OT: NBA Draft 2013

[jbizzle09]

OK, I figured I'd take a look and see how the draft is shaping up and what familiar players we might see getting their name called. I am looking at players from the A-10, teams that SLU faced during the season or are from the St. Louis area originally. I am also figuring where they will be drafted, if at all.

Ben McLemore SG Kansas - Possibly the 1st overall pick. Definitely will be picked in the first few selections.

Otto Porter SF Georgetown - Outside chance at being the top pick. Will be a top ten pick and most likely top 5.

Tony Mitchell SF/PF North Texas - Looking like a mid-to-late 1st round pick. However, quite possible he slips into the 2nd round.

Tony Snell SG/SF New Mexico - Mid-to-late first round pick. Outside chance he drops to the 2nd round, but most likely will hear his name called somewhere in the 20's.

Jeff Withey C Kansas - Late 1st round to 2nd round. A team might take a chance on him with a late 1st round pick, especially if they need size. Most likely he goes in the 2nd round.

BJ Young SG Arkansas - 2nd round to undrafted. I don't think it was a wise decision on his part to declare for the draft this year. Hopefully, he didn't rent out a club so he can host a viewing party.

CJ Aiken PF St. Joe's - 2nd round to undrafted. He is another one who probably should have stayed in school rather than declare. He isn't that high on anyone's radar.

Elijah Johnson PG Kansas - 2nd round to undrafted.

Khaliff Wyatt SG/SF Temple - 2nd round to undrafted.

Arsalan Kazemi PF Oregon - 2nd round to undrafted.

Rotnei Clarke PG/SG Butler - Undrafted. He has been working out with NBA teams trying to show that he can handle the point along with get his shot off quickly. Per NBA scouts, he is actually 5'11".

Andrew Smith C Butler - Undrafted. However, don't be shocked if he makes his way onto a team as a free agent in the next couple of seasons due to his size and decent touch around the rim.

Troy Daniels SG/SF VCU - Undrafted.

Kwamain Mitchell PG SLU - Undrafted. Hopefully he can land with a decent club overseas.

Tony Woods C Oregon - Undrafted.

Aziz N'Diyae C Washington - Undrafted. However, I can see him eventually making his way to the NBA due to just how big and strong he is.

[West Pine Jim]

Nice summary, biz. Your middle name should be "Sporting News".

[JMM28]

http://tracking.si.com/2013/06/18/ben-mclemore-nba-draft/

McLemore showing up out of shape to workouts... might slip.

[brianstl]

Porter is going to be a hell of a NBA player.

[jimbofive]

http://tracking.si.com/2013/06/18/ben-mclemore-nba-draft/

McLemore showing up out of shape to workouts... might slip.

what a gotdamn fuoking idiot. if i'm a top five draft pick, potentially #1, i'm going to be going for a solid fuoking jog every day during the offseason, lifting a bit. what an @sshole...

now, oladipo, who i was never that high on, looks like a flat out fuoking monster. i'm taking him every time over mclemore at this point.

check that ish out...

[Taj79]

The 76ers have worked out both AIken and Wyatt along with Shane Larkin. Makes sense since both are Philly products. I think Wyatt can be a productive NBA player over time. We'll see.

[MB73]

what a gotdamn fuoking idiot. if i'm a top five draft pick, potentially #1, i'm going to be going for a solid fuoking jog every day during the offseason, lifting a bit. what an @sshole...

now, oladipo, who i was never that high on, looks like a flat out fuoking monster. i'm taking him every time over mclemore at this point.

check that ish out...

Agree, I wouldn't risk a # 1 on McLemore... some of the high risk brainless type kids wind up doing well in the NBA, but some es-plode, he could be in either category.

[Billikenboy]

http://tracking.si.com/2013/06/18/ben-mclemore-nba-draft/

McLemore showing up out of shape to workouts... might slip.

Complacency is the last trait you want in a top draft pick. Oladipo looks ripe for success imo.

[Emoracze]

As a Cavs fan, I have two choices: 1st Nerlens Noel and would expect we will be in the lottery again next year which could be really good for the long term or 2nd Otto Porter who adresses the largest team need and will be a very good player, probably not great though. Please no Mac.

[jbizzle09]

Chad Ford has something up on ESPN Insider that shows a poll of NBA GMs and scouts. Apparently, the consensus opinion among them is that Oladipo should be the #1 pick. He really has seen his stock rise over the past few months. He apparently has a reputation as being an extremely hard worker who is always practicing, which contrasts with McLemore, who now has been described as out-of-shape in pre-draft workouts. Since they are both shooting guards, it all depends on what a team wants: The better pure shooter (McLemore) or the harder-worker and better defender (Oladipo).

