Blazers Workout Dalton Knecht, Celtics Destroy Mavericks, and more! | Blazers Uprise Live
[Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] what’s going on everybody welcome into Blazers uprise live here on a Thursday night we got a jam-packed episode for you today as we had game one of the NBA finals we’re going to talk about that beat down a little bit we’re going to talk about the Lakers the Lakers coaching search which took a turn that I did not see coming and it’s not over yet we don’t know the coach is going to be yet but we’re going to talk about the latest candidate for the Los Angeles Lakers we’re going to talk about Dalton connect he worked out for the Portland Trailblazers today it was a private individual workout for him we’re also going to talk about Nicola topic he has a partially torn ACL and measurements came in for him and some International guys we’ll talk about those measurements and then we’ll discuss our latest big boards so as I said we got a jam-packed episode for you today Eric how’s your Thursday treating you not too bad how you doing Tor how are your recck games tonight I’m in a bad shooting slump and I feel more and more out of shape by the day so you know I I recently turned 28 and I feel like I aged 10 years years I don’t know what happened so things have been better in that regard but otherwise life’s kind of crazy right now so just taking it day by day and man it’s it’s always fun in June when we can have an episode like this I’m looking forward to a number of topics no pun intended that we have to talk about today topes top [ __ ] yeah so chat thank you for joining us hopefully you enjoy this episode shout out to the watch crew that watches us when we’re not live shout out to those of you that are here though that hang out with us in the live chat yeah how’s everyone doing today hope everyone’s well yeah man I uh I skipped this Finals game I was thinking about skipping W to watch this Finals game and then I was very happy that I didn’t because this Finals game was an absolute Beatdown Eric uh how much of this game did you watch and what are your thoughts is Boston just going to run away with this series and finally win a ring with Tatum and brown um I mean they certainly could but uh I think this was just a case of porzingis came off the bench and was on fire and uh Dallas just went ice cold couldn’t hit a shot Kyrie stunk it up and uh so I think I think they only made Seven of 26 or something three-point shots um so just poor shooting all around um while Boston shot the ball well and uh played a pretty good game so I I wouldn’t read a whole lot into it but uh Boston can take complete control of this series if they win the next game but I I something tells me Dallas is going to come out um really done yeah I don’t expect that team to shoot that poorly in game two um of course Boston wins both games both of them are at home you know the good old saying the series doesn’t start until team te wins on the road I mean I don’t really believe that because then if you’re Dallas you kind of have to win both home games if you go down 20 so I don’t know man it’s going to be interesting the rest of the series I thought it was going to be close I thought it was going to be hard fought I think a lot of people were rooting for the Mavericks and a lot of people were bummed out today at the end of the day I’m rooting for the Mavericks but at the very least I want close competitive games that are thrilling to watch because I think there’s a lot of story lines and these story lines are better in close games can KY hit another clutch final shot can Luca take over a game late Luca vers Tatum battles down the stretch that’s what we want to see right that’s what I want to see at the very least and that’s not what we saw today there was at least a moment in the third quarter I think Dallas cut it to eight Luca started hitting some threes and uh it was like uhoh here come the Mavericks um but I think that’s as close as they got and then um Boston like immediately went another run pushed it back up to 15 and then it was over from there wasn’t even close so yeah it’s it was it was disappointing that it wasn’t close um but yeah you just I don’t know it just seemed kind of weird with the long layoff in between the end of the last two series and then this game it just it didn’t feel like uh the series started yet for Dallas I guess is what I’m trying to say um but yeah hopefully there a much better game in game two you’re muted you’re right 100% agree though I do think game two will be close game two will take place on Sunday at 5:00 P PM Pacific time that is 8:00 P.M Eastern little surprised it starts that late but you know that’s that’s good old prime time it doesn’t matter it might start :30 on the East Coast it’s finals time so uh tickets as low as $756 according to ESPN it’s always funny to look at those finals prices they’re insane but hopefully Dallas can keep it close I would love to see Dallas win I want to see a long series especially after Conference Finals that had some intriguing matchups but did not go long I mean we had a week-long layoff between the end of the Conference Finals and the start of this NBA Finals so I want comp itive games I want a long series I would love a game seven in TD Garden between these two teams I want some drama Eric I love drama and especially with TNT possibly going away wasn’t that their slogan there’s something with drama in it I don’t know they don’t really use that slogan anymore but uh we want some dramatic stuff in this finals the there was a report today that TNT is looking into getting media right still for the NBA so they could still do Inside the NBA which would be great man have four different have four different providers right Amazon NBC ESPN TNT you’d have more National games you’d have a fresher feel to some of these National games I am all for that what was weird they’re talking about doing like some local TV games so it’s not a national game they could pick between like local games I guess and just do a local broadcast dude could you imagine could you imagine like an NFL Red Zone type of thing but like with Inside the NBA I don’t know I don’t think that’s what they’re going for but it’s an interesting concept and watch Charles Parker like fall asleep while watching the games well yeah that’s the thing is Shaq would actually have to watch games to be able to do something like that so maybe he would know more than three players a team that would be a pretty good accomplishment but everybody wants to see inside the NBA stick around so uh I would love to see that as well even if it was just local games that they then just broadcast nationally highlighted you know local broadcast and did Inside the NBA because I don’t think people want TNT to stick around for the actual like in-game coverage they just wanted to stick around for the Inside the NBA for the postgame show the halftime show so uh that you know they they can find a way hopefully to make that happen yeah uh Conor says make League Pass actually good uh why don’t they just have like a s will cast like that like because you know how they do the I think it’s called like game time or something where they they kind of flip around to different games on NBA TV like I don’t know why they couldn’t just have like uh simoc cast from TNT and uh just play those guys like going back and forth between a bunch of games like a third or something yeah absolutely get creative get creative you know media’s changing TV coverage is changing get creative in terms of the package I mean if you can get more money out TNT and raise the salary cap even more by all means contracts might be a $100 million a year for the best players but you know it’s it’s because of these media rights deals being as big as they are uh and that would be kind of fascinating to see play out man um I just like keeping it fresh too so that’s why I like the idea of adding NBC adding Amazon just because of something new you don’t want it at the expense of the stuff that people love though so let’s move on let’s talk about the Lakers coaching search so Shams shiria Eric had a report I think it was like 24 36 hours ago I don’t know exactly when it was but sometime yesterday yeah sometime yesterday recently had a report basically I’m paraphrasing but it was that the Lakers were zeroing in on JJ reck then JJ reck goes on a show and some podcast I don’t know the name of it and they got to talking about the Lakers coaching search because JJ reck was recently released as the number one guy for that job and that the Lakers were zeroing in on him and normally when Shams or W say a team is like zeroing in on someone that means they’re picking that guy right right and it was funny because JJ reck didn’t talk about it but he did say that stuff with Shams would be addressed later whatever that means I think he was just I think this has been the thing the theory all along is that they were waiting for the finals to be over because he was supposed to be on the coverage for the finals first of all so they didn’t want he wanted to make sure he finished his obligation to ESPN and he was really looking forward to calling the finals game um and then uh so I think they were just waiting to have a that announcement after the finals was over and so I think that’s all he meant was that I’ll I’ll let you all know what’s what’s going to happen after the finals and that I’m being hired or whatever but I don’t know if he knew that they weren’t 100% locked in on him or what they were telling him cuz that those comments do seem a little strange after the new came out today which was which was that the Lakers are preparing a massive offer for Danny Hurley so if you guys haven’t been paying attention Danny Hurley is the head coach of Yukon won back-to-back national championships and this past year’s championship was an impressive repeat because they had a lot of new players Stefon Castle was in that starting lineup he was new yes they had kinging back but it was a bit of a different team and he did it back toback which is really tough when you have a 68 team single elimination tournament he is the best ex’s andos coach in college but he’s also the most emotionally volatile coach for a bigname program and this is fascinating because not only does Shams look wrong Rick patino might do a rush for his money yeah well Danny is like new age ex’s noosed genius right so now that the JJ Reddit comments about the stuff with Shams will be addressed after the season now it’s kind of like oh is he talking about how maybe he actually wasn’t the front runner like I know he’s interviewed with them but Shams looks like he might have lost to W in this situation because it looks like shames was wrong and people started digging up old tweets and it was funny because one got dug up that said that the Hornets were starting to zero in on scoot Henderson in last year’s draft and then ultimately they ended up picking Brandon Miller so that wasn’t true uh but this is just fascinating because I thought it was like okay they’re for sure going to hire JJ reck LeBron’s cool with him JJ reck is obviously a very bright basketball mind and I even quote tweeted it I said man this is going to be a big loss for New Media because I love the way that JJ Reddit covers the league and you know I’m not rooting against what he wants right like if he wants to be a head coach sure you know more power to you but I love having him cover the NBA the way he does because I’m not a fan of NBA coverage and he does it differently he does it better he’ll dive in X as and O’s you know it’s not just big Market agenda driven ESPN bull crap so I was a little bummed out when I saw that and then all of a sudden this curveball comes out of left field and Eric I would love to see how Danny Hurley coaches in the league and if there’s drama between him and players because he is just he’s he wears his emotions on his sleeve and he he’ll chew you out too he’ll chew you out I want to see one play where LeBron doesn’t run back and Danny Hurley’s cussing him out and just