Spurs still need a solid perimeter defender who will be a rotation piece and Castle will fit into that role. Sochan should not be viewed as the locked in pF with no chance for a future upgrade.
He can't impact other areas as much if we don't have enough 3pt threats and spacing on the floor.
We need at least two elite and two solid shooters in the starting lineup if we're to actually win games.
Devin can be elite, Wemby will be solid, but Jeremy will still be a negative.
Tre's shooting also isn't good enough. It's not just about the percentages because he takes only wide open threes, mostly from the corner.
We need legit pull up threats off the dribble, it would unlock everything for Wemby.
If you want Castle, then Jeremy can't start. Simple as that.
We would need another elite 3pt threat alongside Devin and one more good 3pt shooter.
Spurs still need a solid perimeter defender who will be a rotation piece and Castle will fit into that role. Sochan should not be viewed as the locked in pF with no chance for a future upgrade.
How many guards that can't shoot do you see in these playoffs?
Then you look at this season's rookies.
Scoot and Thompson twins were projected as way better prospects. All of them not living up to the expectations because of one reason - outside shooting.
Amen is a freak athlete, already a great defender, has good bballiq but having no shot severely limits his impact.
It doesn't matter that Castle has great size for a guard, without a shot he's not getting anywhere unless others create for him.
Him being a bad FT shooter is a massive red flag, I'd never take such player in the lottery.
I just don't see the point of going for any of these guards with questionable shooting. Just get a wing instead and find a reliable veteran point guard until we find something better.
Getting a three level scorer like Dillingham would mean he can be a Lou/Clarkson type bench scorer even if he doesn't live up to the hype.
Getting a guard with no range means he's out of the league after his rookie contract.
And don't we have Wesley already?
There will be better wings in next year's draft. You can't draft a wing this year who isn't any better than the guard prospects with a deep wing class in next year's draft class.
Spurs may end up with a couple of top wings in next year's draft with a possible two or three top ten draft picks next year.
It's amazing how you can have a possible top 5 pick and your pickings are players with no offense/good defense or good offense/no defense. That's the kind of you find in mid to late lottery in a good year.
Good thing we were tanking for these types of questionable players.
It seems like be another year of drafting another role player with a lottery pick. How many of these guys can one team have? Middle of the road dudes who aren't particularly good at one thing.
The thing is that we need a lot of wings. And even though we'll have 4 or 5 picks in these two drafts, not all of them will be good. It's just how things are.
By wings, I'm referring to three off the ball perimeter position. In my eyes, modern basketball should be split between three roles. Playmaker, wing, big.
Ideally, we could find the next Magic/Lebron and have a supersized lineup with three wings and a wing playmaker next to Wemby.
Anyhow, right now our wing rotation is disgustingly bad. I'd dare to say the worst in the league outside of teams that are just starting to tank.
Devin and Jeremy are the only two players likely to be on the roster for the foreseeable future, but not even they are guaranteed to stay.
Champagnie and Mamu are third stringers on a playoff team, I'm not sure Sidy ever makes it and Branham is a scrub if you ask me.
Keldon needs to be traded this summer while he still has value and before teams realize he's a negative IQ, traffic cone chucker.
X/Tre
Devin/Malaki
X/Champ
Jeremy/Mamu
Wemby/X
That's my view of the rotation for the next season.
Tre, Malaki, Champ and Mamu will have the chance to prove themselves they're worth keeping past the next season.
Barlow and Collins will probably stay as Wemby backups, but not in long term plans.
We replace scrubs that are on trial during or after the next season.
Every draft has all-stars picked outside the lottery, it's the hard part of front office job.
Once upon a time I'd have no doubt that PATFO would select the best player even in the worst draft, but I'm not so sure these days.
Last edited by LeBowen; 04-30-2024 at 01:37 PM.
defensively, sure. offensively, he doesnt shoot. he doesnt regularly apply rim pressure. and he's a fine but not a great passer.
Maybe. But Dillingham has been a big scorer at every level. It's not a Risacher-type sudden and short-lived burst in efficiency. He also has elite handles for his age, is a good passer, and puts a lot of immediate pressure on the lane because he is so quick with very shifty, advanced moves.
Juan Nunez is officially in the draft. I love him as a second rounder but he might go first.
Better passer than Topic, respectable size. Bad shooting as a lefty while really being a righty.
He's absurdly good with a high IQ for reading the floor ... He just shoots like a tool and that might never get better
sounds like a Spur!
says the guy with the Sochan profile picture!??
My avatars are always tongue in cheek. I had Brian Wrong for a while.
I remember watching some vid on this kid and was blown away I was like how come he is not mocked at all in first round. And then I looked a little deeper and My God his shooting is terrible and even his free throw percentage is terrible. I am like how can you be a PG in any league and be so bad at basic shooting..?
He makes Topic look like Steph Curry compared to him..............
I am intrigued by Nuñez but like all his offense is drives zero shooting at all it's wild but his passing is quite crafty though.
