The Raptors and the 2014 Draft

[stooley]

The tournament is fun, but it's the kingpin of small sample size. Dayton got hot and knocked off Syracuse in the second round. It happens. Syracuse's undefeated season record is far more important of that team's ability than the tournament results are. I mean, nobody is saying Wiggins and Embiid aren't lottery picks but Kansas got knocked off in the second round too.

in total, they lost 6 of their last 9 games though, and ennis doesn't have those tangible skills that wiggins and embiid do.

edit: they weren't really playing against world beaters for most of the season either:

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-bask...yracuse-orange

[DanH]

Chad Ford's newest mock is up and has us taking Ennis with #20, Inglis with #37 and Russ Smith with #59.

Notable others discussed here:

Embiid 6th
Payton 12th
Saric 17th
LaVine 18th
Anderson 21st
Stokes 25th
Capela 27th
McDaniels 28th
GR3 31st
Dinwiddie 39th
Birch 47th
T-Po 52nd
Powell 56th
Bachynski 60th
Ejim N/A

Well, that would be an insanely successful draft for us, even if I'd personally take Bachynski over Smith.

[OptimalOptimist]

Nba PF want everyone wants. Can bang down low check , can hit the 15 footer check, and set screens check, can roll to the basket check, check weak side shot block check, can hold his ground and defend his position check.

Like I said after going back and watching if raptors drafted him at 20 and Anderson was gone I would mind at all. He is a game changer. I think with that gram at 7'2 he can add 30 lbs


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I'm glad you ain't our GM. No offense but you got some weird opinions.

________

It appears to me as impossible that we draft 2 PG, regarding Chad's mock. I'd take Ejim and Bachynski over Russ Smith

[grindhouse]

I'm glad you ain't our GM. No offense but you got some weird opinions.

________

It appears to me as impossible that we draft 2 PG, regarding Chad's mock. I'd take Ejim and Bachynski over Russ Smith

Lol that's fine I was right on klay Thompson right on faried. I hope I get this right . Only problem I see with the bully is his rebounding it's a bit weak


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[stooley]

any draft in which we get inglis in the second round is gonna have a lot of fans around here

[octothorp]

Chad Ford's newest mock is up and has us taking Ennis with #20, Inglis with #37 and Russ Smith with #59.

Oh no. This worries me because mock drafts are never, ever right, and Ennis + Inglis is a scenario that I desperately want to happen.

[Raptorsnz]

Ennis isn't the athlete that guys like Westbrook or even chris paul are but his PG skills and IQ are undeniable. is he getting beaten in drills and 3 on 3's? sure, but who cares? his greatest talent is in running a team, which he did, that went unbeaten. not to mention no one on the team outside of him is a bonafide first rounder.

he quarterbacked that team with precision and when they needed him, put the team on his back.

so yeah, if he falls to 20 i'd take him and laugh the rest of the way to the bank.

I don't know much about Ennis but that sounds an awful lot like Kendall Marshall and that worries me. Athleticism is a near must for PGs these days.

[blackjitsu]

An interesting group today

Jahii Carson

Position: Guard
Height: 5-10
College: Arizona State


Semaj Christon

Position: Guard
Height: 6-3
College: Xavier


Halil Kanacevic

Position: Forward
Height: 6-8
College: Saint Joseph's

James Michael McAdoo

Position: Forward
Height: 6-9
College: North Carolina


Johnny O’Bryant

Position: Centre
Height: 6-9
Country: LSU


Dwight Powell

Position: Centre
Height:6-10
Country: Stanford

This an interesting lineup. The pgs are definitely worth a look and Macadoo vs Powell is pretty interesting.

Looks like the Raps are definitely going big with their last pick.

[ceez]

I don't know much about Ennis but that sounds an awful lot like Kendall Marshall and that worries me. Athleticism is a near must for PGs these days.

Marshall had the athleticism of a glazed ham

Ennis' lack of athleticism is greatly exaggerated

[saints91]

Oh no. This worries me because mock drafts are never, ever right, and Ennis + Inglis is a scenario that I desperately want to happen.

I'm trying not to get my heart set on anyone this time around. In past drafts the Raptors have gone a totally different direction than anticipated (Jonas, Ross, Acy etc.). Most instances, I love the pics after doing further research, but I was usually disappointed at the time. I wanted Knight ow Leonard in 2011 ( I was 50/50 on that one), and I wanted Barnes, Lamb in 2012, with Quincy Miller in the second. This year I'm just trying to do a bunch research, and picking players I don't want (Hairston, McDaniels, Napier etc.)

[blackjitsu]

I don't know much about Ennis but that sounds an awful lot like Kendall Marshall and that worries me. Athleticism is a near must for PGs these days.

Kendall Marshall was never in Ennis's league. Ennis is the only 1st round worthy player on a team that had the 2nd longest win streak in the NCAA -- in a legit conference.

Seriously, Kendall was surrounded by quality nba guys (Barnes, and Henson off the top of my head)...quick check he also had Reggie Bullock (Clippers), Tyler Zeller(1st rounder), PJ Hairston(potential 1st rounder)... so I hope you see the difference in supporting cast...