see how that goes you know what I mean now you got to adjust coaching in the NBA is not the same as coaching in college and any smart coach making that jump will realize that you can’t necessarily coach the same way so it would just be fascinating to see the change with somebody like him but then also just the X’s and O’s like does his stuff translate to the NBA because right now just he his offense carved up defenses partly because he had good players partly because he knows how to develop players as well but his system just hearing him talk about the way he builds his system he is super super smart like his offensive stuff is borderline genius and I want to see if that translates to the NBA we talk about draft prospects and their games translating to the NBA or not same thing with coaches some like most coaches can’t actually make that jump and have success a couple have see with the Lakers though man yeah that kind of sucks that kind of sucks but I mean I don’t know when we’re bad I don’t really mind as much you know if we were having to go against the Lakers in the playoffs sure but the Lakers I still think are going to suck even with him at some point in the next five years when LeBron leaves or retires or whatever you know maybe Brony can lead him to a continued success after LeBron is gone but I’m I’m kind of joking but uh we’ll see we’ll see but do you like this move for them well Eric Olson says X is and O is an A+ but his player relations is a d i I wouldn’t say that I mean despite the chippiness and the fire uh I mean most of the players have good things to say about him I don’t I haven’t heard anyone say like oh I hated how strict he was or he’s he’s a good coach but I can’t stand him or anything like that like he seemed to have a good relationship with players after um games and interviews and stuff uh joking around and all that kind of stuff like uh I don’t I I don’t know I mean it seems like the type of thing in the NBA that would get old fast for players um kind of equated to like Jim Harbaugh in the NFL where like he’s a really good coach but he hasn’t stayed at one place for very long because um I don’t know just players get sick of his crap so I think in the NBA uh the relationship with his players might be an issue uh I don’t think it really was and it’s funny because if you have a successful coach uh like bill bich was like this like he’s like the greatest coach in the world while they’re winning and then all of a sudden they have a few down years after Brady leaves and now he gets fired and everyone thinks he’s maybe like oh maybe he only was good because of Brady and all this kind of stuff but like the everyone tries to duplicate what he did in New England um and what he does but like you have to have the success in order to do that like poic’s stuff doesn’t work if he doesn’t win championships early on in his career career so like it’ll be interesting to see if cuz if he goes to NBA his successfulness in college doesn’t matter anymore um and it worked in college because of winning the back-to-back national championships but if you go to if you go to the NBA and the Lakers are a fringe playoff team or in the playin or whatever and you’re getting chewed out by your coach all the time and you lose in the first round or whatever that then then it starts to get old so I’m I’m very fascinated to see how he would be and I actually just watching him Coach during the the last two NCA runs man I was I I just kept thinking why doesn’t a team like Portland just go after this guy and maybe he wouldn’t have come here maybe it would have been too expensive or whatever but um this is the problem when you hold on to a coach that you know probably isn’t the long-term answer you might not have a chance when some of these guys become available yeah thing is I think Portland could offer him a billion dollars and he might not take the Portland job right you know that’s little a little tough right a little tough sell wanted to go to the NBA though at some point he wanted to try that yeah it is a little easier to sell him I think on La and LeBron unfortunately but also I don’t know they go through coaches like crazy the since Phil Jackson left they’ve had like seven eight different coaches in 10 11 years whatever it’s been it’s a lot of coaches right some Blazer fans still wish Terry STS was the coach and wish he was the coach for life you know yeah so you know La it’s a little different they burn through coaches there where Portland you get a Long Leash you get a Long Leash it becomes a situation where like they don’t you know can suck for three years like chony has and they don’t want to let you leave so funny There is a I mean there’s a history of college coaches um I mean Brad Stevens had some success um you could argue he’s a better front office guy now than he was a coach um and then uh Darren brings up PJ carisimo for the Blazers back in the day he didn’t work out um Rick patino and uh John Calipari both tried the NBA didn’t work um Larry Bird’s not walking through that door um beine from Michigan went to Cleveland and was I don’t even think he lasted a year did he um I’m trying to think of other examples but yeah none of those guys um players hated beline yeah I I mean patino was obviously a great college coach but um that’s that’s what’s interesting to me is like well this stuff translate to the NBA um and I I don’t see like watching his offense I don’t see why it can’t you know like I I think it’s it’s kind of like what we’ve been wanting here in Portland for a while with like very movement based um the ball’s always moving around it doesn’t stick to one player a lot um there’s there’s lots of cutting and ball movement and player movement and that kind of stuff and uh I if you can get players to buy in I don’t I don’t see why it couldn’t be effective in the NBA yeah 100% 100% um but this isn’t you know Lakers uprise so we’re going to move on and talk about your Blazers Blazers uprises the channel name in case you were confused Laker fans you can go somewhere else the Blazers today Eric worked out Dalton connect private workout which suggests it’s a workout for the seventh pick although I don’t know maybe D conck is only doing private workouts CU he’s probably going to be a top 10 pick um it’d be kind of I don’t know I kind of like having Dalton connect as a Blazer even though I think there’s going to be somebody that makes more sense at seven I’ve been on the Dalton connect trade all year long basically and you know I was saying when he was like a projected early second round pick I say watch out for this guy he’s good and then of course he rises up you know Derek lifely there’s always guys every year award it’s like watch out for this guy this is a second round sleeper maybe we could get him at 34 and then it’s like oh we’re working him out in a private workout come June so I like his game I’ve talked about him quite a bit over this season but in case you’re new or in case you don’t know much about D connect he spent a couple years at Northern Colorado University transferred to Tennessee part of the reason he transferred to Tennesseee was he wanted to improve defensively but he ended up shouldering the load for Tennessee which had been a team that had been pretty Elite defensively over the past few years under Rick Barnes their head coach but just did not have the offense to compete come March uh they they were just offensively very very rough guys like Keon Johnson went through there right that’s a defensive minded guy that has some offensively we know that good old first round value right there but uh conect just literally like put that team on his back best player in the SEC dominated games had games where he was scoring 30 40 points in SEC play which the SEC is a pretty good defensive conference and he is just a three-point sniper contests don’t bother him he can run off screens gets a lot of elevation on his jump shot and he’s also a pretty decent athlete so he can attack Closeouts a little bit if he has a gap he can can attack the rim had some impressive finishes with his left hand at times last year like I think he’s a little bit more than just a shooter which is what makes him intriguing but he is 23 years old and he’s going to be a lottery pick for probably a rebuilding team and it’s going to be interesting to see where he goes because of his age but he would give this Blazer team something it needs which is somebody that can knock down threes get hot from the three-point line especially at a small forward position which I think he’s definitely big enough to play uh Eric you’re a little lower on connect than I am as we’ll see with our big boards later the Blazers work them out private workout what are your thoughts well just real quick I a lot of players like connect I have lower than they should be just because I have players like Chi and stuff up ahead of him so like I don’t know it pushes everyone down a few spots than they they probably should be but uh there’s a lot of players I really like but I just wouldn’t draft super high and I I love everything about connect’s game offensively I think he’s going to come in be a factor almost immediately on the offensive end I think he can play offensively in the NBA immediately um I think he’s one of the most most if not the most NBA ready offensive players in this draft um and uh and so I mean obviously the Blazers need as much shooting and and stuff like that as possible but at the same time if I’m looking at it strictly from a Blazers point of view I I just worry about throwing another I know he went to to play defense but he had a lot of defensive Talent around him at Tennessee so it’s the burden to play defense isn’t as great as it would be on this Portland team that desperately needs one of their one through three guys if he’s like starting at the three to step up defensively and I don’t know if he’s like the right fit for them on that end so it’s tough for me to think of him picking at the seventh pick and I know a little bit of this is is from the damr and it’s like we don’t need offense we need defense and having that mindset kind of switch a little bit to back to where maybe we do need a little bit of offense still um but uh to me I just don’t know if he’s the right type of allaround player I think we could possibly get from other guys at that seventh spot um so I don’t know what you think of that but the thing is is I think you can get an allaround player if that’s what you’re looking for at 14 um and maybe maybe they’re not as young or have as much upside but I do think there’s some pretty solid all-around players that should be really good role players that the Blazers will have their picking from at 14 and I’ll address those when we get into our big boards but um connect I mean yes he had a lot of good Defenders around him but you know we spent years talking about Dame like man he has to exert so much energy on the offensive end like he almost had to take defensive possessions off and connect was the same way at Tennessee like they were using him running him off screens like he was Steph Curry and he was seeing double teams he was seeing traps and he had to do so much for that team offensively that I wonder maybe he’s a little better defensively than the tape show simply because he had to take some defensive possessions off and he could rely on some of the guys around him to shoulder some of that defensive load because he needed to absolutely carry that team offensively that was the only reason they were in the elite eight and had a chance to go to the final four if they didn’t run into Zaki and one of the worst whistles I’ve ever seen in that Elite a game um so you know they’re still salty it was a bad bad whistle I think Ed had twice as many free throws as the entire Tennessee team and it’s not like Tennessee just sat out there and jacked threes like they would attack I mean it was just it was a bad whistle man but like at this point get guys that can hoop you know what I mean mhm if they took him at seven I would have the confidence like yeah he’s going to come