Jabari to Milwaukee (#2 overall)

[kAzE]

Not if you are a freshman. Not if you are not naturally that way. Not the way K operates. K didn't expect him to be a leader. He just expected him to be himself. It's not that he didn't fulfill expectations. It just wasn't his role.

Of course Coach K wouldn't expect him to do that, it's not the coach's job to designate who leads. He can decide on captains, but the players follow whoever takes the lead. It's still his responsibility as the best player to do so. You think Carmelo and Kevin Durant weren't leaders on their teams as freshmen in college? They were absolutely the alpha dog on the court. Jabari is every bit the alpha dog those guys were.

[Henderson]

Of course Coach K wouldn't expect him to do that, it's not the coach's job to designate who leads. He can decide on captains, but the players follow whoever takes the lead. It's still his responsibility as the best player to do so. You think Carmelo and Kevin Durant weren't leaders on their teams as freshmen in college? They were absolutely the alpha dog on the court. Jabari is every bit the alpha dog those guys were.

I agree that a freshman can be a team leader if he's wired that way and if the team needs him to play that role. And I think I'll just leave it there.

[kAzE]

I agree that a freshman can be a team leader if he's wired that way and if the team needs him to play that role. And I think I'll just leave it there.

I totally agree that Jabari wasn't NEEDED to be a team leader. We had plenty of upperclassmen, which was not necessarily a luxury with those other guys, especially Melo. The problem is that our veterans last year either weren't the best players on the team (Thornton, Hairston) or didn't necessarily have the best personalities to lead (Hood, Cook, Sulaimon). Jabari deferred to those guys for a long time, actually. I would say until the Virginia game at Cameron, he was very deferential, and his play started to slip because teams began defending him differently. He started to take control of the team in the middle of conference play, and I thought he finished the year pretty strong. He played extremely well in the loss to Virginia.

Surely, I'm not the only one who thinks this . . . At least I hope I didn't just IMAGINE Jabari leading the team for about a 6 week stretch at the end of the year.

[coldriver10]

I apologize if this has been posted elsewhere and I missed it. He's such a great kid...he's going to represent Duke very well throughout what I hope will be a long, productive career.

http://espn.go.com/nba/draft2014/sto...o-2-draft-pick

As Jabari Parker accepted his Milwaukee Bucks cap from NBA commissioner Adam Silver and exited the stage, he had to face love in the form of congratulations and questions shaped around his future.

Then, once he turned the corner -- once he got away from his family, friends, supporters, the lights, cameras, handlers and media that have been a part of his life since he was 8 years old -- it hit him.

The tears flowed beautifully and uncontrollably.

...

"Pure happiness, Scoop. Pure happiness."

And then he was gone.

[kAzE]

http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/stor...-brooklyn-nets

So, apparently, Jason Kidd tried to get more say in personnel decisions, got denied, and now he's trying to go to Milwaukee, where he's friends with one of the Bucks' owners. Could this be the move to get rid of Larry Drew? I'm not sure how I feel about this yet, but Kidd has gotta be better than Drew, right?

[NashvilleDevil]

Jabari threw out the first pitch at the Brewers games yesterday and it cracks me up to watch basketball players throw. They're some of the best athletes in the world and throwing a ball is tough for them.

[duke74]

http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/stor...-brooklyn-nets

So, apparently, Jason Kidd tried to get more say in personnel decisions, got denied, and now he's trying to go to Milwaukee, where he's friends with one of the Bucks' owners. Could this be the move to get rid of Larry Drew? I'm not sure how I feel about this yet, but Kidd has gotta be better than Drew, right?

Good riddance. At least he's not driving drunk to beat up his wife...a squirrelly guy his entire career off the court.

[Des Esseintes]

Good riddance. At least he's not driving drunk to beat up his wife...a squirrelly guy his entire career off the court.

Seriously. Not in love with the idea that Jabari dodged the Dan Gilbert bullet only to get stuck with a president of basketball operations whose entire coaching and front office career consists of one lone season and yet who feels entitled enough to be "intrigued with the higher-paying, lower-workload life of an top executive." If Bucks owner Lasry ends up giving this tool what he wants, Milwaukee is a laughingstock. The idea that your stated reason for wanting a promotion is to work less...mind-boggling.