[Taj79]

Ten players invited to the NBA Draft Green Room for Thursday: Nerlens Noel (Kentucky), Otto Porter (Georgetown), Cody Zeller (indiana), Victor Oladipo (Indiana), Trey Burke (Michigan), Ben McLemore (Kansas), Michael Carter-Williams (Syracuse), Alex Len (Maryland), Anthony Bennett (UNLV) and CJ McCollum (Lehigh).

I don't see a one as a "franchise" player. I would also only select Porter, Oladipo, Burke and maybe, maybe Carter-Williams (as a 6'8" point guard) from the list. The rest, don't do a thing for me and I only see slight pro careers in their respective futures.

[Pistol]

Seems like a weaker draft than usual. Too bad Cassity didn't graduate this year. Could have gotten some serious looks.

[Clock_Tower]

Sorry, but after watching the NBA Finals (I watched no other NBA this past year), I could care less. Anoint Lebron and Heat if you want, but the NBA Finals made Bob Huggins and Cincy teams look like choir boys. Clutching and grabbing is one thing but outright pushing and knocking players down is another. Maybe the fix was in to make Lebron and the Heat win... maybe just more bad officiating .... but the lack of a foul called against the Heat at both the end of Game 6 regulation and OT is why I don't care about the NBA. To me, though, I am glad it acts as a magnet to keep the college game better.

[waldo027]

It's a historically weak draft. The top pick might be a guy without a functioning knee.

[NH]

Ten players invited to the NBA Draft Green Room for Thursday: Nerlens Noel (Kentucky), Otto Porter (Georgetown), Cody Zeller (indiana), Victor Oladipo (Indiana), Trey Burke (Michigan), Ben McLemore (Kansas), Michael Carter-Williams (Syracuse), Alex Len (Maryland), Anthony Bennett (UNLV) and CJ McCollum (Lehigh).

I don't see a one as a "franchise" player. I would also only select Porter, Oladipo, Burke and maybe, maybe Carter-Williams (as a 6'8" point guard) from the list. The rest, don't do a thing for me and I only see slight pro careers in their respective futures.

Oladipo will develop into a solid role player and could definitely be a Kawhi Leonard-level contributor. But in my mind he doesn't have the upside that Mclemore, Carter-Williams, Bennett, or even Porter do. But in a draft like this someone with his work ethic and defensive abilities is worth a lot.

If I'm drafting number one I would take McLemore, Bennett, or Porter. Noel has serious concerns surrounding him and several teams don't even have him on their draft board. That said, I'm sure someone will still take him number one or in the first few picks.

I also really like C.J. McCollum's game and attitude. He will not be a bust.

If Willie Reed had his head on straight during his college days, he could've been a first round pick in this draft.

[Quality Is Job 1]

If Willie Reed had his head on straight during his college days, he could've been a first round pick in this draft.

If he'd had his head on straight, he would have been in the '12 draft.

[NH]

If he'd had his head on straight, he would have been in the '12 draft.

In all honesty, the cause of that suspension was far from Willie's biggest bonehead move at SLU. How he and his father handled it, however, is a different story.

[Quality Is Job 1]

In all honesty, the cause of that suspension was far from Willie's biggest bonehead move at SLU. How he and his father handled it, however, is a different story.

I'm not talking about the suspension. If he'd had his head on straight -- as you said -- he'd have come out in '12 with Conklin.

[brianstl]

McLemore has huge upside, but I would not touch him with the first picks. His lack of a killer instinct and now his apparent lack of overall care about being in shape before the draft are huge red flags.

[Cowboy]

McLemore has huge upside, but I would not touch him with the first picks. His lack of a killer instinct and now his apparent lack of overall care about being in shape before the draft are huge red flags.

-Brian, I too see the HUGE red flags on BMac, but players like him get drafted too high in my way of thinking

-by no means am I equating the level of what BMac has done, or hasn't done (see stay in shape), with what the tight end from the Patriots is accused of doing, but I wonder if the football player's actions cause a different thought in any gm's mind?

-or the Rams' mind

[For-DaLove]

NH, I'm slightly confused on your statement about Odalipo. First, all signs point towards Leonard being a star for the spurs. He was putting up huge numbers in the Finals, all while guarding LeBron most of the time. Oh and he was only in his 2nd year in the league.

But you also say Odalipo could be a good role-player. Why don't you think he has good upside? He's a great athlete who showed major improvements in his game throughout his college career. His shot keeps getting better, he's a great defender, and by all accounts he is one of the hardest workers in this class. He's long been compared to James Harden and now some people are saying his game is a lot like Dawyne Wade's. Not saying he'll be D Wade but I'm wondering what flaws you see in him.

[NH]

NH, I'm slightly confused on your statement about Odalipo. First, all signs point towards Leonard being a star for the spurs. He was putting up huge numbers in the Finals, all while guarding LeBron most of the time. Oh and he was only in his 2nd year in the league.

