Weird things can happen on draft night

Chad Ford wrote:Here are some of the quotes I've been given this week:

"The Lakers should take Marquese Chriss at No. 2."

First Kevin Pelton says the Lakers should take Dragan Bender at No. 2. Now this? Chriss was at No. 8 on our Big Board for quite a while, and moved up to No. 6 in our latest Big Board. We are currently projecting him to go No. 4 to the Suns in our latest mock draft. But No. 2? Over Brandon Ingram? Is the hype going overboard?

Chriss' elite athleticism, combined with size, length and the ability to both stretch the floor and protect the rim make him a unique prospect. Few players have a similar combination of physical tools and basketball skills.

In the past few weeks I've heard comparisons to Shawn Marion and Shawn Kemp. As we've been saying in this space for a while, he has highest ceiling in the draft after Ben Simmons and Ingram.

But does he have a higher ceiling than Ingram? Perhaps. He's a better athlete, and given his body type, he might be a better defender (if he can learn how to stay out of foul trouble). That said, he's not the shooter Ingram is and his floor is also much lower.

Ingram is more of a sure thing. Chriss is much more raw, and while he is clearly competitive, his decision-making on the court is a lot further behind compared to Ingram. Talking to Lakers sources, I think Ingram is the pick for L.A. at No. 2. He has similar upside to Chriss without the risks. But after that? The Celtics, Suns and Wolves all will be very tempted. I'm still betting on the Suns at No. 4. But the Celtics taking him at No. 3 is a real possibility.


"Jamal Murray may be the best scorer in the draft, but he can't guard anybody."

One GM nailed it by saying there are serious concerns about who Murray guards at the next level. The effort is there, but the lateral quickness is not. That probably keeps him in the No. 3-6 range.


"If Dejounte Murray played at North Carolina or Duke, he'd be a top-five pick."

We've been high on Murray for a while and it seems as if the league is catching up to that point of view. His length, quickness, toughness and ability to play multiple positions make him one of the highest upside guards in the draft.


"Malachi Richardson canceled his workout with us."

It's not clear exactly why the workouts were canceled, but the evidence suggests that Richardson's range is No. 10 to No. 21.

wideclyde wrote:The Red Sox drafted a 6'6 pitcher (jason Groom) last night with their first pick (#12) in the MLB entry draft, and this kid was thought to be a first five
type of pick.  I even saw that some draft expert had him going first in his last mock draft on Wednesday night.

Not likely that any of the very top guys in this NBA draft will drop all the way to #12, but drafts are drafts and different GMs see guys
differently as fits for their teams.

Lots of guessing by everyone so far (certainly including me), but I have a feeling that Ingram may drop to the #3 spot and that there
will be a significant player still available at #16 and even a decent player at #23 if the Cs hold on to their first three picks.

arambone wrote:Yup. I heard yesterday that a bunch of GMs have Dragan Bender ranked outside the lottery. Not that I'd necessarily jump on him at 16, but it just goes to show that the mock drafts aren't the be all end all of the draft process.

tjmakz wrote:

arambone wrote:Yup. I heard yesterday that a bunch of GMs have Dragan Bender ranked outside the lottery. Not that I'd necessarily jump on him at 16, but it just goes to show that the mock drafts aren't the be all end all of the draft process.

Can you post where you heard this from?