Which big man prospects would fit best with the Toronto Raptors? | Zach Edey, Kel’el Ware & more

Which big man prospects would fit best with the Toronto Raptors? | Zach Edey, Kel’el Ware & more

on your Monday episode of Locked on Raptors we’re talking about the bigs in the 2024 NBA draft class who fits best with the Raptors who doesn’t and who might still be there at 19 when the Raptors are on the clock we’ll get into all that with one of the very best draft experts out there Keandre from hoop inel it’s all coming up thanks for hanging you are locked on Raptors your daily Toronto Raptors podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day [Music] hey what’s going on and welcome to another episode of Locked on Raptors part of the lock on podcast Network your team every day it is Monday June the 17th and I’m your host sea Woodley I’ve been coming the Toronto Raptors now for 10 seasons on various platforms you can find all my work over on the very bad website at Woodley Shan you can find the show on Instagram at lockon Raptors and of course you can join us over in the lockon Raptors Discord server the link in the description of the podcast it’s free to join as always it’s a great place to come hang out talk ball talk finals talk draft it’s all in there uh you know even talking like video games and what not shout out to my batro heads come hang out in the Discord to talk about batro if that game is driving you insane and taking over your life just as it is mine it’s all there Link in the description as always of course you can find the show for free get your podcast follow subscribe rate review tell a friend always appreciate it when you support the show on the audio side of things you can also go to YouTube and support the YouTube channel if you subscribe there you can also hit hit the notification Bell and get a heads up every single time the show is about to Premiere or go live it’s much appreciated when you support the show on YouTube as well today’s show is brought to you by prize pick the easiest and most exciting way to play daily fantasy sports go to priz picks.com locked NBA use the code all lower case locked in NBA for first deposit match up to $100 all right let’s get rolling here very excited for today’s show because on the show with me is someone who uh I count on heavily during draft season because is one of the single best draft analysts out there he runs the wonderful hoop intellect you YouTube channel everyone should go and check that out I certainly do just about every day this time of year it is Keandre Ashley Keandre thank you so much for being here man I’m really excited to talk draft with you how are you I’m doing good you know it’s a busy time of the year but you know I can’t complain at all yeah I mean it’s uh it’s a fascinating draft it really does seem that way right like it seems like there’s so much up in the air we’re going to get into to the big class specifically the guys who should be around the Raptors range at 19 but um have you had like fun with this just class as a whole just kind of trying to sort through things it feels like everyone has their own guys that they’ve kind of latched on to and have higher than consensus um how have you enjoyed this sort of Bizarro leadup to this specific draft Yeah you know it’s been a lot different than a lot of the classes in the past there’s not that Victor whama guy or even a few guys towards the top who we kind of know are just going to um stick in that sort of range so it’s kind of been all over the place especially as we start to get into that 10 to Beyond range that’s when you start to see a whole lot of names in a lot of different orders in in a way that um hasn’t really been there in some other classes so I think it’s been fun to just especially at the beginning of the year just trying to identify different players and see where where a lot of different um younger freshmen go and all that so that’s been definitely a good thing to track this year do you have like a guy that you really kind of hitched Your Wagon to as like I’m going down with the ship this is the guy I think is going to be like I I I’m higher on this guy than most and I don’t care what anyone says I’m sticking to it I would probably say that has become Ron Holland now it wasn’t always that way um earlier in the year but as things have gone on and his stock has kind of gone more late lottery I would still consider him towards the top five and I don’t think even people who are lower on him would would say that was you know crazy but it is uh become a little bit more unpopular so I I would probably go with Ron Holland and then there’s some other guys kind of after that point who um I guess you would say I’m a little higher on than than the consensus we’ll get to The Bigs in a sec but I do want to stop on Ron Holland for one second because he was someone who during the time where it seemed like the Raptors might have a top six pick you know I had to do a lot of Ron Holland study right I was like kind of just covering my bases in the event the Raptors were picking High to kind of have a good idea of