2024 Sacramento Kings NBA Draft Preview!

2024 Sacramento Kings NBA Draft Preview!

it’s almost that time the NBA draft is right around the corner Morgan I didn’t expect to be excited about this draft because I didn’t think the kings were going to be in the lottery yeah but they are in the lottery the 13th pick and what we love to tell people is we’re not draft experts so we try to reach out to people who know what the hell they’re talking about and one of the best draft sides out there No Ceilings No Ceilings nba.com they also have a YouTube page you should check out and this guy we’re bringing on Nick AAR Johnson he did a deep dive into the Kings one and I found out this guy lives in Sacramento yes and I’m I’m loving this story but he lives in Sacramento but he’s not born and raised in Sacramento and he’s a Kings fan we need to know more yes so Nick thanks so much for joining us absolutely great to be here first time long time is that something I should say or is that true obvious sure amazing if yeah um yeah so let’s rewind for a second because I want to explore how you got into the draft and why do you love it so much but you’re you you moved to Sacramento 3 years ago why did you move to Sacramento honestly a lot of it was rooted in Kings fandom a lot of it was rooted in having grown up in New York City and decided at a very young age that I did not want to live in New York City as an adult and wanted to be in California where you know I could choose to go to where there was snow rather than having to be forced to deal with it four months out of the air so I moved to the Bay Area just after college and then moved up here to sack three years ago okay now what got you to be be a Kings fan in New York city so I got into basketball fandom slightly later in life and by slightly later in life I mean junior year in high school okay so you know not too late but at the time I was at least old enough to you know have some sort of semblance of knowledge and uh was surrounded by a lot of long-suffering Nicks fans and thought to myself hm maybe I shouldn’t root for the team owned by James Dolan and my dad’s entire side of the family is from Cincinnati Ohio and the former Cincinnati Royals became the Sacramento Kings so I used that as my excuse only to find out that the Sacramento Kings were owned by the malof brothers so great decision making on my part so you went to from one dysfunctional franchise to rooting for the one on the west coast interesting play there but there special about deciding between the two teams that we’re going to be 30th in any ownership ranking that you might put out there that is hilarious well I’m glad you do you likes living in Sacramento are you vibing with it oh I love it here I’m someone who doesn’t mind the heat at all but despises the cold so when everybody else is suffering in 100 degree heat I’m like this is awesome I don’t have to deal with winter I don’t have to deal with snow unless I want to it’s beautiful that’s the best part you get to choose like hey do I want to drive 90 minutes to Tahoe or do I even want a little cool day in San Francisco you said first you moved to the Bay Area and then you moved to Sacramento what I mean what made you not connect with maybe Bay Area basketball or anything like that it wasn’t as much that I didn’t connect with Bay Area basketball it was more just that the first job I worked out of college was in Berkeley so that’s you know sort of where I was at but when I moved on from that job you know I had a bit more freedom in deciding where I wanted to be and you know being close to Golden One was a decently high on the priority list and one of my best friends in college was also from Sacramento and every time I stayed at his house I loved it out here so here I am I love it so cool yeah that’s cool I had no idea about your when I read your piece I think it was like a week and a half two weeks ago no idea the Sacramento connection I saw your bi I’m like this guy’s from Sacramento talk to him and like everything he’s talking about with the draft in Sacramento I was like wow he’s really locked in but you seem like a little bit of a basketball nerd when it comes to that stuff and and a little bit and I I love that I love that you’ve been able um to do all the work so we don’t have to so what led you into covering the NBA draft and evaluating all these prospects so honestly the main reason that I got so into the NBA draft I mean it started with you know following the Kings during some of the uh let’s say non-playoff contending years to be generous and so you know that was a lot of the fun of it but for me really the main reason that I love draft coverage is because I love the hope of it I love the idea of you know okay who might go where you know who might they turn into when they reach the NBA level whether it be because the team they end up on or the situation they end up in there’s so much that’s up in the air but you know I try to do my best to be objective and honest about things you know sometimes just hoping that a player is going to develop a shot when they’re a complete non-shooter is not exactly the smartest path to go down but that’s really what drove it for me you know the hopes and dreams of all these young people about to you know fulfill their lifelong dreams for the vast majority of the players entering the NBA it’s it’s a really cool thing and it’s a great space to be a part of and you know it’s great to write about and think about the Kings but I do I do love the draft for that hope aspect of it I love that you enjoy the human element of it too that’s really cool cuz I think sometimes