Early, Early Top 10

Durant & Oden= no brainers…Yi Ji if we keep 3 or lower…Wright is the trade value guy and Thornton/Green most ready to go in top 10….having our post guy and point means at 3 or lower we can deal from strength…teams will kill to get Conely,Wright,Horford etc…great year to pick top 2 and trade 3 on down

“I’m NOT taking team needs into consideration”…..But, Oh Jeff,…You sure are when you place Oden #1. Durant’s game is far more advanced than Oden’s hence his selection (as a freshman) as “Player of the Year”! Oden has POTENTIAL but Durant has game.

For reasons that you already mentioned, Oden may provide the “glue” that this team NEEDS but Durant presently has more “game”. As for your other choices, quite reasonable EXCEPT Hibbert, Hawes and Splitter might displace some of your other “top-ten” because of team NEEDS. As in all drafts the LURE of “potential” often has more weight than demonstrated “production” and questions always remain about college production versus NBA “potential” with some scouts DARING to predict that a certain player will make a better pro than he was a college performer (as in the case of Michael Jordan and many others who needed "seasoning").

I think Conley fits in your “top-ten” but appart from his speed, court awareness, handles, penetrating ability etc. he lacks a perimeter game which raises questions about his “elite” status.

By omission, there still remains many excellent players not on your list which only confirms that this is a vvery deep draft.

I’m with you Jeff, almost across the board. If this were Danny’s top ten, you might need to put Al Thornton in at #5. Yes, we have too many SFs, but i’ve got a hunch he has a major crush…

Nice work Jeffery, but I would put Hibbert in the top 10.

While the “masses” tout DEFENSE over OFFENSE in reality you need BOTH. This team is being built around Pierce and we already know what can happen when Pierce is out for an extended period. Who will pick up the slack when he’s not playing? Will Pierce’s skills diminish as he ages? Is Gerald ready? What better replacement than Durant, far more PREDICTABLE than Gerald.

The presumption that Oden is the more necessary player is based on this team’s present condition. We’re a Ratliff-like player away from correcting our INSIDE woes but a Durant-type player only comes along every ten years too, a label presently attached to Oden.

I just don’t believe that the choice betwen Oden and Durant is as SIMPLE as most analysts and boggers seem to believe. MUch about a team’s BALANCE can change with new additions and maturization of present players. Why can’t Powe become another Silas? etc…..

While the UNIVERSAL cry seems to be for Oden, the heir apparent for the Celtics of the future might be Durant (not Gerald Green). Great players have the potential to be great on “both sides of the ball”, offensively and defensively. This could equally apply to Oden and Durant. I guess I stand ALONE believing that the choice between Oden and Durant is NOT 66/33 but more like 50/P.

Food for thought. Virtually EVERYONE believes that this is an especially DEEP draft, full of “potentially” good to great talent with the possibilities that more than one future star may emerge, apart from Oden and Durant.

From this TALENTED pool of players, Durant stands alone as “College Player of the Year”. The ONLY FRESHMAN to ever achieve this honor!

Yet draft pundits, hoping for a reincarnation of Bill Russell, rate Oden as the better TARGET? Whew!

Hibbert, Hawes and Splitter would all be in my top ten. Noah, Jeff Green and Julian Wright would not. I loved Julian Wright earlier in the year, but he didn’t show me much in the NCAA tournament. Brandon Rush is a better player.

It will be interesting to see how the “no private workout” rule affects this draft. Will agents schedule more open workouts before the pre-draft camp in Orlando? Will more players actually play in Orlando? My guess would be yes to the first question, no to the second.

Hey, Moskqq, I’m with you. Durant is my top choice, especialy “taking the Celts needs into consideration”. In fact I believe that in two years Durant will play PF and could provide a terrific front line along with Al. But nobody seems to think the same, so maybe I’m wrong.
I would pick Corey Brewer over J. Wright and Hibbert over Noah.
Jeff, be sure Tiago Splitter doesn’t crack your top 10 (or even top 30) prospects: I’ve been watching him 30/40 times and he’s the most overrated prospect ever seen. Let’s hope that the Celts, if somehow they trade down, don’t pick him!

I’ll be interested to see how these guys measure out at the Orlando physicals. Thats always when the 6-10 guys become 6-8 and the 6-8 guys are really 6-6. But reach and wingspan are always important. During the Big 12 tourney, I saw Durant standing next to Julian Wright and he was way taller. He’s really long with an impressive wingspan.
     I see alot of teams making a lot of moves this year. There’s a number of teams that feel they are really close to a championship.

