NBA Draft: Revised Big Board and the latest news/thoughts

Here is my latest rankings -- You will see some changes, and a few more names. Changes were driven largely by influence around the impact of wings and, especially, spreading the floor offensively. Also, have watched a lot more film and ingested plenty of conversation and debate on these guys.

Here is where THHB is, as of now:

1. Luka Doncic

Doncic has won everything there is to win overseas, but one thing he hasn't won is all of NBA fans' hearts. (awwwwww). Word is all over the interwebs that, for a long time before the Kings had the second pick, that Vlade Divac was not impressed with Luka. Whether that is a long con or a whoops because they didn't think they would even be in position to take him, it lends a lot of credence to the rumors that the Kings are more impressed with Michael Porter and Marvin Bagley.

Doncic would be a tremendous pick for the Hawks, with a high floor. Sometimes, it just makes sense to take the guy who has won two MVPs before 20, is good at the game of basketball, and is a value, even at #3.

2. DeAndre Ayton

I have not been high on Ayton, at least not as the undisputed king of the 2018 draft. It is his meh defense that perplexes me. I hear the David Robinson comps for a ceiling, but dang, the Admiral was dominant at Navy on defense. Ayton has skills on offense, no doubt, and here he is at #2, but it is a solid nod to his talent, and no more.

3. Mo Bamba

He is going to be popular wherever he lands, as he is a cult of personality with his smile, deep dive on basketball theory and his obvious, let's go see him, freakish measurements. If he can contribute offensively, especially with the Drew Hanlen lower shooting pocket, more arc corner three, then he is going to be a solid starter year one in the L.

One interesting thing that came out today from Givony at ESPN/DX is that Mr. Personality Bamba cold shouldered Memphis, turning down a workout, declining to send medical information over and asking, nicely I am sure, to pass if he is there at #4. Wow. He worked out ENTHUSISATICALLY for the Hawks, saying afterwards that he loves the city and sees a good fit with the Good Guys. He worked out with Embiid and Joel spoke good words about Lloyd Pierce, which got Bamba's attention as well.

Still, a team getting stonewalled and it is NOT the Hawks? That's progress, ATL, progress.

4. Jaren Jackson, Jr.

Cooling somewhat is the man called 3J, as the information wheel landed on words like "soft" and "bad interview" after his time in the ATL workout chamber. Who knows what is right during this silly season. Our man, Brad Rowland from Peachtree Hoops is on record saying that Jackson does everything better than Bamba already and is 1.5 years younger. This is truth.

On the surface, he looks like more all-around out of the bigs, yet still looks raw and unfinished at times, commensurate with his 18 years of age. There is a ton of ceiling out of he and Bamba - and Jackson would be a super solid pick if the Hawks did indeed pass on Doncic if there.

5. Trae Young

I still hold firm to the belief that his defense will limit his role to a more defined 28 minutes or so that he can totally destroy offensively. I have been influenced by visions of a more open court than we have seen with Dennis the last two seasons and am willing to take a chance on a guy that can truly stretch that floor. Remember that Pierce came from PHI, where they practice with a 4-pt line for offensive stretchiness. Young is a player that can stick that range, not just stand there, and he has the necessary willingness to create for other with that newly opened space.

His defense will be his albatross for now, but I have Young firmly locked at the top of the non-Doncic, guards.

6. Mikal Bridges

Bridges has that all around game at the wing that seems to be populating throughout the league. It is threes and defense, also strong, strong finishes and defensive acumen. His wingspan is elite for his height also and combining all of that is what made be have Bridges here since the NCAA season ended.

7. Kevin Knox

Knox has risen. Much is made about his freshman season, but the skills are there. Throwing so many one and done guys together sometimes can work seamlessly, but often, there is tough transition with all the five stars trying to fit their Alpha game into a five man set.

The skills that Knox brings to the table; the length, the finishing, the offense - are the wing things that all the team are trying to stockpile. Tough to move him ahead of Bagley, but there is more versatility to his game than the Duke big man.

8. Marvin Bagley

Ok, here is the biggest numeric faller of the bunch. Why? Well, as much as I regard post scoring, it is not largely relevant in the league right now. Bagley's elite standing jump skills will always aid in him being a plus rebounder, but the lack of defense and the one-dimensional part of his inside game (he only uses that left hand) shows limitations.

Look, this draft is so flat, that there is little, in my mind separating 2-8, or you can argue down to 12, but given the Hawks situation, with John Collins already able in the role that Bagley would likely play, he drops.

9. Wendall Carter

Carter might be overrated here, but his game is solid and does have a Horford-ish vibe to him. You could put Carter as the last pick in the lottery and I could see it, but the overall package on both sides of the ball is worth having on a team that lacks a solid, all-around five.