in and it’s not going to look terrible it’s not going to be it’s not going to be a bad terrible pick he’s at least going to be a good role player six seventh man type Off the Bench I I’m pretty comfortable with that being around his floor sure maybe he could be a little bit worse than that but at the very least we know he’s going to be able to shoot that translates the way he elevates and shoots through contest is going to translate he’s going to be able to get off his shot in the league and when you’re talking about you know a team that needs to play faster he had some impressive moments handling the ball in transition I think he’s a little better attacking in transition in space than in a half court setting but also he didn’t have a ton of shoot around him at Tennessee he didn’t have a ton of spacing um so I think there’s like I know he’s 23 but I think there’s some sneaky upside cuz he’s he’s not that slow and he does have a little bit of Bounce and he has some really crafty creative finishes on when he was able to get in space and I kind of wonder if he’s in an NBA setting in the half court that has more spacing gets some running off screens but he just has more of a gap to attack can he be a guy that can attack those guys get downhill get to the rim and finish like I don’t know I don’t know so I think he has a little bit of upside as a score Beyond just the shot which intrigues me but at the very least you know he’s going to come in and he’s going to be solid he if the Blazers took him at seven there is a very very good chance that there’s one or two or maybe a few guys that get taken after him that end up better than him but if you do take him at seven you’re at least not getting somebody that’s going to look like Killian Hayes did with the seventh pick four years down the line right yeah it’s safe it’s safe for sure um Chris S says what’s a ceiling Duncan Robinson or I think he meant bogdon bogdanovich or someone do we really want a bench shooter with seven um yeah I mean I think bogdon is a pretty good comparison like if he was if you put him in a college setting I think he he kind of cooks like connected um but we said that when he was coming into the league though you know like now yeah but I mean he was a pretty highly thought a prospect but I I think yeah it’s I don’t know I’m just trying to trying to go with his comparison I think he’s much better than Duncan Robinson maybe not as good of a pure shooter um but I think overall he’s a little better um and so I mean those players are important yeah also if you can get somebody that’s an efficient 16 point per game score at the seventh pick in this draft I don’t think that’s that bad yeah I just I know you’re you’re not quite as as hung up on the age thing right now and I know it’s like you said he has a high floor and stuff like that I just I know I kind of want I kind of like The Swinging The Gunslinger mentality of going just going for home runs instead of going for a double you know yeah but also uh sometimes the smart thing is to go for the double double instead of striking out trying to hit the home run you know what I mean so it’s like if you’re confident about the pitch you’re given to hit a home run sure sure put your Barrel into it right but like just as an analogy a lot of baseball hitters get in trouble striking out a bunch because they’re trying so hard to hit home runs and sometimes when the opportunity is there to slap the ball the other way down the line and get a double that’s what you got to go for especially if it’s something that the team needs which is shooting because ultimately you put them on the court and he’s going to make things a little easier for scoot he’s going to make things a little easier for ant he’s going to make things a little easier for Sharp on the offensive end because I mean scoot all year we saw him just drive into a loaded paint time and time again I kind of want him to have a little bit more space and I like connect as a wing filler in transition I want this team to run more so you know yes it’s not the Home Run swing but I do like his fit offensively on this team a lot and I do think he could help guys like scoot guy like sharp with spacing next year so I wouldn’t mind the pick it maybe not it might not be my preferred pick at seven but I understand the logic with going with a guy like that at seven and I wouldn’t I wouldn’t hate it I wouldn’t criticize it at all I get what you’re saying to me I’ll put it this way if we take connect I do agree it fixes the problems you just mentioned uh the spacing the flow of the offense the type of plays and schemes you can run on offense both I think he fits both in an uptempo system and a half court system you can find ways to get him open or just simply camp at the three-point line and space the floor um but to me he might be a solid Team Defender but I think if you put him with scoot or or whatever combination of the guards we want to talk about I feel like you’re limiting the ceiling on defense and that will always be a problem from here on out whereas if you draft someone like Ron Holland who has who’s only he’s not even going to be 19 on draft day if he ever figures it out on offense and has Elite defensive C capabilities then your your ceiling as a team as much higher you could have a two-way player versus only fixing one side of the ball with a connect and that’s the only reason why I would take a swing on someone that may not have the floor that connect has but has overall I think puts our team at a better chance if they hit at being a better team I just think it’s a Noto black and white in terms of like good Defender versus bad Defender right like if kect can be an okay Defender we still don’t know exactly where sharp and where scoot end up defensively and we don’t know who our front Court’s going to be defensively right like this team is in like so much in flux that I don’t really like discounting him too much for that because the Blazers were worse offensively last year than they were defensively and you would hope that sharp scoot make strides and you would hope that CH stops putting games too yeah yeah you’d hope that sharp or chony stops putting Grant on guards and you hope that Kamar takes another step right like but they were better defensively it’s not saying much because they were awful offensively but it’s like a lot of prospects have serious red flags on one side of the floor or the other like buellis is projected somebody that should be like solid defensively maybe a little bit above average and probably a little bit above average offensively I’m not sure like the shots a big question with him the strength’s a big question like being able to finish through contact finishing traffic around the rim is a question like he has these question marks offensively but it’s like would you rather have somebody that’s slightly above average on both sides of the floor would you rather have somebody that is a perfect fit offensively and a straightup killer to play that role and then you find the defense you get the defensive role players because what we see this this playoffs is having got guys that are Elite at a specific thing or at a specific role led to success for a lot of teams this year and with connect you’re getting a guy that’s at least going to be very very good as a shooter as a movement shooter somebody that can move off the ball I I like the way he cuts right so can specifically play up to that role whereas other guys like Ron Holland can he actually be good enough defensively to fit in that lock down Defender role I’m not as confident in that as I am in Connect ability to fit in that shooter mover role so that’s where I push back on that a little bit because I think ultimately you know a connect is you can go into that very confident that you have somebody that’s going to be able to play a specific role whereas some of the other guys you’re not and the Blazers freaking suck offensively so they need to improve that as much as anything yeah to me though they already have the guys at his position if they pan out so you’re talking about I mean I think sharp is just as capable with the three as connect is he’s got a longer wingspan almost as tall he can play Down connect can play down their wings right no I know I’m just I’m just saying like theoretically I think sharp should be good on offense right he missed 50 games last year but once he’s healthy playing for a full season he should be good on offense as a two guard or whatever position he plays anony Obviously good on offense scoot hopefully is better on offense moving forward so to me we already have three kind of guys on those positions I think we need to get the type of players around those guys meaning the four and five position or a bigger three to make those guys work the more we keep adding to the three that are already should be the strengths of our team we’re we’re kind of I think we’re kind of doomed if if connect ends up being better than the players that are already on our roster you know what I mean I just a that’s assuming that they keep the three guards together long term B I don’t like that because what did We complain about with Dame for years like he had CJ and this but it’s like oh alamu can’t get things done offensively right like he’s just limited offensively really good defensive player but limited offensively Maurice harkas really good Defender but limited offensively the Blazers finally make it to the Conference Finals when they have a lights out shooter Off the Bench in Seth Curry and a guy like Rodney Hood that could fill it up bigger um could attack off the dribble a little bit I actually think you know like Rodney was a really good shooter here and then really good one dribble pull-up guy like I see connect doing a lot of that type of stuff and you know Rodney was a little bit bigger but you you have guys offensively to take some of the pressure off Dame to fill some of those roles and like Seth Curry wasn’t that good of a Defender but he had a really good series in the first round and then Rodney Hood destroyed the nuggets in the second round so I think you need more than just those three guys you need guys to space the floor for them you need guys when they load up on those guards to make them pay to be able to attack gaps to be able to knock down shots you need a balance of role players next to whoever the guards are that can shoot the ball and that can defend and I love that they have Kamar there is like that defensive piece and then having connect you’d have your big Defender and you’d have your shooter right and depending on situations you could play one or the other and you’d have somebody that’s hopefully Elite defensively like Kamar that is good enough offensively where he’s not liability or somebody like connect who could be lethal offensively and hopefully good enough defensively where he not liability because that’s ultimately like the goal for me with the small forward spot off of those guards yeah but we signed Seth Curry for like three million bucks and then we yeah but we traded second round pick GNA connect’s gonna be I think better than Curry and Hood was on you know a one-year like no trade clause weird thing right and about to be a free agent so a little different like it’s not to say connect’s not going to be better than those guys it’s just to say like look what happened when you finally got some guys that can knock down shot next to Damon CJ I think we’re okay I completely agree that we do need eventually some sort of guy who can supplement the guards that we have already um and but I think what we’re saying is you’re saying connect fills these rules I’m saying I I want those rules to be filled I just want them to be filled by a guy who can play forward uh or like a bigger forward or a center like that kind of player and if we pass on that type of player for connect it just I don’t know who are you gonna who are you going to draft at seven to fill that shooter rule like connect at a power forward or Center position at seven I’m I’m not saying any of the the players for sure would