"Would you rather" tournament pick'em: The Final 4 has begun! (post 204)

[japetas]

I choose player H because he's athletic, have good playmaking and defence skills

[ezz_bee]

I'll go with H, but if G is the player I think he is than I have a feeling that is the guy we are going to see in a raps uniform if we don't trade up/down/out.

[e2thed]

H

[Apollo]

First off, the winner of Round 1 Match 3 is:

F)Austin Rivers - 11 votes...................E)Damian Lillard - 7 votes.

Rivers moves on to the Elite 8!

Match 3

Would you rather have...

Player G
Does Well:
- Freakish length with 7’0″ wingspan (9.1% greater than height differential), solid size for an NBA SG but length makes him seem bigger
- Tremendous athlete with great quickness, leaping ability, and straight line speed, glides to the basket on straight line drives and finishes at a high rate at the rim
- Excellent perimeter defender with great lateral quickness; great at contesting shots, rotating and fighting over screens; Instinctive player who uses length effectively to jump passing lanes
- Crisp off ball play, has great timing and anticipation of where to be on floor for easy basket, excels shooting coming off ball screens, perimeter shooting threat off the catch, solid midrange game and 3-point threat
- High basketball IQ, doesn’t do too much outside his game, doesn’t need ball to leave an impact, fundamental basketball player; NBA ready with off ball play and defense

Must Improve:
- Needs to build muscle to frame and grow into his body, 5-10 lb.s ideal for his frame but still going to be one of the more meek of build among NBA guards
- Isolation play and creating his own shot off the dribble, being more aggressive with the ball and attack the basket (only 1.4 free throw attempts per game as frosh), struggles to break down D with inability to change direction quickly
- Consistent defensive effort, needs to do a better job of moving feet and getting in defensive stance, “swipey” on defense after getting beat making him susceptible to cheap fouls on plays he should be able to stay in front of


Player H
Does Well:
- Explosive athlete, outstanding vertical leap, great end-to-end speed, quick first step and burst, superb body control and contortion around the rim
- Midrange marksman with great depth out to NBA 3-point range, great off ball player and spot up shooter coming off screens, always squared and ready to shoot, high release point
- Can create his own shot off the dribble, ability to set up for jumper or attack rim, nice crossover and step back dribble for jumper
- Excellent passer and distributor, exceptional court vision, unselfish player, trusted entry passer into post and for off ball shooters, can set up plays
- Defensive presence, has length, athleticism, instincts and lateral quickness to be a high level perimeter defender, play maker in passing lanes, contests shots well
- Natural feel for the game, high basketball IQ, good decision maker, versatile, assertive play maker, active rebounder

Must Improve:
- Frail frame in need of strength, 5-10 pounds of muscle to fill out body, struggles to finish through contact
- Streak shooter, can get very hot/cold from 3-point range, tendency to force some poor shots driving the lane
- Can become too hesitant to isolate, doesn’t need ball to be effective but becomes confined to being a spot up threat



Thanks for the feedback, I have decided to continue announcing the winners because I started that way and will definitely look for your feedback after the tournament to make it better next time. I am also going to post the winners somewhere between 10-11ish mountain time as my life is not always as consistent as it is necessary to always be on at exactly 11. It seems most people have voted by 9 mountain time anyway.

Both players sound comparable in many ways so I'll go with H due to the intelligence factor. He probably has more upside because of it.

[tucas]

Gotta be G. However the 7'0 wingspan sortve gave away who he was for me...

[Hello]

They both have the same pros that I immediately look for:
High ball IQ
Good defence
Solid shooting
Athletic

While both have weaknesses that will likely dissapear as they transition to the NBA with better players, maturing, and better coaches.

I honestly cannot choose between them, they both seem like they will be good players.

[The Coach]

The winner of Round 1 Match 4 is:

H)Terrence Ross - 11 votes..........G)Jeremy Lamb - 8 votes......."I just can't choose" - 1 vote

Ross, welcome to the Elite 8!

Match 3

Would you rather have...

