The Official 2012 NBA Draft Talk Thread

[O.iatlhawksfan]

Why all of the sudden is Harrison Barnes stock high? I'm telling y'all this is how it happens, the season ends and people forget that some of these prospects are doo doo

 

[FAH1223]

Why all of the sudden is Harrison Barnes stock high? I'm telling y'all this is how it happens, the season ends and people forget that some of these prospects are doo doo

yep that nicca sucks and watch Ernie Grunfeld pick him

 

[PTBG]

Chad Ford's Ranking Prospects By Tier:

Tier 1
Anthony Davis

Note: This category is usually reserved for guys who are surefire All-Stars/franchise players. Last year, we didn't have anyone here. In 2010, John Wall was the only guy in this tier. In 2009, Blake Griffin was the only one. This year, Davis is the only player in the draft to get the nod.
Tier 2
Harrison Barnes
Bradley Beal
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist
Thomas Robinson

Note: Tier 2 is reserved for players who are likely locks for the top half of the lottery and are projected as either very good starters or potential All-Stars by scouts. Robinson, Beal and Kidd-Gilchrist got the nod for Tier 2 from every GM I spoke with. Barnes, who has been rising on draft boards the past few weeks after some stellar athletic testing numbers at the NBA draft combine, was on 75 percent of the lists.

Tier 3
Andre Drummond
Damian Lillard
Dion Waiters

Note: This is a smaller than usual Tier 3. These are the only three players (outside of the five mentioned already) who were consensus top-10 picks among the GMs I spoke with. Of the group, Drummond and Lillard had every vote. Waiters was on most of the ballots. Drummond is the toughest guy to peg. One team has him No. 2 on their draft board. Others are much more nervous about him and see a high bust potential. He barely missed the Tier 2 cut. Interestingly, a few teams had Waiters in Tier 2, while a few teams had him in Tier 4. That's a pretty big spread.

Tier 4
John Henson
Perry Jones III
Terrence Jones
Jeremy Lamb
Meyers Leonard
Kendall Marshall
Austin Rivers
Terrence Ross
Jared Sullinger
Tyler Zeller

Note: After Tier 3, it's very difficult to find a real consensus here. There are 10 players here for a total of five spots left in the lottery. A few players, such as Jeremy Lamb and Austin Rivers, got a few votes in Tier 3. A few others, such as Kendall Marshall, got some Tier 5 votes. But in general, this group makes up the 10-20 range of the draft. (We should note that I received some of these responses before GMs had a chance to review Sullinger's physical. He is in Tier 5 on some teams' boards now.)

Tier 5
Moe Harkless
Fab Melo
Quincy Miller
Arnett Moultrie
Andrew Nicholson
Marquis Teague
Royce White
Tony Wroten Jr.

Note: This next group looks like locks for the first round, but most likely won't make the lottery. A few teams had Harkless, Melo and Moultrie in Tier 4, but not quite enough for them to make the cut. Wroten and Miller were borderline picks here. Both players dropped out of the top 30 on at least one NBA team's draft board.

Tier 6
Furkan Aldemir
Will Barton
Jared Cunningham
Festus Ezeli
Evan Fournier
Draymond Green
John Jenkins
Orlando Johnson
Doron Lamb
Kyle O'Quinn
Kostas Papanikolaou
Miles Plumlee
Jeff Taylor
Tyshawn Taylor

Note: This is what I would call the first-round bubble group and where the consensus really started to break down. A few teams had Fournier, Green, Jeff Taylor and Barton in Tier 5, but many did not. Overall there are just four spaces left in the first round ... so most of the players on this list are falling to the second round.

 

[G.O.A.T Squad Spokesman]

What team in the late teens would want Dorell Wright our 30th and 35th for their pick? Let's make a deal.

 

[FukkaPaidEmail]

It was cute at first,but this John Henson to Detroit shyt needs to stop......

 

[Sensitive Blake Griffin]

Why all of the sudden is Harrison Barnes stock high? I'm telling y'all this is how it happens, the season ends and people forget that some of these prospects are doo doo

I always thought he was gonna be a bust.. but hes been putting up some athletic numbers in physical tests.. but nikkas forget he never drives to the rim

 

[OG Talk]

great trade for the bulls if harrison barnes is still on the board.

if the bulls trade deng it doesnt make sense to keep noah

If the Bulls send Deng out West and get rid of Noah I like that as a Heat fan..Get rid of Deng and Noah and let Harrison Barnes guard Lebron for the next 5 years..

 

[Houston911]

If the Bulls send Deng out West and get rid of Noah I like that as a Heat fan..Get rid of Deng and Noah and let Harrison Barnes guard Lebron for the next 5 years..

if they get rid of deng and noah theyre tanking......theyll have cap room to add an all star or two, 2 guys from this years lotto and another lotto pick next year.......plus the charlotte pick in 2014 or 2015

short term the heat shyt on the bulls but long term the bulls have a much better chance to win rings

 

[jwinfield]

if they get rid of deng and noah theyre tanking......theyll have cap room to add an all star or two, 2 guys from this years lotto and another lotto pick next year.......plus the charlotte pick in 2014 or 2015

short term the heat shyt on the bulls but long term the bulls have a much better chance to win rings

Don't think we'll go that far, think we keep Noah.

