Ford On Sixers, Lakers, J. Brown, Celtics
The NBA world may still be recovering this morning from an incredible Game 7 in Oakland on Sunday night, but that recovery will have to happen fast — we’re only three days away from the 2016 NBA draft. As we quickly transition into the 2016 offseason, let’s round up a few of the highlights from Chad Ford’s latest mock draft at ESPN.com (Insider link), which features a handful of interesting draft tidbits…
- The Sixers have had “vigorous internal debates” about the No. 1 pick, with Brandon Ingram and Kris Dunn – who would both be good fits on the roster – receiving consideration. But, as Ford writes, the team keeps coming back to the fact that Ben Simmons is the best prospect in the draft in terms of “sheer talent and upside.” Ford adds that head coach Brett Brown believes he could find a way to use Simmons as a point guard of sorts.
- Although there has been some talk of the Lakers eyeing Marquese Chriss and Jaylen Brown at No. 2, Ford believes those prospects would only be in play for L.A. if the club acquired another lottery pick. Either Simmons or (more likely) Ingram figures to be the pick for the Lakers.
- The Celtics have come up empty so far in their trade talks involving the No. 3 selection. That doesn’t mean Boston will definitely keep the pick, but the team doesn’t have a deal it likes for the time being. If they keep the pick, the Celtics may be leaning toward Brown, who had a “terrific” workout in Boston, says Ford.
- The four players strongly in the mix for the Timberwolves at No. 5 are Brown, Kris Dunn, Jamal Murray, and Dragan Bender, according to Ford.
- While the Kings are “praying” that Buddy Hield falls to No. 8, Ford says Domantas Sabonis could be a dark horse candidate for that spot, since Sacramento is very high on him.
- We heard last week that Malachi Richardson may have received a promise from the Grizzlies at No. 17, and Ford’s mock draft does send Richardson to Memphis. However, the ESPN.com scribe notes that the Grizzlies are also very fond of Croatian big man Ivica Zubac, who could be in play for that slot.
Draft Update: Celtics, Spurs, Hornets, Jazz, Hield
The Celtics have trimmed their list of candidates if they keep the No. 3 pick in Thursday’s draft, writes Mike Petraglia of WEEI.com. Director of player personnel Austin Ainge said during workouts Saturday that the team has a good idea of who it will select if no trades work out by draft night. “We’ve been narrowing at this point,” Ainge said. “We have them in groups more than specific [players]. Maybe for our first pick we have it narrowed to these three or four guys, the second group a little bigger – eight or 10, because you don’t know whose going to be there. You do your best at guessing and debating the groups.” Petraglia names Oklahoma shooting guard Buddy Hield, Bosnian power forward Dragan Bender and Providence point guard Kris Dunn as the top candidates for the third selection, with Kentucky combo guard Jamal Murray and California power forward Jaylen Brown possibly getting consideration. The Celtics also own picks No. 16 and 23 in the first round.
There’s more draft-related news this morning:
- The Spurs are working hard to move up in the draft, according to NBADraft.net (Twitter link) and Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (link). San Antonio currently owns the No. 29 pick.
- The Hornets are also making an effort to improve their draft position, tweets Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune. Charlotte has the 22nd pick.
- Several teams have contacted the Jazz about trading for the No. 12 pick, tweets Jody Genessy of The Deseret News.
- Providence power forward Ben Bentil has a draft promise late in the first round, according to NBADraft.net (Twitter link). The Clippers, who hold the 25th selection, are mentioned as a possibility because of their connection with Friars assistant coach God Shammgod.
- Hield made his case to be taken second overall after his workout Saturday with the Lakers, writes Joey Ramirez of NBA.com. It was Hield’s second session for L.A. after a private workout earlier. “I’m just what the franchise needs,” he said. “The Lakers are losing Kobe [Bryant] and need a scorer. Why not? Why not come in and fill in the spot? I’m a confident player. That’s what I’ve been. I’ve been under pressure my whole life; just overcoming obstacles and I know L.A.’s in the market and everybody says about the Lakers how they expect to win. I’m a player coming in and expecting to win right away.”