people just try to separate that when they want wings span yes how they shoot I want to know how fast they are how big are their hands they’re looking a little skinny can they even lift a pound you know all those things and so I guess what would be one of your favorite things then about evaluating prospects I think it’s really that combination of Hope and sort of the jigsaw puzzle of how it all fits out you know even even the greatest draft experts in the world get it wrong so often and that’s because there are so many variables that go into all of this you know what if someone in theory was a perfect fit for a team and then they suffer a shoulder injury and they lose their shooting touch and all of a sudden it’s you know a whole long riger rooll to get back to having a successful NBA career and I’m very happy that that ended up happening for Mark lals but you know for a lot of it there’s this element that you’re trying to figure out the situation of okay you know which player works best for which team that’s something that goes both ways right it’s a situation where you know maybe a certain player would have blossomed If Only They had gotten the playing time in their first stop and they become someone who ends up being you know a quote unquote second draft Guy where all of a sudden they make their way to a new team and they figure things out and you know maybe it’s just developing a corner shot maybe it’s just developing a couple more counters in the post so the defenses have more trouble dealing with you but it’s something where again there’s so much up in the air it’s you know it’s a jigsaw puzzle but there’s also the element of Hope of wow you know if this guy just figures out a little bit better you know shot selection then he’ll be someone who’s you know the steel of the draft or you know someone who everybody says in hindsight was drafted 10 picks too late right there’s so much that goes into it and you know really just all of it fascinates me so yes I suppose that’s the nerdiest answer I could possibly give there you go no that’s great I mean we’re all nerds we love basketball it’s it’s sport here yeah I have a question for you that’s kind of random about this what what in your time doing this what’s like the the biggest hit the one you’re like oh I was proud of my evaluation in that on that person and then your biggest whiff like the one that you’re like I can’t like that’s kind of embarrassing I missed on that one my biggest whiff is easy and it’s very relevant I was worried that Jason Tatum would be someone who would be an inefficient mid-range shooter who the defense would be decent but not good enough I had him somewhere in the S to 10 range I don’t remember exactly where off the top of my head but I was not sure that he would be able to make good enough shot choices and that was proven wrong immediately so that’s an easy one for my biggest Miss what about your hit um it’s a bit early but I was in onime hakz from his sophomore year and that one’s looking pretty good so far okay yeah that’s I also thought Tyrus halberton should have gone fourth in his draft and that one also pretty good so far yeah wow those are two that I think I’d put near the top of my list ofs that’s good yeah especially when you think of like haez and his motor alone you just you’re most likely going to hit on that right with someone with that type of energy with someone that has that type of mindset that they want to get better that you can just tell that they’re going to get better and then also being drafted by the Miami Heat so being put into a system where like you have no other choice but to get better and that goes back to the jigsaw puzzle element of it you know maybe if haime hakz had been drafted by the Detroit Pistons we wouldn’t be talking about haime hakz the way we are after his R year always well let’s dive into this draft the 2024 NBA draft and it’s funny because there are certain drafts that people look at oh this one’s going to suck and then it turns out it’s actually not so bad it seems like that near the top people aren’t in love like you’re not going oh my God there’s a Victor wanyama a Chad Ando like something like that but overall it seems like this draft has some pretty talented players where are you at as with this draft as a whole how much talent do you think is in this draft I think there’s quite a bit of talent in this draft and more importantly for the main reason why I’m here I think there’s going to be a lot of talent that’s available in terms of long-term role players and you know long-term sort of lower down hierarchy starting options right you know maybe there’s not a clear number one at the top like Victor wanyama maybe there’s not a clear two three like there was with Brandon Miller and Scoot Henderson last year but first of all even with the worst drafts and my colleague Tyler rer wrote about this recently over at no ceiling even in the worst drafts there are at least three All-Stars out of every class and you know sometimes those Allstars end up being you know the one two and five picks but you know in 2013 which is widely regarded as you know one of the terrible terrible drafts yisan Dupo went 15th so you know even in the worst draft there is some All-Star talent but I think more to the point with this draft there are a number of players who I am quite confident in saying will have you know 10e plus NBA careers and you know especially for a team like Sacramento that isn’t you know necessarily in need of a star as much as say the Washington Wizards or the Detroit Pistons right you know there will be quite a few players on the board at 