The Bobcats pick is unprotected in 2016.

Hopefully Mirotic comes over in 2014. They say he would've been a lotto pick. Even if he's Ryan Anderson, I'll take a stretch 4 to play with Noah and Rose.

 

[The War Report]

For the last several years, Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey has been trying to package assets together to make a big deal on draft night. The 2012 draft is no different.

Sources say that Houston has discussed deals with several teams in the top 10 about moving up in the draft. And the Rockets might have found two willing partners.

Although sources stressed that no deal is imminent, Sacramento (No. 5) and Toronto (No. 8 ) have let Houston know that their top-10 selections are available. Sources say that the Rockets, in turn, have made both of their first-round picks available (No. 14 and No. 16), but the key to any trade going through could be point guard Kyle Lowry.

The Raptors have been especially fond of Lowry, who has been regarded for months as a borderline untouchable in Houston but more recently has publicly expressed his disastisfaction with Rockets coach Kevin McHale. Whether the Rockets are indeed prepared to part with Lowry, as talks with the Kings, Raptors and other teams continue, figures to be one of the bigger stories of draft week.

What’s clear from the Rockets’ end, sources say, is the player they’re fondest of in the upper reaches of the draft: UConn big man Andre Drummond. Many scouts believe Drummond has the second highest upside of any player in the draft behind consensus No. 1 overall pick Anthony Davis, but the 7-foot, 279-pounder would almost certainly still be available at No. 5.

Drummond, as the second youngest player in the draft at 18, registered an impressive 7-foot-6 wingspan at the NBA Draft Combine earlier this month. Personnel experts regard him as an elite athlete and shot-blocker who moves laterally especially well. But Drummond’s inconsistent play as a freshman, combined with questions about his passion for the game, have caused his draft stock to take a slight hit in recent weeks.

The tipoff that the Kings are likely to deal the No. 5 pick between now and Thursday night, sources say, is the handful of players they’ve brought in that are expected to be drafted in the middle of the first round. Sources say two of those players in particular – North Carolina’s John Henson and St. John’s Moe Harkless – are high on the Kings’ draft board.

Henson has already worked out for the Kings and Harkless is scheduled to work out on Monday. Sacramento has also tried to get several other candidates for the middle of the first round, including UConn’s Jeremy Lamb and Washington’s Terrence Ross, into town for 11th-hour workouts.

McHale

 

[red222]

Alex Kennedy ‏@AlexKennedyNBA
Has Kyle Lowry been traded? He sent out this cryptic tweet... RT @Klow7 It's been real

 

[tremonthustler1]

Report: Rockets talking with Raptors, Kings about draft trade | ProBasketballTalk

My mock's gonna go straight to shyt

This really shouldn’t really be a surprise — ever since Daryl Morey took over as general manager of the Rockets they have been one of the more active teams on draft day.

Right now they pick No. 14 but they want to move up, according to ESPN.

Sources say that Houston has discussed deals with several teams in the top 10 about moving up in the draft. And the Rockets might have found two willing partners.

Although sources stressed that no deal is imminent, Sacramento (No. 5) and Toronto (No. 8) have let Houston know that their top-10 selections are available. Sources say that the Rockets, in turn, have made both of their first-round picks available (No. 14 and No. 16), but the key to any trade going through could be point guard Kyle Lowry.

The Kings have been rumored to be shopping their pick around.

If the Rockets can re-sign Goran Dragic they can afford to move Lowry, although Lowry was a borderline All-Star player until he was injured last year.

What’s interesting is ESPN reports the Rockets are after big man Andre Drummond, one of the biggest gambles in this draft. He’s a guy who could turn out to be a Serge Ibaka or maybe even poor-man’s Andrew Bynum in the paint, he has that level of skill, but he’s had serious questions about his drive and passion. He has not impressed in many workouts, according to reports. But if Morey takes him and gets a hit, he may have the second best player in this draft. But it is a big risk.

Not a bad deal for Sacramento:

Lowry, 14 and 16 for 5/ let's say Jimmer and filler

Sacramento can go get a big like Moultrie and Moe Harkless and the Rockets get Drummond. Then

If that happens

1. Davis
2. Robinson
3. Beal
4. Barnes
5. Drummond
6. Lillard
7. MKG and so on Golden State should be rooting for this to happen

and fwiw, Lowry's tweet is unrelated to any trade talk

 

[jwinfield]

God dammit

 

[CantStop]

If raptors trade their 8th pick for Lowry

 

[manyfaces]

Well fukk, there goes my Drummond dream.