With the #7 pick, the Portland Trail Blazers select....

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AmirIcon said:
It's really all on the Pacers. I can just as easily see them go with Mathurin or Duren instead of Murray.
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I kinda feel like with the trading of Sabonis, they stayed All In on Turner. Mathurin makes so much sense for them. But teams don't seem to do things that make sense in Drafts.
 
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Plus what will the Pacers do with T J Warren, who broke out, in the bubble, but has been hurt since.
 
Did Sochan ever get measured at the combine? Strange if he opted out of it.
I wonder if maybe he is not quite 6'9" 230 with a 7' wingspan like previously mentioned.
 
tykendo said:
I kinda feel like with the trading of Sabonis, they stayed All In on Turner. Mathurin makes so much sense for them. But teams don't seem to do things that make sense in Drafts.
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Like Jerami Grant and the Pistons, Turner and Brogdon have no future with the Pacers. They have started the rebuild. I'd be surprised if they don't take a higher potential guy like Mathurin or Duren over Murray.
 
AmirIcon said:
Like Jerami Grant and the Pistons, Turner and Brogdon have no future with the Pacers. They have started the rebuild. I'd be surprised if they don't take a higher potential guy like Mathurin or Duren over Murray.
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That's fine with me, and i agree. Boxing teams into what they WILL draft is just speculation. The time between now and the Draft will be filled with "What should we do's", by all teams. But especially the teams not involved in the current series. Murray could drop, and that would be just fine with the Blazers.
 
The closer we are getting to the draft, after knowing our draft position, the more I want either Murray (who I see as a Paul Milsap type player) or Sochan (who I see as a Ron Artest type) . These are my guys.
 
“If you love defense and you love tenacity, Sochan is the player for you. He’d fit right in on the late 80’s Pistons with his mean streak and frustration he causes on the court.”
 
tykendo said:
could see Detroit fall in love with Duren. They have the time frame to develop him.
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Was thinking the same thing for the same reasons. But the guy I'd really want if I'm Detroit is Ivey to pair with Cunningham. Jaden doesn't project well for the Kings at #4 so we could see a pick swap there.

Btw, sucks that Ivey and so many others from this draft skipped the combine. Often thats the only real measurements we ever get on guys.

STOMP
 
tykendo said:
I think Mathurin will be the guy that everyone wishes they would have drafted. I like him more than Johnny Davis.
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What if Mathurin turns out to be more like a Kobe Bryant, Reggie Miller or a Luka type?
 
BigGameDamian said:
What if Mathurin turns out to be more like a Kobe Bryant, Reggie Miller or a Luka type?
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For the record, I think he's going to be really really good. If they think he's that much better than the players who are available at a position of need, they should take him. I wouldn't be opposed but I have no way of knowing.
 
I still think if Sochan is your guy and he's my favorite in our range you try and trade back to the Spurs for 9 and 25... I really doubt they want three first round picks and moving up two might be what they need to do if they like Duren. I think we could pick Sochan with 9 and then send a package of 25, the Bucks 2025 first and maybe a future second if needed to the Pistons for Grant.
 
blazerkor said:
I still think if Sochan is your guy and he's my favorite in our range you try and trade back to the Spurs for 9 and 25... I really doubt they want three first round picks and moving up two might be what they need to do if they like Duren. I think we could pick Sochan with 9 and then send a package of 25, the Bucks 2025 first and maybe a future second if needed to the Pistons for Grant.
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I like it, but I'm not giving both the 25 and the Bucks pick. They can take one of those plus Keon. I'd imagine their interest for Murray is more than Sochan's however. Let's not underrate Murray's accomplishments either. Advanced stats suggest he had a historic season at Iowa. I'd be happy with either.
 