Ennis's best skill is that he makes teammates play above their talent level. No one ever said that about Marshall.

[stooley]

Kendall Marshall was never in Ennis's league. Ennis is the only 1st round worthy player on a team that had the 2nd longest win streak in the NCAA -- in a legit conference.

Seriously, Kendall was surrounded by quality nba guys (Barnes, and Henson off the top of my head)...quick check he also had Reggie Bullock (Clippers), Tyler Zeller(1st rounder), PJ Hairston(potential 1st rounder)... so I hope you see the difference in supporting cast...

Ennis's best skill is that he makes teammates play above their talent level. No one ever said that about Marshall.

he had a really long win streak, but the team absolutely collapsed after that. i'm really worried about that small sample size.

he helped his team go like 25-0 instead of what? 21-4?

if that's really his only selling point, i'd be pretty nervous drafting him. now i just may not know my stuff, but most arguments i see for ennis is that he's a "winner", but he wasn't a winner the whole way through the year, and wasn't a winner when it counted, so someone, please convince me otherwise!

[stooley]

i'm worried people latched onto ennis-mania in february and while that's tempered a bit, i'm not sure we're looking at the guy objectively.

if we'd slept through the whole year and just woken up now, would we be as high on ennis?

[jarvis295]

Ya those buzzer beaters and being undefeated are major impacts on his stock, but when the team needed him he was there to answer. not much of a supporting cast as well... and 'cuse plays in a serious conference

I don't think you can compare Kendall and Ennis at all ... or your just lost

[Chr1s1anL]

but the team really dropped off at the end of the season, and they kinda flamed out in the tournament.

if the only argument is that he's a winner, well, he didn't really win when it counted.

I'm not saying he's bad, I'm just looking for someone to tell me why he'll be good.

I'm with you on this. I see him being a solid player but, not a starter.

Tyler Ennis | 6-2, 180 POUNDS | POINT GUARD | FRESHMAN
Chad Ford's Top 100: No. 9
Strengths: Assist%, Steal%, TO%, PF% | Weaknesses: Usage, 2-point%
WARP projection: 2.1 (6th among Top 100)
Comparables: Chris Paul (96.6), Rajon Rondo (95.1), T.J. Ford (93.4), Mike Conley (93.2)



The analytics perspective

Kevin Pelton: While Ennis' stats regressed a bit after we checked in on his rise midseason, he remains a top-10 prospect by the numbers. Basically, anything not related to scoring was a strength for the precocious Ennis. Only one other prospect in my database, Ty Lawson, combined a translated assist rate better than seven percent with a turnover rate of less than 15 percent of his plays.

From a statistical standpoint, the biggest question about Ennis is whether his impressive steal rate will translate going from Syracuse's 2-3 zone to a man-to-man. Historically, players at the top of Jim Boeheim's zone have collected extra steals that disappear in a more traditional defense. If Ennis' steal rate dropped by 1/3, Paul would no longer appear at the top of his similarity list and Rondo would also drop, though it would still include players like Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook in the top five. If Ennis develops anything like those predecessors, he'll be the steal.

The scouting perspective



Tyler Ennis is not a good midrange shooter and often cannot finish in the paint when driving.
Amin Elhassan: Ennis possesses good size for a point guard, with decent arm length. In transition he likes to push the ball up the court via dribble as opposed to hit-aheads. He's a very composed, mature player, but as a result is overly conservative at times. He has great command of the ball and rarely makes sloppy miscues when handling. Ennis has good speed but just doesn't have that burst to blow by defenders without a screen, and as a result doesn't get deep penetration often. He's just as likely to pull up for a midrange shot as he is to get to the rim, and he's not a particularly good midrange shooter.

Playing for Syracuse has been of benefit to him because they run a ton of pick-and-roll action, so he's pretty advanced in that regard. He does a good job of being patient with screens and not taking off prematurely. (This leads to moving screen fouls called on the big.) He passes well with either hand, a rarity among college guards, let alone for a 19-year-old.

Defensively, he carries the same stigma as every other Syracuse product that comes to the NBA: a majority of his playing and practice time was spent in a 2-3 zone. Comparatively speaking, he performed well, anticipating in the passing lanes adeptly, but that's more of a back-handed compliment.

The NBA front office perspective


Ennis might have been the most consistent freshman in college basketball this year. He's a consummate point guard who shows a terrific balance between scoring and facilitating. He has a great court sense and rarely makes the wrong play. For coaches who love steady play and consistency, you don't get much better than Ennis.

However, Ennis isn't a slam dunk NBA prospect. He's not an elite athlete, has just a so-so jumper and has struggled at times to finish in traffic around the rim. I wonder if he'll be more of a Mario Chalmers-type point guard at the next level -- a guy who won't hurt you and will just go about quietly running a team without fanfare. He might have a higher ceiling than that, but for many NBA teams, that would be enough. Expect him to go somewhere between No. 6 and No. 12.