[MickyEyez]

Playoffs are over for us, I've certainly hear PLENTY of opinions on free agency, but what about the draft?

Let's try to not make this the Official "Let's trade up to get Durant or Oden" Thread...

I saw a thread on this chinese kid that has some serious potential, probably worthy of a 2nd round pick... think Chinese Shaun Livingston..

NBA Comparison: Boris Diaw
Strengths: Has the size that the NBA covets at the point guard position … Ball handling ability is superb. He uses a number of crossovers and between the leg dribbles to get separation from his defender … Unselfish player who has a pass first mentality … Owns above average court vision and has improved on controlling the tempo … Excels at creating scoring for his teammates off the drive and dish … Possesses three point range on his jumpshot … For his height, has great mobility and leaping ability … Is an excellent finisher and can dunk with flair …Size creates mismatches as he can shoot over most guards …. Defensively he does a good job of using his long arms to disrupt passing lanes and block shots … Despite a tendency to be out of position, Yue makes a solid contribution rebounding the ball … Does a great job of pushing the ball up the court on the fast break …

Weaknesses: Still lacks upper body strength which would benefit him greatly on both ends of the floor … Must continue to improve on his lateral quickness as quicker guards can give him trouble … At times he fails to protect the ball, especially when going for the spectacular play … Perimeter shooting has shown improvement but still remains a work in progress, particularly his shooting mechanics … Yue must improve on moving without the ball as he has a habit of standing around … Lacks the post moves to take full advantage of mismatches … Defers too much to his teammates and can be unselfish to a fault … Mid range game remains underutilized, either he drives or shoots the three. There is no in between jumper … Struggles to maintain his dribble when pressured by quick and aggressive defenders … It remains unclear what position he will play in the NBA: He’s slow for the point guard position and lacks shooting ability for the two guard …
Matthew Maurer - 12/3/2006
Strengths: Unusual height for his position, terrific athlete, excellent jumper and quickness ... With 6-9 height, he has the ability to play the point guard position ... Decent ball handling skills, talented passer, outstanding court vision, good at finding open teammates ... Very unselfish with pass first mentality, great fast break player and play-maker, accurate bounce passer ... Penetrates well with a good ability to attack the hoop, quick first step ... Takes advantage of being left handed catching opponents off guard ... Likes to dunk, can do windmill/360 dunks easily ... Can shoot anywhere inside the NBA 3-point line ... Nice shooting stroke, soft touch, high release points on his shot ... Can guard positions from 1 to 4 , taking advantage of his height and length to pressure his opponents to adjust their shooting rhythm ... Great lateral speed on defense ; good reflexes as well as leaping ability make him a good shot blocker ... He performs as a help defender and even a rebounder under the basket for his team. 2.5 blks,1.9 stls and 7 rebs per game, the numbers reflect his defensive contribution ... His versatility gives him a chance to get Quadruple-double statistics in games, granted it's the ABA.... Shows a great passion to win other than his stats ... In addition, his age is not in question.

Weaknesses: Physically weak like most young Chinese players ...His ball handling and ball protection need improvement for the NBA level ... As the main distributer (a team high 6.7 assists per game) , he usually saw the most pressure from their opponents, getting doubled sometimes. 4 Turnovers per game indicates that he should better learn to deal with tough defense ... He relies on his left hand too much , though he is making progress on his right handed ball handling skills ... To be a NBA player, his shooting skills still need work, less stability from downtown (39% FG, 25% 3pt FG ) Raw 1 on 1 skills ... Underdeveloped post skills, with his size learning to post up smaller wing players would be a big advantage for him ... Some concern about his ability to guard fast NBA guards ...

Notes: Selected by Chinese national team coach Jonas when he was only 19 yrs old ... Honored All Star player of ABA league in his first year contacting American style basketball ... Has showed progress in adapting to American culture and his language skills with a year in the ABA ...
Allen Jiang - 5/5/2006

http://www.nbadraft.net/admincp/profiles/sunyue.html

Sun Yue on YouTube

[MickyEyez]

I was doin some reading on some of the top ranked international players... and here's what i found:

Draft Express Analysis
Marc Gasol (Pau's Brother) (proj. 2nd Round)
Physicals
Height: 7' 1"
Weight: 265 lbs.
Birthday: 1/29/1985
22 Years Old
Teams:
High School:
Current Team: Akasvayu Girona , International
Positions:
Current: C,
NBA: C,
Possible: C
Rankings:
Pick 2 of Round 2 in 2007 Mock Draft
Rank 3 in International '85
Rank 7 in Top-20 '07 Centers

ESPN Analysis
Marc Gasol
Center (Rank: #34) | 7-0, 265 | Age: 22
Spain ()
Hometown: Barcelona, Spain
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Draft Projection: Late first to early second

Notes: Brother of Grizzlies star Pau Gasol. Averaging 10.8 ppg and 5.6 rpg in 23 mpg for Akasvayu Girona in the Spanish ACB league.

