2015 Draft Prospects:

Russell has shot up the draft boards. I recorded his game today but haven't watched it yet. If we were to finally get lucky and land top three, I'd have a hard time passing on either Okafor or Towns. As much as I'd love to have a top PG, its not nearly as pressing need as someone to either play along side Cousins, or back him up. Another option would be to trade down, perhaps with the Lakers who have the 4th pick right now, and the 26th pick. Trade the first pick for both their picks. Grab either Russell or Cauley Stein with the 4th pick, and see what's available at number 26. Or just take Okafor, put him next to Cousins and see how it works.

So now were a few games into the 2nd half of the season and just when I thought I will never visit a page of this thread again due to a promising start until Malone got fired. SIGH!

So which picks are we looking at now? Is our pick top 10 protected or what?

To answer the last question first, yes, were top ten protected, and currently sitting in the ninth position. As to who we might pick, it's a little early to say, but in general, if we can get a big man that can block shots and rebound, you take him. There are a few that fit that description, some of whom also have an offensive game as well. After watching the Ohio St. game last night, I admit that Russell is very enticing. Very talented kid that has great court vision, can get to the basket at will and can hit the outside shot. In that respect, he's almost too good to be true. His defense needs some work, but he's a good athlete so I don't see a problem. 6'5"PG's don't grow on tree's. Not good one's anyway.

been watching Robert Upshaw lately for Washington...he is a shot blocking machine, he has 80+ by himself! I wonder if he can be nabbed up somehow someway, that height and wingspan would be incredible to have.

I sat a few days ago and watched 3 Washington games back to back. So here's my criticism so far. Upshaw plants himself under the basket on defense, and seldom moves off that spot. In other words, he's goal tending, and he's doing a great job of goal tending. But unlike Cauley Stein, he seldom goes out to defend the pick and roll. Cauley Stein is outstanding defending on the perimeter, and I can't say the same thing about Upshaw. I'm not saying he can't, I'm just saying I haven't seen it. This was my criticism of Thabeet when he was at UCONN. There's no defensive 3 second rule in college like there is in the NBA. Lest you forget, Thabeet was a shotblocking machine in college, but was lost once he got into the NBA.

Like I said, I'm not saying Upshaw isn't capable. I'd just like to see some evidence of it.

I wanted to say that I had the exact same immobility issues with Upshaw when I watched him. Then I just read this:

espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/12232892/washington-huskies-dismiss-robert-upshaw-program-violation-team-rules

Looks like Upshaw just got booted from his SECOND college team. I have a feeling he'll be in the draft, but I want zero part of him at this point.

I go praise the guy and he gets dismissed from the Huskies.....drug problems? dude needs some counseling or rehab if he can't stay on a team for the second time.

Ditto on Russell. He's been one of the real stars so far. At first I was thinking combo-guard but I can definitely see him being the first PG off the board if he keeps it up. He's one of the few freshmen who hasn't shown any sign of slowing down as the season goes on. Physically, Mudiay is the more impressive prospect (and there's no fair way to judge them equally considering the circumstances) but the court-awareness I've seen from Russell is way ahead of where Mudiay was before the injury. I'm not anywhere close to figuring out a top 5 yet, but Russell is going to be on the short list at the end of the season.

Anyone know what's wrong with Justise Winslow? He had a bad game against Miami a couple weeks ago and it seems like he hasn't mentally recovered yet. Is it just the freshman wall?

Sucks that it takes a game vs Duke for Jerian Grant to finally get his deserved attention.

Actually, I think Grant has gotten quite a bit of attention. At least from those that matter. Trust me, NBA scouts know who he is and what he can do. The only thing separating him from the top players is his outside shot, and lack of elite athleticism. Personally I think a little too much emphasis is put on the latter, but it does factor in to the whole picture. I think he could go anywhere from 14 to 25 in the first round depending on whose picking and what their needs are. This is a weak draft for PG's, so someone might reach a bit for him.

I have a bit of a tough time understanding how Grant can be considered to have non-elite athleticism after he pulls off this dunk:



I mean his chin is at the rim. He just starts going up and doesn't stop.