all these guys and I found myself pretty nonplused by Ron Holland compared to some of the other wings at the top of the class but recently it seems like there are even mocks that are having him slide all the way to the Raptors at 19 which feels pretty far-fetched you would think that someone who just kind of goes for upside and town like say the Thunder at 12 that should sort of be a guy like Holland’s floor but if he ends up there at 19 like okay I could talk myself into that as opposed to in the top six um you how I’m not sure how plugged in you are or or sort of like what has been the reason why he’s been falling do you think in in the sort of general public favor and do you think there is a chance he’s there at 19 for the Raptors and and sort of on top of that would that fit be like do you think yeah just from a from a Outsider perspective no like necessarily Insight on um certain rumors that have have kind of circulated I don’t really have a a firsthand or secondhand Source in that respect but just from uh statistically what he what he did this year in the G League obviously shooting about 24% from three um having some of those early turnover struggles he had 10 against the Salt Lake City Stars early in the season there was a lot going on when him with him taking on those primary initiator responsibilities that he just has never had in the past and you do that at a pro level obviously it’s not going to look very good and the team uh failed because of it um but yeah I think it’s just a combination of one uh some some fit questions and obviously the ignite not having maybe the type of success that they wanted when the program started you’ve got that going there with even with like amadis lelis and and some of their other prospects ethon almana dropped out of the draft today yeah uh completely which wasn’t something that we would have projected earlier in the year um so I think you you’ve got that piece and then you’ve also got uh some some thoughts about workouts not going according to plan and just how that how that looks if a team doesn’t have the the sort of reps or Runway to give him um there could be a fall that that would go in place for in place for somebody who you think might be able to to fill a roll or a niche a little bit easier um but uh for me personally I still buy his abil his Improvement year-over-year in going from being more of that power forward play finisher type to showing more things on the perimeter being able to get to the basket as often as he did um in those situations I think he’ll be able to translate a little bit more in more of an off ball role in something that that makes more sense for him and then I obviously the shot is a big thing in question but I would at least buy it improving over time so that’s why I’m a little bit higher but those those are valid concerns and and understandably um something that teams are and and people are a little bit more hesitant on makes perfect sense um that said like if he’s there at 19 Ms jiri drafting a a uh sort of shooting questionable like long explosive Wing yeah that feels exactly like the type of thing they would yeah and I I think yeah to your earlier question about the Raptor’s fit I think at that point you just kind of figure it out obviously there would be some issues there with with RJ Scotty um and just kind of the current construction of this team but longterm a guy who has that type of talent I think it’d be hard to pass him he just figure it out on the fly yeah it feels like one where just like oh we didn’t expect this to happen but like kind of throw at the Playbook we take the high upset guy and figure out who else we’re going to take at 31 whoever’s there um we’re going to come back on the other side here kandre we’re going to get into The Bigs in this class in particular there’s six guys who I think should be or could be there at 19 who I think the Raptor should look at taking and frankly as the sort of pre-draft sort of scuttle butt continues to evolve I feel like maybe the Raptors are going to have to take one of those guys at 19 because I’m not sure any will be there at 31 whereas the wing crop might still have some guys LIF over there when they pick in the second round we’re going to get into Zack Edy Eve Mei khil wear Don Holmes Tyler Smith Kyle Philipi all coming up here with Keandre on the show we’ll do that coming up in just one sec Today’s Show is brought to you by friends over at LinkedIn jobs the single best place to hire for your small business when you want to find quality professionals that you’re right for your rooll and you want to get those fast you got to check out LinkedIn jobs they have the tools to help you find the right Professionals for your team faster and for free LinkedIn is not just another job board LinkedIn has a vast network of more than a billion with a B professionals which makes it the best place to hire if it gives you access to professionals you can’t find anywhere else LinkedIn does all that while making the process 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our national shows as well Stanley Cup Finals NBA