Positives: Fundamentally sound big man with excellent hands. Good strength and size for his position. Plays physical. A number of excellent back to the basket moves. Good passer out of the double team. Great basketball IQ.

Negatives: A below average NBA athlete. Can be plodding at times. Plays below the rim which hurts both his rebounding and shot blocking numbers. Slow. Has struggled with weight issues in the past.

Summary: Some NBA international scouts think that, with proper conditioning he could be a valuable player in the pros given his size and skill set. A real bubble first rounder.

He was part of the FIBA champion Spanish Team in 2006, granted he didn't play all that much, when he was on the court he performed well in the limited minutes... He limited his turnovers, didn't shoot too much, but hit 77% of his shots... he also added 3 Blocks.

What i like about this kid, is that we have an outside shot of drafting him, with 1 of our 3 2nd round picks. seems to have good potential, good pedigree, and he has matched up against other good big men, and has performed well...

speaking of which, here is one of the big men that he played well against... Tiago Splitter vs. Marc Gasol

[MickyEyez]

here is a list of players projected to be drafted... rankings by espn.com

2007 NBA Draft Prospects Ranking (1 to 100)
RANK NAME POS HT WT AGE SCHOOL/COUNTRY PROJECTION

1 Greg Oden C 7-0 245 19 Ohio State Top 2
The consensus No. 1 pick in the draft despite Kevin Durant's amazing season. Draws comparisons... more

2 Kevin Durant SF 6-10 190 18 Texas Top 2
Some scouts are calling him a mixture of Kevin Garnett and Dirk Nowitzki. Others say... more

3 Yi Jianlian PF 7-0 230 19 China Top 10
Yi is the best international prospect in the draft this year. He has a ton... more

4 Brandan Wright PF 6-10 210 19 North Carolina Top 10
On potential, he has the chance to be a NBA All-Star. And so far he's... more

5 Al Horford PF 6-9 235 20 Florida Top 10
Horford has the body and skill set needed to play in the NBA right away.... more

6 Corey Brewer SG 6-8 185 21 Florida Top 10
An excellent NCAA tournament this season helped Brewer's stock perhaps more than anyone else. He... more

7 Julian Wright SF 6-9 220 20 Kansas Top 10
Wright may be the most versatile player in the draft. He can guard and play... more

8 Mike Conley PG 6-0 170 19 Ohio State Top 10
Conley quickly asserted himself as the best young college point guard in the country. His... more

9 Jeff Green SF 6-8 225 20 Georgetown Lottery
Scouts love his versatility and all-around game. But he doesn't really have one standout skill... more

10 Joakim Noah PF 6-11 230 22 Florida Lottery
Noah capped an amazing NCAA tournament in 2006 with a near-perfect championship game -- a... more

11 Spencer Hawes C 7-0 230 19 Washington Lottery
Hawes doesn't have the athletic upside of many of the top prospects in the draft,... more

12 Roy Hibbert C 7-2 265 20 Georgetown Lottery
He's been all over the boards with scouts over the past few years. They love... more

13 Al Thornton SF 6-7 210 23 Florida State Lottery to mid first round
A few big games against Florida and North Carolina this season have given him some... more

14 Nick Young SG 6-6 200 21 USC Lottery to mid first round
Young has the potential to be a lottery pick with his skills. But scouts are... more

15 Acie Law PG 6-3 185 22 Texas A&M Lottery to mid first round
Law has quietly developed into one of the top point guards in the country. His... more

16 Thaddeus Young SF 6-8 210 18 Georgia Tech Lottery to mid first round
Young is another big-time prospect whose upside is only limited by questions about position and... more

17 Tiago Splitter PF 7-0 240 22 Brazil Lottery to mid first round
His stock was hurt in previous drafts over serious questions about whether an NBA team... more

18 Jason Smith PF 7-0 230 21 Colorado State Lottery to mid first round
A sleeper. Scouts are always looking for skilled big men and they believe Smith has... more

19 Javaris Crittenton PG 6-5 180 19 Georgia Tech Mid to late first round
Most big point guards are really two guards with some ball handling skills. Not Crittenton.... more

20 Ante Tomic C 7-2 237 20 Croatia Mid to late first round
Tomic is big-time prospect. He has a rare combination of size, skill and athletic ability.... more

21 Brandon Rush SG 6-7 205 21 Kansas Mid to late first round
Was Big 12 freshman of the year, but took a bit of a backseat to... more

22 Daequan Cook SG 6-5 210 20 Ohio State Mid to late first round
Cook came on strong at the start of the season, but then took a back... more