do that I mean you could argue maybe Cody Williams um if if the shooting this year wasn’t a fluke um maybe that’s a little bit hoping it turns out like his brother um but like I don’t know we I just feel like using this asset on on a player that is just like not necessarily it’s it’s kind of reminds me of the 49ers you know with the in the draft like they draft a wide receiver when they didn’t really need a receiver so even if he’s good it’s more of a luxury pick than uh than uh what we need overall pick and and so even though connect does fill a couple of needs I just I don’t know if it’s if it’s the right thing to do I don’t know yeah I think that’s just where the disconnect is because I think the number one thing this team needs is a is somebody that can play the three or the four and can knock down threes and space the flooor like so I was thinking about this a lot you made a comment on Monday about Salon being big enough to play center some small ball Center something like that and it’s made me think a lot about our philosophies yeah and uh so I’m I’m bringing this up because I I think it’s really interesting not because either one of us me or for you is right or wrong yeah but it feels like where we differ is you are looking for prospects you kind of bump up prospects that you like that you think have the size to play up a position right so like connect can play small forward so you bump them up a bit because you feel comfortable playing small forward I prefer the bump up players that can play Down position almost so like like Luca is a small forward size but he’s a point guard you yeah probably not the best example there no I I know that’s an extreme example uh but like so like I was this whole time with Salon I’m I think he plays more like a small forward than a center and then you you start talking about how he’s not a rim protector and he like that kind of stuff and I’m just thinking like man I’ve never even thought of him that way like I think think of him as like a 34 type and if he’s a 34 he’s got like great sze for that but you’re you’re thinking at of him like a four five and he’s maybe a little small to play the five and um you know not strong enough and all that kind of stuff so like I’m looking at all these prospects like like I like to have I’m looking at size and position versatility down being able to guard smaller guys whereas you’re looking at them to play up positions and guard bigger guys and stuff like that like I said they’re both very valid things like and they’re both good things to have good traits to have I think that’s where we’re kind of differing on some of these prospects whereas you’re looking at them like connect playing small forward and I think he can play small forward which is a nice quality I just wouldn’t draft him as my starting small forward or anything like that see it for me it’s with Conn if he’s playing the two it’s almost like he’s playing down a position like I went back and looked through draft measurements from when they listed guys in shoes Eric because they used to list guys in shoes and now since they’ve switched to without shoes like guys just seem smaller than maybe they actually are so I went back and compared like a guy like connect to some guys that measured like with shoes in the past that were thought of is like yeah he’s definitely small forward size and connects measurements like line up with a bunch of them 8′ 7 and 1 half standing reach 6′ five and a quarter without shoes in the old NBA he would be listed at 6 foot s with shoes cuz shoes normally add an inch and a half and almost 8 foot eight standard reach like that’s that to me is closer to small forward size than shooting guard size so if he’s playing the two like he’s playing dead down that’s kind of how I view him but also like salon for me I just I do disagree with him being like a three I just don’t think he defends the perimeter well enough I think he’s a little too upright gets blown by a little bit too much and then he has flashes but I am already a little worried about like the F being so far away to consistently like make plays and some of the bad mistakes turnovers and stuff he has like I think he can work through it but I think it’s more likely for him to work through it to the point where he’s a power forward type that his skill set is better as a power forward type than it is playing down a small forward type kind of like the conversations that we’ve had about Jeremy Grant in the past yeah but Jeremy’s not a center either yeah but uh to me Salon is like clearly a four I just defensively I need to see him like in the NBA I’ll be watching for him to like make progress either defending on the perimeter so he can be like that switch down guy or protecting the rim better so he can be like that small ball five or secondary rim protector like he has good athleticism traits and whatnot it’s just I’m kind of curious what his role defensively is his best role I don’t think we’re going to know that for a couple of years because he needs to make progress somewhere yeah I think what I’m trying to say is I don’t necessarily think size alone I mean obviously size is important but I don’t think that’s the determin it on whether someone can play a position like that like I think Josh Hart was fine at the small forward position because he plays much bigger than he is um but that be guy playing up right yeah but like I don’t know to me if you have connecto with the two then he’s like a a mismatch right um so if you’re if you’re playing down positions then the other team team has to adjust to all these mismatches you have that’s like Golden State I’m not saying connect is Klay Thompson or whatever but like you know they have a 6 seven 68 shooting guard all those years you know it’s like CJ getting cooked in the post sometimes you know like no matter how good a defense he played uh clay could shoot over the top of him and you can create mismatches that way so I’m I’m fine I’m glad he can play he’s big enough to play small forward that allows you to do some things um lineup wise I just wouldn’t necessarily draft him to play small forward um I would I would love to have him be a shooting guard and and have that mismatch yeah I mean I think though if you’re viewing him in the light of like a take advantage of mismatch Guy where you just feed him the ball if he has somebody smaller on him and he just kills them that’s probably him being a 20 point per game scorer right like talk break up Clay in that regard and like Kay was you know little NBA wasn’t as high octane as it is now but he was you know 22 Point per game score so like if you’re feeding connect in that way he’s more than just a shooter off ball cutter attack Closeouts guy then all of a sudden he becomes like a very key cog in your offense and if he develops into that guy then it probably makes him a good pick at seven if he develops to that extent whereas if he doesn’t develop in to that extent you’re not really in my opinion worried about him being a take advantage of mismatch guy because you’re more so using him as that floor spacer as that off ball player as that catch and shoot Guy where it’s doesn’t really matter if it’s a shooting guard or small forward on him and actually I think small forwards would have a tougher time chasing them off screens in that role well see this is where it comes in because I do think he could average 20 points per game in the NBA eventually um but my problem is he doesn’t I don’t think he’s anywhere close defensively to a clay to Warrant playing small forward of though you know no I know I know I’m just saying like like clay got away with it because he played both sides of the ball and now that he doesn’t now that he gets cooked on defense um like he’s everyone thinks he’s a bum even though he shot like 38% from three or something like 37% from three last year uh and so I’m just I’m just worried about because to me in the NBA you need you need small forwards that are or you need one of your either your shooting guard or your small forward to be a really good Premier defender in my opinion and it just kind of sucks starting off with questionable defense from all of them yeah but I mean if you can get a guy that’s you know sixth main of the year maybe win cuz I think he has that like sort of upside pretty easily um I think it’s pretty easily going be first team all rookie as long as it goes the right situation yeah so it’s like I mean if you can find that super Elite Defender then he comes off the bench plays 30 minutes maybe plays a little bit of two but like he’s that perfect bench piece for this team that perfect like 30 minute a guy bench guy that’ll come in microwave score can take over games can space the floor and it’s like if you have a really tough matchup at the small forward spot you know you play tamani Kamar whoever the starting three is you know maybe it’s Kamar you play him a little bit more you try and maybe play kect down at the two a little bit more I don’t know I I just think he’s not going to be a complete liability defensively I don’t think he’s necessarily going to be good but I have hope that he can be okay enough that he doesn’t hurt a defense dramatically and then you would hope that you have other defensive pieces around and I am trying not to get in the mindset because we don’t know exactly what Scoot and sharp are going to be defensively yet I’m trying not to get in the mindset of like oh those two are bad Defenders so we can’t have somebody like connected to three because then you have three guys that aren’t good Defenders and point guard shooting guard small forward that’s the problem like you can make decisions down the line if it’s like oh sharp and Scoot are phenomenal offensively but really weak defensively then you can adjust things around that but before knowing what that is what we do know we need is some shooting so or do we need to suck next year and not have a player that’s ready to go right away do you I mean it maybe better to not have a good upside guy right now but this brings up a good question I think do you think it who it hurts scoot to have less spacing around him next year in terms of him developing as an offensive threat um if you’re just looking at it for this one year yes if you’re looking at it from the perspective of if he takes his lumps and you’re patient with him which I don’t know if they will be or not I’m I’m not saying that that’ll happen but if he learns to play with no spacing and has a jump this year despite not having spacing then I think once we’re ready to win and he has the spacing the game could get really easy for him and that’s when he could take off as a player see I just I don’t know how much it helps him driving in and then kicking out to a 27% three-point shooter because that Defender completely left him to completely pack the paint compared to oh he’s driving and the strong side corner that Defender is having to pick between two threats and it’s something where like he might learn okay if I got a sniper there in the corner I can simply look at him shift the defender back towards the corner then attack the rim or it’s like you know it’s it’s a little bit more read based I kind of want to put him in positions to be able to attack like strong side Defenders that have to choose between digging at the ball and then if they dig at the ball at all like get rid of it immediately to that guy cuz he could shoot compared to oh do I try and attack this dude because the guy in the corner is a walking brick you know like yeah so but I mean if we have sharp and Anthony next year you would think I know Sharp Shooting numbers weren’t good this past season but you would think he’ be a little closer to his work a year just wor you do have a little bit of spacing Kamar if he improves his three-point shot Grant if he’s still on the team has been what a 40% three-point shooter since got here Aon doesn’t shoot threes but he had a really high field goal percentage on mid-range so like I don’t know I don’t think the spacing here’s could be that bad if we have our full lineup no but if he’s