I think Oden is the top pick in this draft. You put him down low, with Al at the 4 and you have a nice 1-2 punch down there. They have enough offense, need more D. What is going to be interesting is who they take with their 2nd round pick. A lot of seniors are going to be falling. Could get a nice player at that spot with experience, which is what they need more than anything!

why are we takling 10 players when we draft only once in the first round and its assured no less than no.5.

Oden, Durant, if top 2, then i guess Yi will be taken by danny at no.3 if that is where the C’s land…Horford will be no.4 but no.5 will be difficult, this is were the workouts would have to come in the picture.

You need more than 5 players because a trade could happen. The Celtics could trade down, or trade into the latter part of the first round, as they did last year to get Rondo. For example, we’ve previously discussed that all three of Phoenix’ picks are going to be for sale.

Thanks Eurofan for the comment on Splitter. Nice to hear a comment from someone who has seen a guy 30-40 times. I haven’t seen him but he just smells like a bust. My worry is with the ping pong balls but my faith is in Danny & Co. They will get us an impact player. Build through the draft. Do not trade the pick even if 3-4.

While even Tommy admits that it takes (on average) 5 years for centers and PGs to find their game, I’ve been reading college commentary about Oden and Durant. The often mention comment about Oden was that he was “Mr. EVERYTHING” in high school but considering his high school hype, somewhat of a disappointment in college. Some of that negativity is attributed to his wrist injury, much is said about his defense and playing time due to being “foul prone”.

If he had a breakout game, it was probably against Florida in the playoffs when he had 25pts. and 12 rebounds (in a losing effort). By contrast, Durant’s best game was a 37pt., 23 rebound performance against Texas Tech.

I was pleasantly shocked to see that Durant’s shooting performance at the foul line was 84.6% with a college scoring average of 23.8 ppg, 10.9 reb/g, 1.9 blocks/game and 1.5 steals/game. He certainly could fill the stat sheet.

By contrast, while surrounded by more talent than Durant, Oden averaged 15.7 ppg, 9.6 rpg, but shot 61.6% (mostly dunks etc. inside).

One commentary on Oden criticized him for not taking-over games considering his great athleticism and size. Another negative commentary on Durant said that he was prone to be a bit “streaky” as a shooter.

Durant was the man on his college team whereas Oden was a star among many stars on his Ohio State team with some analysts naming Conley as the MVP (like Oden, a MacDonald’s All Star).

In the last analysis, comparing Oden to Durant reflects back to high school dominance (by Oden) and the LURE of what “could be” given NBA seasoning contrasted with the provacative appeal of Durant, a DOMINANT college player, and the concern that Durant either has reached his peak or may not be able to equal his collegiate performance at the NBA level.

As in most draft day decisions, potential is overweighted because the most important component “intangibles” is so difficult to define.

I want the Celtics to get a known player. I really don’t wan them to get the Chinese guy. What a disapointment that would be. Who knows if the guy can play. Who knows what his army commitments are or getting out of his contract. How does he adjust to living in the US? What about the language? UGH

moskqq, a good question though would be if there was no Durant, would Oden (as a freshman) have been the player of the year?

Its so difficult to talk about these things in isolation. Who we draft is also linked to possible trades, the coaching question, how Tony Allen’s recovery is progressing, whether the team thinks Al could play center, and (last but not least) what season ticket sales have been like so far.

i think that another player you are going to see move in to the top 10 is Javaris Crittenton.

He is a 6-5 true PG. he has great penetration skills and court vision.

To be clear I love both Durant and Oden and will be praying we can get one of them. I gotta say that I think moskqq is being a little too hard on Oden. Oden’s game against Florida was one for the ages in which he singlehandedly kept an awful shooting buckeyes in the game against the soon to be two time NCAA champs. Not only did he go up against 3 future nba players (Noah, Horford, and Richards) but he absolutely dominated them, putting each into foul trouble. Again, not to take anything away from Durant, I think he’ll be a force in the nba, but he probably couldn’t have played through the wrist injury the way Oden did. Taking into account that Oden’s body is NBA ready while Durant needs about 20-30 pounds of muscle added, and I thinks it’s not hard to understand why Oden is viewed as the number one pick

No, Crittendon came out too early and will likely withdraw. Inconsistent shot, lack of maturity, overdribbles. He looked bad in the tournament, as Georgia Tech was knocked out by UNLV in the round of 64.