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Rastapopoulos said:
Here's a good example of Sochan's strengths and weaknesses. North Carolina knocked Baylor out of the NCAA tournament. BUT: although they were up by 25 with 10 minutes left, the Bears forced overtime. And Sochan is everywhere. Now, he looks clumsy at times (and a vital 3 pointer is BANKED in, clearly not intentionally), but holy shit, the work he puts in! He's everywhere, and he's just WILLING his team on. He really is a Draymond-like player. Watch:

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That was kind of long. Here is an analysis video from the Kansas game, half on offense, half on defense.
 
Blazinaway said:
I think he could be a great fit as he will be able to play a small ball C as well. Very curious what his "real" measurements are but he looks like the type of player Chauncy would love
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If he comes out like I expect with a 7' wingspan, he is basically a physical clone of Bam Adebayo, but just a few pounds of muscle shy, with time to add strength.
 
Scalma said:
Called it.

But seriously, I would be ok with him too. My top 3 is pretty much duren, Daniels, and Sochan, in whatever order
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Could be a "Martell Webster" kind of workout.
 
I don’t know if I’m allowed to post this, but it’s a very revealing article by Quick:


When Joe Cronin took over the Trail Blazers in December, there was a word that kept surfacing, first by Cronin, and then by those who had worked with him over the years: risk.

Cronin’s former colleagues said he was the one in the room who would always want to take a risk on the players with high ceilings, even if they were unpolished at the time. He would rather strike out taking a swing at a potential home-run player than play it safe by pursuing a proven but unspectacular player.

And in December, after he was named interim general manager and charged with changing the course of a stagnant roster, Cronin kept bringing up the concept of taking risks.

“Risk means doing deals that might not be embraced by the pundits,” Cronin told The Athletic on Dec. 9, five days after he was named interim general manager. “It means you might increase your downside, but it gives you an opportunity to raise your ceiling. Those are the deals I’m interested in.”

Two months later, at the February trading deadline, those words from December rang true: Cronin pulled off a series of trades that were largely viewed as risky by a fanbase accustomed to postseason appearances.

In moves made largely — but not entirely — for financial reasons, Cronin traded CJ McCollum, Norman Powell, Robert Covington and Larry Nance Jr. The immediate return — ostensibly Josh Hartand Justise Winslow — was nowhere equal. And that’s where the risk comes in.

Cronin made those moves to create room for him to take those big swings he so desires. And even though his big plan was somewhat neutered when New Orleans made the playoffs, preventing its first-round pick from going to Portland, Cronin is still armed with the seventh pick in next month’s NBA Draft and some flexibility to sign his own free agents (Anfernee Simons, Jusuf Nurkić), as well as some exceptions to perhaps entice teams to unload proven players for financial relief.

Earlier this month he was promoted, the interim tag erased and a multi-year contract signed. His next decision will be the seventh pick, and after scouring three in-depth interviews with Cronin over the last six months, here are some possible tells that could indicate how he will handle the pick.

Blazers trade the pick
This seems the most likely scenario based on Cronin’s repeated intention of returning the Blazers to a playoff contender as he assembles talent around Damian Lillard. The day after the Blazers’ 27-55 season — which included a 2-21 finish after the All-Star break — ended, Cronin was asked how he would view the Blazers’ pick.

“The preference is to maximize that pick,” Cronin said. “We will dive in and evaluate film and assess value to that pick. Then you can compare that to what is available on the marketplace, and then make a decision.”

Like all the other lottery teams, the Blazers were hoping for a top-four pick because it’s widely accepted there is a drop in talent after Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren, Paolo Banchero and Jaden Ivey. There will be talented players available at seven, but will they be impact players right away, while the Blazers are trying to make the most of Lillard’s window of opportunity?

“We want to win; we want to be really competitive next year,” Cronin said. “You are more likely to win with veteran players than young players, so that will definitely be a part of our decision-making process.”

That’s a pretty big tell, but as Cronin noted that same April day, “it takes two to tango” in making a trade.

The ability to find a trade partner and execute a trade is where it becomes interesting regarding Cronin. One thing I’m not sure people understand about him is he is not some rube when it comes to orchestrating a trade. As Cronin explained to me in December, former GM Neil Olshey empowered him behind the scenes.