playing next to Simon in sharp how many on ball reps is he going to get because those guys are going to have the ball in their hands constantly he play next to Aiden he’s gonna have the ball in his hands a lot right like so I’d almost rather him have a guy that’s like a sniper that’s not going to get a ton of reps with the ball in his hands where scoot isn’t on the ball like I want somebody that can shoot but scoot’s like ahead of him in the pecking order in terms of responsibility offensively so scoot can get those roles with a player scoot can get those reps with a player like that spacing off of him if that makes sense yeah I mean you could bring scoop back in with the second unit or I mean assuming he starting maybe he doesn’t start maybe he comes off the bench next year that’s where I’d like you know connect with that second unit too yeah because right now who’s the second could you find Shooters either you know minimum contract guys or with your other picks could you find that shooting I mean I’m sure you can find that shooting but I don’t think the shooting is going to be a is good and they’re going to have other offensive traits like connect and you know what I mean like they’re not going to be as good of a player as connect they’re not going to be a part of the future is connect so I don’t know like do we and here’s the thing if you draft somebody else it’s not going to make sense to go get a vet minimum shooter and play him ahead of whoever else you draft like if you drafted Ron Holland you got to play him ahead of siding a crappy vetman shooter right yeah well I was thinking you know maybe Holland’s in the starting lineup thing I don’t know yeah yeah maybe that start lineup has some rough shooting though with I don’t know if balus is on the board you’re not taking to connect over bis are you I or are you thinking about it I would probably take I would I would probably take balis over connect but I don’t know if the Blazers would agree with that I’m not sure I have a feeling I don’t know I just have a gut feeling that connects a guy they’re going to like yeah of course so which listen better than clinging for me okay better than trading up for kinging yeah so I don’t know also part part of me is just like connect’s a fun player man there is a small part of me that’s just like I would enjoy watching him in a Blazer uniform like I know i’ wouldd enjoy watching him in a Blazer uniform mhm which should not factor into the decisionmaking but at least to’ be a fun player to watch anyway this has been a fun a fun debate I’ve really enjoyed this I’m taking B yeah I mean I have bis higher on my board I’m I’m taking buellis I I don’t know man it’s just with a guy like buellis it’s like watch We’re GNA take him and his red flags are going to be too big for him to overcome and he’s not going to become a shoot I like I just started thinking negatively like how could this pick go wrong which I’ve you know as a Blazer fan it’s kind of tough not to think about how things could go wrong we like connect at least I’m confident like okay he’s going to be good it’s just a little more I would take buellis but it’s a little bit more comfortable taking connect if that makes sense yeah I like I don’t know I think everything I’ve heard of aalis since the G League disbanded I’ve really liked his attitude and his mindset and stuff like that so I don’t know if it I don’t know if fit like team is crucial for him yeah I I just think he needs to get his base stronger and some guys just like struggle with that yeah for sure I don’t know like maybe it’s skinny hips maybe it’s you know I don’t know but I that is my worry with buellis is like he’s never gonna have a strong enough base to create contact off the dribble because he’s not like the quickest guy but with his size the best version of him is like he’s just going to drive into you he’s going to get a little bit of a step but then he’s going to use his body use his strength just Shield you off and he doesn’t even have to drive fast it’s kind of like L Luca type stuff you know what I mean where buellis can handle the ball he needs to become a better shooter in order to get Defenders to play up on him but I’m just worried like he’s going to be a guy that gets bumped off his path a little too to easily and then can’t finish with any sort of contact around the rim like because that that plus the shooting questions is like okay maybe he’s a zero level scorer you know like maybe he just struggles at the rim and from three like that is that is the floor like downside with buellis I still like him as a prospect because he can’t handle the ball and like Shifty with the ball and was a good shooter before the g- league and like if he can get stronger then he can use his size so there’s a lot of upside there but there’s also a lot of downside he’s boom bust yeah but that’s why I mean all these guys could bust uh yeah the calculation is just like how confident you are in him fulfilling that upside because if you’re not confident then it might make sense to go with a safer pick like connect to me though if you take a 19-year-old Doon connect I’m sure you’re saying the same things like can he even play against good competition what happens when he’s gets someone gets physical with him all that kind of stuff he dealt with a ton of physicality in the SEC not NBA physicality but I’m saying if you take 19-year-old Dalton kect four years ago I’m sure he has just as many question marks yeah but he he didn’t need to with the way he can shoot the ball he didn’t need to be as strong right balis in order to make his offensive game work I think needs to become strong sure so cuz he’s going to be going up against forwards where connect is going to be running off screens catch and shoot rising over people so um oh I forgot what I was going to look up oh well connect with 6 fo2 as a freshman in college I didn’t know that that’s wild anyway let’s move on let’s talk about niika topa jerck he has a partially torn ACL okay not good might cause him to fall but then he also measured and the measurements I don’t know if they’re good either he measured it 6′ S without shoes in terms of height right that’s great we were thinking he’s 66 he’s six that was with shoes I thought it was without shoes I thought his measurement was with shoes for some and then all the rest were I mean they don’t even have listed height with shoes for the this year’s draft combine and it was like an NBA draft combine overseas so I think it was without shoes 6’7 without shoes phenomenal wingspan 6’5 a half negative 1.5 in wingspan Eric are these measurements a disappointment how far do you think he falls on draft KN because of the torn ACL and the measurements uh I think a lot of people were hoping his wingspan was closer to 7 foot cuz that’s what’s been rumored all this time that’s why I wish we had these like why can’t colleges and International Teams have mandatory things like that players like being in list 69ine when they’re six foot five you know that’s going to be the next thing NCA has to go I know that wouldn’t affect topage but uh yeah um so in my opinion it will cause him I I don’t think there’s any way you draft him in the top five I I don’t know I I think that’s too risky um so how far he’ll drop past that though I I don’t know I can still see like San Antonio at eight Utah at 10 like one of those type of teams just taking a chance on him still um but the further he slips into the back part of the lottery I I think he becomes like good value uh like I would still I would still take him after 10 um and if I’m sitting there at Portland I mean this is where drafting connect at 7 gets tough to then take topage too but if he’s there at 14 that’s to me it’s similar to I know you’re going to hate this comparison Tory but it’s similar to the Michael Porter Jr draft where he only where he was hurt I’m not saying they’re anywhere close to the same type of player I’m just saying like he you know he had medical concerns and then I don’t I don’t know there was rumors that people were worried about cam whitmore’s elbow or something last year um in addition to maybe his attitude or something and so he falls all the way to 20 I don’t I don’t know how much of that was injury related or not it never really the full story on that never really came out um but uh if he falls to 14 I think I mean we’ve been connected to him at seven a lot um with like gavon mock drafts and all that kind of stuff we’ve been connected to dton connected or to him um so uh yeah I think I think you got to take him at 14 if he’s there I I just think that value is like I mean I guess it depends a little bit on who’s still on the board but if you’re just taking like best player available and and Swinging for upside that I I don’t know what do you think of that yeah I mean I my question would be is there a team that really wants him can you get a good trade for the 14th pick because he’s on the board of 14 that’s what I would look at first because you know the whole guard thing he doesn’t shoot well defensively he’s rough that wingspan is not going to do him any favors and then like the problem with him is it’s been multiple injuries like he’s had a very injury plagued season it’s not just one like he was injured with something else earlier in the year so I I think if nobody wants to trade for that pick I think you have to take them I agree with that but I think the play is actually to trade that pick and like try and maximize value for a team that really wants them like you try do well I mean it was it’s kind of the opposite for me because I traded to get him yeah oh well it’s uh it’s weird because Kim Whitmore like I would looking back on it now why why the heck didn’t a tra team trade up to get him like it just seems so strange now right cause Miami loved hawz at 18 Golden State loved P jimsky at 19 yeah the Lakers I mean maybe the Lakers was a spot because they took Jaylen Hood chafino uh I did not think that was a good I I just don’t like jayen Hood Shino still too early on him but he didn’t do anything his rookie year of course he was playing for the Lakers but then again Haw has and Pinsky were playing for veteran leaden teams with aspirations that did not last but I don’t know uh that that might have been the spot who knows it’s just it’s tough to trade in the draft man it’s tough to get teams to trade out of a pick I feel like more teams want to trade up than trade down and that’s where if you sitting there at 14 and top is on the board and you know there’s red flags and there’s a lot of fit issues here like that could make sense for Portland to maximize value in a trade down or a trade out of that pick and that would be I don’t know I I feel like you could maybe get something like what what was it was it the Duren pick where a late lottery pick got traded and I think the Knicks got like three for future first one of them was heavily protected from Detroit great but it’s like damn for a late lottery pick maybe heavily protected from Washington yeah they weren’t great picks but but still I mean you’re talking about still talking about three first round picks y it’s pretty good right and if you especially if they’re in the next couple drafts yeah the next couple drafts are absolutely loaded so if you can get a couple in the next couple of drafts increase your draft Capital because topage fell there and a team wants some great I think that would be the better play if possible but it might not be possible at that point you probably got to talk about taking them yeah which would be really interesting next year basically we just need to run fast breaks every time possible because everybody can handle the ball and nobody can shoot yeah um other measurements though Eric I saw reets were there any others that I missed other than rets they’re not online yet did you see anyone else’s before I read off ret well gav only had an article about all the players with listed in shoes yeah that’s why I thought topes the shoes oh did the article say topage was 6′ S I don’t know cuz it was tweeted from a rep uh a somewhat