He needs at least one more year of seasoning.

Well, I’m entitled to guess at the answers to my questions, aren’t I?

Oden’s performance against Florida can, in large part, be attributed to Conley’s penetration, upsetting Florida’s interior defense, allowing Oden to operate inside. Oden managed to have significant PT too, not his typical “foul-prone” game. Whether that game represents his maturization as a defender or whether it was an isolated performance helps fire the controversy regarding his potential DOMINANCE in the NBA. Anything less would be a disappointment considering his hype.

If Pheonix gets run by San Antonio, you wonder how long that experiment continues. How many more years of Nash’s prime do they spend with a team that can’t beat San Antonio? If they do decide to make major changes, more than the draft picks will be up for sale.

If there was no Durant, would Oden have been named “Player of the Year”? Not based on his college performance, which was “lacklustre”. The problem here would be deciding if anybody else had a more DOMINANT college performance.

Oden may, by default, have been considered the “Player of the Year” because, outside of Durant, who else was that dominant? To be sure, when no one has a “completely” dominant season, by default, the tendency is to look at team performance and weigh a single player’s impact on their success. On a team like Ohio State, which has many “stars”, picking among them gets difficult and one could be prone to deciding on “hype” not necessarily on PT and stats.

The “center” position is so difficult to fill that any player that apparently shows a degree of dominance at that position is considered rare and “elite” among his contemporaries. It’s the most respected position for championship-calbre teams in the NBA and someone that has so dominant a high school performance, considering size, athleticism etc., by association is given more credit than his collegiate performance may warrant. If Oden was THAT dominant in college, why the many suggestions that Conley or others may have been the real MVP on Ohio State?

Mike Conoley at #4 or 5 and I’m with you.

Oden averaged 15.5 points, 9.7 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per game. I don’t know what people were expecting but that looks pretty dominant to me, especially when you consider his wrist was hurt most of the season. The kid is barly 19 years old. For comparison Shaquille O’Neil averaged 13 points and 12 rebounds as a true freshman. If Oden didn’t dominant neither did Shaq as a freshman.

Uh, John CK? Yi Jianlin is one of the biggest stars in China. They buy NBA merchandise and watch NBA games now, you know…

Oh wait, I forgot that he’s ineligible due to his “army commitments.” Sheesh…

Oden vs Durant is offense vs defense. Offense sells tickets. Defense wins championships. Take your pick.

Let me add that neither one of the these players is ready to be an NBA contributor next year.

I have no problem taking Durant over Oden so long as the Celtics are also willing to move Pierce to shore up their defense in the paint or on the wings.

"Uh, John CK? Yi Jianlin is one of the biggest stars in China. They buy NBA merchandise and watch NBA games now, you know… "

So do a lot of people, that doesn’t mean they can actually play. Yao is the only decent player ever to come out of China and he is 7 foot six or whatever. Remember Wang Ju Ju? Maybe the guy will be great. Who knows. But to take him over a guy like Brewer or Julian Wright would be nuts.

If we don’t get a top two pick, I’d trade down a bit and get Brewer, who is a defensive gem. I’d use the 2nd round pick to get Chris Richards, a proven winner and defensive gem. I’d sign SIU’s Jamaal Tatum to a free agent contract, who is a defensive freak. I’d sign Trajan Langdon, who just made the Euro Top Five First Team with CSKA Moscow, and shoots 57/42/90% to a free agent contract, and let him be our Anthony Parker. That’s what I’d do…

   The top 2 picks are win-win, and I would have no problem with either Durant or Oden. Oden is not devoid of offense. he’s really got a nice jump hook. And as ready as everyone says Horford is, Oden really overpowered him. Horford got his share of rebounds, but he couldn’t stop Oden at all. The word on Patrick Ewing when he cam out was great defense, and he became quite an offensive player.
   And Durant will be a good defender, judging by his length, shotblocking ability, and rebounding. He just might take a year or so.

Jeff, nice Zoolander reference in the Brewer recap. Now if we can get Wally to jump in his jeep with his model buddies and head over to the local gas station for a cigarette and frolic in the unleaded gas to the sounds of “Wake Me Up Before You Go Go,” the Cs might have a chance to build a team before Paul Pierce is in his NBA golden years.

Noah’s a career backup. And Horford isn’t much better — his father never turned out to be much…I question whether his kid ever will be.

Oden on the other hand…..just remember, in a game when it counted, he kicked butt on those other two. I just think Oden’s going to be the real deal. It may take awhile, but he’s going to get there.

