And-Ones: Jackson, Draft, Parker
Agents aren’t pleased with the notion of raising the NBA’s minimum age, as Sean Deveney of The Sporting News examines. They feel shut out of the union’s search for a new executive director and they’re worried that whomever the union picks will be hurried to the bargaining table to discuss the age issue, Deveney writes.
More from around the league:
- Pierre Jackson will likely join the Pelicans for summer league action, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, who shares the tidbit in his weekly power rankings. Jackson signed for the rest of this season with a Turkish team shortly before the trade deadline.
- Mike Tokito of The Oregonian details Trail Blazers rookie Allen Crabbe‘s up-and-down season, as well as the player’s thoughts on the benefits of playing in the D-League.
- Who will be the first player taken in this year’s NBA draft? Joel Brigham, Alex Kennedy, Jessica Camerato, and Jabari Davis of Basketball Insiders debate the issue.
- Speaking of the first pick, Jabari Parker is making a strong case that it should be him, writes Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com. He believes that Parker is the most complete player in the entire draft, despite not having “elite” athleticism.
- Pau Gasol is unsure if his pending free agency will be affected by Kobe Bryant‘s recent criticism of the Lakers front office, writes Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News.
- Mavs owner Mark Cuban isn’t sure if the Lakers will ever be able to recapture their magic without Jerry Buss around, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Cuban said, “Jerry Buss was the Lakers, so I don’t know if the Lakers will ever be the Lakers. I don’t think there was a smarter owner in the history of the NBA than Jerry Buss. So that’s tough to replace. I don’t think people realize just how good an owner Jerry was.”
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Draft Rumors: Gordon, Parker, Wiggins
Chad Ford of ESPN.com has used his insider-only “Tank Rank” column to pass along rumors connected the plans that teams have for this season, but this week’s edition is all about how clubs view the top prospects for the draft. We’ll pass along the highlights from Ford here:
- The Celtics and Jazz are high on Arizona power forward Aaron Gordon, according to Ford.
- Ford consistently hears that the Pistons would draft Jabari Parker No. 1 overall if they scored the No. 1 overall pick. That seems to assume that Joe Dumars would still be in charge of the team’s basketball operations, which isn’t a given.
- The Pelicans believe Parker would be the “perfect fit” for them, Ford writes.
- The Cavs envision using Andrew Wiggins, a small forward, as a shooting guard next to Kyrie Irving if they’re able to land the Kansas star, Ford suggests.
- If the Magic wind up with the No. 1 overall pick, they’d probably use it on Wiggins, Ford writes, identifying Dante Exum and Marcus Smart as others the team will likely target.
- The Lakers appear to have Joel Embiid, Wiggins, and Exum as their top three prospects, according to Ford, who pegs Parker fourth and Julius Randle fifth on L.A.’s board.
Draft Rumors: Parker, Martin, Age Limit
Ben Detrick of The New York Times writes that finding a franchise savior at the top of the draft is a pretty rare feat, pointing out that even the low expectations for last year’s lottery picks haven’t been met yet. Detrick notes that cheap, young roster components are becoming more necessary under the current CBA, and highlights some of the deeper selections that have been contributing this year. Regardless, many fan bases are hoping their team lands a franchise cornerstone in this year’s draft. Here’s a look at the latest on the draft:
- Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com (via Twitter) thinks that LSU freshman Jarrell Martin has enough talent to end up a lottery pick if he chooses to enter the draft this year. Martin is currently ranked just #21 in DraftExpress’s 2015 mock draft.
- Jabari Parker would be the safest, most NBA-ready first-overall pick in the 2014 draft, an NBA executive tells Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com.
- In a subscription-only piece, ESPN Insider David Thorpe says that many of the arguments being made for and against a hiked age limit for the NBA draft are based on myths. Thorpe touches on common perceptions dealing with player development, the D-League, and prospects’ NBA-readiness.
And-Ones: Draft, Dragic, Neal
The NBA draft is still more than three months away but the debate on who will be the first player taken rages on. According to Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times, scouts have told him that if the draft were held today, the first overall selection would either be Kansas center Joel Embiid or Duke forward Jabari Parker. While Embiid and Parker represented the top tier in this poll and Andrew Wiggins, Julius Randle and Dante Exum represented the second tier, the six through ten choices were all over the board according to the article. There is a chance that neither Embiid, if his back proves too problematic, or Parker, if he decides to play one more season as he’s hinted, will even declare for this year’s draft.
More from around the league:
- According to La Opinion de Malaga (translated by Emiliano Carchia of Sportando) Slovenian guard Zoran Dragic is weighing his options in regards to entering the NBA next season. Dragic is averaging 11.4 PPG, 2.7 RPG, and 1.3 APG this season with Unicaja Malaga.
