We got the #3 pick. Discuss the possibilities. (9 Viewers)

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What are you hoping for with this pick?

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Pinwheel1 said:
I will say that DDR has not looked like he has slowed down. Maybe because he is less reliant on athleticism compared to most. I do hate giving up Ant for a 34-year old though

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His ability to get contact and go to the line is otherworldly. His midrange is lethal. It's about adding difference makers this offseason. DeRozan is one of those players. Ant is a nice player, but he just doesn't offer enough outside of his shot. He's not a PG. On this Blazers team, i think Ant's best position would be as 6th Man .
 
tykendo said:
His ability to get contact and go to the line is otherworldly. His midrange is lethal. It's about adding difference makers this offseason. DeRozan is one of those players. Ant is a nice player, but he just doesn't offer enough outside of his shot. He's not a PG. On this Blazers team, i think Ant's best position would be as 6th Man .
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It would be fun to watch for............ 1 year
 
Pinwheel1 said:
I will say that DDR has not looked like he has slowed down. Maybe because he is less reliant on athleticism compared to most. I do hate giving up Ant for a 34-year old though

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I think he still has 3 maybe 4 good years left in the tank.
 
Pinwheel1 said:
It would be fun to watch for............ 1 year
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With today's conditioning & nutrition, players can be productive at a higher level for lengthier periods of their careers. Not many are out their smoking heaters after practice . Injuries are the main reason for shorter primes today.
 
Mediocre Man said:
I only worry about competition
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The competition thing itself can be a red herring. A player can be a star at the highest level of college competition and it might not mean anything.
That's the job of a guy like Mike Schmitz to figure out.
Luka Garza's awards in college competition:
 
wizenheimer said:
yeah, I think if Orlando wanted the 3 bad enough they might be willing to trade 6+Wagner for it. It's probably a long shot though. I'm not sure if the 23 would be needed to grease the wheels of the trade. They are already loaded up with guys on rookie scale deals. Cole Anthony, Suggs, and Panchero will all be due for extensions in a 2 year period; adding 3 more players including two lottery picks due for extension a year later might be overload.

so they might be more interested in a future first than the 23. By the way, Blazers could absorb Wagner into their TPE so they wouldn't need to send Little. I'm fine with Little being part of the trade though as it would preserve the TPE

I want Dame to stay and I'm positive he won't be traded unless he asks out and I think the chances of him asking out have steadily decreased over the last couple of months. So I won't worry about scenarios where Dame is traded, I'll leave that to others here...

but when you start hypothetically constructing 'realistic' rosters after the draft and into the off-season, I think any roster that has Ant as the starting SG and the 2nd or 3rd option immediately fails. If your scenario panned out, he'd be standing in the way of Sharpe and Amen/Ausur/Whitmore (I'm more intrigued by Whitmore than either of the Thompson twins). Last off-season, I was more than willing to give the Dame/Ant combo a chance to prove it wouldn't be a rinse/repeat of Dame/CJ. But one year was enough to convince me it not only would be a repeat, it might even be worse because Ant is so fucking bad at defense...Nolan Smith level defense

so I want him moved and without the 3rd pick as leverage I don't see a lot of realistic targets. I know you don't like the idea of DeRozan, and I'll admit my main attraction for an Ant/DDR trade is for Portland to get all their 1st's back, maybe without giving up 23, But I also think DDR is a better player, by quite a margin. He's not a good defender but he's a lot better than Ant. And unlike Ant, DDR is a wing, versatile enough to switch between SG/SF; and he's much much better at running an offense. And it may give Portland that future 1st to grease the wheels of the Orlando trade

Dame
DDR
Grant
Wagner
Nurkic?

with the youth of Sharpe + Thompson/Whitmore + Watford (only 22) waiting in the wings and 1st off the bench; as well as Thybulle for defense; maybe Eubanks for hustle and energy; maybe a 23rd pick; maybe Knox for shooting. And that could still leave the MLE, BAE, TPE for additional help
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I tend to think of Whitmore is too tunnel vision-y for my liking. There are reasons to like him though and I actually think there’s a solid chance Whitmore pushes Amen out of the top 4. I just feel like the twins have a higher ceiling.

In regards to Ant, I think it’s important for Ausar and especially Amen to play with shooters. Between Sharpe, Ant, Dame, Grant, maybe even Watford and/or Nurk, there’s enough guys that one of them can kick it out to.

Demar is 34 and still played 36mpg last season. I’d rather Sharpe gets his 25-30 mpg and Amen to get 15-20 mpg and let the young develop. I don’t watch enough DDR, so I’ll take your word for it that he’d make us a better team. But at best, I think the improvement will be marginal and we still wouldn’t be a contending team. I’ve seen enough from Eubanks to know he won’t ever be more than a good third string big on a good team. Knox had a couple good games. Despite those good shooting games, he still averaged 31.4% from 3.
 