Player I
Does Well:
- Seven footer, true center with a solid frame, excellent use of body and positioning to overcome perceived lack of strength on both ends of the court
- Budding post game, comfortable playing with his back to the basket, has a solid jump hook with great touch around the basket and can use either hand, post savvy, good footwork
- Smooth jumper, can face up and consistently knock down looks from midrange, efficient from the field
- Legit rebounder with his combination of size, length, and motor, cleans the offensive glass well and gets fair number of put backs
- Decent mobility for a seven footer, fairly active on the perimeter, can get out in transition with nice end-to-end quickness, deceiving spring
- Smart, fundamental big man, ‘go to’ player in the post, great basketball IQ, does everything at a solid level for a center

Must Improve:
- Continue building upper body strength to frame, could afford another 5 lb.s of solid muscle
- Not an explosive athlete, ‘below the rim’ type player, limited upside relative to NBA bigs
- Gets into foul trouble quite a bit, frequently ended up playing with four fouls
- Struggles to handle post double teams at this point, ball security becomes iffy and can be stripped away if pressured

Player J
Does Well:
- Prototypical NBA big body for a true center, natural strength and size at 6’11”, 275 lb., elite length with 7’5” wingspan (7.2% height-wingspan differential)
- Uncanny athleticism for a big, excellent leaping ability, impressive end-to-end quickness, super mobile
- Respectable post defender and shot blocker, great instincts and anticipation, can “body up” and hold ground, imposing presence in paint
- Exceptional rebounder due to length, strength, athleticism and motor, cleans offensive glass for good number of put backs
- Skilled center, can handle the ball, improving back to basket game, great face up shooting touch out to 15’, decent court vision, authoritative finisher through contact
- Unlimited upside, potentially a franchise big man capable of becoming elite, All-NBA talent, younger relative to peers, worth the wait

Must Improve:
- Needs to refine post play, poor footwork, rushes attempts, weak back to basket game, doesn’t utilize fakes yet, too reliant on natural talent
- Inconsistent, must improve basketball IQ and effort in-game, relaxed demeanor that can come across as lazy, learn to position himself, doesn’t dominate yet like he could, still raw
- Needs to build muscle and fill out his frame, continue to add strength to play more physical in the paint and hold position, mature



After a couple of close matches, I can see this one getting out of hand early... but I have been surprised by a few of the outcomes. Thought I would add a guess who component to today's match. Which current Raptor was labelled with this scouting report?

Guess who?

Does Well:
- Built like an NBA Power Forward-good frame to add strength for battle in the post
- Has some nice post moves and a developing back to the basket game
- Good touch in the paint
- Nice form on his jump shot for a big man, ability to hit around the basket
- Moves pretty well for a big man around the paint
- Bothering, shot changing presence in the post
- Freakishly long wingspan for blocking shots
- Good rebounder thanks to length, especially on offense
- High ceiling for NBA development

Must Improve:
- Injury prone
- Lacks assertiveness in the post on a consistent basis
- Not as dominant in college as he could have been with size and length combination
- Can get discouraged and become too passive during games
- Still a very raw offensive game
- Still a bit of an enigma

[Miekenstien]

J and then J again

sounds like ed

[KingMaxwell47]

J... So much potential!

And for the guess who, I'm gonna go with ED.

[torch19]

J

[Puffer]

J plus Ed.

[Hello]

I is the safe pick and J is the gamble.
I like to gamble, i swear i'm not addicted....

For the guess who, I feel like Ed is the obvious answer, so I think it might be a trick :P
Not really sure who else it could be though, so I say Ed.

[Jon_Wade]

J and I think it's ed as well

[CalgaryRapsFan]

I was initially leaning towards J, until I read that he "must improve his basketball IQ and effort in-game"... those are two things that are more character than skill.

My vote is for Player I.

---

My first thought was Davis, until I read "nice form on his jump shot for a big man"... have you seen Davis' jump shot?? I think the player is James Johnson.

[Papa Burgundy]

Player J

Can't tell if the write-up is JJ or ED.

[Hello]

My first thought was Davis, until I read "nice form on his jump shot for a big man"... have you seen Davis' jump shot?? I think the player is James Johnson.

Thats where I was confused as well. Initially I thought Amir, but then I remembered he did not go to college.
I was not sure if JJ was scouted as a PF of Sf, and I have not heard of JJ being injury prone.

[planetmars]

I'm picking J.

As for the current Raptor.. could be completely wrong but I was thinking Solomon Alabi. The "PF" remark is throwing me off, because I don't think it's Ed either.

[octothorp]

J, by a country mile. Just say no to 'below the rim' seven-footers.

And yeah, Ed seems like the obvious choice, but almost too obvious. I'm going to go with Magloire. He's the only guy on the Raptors who has what I would call 'freakishly long wingspan'.

[JoePanini]

I know who I and J are. And I'll go with I because I think that J is overly hyped. And the whole "low basketball IQ" on J really turns me off.

As for the Raptor, it's Ed Davis!

[tucas]

I seems more NBA ready. But J seems like he could be something great. I go with J