restricted in his movements. Victor Wembanyama orbits around this verticality, triggers from mid-range, causes shifts and releases the ball at the center."
That's the definition of playing PF (modern PF).
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