General 2010 NBA Draft Discussion

[Chieflion]

Like, say... George Hill? Or, in this draft, Paul George? What about our system do you think is so fundamentally different from the one in Utah? And what on Earth do Utah, LA, and Minny have in common that would suit him?

And in what universe are Maggette and Grant Hill washed up? Maggette had yet another fine season last year, and Grant Hill embarrassed RJ in the POs if you recall.

Batum, Casspi, and Ariza are all up-and-comers who I would gladly trade RJ for in a heartbeat. Do you even watch basketball?

I think he watches basketball. He just doesn't know what he was watching.

[Blackjack]

I don't think that the Spurs only focus on the last Duncan years. I do think (and hope) they plan for the years beyond Tim.
IF the draft just was about the question, what can we do to help the team immediately, the answer is pretty simple: trade the pick for a proven player. period.
you never get any guarantee that the player you drafted won't turn into a car with four flat tires the moment he steps on a NBA court. no matter how NBA ready scouts rank him.
(remember for example Acie Law. he was labeled the "most NBA ready" player in the 2007 draft. Hawks needed immediate help at the point, so they reached for him. we know how much help they finally got from him)

IMO the Spurs don't expect help from their pick for the last Duncan years. if they get it, they won't complain. but this pick (if they use it and don't trade it) is already about the future. that's another reason why we shouldn't exclusively look at current team needs. sure, if an intriguing SF is on the board, they will likely pick him over other positions. but they won't pick a SF only to fill a current need. I rather think they use criteria like "how do we expect this player fits with George Hill or even Tiago Splitter 3 years from now"

I don't disagree with that because I don't believe they'd be picking a guy like Jones or Williams solely on their ability to contribute now. I think it'd give them the edge over some of the other prospects around 20 that might be a true small forward but nothing seemingly special, though.

Like I said, I don't see this draft as one deep with great talent. It's not a terrible draft devoid of talent but it just seems to have much more contributor/role-player types than stars. And should what I believe be true, I think it'd be a wise move to pick a better 'now' player that has a legitimate future in the league; at least one you believe to have the tools and makeup to be a solid player for years to come. So that's where I was coming from.

If they can move up to get a George, that's one thing. But if they stay at 20, I think the prudent thing to do would be to find a player in the Jones or Williams mold. Players that bring both the ability to help now and the prospect of being a nice piece for the future; I think they should use the pick when given the chance to get a nice player on a rookie-scale contract and I do believe they'll make a decision (should they use the pick) putting weight on it's present. If they can get their hands on a proven vet by moving the pick or find a worthwhile trade that could get them a Favors, I could see them pulling the trigger on that also.

Edit: Me losing my mind and train of thought towards the end there; corrected now.

[admiralsnackbar]

Texas 2 Step...your arguments are so silly that they are not worth the 20-30 minutes worth of keystrokes I would need to refute all of them. You live in some sort of fantasy land where project big men suddenly become Dikembe Mutombo overnight and Shaq still deserves the MLE. Have fun chasing unicorns. I'm moving on.

[benefactor]

I played D1 so I know a bit, I played with someone who will be drafted this year and Im boys with someone who was a first rounder last season.

[benefactor]

There is a difference though...your actually know something about basketball.

OTOH, there have been some pretty dumb college players come through the pipeline. I guess I'll go out on a limb and say it's plausible.

[objective]

Hill your dead on played against bad teams but he was highly recriuted out of HS and could have gone anywhere not so with Babs.....

wrong

Babbitt was recruited by Ohio State to play with Turner and the rest of the guys, but like George Hill, decided to stay local and play with Nevada. There's an ESPN college podcast where I believe Katz and Gottlieb talked about it.

[benefactor]

wrong

Babbitt was recruited by Ohio State to play with Turner and the rest of the guys, but like George Hill, decided to stay local and play with Nevada. There's an ESPN college podcast where I believe Katz and Gottlieb talked about it.

How dare you question the knowledge of our resident D1 bench superstar.

[Blackjack]

I'm actually convinced T2S is a Cully troll. He has to be someone's.

[Blackjack]

And it's brilliant, by the way. Great subtly for a troll.

[Bender]

..

..

Phila, I voted for you and this doesn't cut it.

[The Truth #6]

Its hard being a good troll. You have to know enough about basketball to know the right thing to say, but then have the concentration to distort it into something bizarre that could almost pass for being believable.

[Bender]

I'll make it up to you bender.

yeah I was just kidding around too. I've been ignoring this thread for a couple days, and it looked liked I missed out on some joking around.

[Chieflion]

Back to draft talk, Phila. Enough of the D1 and NBA player nonsense.

Now, I don't think Memphis wants to move up with their late firsts so assuming the Spurs pick at 20, with Hayward, Babbitt, Henry and George all gone, we will be left with this pool of SFs. As much as we are all enthused about getting two 1st rounders, that isn't going to happen probably.