“There are certain people you have relationships with around the league, people you know who you can work with,” Cronin said. “So you talk about ideas, and as those conversations start, if they got to a certain point, I would connect with Neil (and say), ‘Hey, Neil, I talked to Team X, and there might be something with this guy, or that guy.’ Then Neil would say, ‘Go back to them; let’s ask if they will do this …'”

“So, have I done a deal by myself? No. But we never do it by ourselves,” Cronin said in December. “We are constantly talking and working together. But have I been a point man? Definitely. Many times.”

Agents have told me that some front office executives feel as if Cronin got played in his first two trades, especially by the Clippers. Others inside the Blazers organization have told me the market for the Blazers’ players was low because the salaries didn’t match the production, and therefore Cronin did well.

Cronin noted at the trade deadline that he tried to hunt big-name players, but he felt going ahead with the proposed deals didn’t make sense. He insinuated that Portland would likely revisit those deals in the summer, and judging by reporting from The Athletic’s James Edwards in Detroit, it’s safe to assume the Blazers will revisit a Jerami Grant trade either before or after the NBA Draft.

The big swing for potential
In December, Cronin told The Athletic he doesn’t like to pigeonhole players or commit to a certain style of player.

“Players come in many different shapes and sizes,” Cronin said. “I don’t have a foundation of what kind of player I like; I just want to get the most talented player as possible. But with that, you want to find the right fit and the right mentality.”

It reminded me of what different colleagues who worked with him as he rose from intern to scout to salary cap analyst and then assistant general manager told me: As the group leaned toward the safe, four-year college prospect, Cronin was always the guy bringing the conversation back to the raw, emerging, young talent who needed development but could turn out to be a star.

I asked him about sticking his neck out in those meetings and advocating for the unproven players.

“I’m okay missing if I thought it gave us a good chance to bump up a whole another level,” Cronin said. “I’m okay risking taking a step back when we are taking a swing.”

That brings us back to the seventh pick and the player who is beginning to be labeled the “mystery” man of the draft: 19-year-old Shaedon Sharpe. If there is a player who meets Cronin’s high-ceiling, high-risk/high reward appeal, Sharpe is it.

A 6-foot-6 forward from Canada who practiced but didn’t play for Kentucky this season, Sharpe is a wild card because teams haven’t seen him compete in a game against top competition. After Kentucky’s season ended with Sharpe only practicing, coach John Calipari told reporters: “Would he have been a good player this year? Yeah, he’d have been pretty good. He’d have been pretty good.”

The day before the lottery, Cronin attended Sharpe’s solo workout for league talent evaluators in Chicago. The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie says of Sharpe: “A high-upside gamble because of his potential as a wing shot-creator. He looks every bit like a future NBA star wing, combining elite length with terrific hops.”

The question here is whether Sharpe will be available at seven. The top four picks are almost a given. Detroit is picking at five — and like Cronin, Pistons GM Troy Weaver leans toward unproven players with big upside — but if Sharpe survives five and six, he sure seems like a Cronin pick at seven.

Best player available
If Cronin can’t find a trade, and if Sharpe doesn’t last to seven, expect Cronin to pick the most talented player, regardless of position. The Blazers right now need depth at power forward, center and small forward, but in February, Cronin said he can’t pigeonhole need if he has a high pick.

“We have to balance the roster, no doubt. But the No. 1 thing is we have to get more talent,” he said. “We can’t take talent for granted.”

Cronin says that will hold true even if the best player available turns out to be at a position where the Blazers are set.

“If there is a two guard that is head and shoulders above the other positions, I’m taking the two guard, then (figuring) it out,” Cronin said. “But the talent part, I can’t dismiss to be able to compete at the level we want to compete at.”

