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Just looking at the 2014 Draft Class....
Randle is really making that case for being 2nd behind Wiggins so far.
A lot of things can change obviously, how Aaron Gordon grows, does Embiid hit his potential, does Jabari figure out he needs to add a 3pointer to his game.
I'd rank it.
1. Andrew Wiggins
2. Julius Randle - There's some clear holes in his game, but if you're going to ask me who has played as well, and who is most likely to be a contributor to a playoff team, only Wiggins is ahead of him currently. And again, this is all while not really being very good this year when it comes to offensive efficiency, and understanding how to play team defense.
3. Jabari Parker (incredibly close though, but for what plagues Randle in terms of range, it also plagues Parker tenfold, he's even more undersized than Randle at the 4, has shot only 6 3's in 47 games), and whereas Randle is an elite Defensive Rebounder, and has motor for days, Parker does not... Although I do think Parker has more potential to be an elite scorer, but there's some things that would need to change)
4. Elfrid Payton (Has really grown a lot, went from a guy that you questioned how effective he could be without a shot to shooting 36% from 3, with over double the attempts)
5. Aaron Gordon (Think he can really move up in the future, hits the 3 at a mediocre rate now, but good enough to think there can be improvement as a solid stretch 4, very athletic, good rebounder.. Seems like he could be a bit more refined than Julius in the future, but not quite at his level just yet).
6. Rodney Hood - Looks like he can be a quality starter, with a good all around game in the future.
Kind of Bunches up here, simply based on preference, and how you project things to go in the future... These guys, I wouldn't consider future starters:
Marcus Smart (Would be much higher if he had any semblance of an offense, but the Celtics seem to get by with him and IT2... His defense is really good though. For him to improve it's about becoming a decent 3 point shooter).
Jusef Nurkic - 6'10" can shoot a 3, but needs to grow on defensive, but 6'10" shooting well from everywhere is plenty to be happy about.
Jordan Clarkson & Zach LaVine - No homer, but really are very similar guys playing. LaVine has much more athleticism. But Clarkson also looks to be better at filling both roles of a Combo Guard. Both have serious mental lapses, Clarkson on defense, Zach on offense. Zach also might be getting cover a bit from better defensive teammates. Would be interesting to see what each looks like if they switched situations. Also reason why Smart is ahead of both of them is defense. Can find a scoring combo guard easily in the league, much more difficult to replace Smart's defense.
Clint Capela, Jusuf Nurkic & T.J. Warren are all right there.
Wild Cards: Joel Embiid, Dante Exum (They could really change the list, if Embiid ever plays, and Dante can get his raw talent/tools to come together).
Randle is really making that case for being 2nd behind Wiggins so far.
A lot of things can change obviously, how Aaron Gordon grows, does Embiid hit his potential, does Jabari figure out he needs to add a 3pointer to his game.
I'd rank it.
1. Andrew Wiggins
2. Julius Randle - There's some clear holes in his game, but if you're going to ask me who has played as well, and who is most likely to be a contributor to a playoff team, only Wiggins is ahead of him currently. And again, this is all while not really being very good this year when it comes to offensive efficiency, and understanding how to play team defense.
3. Jabari Parker (incredibly close though, but for what plagues Randle in terms of range, it also plagues Parker tenfold, he's even more undersized than Randle at the 4, has shot only 6 3's in 47 games), and whereas Randle is an elite Defensive Rebounder, and has motor for days, Parker does not... Although I do think Parker has more potential to be an elite scorer, but there's some things that would need to change)
4. Elfrid Payton (Has really grown a lot, went from a guy that you questioned how effective he could be without a shot to shooting 36% from 3, with over double the attempts)
5. Aaron Gordon (Think he can really move up in the future, hits the 3 at a mediocre rate now, but good enough to think there can be improvement as a solid stretch 4, very athletic, good rebounder.. Seems like he could be a bit more refined than Julius in the future, but not quite at his level just yet).
6. Rodney Hood - Looks like he can be a quality starter, with a good all around game in the future.
Kind of Bunches up here, simply based on preference, and how you project things to go in the future... These guys, I wouldn't consider future starters:
Marcus Smart (Would be much higher if he had any semblance of an offense, but the Celtics seem to get by with him and IT2... His defense is really good though. For him to improve it's about becoming a decent 3 point shooter).
Jusef Nurkic - 6'10" can shoot a 3, but needs to grow on defensive, but 6'10" shooting well from everywhere is plenty to be happy about.
Jordan Clarkson & Zach LaVine - No homer, but really are very similar guys playing. LaVine has much more athleticism. But Clarkson also looks to be better at filling both roles of a Combo Guard. Both have serious mental lapses, Clarkson on defense, Zach on offense. Zach also might be getting cover a bit from better defensive teammates. Would be interesting to see what each looks like if they switched situations. Also reason why Smart is ahead of both of them is defense. Can find a scoring combo guard easily in the league, much more difficult to replace Smart's defense.
Clint Capela, Jusuf Nurkic & T.J. Warren are all right there.
Wild Cards: Joel Embiid, Dante Exum (They could really change the list, if Embiid ever plays, and Dante can get his raw talent/tools to come together).
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