With the 7th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, The Portland Trailblazers select. . .

College head coach No. 1 (his team played Tennessee) on Dalton Knecht: He was the best player in the SEC this year and best player we faced. He could do everything on the offensive end. He’s a three-level scorer. Very good passer. Creates his own shot. Has good positional size. Can see over the defense. Way more athletic in person than he appears on film. Really improved as a defender as the year went on. Went from a below average to an above average defender throughout the season.
– via New York Times

 

More on Holland
Eastern Conference executive No. 1: Shooting is a little sporadic, but when you’re as long and athletic as (he is), you can live with it. I saw him play well early. The problem was they had a very young team, and they got their ass kicked, and everyone was super critical.

Western Conference scout No. 1: Great upside. He is a high-level athlete. He’s fearless going to the basket. If you look at his free throw numbers, and you remember in the G League it’s only one to make two, unless it’s in the last two minutes, he gets to the foul line a lot. If it says seven times a game, then multiply that by two. It’s probably 14 foul shots a game. He’s an excellent finisher. He’s a defensive playmaker. He’ll block shots; he’ll get steals. Is he somewhat undisciplined in terms of going for steals and taking chances on defense? Yeah, but he makes plays. If, and it’s a huge if, if the 3-point shot becomes passable, he’ll be a superstar. But it’s a huge if. I don’t know what his work ethic is like. If I knew more about that, I’d be willing to make the bet. If it gets better, he has a chance to be a big, big-time player.

 

More on Knecht
Western Conference executive No. 1: He’s more accomplished right now, with more of a perimeter scorer with some driving. But he’s so old; he’s 23 now. All the analytics formulas, with the guys I’ve been around, they all favor younger players. Now, I think the guy’s done so much, he’s probably going to get into the late single digits. If the house fell in on him, he would be like, 10 or 11. I don’t see him going 15 or 18. That age is a big deal in a lot of these formulas. … Look at his improvement arc. Nobody wanted him coming out of high school. Goes to juco. Goes to Northern Colorado. This guy was coming off the bench for Northern Colorado. Then transfers up, which a lot of guys have a problem with, against stiffer competition. And he kills it from Day 1 in the SEC. The team gets to the final eight. I don’t know why he won’t come into the NBA and be able to score. He may not be able to guard. But he’ll be able to score. I think he’ll be better than Luke Kennard.

Eastern Conference executive No. 1: He’s going to be very good. He’s not great defensively, but he has gotten better. He’s got that drive to be really good. He can shoot the s— out of it. He needs to go to the right team. He’s gotten better defensively, but he’s a little locked in hip wise. Even though he’s athletic, laterally, he’s average. He’s a tough kid, and he’s driven, and those guys usually succeed. I’m not a big age guy. That doesn’t bother me. If a guy can play and he’s 23 or 24, I don’t give a s—. If you’re looking at a guy who’s 23 or 24, and you’re saying he needs to have better upside, I could see that. If he doesn’t have some upside, he is what he is and that’s it, I could see that. But if a guy’s 23 and he’s a player, forget that. I’m all over that. juco, then Northern Colorado, then went to Tennessee and just blew up. He is a worker. He’s driven as hell.

 

More on Williams
Western Conference executive No. 2: Maybe my glasses may be a little bit colored, because I’ve seen him so much. I’ve seen him in high school, AAU, at Colorado. He’s gotten better and better and better, and his body has filled out. And he’s shown more in his game at every step. No question this kid, I see him as a starter. In 16 to 24 months, I think he will be a full-time starter. Where are guys that are close to 6-9, that can (be) unselfish, see it, can deliver it, can handle it, can score it, and can defend now anywhere out on the floor? What am I missing here? And he’s a phenomenal, phenomenal human being. You’re preaching to the choir on this one, with him. You’ll note two or three instances in his games where you’re like, ‘I see that in an NBA game, every night, what he just did.’

Western Conference scout No. 2: He’s very talented. I think he’s one of those kids, just his instincts and his feel, he was one of those guys where, he was born to play basketball. I think the problem is, he’s just not an aggressive, tenacious type of competitor. He doesn’t have a lot of competitive energy, competitive juice. That’s why, when people see him, they’re like, ‘Ah, his size and length is intriguing, he can do so many different things.’ But from a competitive standpoint, he’s kind of lacking a little bit in that area. But he’s very talented. He is. There’s no question about that. And he’s still very young. So I’m not one to say I hate him. I do like his talent. I just wish he gave you a little more as far as the competitive motor and the competitive energy.

