Never heard of some site called 12 up. And the guy who wrote the list looks like he still lives at home in his mom's basement.
So someone on Facebook no one has heard of says the Blazers are losers? There are things I might lose sleep over. This is not one of them.
We won't know until couple years from now. If anyone them ends up in the rotation sometime in the season then it will be good if both of them ends up in rotation then it really good draft. But I will wait and see and support the 2 youngster.
I was unhappy at the time, but no team picking at 24 is even in a position to be a "biggest loser". If they miss out on an epic prospect, THEN SO HAVE THE TEAMS PICKING 1-23!
These guys at CBS had a different opinion, surprised me actually. TRAIL BLAZERS 24. Anfernee Simons | IMG Academy | SG | 6-3 | 183 37. Gary Trent Jr. | Duke | Fr | SG | 6-6 | 204 (via trade with Kings) As if the Trail Blazers' backcourt needed more firepower, the addition of Gary Trent Jr. gives them a bench weapon to deploy as a 3-point assassin immediately. Portland was already on track for a great grade after taking Anfernee Simons, a raw high school aged talent, at 24th overall. Grade: B-
Ringer: 24. Portland Trail Blazers: Anfernee Simons, SG, IMG Academy Forget the international players. Simons is the real mystery man in this year’s draft. He declared for the draft after his fifth year of high school, and he didn’t compete in any of the all-star games against the top players in next year’s freshman class. Simons, an athletic combo guard with a projectable outside shot, certainly has talent, but he seems all but certain to spend the next few seasons in the G League. Grade: B
NBAdraft.net gave an A. Portland came away from the draft with a pair of 19 year old guards with some real upside. Anfernee Simons is a long armed combo guard with a good set of skills in place, and Gary Trent Jr., who was acquired from Sacramento in a draft day trade, is a tough as nails sharp shooter who surprised some folks at the combine in terms of showcasing his athletic ability. He'll need to work on passing and defense. Going to a team with a history of developing young guards, these two truly have a good shot at turning into solid players with the tutelage and daily competition of Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum. Two of our favorite picks in the late first/early second round deserves an A.
Yahoo: Portland Trail Blazers: "C" Anfernee Simons is an enigma in that he didn’t play college basketball after decommitting from scandal-marred Louisville. A great athlete who can shoot a little bit and get to the bucket, Simons is a three-year project who can develop behind Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum. In the second round, Portland got a fine wing in Duke’s Gary Trent Jr., a burly scorer who understands how to use his frame and get to his spots.
Bleacher report: Portland Trail Blazers Head-Scratchers Layne Murdoch/Getty Images The Portland Trail Blazers finished the 2017-18 season as the No. 3 seed. They have the pieces in place to compete with the existing roster but decided to draft two players who cannot immediately fill needy roles or advance this team further in the postseason. The Blazers should have targeted a versatile defender capable of guarding multiple positions or added a pass-first guard to the backcourt for depth. Portland selected Anfernee Simons at No. 24 out of IMG Academy. He may develop into a decent contributor, but what can he do to push this squad forward in the upcoming campaign? The 19-year-old takes a leap from organized high school basketball to the NBA. It's going to take time to figure out where he fits in the lineup rotations. The Blazers acquired Gary Trent Jr. in a trade with the Sacramento Kings. He could add to the team's ability to score, especially beyond the arc, but it's not an area where the roster struggled during the previous campaign. Portland ranked 16th in three-point makes and 11th in percentages behind the line. Secondly, the roster needs a quality passer who could play alongside elite scorers Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum when they are not sharing the court. Did the Blazers swing and miss on their picks? Time will tell, but they could have done better with their decisions Thursday.
SI: 24. PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS: ANFERNEE SIMONS, IMG ACADEMY While Simons is certainly talented and is a worthwhile stash for the Trail Blazers, this pick comes as a surprise and perhaps an attempt to preserve roster flexibility given that Portland’s cap situation is so tight. He will be a long-term project and needs to spend time in the G League. Given that the Blazers have no G League affiliate, he will need to be sent to another team’s development program and be carefully placed into a situation that makes sense for him to gain seasoning. This could prove to be shrewd by the time Simons is 23, but also may wind up as an unnecessary risk given the others on the board. Grade: C-
I seem to recall the Blazers getting A’s for picking Greg Oden. So, yeah, these things mean a whole big bunch.
I wrote this in another thread. I'll repeat myself here: I looked at 2 NBA draft grade websites for last year's draft. Two of the 4 or 5 losers on both websites were Portland for taking Collins and Boston for moving down and taking Jason Tatum. I think we can safely ignore draft grade websites. /end thread.
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