Players I Ranked #11-#15
Leonard Miller, Anthony Black, Nikola Djurisic, Sidy Cissoko, Kobe Bufkin
Yesterday, I released a list of players that I have been looking at the for the #17 pick. I made a general list of players that I ranked from #11-#20.
11. Leonard Miller
12. Anthony Black
13. Nikola Djurisic
14. Sidy Cissoko
15. Kobe Bufkin
16. JHS
17. Jett Howard
18. Brice Sensabaugh
19. Brandin Podziemski
20. Dereck Lively II
I will be including YouTube links from other creators and draft minds. Subscribe to these channels, listen to what is said, because even if you may disagree, it’s still a good idea to have a different point of view. They put out quality work.
I’ve made a broad list in the inevitability that someone from the projected lottery might actually slip. After all, it seems every year, there’s at least one player sitting in the Green Room on draft night, for whatever reason. Sometimes, health reports arise. Sometimes, teams are hyped up from how a workout and interview process went, and they pick a guy that’s “their guy.”
Someone always slips. You have groups of scouting teams, where each individual has different priorities in how they see players, then meeting with a General Manager and sorting through a consensus of how to rank players on the board, and depending on the owner, sometimes the owner overrides their decision and just picks his or her “guy.”
It makes it easier from my point of view, when it’s just me, uninterrupted, and somewhat unchallenged by someone else to make a board. I’m open to new ideas, suggestions, and opinions, but it’s rare that two people evaluate players exactly the same.
This is why I made a list of ten general players. I have a feeling that Lively II, Podziemski, or even Sensabaugh may rise on general big boards released to the public.
All of that being said, here are a few generalized thoughts about players I ranked #11 - #15.
Leonard Miller - I’ve mentioned in a previous tweet that I thought he was Jarred Vanderbilt but had reps running an offense. Well, it’s not so much of halfcourt offense really, but his ability to grab-and-go, create transition opportunities, and open up shots for himself and others in early offense is a big benefit. He’s roughly 6’10” with a 7’2.5” wingspan with incredible touch, incredible hands, and feet. If this was a draft of yesterdecade, he’d likely go Top 10 on this idea alone. His range isn’t outside of 15’, but I do think his 79.2% free throw percentages and 60% overall field goal percentage, all generally 15’ and in, speaks highly of his actual shooting touch. His form is so funky, it’s almost like watching controlled jump-floaters than an actual “jump-shot.” Like Vanderbilt, he’s prone to getting pushed around a bit, and sometimes that leads to some foul trouble.
Personally, I’m fine with the shooting touch. I’m not fine with the shooting form. It starts at a low point, basically chest level, and gives an impression of shooting outward with a low release point as well. Bigs can get away with 2-motion shots and tend to have the length to shoot over defenses. I know 3-point shooting, and perimeter shooting in general is so important, but I’m thinking about him just having a long career, not so much in terms of a specific scheme or fit. If he simply got stronger, his size, motor, touch, and footwork on both ends of the floor would be an incredible asset to any team. That’s why I ranked him in the lottery.
Anthony Black - There is a peculiar Lonzo-like feature to his game. A big guard, capable of point-of-attack defense, some limited switchability, pushes in transition, and ready for all of the hit-aheads. Unfortunately, that is also tied into his perimeter shooting, where Lonzo actually had gravity at the college level, but Anthony Black does not. The shot starts slow and then accelerates to the release point; like the time to go from knee bend and getting the ball to chest level, is a lot slower than from shoulder to release point. It’s like a gradual ramp up, and I generally think it’s difficult to repeat those speeds shot-to-shot and have consistently good results.
I also don’t put as much credibility in the free throw rate. The .578FTr is an incredibly high FTr, and may lead to the idea that he’s uniquely great at getting defenders off-balance or is a crazy guard athlete that defenses can’t handle. I find that the majority of the free throw rate is done with a straight-line hesitation move, out of pick-and-roll situations where he has a half-step advantage and tries to extend the advantage getting to the hoop.
Like a lot of players, he’s a “jump-shot away”, and an extreme idea of his current skill-set fully realized is like, a bigger Alex Caruso with some touch. He’s got the IQ on both ends of the floor, uses his feet, chest, and quick hands defensively. He’s opportunistic cutting to the hoop and has good explosiveness in space. He’s a willing shooter, and that’s a very important foundation to creating shot gravity in the first place.
I’m sure there’s a team that can get more consistent results with an NBA-level jumpshot and expand on his abilities to change direction. If so, that’s a two-way impactful starting level point distributor that’s comfortable on-and-off the ball.
Nikola Djurisic - Have I said enough about him yet? I’ll try to make this short, but if you want to read more, click here and here.
I watched a recent game sample and think the optimistic projection of him is a three-level point wing. While I’d love to see more out of him defensively, I do think he reads that end of the floor and is opportunistic in reading one pass away. Sometimes he’ll come across the court to go for a steal on a post entry pass, or rush the next pass over along the perimeter.
I did like that he tried to step up his defensive energy when the opponent made a comeback, but he really carried initiating duty to close the game and helped extend the offense, which led to an eventual win.
