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

I like both of the things you guys said.

 

I get the dismay at our draft. Of course I hope you are 100% wrong in your concerns.

A couple of your points I'll chime in on.

Pitino did not say Russell was a better passer than Stockton, Kidd, and Nash in the pros, but in his opinion he is a better passer than they were coming out of college. I saw all three of those amazing passers in their rookie years, and Pitino may be right, he may be wrong, but he is not far wrong if at all.

The point on Scott with his PGs is that he clearly has an ability to influence them for the best. He also had a stro ng influence on a young Kobe by Kobe's own testimony. He may not be able to do much else, but it works out well for the team that he is the coach just as we draft Russell.

You are right that shot volume is going to be an issue, but that would have been an issue with Okafor as well.

None of the scouting reports say Russell is lousy on D. He's no doberman, but he is capable. On the wingspread thing, he has a wingspan of 6'9", which is not bad for a PG, and I saw a video which showed his coverage area is actually a bit larger than Kawhi Leonard.

He MAY force Kobe to the 3, but I don't think we are necessarily done yet. It may be that Mitch is invisioning a three guard rotation of Kobe / Russell / JC with Kobe pulling 30 minutes max and Russell and JC both getting 33.

 

Love ya JSM, but I really don't think our picks were bad at all. Larry Nance Jr, everyone has been crying over this because they feel like he could have been taken in the 2nd. That's beside the point if Mitch and our scouting department believes in picking him at 27. I think he'll be a pleasant surprise for us with his defense at the SF position and his improved mid-range shot. The guy has clearly overcame a lot already in his bball life with the ACL and then croms disease. He's a mature, hardworking, good character guy and all that does matter, just ask Greg Popovich and the Spurs.

Anthony Brown.... I can't think of why anyone would have a problem with this pick whats so ever. He's exactly the player we should be drafting. One of the better 3pt shooters who even has some good finishing ability/1-2 dribble pullup. He has good defense potential with his height and long wingspan. He and Lance are both seniors so they already bring a better level of maturity when on the court.

I think every one will be surprised when summer league comes around because for the most part many fans for whatever reason are so down on these guys that all they can do now is go up from what people already think of them...

Sit back and relax gentleman.

 

According to his friend Quinn Cook he really wanted the Lakers all along.

 

Yeah that's pretty much how I see it. Russell blew us away and Okafor didn't. From afar I think the pick was clearly Okafor, but up close it apparently was the opposite. I've come around on the positives of Russell, but I still would have picked Okafor from afar. If I were in those workouts, I hope I'd see what changed their minds. I still think Okafor will have a stellar rookie season, but now I'm all in on the Russell train and hoping to see him do really well.

 

Well trying to piece it all together, the workouts they held with the 1 vs. 0 types didn't impress them too much but the interviews had them leaning towards Russell. They were already leaning towards Russell when they brought back Mudiay, Okafor, and D'Angelo. I think they were looking to see if those guys excelled when put into positions that were their supposed strengths.

They had Mudiay in a group workout. They had Russell in a group workout. They had Okafor in a one-on-one post game workout. The only one that blew them away was Russell.

 

Nailed it. I couldn't remember the kid's name. You the real MVP.