[flyingdutchdevil]

What do you do with the other players? They have two other crucial pieces: the Greek Freak and Larry Sanders. The Greek Freak is, IMO, the perfect 3. Tall enough to guard an SF and PF, fast enough to guard an SG and SF. He is an insane 6'11" and plays like a really tall Gerald Henderson. Larry Sanders is, in my mind, the perfect defensive 4. He is big, mobile, and surprisingly fast for his size. He can play the 5, but you can see that he's much more comfortable as a 4.

The jury is still out on what position Jabari will play. Clearly, Jabari has the offensive chops to play either the 3 or the 4 (although I like him as an NBA 4 better, especially with his ability to handle and shoot). Do you play 1) Brandon Knight, 2) Greek Freak, 3) Parker, 4) Henson/Sanders, 5) Sanders/Ersan Iyosova on offense, and then place Jabari on the worst offensive player on defense?

The Bucks are in a really good position, especially given the young talent (Greek Freak and Jabari are 19, Sanders is 25). They absolutely need a PG, a legit C, and more moving parts, but it's a nice core. They will probably go to the lottery in 2015, get that PG, and hopefully be set for the next 5-6 years.

[Gthoma2a]

I totally agree that Jabari wasn't NEEDED to be a team leader. We had plenty of upperclassmen, which was not necessarily a luxury with those other guys, especially Melo. The problem is that our veterans last year either weren't the best players on the team (Thornton, Hairston) or didn't necessarily have the best personalities to lead (Hood, Cook, Sulaimon). Jabari deferred to those guys for a long time, actually. I would say until the Virginia game at Cameron, he was very deferential, and his play started to slip because teams began defending him differently. He started to take control of the team in the middle of conference play, and I thought he finished the year pretty strong. He played extremely well in the loss to Virginia.

Surely, I'm not the only one who thinks this . . . At least I hope I didn't just IMAGINE Jabari leading the team for about a 6 week stretch at the end of the year.

In spots, he may have led. I wouldn't exactly call him a leader, though. A leader wouldn't be so out of it on D that his coach benches him in the NCAA tournament. I don't think Jabari will be a leader. He will be a player who plays well on offense and claps his hands to try to get others to play with energy on D. That is what I have seen so far. When you are that good on offense, people will still consider you one of the best in the league, even if you only focus on one end and don't lead, though (I'm looking at Melo).

[kAzE]

What do you do with the other players? They have two other crucial pieces: the Greek Freak and Larry Sanders. The Greek Freak is, IMO, the perfect 3. Tall enough to guard an SF and PF, fast enough to guard an SG and SF. He is an insane 6'11" and plays like a really tall Gerald Henderson. Larry Sanders is, in my mind, the perfect defensive 4. He is big, mobile, and surprisingly fast for his size. He can play the 5, but you can see that he's much more comfortable as a 4.

The jury is still out on what position Jabari will play. Clearly, Jabari has the offensive chops to play either the 3 or the 4 (although I like him as an NBA 4 better, especially with his ability to handle and shoot). Do you play 1) Brandon Knight, 2) Greek Freak, 3) Parker, 4) Henson/Sanders, 5) Sanders/Ersan Iyosova on offense, and then place Jabari on the worst offensive player on defense?

The Bucks are in a really good position, especially given the young talent (Greek Freak and Jabari are 19, Sanders is 25). They absolutely need a PG, a legit C, and more moving parts, but it's a nice core. They will probably go to the lottery in 2015, get that PG, and hopefully be set for the next 5-6 years.

Giannis is just such an interesting palyer. He may have the largest gap between his floor and ceiling of anyone in the league right now. Clearly, at the moment, he's a below average player, but he actually grew more than an inch in his rookie year!! He was 6'9" at the 2013 NBA draft combine, and he's now 6'10" and 1/4! Despite his height, the Greek Freak was MUCH more effective at the 2 than the 3 in his rookie year. It was a night and day difference, and I attribute that to lack of strength and conditioning. I'm in agreement that his best position long term is the 3, due to his incredible versatility and athleticism. He's also a bad shooter as of right now, so it would difficult to play him at the 2 full time. But at least it does open the possibility of playing a HUGE perimeter lineup with him at the 2 and Ilyasova at the 3.