- Bobcats guard Gary Neal was held out of tonight’s game against the Wizards for an “internal team matter”, writes Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. About the benching, Neal said, “I made a mistake, me and coach talked about it and we’ll move forward from there.” According to Bonnell, head coach Steve Clifford said that this would not affect Neal’s minutes going forward.
- It wasn’t his health that made Chris Duhon break the contract he signed with JuveCaserta of the Italian League, writes Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. The reason, it turns out, is that Duhon’s wife, Andrea, was pregnant with twins, and Duhon decided he needed to remain near her rather than make the trip across the Atlantic. It turned out to be a sound decision, as last week, Andrea Duhon gave birth two months premature. According to Deveney, Duhon still intends to return to basketball, but it is unclear if that will be in the NBA or overseas.
Draft Notes: Wiggins, Embiid, Cuban
One NBA GM tells Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv that uncertainty about entering the draft recently expressed by Jabari Parker, along with similar sentiments from Joel Embiid earlier this year, are par for the course. He says the high profile players will all say they are considering staying in college until after the NCAA season, when they will all declare for the draft (Twitter links). Here are more rumors surrounding the draft:
- Mark Heisler of The Orange County Register says that not one NBA source he’s talked to likes Andrew Wiggins as a sure-fire blue chip player. Heisler says NBA personnel people are now only in agreement on Embiid as a top-level prospect.
- Still, an anonymous Eastern Conference scout tells Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders that the 2014 draft class is much better than last year’s, and should be important for the league. The scout also gives his take on Wiggins, Parker, Embiid, Dante Exum, Julius Randle, Marcus Smart, and Noah Vonleh.
- Adi Joseph of USA Today looks at the draft stocks of Andrew Harrison, Rodney Hood, and Bryce Cotton.
- Mavs owner Mark Cuban told reporters, including Dwain Price of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, that he wishes there were additional rounds in the NBA draft. “I’d like to see four rounds so you can draft guys overseas, get more guys drafted that are your property so you can try to develop them,” Cuban said. “You’ve got to realize that toward the bottom of the second round there are teams that pick for financial reasons, and that takes advantage of guys that might have otherwise been picked.”
Jabari Parker Uncertain About Entering Draft
Jabari Parker says that there is a possibility he doesn’t enter this summer’s draft, per Joedy McCreary of The Associated Press (H/T Adam Zagoria). The freshman, long hyped as a potential number-one-overall draft pick, says his development will be key in his decision.
“If I feel like there are things I could improve on or things I left, like during the season, then I will probably come back,” Parker said. “A deciding factor is where I’m going to grow the most, whether it’s in the NBA or even in college, the learning experiences that I need as far as [growing as] a basketball player.”
Speculation on Parker’s decision has churned all year, with NBA executives going back and forth on what they believe he will ultimately be in the draft. Most have maintained that they expect him to enter the draft, but a veteran NBA scout tells Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv that he’s “buying” the possibility of Parker returning to Duke for his sophomore season (Twitter link). If Parker were to remain in college for another year, it would have a huge effect on the both the 2014 and 2015 draft. In addition to shuffling around the upper tiers in both draft classes, Parker’s prolonged college tenure could alter the exposure and/or development of a 2015 Duke roster likely to feature a handful of draft prospects.
The 6’8″ small forward has been seen as perhaps the most polished player in the top tier of this year’s draft crop, and he began this season in a neck-and-neck projection alongside Andrew Wiggins for the first overall selection. He’s slotted fourth in Chad Ford’s latest Insider-only mock draft at ESPN, third in Jonathan Givony’s mock draft at Draft Express. Parker, who will turn 19 in a week, is averaging 18.8 PPG on .483 shooting, to go with 9.0 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, and 1.3 assists in 30.2 minutes per contest.
Draft Notes: Saric, Stauskas, Lakers
Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak and vice president of player personnel Jim Buss are expected to scout the Big 12 tournament next week, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (via Twitter). Prospects in the Big 12 for the 2014 draft include Joel Embiid, Andrew Wiggins, Marcus Smart, Isaiah Austin, Cory Jefferson, LeBryan Nash, and Markel Brown. Embiid, Wiggins, and Smart are projected in the lottery, where L.A. will likely be picking. The Lakers owe their second round pick to the Bucks, although they could certainly acquire one on or before draft night. Here are more rumors surrounding the draft:
- Turkish team Anadolu Efes is set to offer NBA draft prospect Dario Saric a five-year deal worth 6 million euros, or about $8.32MM, a source tells Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia, who notes that there are rumors the offer would cover only three years. Saric, a potential lottery pick, is undecided about whether to enter the draft this year, but he’s seriously considering the offer from Turkey, Carchia hears. The deal would include an NBA escape clause for 2016, when Saric will be automatically eligible for the NBA draft.