There are a couple of things I like about Grant. He doesn't really shoot that well from outside, but his shot selection is excellent - either he takes a three or a shot a the rim. His passing is excellent - he finds cutters to the rim with tight passing lanes but manages to deliver, and he also sets up a lot of three balls without setting up a lot of deep twos. A lot of that may be the Notre Dame system in general, but it should serve him well in the NBA. I don't take him before Russell (and I can't really comment on Mudiay) but outside of those two right now I don't see another PG I would take in front of him. NBADraft.net has Taylor and Rozier in front of him, but I think that's silly at this point.

NBADraft.net is pretty terrible.. I think their overall analysis and comparisons are ok, but everything else pretty much sucks. I see Taylor as a late 2nd round pick, if at all.

Here is my personal top 5 PG list of the draft. I'm going to exclude Muiday, but I feel like Russell may be better than him.
1. D'Angelo Russell
2. Jerian Grant
3. Delon Wright
4. Tyus Jones
5. Kriss Dunn

I think Rozier will probably be drafted late in the 1st round, but I don't like his game very much. He's a scorer who struggles to create for his teammates. He also struggles in games vs high up opponents.

I think Kriss Dunn is underrated by a lot, but I like his ability to create shots. He turns the ball over a lot and his shooting needs work, but his defense is good. Lot sof potential in him. He leads the NCAA in assists per game at 7.6.

What's your top 5 pg list?

Would it surprise you if Muiday started slipping? He's playing in China with questionable competition. A lot of teams will be drafting him based on what they saw from highschool. I know that there is tape on him from China, but I think it would be limited for scouts. Or do you think him playing in China is irrelevant to his draft status? I think he's currently being projected in the top 3. 2nd conscious pick after Okafor.

That is bizarre. I don't know if it is a relic of the .gif format or the angle of the broadcast camera plus the zoom, but it looks like wire-fu. The parabola of a normal leap just isn't apparent; he appears to rise on a straight line.

A semi-serious question, how big is the drop off between the talent level in China and the talent level of non-elite NCAA teams? Outside of the Kansases or the Kentuckys, you are getting maybe one or two players on an NCAA team who are even potential NBA caliber players. Chinese teams will have a variety of just-missed prospects along with some NBA washouts and the best China can produce.

Well, I don't quite hit the prospect trail nearly as hard as Baja, and I've got a lot of catching up to do yet. I haven't gotten a good look at Wright yet and I haven't seen Dunn at all. That said, I'll throw out a bit...

1a. Russell
1b. Mudiay (but this is purely on like one highlight tape and reputation)
3. Grant
4. Tyus Jones
5. ???

Nobody else has convinced me that they're worth a first rounder. Andrew Harrison...maybe?!? Taylor is not ready, Rozier does not impress me, I've kind of soured on Hanlan, I'm not a big fan of Staten...

But the buzz on Delon Wright is pretty good so I could imagine him jumping Jones. Grant feels like a very solid #3 PG in this draft to me.

watching the Notre Dame game yesterday that was the second time I watched Grant and I came away very impressed....the kid did everything and anything he wanted.

It wasn't my intention to leave the impression that Grant wasn't athletic. Hell, he's one of my favorite players. I was merely echoing what a lot of the scouts are saying. If I were to guess, it may have something to do with his lateral quicknes. Since I'm not a mind reader, I don't know. I do know he's one of the top three PG's on my list. And yes, I do blindly have Mudiay in my top three based completely on what I've seen of him in highschool, a couple of all star games, and the word of most NBA scouts. So here's my current of likes in the PG dept. As always, its subject to change.

1. D'Angelo Russell, 6'5"
2. Emmanuel Mudiay, 6'5"
3. Jerian Grant, 6'5"
4. Delon Wright, 6'5"
5. Tyrus Jones, 6'1"
6. Isaiah Taylor, 6'1"
7. E.C. Mathews, 6'5"
8. Kris Dunn, 6'2.5"
9. Shannon Scott, 6'2"
10. Cody Doolin, 6'3"

I'm sure some of these guys aren't everyone's list. I just happen to like a few for reasons I can't really explain. Just a gut thing. Mathews reminds me a little of Andre Miller at times. Not the greatest athlete, but somehow manages to get to the basket whenever he wants. Needs to improve his PG skills though or he'll be a SG in the NBA. I love Doolin at UNLV. Tough hardnosed kid. Dunn has a lot of potential, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Needs to improve his outside shot and really needs to add some muscle. I really like Wright, another son of an ex-NBA player, but he also needs to become more of a consistent shooter from the outside.