Finals it’s all there for you go check it out locked on sports today 247 all right Keandre big men that’s what you’re here for let’s talk about some bigs in this draft I mentioned the six guys who it feels like the Raptors will be choosing from if they are going to go for a bigot 19 I kind of went into this pre-draft process thinking wings wings wings wings wings the Raptors need Wing help but as time has gone along watching the playoffs and watching the teams that just had lots of size and you know multiplicitous big men available to sort of throw it in different lineups I guess maybe just watching frankly the Minnesota Timberwolves take down the Denver Nuggets with a whole team of bigs I feel like maybe it’s a little bit more incumbent upon the Raptors to address that in this draft and 19 feels like it might have to be the spot it just feels like a lot of the wing guys have you know bigger questions there’s maybe more of them who might be available a little bit later at 31 whereas the guys we’re going to talk about here all feel like they could be off the board by say the mid 20s let’s start with uh you know the topic toour seemingly every day here in Canada these days is Zach Edy the Canadian himself um 7 foot4 300 pounds we know the story now two-time defending national player of the year uh a really really good college basketball player and a really enormous man I have been a little bit lukewarm on the idea of Ed with the Raptors I think the Raptors should be focusing more on sort of switch bigs guys who can give them a little bit more positional versatility or or defensive versatility schematic versatility guys who can play next to say Kelly o linck and cover up for his weaknesses at the four defensively someone who can offer a different look to yakob purle I don’t quite think that’s Zack Edy but there are a lot of people who think Zack Edy is like a top 10 Talent at this draft where do you come down on Edy and his potential fit with the Raptors I you know I talked a lot about him on the on a podcast last week but I want to get as many sort of outside thoughts on him as possible because I think he is one of the more polarizing guys in this draft yeah he’s definitely polarizing um he I’m I’m kind of in the same boat as you in terms of being a little lukewarm is um earlier in the season I was a lot lower on him but I do think um just his sheer size and having that as something that is a match in the NBA in in a lot of places is going to be something that um allows him to have a fairly High floor and an ability to to make an impact um I like his touch around the rim I think that he he’s gonna have to make a be a big adjustment in terms of style of play both offensively and defensively offensively just being more of a screener not having you know 20 postup looks a game that’s why I think his production can be a little bit misleading in some ways um just being so much bigger than everybody having the entire show ran around you at Purdue but I do think that he’s a he’s got the potential I like his motor I think he’s uh got enough stamina to last in the NBA and I think that was a big question mark for him earlier as an underclassman um in college and then the defense is the thing that’s made me a little bit more skeptical because right um while he has gotten better in terms of his mobility and being able to you know close some gaps in pick and roll and not just be um the guy who gets lit up by a Johnny Davis uh earlier in his career in that drop defense but still being able to as high as pick and rolls are set in the NBA today I just think it’s going to be a really difficult job for him to to contain a Damen Lillard to contain a Steph Curry even down to you know let’s go Darius Garland or somebody like that just dealing with that threat and having to play to the level I think that’s going to be a huge adjustment for him now that may be the thing that if he’s able to do well enough swings him to be uh you know multi-year starter and somebody who makes a huge impact in the league but I tend to to you know air more on the side of caution there uh and um especially for a team like the Raptors I think that you know you hit on some of those points with uh having more versatility and you’ve got a guy like Scotty Barnes and being able to maximize him defensively and uh just what he does offensively as well and having room to to create driving lanes and make plays I think that Ed could potentially throw that off a bit um but depending on how the draft goes I still think he’s at least someone worth you know sniffing around on and kind of bringing him in seeing what he’s capable of doing in molding his game but um there there could be some some better options in that in that range yeah the the yei stuff is like it’s fascinating right it’s almost like a physics question of like how fast can a guy who 74 300 lounds actually move when it kind of comes down to it like is there even like a physical possibility for him to get better at that specific thing coming up to the level of the screen and sort of navigating all that space it’s a it’s a fascinating thing so