Your Positional Big Board for the 2011 NBA Draft
I would say it's probably SF...and also I don't agree with putting Selby at PG, probably not Mack either but I guess you have to in his case, Selby is a SG for sure. PF is either a 1A or close second, plus I think Jordan Williams should be there instead of C
Here's mine although before I do so, I am going to say this. I think Jordan Hamilton will turn out to be more of a 2 in the NBA although he will play some 3. Derrick Williams in my mind is a 3, Jan Vesely is a 4 and so Jordan Williams and Jeremy Tyler. Now with those things settled here they are:
PG: Kyrie Irving, Brandon Knight, Kemba Walker (both Knight and Walker are interchangeable though), Jimmer Fredette, Nolan Smith, Shelvin Mack, Josh Selby, Cory Joseph, Darius Morris, Norris Cole, Andrew Gouldelock, Brad Wanamaker, Andrew Albicy
SG: Alec Burks, Jordan Hamilton, Klay Thompson, Marshon Brooks, Bojan Bogdanovich, David Lighty, Iman Shumpert, Malcom Lee, Deandre Liggins, Xavi Rabeseda, Charles Jenkins, E'twuan Moore
SF: Derrick Williams, Terrance Jones, Kawhi Leonard, Tobias Harris, Chris Singleton Tyler Honeycutt, Kyle Singler, Nikola Mirotic, Jereme Richmond, Davis Bertans
PF: Jan Vesely, Donatas Motiejunas, Tristan Thompson, Marcus Morris, Markieff Morris, Trey Thompkins, Kenneth Faried, Jeremy Tyler, Jordan Williams, Jujuan Johnson, Jamie Skeen, Justin Harper, Augusto Lima
C: Jonas Valaciunas, Enes Kanter(he too could turn out to be a PF in the end), Bismack Biyombo, Lucas Noguira, Keith Benson, Greg Smith, Nikola Vucevic, Giorgi Shemardini
I would say the deepest position is the PF. 9 of them could go in the first round!
Probably is the deepest position. I have a feeling that in the end, most of the players listed at Center will probably play PF, this is a very weak draft for pivots. Kanter, Biyombo, even Jeremy Tyler will probably be considered PF's in the long run. I did think Hamilton may indeed play SG, but it is really a toss-up as to where he or a guy like Tyler Honeycutt are drafted. PG is definitely not deep, but it is surprisingly much deeper than shooting guard and center.
As far as upside goes, SF may indeed be deeper than PF. I find this years group of PF's fairly unspectacular, especially if you classify Williams as a 3 and Kanter as a 5. I think Tristan Thompson is a likely top 10 pick in this draft due to the lack of depth, and I see Vesely more than likely being top 10 as well, though he is a multi-position guy. Motiejunas should be intriguing also, will have to what buzz circulates around him as he was impressing with his play in Eurocup. Still, it is very hard for me to get hyped up about any of those players having much of an immediate impact outside of Williams and Kanter. The Morris' to me are role guys, as are Faried and Bismack Biyombo.
Here is my top 14 big board, just the top 14 players in this draft regardless of position. It takes into account immediate and future impact. This is not predicting where they will be drafted, but more of whom I see as being the best prospects in the long run. Also, I will list what I see them as in the future.
1. Kyrie Irving
2. Enes Kanter
3. Derrick Williams
4. Brandon Knight (Yes, this is high, but I feel like he showed me something over the course of this year to merit this)
5. Terrence Jones
6. Jonas Valanciunas
7. Tristan Thompson
8. Kemba Walker
9. Jan Vesely
10. Donatas Motiejunas
11. Alec Burks
12. Jimmer Fredette
13. Kawhi Leonard
14. Marcus Morris
Those to me are about the safest picks out there, though others could definitely develop and become higher impact players down the line. Jordan Hamilton and Tyler Honeycutt are both guys I like, and Markieff Morris is another player who could become better than his brother due to more energy on the defensive end. Klay Thompson and Tobias Harris are two draft sleepers of mine, and I think Jeremy Tyler may move up as well.
With Jeremy Tyler, as much as his well documented maturity issues were put to light during his time in Israel, he still merits a strong look for teams needing help downlow. I figure that had he indeed played these last couple of years in the States, he more than likely would have been considered the top Center prospect in his class bar none. He has great size, solid athleticism and while his experience in Israel may lead some to label him a quitter, I believe that he more than likely learned a lot from it and it lead to further maturation in Japan. This is a guy who has been playing the pro circuit for the last couple years, and while he may take time, his upside is real in my mind. Honestly, I believe that he is probably less of a gamble than Biyombo due to having more of an existing skill set offensively. Not to mention, all things considered, he probably has incredibly comparable measurables with his standing reach compared to everyones favorite new prospect. Had he played at Louisville last year, I am thinking he more than likely would have been a no brainer lottery selection.