I seriously doubt that Mudiay is going to slip much, if at all. You have to remember that NBA scouts have been following him since grade school and there's nothing they don't know about him. I know nothing about the competition in china, but it is a pro league, and it has a lot of american players that play in it, so one might be able to argue that the competition is better than college. Personally, I don't know. I do know based on what I've seen, that he's a special talent. I wouldn't take him over Russell, but I'd probably take him over Grant. There are a lot of 6'5"PG's this year.

I doubt that either of the Harrison twins will get drafted in the first round. At least as it stands currently. One or both would have to really impress scouts at the combine, or really stand out in the NCAA tournament.

I think the drop off is just a little bad. It's where a lot of washed up NBA players play like all stars. College athletes are more physical than most of those players in china. I also think they play more freely without any specific roles.

LeBryan Nash is a one trick pony and his body language is horrid from the OK State games I've seen. He might go late second.

Yeah, Nash has gone from a probable first round pick a couple of years ago, to a probable second round pick. Watched the Kentucky/Alabama game. Always fun to watch Kentucky because there are so many players to watch. I was disappointed that Trey Lyles didn't play. I really, really like Lyles. He's not spectacular, but he just so solid. He's being asked to play out of position at SF because Poythress is injured. I questioned whether he could guard SF's, but he's done a very good job. He can score, he rebounds and he does all the blue collar things you need for a guy like that. He can score inside, and he can hit the 16 to 18 foot jumper. He's not a prolific shot blocker, but he does block shots. I think he'll be a PF in the NBA, and he'll probably go somewhere between 15 and 25 in the first round. Just a guess on my part. I have no idea where he's ranked right now.

Anyway, back to the game. Karl Towns is the real deal. Very very skilled player who can score in so many different ways. Very good defender at the college level. Good passer and good rebounder. And yes, he is a shot blocker. And he's 6'11". What more can you ask for. Devin Booker is just dialed in. Another great shooting demonstration. His jump shot is picture perfect. His form is almost identical to McLemore's. The difference is, he's far more consistent than McLemore was in college. Lately, I'm more shocked when he misses, than when it goes in. He's currently shooting 51.4% overall, and 50.6% from the three. The biggest surprise with Booker has been his defense. I was skeptical of his ability to defend SG's or SF's. The knock on him was that he was only an average athlete. Well he may not be able to jump high, or break any 100 meter records, but the dude has very good lateral quickness. He moves his feet very well. This moves him up a notch on my board.

Cauley-Stein is, well, Cauley-Stein. I never get tired of watching him play defense, and his ability to defend on the perimeter, and still get back to the basket never seizes to amaze me. His offense, while still a bit mechanical, has improved to the point that you have to guard him. His ball handling has improved enough, where he now puts the ball on the floor and attacks the basket. I would love to see him on the floor next to Cousins.

I watched the Harrison's closely and have to admit, that both of them defend well, and that should help them in their quest to be NBA players. Aaron is shooting the ball much better of late. In his last 6 games he averaging 45.8% overall, and 46.1% from the three. He defends, and he has good size at 6'6". And he's a good athlete. Andrew is another story when it comes to shooting. But there's always something to be said for 6'6"PG. Someone will take a gamble on him in the second round.

One thing about watching Kentucky is that they never play a zone, and Calapari is always preaching defense. Which is why of course that Kentucky has the second best defensive rating in college. Only Virginia is ahead of them. It wouldn't shock me to see the championship game for the NCAA title be between Virginia and Kentucky. However, I wouldn't count Gonzaga out.

I actually thought the same exact thing on my first glance. Looked like he was getting pulled up by an invisible rope.

But I think it's because he rises up and then he dunks without swinging, he stays up there.

I want Cauley-Stien on this roster more than any other specific college player in recent memory.

That being said, I would be fairly shocked if the Kings actually targeted and drafted him. He just doesn't seem like a guy who would be on their radar.

Kevon Looney is a guy who feels like a PDA / Kings vision kind of pick. And I don't dislike him. I've only seen him play a handful of times this season. I've read about him more than I've watched him. No way in hell I'd take him over WCS, or even Turner, but I could see him in a Kings uniform next season.