13 that I am comfortable saying will have long-term NBA careers and quite frankly if the Kings get a fifth starter out of this draft at 13 that’s a huge huge win huge I absolutely agree and I mean that goes for so many other teams as well um I also think when I look at a draft like this too I it’s always hard for me to connect you know especially when all the other drafts when you have like the for sure number one through five it’s just there’s something magical about it there’s something easy there’s so many narratives out there there’s so many stories there’s so many things to connect to with this what makes what makes a draft like this maybe a little bit more difficult to um I don’t know I don’t know if it’s connect for you or and or just like research some of these guys sure I mean I think you know there’s Again part of the fun for me is the jigs of it which is you know a lot more up in the air when a draft is less obvious like this one right you know there I think there I certainly have a relatively clear number one in this draft class but you know even beyond that there’s you know quite a bit of conversation that the Wizards will be having it too you know there’s quite a bit of conversation already around you know whether the Houston Rockets are going to be looking to trade the third pick and you know what sort of road that leads down so you know yeah maybe in terms of sort of the headliner this is going to be a generational Force this is going to be someone who you tell your grandkids about you know maybe there’s not someone like that in this draft but I think there are going to be a lot of teams that you know when we look at this by year three year four after this draft are going to be very happy with the player they picked and you know you get get those kinds of stories as well right you know Keegan Murray is someone who you know maybe isn’t the most effusive person but you know the longer he stays on the team the more interviews he does the more you learn about him the more people get attached to him and certainly with Keegan I mean the Keegan Murray chance were going down by like game one game two right so you know he’s someone that Kings fan Bas in particular connected with very quickly but you know I think that yes there’s a little bit of an element that there’s less focus on the draft because there isn’t someone like Victor wanyama who you know might change the course of the NBA right but there are going to be a lot of stories that come out of this draft that are going to be important parts of Team stories for the next decade so as it stands right now the kings are picking 13th and then in the second round at 45 let’s start with 13 for a second obviously there’s a wide range of names that the Kings could Target is there one name in particular right now that excites you most if you hear their name at 13 like this is perfect for Sacramento yes so that guy for me is someone who I personally have been a fan of for a long time and that is Don Holmes the second out of Dayton and he’s someone who I think if you were to pull Kings fans there might be a different order of the top three needs but I think the top three needs would be forwards with size and length Rim protection and rim pressure and donon Holmes is someone who I think a lot of people sort of Miss the forest for the trees with him in the sense that the past couple of Seasons he’s been the main man offensively for dton he’s had the ball in his hands constantly I mean his past season you know 20 points a game had the ball running through his hands pretty much every possession but his freshman year at Dayton he was one of if not the best complimentary type of big men that I evaluated you know he was in the 97th percentile offensively and Synergy numbers 998th percentile as a transition player 83rd percentile as a cutter and if you look at him from that aspect as someone who you can plug in pretty much right away as a starting four you know he’s a experienced college player which is certainly an archetyp that Monty mcir has shown he’s enamored with in the past right you know he’s someone who I believe could be plugged in right away as a four he really expanded the most important element of his game that was still lacking this past season by developing a jump shot and more importantly developing a stanhill shot from three he was in the 97 second percentile as a spot-up shooter he shot 39% from deep and when you plug someone like that into the king’s offense you know I didn’t even mention the fact that he’s averaged two blocks a game or more in mult College Seasons you add someone like that in the starting lineup he makes a ton of sense from that perspective you have him come off the bench as a potential small ball five and he feels another you know less urgent need for the Kings I think but a fascinating wrinkle is he’s also an exceptional passer and he’s someone who he’s not going to run the offense to the same degree that demonus sabonis does but if you can have someone who you plug in as your small ball five who can run 70% of the actions that you run through Deon sabonis rather than having a completely different look and Alex lard chale McGee then the rest of the king’s offensive context just makes a lot more sense because you’re running the same Playbook that you’re running with the starters just with someone who again you know pretty much no one in the NBA is on demonus bonus’ level as a passer but if you can fill that Niche Off the Bench and also add shot blocking to the starting lineup and also add someone who has shown that they can be an exceptional complimentary big man who also