2015 Nba Draft Discussion: Russell, Nance Jr., Brown

Apparently Porzingis is turning heads again. He's 7'1", thin as a rail, but he's a decent shooter and fairly athletic. I think he'd take at least 3 years to turn into something in the NBA and even then I'm not sure what that would be. I want no part of him, but someone else might.

 

I see what you're saying. I wasn't all that high on him for a while, but if his head is on straight he's a great pick-up. My top 10 goes:

1. Okafor
2. Towns
3. Mudiay
4. Johnson
5. Russell
6. Cauley-Stein
7. Winslow
8. Kaminsky
9. Oubre
10. Porzingis or Hezonja

 

I just don't agree with that.

The NBA is cyclical and as the post players have died and faded thanks to great guard play, they've become devalued. All it takes is the next great post player to change that though. A guy who is big, makes FT, and can score at will inside is ALWAYS going to be valuable to a team.

I predict soon we'll see the reverse trend start: we'll start seeing a few more teams build inside-out and have rangy defenders outside and strong presences inside.

Okafor to me is the kind of guy who can start that trend. Just tremendous offensive ability in a big, strong body. In fact the only reason to consider Towns over him now: Towns has developed some rudimentary post moves. Now that Towns can score inside for himself a little bit he's looking like a great #1 pick.

 

Totally thanks for having a genuine conversation in which two people don't have to agree. It's part of why I love this community so much.

 

1. Okafor
2. Towns
3. Russell
4. Mundiay
5. Johnson

After that, it really doesn't matter until the late 20's cause we ain't keeping our pick. The more I read about WCS the more I become concerned. And what ever happened to that sickle cell thing he suffered from last season? That is a pretty big concern for me over the course of 82 games plus playoffs.

 

You can't even get his name right man! It's Mudiay!

I'm just not that high on Russell still. Something about him just doesn't compute with me. We'll have to see if he can continue to show me something, but I'm not as impressed as everyone else.

 

I interchange Johnson and Mudiay on a daily basis. I love what Johnson brings, but if I'm impartial Mudiay has a higher ceiling. Our greatest need from this draft is a guy capable of carrying the team. There's three guys I think that fit the bill: Mudiay, Towns, and Okafor. I think Russell maxes out as a 3rd Best Player and bottoms out as a borderline NBA player. I think Stan Johnson is a rock solid starter for years and years with an outside shot at an All-Star game. If we end up with either I'm not upset, but I'd prefer the guys with high ceilings that can propel us forward.

It's not so much what I've seen from Mudiay as what I've seen from Russell. I've seen some B+ ball handling, good passing, good vision, and a natural feel for shooting the ball. I've also seen limited defensive upside, limited athleticism, inconsistent shooting and shooting form, and a lack of explosiveness that could be detrimental at the next level. Mudiay's #1 knock is his shooting which is the easiest thing to fix at the next level. Mudiay is also athletic, has a great feel for the pick and roll, more capable defensively (although not necessarily defensively inclined), is a tremendous finisher in the paint, and can get to the rim at will. To be fair his other knocks are inconsistent defensive effort, decision making at times, lapses in concentration, and at times poor shot choices.

Of the two, I'd rather take the chance on Mudiay who projects as a definite PG while Russell projects as a SG with some PG skills.

 

How do you judge my take on Russell as harsh and then say anybody can drive in China and that Mudiay is a D-Leaguer?

1. I've compared Russell to Ginobili. That's high praise. I'd prefer to do better in the draft and I think Mudiay's ceiling is closer to Wall's so I'd prefer that.

2. It might, but not in LA with Kobe working with him and Randle and Clarkson hanging around too. Hard-working culture that won't settle for a lack of development. Besides his shot isn't broken, his mechanics are just off. He releases on the way down and at times doesn't finish at the right angle. Both easily correctable mistakes.

3. The CBA is not all that different from the NCAA actually so to judge Mudiay negatively against that competition but Russell favorably against his competition at Ohio State doesn't make a ton of sense. Russell is playing against some guys who wont make it in the NBA. Mudiay is playing with and against some guys who made it and were successful in the NBA.

 

I've actually seen fantastic ball handling and VERY good court vision from Russell. Mudiay just scares me because we haven't seen him against the same competition. There's no apples to apples. He's like this year's Exum in a way. But I'm on board with Okafor then Towns.