NBA Scouts Eye Shabazz Napier, Ryan Boatright, DeAndre Daniels

[Husky25]

I see no chance he makes the lottery. I think he can play his way into the first round, and maybe up a few spots from the bottom. That's the best place for him anyway. He's not going to start in the NBA, but as bemayuc says, he's the type of player that GM's undervalue. After the first 15 picks, the smart GM sticks with proven, older college players.

It's simple really, in any draft there are 1-3 great players. Then another 2-5 very good players. The rest are gambles. When you pick a young kid with "upside" late in the draft, you just bought a Powerball ticket. It will often be worth nothing. But if you take a veteran, proven winner (Ainge has been good at this, with guys like Glen Davis and Sullinger) you probably get somebody who can at least play and earn a bench spot. In the lottery, every GM is picking only guys they think can be stars, because the league is driven by the top 20 players, often by the top 5. You don't win a championship without at least two top 25 players. There is no chance Napier will be a star, so he won't go that high. That said, there is a very good chance he plays in the league a long time, which you can't say for a lot of guys who will be picked higher.

Boat will go to Europe I expect. Daniels needs a lot more muscle or he is in danger of doing the same.

Reasonable point of view.

If Boat leaves this year, he will be making a huge mistake, IMO. He can make a run at the NBA after next season and be much more prepared. Europe isn't going anywhere and it's easier to fall back to Europe than it is to go there first and jump back to the NBA. Europe for Men is not like it is for the Women. As I understand it, women can make 2, 3, 4x, or more in Europe what they get in the WNBA, but the prestige of playing in the WNBA keeps them coming back and playing year round. Men make a pittance in Europe compared to the NBA. Does anyone know where Boat is academically? Is he graduating early? That might be a consideration as well.

The reason I think he is not going early entry is sitting up the bench from him. No doubt he is getting advice not only from Ollie and Calhoun, but Ricky Moore as well. There was an article a while back where Moore explained how hard on him and his family it was to play in Europe.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Reasonable point of view.

If Boat leaves this year, he will be making a huge mistake, IMO. He can make a run at the NBA after next season and be much more prepared. Europe isn't going anywhere and it's easier to fall back to Europe than it is to go there first and jump back to the NBA. Europe for Men is not like it is for the Women. As I understand it, women can make 2, 3, 4x, or more in Europe what they get in the WNBA, but the prestige of playing in the WNBA keeps them coming back and playing year round. Men make a pittance in Europe compared to the NBA. Does anyone know where Boat is academically? Is he graduating early? That might be a consideration as well.

The reason I think he is not going early entry is sitting up the bench from him. No doubt he is getting advice not only from Ollie and Calhoun, but Ricky Moore as well. There was an article a while back where Moore explained how hard on him and his family it was to play in Europe.

I don't think Boat leaves now, but I think Europe is where he ultimately lands.

 

[UChusky916]

I've said this before and will say it until the draft. Barring some terrible injury, Shabazz is exactly the type of player that the stupid NBA organizations undervalue. He lacks some measurables and won't be dunking on anyone, but has qualities that teams that pick 25-30(read: Good Teams) covet : Savvy, production, shot-making, playmaking.

He is lining up perfectly to be gobbled up by a San Antonio or Miami and become an immediate contributor at backup PG.

Imagine 'Bazz 3pt% given the looks that Chalmers gets? he'd shoot like 50%.

Agreed 100%. Hope he gets on the Heat with Ray-Ray, that'd be a tremendous fit for Shabazz.

If Bazz falls to the 2nd round, so many teams will regret it. Look at how undervalued Stephen Curry was after falling to #7... he's dominant. I'm not saying Bazz is Curry. But they definitely have very similar games. Read the strengths/weaknessess on his draft express page and tell me Curry's game doesn't sound a lot like Bazz's
http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Stephen-Curry-1170/

STRENGTHS:- Craftiness- Excellent skill-level- Go-to scoring mentality- Off-ball movement- Offensive creativity- Scoring instincts- Ability to create own shot- Change of gears/Hesitation moves- Ability to get in passing lanes- Aggressiveness- Awareness- Basketball IQ- Competitiveness- Confidence- Leadership skills in clutch- Poise- Strong Intangibles- Unselfishness- Winning mentality- Work ethic- Ability to create for others- Conditioning- Ability to catch and shoot- Ability to come off screens- Ability to create separation from defender- Ability to shoot off the dribble- Free throw shooting- NBA 3-point range

Granted, Bazz is about 2 inches shorter than than Curry, but I think Bazz really should model his game after him as they both have many similarities already.

 

[CL82]

Boat in particular will benefit from (finally) being the lead guard and being in a position to show off how well he can run a team and distribute.

I think he benefitted from not being the only option at point, especially for his first two years. He's matured and I agree that next year can be a great year for him.

 

[James]

Lets also not forget what KO is doing for his draft stock, napier is clearly an extremely high character kid; something valued by many successful franchises . KO isn't a HOF coach, but he's really starting to put his fingerprints all over our team character and success in the classroom ( however I do regard calhoun as napiers most obvious influence) . Napiers work ethic is already professional ( see @Rico444 practice write up).

 

[Nnocu]

I've said this before and will say it until the draft. Barring some terrible injury, Shabazz is exactly the type of player that the stupid NBA organizations undervalue. He lacks some measurables and won't be dunking on anyone, but has qualities that teams that pick 25-30(read: Good Teams) covet : Savvy, production, shot-making, playmaking.

He is lining up perfectly to be gobbled up by a San Antonio or Miami and become an immediate contributor at backup PG.

Imagine 'Bazz 3pt% given the looks that Chalmers gets? he'd shoot like 50%.

After seeing what SAS does to groom second-rounders and late first rounders, they'd be a great spot for Bazz in the late 1st

 

[breezy]

I give a 15% chance that Boat doesn't jump to Europe after this year. I want him back, want him to take the reigns and run with it, but all his statements just leaves a gut feeling he's ready to jump ship at the first opportunity he gets, be it abroad or here.

What statements are you referring to? I'm not scoffing at this prediction I'm just curious.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

I was not a huge believer in Boat ever being in the NBA until about a month ago. Now I think he might go top 20 if he has a big year as the starting point next season. But he needs to show that he can run a winning team.

I think Daniels is a srcond round pick this year and he will be a second round pick next year. Too skinny. Not quite skilled enough.