I guess this is where my sort of non scouting background comes into play because I look at Zach Edy and Donovan kingan and I’m curious as to why kingan feels like he might even go number one like he probably won’t it seems like that’s going to be SAR but like you you’ll see mocks where that happens there’s kingan you know consensus top five guy at least whereas Edie you know sort of mid to late first round seems like where he’s going to go what is the differentiator between the two because it feels like Edie even maybe has more offensive polish than kingan I think a lot of the questions you’ve noted them in your coverage of kingan the sort of offensive limitations seem very real there what is the difference between Edie and Kling is it just like a little bit of Mobility like where is the sort of dividing line between Donovan kinging and Zack Ed come in yeah I think there is a a sizable Gap in the two of them in terms of defensive instincts and and rim protection and the ability to play a little bit more to the level and cover ground um defensively Now kingan isn’t you know bam out of Bio or Anthony Davis or anybody like that but his ability to you know get out to Shooters and and and come up higher to the level and contain and recover back to the basket he does that just a little bit better than Edie and especially as somebody who is two years younger than him um I think that you know teams in myself bu that a little bit more especially when you look around the league and see those guys who anchor top defenses you look around the playoffs you got a Rudy goar even a rookie Derek Lively Chad hren a lot of these guys are a part of the the winning teams around the NBA Jared Allen and Evan Mobley and Cleveland um so that is the the kind of appeal between the two of them now you you made a good point like Edie does have better touch around the rim he’s just naturally a better scorer even as um you know sort of a old school his game could have been at at Purdue at times you know he does have more of that so that’s G to be that’s one of the reasons I think clinging at one or in certain spots high is a little bit more of a a gamble in some ways because we just haven’t seen those guys pan out in in in ter in terms of reaching like the highest upside but you know that’s the the difference to me yeah for sure um kind of in the the the the sort of Realm of traditional guys who were most going to play minutes at the five I think the guys we’re going to talk about today the last three Holmes Smith and filipowski I think have a little bit of four five versatility I actually think Holmes could slide up even to the three I think I’m in the minority on this but I’m also a big Don Holmes sicko we could talk about him when it comes to Zack Edy the other two guys sort of um that I think are more traditional fives here Eve Mei from Baylor and khil we of Indiana I’d really like both Mei and wear’s potential fits with the Raptors a little bit different right Khia is a little bit more more further along offensively Mei got a lot of work to do there but just kind of has the raw athleticism and defensive instincts that are pretty exciting um so I’m gonna put you on the spot here Keandre pick one khil we Eve Mei as a fit with the Toronto Raptors at 19 who you got yeah I would go with with K we um okay I think I would I would buy his you know he’s a little bit bigger um great combine testing I think that I bu his uh you know shooting upside and what he there from the last couple years uh and going back to high school in that way I think you know uh even with some of the the sort of motor tenacity questions that may still exist to an extent obviously they improved this year at Indiana um from from being a Freshman at Oregon but uh those will be some of the downside and also maybe some defensive discipline and awareness at times but I think that you know he has the pieces to be a really impactful player in the league in a way that um there really aren’t a whole lot of guys in this class even a guy like those that are mocked in the top five don’t necessarily have um in the way that he’s shown so far so uh the ways that he was able to to impact the game as a play finisher and and you know scoring the post a little bit as well I would give the edge to him but you know Mei is a guy who has a little bit more defensive versatility um in terms of just ground coverage defending on the perimeter a little more and um while the production wasn’t there in the same way offensively and I don’t think he’s really ever going to be that type of talent unless he’s in the the perfect spot where it’s just you know a Trey young a Luca where he just you know spoon feing feeding him uh shots uh you know he he’s able to to finish plays Above the Rim and um at times you know attack a close out or or or keep off of a a handoff action or delay um but yeah that some of his issues in terms of like foul trouble and and um you know the lower production or some things that I would uh put put him a little bit lower than than Kare if I the Raptors or you know some of those same teams net 15 to 25 range yeah