On D (and like you, I haven’t seen much and don’t trust my opinion much), both Banchero and Chet seem like they are bigs on defense, but neither is all that big. Chet does offer some rim protection; Banchero offers some strength – these guys are great prospects – but both seem to lack what the other offers on D.
1 Like
James Edwards has a love fest for Keegan Murray at top 3-4 for whatever reason but I rather have Kris at 2nd as opposed to spending a top 4 pick on Keegan.
1A Jabari
1B Paolo
1C Chet
2 Keegan
3 Sharpe, Ivey, Mathurin
I’m not a scout either. Thought Sekou and Stanley Johnson were gonna be really good NBA players FWIW 
3 Likes
Yeah, it just shows the uncertainty of the draft. My concern with Stanley Johnson was that I wasn’t sure how he was going to consistently score at the next level and there are only so many roster spots for an athletic wing who isn’t great at shooting. Ivey excites me because I think he can score and I think his shot will be “okay”. The lack of defense is a concern, but I’d probably be more concerned by his shooting from outside as someone you would play for his offense.
But again, I was pretty down on Scottie Barnes because of his lack of shot too and he’s overcome that with his other skills. I do think, however, that he has to be a lead guard and facilitator to make that work as a non-shooter. So what do I know?
1 Like
Right there with ya on Stanley (also thought Justice Winslow was gonna be a guy)… therefore dont trust myself
2 Likes
Keegan is mindboggling to me here. Is this leaning into the Iowa stan? haha
Seriously though, would be interested in why he number four on your board
3 Likes
Good amount of just being wowed with what I saw in the Big Ten tourney, but he was so dominant and it was so up close and personal for me seeing it that I can’t shake it.
I think he’s a quiet 18-22 PPG secondary guy in the NBA instantly, and a perfect frontcourt pairing with Cade.
I also just love this draft in general though. Any of those top 7 are really really good IMO. I’m probably most down on Ivey relative to the others, to me he has way more red flags than a lot of the national draft people are noticing. He’s not a playmaker for others really at all, I think people compare him to Ja Morant cuz they have similar hairstyles and transition ability but Ja is such a better passer, more dynamic half court guy than Ivey will ever be. He’s a non-defender despite having a lot of the athletic tools you’d think a great defender would have, and he visibly pouted a ton during games in crunchtime.
2 Likes
Murray seems like the most divergent opinion here. Some think he’s a tweener who will struggle to be good enough at any one thing to get on the floor in the NBA. Others saw him tear through the B10 in the last few games and think he’s a top-5.
I like that Murray has NBA size, seems to have the athleticism, can shoot, can score, and has the length to become a decent defender once he’s away from Fran.
1 Like
Keegan Murray is older than Hunter Dickinson and 1 year younger than Ja Morant.
2 Likes
How much older is he than Kris Murray?
/s
3 Likes
A few flags with Murray too. I was gearing up to love Ivey in Feb when he started to pass out to open shooters, but that didn’t last. I like Ivey alot but don’t know I’m comfortable enough with him for the Pistons. Hopefully they can just get Jabari Smith and be done with it. Perfect fit with no fundamental issues or physical shortcomings, and that’s the only one you can say that about in the top 4 picks. I get that he’s going to have to figure out attacking closeouts, but I also get that he’s 6-10 and can just shoot over people. And that he’s a plus defender with the physical ability required for his position. Absolutely perfect next to Cade.
2 Likes
I think Murray is meh for me. Average athlete with good size but would need to project as a 3 and D wing in order for him to stick. He doesn’t have the handles to threaten the defense. Hard pass at top 5.
FWIW Keegan Murray’s stat-based model projection comes out really favorably per Kevin Pelton. Top 5 pick. So his age or stats prob should not deter you from taking him after Chet and Jabari. KP’s not the only modeler tho, granted.
This is one of the rare drafts where I would trade out of #1 or #2. I generally think that’s awful but as @buckets12 says, this is an exceptionally deep draft of convincingly solid players. I would trade Jabari Smith for Chet (my least fave of the big 4) plus one (a Top 7 or 8 pick) in a second.
1 Like
Agree 100% here, as long as you don’t trade out of the Jabari/Chet/Paolo trio. Get any one of those three and it’s gravy.
I’d love to be at 1 or 2 to take Chet or Jabari, and then you trade down to 6 or so. I like Mathurin at 6 better than Ivey and Murray at 4 and 5, roughly.
2 Likes
I disagree. This is the year to be wanting a top 4 pick. IMO, there’s a big drop off after top 4 (Paolo, JSJ, Chet and Ivey).
The Pistons need to swing for the fence on any 4 of them in order to find a 2nd star to pair with Cade. Who knows when will the Pistons have another chance of picking at top 3-4.
1 Like
Uhhhhh no Caleb Houstan???
Zach Shaw says …”any other questions?”
Kidding. That’s really strange. I wonder if that’s a mistake….weird.