Western Draft Notes: Pelicans, Nuggets, Wolves
The Pelicans had a large workout group in on Monday, with a dozen players earning a look from the club. According to the team (via Twitter), the following players participated in the workout: Isaia Cordinier (France), Troy Williams (Indiana), Michael Gbinije (Syracuse), Jake Layman (Maryland), Guerschon Yabusele (France), Wayne Selden (Kansas), Gary Payton II (Oregon State), Yogi Ferrell (Indiana), Thomas Walkup (Stephen F. Austin), Kaleb Tarczewski (Arizona), Prince Ibeh (Texas), and Perry Ellis (Kansas).
While none of those prospects figures to come off the board at No. 6, when the Pelicans make their first selection, many of them could be in play in the second round — New Orleans currently holds the 39th and 40th overall picks, and is doing its due diligence on potential second-round prospects.
Let’s check in on a few more draft updates from around the Western Conference…
- The Nuggets, armed with three top-20 picks, will work out former Michigan State forward Deyonta Davis on Wednesday morning, the team announced today in a press release. We profiled Davis, the 10th prospect on DraftExpress.com’s big board, in April, noting that Denver could be a fit. The Nuggets are also expected to bring in Villanova’s Ryan Arcidiacono for a workout later this week, tweets Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post.
- The Timberwolves, who have the fifth overall pick in the draft, had Jamal Murray in for an individual workout on Monday, per Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link).
- Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops passes along a pair of updates, reporting (via Twitter) that Domantas Sabonis (Gonzaga) worked out with the Jazz on Monday, and that Xavier’s James Farr participated in a group workout with the Thunder today.
- The Clippers will work out Dayton’s Dyshawn Pierre, according to Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.com (Twitter link). Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link) adds former Kansas forward Cheick Diallo to the list of prospects that will work out with the Clips.
- Former Iona guard A.J. English has a workout lined up with the Warriors, tweets Camerato.
Kyler’s Latest: Rose, Bulls, Valentine, Draft
A Monday report from ESPN indicated that the Timberwolves are eyeing Jimmy Butler as a trade target, but the Bulls may not be willing to deal their star forward. In fact, league sources at the annual Adidas Eurocamp in Italy tell Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders that Chicago is much more open to the idea of trading Derrick Rose, rather than Butler.
With Rose entering a contract year and attached to a cap number of $21MM+, it’s not clear how much interest he’ll generate, or whether any teams have made a real offer yet. However, Kyler writes that there’s a sense around the NBA that teams unable to land a starting point guard in free agency could turn to the Bulls as a potential trade partner.
Kyler passed along a few more tidbits from Italy, so let’s dive in and round up the highlights…
- Prospects like Wade Baldwin and Demetrius Jackson are viewed as potential targets for the Bulls at No. 14, particularly if the team gets serious about moving Rose, writes Kyler.
- Kyler makes note of several draft prospects whose medical issues could have an impact on their value, writing that one NBA team compared Michigan State’s Denzel Valentine to Danny Granger due to questions about his knee. While Kyler’s sources still believe Valentine will be a first-rounder, many teams believe that knee could be a problem.
- Kris Dunn is believed to have a “soft promise” in the top six, while Domantas Sabonis appears to have a similar promise from a top-12 team. A handful of international prospects, including including Ivica Zubac, Ante Zizic and Juan Hernangomez, are also believed to have promises later in the first round, according to Kyler.
- More and more executives around the NBA believe the Celtics will take either Jamal Murray or Jaylen Brown at No. 3 if they keep that pick. A. Sherrod Blakely suggested earlier this week that Boston was strongly considering Brown.
- Malachi Richardson and Demetrius Jackson are two prospects the Grizzlies have their eyes on, though their pick at No. 17 may come down to who’s still on the board at that point.
