Re-Drafting The 2022 NBA Draft

Summary

Podcast Summary: Re-Drafting The 2022 NBA Draft

Podcast Information:

• Title: Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective
• Host/Author: ESPN, NBA Analyst Brian Windhorst
• Description: Brian Windhorst and a team of ESPN's Insiders navigate the intricacies of life in and around the NBA world.
• Episode: Re-Drafting The 2022 NBA Draft
• Release Date: August 15, 2025

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Introduction

In the August 15, 2025 episode of Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective, NBA analyst Brian Windhorst teams up with fellow ESPN insiders Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to revisit and re-evaluate the 2022 NBA Draft. The episode focuses on a "redraft" of the 2022 entrants, assessing their performance and potential based on their progress up to 2025.

Brian Windhorst opens the discussion by referencing their previous year's retrospective on the 2021 NBA Draft, where they analyzed players three years into their careers to determine their success.

[01:04] Brian Windhorst: "Last year we just did an interesting thing when we took a look back at the 2021 NBA Draft... It turned out to be pretty interesting."

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Draft Format and Process

The trio decides to simulate a redraft using a Snake draft format, ensuring each participant gets a fair opportunity to select players based on their assessments. The selection order is determined through a game of rock-paper-scissors, involving Brian’s seven-year-old child to add an element of fun to the process.

[03:50] Brian Windhorst: "Do you think it's a bit. It's actually not. And it's happened repeatedly. So I'm going to go second so that I'm always going..."

The draft commences with Tim MacMahon securing the first pick.

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Top Picks (1-5)

1. Pick 1: Jalen Williams
   Tim MacMahon selects Jalen Williams as the first overall pick, emphasizing his defensive prowess and significant contributions during the NBA Finals.

   [05:37] Tim MacMahon: "Jalen Williams is a guy who could be considered an all-defense candidate on the wing who put up huge scoring games in the finals, did it on the biggest stage."

   Tim Bontemps concurs, highlighting Williams' growth and potential.

   [06:23] Tim Bontemps: "He is an all NBA player... he's proven that he can be the number two guy on a championship team."

2. Pick 2: Paolo Banchero
   Brian Windhorst opts for Paolo Banchero, discussing the Orlando Magic's strategy and Banchero's potential as a franchise cornerstone.

   [08:07] Brian Windhorst: "I would take Paolo Banchero. Between the two players they were deciding on Jabari or Paolo, they thought that Paolo had the better chance to be a number one cornerstone franchise player."

   Tim Bontemps praises Banchero's offensive capabilities and consistent scoring.

   [09:42] Tim Bontemps: "He is the best offensive player or the highest upside offensive player in this draft, without question."

3. Pick 3: Chet Holmgren
   Another strong defensive presence, Tim Bontemps selects Chet Holmgren as the third pick, citing his defensive versatility and potential for Defensive Player of the Year honors.

   [10:46] Tim Bontemps: "Chet's clearly the highest ceiling defensive player. He's got defense player of the year potential."

4. Pick 4: Christian Brown
   Tim MacMahon takes Christian Brown, a two-way wing player known for his athleticism and defensive impact.

   [15:47] Tim MacMahon: "Christian Brown is one of the most dynamic athletes in this draft... he's a high-level athlete and is a more competitive as he is a better playoff performer than he is a regular season performer."

5. Pick 5: Jabari Smith Jr.
   Brian Windhorst selects Jabari Smith Jr., highlighting his versatility and recent $125 million contract extension with the Houston Rockets.

   [17:19] Brian Windhorst: "He plays both ends of the court... he's a proficient three-point shooter. He can stretch the floor."

   Tim Bontemps adds that Smith Jr. will likely see an uptick in his performance due to his expanded role.

   [20:27] Tim Bontemps: "He's going to have a starting role for Jabari Smith Jr., so I would anticipate that his numbers will probably take a nice little bump up this year."

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Middle Rounds (6-10)

6. Pick 6: Keegan Murray
   Tim Bontemps selects Keegan Murray, a reliable three-and-D wing known for his durability and consistent performance.

   [21:40] Tim Bontemps: "He's played 233 games out of 246 and he leads this class in minutes played by a lot."

7. Pick 7: Walker Kessler
   Tim MacMahon chooses Walker Kessler, focusing on his defensive impact and potential as a versatile center.

   [25:35] Tim MacMahon: "Walker Kessler is probably second there. He needs to be an awesome screener and finisher."

8. Pick 8: Dyson Daniels
   Brian Windhorst opts for Dyson Daniels, praising his elite perimeter defense and high deflection numbers.

   [27:09] Brian Windhorst: "He's an absolute elite perimeter defender... led the league with three steals a game."

9. Pick 9: Shaden Sharp
   Tim MacMahon selects Shaden Sharp, valuing his athleticism and scoring ability despite uncertainties in his current team fit.

   [21:36] Tim MacMahon: "Shaden Sharp has incredible upside. He's an elite athlete who can put the ball in the hole."

10. Pick 10: Jalen Duran
    Tim Bontemps picks Jalen Duran, highlighting his double-double averages and defensive potential.

    [39:38] Tim Bontemps: "He's the only player in this class who's averaging a double double for his career."

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Later Rounds (11-14)

11. Pick 11: Jaden Ivey
    Brian Windhorst selects Jaden Ivey, noting his significant improvement post-injury and his potential as a key player for Detroit.

    [44:22] Tim MacMahon: "Jaden Ivy had a big step forward this last season despite his injury."

12. Pick 12: Tari Eason
    Tim MacMahon chooses Tari Eason, emphasizing his defensive prowess and consistency despite limited minutes.

    [45:29] Tim Bontemps: "He's extremely athletic and a tremendous defensive playmaker."

13. Pick 13: Shaden Sharp
    Tim MacMahon opts again for Shaden Sharp, aiming for his potential upside despite questions about team fit.

    [48:15] Tim MacMahon: "He's an incredible athlete and has untapped upside."

14. Pick 14: Benedict Matheran
    Brian Windhorst selects Benedict Matheran, acknowledging his athleticism, toughness, and versatile background.

    [50:49] Brian Windhorst: "Benedict Matheran is a complex player with impressive size and versatility."

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Analysis of Redrafted Players

Throughout the draft simulation, the trio provides in-depth analysis of each pick, evaluating players based on their defensive capabilities, offensive contributions, potential for growth, and fit within future team structures. Key discussions include:

• Jalen Williams vs. Paolo Banchero: Debating the merits of a defensive stalwart against a high-upside offensive player.

  [08:07] Brian Windhorst: "Paolo Banchero is an absolute guy who can be a franchise player on a real contender."

• Chet Holmgren’s Defensive Dominance: Emphasizing Holmgren's impact on defense and versatility.

  [10:46] Tim Bontemps: "Chet's clearly the highest ceiling defensive player."

• Christian Brown’s Two-Way Play: Highlighting Brown's balance between offense and defense.

  [15:47] Tim MacMahon: "Christian Brown is one of the most dynamic athletes in this draft."

• Jabari Smith Jr.’s Role in Houston: Discussing Smith Jr.'s contractual obligations and his role alongside Kevin Durant.

  [17:19] Brian Windhorst: "He's a proficient three-point shooter. He can stretch the floor."

• Keegan Murray’s Durability: Appreciating Murray’s consistent participation and reliability.

  [21:40] Tim Bontemps: "He's played 233 games out of 246 and he leads this class in minutes played."

• Dyson Daniels as an Elite Defender: Focusing on Daniels’ defensive statistics and impact.

  [27:09] Brian Windhorst: "Led the league with three steals a game."

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Concluding Thoughts

The redraft exercise offers a comprehensive look into how the 2022 NBA Draft class has developed over the subsequent three years. The insiders provide valuable insights into each player's trajectory, potential contractual negotiations, and impact on their respective teams. They also touch upon future considerations for players who slipped through the initial lottery or those who have shown significant improvement post-injury.

Brian Windhorst wraps up the episode by thanking his co-hosts and expressing satisfaction with the engaging discussion.

[58:01] Tim Bontemps: "Adios, amigos."

This episode serves as a reflective analysis for NBA fans, highlighting the evolving careers of the 2022 draft class and offering predictions for their future contributions to the league.

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Notable Quotes:

• Brian Windhorst on Paolo Banchero:

  [08:07] "Paolo Banchero is an absolute guy who can be a franchise player on a real contender."

• Tim MacMahon on Jalen Williams:

  [05:37] "Jalen Williams is a guy who could be considered an all-defense candidate on the wing who put up huge scoring games in the finals."

• Tim Bontemps on Chet Holmgren:

  [10:46] "Chet's clearly the highest ceiling defensive player."

• Brian Windhorst on Jabari Smith Jr.:

  [17:19] "He plays both ends of the court... he's a proficient three-point shooter. He can stretch the floor."

---

This summary encapsulates the key discussions, insights, and analyses from the podcast episode, providing a comprehensive overview for listeners and those who missed the original show.