Considering the competition next level, maybe the rough idea of him stylistically is Bogdan Bogdonovic. He may not be as accurate of a shooter yet, but like Leonard Miller, he gets plenty of pick-and-roll repetition and creates good shots within his comfort zone or easy opportunities for teammates. Considering he is wing-sized, that’s a lottery level talent.
Sidy Cissoko - Ah, another player I’ve written previously about here. After more observation, I think he lacks initial burst because he doesn’t have really high end flexibility. When I watch players that are perceived as quick or have a great first step, it isn’t just the leg that generates the force. Sometimes the angle of the leg pushing off affects how much force is being created. When great attackers straight-line drive, the posture leans forward quite a bit, as if the body anticipates how much force is going to be generated and still wants to stay on balance. I haven’t seen that extreme lean, or the shin angles that are parallel to the floor. I may not be as optimistic about gaining flexibility in the league, but I am absolutely optimistic on how ball-handling improvisation and strength do. He has both of those in spades and has no issues absorbing contact when attacking the rim.
There seems to be some variance in Cissoko this season, where he can get touches and really create in pick-and-roll situations and be comfortable spotting up at different angles from behind the arc. Then there’s the other part, where he struggles against defenders on the drive prior to initiating contact against them, or the jump-shot becomes inconsistent. Meanwhile, I’m thinking he’s a 19 year old player that has NBA level athleticism and physicality, who still needs to grow into his body a bit, but has flashed plenty of positive attributes on both ends of the floor.
If I took a step back and thought, there’s a 19 year old wing, currently at the size of Jimmy Butler, who plays on both ends of the floor with physicality, has a reputation of being competitive, and has flashed positive play on both ends of the floor multiple times, that general idea of a player is easily a lottery pick.
Now, it’s just a matter of getting it all together.
Kobe Bufkin - Admittedly, I haven’t written much about him. It’s a deep wing draft, and it’s hard for me to think that the best player available is a guard, but if it is a guard, Bufkin might just be that guy.
He has the tools; accel and decel, quick changes of direction, hesitation dribble, and accelerative lead dribbles going both left and right. He’s got a real defensive motor.
It’s generally easier for me to see that his skill set will become more advanced next level, because I think athletically, he coordinates and links movement so fluidly, that it’s incredibly efficient and it leads to easy results. An example of that is how he’s able to get verticality while his torso is perpendicular to the rim, and that allows him to maximize extending towards the hoop. According to hoop math, he shoots 68% at the rim, and the above video will show examples of that.
I just think that a player that has that kind of athleticism, not the kind of insane first step, or incredible verticality, but the kind of fluid movement that links actions together will eventually lead to more advanced offensive skill in terms of hesitation dribbles combined with changes of direction and better control on a pull up jump-shot.
Despite his proactive defensive abilities, he will be targeted for being a smaller player. All rookies are targeted in general, especially in the playoffs. Otherwise, I like his awareness and defensive tools. He defends one-on-one well, using his feet, torso, and hands in that order to affect shots while avoiding foul trouble. It’s just at the next level, guards close to his height may be +30 to +40lbs. heavier and are more adept to getting shots over even bigger players. It may be more ideal for him to play as a chaser defensively.
Best Player Available
I think highly of each player listed. As to where things stand now, Djurisic is definitely going to be available. He’s still consistently mocked in the 40s draft spot, which still doesn’t make sense to me. I expect him to be available at the Lakers #17 pick, and as of right now, would consider drafting him at that spot and not risk losing him to another team with a 1st or 2nd round pick.
There’s just a slim chance that outside of Djurisic, another player will slip to the Lakers pick. It’s just wise to create that best player available order, in case the opportunity arises.
I don’t really expect much immediate impact out of any of them, especially in the playoffs. A lot of growth has to occur in the middle of the season for that to happen, and the season from regular season, player workouts, draft season, and pro league is the longest basketball year, leading to a short break into their longest, most competitive basketball year. If the Lakers keep the pick and are lucky, maybe a player can come in and play for a shift or two without being too negative in a specific playoff lineup. It really just depends on the situation.
I plan to write about #16-#20 soon, unless that list changes when more information becomes available.
What do you think of each player?
Let me know. Feel free to comment or find me on Twitter. I’ll be more than happy to respond.
Can DLo be seen as a good comp for Kobe Bufkin? They are both lefties, but watching highlights, seems like there’s some similarity in where they get their shots from.
Bufkin is more fluid, as you point out, whereas DLo has more of a “herky-jerky” style. But, wondering if Bufkin could seemingly look to replace DLo if he leaves. We already have a “proof of concept” with that player archetype and how well they pair around Bron/Reaves/AD.
Thanks so much for the write-up! We pin all of your articles still in the Lakers Exceptionalism Discord.
Besides Djurisic, Sidy Cissoko seems to have a lot of variance still with his draft range. I’ve had several people tell me on various platforms that 17 is way too high for Sidy and I’ve even seen him mocked in the second round. People have called him “too much of a project” to draft that high, especially for the Lakers. Why are they missing what you are highlighting?
Seems like any team would LOvE a Wing, regardless of their timeline, with Jimmy Butler-size, who can read the floor on both sides, and has A+ competitiveness?