Draft Notes: Labissiere, Poeltl, Murray
Here are the latest news and notes regarding the 2016 NBA Draft, which will be held on June 23rd in Brooklyn, New York:
- The Nuggets have workouts scheduled on Thursday for Josh Adams (Wyoming), Kay Felder (Oakland), Brice Johnson, (North Carolina), Chris Obekpa, (UNLV), Malachi Richardson, (Syracuse) and Guershcon Yabusele (France), the team announced via press release.
- The Suns held a group workout today for Johnson, Richardson, Alpha Kaba (France) and Maodo Lo (Columbia), the team announced in a series of tweets. Working out individually for Phoenix today was Skal Labissiere (Kentucky) and Jakob Poeltl (Utah).
- Kentucky combo guard Jamal Murray said he intends to work out for just four teams: the Celtics, Suns, Timberwolves and Pelicans, Jay King of MassLive tweets. The teams on Murray’s list hold picks No. 3 to No. 6 in June’s draft, King notes.
- The Wolves will bring in Damion Lee (Louisville) and Ryan Arcidiacono (Villanova) as part of a group workout on June 14th, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN notes (Twitter links).
Draft Notes: Celtics, Beasley, Papagiannis, Hawks
It’s a busy day for Celtics pre-draft workouts, as the team is working out a six-player group and taking a closer look at two more prospects in individual workouts. Those solo workouts belong to Kentucky’s Jamal Murray and Gonzaga’s Domantas Sabonis, per Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com (Twitter link), and it sounds like it was a good showing for Murray — he hit a record 79 of 100 three-pointers during his session, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. In our community mock draft, Hoops Rumors readers have Murray coming off the board seventh overall and Sabonis being picked 13th..
As for Boston’s larger workout group, in addition to Farad Cobb and Cheick Diallo, whose participation had previously been reported, the Celtics are also working out Terry Allen (Richmond), Zach Auguste (Notre Dame), Adam Pechacek (Czech Republic), and Adam Smith (Georgia Tech), according to Forsberg.
Let’s round up a few more draft updates from around the league…
- Because former Florida State shooting guard Malik Beasley is coming off stress fracture surgery on his right leg, he won’t be able to work out for teams prior to the draft, but can meet and interview with them, according to ESPN.com’s Chad Ford (Twitter link). A report last week indicated that Beasley would be paying a visit to the Bulls today.
- Greek big man Georgios Papagiannis, who worked out for Phoenix on Tuesday, has upcoming workouts with the Celtics, Bulls, and Pistons, tweets Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. The 7’2″ center currently ranks 50th on Jonathan Givony’s big board at DraftExpress.com.
- Former Wichita State guard Ron Baker is schedule to have a pre-draft workout with the Hawks this Friday, reports Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter).
- Oregon’s Elgin Cook, the 77th-ranked prospect on DraftExpress.com, recently workout for the Raptors and will audition next for the Nets, who are hoping to trade for a pick, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders.
Atlantic Notes: Simmons, Sixers, Murray, Bender
LSU’s Ben Simmons, the odds-on favorite to be the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, may prefer to be a Laker, but he “has no issue” with the idea of being selected by the Sixers, a source close to the player tells Tom Moore of The Bucks County Courier Times. Sixers VP of player personnel Marc Eversley indicated on Thursday that the team has yet to make a decision on how it will use that first overall pick, but according to Moore, multiple sources suggest Philadelphia is leaning toward Simmons over Brandon Ingram and others.
Here’s more on that No. 1 pick, along with a few other Atlantic items:
- Is there any chance the 76ers could select former Kentucky guard Jamal Murray with that first overall pick? Eversley suggested Murray is “in contention” for that top spot, and Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer suggests that some members of the Sixers organization believe he has more upside than anyone in this draft. Still, Pompey doesn’t expect Philadelphia to end up with Murray unless perhaps the team acquires another lottery pick.
