NBA Draft

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#527      
Birdus
Emerson Bigguns said:
Yeah, I think anyone who has watched the Spurs in the playoffs is asking themselves what they are going to do with this guy for the next 10 years... You certainly can't just let him catch lobs all day. Mara's ascension on the draft boards probably has more to do with his measurements than anything they saw on tape.

Mara is super tall, moves reasonably well, and can get his hands really high in the air. If you are going to win big in the next several years you're going to need a guy like that, and there just aren't very many.

Big Z's chances of of making the NBA have also increased during this playoffs, even if his role is a guy that sits on the bench until the Spurs roll into town... You're going to need a guy who is well over 7 feet and can move to even make Wemby think about how he is being guarded.

This must be how people felt when Wilt got to the league... He's like the 8th grader who shows up at a 5th grade pick up game...

If you are a Western Conference team, you have too consider Mara.... Dallas, GS,... if he gets to 12, you have t believe OKC will jump on him. They could use him tonight.
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Mara reminds me more of Clingan. The length, mobility and passing. They are both large men. Uncanny ability to alter and block shots. Mara will have a good NBA career.
 
#528      
Emerson Bigguns
aveseaboy said:
Boswell to Nola yes please
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As nice of a moment as it would be for Bam to get drafted, if it isn't to a bad team like NOLA, he might be better off as a free agent. There is a lot to be said about choosing your situation. He's a better player than his recent tape suggests, but he's going to need opportunities to show it. Getting picked by guard rich teams like the Spurs, Timberwolves, or even the Bulls (who have like a dozen PGs and not much else), will be a one way ticket to the G-League.
 
#529      
mysterio2525
the juiceman cometh said:
1. Surprised the BH hate still is a thing after the season he had. Morez did leave because of some Benjamins, but Ben Humrichous was not one of them.

2. The difference in avg mpg between freshman Morez and UM Morez was 7.5. With us he averaged 5.7 fouls per 40 minutes. That's a foul every 7 minutes. With UM he brought that down to 3.7 per 40. That's where the minutes difference comes from, not from BH playing.

3. Hard to imagine we pursue Mirk if we already have Morez for that role, harder to imagine Mirk comes here to back up Morez. Don't remember the timeline exactly but my recollection is that Mirk was more or less a direct result of Morez leaving and us needing to find a replacement.
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1. it's not hate but it's what happened. he played more than he should have and it cost us. he played the perfect amount this year and thought he was great in his role..... did I have animosity at the fact that he was getting that much tick in year 1... absolutely. but that's more geared to the coaching staff for not seeing that playing time needed to be adjusted

2. no argument, morez was not a good defender and fouled too much as a freshman. he took a big leap his second year but isn't that the expected for super talented recruits. give them playing time and a little experience and they take big leap

3. I agree with you that it's much less likely but we are playing in hypotheticals right now so I was taking the scenario to the other extreme to make a point nobody really knows what could have been.... expect maybe the watchers from the MCU
 
#530      
Fly Illini Fly!
https://twitter.com/x/status/2057087894603370935

Round 1 - Pick 5; Keaton Wagler

“Wagler is a special shooter. The 6-foot-6 point guard has a clean, repeatable, gorgeous strap from downtown, and it's easy to see why this fit would tantalize the Clippers. If they keep this pick, Wagler is the no-brainer choice. Wagler's shooting prowess allows him to play off the ball when it's time for Darius Garland or Kawhi Leonard to rock, but his value skyrockets because he has all the tools to toggle to an on-ball role as well. Wagler isn't a blow-you-away athlete, but his underrated strength, rhythm, balance and body control make him such a tough cover. Wagler is programmed to make the right play over and over again. He rebounds well for his position, including getting after it on the offensive glass. He has the length and IQ to be a useful defender down the road, which unlocks some Derrick White-like outcomes in his projection, with room for even more.”
 
#532      
RollChief
mysterio2525 said:
1. it's not hate but it's what happened. he played more than he should have and it cost us.
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Honestly if we’re talking hindsight from 2024-2025, the fact that we did as well as we did and finished as a top 20 KP team is pretty nuts considering we turned over the entire roster. I’m not sure of many other teams that could have done that considering the relatively limited NIL pool for that year, compared to other top programs. Staff and players had to figure out roles in essentially no time.

With that said, I still trust the staff that they were playing BH for what they were seeing outside of just in-game play, as they had many more data points and other nuance to work from and game plan for other than what we were seeing twice a week in games.
 
#534      
OrangeBlue98
Saw this too - I doubt it, his father is just excited & hyping up his son.

However, I think the ankles and knees of every upcoming MSU opponent would appreciate Fears not returning.
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I was thinking of a different lower body part, but you also aren’t wrong here.
 