Lets not forget what shaq had on his LSU team freshman yr:

Chris Jackson and Stanley Roberts. And a number of forwards in the 6-7 to 6-9 range.

Chris Jackson FILLED it every night – inredibly dominant scorer and the number one option on the block was stanley roberts (who was very skilled — too bad he could never loose the weight).

Just say no to: Jeff Green – I just don’t see the athleticism – mostly a touch out of control for my liking; noah – we have discussed to the ends; Yi – how can I support this pick prior to the draftr I ain’t ever seen him play…

My wet dream is turning Gerald Green into Corey Brewer… Wonder what it will take to get that done? the second rounder this yr and next yrs first?

Still, I am secretly pining for okafur… could a #2 plus (i dunno gomes) get him – if oden goes 1? What would be the slaary cap implications?

Buy some ice danny — that phone is about to heat up!!!

Ah, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (ex Chris Jackson). I remember him well. Great free throw shooter. Refused to stand for the national anthem. Became an imam and built a mosque somewhere in Mississippi.

Oden’s game against Florida was excellent but hardly memorable in comparison to the near complete dominance by Russell in his college days. What makes the inevitable comparison especially difficult is that we remember a more seasoned Russell, healthy and determined, in comparison to Oden, still a kid by comparison and without the “fire” that Russell took as a PERSONAL CHALLENGE.

By comparison, what made 6’8" Dave Cowens so special in the paint, was a similar “fire” in his gut to block every shot, to get every rebound, to retrieve every loose ball etc. while developing an offensive arsenal. If Oden had more of what Powe has, I’d have to rate him #1. While he may offer more defense than Ralph Sampson, I don’t yet envision him being the “savior” that others hope for. If only he too had a “fire” in his gut to PROVE that he was justified being the sentimental favorite to go #1.

Only an idiot would call Oden another Russel. But there is a lot of room below Russell. Oden should be at least the equal of Alonzo Morning. That is not a bad thing.

Spencer Hawes should be higher. He will be a legit center with good low post and passing skills. Brick, both Oden and Durant will contribute next year. That’s silly to say that they won’t. Their talent is too great. Sure they have to learn at the next level but Oden’s shotblocking and rebounding will help any team. Durant will be able to knock down perimeter shots at any level next year.

EeroreIII,

Stanley Roberts had mad skills but was the original fat lazy slug. He ate his way out of the league. The guy made Oliver Miller look like a fitness freak. Chris Jackson before he became am Imam could shoot but was an enormous ball hog. There is a reason that team never went anywhere. They had a lot of talent but they didn’t really fit together very well.

Yes, you are right, big guys will go earlier than they should at the expense of more skilled little guys. Happens every year.

How does he adjust to living in the US? What about the language? UGH

I hope if the Celtics pick Yi he does not adjust to living in the US in the same way that Telfair, Tony Allen, Rasheed Wallace, Damon Stoudamire, Vin Baker, Ishaia Rider, Kobe Bryant… did. Has any foreign player ever had justice problems?

Additionally, I believe Nowitzki speaks better English than some American players. Why not Yi?

I would say Brewer is along those lines of a 4-7 pick who is going to surprise people…think he is going to be a serious athlete in this league.

Has anyone here been tracking Brendan Wright’s year at UNC?

There’s been some concern about Durant’s ability to pack on the weight to withstand the rigors of the NBA. Why aren’t there similar concerns about Wright, whose stated weight is around 15lbs less than Durant’s?

Putting aside the physical, what makes him a better prospect skill-wise than, say, Jerome Moiso? (Although not identical, their college stats are not too far off from each other to the untrained eye).

Thanks.

 think Corey Brewer will be the best of the rest after Oden and Durant. He’s a 6’8’’ shooting guard who can lock down defend. He’s a streaky shooter but once in on an NBA team, he will become a good shooter. He has the mechanics, there are no major flaws in his stroke. He should be Number 3. If the C’s end up with the 3, I think they take him. He can already slash and needs a little weight. Nothing that can’t be improved once in the league. Watch out for him.

Well the knock on Brewer is no handles. I’m not sure how valid that is.

If I had #3 I would take Mike Conley, Jr., but my views could change between now and draft night.

After the big 2 I like Brewer, Conley and AC Law. Those guys have skills and natural positions. I am always liery of guys who don’t have a natural position or haven’t accomplished much but are being drafted because of their “bodies” or “upside” or some such nonsense.

Brewer has at least as good a handle as Pierce.