will take full advantage if teams switch small on him I think that package as a whole would be absolutely perfect for the Kings you talk about his passing his cutting him as a man what is it about his game Instinct feel like what what makes him so good at those things I think he has an incredibly High feel for the game I think it’s something that you can see on both ends of the floor but for me the offensive stuff is what excites me more and you know I think with him he’s someone who again if the ball’s in his hands you’re perfectly happy and you assume that he will make the right play more often than not and that’s something where you know again if he’s a four he can you know space the floor and trans he can space the floor he can run out and transition he’s exceptional out in transition you know he’s someone who I think has an incredibly High feel for the game has shown that he can fit in as a complimentary player in previous Seasons but also has shown the past couple of Seasons his you know incredible offensive mind for the game but also his development I mean his freshman year he shot Seven three-pointers and he hit one of them and you know over the past three seasons at Dayton it’s been you know very clear on film you know again there’s only so much that you can know about a person’s work ethic from the outside right but if you look at the numbers on film you can see and okay this is someone who saw this as you know essentially the biggest hole in their game and worked on it and slowly developed it and you know that’s the kind of player who again you know maybe he doesn’t shoot 39% from Deep right away in the NBA but there’s reason to believe that he is someone who will continue to work on his shot and continue to grow his game in the areas which he needs to grow his game for the team that he ends up on you know I I watch one of his games recently and and the one thing um that I was curious about is just what position he plays at the next level you mentioned small ball five uh the four spot I think sometimes when I look at him I go okay but who is he defending right and like where do you see him at defensively at this point if he’s got to defend some of the more athletic fours in the NBA I think he’s somewhat of an underrated athlete I mean he’s someone who you know dunks are an imperfect of athleticism but he’s been near the top of the NCAA in dunks for a while he’s someone who you know again two out of three seasons that Dayton had two or more blocks per game I think probably his best position defensively theoretically is at the five but I’m willing to bet you know on what he would provide for the Kings as a Forman you know if that’s sort of a limited role you know again whether he’s someone who comes in and starts right away or whether you know I think the more likely outcome is that he starts his career coming off the bench behind Harrison Barnes and you know could potentially grow into being a four but you know even though I think the five is probably his best position defensively I’m not anywhere near as worried about him being a switch guy being in motion as I am about you know some other guys who are sort of in that quote unquote tweener four five range I’m gonna ask you about a guy that and again you do way more homework than me on the draft okay I I can be swayed easily here but I’m really I’m really intrigued with khil wear I I just got and maybe it’s because you know I’ve been watching Derek Lively and okay you got some Rim protection khil W didn’t take a high volume from three this year but he knocked him down also he play on a team that doesn’t take threes Mike Woodson’s team looks like they play Old School basketball but I’m like I I like khil we um where are you at with khil we as a player at the next level I’m I would say in the middle on him which is probably not the answer that you were hoping for I want your answer I don’t care I I’m just I I watched a couple games I’m like dude I I love the energy he plays with he’s athletic I feel like defensively too like he can block shots but he’s not just hunting the the blocks like he’s very patient good rim protector he’s a vertical threat at The Rim which I think the Kings have have lacked and showing the ability to space the floor a little bit I’m like there’s something here now I understand the concern is like well you have sa bonus do you really need to dropped a potential backup five but I want to get your breakdown on his game yeah I mean I think that there’s a lot to like with kaw’s game I think you know again there might be situations where you know he would make more sense where he wouldn’t necessarily be sort of a limited minute backup but I I buy the shot certainly and I definitely buy the effort I mean it’s funny to me that there were a lot of effort concerns his freshman year at Oregon and he comes to Indiana and erases that almost immediately you know average almost a double double you know was someone who even on an Indiana team that let’s just be kind and say that they struggled throughout the college season this past year he was the one guy who reliably was providing effort every night who was you know working his butt off on the glass who was you know spacing the floor I am slightly concerned about the shot in just in the sense that I think that this is mean but I’ve called this the Derrick Williams fallacy before where someone takes an incredibly small volume of Threes And hits them at a high rate and people assume oh okay they’re going to be a shooter I mean there are other indicators like he shot 63% from the free throw line right that’s you know a bit concerning and