Are We Done With The Euro-Centric Drafts?

[ceez]

The way people complain about euros game, you'd think Bosh was from Turkey.

[heinz57]

The way people complain about euros game, you'd think Bosh was from Turkey.

bosh isn't from turkey... he just plays one on tv.

[grindhouse]

Let's be honest, there are no 7'0 athletic centers that can play game changing defense coming out of the euro league this year.

[bloodyhandedgod]

It bothers me when people rant about euro players, especially when you consider there's a couple who are arguably top 10 players right now. That said, there's not a a single euro in this draft I'd take. Kanter is intriguing but his knee issues is just too glaring a problem. This is a draft we need a really solid pick on if we're going to be anything in a couple years. ESPECIALLY when you consider how high we'll most likely be drafting.

How serious is the knee injury?

[WJF]

Let's be honest, there are no 7'0 athletic centers that can play game changing defense coming out of the euro league this year.

And there are some in the NCAA?

[heinz57]

Let's be honest, there are no 7'0 athletic centers that can play game changing defense coming out of the euro league this year.

let's be honest, there's only like a half dozen of those in the NBA

[smushmush]

The name being floated around is Enes Kanter, a 6-foot 11-inch, 272-pound C/PF from Turkey. Is he good? I dunno. Imagine my horror when I went on ESPN's draft simulator and he came up for the Raptors.

http://espn.go.com/nba/lottery2011/mockdraft

Yes, I know it is set to "Harrison Barnes" right now. But not before. No, it was locked in on "unknown European talent that might or might not ever show up." Congrats on using your picks on The Invisible Man. Checking our recent draft picks is a bit of a horror story. Well not if you demand harsh consonants and a lot of "k's." And a lot of bad drafting.

Looking at the Raptors draft picks is a carcrash at times.

2004
1st - 8. Rafael Araujo (just before Iggy)
2nd - 39. Albert Miralles (?)

2005
1st - 7. Charlie Villaneuva (ugh, Joey Graham bad), 16. Joey Graham (UGH)
2nd - 41. Roko Ukic, 58. Uros Slokar (seriously, were you just going for hard k sounds?)

2006
1st - 1. Bargnani (to quote Simmons "Bargs scores 24 pts/3 rebs, gives up 42 pts/14 rbs)

PJ Tucker, Edin Bavcic (STOP IT), no drafts in 2007 but wanted to take Milovan Rakovic and/or Stanko Barac, 2008 Hibbert @ 17.,

Finally DeRozan in 2009. Ed Davis in 2010.

Can we all agree it is time to let the experiment go? Stop with the Euro projects.

I can get why you guys are looking racist by saying we should not draft an euro with our top draft pick(moreover, we got burnt the last time, drafting an Euro with a Top 5 pick, *cough* Bargs). However, there are good European players in the league(Omer Asik - the anti-Euro center logging significant minutes on the Tom Thibbodeau led Top 3 Chicago Bulls, Ersan Ilyasova on the Milwaukee Bucks with their stingy defense under Scott Skiles, Semih Erden - a third string center that filled in for the Boston Celtics admirably well when Shaquille O'neal and Jermaine O'neal went down with injury, the Gasol brothers playing nice stifling D for their respective teams and others too), it is just that I can not trust BC and his awful scouting group under Jim Kelly to ever find the good European player - a diamond in the rough, the team needs. I am not racist(I am black) but due to the ineptitude of our drafting team(to be sincere, our drafting history is a joke and the Raptors organization has probably been 5 years behind of where we are supposed to be because of our bad drafting record), it is therefore okay to go the safe route and draft an African-American(even though they might leave at the end of their contracts, but imo they are leaving because this organization is a joke and we are losing too much. The truth is bitter guys sigh.). I rest my case.

[smushmush]

i don't think we shouldn't draft a euro just for the sake of drafting a euro, kanter is a different monster than that pssy we call a centre, bargnani. If irving is gone (or doesn't look like the player we thought he is) and the best prospect left is kanter, and we determine his knees aren't completely shot than by all means draft him.

Actually, the best prospect if Kyrie Irving is not on the board is Terrence Jones imo.

[grindhouse]

And there are some in the NCAA?

I mentioned that because someone brought up enes kanter. He would basically be a PF or undersized center in the NBA and their are better defenders coming out of the NCAA at his size and position. Plus we have Davis I.E there is nothing coming out of euro league for us

[e2thed]

I'd take Derrick Williams over Terrence Jones anyday, thats just my opinion.

[MangoKid]

Wait...I'm confused. Which one is Hoffa?

If Hoffa were drafted in the early 80s, he would have been a basketball god.

[WJF]

I'd take Derrick Williams over Terrence Jones anyday, thats just my opinion.

Derrick Williams is a power forward.....how many do you want on the team?

[Tim W.]

Let's be honest, there are no 7'0 athletic centers that can play game changing defense coming out of the euro league this year.

Are there any from the US? Not in this draft.

[Raptorsss]

Have people not heard of Noguiera? He's Noah 2.0.

Seriously, I'm getting more and more pessimistic about this draft, outside of Irving anyone else would be riding a Raptors bench.

[Tim W.]

I mentioned that because someone brought up enes kanter. He would basically be a PF or undersized center in the NBA and their are better defenders coming out of the NCAA at his size and position. Plus we have Davis I.E there is nothing coming out of euro league for us

I completely disagree. If Kanter's knees are healthy, he's possibly the player best suited to the Raptors and the player who is the perfect match to both Amir and Davis. Every weakness Davis and Johnson have are strengths for Kanter. He's a brute, strong physical presence who can defend the bigger, stronger post guys. He's a good scorer who can score inside and out. He's a strong defensive rebounder, as opposed to a strong offensive rebounder, as is the case of Johnson and Davis.

Both Davis and Johnson are good shotblockers, so should really be paired with a center that is a better positional defender, which Kanter is.

As for him being undersized, from what I gather he's 6'11 but with a reach of over 7 feet. And he's only 18, so there's a chance he's still growing. I'd say he's plenty big enough.

[joey_hesketh]

Derrick Williams is a power forward.....how many do you want on the team?

Look for Williams to play ALOT of SF when he makes the jump. I'm not saying we should take him, I'm just sayin, I see alot of teams looking at more as a 3 than a 4.

[Tim W.]

Have people not heard of Noguiera? He's Noah 2.0.

Seriously, I'm getting more and more pessimistic about this draft, outside of Irving anyone else would be riding a Raptors bench.

Are you talking about that incredibly raw Brazilian guy who apparently has some "focus" issues? How on earht is he anything like Noah?

[Raptorsss]

Are you talking about that incredibly raw Brazilian guy who apparently has some "focus" issues? How on earht is he anything like Noah?

People thought that Noah would only be a good NCAA player, since his game is incredibly limited. Noguiera is a raw 18 year old, I'm high on the kid as the best center in the draft.

Kanter's knees are too much of a problem for the Raptors to gamble a top 5 pick on him.

[heinz57]

Are you talking about that incredibly raw Brazilian guy who apparently has some "focus" issues? How on earht is he anything like Noah?

stinks of Hoffa 2.0

does he have a snoopy tattoo?

[Matt52]

stinks of Hoffa 2.0

does he have a snoopy tattoo?

Actually, the kid is super athletic. Check some youtube video of him. He is RAW as they come but he does some things you can't teach.