- Saric is expected to hire a new agent at the end of the season, and his choice figures to significantly impact his call on his decision to declare for the draft, Carchia tweets.
- Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com has Saric at No. 10 on his latest draft board, which features Jabari Parker on top.
- An NBA scout tells David Mayo of MLive.com that Michigan shooting guard Nik Stauskas would likely go in the late teens or early-20s if he entered the draft this year.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Draft Notes: Embiid, Wiggins, Parker
Commissioner Adam Silver’s desire to raise the minimum draft age by another year has fueled plenty of talk about the most effective way to develop NBA prospects. Tom Ziller of SB Nation takes a look at Mavs owner Mark Cuban’s recent assertion that the D-League should supplant the NCAA. College basketball isn’t going away, as Cuban suggests it should, but Ziller thinks a higher minimum age could result in greater use of the D-League as a conduit to the draft. In the meantime, here’s the latest from a landscape still dominated by one-and-done collegians:
- Joel Embiid, Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker are Nos. 1, 2 and 3 in Jonathan Givony’s updated mock draft and top-100 prospects list at DraftExpress. Givony has Jahlil Okafor atop his new 2015 mock draft.
- Chad Ford of ESPN.com agrees with Givony through the first two picks for this year, but Ford has Dante Exum going No. 3 to the Magic in his Insider-only mock draft.
- Ford and Givony place Arizona shooting guard Nick Johnson 54th and 60th, respectively, in their prospect rankings for this year, but sources tell Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com that the junior is leaning toward entering the draft (Insider link).
Draft Notes: Age Limit, Smart, Smith, Baron
We’ve heard that new commissioner Adam Silver would be interested in raising the age limit for players to 20, thereby putting a stop to “one-and-done” guys who enter the draft after just one year of college. Kevin McHale would support such a change, but he actually suggests increasing the minimum age to 21 would be even better, writes Sam Amick of USA Today. McHale thinks it would benefit both the schools and the kids:
“I’d like to see us do the three years out of high school or 21 (years old), like football. I just think it would help the colleges. I think it would help the kids. And I know they don’t think so, because they want to say, ‘Hey, I’ve got to get in the market. I’ve got to make all my money and all that stuff.’ But you don’t make money if you have a three-year career, if you come in at 18, 19, and you’re not ready.”
Here’s more on the proposed idea and the NBA draft in general:
- It isn’t just McHale interested in implementing a 21-year-old age limit. Outspoken Dallas owner Mark Cuban echoes McHale’s sentiments, tweets Dwain Price of the Star Telegram.
- Adi Joseph of USA Today examines the draft stocks of Marcus Smart and Russ Smith. Joseph thinks that Smart is a lock to be a top 10 selection, but sees Smith as a high second-rounder who still needs to improve his passing.
- Billy Baron has been putting up huge numbers at Canisius, but some have wondered if he will be able to be productive at the next level. An NBA scout told Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv that Baron could be a second-round selection if he impresses at the NBA camps (Twitter link). His athleticism and defense are his two biggest weaknesses, the scout says.
- Over at ZagsBlog, another NBA scout tells Zagoria that this year’s college freshman have been overhyped. The scout thinks that Julius Randle would do well to stay another year at Kentucky but acknowledges he will almost certainly opt to enter the draft.
- In the same piece, Zagoria reveals that the scout’s top three players unsurprisingly consist of Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, and Joel Embiid, in no particular order.
Draft Notes: Ennis, Antetokounmpo, Wiggins
The buyout market is the primary focus for many playoff-bound teams, but May 20th is the next significant date on the calendar for other clubs. That’s the date of the draft lottery, when bouncing ping-pong balls will determine the future for a handful of franchises. No matter how it turns out, teams are no doubt preparing for every possibility, and we’ve got the latest on the 2014 draft here:
- Some scouts say Tyler Ennis is strongly considering a return to Syracuse for his sophomore season, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. Still, the point guard is widely considered a top-10 talent, and most such prospects end up declaring for the draft, whether they hesitate or not. Ennis is No. 10 on the ESPN Insider board and No. 9 in the DraftExpress rankings. Executives around the league last month reportedly worried that Jabari Parker wouldn’t enter the draft, but Kennedy hears from scouts who are confident that he’ll turn pro (Twitter link).
- The Sixers would like to use one of their haul of second-round picks on Thanasis Antetokounmpo, according to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. He’s a fringe first-round pick, and the Sixers might not get a crack at him, particularly if the Bucks wind up with the top pick of the second round. Still, Bucks rookie Giannis Antetokounmpo tells Deveney that he isn’t sure he’d like to compete with his brother for playing time at the same position on the same team.
- Andrew Wiggins is the new No. 1 on the latest draft board from Chris Mannix of SI.com. Ennis checks in at No. 7.