that’s also a dip from his previous season at Oregon on you know a higher volume from the free throw line which you know again sample size is what it is but you know certainly the fact that his percentage was not going up in that regard is you know something that I weigh against the fact that he shot 42.5% from three this year on 1.3 attempts per game last year he shot 27% from three on 1.6 attempts per game are you unsold now no no I mean I saw the same stats and I I I understand it for sure I I do think Indiana’s offense was just brutal to watch I think someone had mentioned to me in our Discord that they made something like five threes per game like it’s just like an archaic offense like an old school they played two bigs together very clunky at times and so in my head I’m like well maybe with some NBA spacing he’s a ble to get some cleaner looks he’s encouraged to shoot it more but it is always strange when you have someone that you know the the volume isn’t completely there from three and then you look at the free throw percentage you’re like man that’s not very good at all yeah um there are 362 division one college basketball teams and the Indiana hooers were 355th in 3o attempt see that’s what I’m saying they don’t take threes Mike Woodson old yeah I okay so you’re are you done with him now because this is this is the thing now I need you to sell me on and I think I think I’ve gotten to the point where I can now be sold because of the situation with Malik monk the question marks surrounding him um are they going to be shipping off other guards whenever I hear that the kings are going to draft a guard I go ah I get triggered a little traumatized like another one really like cuz where’s the size like where’s the length you know I just I it’s but I need to I need to stop so help me stop tell me some guards that maybe I could get excited about especially in that range so I think the first couple names that I want to bring up are guys who have often been projected much higher but if they fall to the Kings I think they would almost have to pounce on and the first name I want to mention is nicoa topic who was was one of the top guards in the class you know was consistently in the top 10 pretty much all season and then he he suffered an injury and missed two months and then recently it was announced he had a partial AC out there so he’s someone who I think is falling right now just purely for reasons of you know being injured and there’s a question of can or can he recover or not but his greatest skill is I think you know the biggest skill that the kings are missing for their guards whether or not Malik monk sticks around which is just putting pressure on the basket I mean Aon Fox you know took a step back not you know in terms of his play but in terms of his frequency of attacking the basket and when he or Malik were not attacking the basket the Kings really didn’t have anybody who could drive the ball all the way from the three-point line to the rim right I mean deis sabonis obviously puts a ton of pressure on the rim but you know he’s putting that pressure on the rim mostly from 10 feet M right he’s not someone who unless you throw the slowest Center in the league on him he’s not going to you know dribble drive past anybody so with that in mind topic is arguably the best guard in this class at finishing around the basket and you know he’s someone who gets there at a high rate he’s someone who is also one of the better if not the best passers in the class and if he falls due to injury you know I’m willing to bet that Monty McNair is willing to take the chance that he recovers because you know again not to you know go go too far here but you know Tyrese halberton was someone who was projected to go you know top five top 10 in his draft and he fell to 10 uh 12 excuse me and Monty and you know we all know how that turned out right so I think with someone like topich when you add the incredible Rim pressure that he provides when you add the playmaking element that he provides as well you know the two biggest questions with him are the shot which I’m concerned about I’m not going to pretend I’m not and the defense which I’m far less concerned about because a the Kings showed you know during the stretch of last season that they were a much better defensive team with Keon Ellis in the starting lineup playing Major minutes and also he’s 66 you know he’s not someone who is necessarily going to be targeted you know due to his size he might be targeted because he’s not the best defender but you know he’s someone who I’m more willing to bet on figuring enough out defensively that the pressure he puts on the rim would play at a high level the playmaking element that he has would play at a high level I think if he falls he’s someone that the K should heavily consider at 13 interesting um couple other guards Isaiah Collier I I watch a couple of his games here goes I was intrigued my biggest concern with him you know the shooting I don’t know I get I get worried when when guards can’t shoot and the thing that’s intriguing about him though I mean this is someone who at one point was projected near the top of the draft McDonald’s All American I watch him and he’s like what 18 19 years old 19 years old and he’s got like he looks like he can playing out to me like he’s got an NBA body he kind of plays at his own pace there’s a lot I like there his ability to put some pressure on the rim something you just mentioned too um where are you at with him that’s the biggest element for why I’m in on ker to the degree that I’m in on him to be clear I have a few guards ahead of him on