2021 Workouts

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#31
I believe when Grimes came out of HS, he was ranked in the top 10 & considered a one & done player. It looks like it simply took him a little longer to find his game.
Yeah, I went back and looked it up and he was ranked the 8th best highschool player in the nation when he came out. So that likely would have put him in the one and done group. Obviously it doesn't always work out the way you plan, but in his case, even though it took longer, he may have a better result. Lesson to be learned there!
 
#38

funkykingston

Super Moderator
Staff member
#41
Bleijenbergh could be a good choice at #39 if he's there. I like the way he moves at 6'10" and he's a solid playmaker in the pick & roll. I think long term he"ll become a good outside shooter. He may have trouble on defense until he fills out though.

If Isaiah Todd or Bones Hyland actually made it to #39 as some mocks suggest they'd be top targets for me but I think both are gone by that point.
 

dude12

Hall of Famer
#44
https://www.sacbee.com/sports/nba/sacramento-kings/article252706938.html?src=rss

6'10" Belgian SF Vrenz Bleijenbergh is visiting Sacramento for a workout. His stock seems to be rising a bit, so the Scrabble score for playing his name (either first or last) may actually be higher than his draft position.
For the draft pundits here, how is he different from Wagner? I watched his videos and they seem similar but then again videos can be misleading when all you see are hi-lites.
 

Capt. Factorial

trifolium contra tempestatem subrigere certum est
Staff member
#45
For the draft pundits here, how is he different from Wagner? I watched his videos and they seem similar but then again videos can be misleading when all you see are hi-lites.
It's hard to get a good feel for him from just highlight packages. My impression is that Vrenz's biggest strength relative to Wagner is that he is a better passer. It's not clear who is the better shooter at this point. He seems to be skinnier than Wagner, and I would suspect Wagner's defense is better.

He's really a second-round look for us, but one that perhaps makes a bit less sense if we do go with Wagner at #9.
 
#47
For the draft pundits here, how is he different from Wagner? I watched his videos and they seem similar but then again videos can be misleading when all you see are hi-lites.
It's rumored they actually thought he was Wagner and he didn't tell them until after the workout who he was. He was last seen trying to legally change his name to Franz.
 
#48
It's hard to get a good feel for him from just highlight packages. My impression is that Vrenz's biggest strength relative to Wagner is that he is a better passer. It's not clear who is the better shooter at this point. He seems to be skinnier than Wagner, and I would suspect Wagner's defense is better.

He's really a second-round look for us, but one that perhaps makes a bit less sense if we do go with Wagner at #9.
Versatility is versatility and the built in marketing is worth it.

I give you, Vrenz and Franz:



 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#50
Here's another confirmed workout - of a player only Baja has heard of:

Believe it or not, I do know who he is. I'm sure he's in the G-League jar of probably undrafted players. He has no game away from the basket, but he runs the floor really well and he's a very good offensive rebounder. Pretty good athlete with a quick first jump. He's likely a couple of years away from seeing an NBA floor.

 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#51
Bleijenbergh could be a good choice at #39 if he's there. I like the way he moves at 6'10" and he's a solid playmaker in the pick & roll. I think long term he"ll become a good outside shooter. He may have trouble on defense until he fills out though.

If Isaiah Todd or Bones Hyland actually made it to #39 as some mocks suggest they'd be top targets for me but I think both are gone by that point.
I believe I did a write up on Bleijenbergh a couple of weeks ago in the who we should pick in the 2nd rd thread.
 
#52
just watched some clips on Bleijenbergh, I’m not convinced he will last until 39. He looks wiry strong, coordinated and crafty.
Small sample for sure but have a good feeling about him.
 
#54
Here are some random pre-draft workout videos posted by an obscure YouTube channel (maybe reposts, or old clips spliced together?):


Kuminga:


Bouknight (especially for kb02):


Scottie Barnes:


Jalen Johnson (my top pick by far at 9, although I expect he will go top 5 after workouts):



There are more to be found, but I don't want to spam the thread.

Personally I think Jalen Johnson's size, athleticism and skill set are way too tantalizing to pass on if he's there at 9, which I don't think he will be. He has all the attributes to be a big time player in the NBA.
 

funkykingston

Super Moderator
Staff member
#57
I guess ESPN aired a "pro day" for Klutch sports clients last night featuring these prospects:

Moses Moody
Jalen Johnson
Kai Jones
Brandon Boston Jr
Scotty Lewis
Jericho Sims

I caught a bit of it on YouTube this morning. As expected it was just a showcase where there's not much to learn. Brandon Boston looks a bit bigger/stronger but I didn't get to see enough of Jalen Johnson shooting to say if he's improved his form. Kai Jones did a lot of dunking but seemed to miss every 3 he took. Again, not much to really learn or get excited about and something like this can't do much to change anyone's existing evaluations.
 
#58
I guess ESPN aired a "pro day" for Klutch sports clients last night featuring these prospects:

Moses Moody
Jalen Johnson
Kai Jones
Brandon Boston Jr
Scotty Lewis
Jericho Sims

I caught a bit of it on YouTube this morning. As expected it was just a showcase where there's not much to learn. Brandon Boston looks a bit bigger/stronger but I didn't get to see enough of Jalen Johnson shooting to say if he's improved his form. Kai Jones did a lot of dunking but seemed to miss every 3 he took. Again, not much to really learn or get excited about and something like this can't do much to change anyone's existing evaluations.
Was this where Sims hit his head on the rim while dunking?
 
#59

Capt. Factorial

trifolium contra tempestatem subrigere certum est
Staff member
#60
Was this where Sims hit his head on the rim while dunking?
Yes.

The broadcast format was nearly useless - there was plenty of drilling going on on-court, but the cameras spent all their time zoomed on players, so you couldn't see what was going on. A very frustrating hour of TV.

My takeaways were:
As Funky said, Jones did not look at all comfortable shooting threes, and his footwork on the 3 was atrocious
The hour of drills seemed to push the stamina of many of the participants. Moody has great upper body strength but struggled to finish his "5 half court dunks" routine at the end. It appeared that Boston even declined the "5 half court dunks" routine to instead shoot threes from the top of the arc, and was coming up short consistently. But Jalen Johnson went for four full-court dunks instead of 5 half-court, and he was looking fresh (he missed #3 but I think he lost the ball on the way up, it wasn't that he didn't have the legs). Can't say much about his shot, but the kid is in great shape.