With only two weeks away until draft night, make your call! If Neil trades into the draft, as he's rumored to be interested in, who is your guy at these spots and why: High lotto: Mid lotto: Late lotto:
I love the draft. Fun time of the year. It's of course more fun if the Blazers have picks, but still fun to dream - high lottery - Jabari Parker late lottery/mid first round - Kyle Anderson late first round - Jordan Adams or TJ Warren second round - Jarnell Stokes, DeAndre Kane or Khem Birch
High: Andrew Wiggins, couldn't pass on that athleticism. Mid: Dario Saric, does a little of everything with a Durant-like body. Late: Zach LaVine, LOADS of potential.
High Lotto *Joel Embiid - 7'1" | 250 lb. | C He showed incredible skill and understanding of the game while at Kansas. What makes that even more impressive is that he started playing organized basketball in 2011 at age 16. He's worth he risk, even with his back issue - just as long as he's not red-flagged. Mid Lotto *Marcus Smart - 6'3" | 227 lb. | PG/SG High ceiling and a skillset that would mesh well with Damian. An absolute bull of a guard at 6'3" 230 lbs. I know it's more wishful thinking that he'd drop to the mid-lotto - he could go as high as #4. Late Lotto *Dario Saric - 6'10" | 225 lb. | SF A real point forward. According to Chad Ford, some scouts believe he has the highest bbiq in the draft. Similar to Kyle Anderson, but is much more athletic. Dark horse *Clint Capela - 6'11" | 222 lb. | PF/C Getting looks by late lotto teams but most likely could be had in the mid-first. Defensive minded PF in the mold of Serge Ibaka. Still a few years away. Kevin Pelton's projected WARP rankings for International prospects has him #1 - ahead of Exum.
The only qualm I have is his willingness to come over right away. What the Bulls fans are going through with Mirotic would suck.
Well I'm pretty sure if Portland made that move, they would do it knowing what Saric' intentions are.