my personal board but I think a couple of them in particular would make less sense for the Kings than ker would and it’s purely for that Rim pressure element I mean as you mentioned you know he’s 65 210 right he’s you know I think he actually measured slightly smaller than that at the combine height-wise but you know he’s someone who has an NBA ready frame which you know maybe he’s on the younger side at 19 but you know he’s someone who I’m willing to bet will be able to attack the basket at a high level immediately at the NBA level rather than you know having to sort of put on weight right he’s already at the point where he’s built essentially like a linebacker the shot concerns me I won’t pretend that it doesn’t but I think there’s also an element to which many of the areas that he struggled with were magnified by the fact that the USC team was a bit of a disaster this year and you know there’s only so much of that that you can put on the Freshman guard who missed time with injury and I would argue actually was better after he came back from that injury than he was before but you know the other element with Kyer that’s concerning is the turnovers you know he was someone who turned the ball over more than three times a game and I think you know first of all he was much better at that down the stretch of the Season than he was at the early part of the Season which is certainly encouraging but with him I think you know especially since he’s not you know in the 66 67 range he would really need to shoot at a higher level than he has but he does in my opinion feel the biggest need that the Kings have in a guard going forward which is whether or not Malik mon sticks around I think they need more Rim pressure across the roster and that’s certainly something that ker will provide at a high level another guy I told Morgan about that I like just from just from a pure dog perspective and I got to be honest that sways me a little bit probably too much I know but Devin Carter man he’s just fun he’s just fun I don’t know what he really is at the next level is he more of a rotational guy probably 63 but a close to 69 wingspan uhhuh not scared of anybody super in here I’m always it’s the thing that he does the thing that he does he is so sold by the motor of someone the energy the person and but but but that is something that I think some people Overlook what do you think and also do you put a lot of stock into like that same kind of thing the motor the energy the mentality I don’t think I put quite as much stock in it as Deuce does but I think it’s important I want to try and be balanced here because I’m slightly lower on Devon Carter than consensus and I’m also slightly lower on the fit with him on the Kings which is I think a lot of the positives that brings to the table are already answered by Davon Mitchell and Keon Ellis and so when you you know add that element the question is okay who is he playing over right you know is he someone who you you know take I mean sure he could you know pretty easily take Chris duarte’s minutes I think right but you know when you’re picking at 13 I’m not as sure that I would want to pick someone who overlaps so heavily with you know the recently promoted starting shooting guard and the first point guard Off the Bench right it’s something where I think there are a lot of teams where Devin Carter could be incredibly valuable and you know I want to couch this in the fact that I’m more than willing to believe that I might be wrong on being lower on Carter than consensus but I think ultimately he doesn’t do enough to answer the questions that the Kings have and overlaps a bit too much with players they already have for me to be particularly high on him as a potential fit for the Kings at 13 yeah I don’t totally trust a shot either I know that’s that’s one thing I how have you said that about well that’s I mean talking about young guys just about to say youth um no but I think seeing Carter’s ability to rebound and defend like his screen navigation he gets up in the guys I also like the fact that I know he’s 6’3 but he’s long you know like I that wingspan does matter like you have to have some length and the King’s desperately L they they could use a lot of that and also I hear you on like the guard thing for sure and that’s what I think about to when I’m looking at 13 but in my head I’m like the kings are going to look different next year like I is Dave Young going to be back next year I don’t know maybe maybe so who who the hell knows at that point but um I I hear you on Devon I just he’s kind of fun to watch man you know like I just he’d get the crowd into it and maybe that’s not the right call out 13 um let’s see here are there is there a guard you we’ve missed that we should talk about at 13 I think someone else who again is knocked much higher but might potentially fall to the Kings at 13 would be Rob Dillingham out of Kentucky and look the headline thing with him is he’s absolutely electric offensively I mean he’s someone who if Malik monk leaves you can plug Rob in essentially right away as six-man extraordinaire he I think the biggest thing from me that he showed this past season at Kentucky was his willingness and ability to be a high level playmaker you know he was someone who coming out of OT there were concerns about you know is this guy in level with his own shot too much is he’s someone who you know won’t necessarily be able to fit into a team context and I think he disproved that very powerfully this past season at Kentucky and you know again whether or not Malik sticks around I think you know the guard who can provide offense