Some players who could be available at seven include Arizona wing Bennedict Mathurin (6-foot-6, 19 years old), Baylor forward Jeremy Sochan (6-9, 18), Duke forward AJ Griffin (6-6, 18) and Memphis center Jalen Duren (6-11, 18). Cronin this week is in Chicago at the NBA Draft Combine, where he is conducting interviews, gathering medical information and watching workouts.

“From a straight basketball perspective, I think it’s a solid draft,” Cronin said in April. “The depth of the talent is intriguing to me.”
 
KSF-ERIC said:
I don’t know if I’m allowed to post this, but it’s a very revealing article by Quick:


When Joe Cronin took over the Trail Blazers in December, there was a word that kept surfacing, first by Cronin, and then by those who had worked with him over the years: risk.

Cronin’s former colleagues said he was the one in the room who would always want to take a risk on the players with high ceilings, even if they were unpolished at the time. He would rather strike out taking a swing at a potential home-run player than play it safe by pursuing a proven but unspectacular player.

And in December, after he was named interim general manager and charged with changing the course of a stagnant roster, Cronin kept bringing up the concept of taking risks.

“Risk means doing deals that might not be embraced by the pundits,” Cronin told The Athletic on Dec. 9, five days after he was named interim general manager. “It means you might increase your downside, but it gives you an opportunity to raise your ceiling. Those are the deals I’m interested in.”

Two months later, at the February trading deadline, those words from December rang true: Cronin pulled off a series of trades that were largely viewed as risky by a fanbase accustomed to postseason appearances.

In moves made largely — but not entirely — for financial reasons, Cronin traded CJ McCollum, Norman Powell, Robert Covington and Larry Nance Jr. The immediate return — ostensibly Josh Hartand Justise Winslow — was nowhere equal. And that’s where the risk comes in.

Cronin made those moves to create room for him to take those big swings he so desires. And even though his big plan was somewhat neutered when New Orleans made the playoffs, preventing its first-round pick from going to Portland, Cronin is still armed with the seventh pick in next month’s NBA Draft and some flexibility to sign his own free agents (Anfernee Simons, Jusuf Nurkić), as well as some exceptions to perhaps entice teams to unload proven players for financial relief.

Earlier this month he was promoted, the interim tag erased and a multi-year contract signed. His next decision will be the seventh pick, and after scouring three in-depth interviews with Cronin over the last six months, here are some possible tells that could indicate how he will handle the pick.

Blazers trade the pick
This seems the most likely scenario based on Cronin’s repeated intention of returning the Blazers to a playoff contender as he assembles talent around Damian Lillard. The day after the Blazers’ 27-55 season — which included a 2-21 finish after the All-Star break — ended, Cronin was asked how he would view the Blazers’ pick.

“The preference is to maximize that pick,” Cronin said. “We will dive in and evaluate film and assess value to that pick. Then you can compare that to what is available on the marketplace, and then make a decision.”

Like all the other lottery teams, the Blazers were hoping for a top-four pick because it’s widely accepted there is a drop in talent after Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren, Paolo Banchero and Jaden Ivey. There will be talented players available at seven, but will they be impact players right away, while the Blazers are trying to make the most of Lillard’s window of opportunity?

“We want to win; we want to be really competitive next year,” Cronin said. “You are more likely to win with veteran players than young players, so that will definitely be a part of our decision-making process.”

That’s a pretty big tell, but as Cronin noted that same April day, “it takes two to tango” in making a trade.

The ability to find a trade partner and execute a trade is where it becomes interesting regarding Cronin. One thing I’m not sure people understand about him is he is not some rube when it comes to orchestrating a trade. As Cronin explained to me in December, former GM Neil Olshey empowered him behind the scenes.

“There are certain people you have relationships with around the league, people you know who you can work with,” Cronin said. “So you talk about ideas, and as those conversations start, if they got to a certain point, I would connect with Neil (and say), ‘Hey, Neil, I talked to Team X, and there might be something with this guy, or that guy.’ Then Neil would say, ‘Go back to them; let’s ask if they will do this …'”

“So, have I done a deal by myself? No. But we never do it by ourselves,” Cronin said in December. “We are constantly talking and working together. But have I been a point man? Definitely. Many times.”