10. Michael Porter

Porter may have had the worst run since entering the NCAA ranks. He suffered a back injury that prevented him from playing almost all of his Mizzou games and the games he did play in lacked that super-athleticism that placed him at the top.

He has worked out and already experienced some soreness, by his own words, in his hips. His game is predicated on that athleticism and volume scoring and can fit in very well somewhere like Sacramento, but man that injury risk is too rich for my blood.

11. Shei Gilgeous-Alexander

He has not worked out for anybody this offseason, at least publicly, leading some to assume he has a promise in the lottery, with the main guess being the LA Clippers, who have two picks together so they can continue to work out everyone else while not being so obvious nor wasting anybody's time.

SGA has that Livingston in '04 look, but not the playmaking that the Clippers draft pick had then. Alexander has great length and versatility in his offensive game, which is attracting a lot of attention with Cleveland, Charlotte and Toronto, reportedly.

12. Lonnie Walker

The first thing that you see with Walker is explosiveness. Like, oh wow, this guys is a home run, look at him. It is like watching Pedro Cerrano teeing off on Eddie Harris straight-balls. You are like, holy crap, how can he be available here?

And then you see the streakiness, the wildness and, like Cerrano whiffing on curveballs, you get it. I see. Also there is a lack of obvious facilitation in his game, being the Alpha scorer -- something that he will need to add to help his floor time be the most productive.

13. Robert Williams

This is me being an unabashed, long armed, shot blocking, above the rim, finishing strong biased basketball fan. I love the things that Williams can do in those areas, even while acknowledging that the fun likely ends there.

14. Collin Sexton

Sexton has the heart of a lion, to be cliché. He is fearless and it showed every time Alabama played. Sexton, like Walker, could stand to learn the art of the pass, and to improve the consistency of his shot. The comparisons to Eric Bledsoe are solid, I think.

Miles Bridges, Jacob Evans, Troy Brown, Jerome Robinson, Chandler Hutchinson are among those also receiving votes.

Don't agree? Do agree? Say something in the Comments Area or find me in the Twitter Pool @JasonWalkerNBA.

NBA Draft: Trae Young, Mo Bamba, Luka Doncic and the THHB Top Players Ranking

We are eight days, as of this writing, from one of the more exciting NBA Drafts for Atlanta Hawks fans in a decade. We have looked at this draft over the last month, discussed rumors, talked into the can on many platforms about who the candidates for selection with the #3 pick are and who THHB likes as its main man there.

So, what's new around this pick since the last time we published thoughts on the matter?

1. Trae Young Mania
2. The Cascading Slide of Luka Doncic
3. Michael Porter's Back!
4. Mo Bamba's agent in the lead for Agent of the Year
5. Mock Drafts

Let's look at each of these individually:

1. Trae Young Mania

To some, the obvious interest in Young excites the senses. To others, it's horror. The truth, even to this collection of THHB staffers, is in the in between.

Yes, the official statement from our vault holds true to this second, that we believe that Young's total absence of defensive instincts means he will have to be relegated to a juicy 6th man type role that will help assuage those defensive agonies. A 25-30 minute, Jamal Crawford/Lou Williams role (with much more playmaking, we add) in order to accentuate his offensive impact while curtailing the pain of covering for him defensively seems like a solid place to project with his to-this-minute body of work.

It should be said that one of the all-time favorites of THHB is Crawford, whose offensive amazement captured our hearts as much as our heralded shot-blockers have. There is room for excitement with Young, who can shoot the basketball and has a playmaker's eye on the floor. It is easy to see why fans of the Hawks are swept up in enthusiasm over those skills.

Also in Young's corner are his opponents, who consistently said that he was one of, if not THE hardest to defend this past season. His shot range alone makes defense complicated, and the lanes he creates with that range opens things up well for his teammates. Match that with his ability to pass and all a good coach has to do is teach restraint and you can raise his A/TO ratio dramatically.

But the defense, his size, and whether you can really spend that kind of draft capital on that type of player are perfectly good reasons for concern. Ultimately, the Hawks need someone that will project to be a staple of the team for their first 9-10 seasons. It is reasonable to wonder if Young is that type of player.

He is one of only four players with 1 on zero workouts that the Hawks are entertaining publicly. So Young, along with Jaren Jackson, Jr, Mo Bamba and Marvin Bagley, are the frontrunners for this pick.

2. The Cascading Slide of Luka Doncic

We have documented the many possible explanations for the potential sliding of the uber-decorated and accomplished teenager from overseas. I believe that it still holds true today and that the Kings are still the likely home for Doncic.