Sanders is definitely undersized to play center, but I believe he's a center. He's capable of being one of the most dominant rebounders and shot blockers in the league even with his size disadvantage down low. To me, nothing about his game would suggest that he could be effective as a 4. The only way he could work out as a 4 would be to have a center who is a knock down shooter from 15+ feet. Otherwise, good luck finding any room to operate in the paint.

Their biggest need going forward is at the point. I would be actively shopping all my assets to at least see what's out there. Kyle Lowry is a free agent, and the Bucks are about 12-14 million under cap (depending on the rookie contracts they sign), and I kind of doubt Lowry would choose to join a rebuilding team given better options. Still, you never know, he might be one of those guys who is looking for the biggest paycheck possible, and I don't think he could get more than 14 mil. But I think they should just wait. There's going to be 2 outstanding point guards in the draft next year, and the bucks are going to be bad again. Keep that cap room and see if you can land high enough to snag one of them. Mudiay would be the dream scenario, but don't sleep on Tyus Jones, I wholeheartedly believe Tyus will be one of the best point guards in the NBA someday. And until I hear otherwise from his own mouth, I believe he will be one and done. (I don't want him to leave after 1 year, but he's going to be projected in the lottery, and I think he'll go).

[Kedsy]

There's going to be 2 outstanding point guards in the draft next year, and the bucks are going to be bad again. Keep that cap room and see if you can land high enough to snag one of them. Mudiay would be the dream scenario, but don't sleep on Tyus Jones, I wholeheartedly believe Tyus will be one of the best point guards in the NBA someday. And until I hear otherwise from his own mouth, I believe he will be one and done. (I don't want him to leave after 1 year, but he's going to be projected in the lottery, and I think he'll go).

It's possible Tyus Jones is a 2015 lottery pick, but if so it'd probably be late lottery (I just looked at a bunch of 2015 mocks and the best position Tyus got was 12th). It's really unlikely he'd be a top 5 pick. He's 6'1" with shoes, and that matters to NBA types (especially if you don't have Chris Paul quickness). Tyler Ennis (6'2.5" with shoes) only went 18th in this year's draft. Unless some PG breaks out this year, the only PG worth drafting with a pick as good as Milwaukee is likely to have will be Mudiay. If they miss out on him, they'll probably have to grab a big guy.

[kAzE]

It's possible Tyus Jones is a 2015 lottery pick, but if so it'd probably be late lottery (I just looked at a bunch of 2015 mocks and the best position Tyus got was 12th). It's really unlikely he'd be a top 5 pick. He's 6'1" with shoes, and that matters to NBA types (especially if you don't have Chris Paul quickness). Tyler Ennis (6'2.5" with shoes) only went 18th in this year's draft. Unless some PG breaks out this year, the only PG worth drafting with a pick as good as Milwaukee is likely to have will be Mudiay. If they miss out on him, they'll probably have to grab a big guy.

You could easily be right, this is all guessing. But I've always had a pretty good eye for talent (I called Kyrie going #1 before his first game at Duke . . . humble brag ), and I think Tyus is going to impress a LOT of people next year, and I think his stock will rise. He's not as good as Kyrie, but he's MUCH better than Ennis. Yes, he's very undersized, and no, he won't even be close to ready to play PG in the NBA, but very few guys have the type of feel for the game that Tyus Jones has. You'll see what I mean next year, this kid is special.

[Kedsy]

You could easily be right, this is all guessing. But I've always had a pretty good eye for talent (I called Kyrie going #1 before his first game at Duke . . . humble brag ), and I think Tyus is going to impress a LOT of people next year, and I think his stock will rise. He's not as good as Kyrie, but he's MUCH better than Ennis. Yes, he's very undersized, and no, he won't even be close to ready to play PG in the NBA, but very few guys have the type of feel for the game that Tyus Jones has. You'll see what I mean next year, this kid is special.

I'm not saying he won't be a great player. I'm saying he probably won't be a top five draft pick after his freshman year.

[kAzE]

I'm not saying he won't be a great player. I'm saying he probably won't be a top five draft pick after his freshman year.

Maybe not top 5 but top 10 I think.

However, I just remembered . . . Shaun Livingston is a free agent. He would be PERFECT for this team.