Draft Prospect: Paul George

[Pistons < Spurs]

SpearsNBAYahoo

Fresno State's Paul George was invited to NBA Draft green room today, source said. Say o to the Cinderella of the draft.

[Blackjack]

Well, that just about insures a lottery pick. Not a guarantee, but they've made sure to not have to deal with the Jameer Nelson and Brady Quinn scenarios in recent years. The lottery residents have to have made the commish feel he'd be taken by one of them.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

Draftexpress now has him at 12. Well out of our range now. Pity.

At this point I'd be trading down a few spots for Pondexter or Anderson.

[Blackjack]

TrueHoop Network Mock Draft: The Indiana Pacers Select…
by Tim Donahue

With the 10th pick in the first annual TrueHoop Network Mock Draft, the Indiana Pacers select…



Paul George of Fresno State University

Rationale: The bigs that the Pacers were really interested in — Monroe, Aminu and Udoh — are all off the board. I don’t think that they would draft Ed Davis to keep him, as he’s maybe three or four years away from being a contributor and doesn’t look to have huge upside. And the only other big to really consider here, Cole Aldrich, is too redundant to Roy Hibbert.

Other rumbles have the Pacers targeting Avery Bradley here, who makes sense as a perimeter defender, but is a bit of a stretch at pick #10. Also, he’s more of a 2 than a 1. In fact, I told Jared that’s who I was going to draft but then went back and re-read some notes and scouting reports and changed my mind. It’s possible that they go that direction, but I think they’ll end up liking Paul George as a more versatile, more NBA-ready player. He could potentially take Rush’s job at the 2. Or, if Murphy is traded away, he could even end up playing some “stretch” 4 in the system. Overall, he looks like a very strong defender for the 3, a good defender at 4 and a passable-to-solid defender at the 2.

More than anything, however, the choices left in this mock draft underscore how much the Pacers really are — and probably should be — looking to trade down or out of this draft. Indiana, most of all, needs guard help and there isn’t a lot they can get at pick #10 that’s better than what they can get even after the lottery. Thus, I would be very surprised if the Pacers have this pick come draft night.

The New Orleans Hornets are now on the clock…

[Blackjack]

I get the feeling if the Spurs move up it they are not looking at Paul George.

I agree. I'd honestly expect to be underwhelmed and for the Spurs to probably go big, maybe even going Orton as a long-term pick -- the Spurs don't get the opportunity to draft at-or-near the top for the best prospects and if they could get a big they believed in for the future and hang on to the 20 by moving Hill, they could very well draft Williams or Jones as his replacement.

Of course, should they actually move Parker, than it's really all up in the air; I'd still think that Williams makes a lot of sense for them at 20, given how he could compliment Hill and seemingly make a contribution right off the bat.

Two-more-days . . .

[DesignatedT]

Would anyone do Hill +#20 for Rush + #10 and use it to draft george?

[TIMMYD!]

This might be the most excited I've ever been for a draft.

[Blackjack]

Would anyone do Hill +#20 for Rush + #10 and use it to draft george?

If the Spurs drafted George with the 10, meaning they deem him worthy, yes. I've discussed this on a couple of occasions.

I've made an argument and could definitely see the validity to a trade involving Hill and probably their 20 for Rush and their first-rounder, but I have a hard time believing they'd move Parker for the 10, Rush and Murphy.

[scottspurs]

This might be the most excited I've ever been for a draft.

Don't get your hopes to high. After all the spurs could just end up trading their pick for cash.

[TIMMYD!]

Don't get your hopes to high. After all the spurs could just end up trading their pick for cash.

They would have probably done that by now.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

So let's say Hill and Anderson (#20) for Rush and George (#10)... you really think that's a good trade? I think Hill blossomed last year but still has some way to go in terms of improvement, knows the system, still young... I just don't see how you can shift him for a mediocre SG and a maybe at SF. Hill is already a very good NBA player who has the potential to be even better, and you'd trade him for question marks? I wouldn't, unless George is a lock to be an NBA starter and premier lockdown perimeter defender (see, Batum, Nicolas)... is anyone going to call that for George at this point?