I think that’s fair I I I think while I think Mei probably Nets out as a better individual Defender I I just think the the swing if wear’s three-point shooting like sustains over higher volume is pretty insane just considering those are the types of guys who you know man the five for the best teams these days right like if you can bomb threes and protect the rim and be seven feet tall with enormous wingspan like that gives you a whole lot of ability to be on the floor when things matter most for your team and the motors stuff yeah like that’s maybe a red flag let’s let’s kind of dig into that a little bit more right because I mean you certainly have watched a lot more khil Weare than I have um where does the motor stuff come from and you mentioned it got a little bit better in Indiana like in which ways do you think it got better um in his second season at College yeah I think a lot of it you know I’ve been I’ve been trying to completely Define motor and just like what we necessarily mean by that because I think sometimes you know he was out there trying this year and it was a lot better and and the things that he did at Oregon his first year you know there might be a Mis boox off or just a lack of attention to detail on um you know getting over to to make a black helps side those types of things are are coming up fully to the screen uh those types of things weren’t necessarily there and that’s why you know Dana Alman went in a different direction a lot of times as freshman as at Indiana those things were better but they did pop up from time to time um somewhat could have been a nature of playing more minutes and having such a a drastic change in role this year as the the carrier of their their offense in a lot of ways um but yeah I think it’s just it’s more about like can he physically dish out you know enough to to hang with certain bigs even like a you know a random Tuesday playing against jonis valent chunis or sure you know can he do all the things check all the boxes in that way that’s the the big question it’s not necessarily like oh this guy’s just lazy it’s just certain things that aren’t um really there in in as much as you would necessarily want it in in the way that uh maybe a Donovan kinging or or you know somebody else is is has that a little bit more sure yeah I mean look he’s projected to go in the mid delayed first round for a reason I think if there were no questions about aware he’d be a top five guy in his class with the upside right so uh you take the risk with all the potential good that can come from it and I think that’s probably a worthwhile play at 19 um he’s probably you know my board kind of evolves by the day as it does this time of year but uh I think he’s probably sort of the top three of guys I’m hoping the Raptors go at 19 uh go for at 19 if he’s there uh one guy who is a clear number one I don’t think is going to be unseated from that purch is Don Holmes II he leads the class of guys who could play a little four a little bit of five and as I mentioned with the Ron Holmes I’m kind of H on him having a little bit more Flex positionally than that we’re going to talk about those guys coming up to round the show in just one sec Today’s Show is brought to you by friends over at prize picks the single best place to play daily fantasy sports it’s a wonderful thing cuz it’s exactly as daily fantasy should be it’s not you against some expert in a basement with a lineup you can’t beat no it’s just due against your own ability to pick against the projections you’re just picking more or less on two to six player stats in a given game and you are often running to the 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use the code lockt in NBA for a first deposit match up to $100 Again download the prize picks app today use the code lockon NBA for first deposit match up to $100 with prize picks pick more pick less it’s that easy back at it here rounding it out with our pal Keandre from hoop intellect as we continue to talk about the bigs who could be there in the Toronto Raptors range we talked about the more traditional G to play The Five Guys uh the next three guys I want to get into could all sort of mold I think between four or five depending on the lineup construction depending on sort of certain swing skills and how they come along Kyle Philipi Don Holmes Tyler Smith uh kind of round out the group of guys who could slash should be there when the Raptors are on the clock at 19 I want to start with donon Holmes uh I am so in love with donon Holmes Keandre I can’t like every year there’s a guy and look sometimes it’s like Kobe buffkin who hey I still think has a shot he was the guy I was fully in on last year for the Raptors at 13 uh happy with Grady dick and but I’m rooting for Kobe buffkin to be good if nothing to say nothing other than to say that I was right but the Ron Holmes uh I just Jack of all trade seems to do a little bit of everything seems to have some Rim protection juice can play the four the five might have some like playmaking four upside I am so in on Don Holmes and maybe this is because uh my dearly