You mean they'll trade up for him? I only ask because as much as the mocks are all over the place this draft, I don't see anyone who has Sharpe falling to 11th.
I would keep Toppin if I were the Knicks. He fits better with their rebuild. I definitely think they would like to get out of Randle's contract. He is there for the taking IMO. But do we want him and how much is too much to get him? We would already be taking on his contract. I would swap picks for sure, but how much more?
That's it, we just have to capitalize on the Knicks wanting out of Randle's contract and the Pistons wanting to clear capspace by getting rid of Grant. I would actually do what it takes to guarantee our pick to Chicago next season and trade some future firsts if necessary. 7 and Bledsoe to the Knicks for Randle and 11 (add our lottery protected 2027 FRP if necessary) The Bucks 2025 for Grant (add our lottery protected 2025 FRP if necessary) Draft Duren with 11 Add a backup PG with the 36th pick
I think that would be about as good an off season as we could realistically hope for (absent those "if necessary" additions). And though I don't necessarily think that squad would be a contender, it could be if the pieces fit well; and if they don't, Cronin would theoretically have plenty of different directions he could go.
If they want out of randle, then I'm not giving them an opportunity to move up AND a future pick. They can include their or the mavericks 2023 in that deal.
I really don't know what this means. He's a post player but he showed the season before last that he can cover the perimeter just fine when he's not burned out by Thibs. He's 6'8" with a 7 foot wingspan... that's not a true C... not even "in today's NBA". He is a 4 and pretty much by any definition a power forward... not a wing, a power forward which is what I think PF stands for. Not to mention that on offense he plays on the perimeter as well as he plays in the post. If you're saying that he would need someone quicker than Nurk next to him on defense... I agree.
I don’t really like Randle’s fit with Nurk, and you’d be stuck with a 3+1 year deal. That being said, I’m not super high on Toppin either. I would hope they really fall in love with someone and do Bledsoe + Keon + #7 for Randle + #11 + 2023 DAL 1st. If we got an extra 1st for taking on Randle and trading down four spots, I’d definitely do it. And at that point, I’d move on from Nurk as well. Randle does have value still, I think you can be successful if you construct a team around like how you would envision constructing a team around Banchero. Randle did average 6apg and 5apg at PF the last two years. With Dame and Simons, he’ll be surrounded by better shooters than he’s ever had. I always shun the “Randle is a stretch big” notion because he’s averaged over 40% from 3 in 1/8 seasons, so I think he can be your only non shooter on the court. Then I would see who is at #11. I’ve seen Mathurin drop to #11 in some mocks, so if he was there, I’d draft him (Sochan, Daniels, Sharpe are guys I’m interested in if they dropped, although it seems like both guys will probably be gone by #11). If none of those guys are there, I’d trade #11 #36 and #57 for #13 and #15, and draft Duren with one of those two picks. With the other pick, I’d trade down for Dieng, Barlow, anyone of those SF. In FA, sign Bamba to start at C. Sign Ingles to the vet min to have on the roster just as a culture guy who can play at SF/PF in the playoffs if needed. With Utah breaking up, I don’t know if he’s keen on returning there still. I’m not going into a bidding war for him though, if he wants to go back to Utah, let him. Not sure what you could do with the TPE, but now you’d have the 2023 DAL 1st and the 2024 PELS/BUCKS pick to trade for any star. One guy snatch up is Dorian Finney-Smith in any trade out of DAL to get another star for Luka. Dame/Simons Simons/Hart Finney-Smith/Little/Barlow/Ingles Randle/Duren/Watford/Ingles/Brown III Bamba/Duren/Hartenstein/Brown III I wouldn’t mind having this roster to start the season. I can count on Randle to be healthy 70+ games, and with the spacing on the court, this team will probably give him the best chance to succeed. Bamba and Finney-Smith won’t command the ball, but are a threat to hit 3s. I think Randle is bound to have a comeback season with a better cast around him. We will see if Billups can inspire him to play defense the way he was playing two seasons ago. At the very least, Randle will become a more tradeable asset with the “all star” award already attached to his name.