But you also say Odalipo could be a good role-player. Why don't you think he has good upside? He's a great athlete who showed major improvements in his game throughout his college career. His shot keeps getting better, he's a great defender, and by all accounts he is one of the hardest workers in this class. He's long been compared to James Harden and now some people are saying his game is a lot like Dawyne Wade's. Not saying he'll be D Wade but I'm wondering what flaws you see in him.

I think his ceiling is Leonard, which like I said is well worth a number one pick, especially in this draft. That said, if you look at previous recent number one selections, they all had or have higher ceilings than what I project Oladipo to be.

When I say good role-player I do not mean it as a diss. I don't mean a 7th or 8th man I mean he could be the fourth or fifth best player on a championship team.

As far as the flaws go, I'm not sold on him as a shooter. He doesn't have the most natural shot (it's not bad) and he doesn't have a shooting pedigree. Yes, his percentage improved drastically last year. But he still attempted fewer than two three-pointers a game! He shot fewer threes than Jake Barnett. A large majority of his threes were also relatively open shots. While I think this does point to Oladipo being a smart player, there is nothing to suggest he is a natural scorer, a trait usually expected out of the top shooting guard in a class.

People like to get on Mclemore for not having "killer instinct," but he still shot far more and scored more than Oladipo as a RS freshman on a team filled with sophomores. Oladipo's consistent improvement should certainly be applauded. But has Mclemore not made similar improvement? From a 6'5" unknown power forward at Wellston to a star shooting guard at Kansas within three years is a pretty impressive transition.

I do not mean to paint Oladipo in a poor light. I think he will be a good player (12-16 ppg) and a very good defender on a winning team). But I don't see him as an above-average passer, shooter or ballhandler for his position at the NBA level. His athleticism, intelligence and work ethic will help him improve in those areas, but I'm still not as sold as others are.

[billiken_roy]

i'd like to point out the nba draft has been about potential over just deserved for years. always looking for the big pay day. second, maybe some boneheaded street agent might be telling mclemore that he is too good to play with the bottom feeders and would be better served to find his way down the draft to a better team.

both are stupid assumptions that have both happened in years past.

myself, I think the nba is so screwed up i can see mclemore being picked however, i wouldnt take him when you consider the need to academically sit a year, the street agent fiasco he is obviously surrounded with and now the fact he has allowed himself to get out of shape. seems he is the proverbial train wreck waiting to happen. maybe he could be one of the rush boys by distant relations.

[jbizzle09]

Personally, I think Ben McLemore is worth risking a very high pick (maybe #1???) on, mostly because of his already exceptional shooting ability and ready-made NBA game. His legitimate ceiling, and a player he compares with favorably from a physical standpoint, is Ray Allen. (Both are 6'5" and around 200) In fact, Ray Allen's shooting percentages as a freshman at UConn are very similar to McLemore's (McLemore shot slightly higher from three than Ray and had a better free throw percentage; Allen had a better overall FG%.)

The one thing that you need in the NBA to succeed and get to the next level is exceptional long-distance shooting. If you can draft a player that is already an elite shooter, and should get better over the years, then you have to consider that. Out of the teams with the top 5 picks, only Washington is a decent 3-pt shooting team (10th in the league.) The other four finished 23rd (Cleveland/1st pick), 29th (Orlando/2nd pick), 27th (Charlotte/4th pick) and 28th (Phoenix/5th pick.) Those 4 teams are in desperate need of some outside shooting. McLemore and Porter provide the best options at the top of the draft in that department

[majerus mojo]

Personally, I think Ben McLemore is worth risking a very high pick (maybe #1???) on, mostly because of his already exceptional shooting ability and ready-made NBA game. His legitimate ceiling, and a player he compares with favorably from a physical standpoint, is Ray Allen. (Both are 6'5" and around 200) In fact, Ray Allen's shooting percentages as a freshman at UConn are very similar to McLemore's (McLemore shot slightly higher from three than Ray and had a better free throw percentage; Allen had a better overall FG%.)

The one thing that you need in the NBA to succeed and get to the next level is exceptional long-distance shooting. If you can draft a player that is already an elite shooter, and should get better over the years, then you have to consider that. Out of the teams with the top 5 picks, only Washington is a decent 3-pt shooting team (10th in the league.) The other four finished 23rd (Cleveland/1st pick), 29th (Orlando/2nd pick), 27th (Charlotte/4th pick) and 28th (Phoenix/5th pick.) Those 4 teams are in desperate need of some outside shooting. McLemore and Porter provide the best options at the top of the draft in that department

+1. If I'm CLE I take McLemore and use Waiters as 6th man. With Kyrie at point, you've got best backcourt in the league potential... that's why they call it the lottery.