Forget Topic, just wait for Pop to grab the Russian version in 2026 by drafting Egor Demin lol 6'7 SG/PG with size athleticism 3PT shooting, strong finishes around the rim, passing and defense. Russian Topic coming 2026 lol
Dude, if we were able to get him and Tre Johnson and Hugo Gonzales - I would seriously probably cry tears of joy on draft night. And if for some crazy reason we end up getting Flagg or Harper, man I would probably have a heart attack from me jumping up and down screaming
The number of promising wings next year so far is actually pretty nuts. A lot of these guys may be proven to be frauds, but Gonzalez, Liam McNeely, Isaiah Evans, Drake Powell, and Dink Pate all offer some combination of shooting, defense, and playmaking that I like better than most if not all the wings in this draft. That's not even counting Flagg or Ace.
Have not watched any of them, but it's somewhat reassuring in case the Toronto pick doesn't convey. And if it does and the Spurs don't LOVE two picks now, could be offering to trade down for future swap rights (even protected -very lightly-) or lessened protections (say, swap 7/8 with Chicago for 11 in exchange for unprotecting their in '25 or '26, likewise with Charlotte).
Doubt any team will unprotect their draft pick. Has that even ever happen with any team?
Sochan is a SF.
That's crazy, have been looking at 2025 draft this weekend for the first deep dive and those were my targets as well. Demin, Tre Johnson, and Gonzales. Would be a total heist. Tre Johnson looks like Spurs material 100% and going to be a Longhorn too. Great interviews, just seems chill and easy going personality. Smooth length and good size at 6-6. The three would be a size matchup nightmare at 6-7, 6-6 and 6-7 backcourt and wing lol. wow.
haha they say Egor Demin is 6-8 but then again they're Russians, they'll say anything they want lol I put him at 6-7 just to be sure but the eye test is real, he looks huge, def at least 6-7 no doubt, by my eyes.
I also like that Z-man Ivisic as a Zollins replacement.
Demin/Sheppard/Wesley
Vassell/Tre Johnson/Branham
Gonzales/Sochan/Keldon Johnson
Markkanen/Mamu
Wemby/Ivisic
lol starting 5 is all different nationalities: Russian, American, Spanish, Finnish, and French. Spurs back to the multi nation army lol plus a Georgian and a Croatian. A Polish Brit.
Last edited by heyheymymy; 05-05-2024 at 08:14 PM. Reason: changed "2026 draft" to 2025 draft
NCAA is going to insane next season. A few teams will be like borderline Globetrotter Dream Teams. Look at Duke front court lol Maluach/Flagg plus Evans what? Rutgers with the Dylan Harper + Ace Bailey duo. Will be interesting to see what Calipari does with Arkansas. Fland/Knox/Ivisic core is substantial but Cal kinda sucks and stole them all from UK lol.
Maluach is an insane big. 7+ footer that can shoot the triple lol. Crazy tape from the NBA Academy Africa games on him. Can't see teams sweating picking Clingan or Edey with that coming next year.
2025 draft is just loaded. It's almost unfair. So many solid contributors possible and really makes 2024 look frightful.
we saw so many draft classes in the past, that were announced as loaded the year before and turned out average at best.
remember 2010? in 2009 they called it a super deep class with a lot upcoming star power, but it ended up as one of the weakest classes of the last 20 years.
Xavier, Bradley, Favors, Henson, Sidney, Hamilton, Boynton, Plumlee......some of those highly hyped kids didn't even make it to the NBA.
(only Wall and Cousins from the top ranked prospects of that class finally made some noise in the NBA.)
so let the kids play some compe ive games first, where they can't dunk on some boy scouts two feet smaller and then decide about the real potential of a draft class.
Andrew Wiggins, Rudy Gay, Harrison Barnes, Barandon Jennings, Shabazz, Nerlens Noel, OJ Mayo (and some dozens more on an endless list) had been called gererational talents at some point.
Ivisic already played NCAA half of the last season for Kentucky so you at least got a glimpse already though shortened by eligibility issues. Maluach has already been playing in Africa, granted. Looks like Hugo already plays for Real Madrid Spanish Professional League and Euroleague, Demin too U18. Most of my targets aren't NCAA anyway.
I agree with your point but most of the guys I mentioned do have some tape already and it's enough for me to get excited for. Even the NCAA ones that haven't played yet, 2025 is pretty unanimously viewed as uniquely talented and sure some will inevitably bust but it seems fair to already have some names on your radar in this likely unprecedented instance. I think everyone here knows it's a future draft thread so by nature initial takes and vague preliminary stances subject to change and not hard commits staking claims.
Good call to reserve and not rush to anything I agree that should be taken into account and I do think everything in here is taken with a grain of salt. While very abstract you can still get excited about potential without fully deciding until you see more.
This is what I'm thinking as well. I would just switch Mamu and Sochan. I want to see Mamu start next to Wemby.
If we could get Dillinger and Risacher to fill in the starting X'...that would be cool
Last edited by SouthernFryd; 05-06-2024 at 12:48 PM.
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