- Derek Bodner of PhillyMag.com takes a closer look at the Jeff Teague/Nerlens Noel rumor that surfaced on Thursday, making the case that Noel is underrated and shouldn’t be moved in a deal that sends Teague to the Sixers.
- Top international prospect Dragan Bender is coming stateside this month, but he may work out for just three NBA teams when he arrives, according to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter link), who hears that the Celtics figure to be among those clubs.
- The Nets are reportedly set to begin a mini-camp on June 6th, and the influence of new head coach Kenny Atkinson can be seen in the list of participants, as NetsDaily explains.
Draft Updates: Dunn, Suns, Celtics, Pelicans
Last month, we heard that former Providence point guard Kris Dunn may refuse to release his medical records to the Celtics and Suns, since he prefers not to land with a team with a young point guard or two already in place. John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM is hearing similar rumblings, tweeting that Dunn isn’t interested in working out for Phoenix or sharing his medical records with the Suns — Gambardo hears that the point guard would like to land with the Timberwolves.
Let’s check out a few more draft-related updates…
- While the Celtics may not be Dunn’s preferred destination, ESPN’s Chad Ford (Insider link) has the Providence product going to Boston at No. 3 in his latest mock draft, writing that he thinks the C’s will choose one of Dunn, Jamal Murray, or Marquese Chriss. Dragan Bender, who has also been viewed as a candidate for that No. 3 pick, goes sixth overall in Ford’s latest mock, with the ESPN.com scribe writing that the Pelicans are believed to be “pretty big fans” of the 18-year-old big man.
- Also within his mock draft, Ford writes that Kings GM Vlade Divac and owner Vivek Ranadive love Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield, and suggests that the Raptors have been “secretly hoping” Chriss falls to them at No. 9, which appears increasingly unlikely.
- Former Seton Hall point guard Isaiah Whitehead has workouts with the Nuggets and Pistons lined up for June 10th and 15th, respectively, and will work out for the Bulls and Nets after that, according to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
- After working out for Philadelphia on Thursday, Daniel Hamilton (UConn) will work out for the Rockets, Warriors, and Bucks, while Alex Caruso (Texas A&M) will work out for the Knicks, Wizards, and Celtics, per Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.com (Twitter links).
Prospect Profile: Jamal Murray (Part Two)
PROJECTED DRAFT RANGE: Chad Ford of ESPN.com has Murray as the third best prospect. The 19-year-old could go as high as No. 3 to the Celtics and Ford doesn’t envision him falling past the Pelicans at No.6. That’s the spot where Jonathan Givony of Draft Express has Murray in his latest mock draft and Givony ranks Murray as the sixth best prospect.
RISE/FALL: Barring an injury to Ben Simmons or Brandon Ingram, Murray won’t be selected in the top-2. More likely, Murray comes off the board at No. 3, No. 5 or No.6.
FIT: The Celtics have a loaded backcourt. Yet, none of their incumbent players have the ceiling that Murray has, so he remains a possibility since Danny Ainge will be using the No. 3 overall pick with the franchise’s long-term future in mind. Trading that pick remains a possibility as well and the Sixers are a logical trade partner should they offer up Jahlil Okafor. Murray would be a nice fit for the Sixers, as one anonymous executive told Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer earlier this week.
The Wolves have a talented young core and Murray’s shooting would impeccably complement Andrew Wiggins‘ and Karl-Anthony Towns‘ interior games. Minnesota can’t consistently play Wiggins, Zach LaVine and Ricky Rubio on the perimeter if it wants to improve in the win column because the trio simply doesn’t possess the long-range shooting necessary to evoke fear in opposing defenses. Smart coaches will let their players sag off these guys and allow them to fire away from downtown. Adding Murray to the equation changes the dynamics. Having a competent shooter on the floor would allow Wiggins to have more room to drive to the basket, a skill he excelled at during his sophomore season in the NBA, even with the team’s poor spacing.