https://theathletic.com/3350046/2022/06/07/nba-draft-top-guards-analysis/ Commentary in an article by David Aldridge: On Ivey: Eastern Conference Executive No. 1: He’s a (Russell) Westbrook/(Dwyane) Wade type of guy. I like (Purdue head coach) Matt Painter. But if Ivey had been in a situation where they get up and down the floor and get more open, there’s no telling what he could have done. I know Detroit loves Ivey. Western Conference Executive No. 1: In his own tier. In the next two to three years, wherever he’s drafted, he’ll start immediately. - On Sharpe: Western Conference Executive No. 3: How the (expletive) can you be the fifth pick in the draft if you haven’t played in a year and a half? It’s not like it’s (James) Wiseman and the guy is 7 feet tall. Show me where the five (-star) shit is. Show me. Western Conference Executive No. 4: (Michael) Porter (Jr.) had those last several games at Missouri (after back surgery). Kevin Porter at USC didn’t play the entire year because he was suspended off and on. This kid, we have nothing but YouTube video to go on. I think you are just taking an absolute swing. And you (have to) have ownership completely behind you in that swing, as well as your head coach and that staff. You gotta be patient, and you better have a plan, and everybody’s on board. You’re saying, we’re getting, he should have been the first pick in the draft, but we’re getting him at seven. We’re getting him at 11. There is just not a lot to go on. … The teams that are allowed to bring him in, it’s not going to be so much the workout. I think it’s going to be just getting to know the kid, see where his head is at. … you know the teams that could do that — the Oklahoma Citys, the San Antonios. The synergy between ownership and front office and coaches and strength and conditioning. … you could see a team’s eyes perk up because of what they see in this kid - On Dyson: Western Conference Executive No. 4: If we re-draft in three to four years, he may be the guy who should have been taken higher. A 6-7 18-year-old that can play the point guard today, has a phenomenal basketball IQ and mature beyond his years. He can defend three positions. His shooting, sure, it needs work. But these kids get 250, 300 reps every single day, so his shooting will be adequate enough. He makes players around him better, and he can pass the ball. If there was a highlighted guy right now in my mind, this could be one where we should have took him and let the developmental time elapse, and we’ve got ourselves a cornerstone of our team for the next 10-12 years.
I have no opinion on Sharpe but this is such a dumb comment. I hope this guy does not work for the Blazers.
I mean, if he does, he should be heaping praise on Sharpe so that he's drafted at 5, forcing a different player to drop to 7.
Also on Benn: The book of Benn Eastern Conference Executive No. 3: The system was better than it was with Sean (Miller). Still got a ways to go. The change to the system, more up-tempo, helped him tremendously this year. I went out there and watched practice early. Tommy (Lloyd, Arizona’s coach last season) was trying to get them to really push the pace, almost like Mike D’Antoni with the seven seconds. Of course, it was a little shorter with college, but they were throwing the ball all over the court, and I was thinking ‘Oh, man, this is not going to look well throughout the year,’ with the high turnovers. But they got a lot better as a team. It helped not only Ben; it helped (guard Dalen) Terry, it helped (center Christian) Koloko, and it helped the point guard, (Justin) Kier. But at the end, if Sean was still there, would (Mathurin) have had the year he had, this year? Probably would have had a good year, but not as good a year as he had with Tommy. I think he’s better one-dribble pull-up, but he can do two. But I think he’s better as a one-dribble pull-up. It’s a better rhythm for him. He still needs to become a better ballhandler. The more times he has to put it on the floor, the more chances he’ll do something wrong. I would say (his range is) a foot beyond the NBA line right now, maybe, in terms of being consistent and knocking down shots. I would say (defense) is not totally consistent, but if he needs to focus in and shut someone down at a certain time of a game, he’s a pretty good defender. But he has to be more disciplined, more in focus during games than just down the stretch… During the NCAA Tournament, it’s a finality in terms of the game. You don’t win, you’re out. So there is more pressure. But there’s also more focus, determination, desire to make sure that the play is done right, he makes the right play, or he knocks down the shot to make sure his team continues to go on. In that regard, do we look at that as scouts? Yes. Because it’s a big-time moment. … The story does have meaning, understands what his path or direction or journey might be, and how he overcomes those things. Eastern Conference Executive No. 1: That guy, he reminds me of Ray Allen. Athletic. I don’t know if he shoots it quite as well. Ball skills are just OK. He can get better. Better defender than Ray, but similar. … They say him getting to the NBA Academy in Mexico may have saved him. He might have been in trouble had that not happened. Huge upside. Until he got to Arizona, he was an inside player. He doesn’t even realize what he can do. Doesn’t have a midrange game per se, and his ball skills are suspect, but that’s because he hasn’t played on the perimeter that long. But I think that can be developed.
How does anyone know any of these guys are telling the truth? I sure wouldn't. If you really wanted a player to fall you'd badmouth them, and if you wanted them to rise you'd sing their praises.
