This years shooting guard crop is a bit difficult to ween. Between Jamaal Franklin, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Tony Snell, Glen Rice and Archie Goodwin, there are a lot of unknowns.
First, the knuckleheads.
KCP has some of the worst shot selection you've ever seen. He's not just bad, he's JR Smith bad. At times, he has no idea how much time is left on the shot clock, he doesn't care if he's well-defended, he doesn't want to run the play. Although, he's got that knack of JR Smith to sometimes hit these extremely ill advised shots; the familiar "No no no! Yes yes yes!" that often leaves coaches shaking their heads. Beyond the obvious problems with this approach, long rebounds are INSTANT DEATH for transition defense in the NBA. These are much bigger, faster, stronger athletes and they're going to push that ball down your throat.
KCP also has that fearlessness on the court that's idiosyncratic of his off court persona. Basketball players with strong/expressive personalities seem to play the way they seem as people. Stephen Jackson, Rasheed Wallace, JR Smith, KG, Carmelo. Sure, everyone here might be "punks", but they make their presences known.
Outside of character flaws (getting benched for the majority of his junior year before getting kicked off the team) associated with Glen Rice Jr, and the questionable motor/intangibles associated with these kinds of red flags, he looks like a sure bet. He won the D-League MVP en-route to leading the Rio Grande Vipers to a championship, showcasing some serious athleticism and a shooting stroke reminiscent of his fathers. Standing 6'5 with merely mortal physical attributes and athleticism that is great for the DLeague but average by NBA standards, the big question for me is how to gauge the competition he faced at this level. Are DLeague players even on the same level as the ACC? The jury is out.
Tony Snell has the super long arms, and is a dead-eye shooter. His problems are consistency, drive, and not playing up to his abilities. The guy can handle the rock, run the offense, and at times dominate the competition (as evinced in this 13 point run he had against UNLV).
While he's got the tools, the combination of attributes just reminds me too much of Carlos Delfino. Big, wiry shooters like this aren't hard to find though. And the fact he's American probably helps distinguish him from Del3no. A shooter with this type of wingspan is virtually unblockable, and a comparison who comes to mind immediately is Anthony Morrow.
Goodwin's your bang/bust type of guy. Think Alec Burks, Corey Brewer (although at the time he seemed like a sure thing, and he's finding his niche now), Nick Young (although he wasn't nearly as young coming out), Ronnie Brewer, JR Giddens, Brandon Rush, Martell Webster, Josh Childress. Actually, the list is comparatively pretty short. I hate taking the high potential guard, I'd rather waste the pick on a project big man. To go off of the Alec Burks example, although the guy's been in the league a few years now he's still a bit of an enigma. When there's nothing but pedigree and potential there, it's almost impossible what you're going to end up with in the long run. He has no jumper, which isn't usually something that you can teach (I say usually).
My money is on Jamaal Franklin. Sharing the same team as Kawhi Leonard (who has the potential to be the SF version of Kenneth Faried), Franklin has a relentless motor, an advanced handle, and the ability to defend four positions. His jumper is a work in progress, and he's more smooth than explosive, but I look at the fact that he's a potential two way player who can already score at a decent clip and his size advantage for the position. Goodwin definitely has more potential, and KCP or Rice are much sexier picks, but if we want a guy who's going to fit into a team system and help on both ends immediately the Bucks might want to go with Franklin. However, rather than my "sure bet", this fella gets my "safe bet".
Edit: This lil dunk by Jamaal Franklin has been going viral on Youtube today:
However, on paper, how does this guy look any different than Allen Crabbe? Best case scenario Snell or Crabbe fall into the second round. Tim Hardaway Jr., Nate Wolters and Ricky Ledo all have similar strengths as jack-of-all-trades types.
I'm holding off on doing a mock until the draft lottery, but it looks like Schroeder's got a promise from the Mavs. He bowed out of the combine due to a "tooth-ache"; other than a promise, what are some other potential meanings of this?