who can penetrate the lane who can kick out to Shooters is something that the Kings could use and you know if Rob falls to the Kings at 13 I think he’s someone who they definitely should consider you know he fills a lot of what I think the Kings would need out of a guard if they want to go the route of taking a guard can we move on to the 45th or no no no I have some more names I’m okay because we haven’t talked one name that’s very popular to TI the Kings is Tristan D Silva from Colorado uh he’s been mocked to the Kings a lot and I think there’s a lot of reasons for that he seems like he could just fit in it seems kind of like a Monty McNair pick too right he’s got good size good passer can shoot it um where are you at with Tristan D Silva so donon Holmes is my personal favorite for the Kings to select at 13 but as I said before I’m willing to acknowledge that I he’s my guy in this draft so I’m very much in favor of him Tristan D Silva is the second guy on my sort of King specific big board and I think the reason for that is you know very similar to the argument for Keegan Murray when he was taken which is okay you know you need someone who can come in and be a potential fifth starter you know someone with size at forward he’s 68 someone who you know as you mentioned very perfectly fits into the Monty McNair archetype of you know veteran player who can come in and play right away you know he shot 40% from three-point range this year you know two and a half assists per game played well off Colorado’s two other Star level players in KJ Simpson and Cody Williams who both will almost certainly go in the first round on draft Knight as well D Silva is you know I think mocked the Kings often because you know maybe it’s a bit boring but it’s very easy for me to see the fit right you plug him in right away whether he comes in Off the Bench behind Harrison Barnes or sort of takes over that starting spot he’s someone who you pair with Keegan you have a couple of six eight forwards who can shoot who can dribble who can pass who can make good decisions with the ball in their hands you know he doesn’t necessarily provide that much rebounding which I think would be the one sort of biggest argument against his fit potentially with the Kings but you know if you’re looking for size on sort of on the wing SL forward area he’s someone who I think checks almost any box that the Kings might want to have checked and you got someone rebounding in there anyway yeah but they need some yeah they need some dogs go get after um they need some dogs Deuce says God there’s oh that’s what I was going to ask you you just mentioned something at the start of this uh you you just a second ago you said you have do you have a king’s related Big Board like a king specific one um I mean mainly it’s just you know I don’t remember if you mentioned this on air or off air but I recently wrote a preview for No Ceilings of the king’s picks at 13 and so for those purposes I sort of tried to prepare a few King specific options of who’s likely to be on the board at 13 who might fall to the Kings and that they should consider at 13 Even if you know theoretically if I’m looking at it and you know the average mock draft has Rob Dillingham and Nia toich going in the top 10 you know maybe the odds are not great that they’ll be available at 13 but if they are it’d be awesome if the Kings went and got them right so you know I don’t have like you know a hundred names that I have slotted as here the hundred best options for the Kings at 13 but yeah there are a few players who I think you know whether it be because they’re sort of mocked in that range or because I think they feel a specific need for the Kings you know I have a bit medium board let’s say King’s options at 13 by the way I was not expecting you to have a 100 that would be insane if he had a 100 like work for NBA for an office okay so you have Holmes D Silva give me your top five I would say Holmes D Silva Rob Dillingham nicoa topic and then the fifth is a bit harder I would say probably Cal filipowski slightly over kle wear with Isaiah ker right behind interesting and I think with filipowski it’s you know similar argument to Holmes he’s slightly better as ball handler he’s you know he has a bit more shooting history but I don’t necessarily buy into that that being said he did take a huge step forward as a shooter and as a shop blocker this past season at Duke so I would probably say filipowski would be fifth beyond the four names that I already mentioned let’s get to 45 more because you were talking about and I know this is really hard to project okay but so because that’s such a wide range a second round’s a total crap shoot love a good sleeper though do you have any like sleepers like guys that maybe could be there potentially they like that’s kind of an intriguing name to watch yeah I do have a few actually um I think that you know first of all the willingness to you know go after some of these options might be changed by who the Kings pick at 13 right you know if the Kings take Don Holmes at 13 maybe I look more forward SLG guard for 45 but one of the options who I think has been rising in recent weeks in combines and individual workouts and the like to the point where he might not be available at 45 is Jonathan mobo out of San Francisco you know he’s someone who played a lot of Center in San Francisco will not play center at the NBA he’s 66 not in shoes you know 68 give or take you know with shoes but he’s someone who is an exceptional passer from you know sort of the four slot maybe could move up to the three in theory but the shot is really