#536      
Calvin
Fly Illini Fly! said:
Round 1 - Pick 5; Keaton Wagler

“Wagler is a special shooter. The 6-foot-6 point guard has a clean, repeatable, gorgeous strap from downtown, and it's easy to see why this fit would tantalize the Clippers. If they keep this pick, Wagler is the no-brainer choice. Wagler's shooting prowess allows him to play off the ball when it's time for Darius Garland or Kawhi Leonard to rock, but his value skyrockets because he has all the tools to toggle to an on-ball role as well. Wagler isn't a blow-you-away athlete, but his underrated strength, rhythm, balance and body control make him such a tough cover. Wagler is programmed to make the right play over and over again. He rebounds well for his position, including getting after it on the offensive glass. He has the length and IQ to be a useful defender down the road, which unlocks some Derrick White-like outcomes in his projection, with room for even more.”
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I think his athleticism is under-rated because he doesn't have the explosiveness that often blows people away in highlight clips. But to me, things like hand eye coordination, accuracy shooting (especially when moving), body control (especially to avoid injuries in a sport where you hit the deck frequently), and other aspects of coordination are all athleticism in my book, and he has those at a very high level. And some of the things he lacks will come with development. He's still really young.
 
#537      
altgeld88
Birdus said:
Ah, what would life be without IZZO?
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We'll find out soon enough. For my part, I'll miss the vestigal gestures of his mentor, Jud Heathcote, particularly the grotesquely contorted visage as he whines to the refs.

Gotta hand it to them: Sparty has had a solid 50-year run on the hardwood. No one else in the conference comes close. We'll see what happens when the troll exits stage left.

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#538      
Frank
ChiefGritty said:
Mara is not Wemby now and he won't be Wemby in the future.

HAVING SAID THAT, what teams are seeing in terms of what that combination of extremely tall rim protection on one end and a high skill level unusual for a 7-footer on the other end can do the physics and the strategy of basketball makes Mara a very appealing prospect.

Really wanted him for the Bulls but 4 is too high and he's never lasting to 15.
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Imo, it's less about seeing what Wemby can do and wanting to find a cheap replicate and more about realizing that in order to win a title you'll need somebody that can do at least a half-decent job defending the guy. Whether or not the Spurs win it all this year, it's clear (barring injury) that he's going to be a major obstacle (perhaps the biggest) every year for the foreseeable future. This is why I think Mara's absolute floor is the #12 pick to OKC. They have been bludgeoned into the realization that they have nobody to contend with Wemby. Mara gives you a shot of being able to combat his length with nearly equal length (albeit without Wemby's freakish agility at that size). At this point though I don't think he even makes it to #12. I wouldn't be all that surprised to see OKC cash in some assets to move up and get him. They have a glut of guards. A big like Mara could change their outlook in this new alien race of a West.
 
#540      
Emerson Bigguns
Calvin said:
I think his athleticism is under-rated because he doesn't have the explosiveness that often blows people away in highlight clips. But to me, things like hand eye coordination, accuracy shooting (especially when moving), body control (especially to avoid injuries in a sport where you hit the deck frequently), and other aspects of coordination are all athleticism in my book, and he has those at a very high level. And some of the things he lacks will come with development. He's still really young.
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Some players succeed because they are explosive athletes, but if you aren't in the top 5% in that regard it's mitigated to a large degree in the NBA. The guys who are tough to guard know how to manipulate defenders and get them off-balance, get to their spots, and knock down shots. Keaton has a tremendous feel for the position of a defender, and has a bunch of well developed moves to counter however they choose to attack him.

Looking back on his short career at Illinois, the most remarkable thing was how quickly he adjusted, not only to the speed and athleticism at this level, but also as he emerged at the top of the scouting report. He is just a tough kid to frustrate. He seems to see things before they happen, like many of the greats. It's a really tough thing to quantify, but he just makes the right play with a frequency few guys his age have been able to match.

To me, lack of strength is a bigger issue than run and jump stuff. He's going to have to be able to play through contact, but strength is probably the easiest thing for a 19 year old to gain in the relative short-term. His ability to knock down shots will translate immediately, even if some of the other stuff lags while his body develops.
 
#545      
Illini4Chief
All you have to do is look at what guys like Edey and Clingan have done for a blueprint for Mara. Both were thought of as outdated relics but they are so big and combine that with high IQ play to be pretty impact full players.
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EDY hurt again? 2nd surgery....the big guy seem prone to injury
 
#549      
Emerson Bigguns
ChiefGritty said:
Seems like the "Wilson to go higher than 4" buzz has died down a bit, huh?
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Wilson is a #1 pick a lot of years, but it's pretty hard to see a compelling case to take him over any of the top 3. His combine measurements and drills were very good, but not enough to see him as clearly having a higher celling than those guys, and he has more existing holes in his game. I think he is clearly the 4th best prospect. Who is going at #4 might be the easiest bet in the draft.

On a different note, I just don't see all the love for Nate Ament... He's tall, he's a decent athlete, but 40% fg%? Disappeared often, especially against high quality opponents. He's a serious project, IMO. I get that his upside is intriguing, but he was wildly inconsistent last year. Not a gamble I would take in the lottery this year. There are too many guys who simply played better. I don't think he is an impact player next season. You'd have to be pretty comfortable in your GM office to pick him in the top 10. Even if I'm locked in on a bigger wing, I'm taking a long look at Lopez first.
 
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