#1 Lonzo Ball
#2 Caleb Swanigan, Purdue (reminds us of Charles Barkley)
#3 Jarrett Allen, Texas Center with 7'5 wingspan
#4 Josh Jackson
#5 Jayson Tatum
#6 Johnathan Isaac, Florida St
#7 Frank Ntilikina, PG, Strasbourg Europe, 18.5 yrs old
#8 Alexander Vezenkov, reminds us of Manu Ginobili
#9 Markelle Fultz
#10 Zach Collins
#11 Dedric Lawson, Memphis, 20 yr old G
#12 Josh Hart, Villanova senior
#13 Monte Morris, Iowa State
#14 Luke Kennard
#15 Jawun Evans
#16 Bam Adebayo
#17 Lauri Markkanen
#18 Kennedy Meeks, North Carolina
#19 Tyler Lydon, Syracuse
#20 Justin Patton, C, Crieghton
#21 TJ Leaf, UCLA Forward
#22 Tyler Davis, Texas A&M
#23 Eric Mica, BYU Fwd, 6'9
#24 Amile Jefferson, Duke senior
#25 Jordan Bell, Oregon Junior
We don't have any more on this draft board, bc we think there isn't much point after about 20-30 guys each draft. While we will DEFINITELY forget some guys who should be on the list, guys who will work hard to earn a spot in the NBA, we are going on the past not the future. We wish ALL prospects good luck, and hope you all work hard at your jobs.
Surely unique! Swanigan's game does not seem to me to translate to today's NBA, but i suppose we shall see!
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
How so, specifically?
His main skill is rebounding; the consensus is that rebounding is the most transferable skill from college to pro.
It's not his ONLY skill tho, as obviously he's the rare big guy who can shoot, but even MORE importantly his being outside the paint didn't affect his rebounding-- unlike say Lauri Markkanen who's 7 feet tall.
The other knock is his defense outside the paint, but I've found that kind of criticism to be faulty. For one thing, defense is VERY difficult to measure in any sport. Remember if you're a great defender (Right fielder with a cannon arm, or lockdown cornerback) it's most times intangible, due to fact offenses change their schemes away from you. But in football for instance, the world's greatest cornerback IS taking the other team's best WR away from them, so it trickles down right?
Swanigan has the best intangible, insatiable drive. You simply don't go from 400 pound 8th grader to a sophomore in competition for the Wooden Award without some serious drive. What we like best about him was his massive improvement from freshmen to sophomore year. Compare this to the crapshoot of taking freshmen who many times just had a rogue good year in college bc other coaches weren't paying much attention. Ironically, while we like Zach Collins a lot, he wasn't even starting, so REALLY a MUCH MUCH bigger chance of bust than Swanigan. It's very fun they will be competing directly for minutes with each other in Portland, and Portland has that hole in their lineup right where they both live. Hats off to Portland GM!
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Already wishing I had put Jordan Bell 8th on this list, after his Summer League play-- not sure why I didn't rank him higher from the get-go... oversight.
I might have underranked Swanigan, at least in the next couple years anyway. While Lonzo might have ultimate higher upside from about year 5 onwards, Swanigan could have IMMEDIATE upside due to rebounding being probably the easiest transition stat from college to pro ball. Swanigan is an absolute boards-monger. Also helps he can shoot, dribble a bit, and is solid in his positioning both offensively and defensively. Will be VERY interesting to see if he starts for Portland in the Fall at the PF position where he'd do the most damage.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit