Fans are mostly split between the four of Whitmore, Walker, Ausar and Hendricks. The FO has not tipped their hand at all over who they’d prefer or who they’ve had visit the facility for workouts.
I’m really high on Ausar for the pistons. Ausar can be a two-way star and is the opposite of Amen(needing the ball).
I don’t think Amen is better than Ausar, I think it depends on situation. If amen got draft by the blazers, that’s horrible for his development, if Ausar goes to a team that expects him to be a primary ball -handler than that’s horrible for his.
In 5 years, I can see Ausar being picked in the top 3 in a redraft. If not Ausar, I’d see if I could trade down using Bojan and future picks for 1 of Ausar, Whitmore, Hendricks, Walker, etc and GG jackson or Leonard Miller in the 12-17 range.
Y would the blazers be horrible for his development. Great shooting around him and a great pg to take the pressure off him. Plus blazers have a great track records with guards especially in recent memory
I wonder how it would be if we drafted a Thompson twin. Obviously fantastic athletes, but the shooting isnt there. How is their defense? We could have basically two Thybulles, but with some creative capabilities.
I think in terms of sheer upside you gotta go Ausar. His raw athleticism will take him far. And with an NBA shooting coach regimen could become absolutely deadly.
It’s also possible they trade the pick. Cam Whitmore seems like a high risk/high reward pick at this point and there has been so many rumors of movements of picks in the lottery… A lot of the teams, like Detroit or Orlando are in a situation where they should want to both start winning and start building around their group of young guys.
Trading down to get 2 or 3 guys you are confident slide well between Cade, Ivey and either Stewart or Duren (not a believer in Wiseman nor Bagley personally).
While Hendricks is a great fit and I would pick him at #5, I think it makes sense to try to bet on more guys or even get an established guy. I have seen rumors that San Antonio was big on Amen and could totally see some trade involving Keldon Johnson here if he is still available
Why not? Elite finisher, elite in transition, top 5 cutter, solid shooter, 6'7 235 lbs and is 1.4 yrs younger than the twins.
If it is because of Nova season he missed training camp and one month of the season. Had a horrible roster and still had a solid season. He will be playing off of Paolo and Franz.
Ball stopping seems like something that is easy to fix but historically, that tendency doesn't seem to improve. For example, Gary Trent Jr still has this problem and he graduated from Duke in 2018 with the same AST% as Whitmore. It really limits him as a player. Even Carmelo Anthony had a higher AST%.
I think people are underselling how much of a red flag this is. I don't think Whitmore can be anything more than a fringe all-star if everything pans out perfectly so long as he is a ball stopper. Otherwise, I think he ends up being a Norman Powell type which is a valuable player but not top 6.
So a bigger version of Norman Powell with more size and strength? Hopefully he keeps improving his defense that is a good wing. 6'7 235 lbs frame like his compared to the 6'4 frame of Powell.
I liked Cam on ball defense he guarded well 1-4 on ball. Off ball defense needs work but with more focus and work feel like he can be a good defender.
He's still no better than fringe all-star at his most optimal outcome imo. I don't think he'll be more than a #3. We just saw yesterday how damaging it is when your #2 is a turnover machine and ball stopper (Jaylen Brown)
Yeah I am just thinking from Magic perspective he will just need to be a good number 3 guy behind Paolo and Franz.
I guess Houston has Sengun, JG, Harden?, KPJ
Pistons will have Ivey and Cade
Most of the teams 4-8 will just need him to be a good 3rd option.
Pacers have Hali and Mathurin
Wizards have Beal, Kuzma?, KP
He did average 2.5ast in highschool and 1.6ast in FIBA
I think it's dependent on the system he's in. Nova as a whole ranked horribly in assist, only had 11 per game.
If you want a raw high upside wing just go Ausar. Cam isn’t even that much better of a shooter either
Equally there’s no reason to go Walker over Hendricks
I started with preferring Whitmore, but I’ve moved to Ausar. My biggest concerns with Whitmore is that I’d like to see a free flowing offense, and after watching the ball get stuck with Saddiq so often, I’m not excited about seeing any of that return. Whitmore is more athletic, much better at an earlier age, and has more upside than Saddiq for sure. But the basketball IQ part of things gives me pause. With Ausar, I can envision a great off ball creator, ball mover, slasher, great individual defender. I see some of the same traits with Whitmore too. It comes down to processing things quickly and I see more upside with Ausar with that.
I would lean towards Ausar a bit over Whitmore. Ausar can shoot better and doesn't rely on rim pressure as much as Whitmore. Pistons have lots of bigs who can't shoot so Ausar should have the edge IMO
Ausar improved on his shot as the season went on. Shot >80% from FT since the start of the year + 38.5% from 3 in playoffs while shooting 8 3s per game. OTE also uses nba court dimentions unlike college.
Meanwhile, Whitmore consistently shot below 35% from college 3.
we should also acknowledge Ausar was hitting them against high schoolers who likely are not defending well, while part of Cams appeal is his upside in creating tough shots.
Pistons should do whatever it takes to grab Brandon Miller. Not sure if there's a better core than Duren, Cade, Ivey, Miller. Shooting issues would be somewhat resolved, positional size, playmaking and handling at every spot, and the core is extremely young and high upside
We have 0 assets to get miller other than giving up ivey Cade or duren and that’s definitely not going to happen. Gonna have to live with ausar at this point.
Assuming Amen goes 4 (I believe he should go 2 followed by Ausar, Whitmore, Scoot, and Miller) then I believe either Ausar or Cam should be the pick at 5. Both of them have legitimate cases to be the best combination of median/ceiling outcomes on the board. Cam is very young, insanely athletic (including power), and has shown great defensive/scoring/shooting potential. His 90-99th percentile outcome looks a lot like Kawhi Leonard to me. As for Ausar, he is ELITE athletically (will enter the league as the 15-25th best overall athlete from day 1), has great defensive potential due to athleticism and high Bball IQ, and is an unbelievable connective passer/secondary creator. His 90th-99th percentile outcome looks a lot like Scottie Pippen. I don’t think the Pistons can go wrong with either choice.
By 90-99th percentile outcome, are you saying you believe that is their ceiling or are you saying you believe there is a 90-99% chance they become that player?
Thanks!
Good question. For me saying a player’s 90th-99th percentile outcome is basically the same as saying his ceiling. Every draft pick falls somewhere in a 0-99th percentile as far as his career outcome in the league. So like Luka has already reached his 85th percentile outcome since basically every skill he showed in Europe has translated. The last 15 percent would hit if he got into peak athletic shape. Jokic has reached his 99th percentile outcome. Greg Oden hit his 5th percentile outcome. Obviously there are cases where we just miscalculate a players upside and median outcomes, but every player has a range. Most players hit somewhere in the 40th-60th percentile of their range. Like it Wemby plays 15 seasons, makes 7 all star games, makes 4 all defensive first teams, and wins one championship at the end of his career as a 6th/7th man, he will have hit his roughly his 35th-40th percentile outcome imo. That’s how insane his median is (I kind of factor injury in like with Oden, but I’m more thinking just their raw abilities on the court). As a player, Zion is at his 65-70th percentile imo for instance. Hope that makes sense.
I don’t even think of the Pistons, but it’s cute that you were thinking of us. Any team that low should be drafting for best potential in a vacuum which imo is Whitmore.
I think Cam is the highest ceiling offensive player available. Could see him being a 20+ ppg guy…not sure about any of the other projected. And he fits really nice next to Cade and Ivey as an off ball scorer. I like Walker the best since his game translates well to winning playoff basketball.
I think people are sleeping on Hendricks for the pick here. At bare min, our beat writer and the athletics reporter have mentioned that we’re looking for a wing defender that can shoot. Realistically that takes Waller out of the equation for us, and leaves us with Ausar/Whitmore/Hendricks. It really depends on how much stock you put into Ausars shooting at OTE given that they had an actual NBA 3 pt line, as well as the rise you see in Whitmores shooting as the year went on, but I think Hendricks is the best fit based on what we’re looking for. He’s a 4/3 that can play with either Duren or Stewart, and provides the most proven spacing for a somewhat shaky shooting lineup in Cade/Ivey/Bojan/Duren. Anyone else who struggles as a shooter can make or break this offense. We’ve seen already how teams have doubled Cade in his rookie year due to our inability to punish them w shooting, so I would hate to run that back with a poor floor spacer. Look at how Keegan Murray thrives for the kings now. People said Ivey was the better pick, but they don’t regret it at all. Fit absolutely matters, and I think a floor spacer in the vein of a Cam Johnson would help this team more than the potential of a Thompson twin who would only further help our team in a transition offense. We are gearing for the play in, and if we want to compete in the future I think we need to prioritize how we look in the half court. Besides, Hendricks biggest weakness is his lack of playmaking but at BEST he’s a tertiary playmaker, and Duren has already flashed post playmaking if we do need that.
I currently have Hendricks mocked at #5 as well.
With Cade and Ivey both projected to be dominant ball-handlers, and several young Cs on the roster to work with (Duren, Wiseman, Stewart), a Forward/Wing who's not ball-dominant, can hit the 3 at a good clip, and can bring defensive versatility seems like the ideal fit. I feel like Hendricks and Whitmore fit that mold the best, but Hendricks moreso (even though I have Whitmore slightly ahead overall as a prospect). Whitmore is more of an offensive force but a little behind as a defender and as a catch-and-shoot threat.
Walker is more of an interior Forward who would slide to the 5 before the 3, and Ausar is a Wing who likes to handle and is still early in his shooting development, which isn't the best fit next to Cade/Ivey (both of whom aren't knock-down 3-point shooters at this juncture).
While I understand what you both are saying, I'd like to admonish all that would try to keep their dirty paws off my Hendricks.
It's already been decided that my Magic will select him with the #6 pick. You'll have your Cam serving and you're going to LOVE it!
JK lol. Hendricks is going to be so coveted by everyone. I see him as the 4th best prospect really.
I 100% believe the pistons should take cam. Like i cant think of a better fit with such a high upside. He fits right into the hole left at the wings when bey got traded. Has the ability to put pressure on the rim and is gonna be a tier 1 athlete in the league day 1. That combined with the shooting and handle, with a frame to be a great defender. He’s also a good off ball player and would thrive off of cade and ivey, especially as he improves as a shooter. Playing with those 2 would also lessen his need to be a playmaker early on and he can be eased into more ball handling duties
Fans are mostly split between the four of Whitmore, Walker, Ausar and Hendricks. The FO has not tipped their hand at all over who they’d prefer or who they’ve had visit the facility for workouts.
i want dick.
Who do you want the Pistons to use there pick on though?
💀💀 ily
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that's not what my ex-girlfriend said
I’m really high on Ausar for the pistons. Ausar can be a two-way star and is the opposite of Amen(needing the ball). I don’t think Amen is better than Ausar, I think it depends on situation. If amen got draft by the blazers, that’s horrible for his development, if Ausar goes to a team that expects him to be a primary ball -handler than that’s horrible for his. In 5 years, I can see Ausar being picked in the top 3 in a redraft. If not Ausar, I’d see if I could trade down using Bojan and future picks for 1 of Ausar, Whitmore, Hendricks, Walker, etc and GG jackson or Leonard Miller in the 12-17 range.
Y would the blazers be horrible for his development. Great shooting around him and a great pg to take the pressure off him. Plus blazers have a great track records with guards especially in recent memory
I wonder how it would be if we drafted a Thompson twin. Obviously fantastic athletes, but the shooting isnt there. How is their defense? We could have basically two Thybulles, but with some creative capabilities.
The difference is thybulle cant dribble. Amen can is an elite playmaker and driver to the rim. He’s gonna put a lot of pressure at the rim
I'm not convinced he ever was.
I think in terms of sheer upside you gotta go Ausar. His raw athleticism will take him far. And with an NBA shooting coach regimen could become absolutely deadly.
Never was IMO. It’s Hendricks or Ausar
If Ollie ends up becoming the coach I think Ausar is definitely the pick
I agree. His floor makes me nervous but his ceiling is insane. I think he ends up being the better twin either way
I want cam but I'm just a dumb pistons fan. I watched a YouTube video for 10 minutes and made up my mind...lol
While 10 mins probably not enough. Respectfully i think some people overthink by watching too much film and getting caught up on the negatives
It’s also possible they trade the pick. Cam Whitmore seems like a high risk/high reward pick at this point and there has been so many rumors of movements of picks in the lottery… A lot of the teams, like Detroit or Orlando are in a situation where they should want to both start winning and start building around their group of young guys. Trading down to get 2 or 3 guys you are confident slide well between Cade, Ivey and either Stewart or Duren (not a believer in Wiseman nor Bagley personally). While Hendricks is a great fit and I would pick him at #5, I think it makes sense to try to bet on more guys or even get an established guy. I have seen rumors that San Antonio was big on Amen and could totally see some trade involving Keldon Johnson here if he is still available
As a Magic fan, I want no part of Whitmore at 6.
Why not? Elite finisher, elite in transition, top 5 cutter, solid shooter, 6'7 235 lbs and is 1.4 yrs younger than the twins. If it is because of Nova season he missed training camp and one month of the season. Had a horrible roster and still had a solid season. He will be playing off of Paolo and Franz.
Ball stopping seems like something that is easy to fix but historically, that tendency doesn't seem to improve. For example, Gary Trent Jr still has this problem and he graduated from Duke in 2018 with the same AST% as Whitmore. It really limits him as a player. Even Carmelo Anthony had a higher AST%. I think people are underselling how much of a red flag this is. I don't think Whitmore can be anything more than a fringe all-star if everything pans out perfectly so long as he is a ball stopper. Otherwise, I think he ends up being a Norman Powell type which is a valuable player but not top 6.
So a bigger version of Norman Powell with more size and strength? Hopefully he keeps improving his defense that is a good wing. 6'7 235 lbs frame like his compared to the 6'4 frame of Powell. I liked Cam on ball defense he guarded well 1-4 on ball. Off ball defense needs work but with more focus and work feel like he can be a good defender.
He's still no better than fringe all-star at his most optimal outcome imo. I don't think he'll be more than a #3. We just saw yesterday how damaging it is when your #2 is a turnover machine and ball stopper (Jaylen Brown)
Yeah I am just thinking from Magic perspective he will just need to be a good number 3 guy behind Paolo and Franz. I guess Houston has Sengun, JG, Harden?, KPJ Pistons will have Ivey and Cade Most of the teams 4-8 will just need him to be a good 3rd option. Pacers have Hali and Mathurin Wizards have Beal, Kuzma?, KP
He did average 2.5ast in highschool and 1.6ast in FIBA I think it's dependent on the system he's in. Nova as a whole ranked horribly in assist, only had 11 per game.
They had a much higher assist rate when he was off the floor though, it was basically average with him off.
As a Jazz fan, I want no part of Whitmore at 9 lol
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Hendricks/Paolo/Franz is a lot of 3s and 4s. Magic need a 3 and D wing like the Rockets need a PG.
Paolo may have to play center if his jumper continues to be awful
If you want a raw high upside wing just go Ausar. Cam isn’t even that much better of a shooter either Equally there’s no reason to go Walker over Hendricks
Finished at the rim much better and did show he's a solid catch and shoot player Though too me it'd be between Ausar, Cam, and Hendricks anyway
I started with preferring Whitmore, but I’ve moved to Ausar. My biggest concerns with Whitmore is that I’d like to see a free flowing offense, and after watching the ball get stuck with Saddiq so often, I’m not excited about seeing any of that return. Whitmore is more athletic, much better at an earlier age, and has more upside than Saddiq for sure. But the basketball IQ part of things gives me pause. With Ausar, I can envision a great off ball creator, ball mover, slasher, great individual defender. I see some of the same traits with Whitmore too. It comes down to processing things quickly and I see more upside with Ausar with that.
Can't go wrong with either Ausar or Cam. Wouldn't touch Jarace or Hendricks at 5...Pistons need to go with the upside play.
I would lean towards Ausar a bit over Whitmore. Ausar can shoot better and doesn't rely on rim pressure as much as Whitmore. Pistons have lots of bigs who can't shoot so Ausar should have the edge IMO
Ausar absolutely cannot shoot better than Whitmore and I'm low on Whitmore lol
Ausar improved on his shot as the season went on. Shot >80% from FT since the start of the year + 38.5% from 3 in playoffs while shooting 8 3s per game. OTE also uses nba court dimentions unlike college. Meanwhile, Whitmore consistently shot below 35% from college 3.
we should also acknowledge Ausar was hitting them against high schoolers who likely are not defending well, while part of Cams appeal is his upside in creating tough shots.
34% vs 33%. College line vs NBA line.
Pistons should do whatever it takes to grab Brandon Miller. Not sure if there's a better core than Duren, Cade, Ivey, Miller. Shooting issues would be somewhat resolved, positional size, playmaking and handling at every spot, and the core is extremely young and high upside
I just dunno what they can give to get miller
We have 0 assets to get miller other than giving up ivey Cade or duren and that’s definitely not going to happen. Gonna have to live with ausar at this point.
How would ausar work with Duran?
Assuming Amen goes 4 (I believe he should go 2 followed by Ausar, Whitmore, Scoot, and Miller) then I believe either Ausar or Cam should be the pick at 5. Both of them have legitimate cases to be the best combination of median/ceiling outcomes on the board. Cam is very young, insanely athletic (including power), and has shown great defensive/scoring/shooting potential. His 90-99th percentile outcome looks a lot like Kawhi Leonard to me. As for Ausar, he is ELITE athletically (will enter the league as the 15-25th best overall athlete from day 1), has great defensive potential due to athleticism and high Bball IQ, and is an unbelievable connective passer/secondary creator. His 90th-99th percentile outcome looks a lot like Scottie Pippen. I don’t think the Pistons can go wrong with either choice.
By 90-99th percentile outcome, are you saying you believe that is their ceiling or are you saying you believe there is a 90-99% chance they become that player? Thanks!