BankTeller said:
I tend to think of Whitmore is too tunnel vision-y for my liking. There are reasons to like him though and I actually think there’s a solid chance Whitmore pushes Amen out of the top 4. I just feel like the twins have a higher ceiling.

In regards to Ant, I think it’s important for Ausar and especially Amen to play with shooters. Between Sharpe, Ant, Dame, Grant, maybe even Watford and/or Nurk, there’s enough guys that one of them can kick it out to.

Demar is 34 and still played 36mpg last season. I’d rather Sharpe gets his 25-30 mpg and Amen to get 15-20 mpg and let the young develop. I don’t watch enough DDR, so I’ll take your word for it that he’d make us a better team. But at best, I think the improvement will be marginal and we still wouldn’t be a contending team. I’ve seen enough from Eubanks to know he won’t ever be more than a good third string big on a good team. Knox had a couple good games. Despite those good shooting games, he still averaged 31.4% from 3.
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There isn't much discussion about the playmaking and unselfishness of Amen and Ausar Thompson. All the discussion is about their lack of shooting.

To me, the Blazers desperately need a high-level playmaker who will push the ball up the court, for Shaedon Sharpe, and by extension, the Trail Blazers, to reach their potential.
We saw a glimpse of that with Watford starting in place of Jerami Grant, and Sharpe starting in Simons' place in the last "real" game, the victory in Utah on March 22.
I wish we could have seen more of that group play together.

Adding another shooter like Demar Derozen or Brandon Miller will certainly make the Blazers better, but I don't see them pushing the team into another level.
 
Mediocre Man said:
I only worry about competition
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At some point, players play enough to show that their past competition doesn’t matter. We all were only able to evaluate Shae from high school tapes from almost a year prior to the draft. I knew he was a lob threat and would be a crazy off ball shot blocker, but I also saw an advanced offensive game for someone his age. In Amen, his mind to process the game and pass the ball doesn’t just go away as he goes up a level in competition. From what I’ve been hearing surfing YT, OTE runs NBA-style sets as oppose to NCAA and they use the NBA 3pt line. I haven’t watched much OTE to confirm the first thing was true. If either twin lands here, it’ll be because Schmitz wanted him here. Trust in Schmitz.

Both twins also not rail thin. They’re both 6’7 in shoes and sub 210 lbs. In their prime, they’ll probably be 235 lbs. With their physical gifts, they’ll eventually get to the point where they’ll be so physically imposing, especially if they were playing PG. Imagine one of the 6’7 Thompsons playing the smallest position on the court, then playing beside Shae and two other 6’7-6’9 wings. NOP found Jones and Murphy in the same draft.

In the modern NBA, multiple guys on a team need to be switchable and consistently play defense across multiple positions, and do different things. It doesn’t hurt for start either twin off cutting and playing disciplined defense while they play with Dame. Then allow them to work on their playmaking, feed them a PnR or two with Nurk per night and give them small spurts as the decision maker playing alongside Ant and Sharpe.

HOU fans have been talking about how Amen and Jalen would be the most athletic backcourt in the league. I think Sharpe and Amen could become be most physically imposing backcourt in the league on both ends. Amen’s playmaking combined with Shae’s shotmaking, both can eventually lock up either opposing guy in the backcourt. They would compliment each other well.
 
Both twins also not rail thin. They’re both 6’7 in shoes and sub 210 lbs. In their prime, they’ll probably be 235 lbs. With their physical gifts, they’ll eventually get to the point where they’ll be so physically imposing, especially if they were playing PG. Imagine one of the 6’7 Thompsons playing the smallest position on the court, then playing beside Shae and two other 6’7-6’9 wings. NOP found Jones and Murphy in the same draft.

The second iteration of the champion Jordan Bulls had 6'6" Ron Harper and 6'6" Michael Jordan as the starting backcourt.
The 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 Lakers had a starting backcourt of 6'6" Ron Harper and 6'6" Kobe Bryant (for part of the 00-01 season.)

Harper was not an efficient scorer on either of those teams.

Chauncey Billups wants a big point-of-attack defender. He's been using Jerami Grant, which hasn't been working out. Grant is better suited as a help defender. He's not good at navigating screens.
 