College assistant coach No. 1 (his team played Colorado): The talent is there, but he doesn’t display it enough. He’s not aggressive, like really just take over a game and be dominant. The size and the potential is there. He knows how to play. He reminds me of (Denver’s) Peyton Watson, but Watson didn’t really know how to play at the time. This kid knows how to play. He’s young, and he’s lanky. He’s still growing. You look at that stuff and it’s all good. But he needs to get in the weight room and get stronger. If you’ve got a team that’s willing to wait for him, he’s a good pick. If you’re trying to win … it’s kind of like (former Kentucky forward) Brandon Boston. I don’t know what his future is.

 

Tidjane Salaun | 6-9 wing/forward | 18 years old | Cholet
Eastern Conference executive No. 1: He’s a little bit of a late bloomer. He’s switching from being a post player into a wing. He’s really progressed at a very, very fast rate. He was very interesting in European competition as kind of a tweener four/five. Now he’s playing more like a four/three. He shoots this 3 and it’s like a moon ball. It looks like it’s going to come together, because he’s shooting a decent percentage. But when he shoots it, you’re like, damn. He gets a lot of air under it. But it looks good. He holds his followthrough. You can tell he reps it out. It’s not like it’s some broken shot. He guards. He has a motor. He wants to sort of dominate his competition. When he hits shots, he has a little more emotion.

Risacher is more flat-line, no real emotion, just does his job. This kid wants to dunk on you, scream at you. He wants to block your shot; he wants to talk s—. He’s got a little juice. For him, it’s developing consistency as a full-time wing player. But he’s grown, too. This dude is 6-10, a legit 6-10 wing. When you see it, these aren’t highlights. This is who he is. He comes in transition, he’s trying to dunk it. You throw a lob to him, he’s trying to do a chin-up. And he wants to play NBA basketball. Risacher, he’s going to be a European-style player playing in the NBA. Tidjane, he’s going to be like an NBA player playing in the NBA.



Western Conference executive No. 2: I have him, if it hits, in my opinion, he could be a lesser Tobias Harris. If it doesn’t, Kevin Knox. Somewhere in that ballpark, between those two. That 6-8 1/2, 6-9, rather float to the perimeter, shoot some jumpers, looks the part. You hope he has that nasty, that grit, that edge.

Western Conference executive No. 1: It’s not like college players, where they build on all these great games during the year. These young guys in Europe, you have to kind of pick and choose your spots when looking at them. I saw him in Atlanta at the NBA Academy games. He can score at all three levels. He can shoot 3s, he can get to the rim, he can get to the mid-range. Handles the ball in the open floor. Stats aren’t unbelievable, but he does have shooting. I’ve seen 7-1, 7-2 wingspan measurements. His sister is a pro player in France. Parents both played. I look at guys like this, I think he would have started for anybody in college, if he’d have been here. Can face you up, shoot, jab off the dribble, got a good offensive package, can spin in the lane. Defensively, needs a great deal of work. He can get in the passing lanes and he’s active, but he has to clean up his footwork. Will probably struggle defensively early on. But I think he’s moved to the late lottery. Salaun could be better (than Risacher) down the road. That’s not outside of the realm of possibility.

Eastern Conference executive No. 3: One, he plays harder (than Risacher). Two, his body is more ready. Salaun plays both ends of the court better than Risacher. Salaun is a power forward-type who can spread the floor. He’s got lift. He’s going to get a lot better (shooting) than he did this year. The French kids are a little more athletic than the kids in other parts of Europe. They can get used to the speed and quickness faster, because they have it. And they’re getting better coaching than they used to.

 

Nikola Djurišić | 6-7 wing | 20 years old | Mega
Western Conference executive No. 3: Liked him at the combine. One of those Serbian, hard-bodied (guys), and he’s athletic, too He’s kind of a scorer/shooter, but he plays sort of upright. I like him as much as (Nikola) Topić, who everybody tells me is going to be great. …Djurisic is more of an offensive scorer type. He can shoot it. He has a little wiggle to his game. It’s that kind of upright game. He plays hard, he’s tough as nails. I’m a bit of a fan. I don’t think Djurisic gets (taken) in the first round, though.

 

They like this guy
Tyler Smith | 6-9 wing/forward | 19 years old | G League Ignite
Eastern Conference executive No. 1: I think he’s going to be damned good. Long, active, and can shoot it. Athletic. He’s a year or two away, but he’s improved every year. He’s going to be a hell of a player.

Western Conference scout No. 1: He’s 19 years old right now. Good size, can really shoot the ball. Again, I don’t know what the work ethic is. He seems like a really nice young man. If you’re talking about NBA potential, he’s got great NBA potential. We talk about Dallas and Boston. In three years, if he’s 6-11 and 255, and can rebound, and you put him on the floor with Luka (Dončić) and Kyrie (Irving), now the floor is wide open for those dudes. Now, you’ve got a problem. His ability to shoot the basketball, his size, he’s still not 20 yet, gives me hope that this guy has a chance to be a really productive NBA player. Lefty shooter. If you compare him to (Duke’s) Kyle Filipowski, he’s a year younger, and he shot a higher percentage on 3s on a shot that’s a foot deeper than the college line. Strictly a pick-and-pop guy, ball mover. He’ll catch it, reverse it, run into a ball screen. But I don’t remember them posting him. But, still, you had to respect his ability to shoot the ball from the perimeter, respect the ability to pick and pop and even roll a little bit.