reputable Source depending on how you feel about this guy but it was tweeted that Ray his height with no shoes is 6’8 and a half his standing reach is 8 fo1 he has an 6’9 and a half stand or 6’9 and a half wingspan 8 fo1 standing reach so the wingspan isn’t too great compared to his height but standing reach 8 fo 11 he’s legitimate power for size I wonder if maybe the wingspan thing is messed up there I don’t know because that it would maybe explain the topage yeah they just mismeasure the wingspan I mean how do you mismeasure a wingspan though you know like well it it happened that there was a year I forget what year it was it was fairly recently where like everyone was measuring shorter wingspan than expected and they found out that the thing they were using was they weren’t doing it right or something I don’t know maybe maybe yeah we find out topic has a seven foot Wings span uh maybe he like short armed it on purpose to duck his value to go to like make it a San Antonio at eight or something ree or topit or Reese yeah topage topage yeah yeah I don’t know I don’t know um ree is sounds like gonna be a top two pick and there’s legitimate Buzz about him going number one to Atlanta I you ready to jump into big boards and we can talk a little bit more about him and other prospects please give us a way to trade up for Alex SAR when Atlanta he dumb and doesn’t take him yeah you Atlanta you want Jeremy Grant no I mean like if they take Rish and then SAR is on the board at two or three and we find a way and then Washington goes clinging at two and then Houston really wants Malcolm Brogden and we trade seven and Brogden for three and get Alex SAR and then connect Falls to 14 Eric if we get SAR I’m fine I connect yeah yeah yeah I mean listen if connect’s at 14 to me it’s kind of like if topit is at 14 like if connect’s at 14 you got to take him yeah um he’s just he’s just too good of a shooter too good of a fit and at that point it’s just it’s too much value and it’s like I don’t know you’re getting a good role player probably at minimum with the 14th pick like it’s pretty good it’s pretty good but here are big boards you shut up Taylor Packer here are our latest big boards here is our top 10 so I’ve moved topage out of my top 10 you still have him at eight I I’ve moved him out you guys will see where he’s at uh I have Castle number two I’m not very confident like two through five part of me like wants to move Reet up even more I don’t know I’m I’m not a Reet hater anymore I just there’s red flags with Holland there’s red flags with melis there’s red flags with Reet there’s red flags with Rob Dillingham he’s super small um but we’re we have Ray both at six we have Rob Dillingham both at three we have buellis both at five the difference is I’m a little higher on Holland I’m a little higher on Castle you’re higher on salon and chomi yeah earn that got connected eight clinging nine Jaylen Tyson made his way back into my top 10 let’s go nice I love it when Jaylen Tyson is in the top 10 um Kier still at 10 colier still at 10 Eric you’re still a Believer yeah uh I mean he has some concerns shooting wise um but I think uh I watched a lot of USC games last year for some reason um and uh man their bigs were absolute trash last year and I thought Coler showed some Vision that I don’t think he got to Showcase enough of last year and uh I think he was the number one recruit for a reason and uh I just think that team had no shooting no uh his his back court mate Boogie Ellis is kind of like a high volume shooter too um I think uh I think coler’s really being slept on does he remind you of scoot at all like in terms of some of his weaknesses that might hold him back yeah um he’s not as uh vertically explosive yeah I mean he’s not like a he’s not a crazy athlete like that he’s quick he’s not like vertically exposive he’s pretty quick he finishes a lot lot more like Dame does where it’s like get to the basket quick and Lay It Up versus try to like I don’t know what the right word is like I’m not saying scoots out of control but scoots just like I mean he he did a better job of this at towards the end of the season but it was just like scoot’s always just 100 miles hour like going and then when he started changing speeds and slowing down a little bit that’s when he started playing better whereas I feel like Coler is already a little just more steady his I like his Pace to his game and stuff like that so that’s where it differs a little bit from scoot but in terms of questionable shot good passing instincts uh good ability to at least get into the paint um and read the floor and stuff I I think it’s very similar yeah and uh people people out there keep sleeping on Jaylen Tyson man I’m I’m seeing more and more mock drafts start to have them back in the second round which listen if the Blazers can get him at 34 I’m freaking pouring champagne on My Head Right second draft day stream Eric if Jaylen Tyson is still on the board I am going out because you know it’s on two days now I am going out and I’m buying a bottle of champagne if the Blazers draft Jaylen Tyson at 34 you heard it here first I’m pouring champagne on my freaking head okay I C up some plastic bag towels or something like we’re yeah we’re we’re throwing a party and Eric if the Blazers well we have to you have to make it to that stream but maybe if you don’t you could do it later if the Blazers draft chomi at 3440 you’re pouring champagne on your head too Chi Tyson uh some guys we’ll talk about here in a minute I’m the more time that goes by I’m like man one of these guys has to be there at 34 right so yeah I think there’s going to be somebody good at 34 that we’re begging for uh I see it right now and oh I just I just do not understand the like people that have Tyson in the second round I just don’t I I just don’t understand Eric like what I don’t understand what more people could want out of a prospect that isn’t like a top tier Prospect he shot the ball decently he defended okay he was like a three-point sniper the year before when he played for Texas Tech like that was his role and I think he shot like 40% from three so like shots good he can knock down threes from Deep range NBA range comfortably he can knock down threes off the dribble so all the shooting traits love it can readed defense can make quick NBA speed reads off the dribble can run some pick and roll like can can pass competitive rebounds decently well works his ass off like I I just I just don’t understand how that’s a second round Prospect in this draft yeah I just I mean I I like Jaylen Tyson I just like it’s kind of like my connecting I like few other players a little more um but yeah I agree he should for sure be drafted the first round yeah um I’m gonna go down swinging with him man like Lon lon’s got something um what okay 34th pick comes up chomi MBO Jaylen Tyson all still on the board we have a trade the Blazers are trading the 34th pick for a future second what do you do Tori and then 40 they’re all gone I’m breaking the bottle of champagne on my head nice I mean you’ll have a bunch of people that call then will one for you stop having like mediocre role players some of them being veterans when you’re in a rebuild on roster spots to excuse trading away the 34th pick there’s a lot of really good players that go early second even in weaker drafts you if you believe in your scouting Department that you hired Mike schmidtz to be a big part of right like we need to scout especially International Scout better blah blah blah like you’re in a rebuild you got to put Faith in like okay this is another chance to get really good value on a player I mean the Blazers in the past have done a pretty decent job getting value out second round picks I mean Gary Tren Jr was a 37th pick anony Simons was a late first right like if they trade the 30 fourth pick with like those guys on the board because of roster spots I mean my goodness my goodness like oh we can’t take a chance on the upside of chi because we have matis thyow oh my God anyway I need to calm down breathe let’s show the second Big Board slide we’re going 1 to 30 here okay we’re going one to 30 um there’s 11 to 20 I got salon at 11 you got re sheeper at 12 I we’re pretty we agree on Cody Williams I got Topic at 13 um we both have doet here on this board I have him 20 you have him 18 we both have durisic you have him 14 I have him 19 both have Devin Carter 13 to 18 like I used to have him like 13 14 I bumped up Bob Carrington to 15 I just think his scoring upside is too intriguing to pass up I you know I like my movement pattern guys like guys where I just like their footwork shiftiness the way they move with the dribble the way they get into some of their shots bub Carrington is one of those guys for me that I just think he’s going to be able to get his shot off at all three levels and efficiency is a question mark but I just think he has legit upside um you know Coler you had at 10 I have 16 we’re we’re similar on a lot of these prospects the guys we disagree on Salon we’ve talked about him a ton in previous streams so not going to do that again um we’ve talked about him probably more than any other Prospect uh Reed Shepard Eric you have him at 12 I had him at seven so not a big difference but yeah I mean Reed Shephard’s a guy who I want to put higher I just can’t move him above anyone in my top 11 I just I don’t his measurements were a little smaller than I was hoping I thought he would be a little bit more combo guard size than point guard size and uh yeah so I mean I think I’m pretty confident he’s going to be a decent player in the NBA I just I don’t know who I would put him above yeah yeah I don’t mind him kind of in that in that tier right like I understand having Cody Williams ahead of him and like the guys you had s to 10 like fully understandable um I I go ahead I would say the guy after him on my list Devin Carter I really want to move him into my top 10 like you put Jaylen Tyson I just don’t know who I moved down you know yeah I mean when you get to 12 and 13 on your big board you got two guys that are absolutely Elite at something Devin Carter like could be one of the best point guard defenders in the league right and one of the best rebounders pound-for-pound like he’s going to be a good role player I have no doubts that he’ll be in a rotation on a winning team someday Reed Shepard same thing just because he’s a freaking sniper he’s the best shooter in the draft um and can also like make a play off the dribble um here and there like make the right pass Etc like it’s not like he’s only a three-point specialist like he can do some other things like kind of a little pesty defensively like we’ll get deflections we’ll get steals he’s you know I don’t know how well he can keep guards in front of him but at least he can do something positive defensively which normally you don’t get from an Underside shooter like that so two good prospects there I I don’t know like I have Devon Carter 18 I love his game though it’s just like for me Jared McCain’s kind of similar in terms of like I don’t know like Jared McCain’s not offensive player Jared McCain’s more of a shooter but both those guys worked out for the Blazers so yeah both of those guys are similar in terms of I expect them to come in and be really good role players and like good locker room guys and set the tone for a team like McCain can rebound the ball as well for an undersized guard um I like McCain shooting I like mckain shooting and I do feel like just listening to him talk Eric I mean he’s he would be a great guy to have in a locker room great guy to have a locker room and with a lot of these prospects close I’m starting to listen to a lot of like their interviews and just kind of like judge you know what you can judge off an interview right it’s not much be careful with that yeah but I mean M McCain’s a McCain’s a that dude that dude’s a good dude like you could tell um would be a good guy to have in the locker room and I do think he may be able to do a little bit more off the dribble than he showed at Duke so that’s why have