beloved Pascal SE yakum was just traded away for a whole bunch of nothing and I’m looking for some sort of exciting athletic forward type to fill the void in my heart but uh don Holmes what’s your sort of read on him Keandre uh why is he not in the top five on every board uh I I’m in love with this dude and I think he would be in absolutely perfect fit with the Raptors who would need a little bit of stuff on the wing a little bit of stuff at the five I think he could offer a little bit of both um you can tell me I’m crazy if you want to that’s what we’re here for H talk me down to earth or keep on Shoot Me to the Moon yeah so I mean donon Holmes is one of the more versatile scoring bigs in the class I think you know you hit on a couple of those things and um he was very productive as an interior scorer both you know on post-ups duckins those types of things and also as a r man and as a live threat around the rim so I think you know whether he does play at the four or the five depending on who else is out there that’s stuff that he’s going to be able to do um fairly well in the in the NBA um and I also think you know the way that he was able to stretch the floor this year from three that’s the piece that has got him to be you know what I should I think is you know easy top 20 you know potential in the draft you know you see him different places on mock but I think that’s where he should uh land on draft night and I think you know you’ve got a guy who can play the four of the five offensively and be able to stretch the floor attack Closeouts um he’s done that in an underrated way uh the last couple of years of his his college career and then is also able to make certain plays out of the post and then read defenses uh pretty well in that respect too now the thing with him that I have more of hesitation on um and I think is why there might be a little bit more of a bigger range in his draft range is you know can he hang up can he hold up physically at the five enough right to play and uh the relationship between his three-point shot is it real enough he’s only shot it really well one year in college and then also can he play well enough defensively on the perimeter that stuff I think he’s he’s mobile enough to to do certain things in a way that like a Ed isn’t necessarily naturally as gifted um but at the same time that didn’t necessarily translate to his pick and roll defense or ground coverage and just being able to to be out there uh and and handle some of the things that a four would have to do in the NBA and maybe have to match up with with a wing or you know one of those guys on occasion so I think that’s my biggest hesitation with him but at at a certain point in the draft I’m betting on you know the athletic tools the the versatility as a score and you know also you know for a team like the Raptors being able to do a number of things if you got a oen out there um or even if you have purle having the the potential of a guy who can stretch the floor provide some helps side room protection or you know provide you know floor spacing for a guy like Scotty Barnes if he’s playing the five that’s kind of the guy that you want and obviously I know a lot of raptors fans were hoping that they would move up to get a guy like Alex SAR to to kind of feel that um uh hypothetical or dream piece at the five but I think donon Holmes feels a lot of those pieces even as an older college player and at 19 that could be you know really good value yeah I I think that’s maybe my favorite thing about him is that he could play in lineups with Kelly oen offer some Rim protection when olenic maybe kind of gives up blowby after blowby uh could play at the four next to yaka purle in his more traditional sort of position or a y traditional position you have that sort of helps side Rim protection maybe you slide Scotty Barnes up to the three which isn’t my favorite thing in the world but um you know you can feel those minutes when Scotty sits as well and still have that uh threat of backline room protection behind purle that Scotty provides when he’s in there playing the four and I also think like Scotty Holmes four five lineups sign me up I’m all in on those a long Bizarro sort of core Raptors lineups of the past style groupings um I would be uh very very in on that I know like look everyone hitches their wagon to these guys I was really upset when the Raptors took yonas Valen Tunis over Brandon Knight it’s very possible I’m wrong here but uh I’m a pretty big believer in Holmes I I think if I was doing like a full board he’d probably be in my top 10 or 12 honestly I I just love so much of what he does but I’m also a little sicko for guys who can score in the post and pass and stuff like that too he’s exactly my kind of uh player frankly I I agree and I would just add you know as your your earlier point to the Timberwolves in their three bigs and the way that they’ve they’ve uh done things even if like maxes out as a third big I think at 19 that’s a perfectly fine player to have if he’s if he’s producing anywhere near like a Nas Reed was this year then you’re like that’s