Mediocre Man said:
Just a worry
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It's a worry, but like Weber State for Dame, and Davidson for Steph Curry, there can be advantages to playing outside a top college program.
For the Thompson twins, the fast pace that might seen to be rat ball or no defense ball, enabled them to work on quick decision-making over their seasons with Overtime Elite.
Being able to make quick decisions is an important skill for the faster NBA. The longer you take (a-la Cam Whitmore) the more time the defense has to get into position.
 
blazerfan11 said:
Both twins also not rail thin. They’re both 6’7 in shoes and sub 210 lbs. In their prime, they’ll probably be 235 lbs. With their physical gifts, they’ll eventually get to the point where they’ll be so physically imposing, especially if they were playing PG. Imagine one of the 6’7 Thompsons playing the smallest position on the court, then playing beside Shae and two other 6’7-6’9 wings. NOP found Jones and Murphy in the same draft.

The second iteration of the champion Jordan Bulls had 6'6" Ron Harper and 6'6" Michael Jordan as the starting backcourt.
The 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 Lakers had a starting backcourt of 6'6" Ron Harper and 6'6" Kobe Bryant (for part of the 00-01 season.)

Harper was not an efficient scorer on either of those teams.

Chauncey Billups wants a big point-of-attack defender. He's been using Jerami Grant, which hasn't been working out. Grant is better suited as a help defender. He's not good at navigating screens.
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That’s the pairing I see in Shae and Amen, except I think Amen will be a career average 8apg and be an even better defender than Harper.
 
Amen shot 53% on ft's and that concerns me that he may never develop a decent shot/midrange game.
 
Hoopguru said:
Amen shot 53% on ft's and that concerns me that he may never develop a decent shot/midrange game.
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I’ve always thought Nas’ shot was worse. Nas isn’t a consistent shooter, but if Amen ever became a Nas level shooter, he’ll be an AS eventually.
 
wizenheimer said:
I have a hard time understanding how people get so convinced, confident, and sold on one prospect or another they start posting like his agent
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Right? And then a few years go by and most of these guys, including lotto picks end up being not very good anyway.
 
Pinwheel1 said:
I will say that DDR has not looked like he has slowed down. Maybe because he is less reliant on athleticism compared to most. I do hate giving up Ant for a 34-year old though

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ted-lasso-coach-beard.gif
 
BonesJones said:
Not every player can be taught how to shoot. But no one can be taught to a combination of a 6'6 height, 7'0 wingspan, elite first step, elite vertical, shiftiness, and quick processing speed.
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Sure he like all NBA players have given talent, and he is very athletic. But if he is such a quick processor, why can't he figure out to shoot free throws? No excuse for it at all, at this point. Even you could shoot better than he can...
 
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Highkin interviewed a dude on his podcast last Wed and his best player list goes like

Wemby
Scoot
Amen
Whitmore
Miller
Forgot who he had at 6
Ausar

Said he won't be surprised if Ausar ended uo being the better twin despite his ranking

Said Amen more athletic than Sharpe
 
Rastapopoulos said:
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One of the best video's i've seen as far as breaking down the talent.

After watching, these are a few of the players that got my attention.

Cam Whitmore - reminds me of Calvin Natt. The way he shoots it in traffic & his release.

Cason Wallace - Man! I like everything i see in this guy. Now this is a defender. And can he shoot. What an easy and beautiful release on his shot. This is a guy i would really like the Blazers to draft if he falls to #23.

Derrick Lively - Plain and simple, looks & plays like Jarrett Allen.

Brice Sensabaugh - Reminds me of Mark Aguirre. Youngsters in here will have to look him up, but he was an outstanding pro. Great scorer in Dallas , and great, key , role player with the Bad Boys Detroit Pistons , winning 2 titles with them.

Kris Murray - Has a beautiful release on his shot, and looks like the kind of dead eye shooter the Blazers need off the bench. I think he can contribute , right away , as a pro.


I only looked a few picks past our pick at #23. But these are the guys who stood out to me, that weren't the usual players being talked about. I will say Wemby looks amazing. Damn! Not sure on Scoot, Miller or Amen. Scoot and Amen are incredible athletes, but all i see is dunks. That being said, both Scoot and Amen look to be elite finishers at the hoop. I dig that. They've got the hype though. Miller wasn't rated as high on this gentlemen's list. But he sure can shoot, and has the length to be a good defender.
 
tykendo said:
One of the best video's i've seen as far as breaking down the talent.

After watching, these are a few of the players that got my attention.

Cam Whitmore - reminds me of Calvin Natt. The way he shoots it in traffic & his release.

Cason Wallace - Man! I like everything i see in this guy. Now this is a defender. And can he shoot. What an easy and beautiful release on his shot. This is a guy i would really like the Blazers to draft if he falls to #23.

Derrick Lively - Plain and simple, looks & plays like Jarrett Allen.

Brice Sensabaugh - Reminds me of Mark Aguirre. Youngsters in here will have to look him up, but he was an outstanding pro. Great scorer in Dallas , and great, key , role player with the Bad Boys Detroit Pistons , winning 2 titles with them.