him at 14 at the very least going to be a shooter but I think maybe has some upside off the dribble who knows um so like carington Collier upside guys right yeah Tristan Silva I think you’re you’re uh a little too low on him so I’ll just spoil you have him at 30 I have him at 17 uh I think he goes in the teens somewhere I think his floor is probably 23 to Milwaukee um I just like him because he’s a forward shooter that can play either forward spot and can do a little bit off the dribble and can pass and that combination of trace of forward spot is intriguing yeah I also watched a lot of Colorado games for some reason this year uh I just I think he’s just I agree he’s he’s got some skills I think that are going to immediately Translate to the NBA I think he’s going to be one of those guys that’s going to pop right away and like a hotz last year and be like oh well 16 other teams were stupid for letting them get to 17 or whatever um I just I don’t know if he’s anything more than just like an okay role player though I don’t know if he does anything extremely well and I do think he’s a little slow Lally to be a good forward Defender and so that those are my worries about I think he’s smart defensively which I think goes a long way I he tries and he’s smart yeah so I think that could make up for some athletic limitations he also shot 39% from three the last two years in this past season shot 83% from the free throw line like I think he’s legitimately GNA be a knockdown stretch four with a little bit extra like he’s not going to go average five assists a game or anything but like he can make the right play and doesn’t make many mistakes and that’s where I just think that is a good role to fill like I like him more than Tyler Smith because I think the Silva has a little bit more perimeter game than Tyler Smith yeah I would yeah I don’t know they’re pretty similar to me um just also goes back to my thing with Tyler Smith 19 so it’s hard because how old is just still at 23 uh just turned 23 I think I can check um so it’s also a case where I feel like a little bit of what he was doing this season was just cuz he’s kind of like a playing um with people a lot younger and inexperienced than him but that’s why I think he’ll he’ll be okay right away but I just don’t know if he has the upside of some of these other players yeah I’ll be honest I don’t really like I don’t really like using that against him like man playing amongst boys like it’s it’s high Lev college ball like but it’s kind of like Philip Housey to me I I feel like a lot of what he did I just like I see him drive or do something and like oh that was a nice move but it’s that wouldn’t work in the NBA type of thing so well the problem is he’s not beating anybody off the dribble in the NBA yeah nobody’s running him off the line in the NBA just Silva I think will be a good enough shooter where guys are going to run him at the line you can pump fake and beat Closeouts and then just methodically like make plays off the dribble yeah so I think the I think the running theme Here is I’m higher on some of the older guys in this class um yeah for sure is is kind of the running theme here but D daier however you say his name like there’s a chance I’m moving back up I I still I’ve watched a little bit of film on him the flashes are intriguing especially because I think he’s going to be able to be a guy that can like shoot a little bit and has size to play the three maybe even some small ball four if he can get stronger maybe even the two like he moves well he he’s somebody that I feel like we could be talking about in five years as like a top three to five player in this class that nobody saw coming yeah like that would be the upside of him right like the best case scenario for him but sure there’s just there’s just something about him I like Eric and I can’t quite put my finger on it so I have him at 20 here’s the thing I have him at 20 cuz like I can’t explain why I like him if I’m if I’m sitting there man I just don’t like something I like something about this guy but I can’t like articulate it to myself I’m not going to bump him up because I can’t explain to myself like why I’d have him at 11 or top 10 or whatever there’s just something about him there’s just something about him man earlier in the season I literally I was like okay I’m going to I’m going to I’m going to see what this guy’s all about you know I’d heard some of the I mean he wasn’t like super high on a lot of boards yet but you know like some of the Twitter NBA draft guys uh like the No Ceilings and the draft deeper guys like they’re meing how they like him a lot and like so I I like started watching him and I’m like dude I just do not see it with this guy like I I don’t like him at all and so like I just I like kind of forgot about him or just like pushed him the side or dismissed him and then uh you know as more and more people dropped out or you know just I was like I hate these other guys too as prospects I I was like okay well he’s like automatically creeping up on the board and so like I started looking at some of his later season stuff and I’m like dude this guy looks like a completely different player like he looks like actually like he can dribble he can shoot he can pass like what where did this this come from like it didn’t look like this earlier in the season in my opinion uh we’re talking about doet Taylor um and so yeah I just I’ve been really impressed with his development in just uh you know one season and then um yeah some of his flashes he just yeah I think what it is is like he plays like he’s a star kind of yeah whether he is or not is yet to be determined but he just some of his movements he’s kind of cocky like he plays with like an edge a little bit and and I kind of like that from the international guys when they play like that yeah it but it’s he also has a smoothness too his shot is like beautiful like his shooting form is beautiful and I try not to base too much off shooting form if you shoot like um rookie Lonzo Ball but you make 50% of your threes you make 50% of your threes the points count the same but there’s just some he’s aesthetically pleasing to watch and also just moves well and has some stuff to him that’s like man if he develops properly what exactly does that look like yeah it’s probably a pretty dang good player so like you’re trying to figure it out I’m trying to figure out why I don’t move higher on my you know what I mean like yeah this time of year when I move guys off my up my board and stuff it’s like it’s questions like that like why why isn’t a guy like that higher I don’t know I need to watch a little bit more of him um like bub Carrington I I had that thought the other day like why why do I have him down 25 26 I love the way he scores the ball I think he at this point in the draft like has as much potential as anyone to become a 20 point per game scorer why am I not valuing that more because that’s upside like I don’t think he’s going to be a good defensive player but if you can put the ball in the bucket you should be highly regarded and you know what I mean so I bumped him up thought it I have a feeling he’s going to be higher on my final big board and the thing is is I’m glad I started paying attention to a lot of these guys earlier than normal because this is this is a decent range like everybody says it’s a weak draft a lot of these guys like 14 to 24 I think are very very close and I think as you get towards 24 the value becomes pretty good I do think there’s a drop off in the late late first round as I’ll explain on my board when we get to that slide but 24 I have jacobe Walter you have him at 16 and then like there’s a cut off from me well like I I have the centers like right after this you know like I want to have them in the top 20 I think they’re all top 20 prospects but I agree I think there’s there’s like 24 25 guys that you could legit say should be late Lottery early early 20s picks yeah I will say do I do think you are a little too low on Clingan where do you have I had him at nine okay I had him at nine it I don’t know it’s that he’ll probably be a really good rim protector Defender and like play finisher and can kind of pass a little bit but um I’m not higher than consensus on him either so here’s 21 to 30 you said you had the centers right after this I also had a couple centers right after this y missy kle we were’re pretty much an agreement on you had kesan George at 19 I have him at 23 like that’s an upside Play kle We is a really good upside play at that point in the draft like it’s it’s I want to put klew higher because I feel like he should be higher everybody 21 to 24 for me it’s like I feel like they should be in the top 20 yeah now you have donon Holmes and mogbo top 24 that’s the only difference um I have Tyson and who’s the other no you have McCain at 24 who’s the other guy had top 24 that that you did not have the Silva and Carrington carington yeah yeah yeah um so that’s a really good range to draft in like Milwaukee’s going to probably get somebody that can help them next year with that 23rd pick Phoenix needs a particular type of player but like if you’re sitting here and Clare is there at 22 probably pretty happy if you’re Phoenix if y Missy is there at 22 pretty happy like maybe there’s even a chance chance that Devon Carter Falls because I do think that range is good enough where now he probably doesn’t fall he’s probably going like late Lottery um but there’re there’s going to be good players in that range New York’s picking at 24 and 25 like New York can maybe get somebody to help now they have a ton of depth so they could swing but um oh the other guy you have top 24 that I don’t is chomi I have chomi 29 let’s talk a little bit about mogbo Eric you had him at 20 I have him at 25 we talked a little bit about him recently but he’s just I like him because he’s a mismatch at the center spot and I crazy wingspan standing reaches like 9 foot and a half which I think he’s good enough to play center he’s L at 6’6 so people will look at him like oh he’s just an undersized Center I don’t think he’s as undersized people think because I look at stuff like wingspan standing reach he can handle the ball like a guard he can pass the ball he can play some good defense he athletic he can like attack off the dribble that’s just really intriguing at a center spot and in a draft like this especially once you get out of that top 24 tier for me it’s like okay I want guys that have advantages and have uniqueness at a position mogbo is that guy for me I really think he could play small forward the thing is he just can’t shoot if he can shoot he becomes somebody that could play like every freaking position right I think he’s quick enough to guard one through five which is like an elite trait uh I think he has the handles to be like a point forward type so yeah like the shooting’s the only problem um but like I think he could be like basically like uh I don’t know because like I was going to compare to like a j Crowder type only like a bigger J Crowder but like he also dun the ball like all the time like he yeah I don’t know if you saw that stat today but like he averaged more dunks per whatever than like Zion did or like and like most of the players who do that are end up being like really good players um and like you said he’s just he’s a mismatch nightmare because of his handles he can take anyone out on the perimeter and just blow by them and he’s got passing instincts uh which automatically bumps him up as we talked about before it’s just something that like when you’re when you’re a forwarder a big that can pass it it just really intrigues me a lot and that’s another reason why I have jusic so high yeah but um my worry about something you said real quick is like if you can’t shoot in the NBA and guys sag off him will be able to attack the same way yeah I don’t know uh I feel like he cuts pretty well um off ball so maybe not but um I don’t know he’s an upside he’s old but he’s an upside swing because if you could somehow figure out how to teach him to shoot an average