Porzingis is a complete wildcard that I could see the Kings falling in love with.

thoughts on Michael Qualls out of Arkansas? he is a freak athlete...can he contribute on the next level though?

Looking at DraftExpress's recent supercut of Emmanuel Mudiay's season in China, I'm a bit more sold on him as a prospect (considering I never was a believer to begin with). I see a rich man's Tyreke Evans as his ceiling: better athlete, passer and defender w/ similar issues re: jumpshot/range and ball dominance. Not sure he'd be a great fit with this current roster, as much as we need better passing and defense, as our spacing, focus and turnover issues are well documented - and a guy with his limited range needs space and an actual system.

D'Angelo Russell certainly looks intriguing. However, I haven't watched enough of Ohio State to determine if that he's got the ball in his hands most of the time (everything I've read indicates he's a ball-dominant 2 w/ good passing instinct, not a PG). I'm not very big on ball-dominant 2s unless their name is James Harden, Dwayne Wade or Manu Ginobili, and the reason is this ilk is extremely hard to be build a team around as you're limited in the personnel that would fit around this player (and they have to be efficient enough to warrant all that ball dominance). These guys typically end up coming off the bench as a third guard/sixth man type unless they learn to play off the ball. So definitely more to be seen...

Nice name!

Mudiay is someone who I hope the Kings avoid drafting. I'm not so sure how he'd gel next to Rudy and Cuz..and then you consider the fact that he can't shoot. He's a good passer and defender, but his offense is a little troublesome. I just wish he had a jumper.

D'Angelo Russell will most likely be a PG in the NBA. He'll be a combo guard..there's a lot in the NBA now ie Lillard, Curry, Westbrook, and etc.
I see him reaching their tier once he gets into the NBA. I don't think he'll have any problem in the NBA as a PG. I think a lot of questions surround his athleticism and defense. So there's that.

We're currently 7th right now, 2 games behind Utah.

WCS is being projected as the 7th prospect taken off the board. If the Kings get a top 6 pick, WCS is almost guaranteed for sure.
Here are just the top 6 prospects right now imo:

1. Jahil Okafor
2. D'Angelo Russell
3. Karls Town
4. Emmanuel Mudiay
5. Stanley Johnson
6. WCS

If we end up drafting in the top 6, we'd be in a position to get a great player. All of those names are amazing..

I've watched Looney a few times this year, and I'd be pissed if the FO drafted him. Undersized PF that hasn't been all that impressive in a broke UCLA team. I think if he was on a better team, he'd look much better, but I don't think he fits this team at all. I can give you a list of prospects I'd rather have over Looney..as a matter of fact I will..
1. Porzingis
2. Hezonja
3. Oubre 4. Winslow 5. Turner 6. Kaminsky 7. Portis 8. J. Anderson

I'm not a huge fan of Looney. If the FO drafted him with WCS on the board, I'm dropping everything and simply walking out...

Mudiay does have a jumpshot, its just effective beyond the arc right now. But his midrange jumper is pretty good. He's a good freethrow shooter, which usually bodes well down the road. Not always, but more often than not. Right now I'd say he reminds me of a cross between Tyreke Evans and Marcus Smart. But he's more athletic than either of them.

I agree on Russell. I see him as a PG in the NBA. He's going to be a special player. He makes playing the game look easy, and I don't have a problem with his athleticism. He's not a freak athlete, but he's a good athlete. My top four right now are, and in order are:

1. Okafor, C
2. Russell, PG
3. Towns, PF
4. Mudiay, PG
5. Johnson, SF
6. Cauley-Stein, C/PF
7. Porzingis, C
8. Turner, PF
9. Kaminsky, PF/C
10. Hezonja, SF/SG
11. Winslow, SF/SG
12. Looney, PF
13. Decker, SG/SF
14. Wood, PF

Thought I'd fill out the entire lottery. Wood probably won't go that high, but I really like him and he should. I know some have Oubre up in the lottery, but so far, he hasn't impressed me that much. I could be wrong. All I've seen of Porzingis and Hezonja is highlights,and some game film. From what I've seen, both are impressive. I was especially impressed with Hezonja's athleticism. But I'm certainly not an authority on either of them. I probably have Turner higher than he'll go as well, but once again, I think he's going to be a very good player.