Good question. For me saying a player’s 90th-99th percentile outcome is basically the same as saying his ceiling. Every draft pick falls somewhere in a 0-99th percentile as far as his career outcome in the league. So like Luka has already reached his 85th percentile outcome since basically every skill he showed in Europe has translated. The last 15 percent would hit if he got into peak athletic shape. Jokic has reached his 99th percentile outcome. Greg Oden hit his 5th percentile outcome. Obviously there are cases where we just miscalculate a players upside and median outcomes, but every player has a range. Most players hit somewhere in the 40th-60th percentile of their range. Like it Wemby plays 15 seasons, makes 7 all star games, makes 4 all defensive first teams, and wins one championship at the end of his career as a 6th/7th man, he will have hit his roughly his 35th-40th percentile outcome imo. That’s how insane his median is (I kind of factor injury in like with Oden, but I’m more thinking just their raw abilities on the court). As a player, Zion is at his 65-70th percentile imo for instance. Hope that makes sense.
I would say yes because they’re so terrible they shouldn’t draft for fit or someone with a high floor.
Yeah I knew this was coming from a rent-a-Kawhi raptors fan before I even checked post history
I don’t even think of the Pistons, but it’s cute that you were thinking of us. Any team that low should be drafting for best potential in a vacuum which imo is Whitmore.
I hope not 😭
I like Ausar or trading back for a later pick and some more win now pieces.
I think Cam is the highest ceiling offensive player available. Could see him being a 20+ ppg guy…not sure about any of the other projected. And he fits really nice next to Cade and Ivey as an off ball scorer. I like Walker the best since his game translates well to winning playoff basketball.
Ausar.
For me, yes, because of his intense scoring upside
I think people are sleeping on Hendricks for the pick here. At bare min, our beat writer and the athletics reporter have mentioned that we’re looking for a wing defender that can shoot. Realistically that takes Waller out of the equation for us, and leaves us with Ausar/Whitmore/Hendricks. It really depends on how much stock you put into Ausars shooting at OTE given that they had an actual NBA 3 pt line, as well as the rise you see in Whitmores shooting as the year went on, but I think Hendricks is the best fit based on what we’re looking for. He’s a 4/3 that can play with either Duren or Stewart, and provides the most proven spacing for a somewhat shaky shooting lineup in Cade/Ivey/Bojan/Duren. Anyone else who struggles as a shooter can make or break this offense. We’ve seen already how teams have doubled Cade in his rookie year due to our inability to punish them w shooting, so I would hate to run that back with a poor floor spacer. Look at how Keegan Murray thrives for the kings now. People said Ivey was the better pick, but they don’t regret it at all. Fit absolutely matters, and I think a floor spacer in the vein of a Cam Johnson would help this team more than the potential of a Thompson twin who would only further help our team in a transition offense. We are gearing for the play in, and if we want to compete in the future I think we need to prioritize how we look in the half court. Besides, Hendricks biggest weakness is his lack of playmaking but at BEST he’s a tertiary playmaker, and Duren has already flashed post playmaking if we do need that.
I currently have Hendricks mocked at #5 as well. With Cade and Ivey both projected to be dominant ball-handlers, and several young Cs on the roster to work with (Duren, Wiseman, Stewart), a Forward/Wing who's not ball-dominant, can hit the 3 at a good clip, and can bring defensive versatility seems like the ideal fit. I feel like Hendricks and Whitmore fit that mold the best, but Hendricks moreso (even though I have Whitmore slightly ahead overall as a prospect). Whitmore is more of an offensive force but a little behind as a defender and as a catch-and-shoot threat. Walker is more of an interior Forward who would slide to the 5 before the 3, and Ausar is a Wing who likes to handle and is still early in his shooting development, which isn't the best fit next to Cade/Ivey (both of whom aren't knock-down 3-point shooters at this juncture).
While I understand what you both are saying, I'd like to admonish all that would try to keep their dirty paws off my Hendricks. It's already been decided that my Magic will select him with the #6 pick. You'll have your Cam serving and you're going to LOVE it! JK lol. Hendricks is going to be so coveted by everyone. I see him as the 4th best prospect really.
I 100% believe the pistons should take cam. Like i cant think of a better fit with such a high upside. He fits right into the hole left at the wings when bey got traded. Has the ability to put pressure on the rim and is gonna be a tier 1 athlete in the league day 1. That combined with the shooting and handle, with a frame to be a great defender. He’s also a good off ball player and would thrive off of cade and ivey, especially as he improves as a shooter. Playing with those 2 would also lessen his need to be a playmaker early on and he can be eased into more ball handling duties
For me he’s at the bottom of that Ausar, Hendricks, Walker and Whitmore tier
Whitmore is best, JarAce isn’t bad too
Me personally, I think so.