I'd rather trade down a few spots and take Pondexter (or Anderson), or even take one of them at 20. But then I haven't seen enough of George to be wowed by him like some other people obviously have.

[Blackjack]

Good seein' you back around, Ruff.

As for the take, here's my rationale and thought process:

You're not gonna find a bigger Hill fan than myself and I'm in no way advocating for his departure. But if what Kori's said in the past is true, that the Spurs view Hill to be a 2 (and I have no reason to believe what she says isn't true), the possibility of acquiring Rush (a guy who's 6-6 in shoes and has nice length) and the 10th pick might be the right move to make, even if unpopular.

Rush could be one of the best potential 'Centerpieces' they could find for next year, as he's a solid defender and just got done shooting 40-percent from three. And if they're high enough on someone like George ... they could have the size and length set on their perimeter for a long time.

DX currently has Davis off the board at 10 and their doesn't seem to be a lot of separation between the prospects in that 10-20 range (DX's current 10-20: Ekpe Udoh, Patrick Patterson, Luke Babbitt, Avery Bradley, Cole Aldrich, Gordon Hayward, Paul George, Damion James, Hassan Whiteside, Daniel Orton, Larry Sanders), but the combination of Rush and one of those prospects could very well address more needs and put them in better position, both short and long-term, than Hill. Could.

I really don't want to see Hill go. He's one of my favorite players. But there's an argument to be made that it'd be best for the team if this deal could be done.

Even if they had to exchange first-rounders and make it essentially Hill for Rush, I think that's probably the prudent move for the Spurs to make if they believe in the player they can get at 10.

Indiana would be getting the best player, probably both short and long-term (as I'm not informed enough to tell you how good those 10-20 players are this year -- I just didn't see enough), but Rush fills a need immediately and would likely be much better than anyone they could get at 20. Then it's down to the 10 and Hill and even if that pick never manages to be as good as Hill, he'd seemingly be a pretty nice player at a position of greater need; or he'd at least have the body to play the position he was deemed of being.

If Paul George is really a player and someone who could eventually turn into a borderline star or even just a starter and they get a proven guy like Rush to go alongside of him, that really could turn out quite well: George envisions himself as a 6-8 shooting guard and Rush's offensive game falls right in line with a Spurs small forward. They could potentially have found the size and skill on the wing for the present and future with one fell swoop.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

I see your logic Blackjack, but I do think there is a tendency to over-rate the newcomers just before draft time... then again, a number of columnists have stated that George has the potential to be a star, so maybe it's worth the gamble.

The other aspect worth considering here is the organisation's character - I simply can't see Pop/RC trading Hill away when he's just coming into his own and we're thin on PGs (even though Hill is more of a combo guard).

I think I'll just shut up and watch since I've been too busy with life lately to really assess what is going on... yeah, I'll just stay quiet and scratch my head when we draft Igor Blodinovic from Lower Intestistan, who turns out to be the best balla we've never heard of!

[Blackjack]

I'll just stay quiet and scratch my head when we draft Igor Blodinovic from Lower Intestistan

Nice.

[admiralsnackbar]

I simply can't see Pop/RC trading Hill away when he's just coming into his own and we're thin on PGs (even though Hill is more of a combo guard).

For the money we're paying him? I agree. He might be a sweetener, but he'd have to be netting something pretty effing sweet in return.

[EricB]

I'd like to think trading Hill would net more than Brandon Rush, BUT, if the 10th pick nets someone really really good that you can start at small forward, slide Jefferson to the 2, or vice versa, or someone stupidly trades for Jefferson, then I can see it.

Parker no, Hill? Much more expendable IMO.

[SenorSpur]

Makes a lot of sense. If the Spurs have any chance to move up to get George, I would certainly do it, if I'm them. If the Spurs do decide to sacrifice a player to move up, I would that it would be Hill rather than Parker. The only problem is the money issue with Parker. Hill is on a cheap contract, while Parker will likely be looking for a max contract next summer. However, if the Spurs can successfully dump RJ, or when he walks next summer, then there's available cash there.