that’s something that’s gonna help you win down the line so 100 perc um a couple other guys who I think I’m a little more lukewarm on although I will say Kyle filipowski is interesting to me because of the ball skill he has at his size um Kyle filipowski Tyler Smith I’ll do the same thing for you I’ll have you pick one I think Smith kind of came into the year was sort of like a o g-league ignite oo big who shoots threes and maybe didn’t do a whole lot else than just shoot threes at the G League ignite um filipowski it seemed like he was maybe projected to go in the lottery last year if he stayed in the draft uh ends up going back to Duke comes out this year seems like he’s projected a little bit lower than he might have gone last year but kind of in the same range so it doesn’t seem like he hurt his draft stock too too much with that decision um Philipi has like a lot more to do with the ball in his hands than Tyler Smith tends to um but I I guess there’s questions of do you want to prioritize possessions for a KYB filipowski can he hang defensively as a four or a five you know same question for Tyler Smith who you got kylo filipowski or Tyler Smith better fit with the Raptors at 19 yeah this is a this is a tough question too I think I would probably lean I would probably lean flip um yeah because I just have just a little bit more confidence in some of that skill level his ability to to make pass passes put the ball on the floor and also potentially stretch the floor uh and I also think he has a better chance of playing the five in the NBA and just some of his improvements that he made defensively that was a big question of mine and while I was a little bit lower on him last year as a prospect but he came back and and made some some necessary improvements in that way um and then for Tyler Smith you know I like him as a stretch for I think he might be kind of purely a four just because he doesn’t necessarily offer too much in terms of Rim protection uh there’s also uh size you know issues and just being able to to handle some of those things finish possessions uh that type of stuff uh I like him enough you know stress shooter I just think that archetype can be a little bit difficult to um you know fit into a lineup at that time so I would probably go you know filipowski for that reason I think it would be more of a long-term thing with both of them I think both of uh o Len and perto would probably one of them is getting moved at a c certain point and things would would be a little bit more clear because I think at at filipowski best he probably looks something like oen or um like a mo Vagner somewhere in that sort of General range so uh that would be kind of the the thing that I would see for for both of them but yeah yeah that’s I think a pretty great breakdown the Smith like I feel like if it were 2015 Tyler Smith would be like all the rage it’s like oh big guy who shoots threes like we’re just realizing this is cool now let’s get this guy high but it feels like you got to have a little bit more in the toolkit now right like you can’t just be a stationary three-point shooter you got to have an ability to attack a Clos it you got to have some defensive versatility and it just feels like Tyler Smith is lacking in sort of those like an ancillary skills but again he’s young guy you know the G League Knight was not exactly a perfect developmental environment so maybe there’s a little bit more that we haven’t seen from Tyler Smith but I tend to agree I think I’d prefer filipowski um although I’d still take Holmes over both of those guys for the Raptors at 19 we talked about six bigs here Keandre um I’m going to ask you two questions one pick one of these six if the Raptors if say they’re all on the board for the Raptors at 19 who you going with and then beyond that give me one Prospect we haven’t talked about today any position who you kind of like as a potential fit with the Raptors there at 19 or 31 obviously we keep on talking about 31 like it’s this afterthought I just kind of view this whole group as guys who could go at 19 Andor 31 because it feels so wide open but um yeah so of these six who you got for the rap and then anyone else beyond that give me a guy you like at 19 yeah so it’s this is a this is a tough question I think all these are guys are pretty much in a a similar range for me on on my board I would probably lean towards and for the Raptor specifically I’ll probably lean KW I think just I have a little more confidence in him play doing big things well at the five and I would give him the edge over to Ron Holmes would be my second as a close second and and we kind of touched on a lot of things and I uh in his versatility and and being able to to play in different lineups so he would be a close second for me but I like where’s upside as somebody who can you know protect the rim finish plays has NBA level size and um tested out great at the combine athletically and all those types of things so that would be um the guy who who gets the edge for me but again you know pretty pretty close uh and tough decision there and right on and yeah