There’s no guarantee that the Nets will use all three of their picks (Nos. 17, 27, and 31) in the 2019 NBA draft, as those selections could become trade assets next month. But assuming they keep at least one or two, they’ll be using those picks to target a certain type of player, writes Ian Begley of SNY.tv.
According to Begley, Brooklyn is hoping to draft a big man that can either complement or back up starting center Jarrett Allen.
As Begley observes, there’s not necessarily a consensus among draft evaluators this season about which players will come off the board in the middle or back end of the first round, so it’s hard to say which bigs will be available to the Nets. However, Begley identifies Bol Bol (Oregon), Goga Bitadze (Republic of Georgia), Mfiondu Kabengele (Florida State), Naz Reid (LSU), and Nicolas Claxton (Georgia) as possible options.
Allen had a promising sophomore season for Brooklyn in 2018/19, averaging 10.9 PPG, 8.4 RPG, and 1.5 BPG with a .590 FG%. Despite Allen’s strides, the Nets’ front line, with Allen and Ed Davis handling most of the center minutes, was undersized on many nights, Begley notes. That was on display during the team’s first-round loss to Joel Embiid and the Sixers.
With Davis facing unrestricted free agency and a desire to add more size to their frontcourt, the Nets will see if they can address that hole at all in the draft.
If they want size, there’s one guy that can’t be beat, but he probably won’t be picked until the mid-to-late 2nd even with his impressive showing against Zion in the NCAA’s. If someone has a pick in that part of the draft and is willing to throw in a 2nd to get either the 17 or the 27 from the Nets along with Allen Crabbe’s contract, I could see the Nets taking a chance on Tacko Fall. You can’t teach being 7’7″ with an 8’4″ wingspan.
That might be a good idea, after watching Kabengele in the NCAA tourney, he would be a good option as well
Between 4s Doumbouya, Clarke, Washington & Hachimura, one is likely to fall to #17, or the Nets could easily trade up. The Nets would like a physical backup 5, but that can be targeted in the FA market more easily and accurately than in the draft.
Neither Tacko Fall, Bol Bol nor Claxton can match Embiid physically, and Allen is already a long 5 like them. The others mentioned plus Bruno Fernando are solid picks but the #17 should be for a starter.
You aren’t getting a starter at 17 in a deep draft, let alone a weak one like this year. Guys at 17 are more likely to start on a G League team than an NBA team for the first year or two. The last solid player drafted at 17 was Dennis Schroder in 2014 and the last real impact player was Jrue Holiday in 2009. Technically it is possible to find a gem, but they’d be better off attaching that pick to Crabbe and moving on.
Given their new (good) reputation among FAs, probably so. They should have good FA options.
Allen is a great talent, particularly on defense, but he’s not a real C or even a particularly strong PF. He’ll get bigger, but I don’t believe much stronger, and its a waste of his talents, and detrimental to his development, to try and force feed him power player responsibilities. Nets need to get a big that can play alongside Allen, and cover bigger bodies in the post. Of the guys noted, I’m most familiar with Reid, and they should definitely kick the tires on him. Bol, if he were still around when the Nets pick, would be hard to pass up, regardless.