PG
1. Kyrie Irving
2. Brandon Knight
3. Kemba Walker
4. Jimmer Freddette
5. Nolan Smith
6. Shelvin Mack
7. Darius Morris
8. Norris Cole
9. Cory Joseph
10. Demetri McCamey/Malcolm Lee/Josh Selby
SG
1. Alec Burks
2. Jordan Hamilton
3. Klay Thompson
4. David Lighty
5. Marshon Brooks
6. Travis Leslie
7. Scotty Hopson
8. E'Twaun Moore
9. Iman Shumpert
10. Durrell Summers/LaceDarius Dunn/Ravern Johnson
SF
1. Terrence Jones
2. Kawhi Leonard
3. Jan Vesely
4. Tyler Honeycutt
5. Tobias Harris
6. Chris Singleton
7. Kyle Singler
8. Chandler Parsons
9. Jereme Richmond
10. Davis Bertans
PF
1, Derrick Williams
2. Donatas Motiejunas
3. Marcus Morris
4. Tristan Thompson
5. Markieff Morris
6. Kenneth Faried
7. JaJuan Johnson
8. Nikola Mirotic
9. Jon Leuer
10. Justin Harper
C
1. Enes Kanter
2. Jonas Valanciunas
3. Trey Thompkins
4. Bismack Biyombo
5. Jordan Williams
6. Lucas Nogueira
7. Jeremy Tyler
8. Keith Benson
9. Nikola Vucevic
10. Greg Smith
Concerning Jeremy Tyler, but I explained my reasoning in an earlier post. To me, Tyler would have been a very productive college Center, and I see little reason that he would not have continued to tear up his HS counterparts. He is 6'10 with a big wingspan and I think he has kept in reasonable condition. Last year he was measured as having about the same standing reach as Biyombo, not to mention an impressive 33 inch vert for a player of his size. Now, I know the BJ League is not exactly Israel or the ACB, but the one thing they do have in good number is big guys. Their are about 0 Japanese Centers in the league, so he was going up against grown men in the paint. Robert Swift, as much as people consider him a joke, is better than about any college big out there. Not to mention, he would probably be a solid contributor in the ACB. Well, for months Jeremy Tyler went up against this guy in practice, and improved as time went on.
As I have said, his playing in Japan seemed like a joke, but people should realize that he played 33 games compared to Biyombo's whopping 14. His season was ended by the Tsunami, though I am fairly sure he is training hard for the draft stateside. Still, as much as he might have hurt his stock with his ditty in Israel, he was coached by a former pro coach in Bob Hill and seemed to be on the right track. He averaged 9.9 and 6.4 in 15.4 mpg, playing behind a former NBA lottery pick. These stats are not eye popping, but they are not incredibly discouraging. Well, I feel that had Tyler stayed stateside, he would have been an easy lotto pick. Still, I am not sure that he is not a better basketball player for his pro experience, plus he has a two year intro into exactly what it takes.
Everyone sees different things in players, and while one team may not want to gamble on a player or believes they do not fit their system, another team may think that player is a fit. I was just going to make a big board in general, but I thought, if you have a favorite team, what would your big board look like for that team? Would you maybe rank one player over another based on something you see as a warning sign or an inability to fit into your team? If you do not want to do one for a team, than you can just do one in general, but as the draft is a couple months away, it will be interesting to see how things shape up.
My big board is just going to be basic position top 10's. It is not necessarily based on where I believe players will be drafted, but who I feel will have the biggest impact over time. It is tough to look into the future, but that is a part of every draft, this one being no different. While I usually think drafting for need is a dangerous move, in the later picks, it is usually much less of a gamble. So, this could be something to look at if your team drafts in the late first or second rounds and has a position that needs addressing.
PG
1. Kyrie Irving
2. Brandon Knight
3. Kemba Walker
4. Jimmer Freddette
5. Nolan Smith
6. Cory Joseph
7. Josh Selby
8. Shelvin Mack
9. Darius Morris
10. Norris Cole
SG (Thinnest position depth wise)
1. Alec Burks
2. Klay Thompson
3. Iman Shumpert
4. Marshon Brooks
5. Charles Jenkins
6. Bojan Bogdanovic
7. Malcolm Lee
8. E'Twaun Moore
9. David Lighty
10. Xavi Rebesada
SF
1. Terrence Jones
2. Jan Vesely
3. Kawhi Leonard
4. Jordan Hamilton
5. Tobias Harris
6. Tyler Honeycutt
7. Kyle Singler
8. Nikola Mirotic
9. Chris Singleton
10. Jereme Richmond
PF
1, Derrick Williams
2. Tristan Thompson
3. Donatas Motiejunas
4. Marcus Morris
5. Markieff Morris
6. Kenneth Faried
7. Trey Thompkins
8. JaJuan Johnson
9. Justin Harper
10. Jamie Skeen
C
1. Enes Kanter
2. Jonas Valanciunas
3. Jeremy Tyler
4. Bismack Biyombo
5. Jordan Williams
6. Lucas Nogueira
7. Nikola Vucevic
8. Keith Benson
9. Greg Smith
10. Giorgi Shermandini
If you want to see some previous rankings I made before the NCAA tournament, they are here:
http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/pre-tournament-2011-draft-postion-rankings
I do not think things changed radically, other than of course some players not entering the draft that would have definitely shaken things up at the top. This draft is really thin in depth, though the forward positions are both decent, with many available who could project to either forward spot. Also, some of the listed Centers may indeed end up playing the 4. Also, the top 4 PG's seem to look like worthy lottery selections. I know this list is definitely not perfect and that their is a lot of room for interpretation, but I am hoping it convinces people to maybe think about what you hope your teams big boards do indeed look like and to cause some discussion, as things seem to be lagging big time. We were all waiting for the early entry deadline, which has since passed, and this list may change again according to who decides to withdraw from the draft, but at least we have the outlines of the players available to (hopefully) play in 2011.