FWIW, Jonathan Givony of ESPN and Draft Express said Portland had the "best Draft.". Utility Sorts also had Portland with their highest rating. Given when they were selecting and who was available when they picked, what do you think of their 3 selections? Who else would you have taken at what pick besides who they took?
This may be the first A I've given the Blazers (since maybe Oden? bad omen...) Although the Roy/Aldridge draft definitely deserved one.
The only criticism you could have is that we didn't take size. But this draft was very low on quality size, and I think every player we took was a steal at the place we took him.
The only change I might have considered is Drafting Nnaji at #23. He went at #31, when many mocks had him at early 20s. Very rare, but with tremendous size and length. We might have something similar in Badji, so I can see why they didn't duplicate.
A+ I was horrified we were going to trade the pick for a veteran that left us in mediocrity. I love the clear BPA selection. I can see why some are a bit sad we didn't do a move to help Dame win. There just aren't any realistic moves available, I'd have been ok with Brown/Bridges/Zion trades but even those had massive risk with large downsides. Accepting a lower tiered veteran would've been just plain bad. This point we are now at of possibly needing to move on from Dame is a result of many cumulative decisions the last two years starting with the horrible Clippers trade. Thats why I was so furious with the Clippers trade at the time - it really eliminated the possibilities of having flexibility to later put a winning roster around Dame to a near zero chance. The result is where we are at today, except we 'lucked' out to have two years of tank give us two exceptional young players. I loved the Sharpe pick and I loved this pick. I don't really have enough opinions about #23/#43 prospects - but if either is a rotational player that would be gravy. If Dame is committed to the Blazers for the entirety of next season I'm good rolling out with him and all these kids. But if not its probably better to look for a split sooner than later. Cronin looks great at the draft, and even Neil was decent there. I swear Portland should just never trade away any draft picks, avoid trades in general, and be more cautious with signing free agents.
I voted A as well. Henderson was the right pick, though I'd probably have preferred to trade down with Detroit and get Ausar. I would have picked Leonard Miller at 23, but I understand the Murray pick. Rupert was a first-round talent at 43, so there's no quibble there. I have been a big fan of Jalen Wilson all year though, so I would definitely have been down with him in that spot.
I’m ecstatic we got Scoot. The majority of the draft experts out there pegged Scoot as the 2nd best talent in this draft and I totally agree. While Miller may have been the better fit he just has this vibe during his interviews of someone I would want to punch in the face. Kris Murray was a solid pick, not a sexy pick at 23. He seems ready to contribute right away which I understand that logic. His game kind of reminds me of Rashard Lewis. I honestly did not think Rayan Rupert would be there at 43rd pick. What a freakin steal. To be honest, I forgot about him once I started following the Cam Whitmore situation. Had I been more aware I would have wanted Rupert for sure at 23 but am thrilled he was there at 43. I read somewhere that Portland had made him a promise and that may have been enough to scare away teams. Rupert is definitely the steal of this draft for sure and I’m super excited. A+ grade from me overall.
I voted B as I think it's still possible Scoot is traded. The chances of teams making better/more serious offers for Scoot go up now, imo. I could see NO coming down on Zion or even Nets on Bridges. Murray and Walker will be interesting and I hope they both play in summer league.
Apparently, Portland had made him a promise of a multi-year contract and a legit shot at getting playing time and his agent was asking other teams not to Draft him. Glad it worked out. Schmitz obviously liked him, so I trust that, certainly at #43. Anything you get there is gravy.
Apparently, Hornet fans were NOT happy with the Miller selection. The mascot at the fan Draft party apparently hung his head in disappointment. Kupchak didn't seem too thrilled either.
Are we sure scoot is not related to flavor flave. I sure hope this is not a telfair do over. Would really like to be proven wrong.
Much less likely we trade Scoot. It would look bad those teams didn't believe in him from the start. Also Cronin talked super highly of Scoot. Once he signs his contract in the next few days he'll be playing with our summer league team. After seeing Cronin presser I think he will aim to trade Dame or Ant though.
Well this might impact Thybulle resigning with us. We shall see but honestly I’m fine if we don’t keep Thybulle.
Yeah he's ok as a 9/10th man defensive backup but not sure we really need that with our 3 kids next year. Probably better to use salary on something else