However, in order of most talented, regardless of team drafting, it's gotta go something like this:
1.) Nerlens Noel
2.) Ben McLemore
3.) Anthony Bennett
4/5.) Victor Oladipo/Trey Burke (tend to like Oladipo better, sorry Trey)
6.) Otto Porter
7.) Alex Len (not getting nearly enough media, if you ask me. Easily as gifted as Noel)
8.) Rudy Gobert (due to his monstrous size and great fundamentals, there's no way he goes any lower than 8)
9/10.) C.J. McCollum/Cody Zeller (While Cody underwhelmed in the combine, it's inconceivable that he's not at least as good as his brother Tyler who impressed in his first year in Cleveland)
11.) Shabazz (Could he fall this far? Could land anywhere in the 6/12 range)
12.) Schroeder
13.) Carter-Williams (big point guards are always intriguing, but how often do they pan out?)
14/15.) Mason Plumlee/Kelly Olynyk (A couple of stonecold unsexy picks. Some fans are going to be disappointed on draft night)
16.) ALL OF THE SHOOTING GUARDS and Gorgui Dieng.
I realize how similar my list looks to the DX mock, but those guy are just spot on this year (and most years).
First, the knuckleheads.
KCP also has that fearlessness on the court that's idiosyncratic of his off court persona. Basketball players with strong/expressive personalities seem to play the way they seem as people. Stephen Jackson, Rasheed Wallace, JR Smith, KG, Carmelo. Sure, everyone here might be "punks", but they make their presences known.
Tony Snell has the super long arms, and is a dead-eye shooter. His problems are consistency, drive, and not playing up to his abilities. The guy can handle the rock, run the offense, and at times dominate the competition (as evinced in this 13 point run he had against UNLV).
Goodwin's your bang/bust type of guy. Think Alec Burks, Corey Brewer (although at the time he seemed like a sure thing, and he's finding his niche now), Nick Young (although he wasn't nearly as young coming out), Ronnie Brewer, JR Giddens, Brandon Rush, Martell Webster, Josh Childress. Actually, the list is comparatively pretty short. I hate taking the high potential guard, I'd rather waste the pick on a project big man. To go off of the Alec Burks example, although the guy's been in the league a few years now he's still a bit of an enigma. When there's nothing but pedigree and potential there, it's almost impossible what you're going to end up with in the long run. He has no jumper, which isn't usually something that you can teach (I say usually).
Edit: This lil dunk by Jamaal Franklin has been going viral on Youtube today:
However, on paper, how does this guy look any different than Allen Crabbe? Best case scenario Snell or Crabbe fall into the second round. Tim Hardaway Jr., Nate Wolters and Ricky Ledo all have similar strengths as jack-of-all-trades types.
I'm holding off on doing a mock until the draft lottery, but it looks like Schroeder's got a promise from the Mavs. He bowed out of the combine due to a "tooth-ache"; other than a promise, what are some other potential meanings of this?
However, in order of most talented, regardless of team drafting, it's gotta go something like this:
1.) Nerlens Noel
2.) Ben McLemore
3.) Anthony Bennett
4/5.) Victor Oladipo/Trey Burke (tend to like Oladipo better, sorry Trey)
6.) Otto Porter
7.) Alex Len (not getting nearly enough media, if you ask me. Easily as gifted as Noel)
8.) Rudy Gobert (due to his monstrous size and great fundamentals, there's no way he goes any lower than 8)
9/10.) C.J. McCollum/Cody Zeller (While Cody underwhelmed in the combine, it's inconceivable that he's not at least as good as his brother Tyler who impressed in his first year in Cleveland)
11.) Shabazz (Could he fall this far? Could land anywhere in the 6/12 range)
12.) Schroeder
13.) Carter-Williams (big point guards are always intriguing, but how often do they pan out?)
14/15.) Mason Plumlee/Kelly Olynyk (A couple of stonecold unsexy picks. Some fans are going to be disappointed on draft night)
16.) ALL OF THE SHOOTING GUARDS and Gorgui Dieng.
I realize how similar my list looks to the DX mock, but those guy are just spot on this year (and most years).
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