Damion James (May already be gone by 20)
James Anderson (May already be gone by 20)
Quincy Pondexter (Most likely there)
Stanley Robinson (Most likely there)
Devin Ebanks (Most likely there)

Here now lies a problem. Key thing here is that, if both James Anderson and Damion James are already taken, we will be left with Pondexter, Ebanks and Robinson. These guys are not worth using the 20th pick on, but that doesn't matter to the Spurs front office, they don't give a hoot about such things. That is not the point though. With only Robinson, Ebanks and Pondexter, the Spurs may not like any of them and not choose any one of these guys. I hope that one of James or Anderson will still be there if this scenario occurs but for the sake of this hypothetical that both are off the board, let us analyze the situation further.

Let us recall back to 2008, when Batum got snatched right in front of our eyes, the Spurs look to George Hill, a relative unknown at that time.

Okay, after that upsetting short paragraph for Batum lovers, let us get back to the present. The Spurs may look into the guards which was what happened in 2008. Frankly speaking, this is a good year for GMs who want to draft their combo guards. Now, we have the following.

Avery Bradley (Outside chance of being available)
Eric Bledsoe (May be there at 20)
Elli0t Williams (Most likely there at 20)
Dominque Jones (Most likely there at 20)
Willie Warren (Most likely there at 20)
Jordan Crawford (Most likely there at 20)
Terrico White (Most likely there at 20)

Problem here is that Crawford and White are not really 1st round calibre guys. They are borderline out of it. They are early second rounders trying to impress and make it to the 1st round. If the Spurs draft Bledsoe in this scenario, the Parker situation gets extremely more complicated. I am going to assume that Bradley will not be available here because that is the most likely situation. Now we have Elli0t Williams, Willie Warren and Dominque Jones, all three being smaller SGs and combo guards and are a "reach" to be drafted at 20, which is another problem.

I don't really believe the Spurs are trying to acquire another big here as they want Splitter in and he wants to be guaranteed rotation minutes. Another big may be useless here.

In conclusion, I believe that drafting at 20 has to be the biggest headache for the Spurs for quite a while and the best thing is to hope that one of Damion James or James Anderson actually stay undrafted until 20.

[Bender]

only 11 more days!

[Blackjack]

I think we've all overlooked a significant factor for the next Spur. Something that's gotta be in the criteria of their new prospect. The 'E.'

The player must have a name that the letter 'E' can be added to.

For example:

Tim-E

Tone-E (go with it)

George-E

Ian-E

Matt-E

Manu has a wife named Man-E (again, go with it)

We await the arrival of Mr. Tiag-E

'Lik-E (Malik)

Gare-E (Temple)

G-E (Alonzo -- work with M-E)


Just something y'all should consider.

[Bender]

Pop giving his players little kid's names always drove me crazy.

"Timmy" is a 5 year old kid, not a pro bball player in his 30s.

Same with Matty. Actually Matty is a girls name.

Lucky for Pop we have a Tony, no conversion necessary.

Blackjack, you're really stretching on a few of those!

[TimDunkem]

Devin Ebanks it is.

[DPG21920]

Is there any update on the Spurs Summer League Schedule?

[Blackjack]

Blackjack, you're really stretching on a few of those!

Maybe, but Mr. Tiag-E I think could stick. The potential photoshops are endless!

[Blackjack]

Is there any update on the Spurs Summer League Schedule?

I seem to remember those coming out a little while after the draft. At least, it always seemed like teams got their players and then we're all waiting to find out when we get a chance to see them play or hear how they did.

[Bruno]

DX has updated their mock draft. They have us drafting Sanders.

They also said on their twitter that Minny will likely go with Wes Johnson at #4. It means that they likely won't go with a SF at #16. Good news for Spurs.

[TD 21]

DX has updated their mock draft. They have us drafting Sanders.

They also said on their twitter that Minny will likely go with Wes Johnson at #4. It means that they likely won't go with a SF at #16. Good news for Spurs.

This is the Timberwolves we're talking about here. If they draft one position early, all it means is that they're apt to draft a cadre of players who play the same position throughout the draft.

[lurker23]

DX has updated their mock draft. They have us drafting Sanders.

They also said on their twitter that Minny will likely go with Wes Johnson at #4. It means that they likely won't go with a SF at #16. Good news for Spurs.

@DraftExpress

I assume yes. Heard they like Udoh. RT @sofargonz: Does this mean the Wolves will target a big man they worked out at #16, like Whiteside?

http://twitter.com/DraftExpress

[Bruno]

I wonder how Bulls see James Johnson. He has had a bad rookie season so they could try to dump him to create more capspace.

Spurs could offer a trade like #20 + Hairston + Jerrells for #17 + James Johnson. At #17, there is a good chance that at least one of Henry, George, babbitt or Hayward is still available.

[Chieflion]

I wonder how Bulls see James Johnson. He has had a bad rookie season so they could try to dump him to create more capspace.

Spurs could offer a trade like #20 + Hairston + Jerrells for #17 + James Johnson. At #17, there is a good chance that at least one of Henry, George, babbitt or Hayward is still available.

I think we could also look at the Hawks #24 pick if the Spurs want to draft Quincy Pondexter. We don't need to give up a 1st rounder. The Hawks reportedly don't like what they see in their draft prospects and look to trade out. They also need to re-sign Joe Johnson and Jeff Teague has not seen the floor a lot.