23 Rodney Stuckey SG 6-4 205 21 Eastern Wash. Mid to late first round
He's considered a serious draft sleeper by some NBA scouts who think he has legit... more

24 Gabe Pruitt PG 6-4 170 21 USC Mid to late first round
A sleeper. A number of NBA scouts commented that they were very intrigued with his... more

25 Sean Williams C 6-10 230 20 Boston College Late first to early second
Williams was having an impressive season before he was dismissed from the team. The kid... more

26 Josh McRoberts PF 6-10 230 20 Duke Mid to late first round
McRoberts had a chance to be a Top 10 pick in the 2006 NBA Draft... more

27 Marco Belinelli SG 6-6 200 21 Italy Late first to early second
Belinelli turned heads last season and this summer with very mature play at the highest... more

28 Derrick Byars SF 6-7 220 23 Vanderbilt Late first to early second
Has had a solid senior season and NCAA tournament which has him on NBA radar... more

29 Rudy Fernandez SG 6-6 172 22 Spain Late first to early second
He fell out of good graces with many GMs last season. He's got all the... more

30 Glen Davis PF 6-9 290 21 LSU Late first to early second
The knock on Davis last season centered on his lack of height and conditioning. Davis... more

31 Morris Almond SG 6-6 215 22 Rice Late first to early second

32 Marcus Williams SF 6-7 207 20 Arizona Late first to early second

33 Dominic James PG 5-11 175 20 Marquette Late first to early second

34 Marc Gasol C 7-0 265 22 Spain Late first to early second

35 Alando Tucker SF 6-5 205 23 Wisconsin Late first to early second

36 Dominic McGuire SF 6-8 215 21 Fresno State Late first to early second

37 Aaron Gray C 7-0 270 22 Pittsburgh Late first to early second

38 Kyle Visser C 6-11 244 21 Wake Forest Late first to early second

39 Taurean Green PG 6-0 177 21 Florida Late first to early second

40 DeVon Hardin C 6-11 235 20 California Late first to early second

41 Trey Johnson SG 6-5 218 22 Jackson State Late first to early second

42 Wilson Chandler SF 6-8 230 20 DePaul Second round to undrafted

43 Herbert Hill PF 6-10 240 22 Providence Late first to early second

44 Kyrylo Fesenko PF 7-0 245 20 Ukraine Late first to early second

45 J. R. Reynolds SG 6-3 197 23 Virginia Late first ro early second

46 Petteri Koponen PG 6-4 194 19 Finland Second round to undrafted

47 Jermareo Davidson PF 6-10 230 22 Alabama Second round to undrafted

48 Nick Fazekas PF 6-11 225 21 Nevada Late first to early second

49 Arron Afflalo SG 6-5 210 21 UCLA Second round to undrafted

50 Jared Dudley SF 6-7 220 21 Boston College Second round to undrafted

51 Reyshawn Terry SF 6-8 235 23 North Carolina Second round to undrafted

52 Renaldas Seibutis SG 6-6 180 21 Lithuania Second round to undrafted

53 JamesOn Curry SG 6-3 190 21 Oklahoma State Second round to undrafted

54 Jared Jordan PG 6-2 187 22 Marist Second round to undrafted

55 Artem Zabelin C 7-1 200 19 Russia Second round to undrafted

56 D. J. Strawberry SG 6-5 201 21 Maryland Second round to undrafted

57 Joao Gomes SF 6-7 200 22 Portugal Second round to undrafted

58 Demetris Nichols SF 6-8 210 22 Syracuse Second round to undrafted

59 Ali Traore PF 6-10 247 22 France Second round to undrafted

60 Ron Lewis SG 6-4 200 22 Ohio State Second round to undrafted

61 Stanko Barac C 7-1 235 20 Bosnia Second round to undrafted

62 James Mays PF 6-9 225 21 Clemson Second round to undrafted

63 Aaron Brooks PG 5-11 160 22 Oregon Second round to undrafted

64 Bobby Brown PG 6-1 170 22 CS Fullerton Second round to undrafted

65 Marcelus Kemp SG 6-5 210 23 Nevada Second round to undrafted

66 Marko Tomas SG 6-8 210 22 Croatia Second round to undrafted

67 Joseph Jones PF 6-9 260 21 Texas A&M Second round to undrafted

68 Russell Carter SG 6-4 220 22 Notre Dame Second round to undrafted

69 Ivan Radenovic PF 6-10 224 22 Arizona Second round to undrafted

70 Carl Landry PF 6-7 252 23 Purdue Second round to undrafted

71 Zabian Dowdell PG 6-3 200 22 Virginia Tech Second round to undrafted

72 Brad Newley SG 6-6 190 22 Australia Second round to undrafted

73 Brandon Heath PG 6-4 200 23 San Diego State Second round to undrafted

74 Mario Boggan PF 6-7 235 23 Oklahoma State Second round to undrafted

75 Chris Daniels C 7-0 265 23 TX A&M Corp Chris Second round to undrafted