three ball he becomes top 10 player in this class yeah there’s something about a guy who could run your offense at a four position and grab a rebound and go yeah that’s kind of like what we’re hoping kamur ends up being with hopefully a better three-point shot than MBO but I don’t know I’m like yeah yeah yeah Bard with all that I’m on board with all that I just man if we D if the Blazers somehow get him please give him the best shooting coach in the world whoever that is like yeah if he can if he can knock down threes occasionally he’s kind of like Draymond without the crazy yeah but I mean what I mean there what Draymond had one season where he shot the three well yeah I mean M’s like a complete non shooter though like he doesn’t even he doesn’t shoot him yeah so it’s kind of like uh Trace Jackson DAV year yeah was that his name am I mixing up his name no Chris Jackson Davis and the problem is he shot he shot 69% from the free throw line but uh I mean ton projects his NBA 3 point percentage at 31.6 I be that’s a start right yeah that’s a like Scot though yeah I mean just he took one three all year and missed it but he averaged um per 36 18 points 13 rebounds four and a half assists two steals yeah only one block so Rim protection iy that’s maybe one of the red flags with him being a center and then red flag with him being a power forward is like he doesn’t shoot but if you compare him next to a center that can space the floor my dream fit not for being a Blazer fan but just my dream fit for him is him next to Wy I mean that’d be that would be very intriguing to me yeah dude that would be sick um but yeah mogbo fans over here and then I have Zack ed26 Eric like he’s not going to go any higher than this um it’s just you know like I said after we get out of that top 24 it’s like do you have an advantage a clear Advantage at the NBA level in Ed it’s his freaking 7 foot4 size yeah and being able to to finish cuz at this point like every prospect’s going to have red flags and Ed struggles moving his feet that’s why I don’t have him any higher than this that’s why I don’t think he’s a lottery player like I think he’s going to really struggle defensively in the NBA but everybody on this from this point on is probably going to struggle on one side of the ball so if you can have some clear advantage on like somewhere then that’s where a guy like G belongs in my opinion yeah yeah backup center thought like potentially dominant backup center though so yeah you know I don’t know like he he mogbo Don Holmes I have in this like Center group the thing is I think kware and EES Missy are clearly better Center prospects than those three in that Center group although they’re pretty close on my board but like I said I think there’s a drop off after 24 yeah I just I think Ed more than any other player in this draft is just going to get pick and roll hunted to death and I just I don’t know how he’s going to handle that yeah I I do think he got better moving his feet last year though a little bit that gives me he did but not the NBA like against guards or whatever yeah yeah you when you’re that big you don’t have to move your feet quite as well because you can block shots from further away and you can smother shots at The Rim even if you’re beat from behind right like so I don’t think he has to move his feet as well as say Kyle filipowski so that’s my thing with him it’s like can he can he can he just be a drop big and be fine cuz if he can be fine being a drop big like then he’s probably a pretty decent NBA player so I don’t know I don’t know but that’s why both neither of us have Lottery uh Dr Holmes 27 I mean I’m still intrigued by his offensive skill set uh 28 Dylan Jones I really liked his interview for the Blazers yeah yeah um and and just you know I liked him earlier in the year I have some question about how his game translates but he can play he can rebound he can pass he can do some things he might never be a rotation player but at this point that’s really what you’re looking at chamchi 29 Trenton flowers 30 upside plays for me Dylan Jones is the opposite example of what we were talking about earlier so he’s a guy who is you would think how the size to be a mismatch problem it’s just he’s got the skills of a power forward and the G and the body size of a shooting guard and I don’t like that when it’s backwards in I think his skills are a I don’t want to go and say his skills are power forward I think he’s a little bit more skilled than that well yes he’s more skilled than that but I don’t think he’s his game is quick enough like I don’t he’s a little bit like a lot of his advantages in college were strength and and just physicalness um physicality is the word I was looking for um and I don’t think he gets away with that in the NBA and I think he’s going to have a problem with quickness yeah um especially if he’s both undersized at a a three or four and um not quick enough to play guard or whatever yeah yeah I see that Justin Edwards you have here I have him down to 38 I I don’t mind him in the early second um just some of the athleticism stuff is worrisome um especially with how he tested and then let’s see you have Tristan Newton here I still don’t know what where to put Tristan Newton uh um him like KJ Simpson I still need to watch a little bit more film on them to feel comfortable like I watched Tristan Newton all year I watch a lot of Yukon games it’s just I don’t know it’s like it’s like one of those guys where you know he’s good in college but for me it’s like I have to really sit down and really really focus on them to try and determine okay is this just one of those guards that is good in college or does it translate up mhm um and then I do have Baylor shyman 31 I uh he’s going to be interesting to see if he ends up being good um Aj Johnson 32 have you had the opportunity to watch any Aj Johnson or Trent and flowers I have Trenton flowers 30 I’ve watched a little bit but not enough to like be super confident about yeah um Tren flowers size athleticism scoring potential played some point guard in high school so like can he be somebody that handles the ball make plays I I don’t know he’s very he’s raw but that’s an intriguing combination so upside right and then Aj Johnson is like two years away from being two years away but he has some flashes that are really impressive where it’s like I could see him being really good one day um he’s like one of those raw like lottery ticket home run type of guys yeah so any other players you want to talk about I think we covered most of them all righty fun episode those are our latest big boards we appreciate you guys for hanging out with us um mock draft mostly edited I haven’t had any time to edit anything I really want to start uploading more videos just work life crazy for me right now but it’s good stuff happening um good stuff happening so mock draft there will be three trades and that one of them includes the Blazers so you want to check that out uh then you should have a you doing a Hoops Crush recording this weekend ER yeah uh should be recorded tomorrow night out Saturday morning most likely got you looking forward to that and then I’mma try and record something with Stephen it’s time is time is rough right now but I really want to sit down with Stephen and just uh hear whatever he has to say because I never know what he’s going to say but uh appreciate you guys hanging out with us appreciate you guys watching the show during the offseason hopefully you enjoyed it um looking forward to the draft which is now less than what 3 weeks away it’s 20 days away Eric y man that’s scary I got to do graphics and stuff I gotta prep yeah real quick uh Nate Bor borran has been spotted at every workout so far in the um Assuming he’s going to be one of the new assistant coaches oh didn’t he used to be an assistant he was an assistant with Toronto under Nick nurse for a long time where really well respected then went to the Pacers got the job there got fired after a year cuz I guess he was just an ass or something I don’t know maybe we kind of need an [ __ ] coach though you know yeah maybe I don’t know I don’t mind that hire as an assistant coach yeah interesting interesting I forgot if there was like an incident or something that happened but I know like all the players hated him or something they basically had to do yeah well we got the we got the good cop bad cop Vibe then Chon’s the good cop that all the players love and says accountability but doesn’t really know how to enforce it and then we got bork re now interesting interesting yeah um Aiden mounts asking about Mel I don’t think Mel is being traded to Portland I Eric I’ll end this episode with this I am more comfortable with the Blazers just using their picks and going the rebuild route I don’t know the extent of that in terms of trading veterans but I am a little bit more comfortable than I was when we like last had a deep male conversation about the Blazers not making a move like that yeah I think well whether they would or not I think is a different conversation I still think they would give if given the opportunity but there are a couple of teams uh Houston is definitely one of them um it’s rumored that the Nets are once again going to turn down the third pick and other stuff for stupid they want to put a star next to him and be a playing Team while they don’t have their picks Eric yeah um but I mean I don’t know how unless we start putting some of our good young players in the deal how we beat the third pick and giving them future picks back to their organization and also could Houston could give potentially young guys like tar e or someone like that so or Jabari Smith even I don’t know how Portland beats that and then there’s rumors that um Indiana as well uh New York Memphis would all possibly make a run at male if he became available and so I think I’m with you whereas even if we wanted to do something stupid and trade all our assets for him I don’t know if we’re outbidding any of those teams so you said New York Memphis who is the other team Indiana I’ve I’ve seen oh Indiana so it’s funny because I was the Nets in our mock offseason and the three teams that were going after Mel the hardest were Houston Memphis and New York yeah um and ultimately traded him to Houston because it’s like you got to get your future first back you got to get your future first back in that trade I got the fifth pick took Castle there’s like picks that were traded around it was a big seven team trade okay don’t worry about the number of teams basically Trad M to Houston because it’s like they got your future first you got to rebuild you got to pick a direction and putting a star next to Mich isn’t actually picking a direction because it doesn’t actually get you anywhere it only gets you in a freaking playe so hate that well I guess it depends on the star but yeah I mean who are you going to get that is going to make that team a contender nobody Jo nobody that’s getting traded yeah so anyway appreciate you guys hanging out with us thank you for making this stream fun looking forward to the draft looking forward to the next stream on Monday maybe we’ll do a mock draft haven’t done one of those in a little bit and a lot has changed since we last did a mock draft but uh yeah next stream will be on the 10th on Monday next Monday so hopefully you guys have a good weekend enjoy the rest of your night Eric you as well and we will catch you guys live again on Monday stay tuned mock draft video that I recorded multiple days ago is right around the corner finally just crazy life Crazy Life anyway Taylor I know you’re waiting on that scorching Trails maybe maybe we can get one of those soon we’ll definitely get one before the draft for sure draft in 20 days thank you everyone for tuning in appreciate you all yeah appreciate you guys right here until next time as always peace out go Blazers
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2 Comments
Maybe we traded him to another team
I see that name all over Blazer chat rooms. I'd bet the over on Portland taking Knecht in the draft.