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The 2020 NBA Draft Class has long been viewed as relatively weak, especially at the top where there is no Anthony Davis-type prospect as close to a sure thing as one can get in the game. of predicting the future of athletics.
The three names we’ve heard the most at the top are 6-foot-8 point guard LaMelo Ball, the safety wing built like a solid Anthony Edwards, and seven-foot athletic specimen James Wiseman, each of whom has been reported. as a potential choice # 1 at one point or another.
It is still true. No one knows for sure who will become No.1 on November 18, in part because we still don’t know whether the Minnesota Timberwolves will end up trading or retaining the pick.
There has been talk that the Hornets could go up to take Wiseman. But now that feeling is changing. Whether it’s Minnesota or another team trading, most front offices are now “operating under the assumption” that Ball will be the first name to come off the board, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony.
From ESPN:
Unless a surprise trade completely disrupts the draft top, LaMelo Ball, Anthony Edwards and James Wiseman are likely to make the top three in some order, according to conversations with several team leaders, scouts and agents. Most NBA front offices operate under the assumption that Ball goes No.1 – either to the Minnesota Timberwolves or to a team that swaps to select him.
Some popular picks among executives to make such a move for Ball at No.1 include the Chicago Bulls (currently holding the No.4 pick), Detroit Pistons (No.7) and Oklahoma City Thunder (No.25, more a reserve of future premieres).
The ball advantage is perhaps the highest in the draft, which would be the reason why he won number 1. results; Ball shot just 25 percent from beyond the arc during his short stint playing professionally in Australia. The idea is that if the shooting improves, which in part could be as simple as better shooting selection, then Ball has all the markers of an elite offensive player.
Defense is another story. Ball statistically ranked as one of the two or three worst defenders in the NBL, and it’s not just the stats. You don’t have to watch a lot of movies to see how out of touch Ball is with this ending. His instincts are bad. His effort is even worse. He’s not a top athlete in terms of the ability to move sideways and stay ahead of the elite guards in the NBA.
But again, Ball has the length to give you hope for that end. At 6-8, he should be able to switch between three positions, and the optimistic approach would be that his defensive disinterest so far can be at least partially attributed to the AAU-type education he had as a player. . Her high school literally chose the cherry. The stops in Lithuania and Australia did not require him to engage defensively. He has been a leading prospect at this point.
If the Timberwolves have a choice, there is also a question of fit. They just traded for D’Angelo Russell last season, and we know he’s better with the ball in his hands running pick and roll, which is Ball’s bread and butter as well. Neither of them can play a lick in defense at this point, and it’s hard to imagine how the two together in the backcourt wouldn’t have any offenses to stage nightly fireworks.
That said, if Ball turns out to be as tall as a lot of people think he has the potential to be, that’s a good deal, and you can still trade Russell down the line. As for the teams Givony mentioned as possible trading partners, the Bulls just drafted Coby White last year, while the Thunder have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and, currently, Chris Paul. Detroit is the team most in need of a head guard.
But at the end of the day when you have the # 1 pick, you take the best player and worry about the fit later. From the sounds of this report, that’s what one of these teams – whether Minnesota or someone else – is planning to do with Ball.
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