I was just wondering what everyone else thought about this. Where would Darko go if he was in the draft this year? I know we dealt our #15 pick for him and it looks pretty solid right now, but how high do you think he would go? He obviously wouldn't get picked ahead of Oden/Durant, but would you take Horford/Yi/Conley/Wright/Noah/Brewer/J Green/Hawes over him?
I actually think he'd go #15 to the Pistons, ironically. He's not a better player than Wright or Hawes, nor does he have a brighter future, so any team that needs a big man will overlook him in favor of them. I guess really his main competition would be from guys like Joakim Noah and Jason Smith.
You would think Darko graduated from the University of Florida with all the hatred you show towards him, Voodoo.
<div class="quote_poster">Swish Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">You would think Darko graduated from the University of Florida with all the hatred you show towards him, Voodoo. </div> Where am I showing hatred? Wait... you actually think he's a better player than Wright and Hawes... or what?
<div class="quote_poster">Voodoo Child Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Where am I showing hatred? Wait... you actually think he's a better player than Wright and Hawes... or what?</div> I think he is going to be a better player than Spencer Hawes. I have not seen much of Hawes but he seems to have whiteitis, the disease that makes all white big men slow and unathletic. Darko on the other can block shots, score from anywhere on the court, and is a pretty good passer for a big man. And I was mostly talking about your opinions in both this thread and the Shard > Darko thread when I was refferring to your Milicic hatred.
Honestly I'd probably put him as the 7th or 8th best player in this draft behind Oden/Durant/Horford/Wright/Hawes/Yi/Brewer and maybe Jeff Green. I'm not too high on Conley tbh so I didn't forget him, just omitted him from this list. I think he'll be good, but I think he is benefiting from a weak PG class.
Can someone give me the lowdown on Hawes? I don't know much about him so I'm probably making an ass out of myself by ranking Darko ahead of him.
I don't know too much about him either other than he was rated as the #2 big man prospect last year coming into college(ahead of Durant) and he had a pretty good freshman season. He has good offensive potential and is still very young. I think people would see him as better than Darko. I don't think I would trade Darko for the 7th pick to pick Hawes though, tbh. I was trying to think who I would trade Darko for in this and honestly I probably wouldn't trade him for anyone other than the top 4(Oden/Durant/Horford/Wright + possibly Yi, he's also an unknown to me)
<div class="quote_poster">GatorsowntheNCAA Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I don't think I would trade Darko for the 7th pick to pick Hawes though, tbh. I was trying to think who I would trade Darko for in this and honestly I probably wouldn't trade him for anyone other than the top 4(Oden/Durant/Horford/Wright + possibly Yi, he's also an unknown to me)</div> Hawes is twice the player Darko is offensively already in this stage of his career, and Hawes is a good three years younger than Darko. Defensively, Hawes has all the tools and whatnot to be better. He just needs a year or two to add weight to his frame, and he'll be right on par with Darko. Anyway, you're the writing team editor, Swish. Didn't you read J_Ray's debut aticle? <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Top Offensive Player – Spencer Hawes C 19 years old; 7'0"; 240 lbs. Washington, Freshman When you look at the top offensive players in the draft, Spencer Hawes just jumps out at you. Hawes freshman year at Washington was a bit injury prone but when he did play, he was the best low-post scorer in the Pac-10. When he wasn’t in the paint, Hawes was either draining 15 footers or finding open teammates. The kid probably has the best vision out of all the big men in this draft. Despite being further along offensively than most players his age, Hawes is still a bit raw with his post moves. I really believe he’ll step right in for any team that drafts him and get 10 points a game. When he makes it into his prime, Hawes could very well be the next Tim Duncan. </div> I don't agree that strongly with that sentiment, but I do think that Hawes will be one of the top three or four centers in the league in his prime, a legitimate All-Star post player. If I were a GM and had to make a draftboard with Darko in the mix, it'd probably go something like this - 1) Oden 2) Durant 3) Hawes 4) Horford 5) Conley, Jr. 6) B. Wright 7) Jianlian 8) J. Wright 9) T. Young 10) Brewer 11) Green 12) Crittenton 12) N. Young 13) Thornton 14) Stuckey 15) Maybe Darko, maybe Noah, maybe Jason Smith Let me ask you guys this, what separates Darko from a player the same age with a very similar skillset in Tiago Splitter? I don't see much. And Swish, saying I'd take a young 6'10" All-Star wing over Darko doesn't mean I hate Darko.
I read that article but I still wasn't sold on him. I guess after watching Darko all of last season, my bias makes me want him over the guy I've never seen before in my life. I trust your judgement though because you're pretty much the basketball version of Mel Kiper and you have a pretty good track record.