Agents have told me that some front office executives feel as if Cronin got played in his first two trades, especially by the Clippers. Others inside the Blazers organization have told me the market for the Blazers’ players was low because the salaries didn’t match the production, and therefore Cronin did well.

Cronin noted at the trade deadline that he tried to hunt big-name players, but he felt going ahead with the proposed deals didn’t make sense. He insinuated that Portland would likely revisit those deals in the summer, and judging by reporting from The Athletic’s James Edwards in Detroit, it’s safe to assume the Blazers will revisit a Jerami Grant trade either before or after the NBA Draft.

The big swing for potential
In December, Cronin told The Athletic he doesn’t like to pigeonhole players or commit to a certain style of player.

“Players come in many different shapes and sizes,” Cronin said. “I don’t have a foundation of what kind of player I like; I just want to get the most talented player as possible. But with that, you want to find the right fit and the right mentality.”

It reminded me of what different colleagues who worked with him as he rose from intern to scout to salary cap analyst and then assistant general manager told me: As the group leaned toward the safe, four-year college prospect, Cronin was always the guy bringing the conversation back to the raw, emerging, young talent who needed development but could turn out to be a star.

I asked him about sticking his neck out in those meetings and advocating for the unproven players.

“I’m okay missing if I thought it gave us a good chance to bump up a whole another level,” Cronin said. “I’m okay risking taking a step back when we are taking a swing.”

That brings us back to the seventh pick and the player who is beginning to be labeled the “mystery” man of the draft: 19-year-old Shaedon Sharpe. If there is a player who meets Cronin’s high-ceiling, high-risk/high reward appeal, Sharpe is it.

A 6-foot-6 forward from Canada who practiced but didn’t play for Kentucky this season, Sharpe is a wild card because teams haven’t seen him compete in a game against top competition. After Kentucky’s season ended with Sharpe only practicing, coach John Calipari told reporters: “Would he have been a good player this year? Yeah, he’d have been pretty good. He’d have been pretty good.”

The day before the lottery, Cronin attended Sharpe’s solo workout for league talent evaluators in Chicago. The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie says of Sharpe: “A high-upside gamble because of his potential as a wing shot-creator. He looks every bit like a future NBA star wing, combining elite length with terrific hops.”

The question here is whether Sharpe will be available at seven. The top four picks are almost a given. Detroit is picking at five — and like Cronin, Pistons GM Troy Weaver leans toward unproven players with big upside — but if Sharpe survives five and six, he sure seems like a Cronin pick at seven.

Best player available
If Cronin can’t find a trade, and if Sharpe doesn’t last to seven, expect Cronin to pick the most talented player, regardless of position. The Blazers right now need depth at power forward, center and small forward, but in February, Cronin said he can’t pigeonhole need if he has a high pick.

“We have to balance the roster, no doubt. But the No. 1 thing is we have to get more talent,” he said. “We can’t take talent for granted.”

Cronin says that will hold true even if the best player available turns out to be at a position where the Blazers are set.

“If there is a two guard that is head and shoulders above the other positions, I’m taking the two guard, then (figuring) it out,” Cronin said. “But the talent part, I can’t dismiss to be able to compete at the level we want to compete at.”

Some players who could be available at seven include Arizona wing Bennedict Mathurin (6-foot-6, 19 years old), Baylor forward Jeremy Sochan (6-9, 18), Duke forward AJ Griffin (6-6, 18) and Memphis center Jalen Duren (6-11, 18). Cronin this week is in Chicago at the NBA Draft Combine, where he is conducting interviews, gathering medical information and watching workouts.

“From a straight basketball perspective, I think it’s a solid draft,” Cronin said in April. “The depth of the talent is intriguing to me.”
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