another any any other Prospect any position who you like for the Raptors at 19 just a name that comes to mind yeah so I think there’s a there’s a lot of um there’s a lot of players I think could be in that sort of General range because there’s so many different directions those other teams in front of them could go uh but I like uh I like guys I’ll give you two at at 19 I like Bob Carrington out of pit you know his stock is rising a little bit more as as we speak but you know his ability to to create shots is on the perimeter is at least um up there with almost anybody in this class has pretty good size for a guard and and improved quite a bit as a Defender and playmaker over the course of the year so I think for a team like Toronto having another guy in there who can you know create things makes things happen that would be something I would be interested in and then another guy in in Jaylen Tyson out of cow um 6667 Wing older player but has a lot of ball skills and able to to dribble pass shoot I believe a little bit more in his defensive capabilities based off of what he showed in previous years this Cal team wasn’t uh particularly good in in in that respect but um you know he’s somebody else that I would be sort of interested in as as a Do-it all wing and somebody that could could fit in a lot of different spaces so um those two would be um at least towards the top of my list for them as well I love it I’m a big fan of both guys I I think with bub he feels almost to me like the safest guard bet maybe Beyond Rob Dillingham to be like a high-end Creator and I think Dillingham is going to be very dependent on whether or not wemi is his Center or not as far as like how far his defense can go um but I I love bub I love the size and I I really really think he’d be a fun fit and and someone who could fit in lineups with a manual quickly long term which I think is an important thing if you’re taking a guard um and Tyson I few weeks back I had Max bombach from uh No Ceilings on and I had a scorcher for him where I I said I think Jaylen Tyson is the most likely player from this draft to win a scoring title one day I don’t think anyone in this class is winning a scoring title but I love Jaylen Tyson I know that you’re higher on him than a lot of people and uh it’s what big reason we love you man uh reaffirming my biases uh yeah huge on Jaylen Tyson so I don’t hate that at all for the Raptors at 19 and frankly you know as much as we’re high on him it feels like he could be there at 31 for sure too yeah yeah definitely uh DeAndre this was a delight thank you so much for taking the and I know it’s a crazy busy time of year I kept you along and I apologize for that but thank you for all the wonderful Insight where can people check out your amazing work yeah so you can find me on YouTube Hoop and Al um I’m on Twitter as well be posting a lot of different uh content and stuff leading up to the draft and and Instagram also at hoop and elect so a lot of different stuff you know coming over the next couple weeks as we get closer to draft and and after the draft with Recaps and all those types of things so you can definitely find all that stuff over there you do fantastic work it’s uh it’s been an absolute treat to have you I wanted to have you on for a while so thank you for taking the time out man enjoy the leadup to the draft and uh we will cackle and joy when Jaylen Tyson goes and drops 20 a game next season and win the Rookie of the Year uh you can find me at Woodley Shan follow subscribe rate review tell a friend all that good stuff on the audio app of your choice on YouTube as well go subscribe there while you go and subscribe to hoop intellect as well um of course you can uh find all my work over on the hell website and all of that good stuff stuff we’ll be back again on Tuesday as we continue to do draft talk all week long I’m going to do my big board by the end of the week so you have that to look forward to probably Friday we’re looking at that for the Raptor final big board at 19 and or 31 uh lots of good stuff on tap this week we’ll talk to you as the week progresses thanks so much for hanging bye-bye

In Episode 1659, Sean Woodley is joined by Keandre Ashley (Hoop Intellect) to talk about the big men who should be available in the Toronto Raptors range in the upcoming 2024 NBA Draft. Off the top, Sean and Keandre chat about the fun of evaluating such a strange draft class without a true consensus number one guy and a flat, deep talent pool before talking about Ron Holland being Keandre’s guy in this draft. Next, Sean and Keandre dig into the classic bigs in the Raptors range, including the polarizing Canadian Zach Edey, super-athletic Baylor big man Yves Missi, and the potentially stretchy Kel’el Ware — the latter of whom is Keandre’s favourite guy for the Raptors among this group at 19. Lastly, Sean and Keandre run through bigs with a little 4/5 flexibility, including Kyle Filipowski, Daron Holmes II and Tyler Smith. Plus, a couple of non-big prospects who Keandre would like to see in Toronto.

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