76 Sean Singletary PG 6-0 175 21 Virginia Second round to undrafted

77 Chris Richard C 6-9 255 22 Florida Second round to undrafted

78 Mustafa Shakur PG 6-3 183 22 Arizona Second round to undrafted

79 DaShaun Wood PG 5-11 180 21 Wright St Second round to undrafted

80 Stephane Lasme PF 6-8 220 24 Massachusetts Second round to undrafted

81 Quinton Hosley SG 6-6 210 23 Fresno State Second round to undrafted

82 Marcel Jones SF 6-8 215 Oregon State Second round to undrafted

83 Avis Wyatt SF 6-10 215 22 Virginia State Second round to undrafted

84 Roy Bright SG 6-6 225 21 Delaware State Second round to undrafted

85 Curtis Sumpter SF 6-7 223 23 Villanova Second round to undrafted

86 Ramon Sessions PG 6-3 190 21 Nevada Second round to undrafted

87 Cartier Martin SF 6-8 220 22 Kansas State Second round to undrafted

88 Ryvon Corville PF 6-9 243 Detroit Second round to undrafted

89 Adam Haluska SG 6-5 210 23 Iowa Second round to undrafted

90 Mohamed Abukar C 6-10 220 22 San Diego State Second round to undrafted

91 James Hughes C 6-10 217 23 Northern Illinois Second round to undrafted

92 Darryl Watkins C 6-11 260 22 Syracuse Second round to undrafted

93 Bo McCalebb PG 6-0 180 22 New Orleans Second round to undrafted

94 Larry Blair PG 6-0 185 Liberty Second round to undrafted

95 Marko Lekic PF 6-11 265 22 Serbia Second round to undrafted

96 Milovan Rakovic PF 6-10 Serbia Second round to undrafted

97 Coby Karl SG 6-5 209 Boise State Second round to undrafted

98 Mirza Teletovic PF 6-8 235 21 Bosnia Second round to undrafted

99 Ekene Ibekwe PF 6-9 220 21 Maryland Second round to undrafted

100 Luka Bogdanovic SF 6-10 225 22 Serbia

[JNice]

There are lots of SGs that we can take a shot on in the 2nd round. That is pretty much all we have to look forward to.

[lw32]

Sun Yue is not a good player. Probably will never be.

Orlando really has nothing to look forward to in the draft. I'd select a senior with our pick, they're the guys being overlooked nowadays. Obviously a swingman would be nice, any big man left when we'll be picking will be ****. Look at the history, most successful second round picks are swingmen. It's rare you see a guy in the 2nd round with size turn into anything decent, size usually helps your draft position.

[hobojoe]

Is there anyone you guys would trade up into the 1st round for realistically? I wouldn't mind trying to get Nick Young if he falls a little bit, to the late teens or even further. As for the second round, basically there are a lot more 1st round talents than there are 1st round picks in my opinion, so I'd say take one of the guys who should be gone already that have fallen. Just some names that I like: Arron Afflalo, Derrick Byars, Trey Johnson, Glen Davis, Jared Dudley, Mustafa Shakur.

[MickyEyez]

Originally Posted by Lachlanwood32

Sun Yue is not a good player. Probably will never be.

you are probably right... i just like the prospect... He reminds me a lot of penny with strong defensive abilities...

[MickyEyez]

Originally Posted by hobojoe

Is there anyone you guys would trade up into the 1st round for realistically? I wouldn't mind trying to get Nick Young if he falls a little bit, to the late teens or even further. As for the second round, basically there are a lot more 1st round talents than there are 1st round picks in my opinion, so I'd say take one of the guys who should be gone already that have fallen. Just some names that I like: Arron Afflalo, Derrick Byars, Trey Johnson, Glen Davis, Jared Dudley, Mustafa Shakur.

Arron Afflalo would a be a steal in the 2nd round...

As for if we could trade a couple picks and move up... i would love Acie Law (Acie Law IV), Javaris Crittenton (Nice Shot), or Tiago Splitter (Tiago Splitter)

Law would be a great solution for the point... senior that has adapted to different systems, and he can distribute and score, but also knows when to do what. I doubt we can trade up to get him, but it would certainly be a good scenario.

Crittenton is really raw and young, but has some serious potential and size for a point... he really needs someone that will teach him how to make better decisions, but he'd fit real well into a Magic uni. we'd have to trade up into the late mid-late first.

Splitter is Darko's replacement.