Kris Murray - Has a beautiful release on his shot, and looks like the kind of dead eye shooter the Blazers need off the bench. I think he can contribute , right away , as a pro.


I only looked a few picks past our pick at #23. But these are the guys who stood out to me, that weren't the usual players being talked about. I will say Wemby looks amazing. Damn! Not sure on Scoot, Miller or Amen. Scoot and Amen are incredible athletes, but all i see is dunks. That being said, both Scoot and Amen look to be elite finishers at the hoop. I dig that. They've got the hype though. Miller wasn't rated as high on this gentlemen's list. But he sure can shoot, and has the length to be a good defender.
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I was not at all on the Murray hype last offseason, not that high. I haven’t watched any of Kris but how does he compare to Keegan? I still don’t think he was going to star, but his ability to impact the game even in his rookie year was impressive. All the guys I wanted in the NYK range seem to all be out of reach. After Hendricks, Leonard Miller, and Lively moved up, I’m left without any guys I like in that range.

Is Kris good enough to come in and be an immediate impact shooter right away? He doesn’t have the upside I want, but I don’t mind him if he is able to play right away as a backup SF. If he is even a high 30% shooter, we’ll have him locked up for a while. Amen/Sharpe/Murray with Murray guarding the worst perimeter player on defense would make for a good lineup, as all of these guys would compliment each other well on defense.

Haven’t watched any Kris Murray and don’t plan to, but if he lands here, I’ll be rooting for him. How does he compare to Murray?
 
BonesJones said:
Not every player can be taught how to shoot. But no one can be taught to a combination of a 6'6 height, 7'0 wingspan, elite first step, elite vertical, shiftiness, and quick processing speed.
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Not to mention the possibilities of constructing a roster post-Dame if he pans out. If everything about Amen’s work ethic is true, having Dame around for a few years will help him develop. I have no doubt one year with CP3 only helped SGA develop as a player, I think being around Dame would set him up to be the unquestioned leader in the post-Dame era.

Schmitz would have an infinitely easier time constructing a team around Amen and Sharpe down the line. Schmitz just needs to find the BPA available every year. The dream would be to have 2 two-way forwards next to our AS backcourt, but if the BPA is an elite shooting PG who isn’t great on defense, building the foundation to an elite defense around AS will help erase defensive lapses. Amen and Shae have the potential to become a bigger version of Harper and Jordan but can also become a better version of Brown and Tatum.

In five years, I don’t know who I think will be our #1 player. Shae might end up being the better overall player due to his ability to play both sides combined with his ability to score at all three levels. However, Amen could end up being Steph to Shae’s KD because he’s the team’s culture setter and is a true floor general at damn near Magic’s size. Amen is the only guy in this draft oustide of Wemby I feel about. I think Shae is clearly our #1 over Miller, Whitmore, Walker, even Scoot.
 
Natebishop3 said:
This seems fair to me.

Celtics get Dame to pair up with Tatum.
Rockets get Brown to pair up with Harden (if he signs)
We get the 4th pick so we can take one of Miller/Scoot and Amen. We also get Jabari Smith Jr to put with our young core.
We can also flip Simons/Nurk and maybe even Grant in a sign and trade.

Amen
Sharpe
Miller
Smith Jr
???

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I know Dame won’t be gone, but this is a fun trade that I’ll entertain. I would trade down with ORL and try and nab Franz. #3 and Nas for Franz and #11. Between #11, #23, and #43, we have enough assets to end up with Lively by the end of the night and get our 1st back from HOU as well.

Amen/Sharpe/Franz/JSJ/Lively is the lineup I see in a few years. But we’d still have Ant and Nurk. I think that keeping Ant actually accelerates our rebuild. I would find a way to dump Nurk and throw a good stack at Lopez to be out starting C.

Ant/Amen/Mays
Shae/KPJ/Thybulle/Mays
Franz/Amen/Nas
JSJ/Franz/Watford/Walker
Lopez/Lively/_____

I think with Dame gone, Ant trends towards the numbers he puts up when he starts without Dame again. When Amen comes in, surround him with Ant, Shae, JSJ/Wagner, and Lopez. Will Franz become a more consistent shooter where Amen, Sharpe, Franz, JSJ, and Lopez could be lethal? I think it may. I wouldn’t tank with this roster, I would just see where we can get with them.

I could root for that team for all 82 games. I have a sneaky suspicion this team could win a play-in game or two. I think we could be a better version of OKC this year. With two future BOS 1sts + all of our own, we could combine them with any of Ant, JSJ, Lopez, Watford, or Walker to grab the next best star who would fit the team. Maybe one day a two way player like Mobley or Tatum becomes available, we would have the pieces to push our chips to the middle to find a fit with Amen, Shae, and Franz.
 
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