the biggest weakness for him so you know he’s probably more of sort of a big man type but you know he’s someone who I’m willing to bet will stick on an NBA roster and you know if you can get someone like that at 45 I think that’s a huge win you know he’s someone who especially if the Kings you know go sort of the forward route you know D Silva someone else at 13 he’s someone who I think would make a lot of sense at 45 as you know pretty much a four but someone who is a really high level passer who’s also a great rebounder who you know again sabon covers a lot of the rebounding but I don’t think all of the rebounding concerns you know certainly given that the Kings ended last season you know above middle of the pack rebounding wise but a lot of that was due to sabonis and you know certainly that’s something that out of the power forward spot is not necessarily strength for the Kings so he’s someone who’d be high on my list um someone else who I think makes sense more for sort of a lower down the list concern is ooso adaro who fills I think a lot of the passing areas that I mentioned earlier with Don Holmes as someone who is one of if not maybe even the best big man passer in this class I’m not as sold on his offense outside of the passing but I think he’s also someone who’s you know a pretty capable Defender whether that be you he’s more of a help Defender than sort of a rim protecting big man type which you know again if he’s someone who you want to play alongside sabonis maybe you’d want to have a little bit more Rim protection but certainly if you’re talking about that sort of 70% range that I mentioned earlier with Don Holmes being able to run the offense through ooso Garo that’s something that I’m pretty confident he could do at a high level and then someone sort of more on the forward side who’s been a hot name as of late is Isaiah Crawford out of Louisiana Tech he’s someone who has multiple seasons on record as being you know a highlevel three-point shooter he’s you know a bit undersized at 66 for sort of the forward slot but he’s someone again who just fills a lot of gaps you he’s a great passer he’s a really Sol Defender he’s someone who can switch at a high level and I think when you’re talking about 45 ultimately there are two sort of major concerns that I think about when you’re talking about mid-second round which is first of all just is there an Avenue for this guy to even make the team right and you know for me I think maybe I’m slightly more someone who leans towards do I believe this player can have an NBA career R and let’s just take a big swing on this guy and see if it hits and I think all three of those guys you know maybe don’t necessarily have the highest feelings of someone who might be available in the second round but I’m pretty comfortable with all of those guys at least being able to be like a 10th Man On The King’s roster and ultimately again given the success rate of picks in the mid-second round if you get someone who’s just on the team and providing value for a few years that’s a huge Nick we really appreciate you taking some time to provide some insight man it’s been really fun to pick your brain about this I feel like I got a little smarter about the draft tonight now I want to dive in and and watch some more yeah all the names that I mentioned at the at this sleepers yeah yeah um what’s what’s the best way for people to find your work sure so you can find me on Twitter I will never Cloud X you can find me on Twitter at NBA Johnson and you can find No Ceilings NBA on Twitter at No Ceilings NBA uh you mentioned YouTube earlier that’s No Ceilings TV and also this past season I’ve been doing the Kings weekly podcast with Rao from basketball intelligence Morgan appeared on the show earlier this year oh my God yes wait that is so I okay this is so great and by the way I just I love Ray so much so so much I’m so glad that you guys is it because you’re friends with his daughter no well partially but also Ray’s amazing so yes he is and he told me to said his best to both of you so his best to both of you hell yeah tell him we said hi for sure well Nick seriously thank you so much for taking some time we’ll have you on again maybe post draft to to get your thoughts on what the Kings did oh absolutely would love to be back on again first time long time hope next time I can be second time long time hell yeah the one and only Nick AAR Johnson they tell you what they know the that you know

So, we don’t pretend to be experts when it comes to the NBA Draft but we love talking to people who know about it!

We had to the chance to catch up with @NoCeilingsNBA’s Nick Agar-Johnson. Nick is OBSESSED with the draft and covers it for NoCeilingsNBA.com.

Nick also gets bonus points for being a Kings fan. We talked to him about options for the Kings at 13, players he really likes and some possible sleepers for the Kings 2nd round pick.

0:00-No Ceiling’s Nick Agar-Johnson
1:03-How Nick became a Kings fan in New York
3:50-What inspired him to cover the NBA Draft
7:05-His biggest draft hit and miss since evaluating the draft
9:08-How much talent is in this NBA Draft?
12:40-Why he LOVES DaRon Holmes for the Kings
18:52-His thoughts on Kel’el Ware
22:20-The idea of the Kings drafting a guard
23:00-Could Nikola Topic drop?
25:23-What he thinks of Isaiah Collier
27:52-Can Devin Carter be an impact player in NBA?
30:54-Why he likes Rob Dillingham
32:10-Would Tristan da Silva be a good fit for Sacramento?
34:36-Some of his favorites for the Kings
36:20-Possible sleepers for the Kings 2nd round pick
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