 

One of my favorites
Pacôme Dadiet | 6-8 wing | 18 years old | Ratiopharm Ulm
Western Conference executive No. 3: Legit 6-8 and shoots the s— easy. He’s not a handler/scorer type; he’s a catch-and-shoot, two-dribble kind of guy. Shoots it with range. He shoots the ball like he falls out of bed. Good dude. Good athlete; not elite. But in today’s game, guys will love him for his ability to make shots from the wing with size, defend a couple of positions, and be that sort of stretch guy. I do think next year you could put him on the floor, shoot some 3s and let him try to guard his guy.

Eastern Conference executive No. 2: Shot the ball really, really well in Treviso. I haven’t been all that high on him because a lot of the French kids that go to Germany, sometimes I think that’s kind of a red flag. But I don’t want to hold it against the kid. … toward the end of the year, he was playing more consistent minutes, against men. He was making shots. Not a lot after the catch and shoot. He’s got a little bit of game, can put it on the deck a little bit and create for himself. But not a great rebounder. Not a great defender. But he can score the ball. And he’s super young. So people are wondering, he’s not a finished product. If his defense improves, can he be an upside guy?

 

Here is a guy somebody mocked to Portland.second round
Trentyn Flowers | 6-7 wing | 19 years old | Adelaide
Eastern Conference executive No. 2: Had a rocky go in Australia. He’s aggressive, he’s big. A lot bigger than people remember when he left high school here. He’s aggressive. … He had to deprogram himself from AAU-type basketball. … he went to Chicago and he showed some things. He showed he’s athletic enough to play in the NBA. He showed he’s big enough to play in the NBA. But what is going to be his future position? Is he going to be a small forward-type slasher or is he a guy you’re going to be able to play extended minutes with others? He hasn’t shown that at the pro level yet. He does play with a little bit of a chip. When he’s playing in his age group, he’ll attack dudes. I hope, for his sake, that he gets into a nice fit. Anything they put in front of him (in Australia), he’d do it. He’ll work. He doesn’t think he’s bigger than that, or above that.

 

Another guy mocked to Portland,second round
Justin Edwards | 6-6 wing | 20 years old | Kentucky
College head coach No. 1 (his team played Kentucky): Could be a solid player down the road but has a ways to go. Strong body and good positional size. Doesn’t really have an offensive identity. Defensively, he improved as year went on, but needs to make another big jump to be a plus-defender at the next level.

 

Just listened to the latest Bill Simmons podcast with Russillo and their mock draft. They could barely get through because they were laughing so hard. They said there isn’t a player worthy of a top 10 pick….. so they have no clue what anybody is going to do. Said that there is no way these GMs know what they’re going to do either. Said Tre Murphy would be the #1 pick if available. Basically is there a player in this draft that is going to be better than Tre and they said HELL NO.

 

Rinse and repeat. Didn't you make this same post just last week? All of your posts sound the same. Might want to mix it up.

 

It would be very improbable statistically for that to be true. Trey Murphy is what, a 15 ppg, 16 PER player with 0 DBPM (basically, does not add, does not subtract on defense) in the entire draft class. That's an average started in the league. That just does not make sense. There is a reason Bill Simmons is being paid the big money for his content but does not get paid big money for his basketball acumen. If there is a draft-class vs. Trey Murphy bet out there, I would put money on the field every day of the week and twice on Tuesday?

 

You might wanna make your TV and destructible at the draft or you just might be buying a new one then.

 

Bill Simmons really does know jack about squat. I wish he'd just stuck with writing his draft diary and that's it - that was when he was actually funny. And I remember him being over the moon about the Celtics picking Ron Mercer (three picks ahead of Tracy McGrady) just to give you an idea of his talent evaluation acumen.

 

Guy has been on repeat with this drivel for months now. It's his niche.

 

My view: trade up for one of the two UConn guys, or, if that fails, trade down and take guys like Scheierman or Missi or Dunn. If I could convert our two first-rounders into ten second rounders I probably would, because I think you'd have a better chance at hitting that way.

 

I just want us to trade up from 14 and get both Cody and Salaun with 7 and whatever pick we need to trade up for to get both. I think that's doable and it gives us our roster of the future to develop. Also get rid of Ant, Jerami and Malcolm before camp. Draft an upperclassmen with experience to back up Scoot with 34 or use 34 and 40 to trade up and get the same type of guy.