And hes 3 inches taller.

I will stick with my opinion that Brewer will be the best all around player in this draft…and maybe even just the best player.

Agree that Brewer should be the #3 pick for the Celtics. We need athletes who can defend. He’s Richard Hamilton with 3 point range.

Isnt the draft June 28th?

1) Is it weird that I kind of hope we get the #2 overall pick? For some reason I want the only option to be Durant.
2) Is there anyway we can trade away our entire team and grab all these dudes?

Jeff noah will drop just how Gerald Green did. If he was Noah of last year he would be top 5 but this year i have no idea what happened to him (actually looks like he even lost weight! or got weaker)

Julian Wright is a serious boris diaw duplicate. Diaw sucked in atlanta and wright will suck if he goes to a bad team like portland imo. He will do well in teams like phoenix, dallas, san antonio(he could be picked high or out of top 10)

Lastly i really do like Yi and think he will be good someday. He shoots though a low percentage for a guy his height similiar to barnagni and plays defense just him also. So you can count on 15 pts , 7 rebounds per game a block here and there with some high scoring games

B. Wright could be a star one day, but i question his passion until he proves otherwise.

Two players team will be sorry to miss out in the future will be brewer(like rondo is a big influence on both sides of the court having the ball or not) and Hibbert. If hibbert just got into better shape, lost 10 pounds especially in his lower body part area , he should have been a clear #3. People still forget or not reconize how well he did again’t oden and in some respects outplayed him

I feel Hibbert is a career back up. What am I missing?

Oden and Durant should be able to contribute right away. Oden on defense and Durant on offense.

Remember, I said contribute, not change the game.

1.Oden
2.Durant
3.Stephane Lasme, baby!!!!!!!! If we get the #3 pick, we should take Stephane Lasme!!!!!

Ok, that is a stretch based on every other mock draft or list. But I do believe he is the #3 player in this draft so that is where I stand. Maybe trade down, then draft Stephane.

Isn’t Jeff Green the guy from Curb Your Enthusiasm? ;D

ucn33 said:
“Brewer has at least as good a handle as Pierce. And hes 3 inches taller.”

Pierce outweighs Brewer by at least 50 lbs and knows how to absorb contact going to the rim. Brewer is a completely different player. Bad comparison.

Having said that, I like Brewer too, for his defense. But he needs to add 25 lbs of muscle to play in the NBA.

fee fi pho fum, the celtics pick oden at number one

I tell you now and I tell you true, durant is a shoe in at number two

skee dilly skee dilly skee dilly skee, the celtics pick Yi at number three

hold on folks, dont shut that door, Danny loves Brewer at number four

and if we happen to fall to five…I will shoot myself

Glad to see all the love for Brewer. How about Chris Richards with the 2nd round pick? I get Charles Oakley vibes from him. I know we have Perk, but let them fight it out for PT.

Jeff, I think your Wade comparison s/b Julian Wright. Wade went #5 and that’s probably somewhere where Julian will go. Excellent all around skills with a great first step. Great athlete. I like Brewer a lot too. My only concern is that are NBA defenses sophisticated to the point where even a great athlete like Brewer could get lost at first due to having to think too much? Would that take away from his defensive effectiveness which is the main thing he’s hanging his hat on right now. Of course, our D sure doesn’t seem too sophisticated and I surely want us to improve it!

“I feel Hibbert is a career back up. What am I missing?”

You’re probably missing the Georgetown games, when he delivery without the team, wrongfully, play to him. He is a big guy who can pass quite well, blocks shoots and can score inside (when the team find him down low). That’s what you could see in the Georgtown games. That team played to Jeff Green that’s why he had nice stats.
Roy Hibbert it’s the man!! That’s the one I would pick at number 3!

Roy Hibbert=Brendan Haywood. He’ll be a starter, but not an elite center. Too slow.

The way the game is played today, centers need to be quick and agile. The prototypical “modern” big man is Amare Stoudamire.

If it’s a 3-5 selection, the pick should be Conley. As much as we all love Rondo, the guy can’t shoot a lick. Conley is not exactly lights out from the outside, but he has a similar skill set to Chris Paul. The easiest way to improve a team is to get a great PG. Look not further than NOK and Utah. Rondo becomes a great back up PG. I don’t want to wait around for Brandon Wright to get good, or take my chances with Yi. Horford and Brewer will be solid, but you aren’t looking for a solid player with a 3-5 pick — you’re looking for an All Star. I think Conley fits that bill.