If the team drafts Murray, it can consider moving on from Rubio with the hopes that either Murray or LaVine can develop into a full-time point guard. Minnesota could simply keep Rubio and grant Murray the time to develop into that role. Even if Murray doesn’t become the point guard he believes he can be, he would make a great partner in the backcourt to Rubio or LaVine because of his tremendous shooting ability and I speculate that he doesn’t fall past the Wolves at No. 5.
The Pelicans probably hope he falls to No.6, as they could use Murray the most out of the aforementioned teams. Eric Gordon is a free agent this summer and they may bring him back if the market softens on him, but the Gordon-Jrue Holiday–Tyreke Evans combination never really took off as a result of injuries and overlapping skill sets. Adding Murray would address a problematic area for New Orleans: the back-up point guard spot. Holiday has seen his fair share of injuries since arriving in Louisiana. When he’s unable to play, the offense sputters. Murray would give the Pelicans a nice option at the point should Holiday miss more time in the future or if the team decides to move on from Holiday all together.
FINAL TAKE: Murray may be the best shooter in the draft and in a league where the 3-point shot is being stressed more and more, he should provide immediate value to whichever team drafts him. His floor seems to be a Jamal Crawford-type player who is best suited for a second unit. However, he has the potential to be a star. Whether or not he can play the point guard position full-time and improve on the defensive end will determine his status in the league.
(For Part One of our Jamal Murray Prospect Profile, click here)
Prospect Profile: Jamal Murray (Part One)
OVERVIEW: Jamal Murray was the 45th best player of his high school class, according to RSCI’s rankings last year. Murray, an Ontario native, spent part of his summer playing for the Canadian national team and he helped bring home a silver medal to his country during the 2015 Pan American Games. After that experience, and a freshman campaign at Kentucky, in which he averaged 20.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists, Murray finds himself near the top of most draft boards.
STRENGTHS: Murray served as Kentucky’s go-to scorer during his lone season playing for John Calipari. His 538 shot attempts were the most in the SEC last season and the 10th most in the nation. His impressive shooting was a major reason why he was able to dominate that role. Murray shot 50.2% from the field and 40.8% from behind the arc. He was particularly effective coming off screens, shooting 56.0%, as Jonathan Givony of Draft Express details.
He dazzled teams with strong showings during workouts. During a recent workout, in which Chad Ford of ESPN.com attended, he made 25 3-pointers from various spots on the court during a two minute drill. That’s a testament to his shooting accuracy and his sneaky quick release. Don’t be surprised if he wins a 3-point contest over the course of his NBA career.
Murray has the ability to constantly get to the basket and once he’s there, he finds ways to score. He’s not the most athletic prospect, so you won’t see him posturing many defenders as he scores. Instead, he uses a variety of crafty moves to get his shot off. He possesses a nice floater and he used the backboard at Tim Duncan-like rates during his time in college.
The jury is still out on whether he can play point guard full-time in the NBA. Murray believes he can and there’s no reason he couldn’t lead a second unit at the point given his tremendous ball-handling skills. He’s drawn comparisons to Brandon Roy and C.J. McCollum and if he reaches his potential, he can be the type of player that a team can build around.
WEAKNESSES:
His court-vision and decision making are areas of concern and improvement in those areas will likely dictate whether or not he can develop into a starting point guard in the league over the long-term. He struggled with setting up teammates in college, netting only 2.5 assists per 40 minutes, and his 2.7 turnovers per 40 minutes should be alarming to NBA front offices. He didn’t start at point guard at Kentucky, but those figures suggest he will have issues should he be placed into that role.
Murray has some work to do on the defensive end. Even with a 6’7″ wingspan, he doesn’t project to be a lockdown defender. He’ll likely need to be paired with a strong defender in the backcourt for a team to form a winning combination at the top of the key. That’ll be an easier feat if he can develop into a starting-caliber point guard given that shooting guards typically carry more size and should have the ability to cover the opposition’s best guard.
(For Part Two of our Jamal Murray Prospect Profile, click here)