Why all the smokescreening then? Are they afraid to tip the scales on the Suns and they will take him? That does not seem likely, given the fanfare and practical coronation the Suns gave DeAndre Ayton when he worked out for the Suns (Doncic will not work out for any team).

Placing another front court player in Sacramento, after spending draft capital on Willie Cauley-Stein and Skal Labissiere does not make a whole lot of sense. Placing Doncic in a playmaking off-guard role with DeAaron Fox and Bogdan Bogdanovic does, however, make plenty of sense. Doncic would also make those front court investments better and provide even more range outside for a team that played Vince Carter a lot more than I expected throughout the season.

However if Doncic does get past the Kings he could end up in Memphis or Dallas, as the Hawks seem like they have gotten the "Do Not Draft" note from the Doncic side. He does have the option of continuing to play overseas, which could make such a note a higher risk than Michael Porter's back.

Speaking of which....

3. Michael Porter's Back!

Porter, coming into the season, was the most likely to succeed candidate of the draft candidates. He had the explosive arsenal of scoring, flashing high above the rim, and conjured images of the scoring prowess of Carmelo Anthony and the high flying frame of Blake Griffin.

And then he missed an entire season with a massive back injury. The words "back injury" alone is scary, as is missing an entire season. But, over the last 30 days, Porter's name has started to inch back up the draft. Whereas he was a reasonable risk, given the upside, as a pick at seven with the Bulls or eight with Cleveland, now you hear him associated with Dallas at five and even Sacramento with the second pick.

This probably means that the medical reports on his back are real sound, sound enough to begin to leak publicly. Now the word that Porter's crew will make a report available for teams 1-10 in the draft makes that almost a certainty. He can limit the full reports to teams he might prefer, such as Chicago, but the sense that his back is healthy, for now, might entice any team up the line to make him a pick.

As for us, back injuries are almost a full pass -- you will not know if they are chronic until the next injury, if there is one. Porter's value comes chiefly through his extraordinary athleticism and if that is sapped in any percentage, it drastically lowers his value. He could be an amazing gamebreaker or he could end up a volume shooter that provides little else for that draft value. With all of that, the Hawks are probably wise in not making Porter a part of their 1 on zero workouts.

UPDATE (6/14): What a difference less than a day makes! Porter has reportedly cancelled, and then reported to be "rescheduling" his next group workout for teams, but is reported to have a problem with his hip. Oh boy. It could be crafty positioning on the part of Porter's team to make sure he gets where he wants, but man, the Hawks cannot take a chance on this guy if he is already dealing with more injuries after a series of 1 on zero workouts.

4. Mo Bamba's agent in the lead for Agent of the Year

If you have watched any NBA Draft prep at all, you can't miss the onslaught of Mo Bamba offseason workout, interviews and the like. The hype around Bamba is high, and he even got a workout with the top pick Suns, so kudos to his representation for making sure everybody saw and heard Mo Bamba over the last month.

And why not? Bamba is, by almost all accounts, an engaging speaker with advanced knowledge of NBA metrics and detail. Honestly, he looks like a reporter's dream, able to break down nuances of the game and candid. But that does not make him worthy of the third pick, only underlines why it has been wise to get him in front of the camera a lot.

His wingspan, at 7'10 if you have not heard (impossible), makes him a measurement freak. According to the Suns, his vertical jump was 12'5, which is silly. His standing reach is 9'8, which when married to his great ability to maintain verticality makes him very formidable to shoot over.

We love Bamba's defensive instincts and footwork and he will absolutely change the geometry of teams playing against him. Mike Schmitz of ESPN agrees with that, highlighting it in the video breakdown of Bamba's game. He can be a gamechanger on that end, and spark plenty of transition opportunities for Dennis, Taurean Prince and John Collins if Bamba were to become a Hawk.

The downsides, which are also called out in that ESPN breakdown, are also there. He is skinny, which bigger inside players will surely lay a shoulder into or use their posteriors to move Bamba out of position, both defensively and on the glass. He did not always show high motor, either, which will be a quick passage to the bench for any coach, but especially, one would assume, with a defensive minded coach like Lloyd Pierce. He is super raw offensively - very prone to turnover in traffic, especially if the ball comes down below the shoulders. He did not shoot long range efficiently, either, though his well publicized offseason shooting retooling with Drew Hanlen has produced excellent one-on-zero film, but that is far from game action corner threes Bamba would need to hit to find his ceiling in the league.

Bamba's status has risen due to all the work he has put in and the publicity surrounding him, but even given the massive ways to get excited about Mo Bamba, there are, like all those in this lottery, reasonable concerns as well.

5. Mock Drafts

The Mock Drafts seem to have settled on Jaren Jackson, Jr. as the Hawks selection at #3. The words "modern NBA center" are assigned to Jackson and he has his own impressive measurements to go along with his candidacy for the #3 pick. Making things more difficult about evaluating 3J is that playing for Tom Izzo will not necessarily give NBA teams the film needed to easily translate ceiling, often being restricted by style and minutes.

Jackson reminds a lot of Marvin Williams, pre injury. That may scare a lot of folks, but Jackson is bigger and is more centery, but the overall play of Jackson certainly makes that comparison sound. Jackson is more refined in shooting, though his style reminds too many THHB folks of Josh Childress, and is a more all around better player than Mo Bamba right now. Toss in that Jackson is a year and a half younger and you might believe that JJJ has a higher ceiling than the Texas Freshman.

The second most linked to the Hawks is Marvin Bagley, who has the most refined offensive game of any of the bigs in the lottery. Bagley is heavy lefthanded, which he will need to diversify to be successful in the NBA, but also has an elite second jump, which helps him win rebounding battles. His measurements are fairly average for his height, which is why he demurred at the Draft Combine last month, but that has not stopped him from being the most efficient players last season, offensively.

Defensively, the Duke Blue Devils were a disaster last season and Bagley certainly contributed to that reputation. Defense if definitely more than rebounding, so while Bagley was excellent on the glass, the rest of the defense was lacking. Was that more a team problem and Bagley can be a reasonable defender under Pierce's tutelage? If the Hawks select him, as some have said they are leaning towards, then we will have our answer.

THHB's Top Players Rankings

I am assuming that the first pick will be Ayton and the second Doncic, so here are my top guys in the lottery:

1. Mo Bamba
2. Jaren Jackson, Jr.
3. Marvin Bagley
4. Trae Young
5. Wendall Carter, Jr.
6. Mikal Bridges
7. Kevin Knox
8. Michael Porter, Jr.
9. Robert Williams
10. Troy Brown
11. Miles Bridges
12. Collin Sexton

What are your thoughts? Let us know in the Comments area or on the Twitter Factory @JasonWalkerNBA!

NBA Draft 2018: A Quick Look at the Top Six for the Atlanta Hawks

Let's make this quick as there will be more to come as the Hawks know what pick they will have in mid-May when the Lottery occurs.

DeAndre Ayton, C, Arizona

At first look, the center that most call the #1 pick in this draft looks less like Joel Embiid than you would like, should the Hawks win the lottery. He has an okay college 3-point shot, does not look terribly long as a defensive disruptor and his skills look a little raw on both ends. He is a legit 7-footer, so that's something, but would love to see a more polished player with more projection in this spot.

Luka Doncic, Guard, Real Madrid

He is interesting, though this is someone I want to watch more as the draft season wears on through the spring. By some accounts, he is part Toni Kukoc, but with more a point guard player mentality, rather than Toni, who was a very capable passer, but not an offensive initiator in his time in the NBA. Doncic could fill the playmaker spot that we see Ricky Rubio filling into in Utah, but with a much taller frame to boot.

Jaren Jackson, Jr., PF, Michigan State

Defensively, he is exciting, and may project best into the recent Threes and D mold more than anyone else in this grouping. However, I am not convinced of his offense, which looks less than fluid and his body size is scrawny. I do love a shot-blocker, however, and JJJ definitely fits the mold, averaging a higher block rate than Ayton, easily.

Marvin Bagley, PF, Duke

The most polished offense player I have seen is Bagley, who is very long, can play either back to the basket or facing and is super aggressive on the offensive end. He is a scorer and a good one, even finishing above the rim consistently and authoritatively. His defensive side is almost a zero, but he has the size and length to be a factor if coached. He reminds almost immediately of Julius Randle, but taller and with more above the rim capabilities.

Michael Porter, SF, Missouri

We were robbed of seeing Porter, who came from high school as maybe the most electric scorer in the country, since his back injury cost him nearly the entire season. When he returned, he was not physically the same, which is obviously concerning. Did he lose even one level of his physicality? Will the back injury project as chronic (if you can do such a thing)? We will see if he allows teams to check the back during the draft process and it will be a major red flag if he will not. If his back is fine, he is a creative and skilled scorer, maybe like Blake Griffin coming from Oklahoma. But that is a big if.

Mohamed Bamba, C, Texas

Bamba looks great to me as a defensive center in the mold of Rudy Gobert. He is risky because, while Gobert has become a playoff caliber force, there is no guarantee Bamba will develop the same way. Still, how he might fit into a Mike Budenholzer coached team could be a factor here.

What do you think the Hawks ought to do at the top? Is there someone else you would consider up here? Let me know in the Comments area or hit me up @JasonWalkerNBA on the Twitter machine.