Transcript

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[Brian Windhorst]

Hello, welcome to HOOPP Collective Podcast. We talk about the NBA, which we're doing in August, which means we pre recorded this, so I hope you enjoy it. Joining us from Northern California, not disclosing where exactly is in Northern California for reasons that only he knows, is Tim Bontemps.

[Tim MacMahon]

Hello, everybody.

[Brian Windhorst]

Joining us from somewhere in northern Texas. You okay with that, fan mcmid? All right, I'm joining you from eastern Nebraska. All right, Last year we just.

[Tim Bontemps]

Can I get a howdy Partners in.

[Brian Windhorst]

Oh, I'm sorry.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, Howdy partners. By the way, I know exactly where Bontemps is. I had a few dozen beers at that exact location last August.

[Brian Windhorst]

A few dozen Bontemps.

[Tim Bontemps]

I was there multiple nights. He knows how to drink. Hey, have you broken out the fireball? Bontemps tends to break out the fireball when he's out at the lake.

[Brian Windhorst]

Is that right? I've seen Bontems throw back beer. I'd never seen him get to hard liquor.

[Tim Bontemps]

Oh, I've seen it. It's quite a spectacle.

[Brian Windhorst]

When we had your book party last spring, I saw you were, you were breaking into your beer that night, McMahon.

[Tim Bontemps]

I've still got some beers left over from that.

[Brian Windhorst]

That's a stunning development.

[Tim Bontemps]

I've been out of town a lot.

[Brian Windhorst]

Okay. Yeah, all right, we'll get. Get right on that. Okay. Last summer we did an interesting thing when we took a look back at the 2021 NBA Draft, the players who were getting their contracts extended, basically you're, you know, three years in, you're determining whether these draft picks were successes or not. And that turned out to be pretty interesting. And so we thought now that we're in 25, we would take a look back at the guys who are getting their contracts extended this summer from the 2022 draft. And was this, was this your idea to bring this back? McMahon, whose idea was this?

[Tim Bontemps]

I believe Jackson actually had an idea on his own.

[Tim MacMahon]

Give Jackson credit for it.

[Brian Windhorst]

So. All right, so Jackson's idea. And I thought, okay, that sounds good. I do remember doing that podcast and it was fun and Then we got into how we're going to do it and. And I was told that we were redrafting in a Snake draft format. And I was like, I do not need to be made a fool of yet again on this. I did graduate from college, but I do not do fantasy drafts.

[Tim Bontemps]

And you graduated from Kent State. I don't know if that, you know, North Texas.

[Brian Windhorst]

What are they in, the Ivy League of the South?

[Tim Bontemps]

The best. The best institution in Denton County.

[Brian Windhorst]

I graduated from the best institution in Portage County. We rely on Jackson and his Syracuse roots. Here is what we should do. Anyway, I screw up the Snake draft all the time. Okay. I just. Do you think it's a bit. It's actually not. And it's happened repeatedly. So I'm going to go second so that I'm always going. Every third pick, that I don't have to do this back to back stuff because I'm always messing up, making a fool of myself. So I'm going second. That means one of you two has got to determine who goes first. So we decided, how about how my 7 year old would handle this and he would handle this with rock paper scissors.

[Tim MacMahon]

That I would have just let him go first.

[Brian Windhorst]

But this is more fun.

[Tim Bontemps]

Are you ready? It's a one, two, three, throw down. Ready?

[Tim MacMahon]

Okay.

[Tim Bontemps]

One, two, three. What do you got?

[Brian Windhorst]

Let the record show that McMahon went with rock. I'm sorry. Rock. Beats. All right. Bon temps in the 2022 draft.

[Tim MacMahon]

Yeah.

[Brian Windhorst]

The Magic picked Paolo Banqueira with the number one overall pick in our 2025 redraft. You have the first selection. And this is interesting. I'm actually glad he's going first, McMahon, for various reasons, but go ahead.

[Tim MacMahon]

Yeah. I mean, I was thinking about. As we were sitting here, I was thinking about which way I was going to go with this. And I am ultimately going to go off the board a little bit. And I'm going to take Jalen Williams with the first pick.

[Tim Bontemps]

That's what I would have done.

[Tim MacMahon]

God. Just scored 40 in an NBA Finals game with a wrist. He got an injection in about 9,000 times, according to his Instagram, to his video.

[Brian Windhorst]

How many times did he say.

[Tim MacMahon]

I remember I wrote 37 or so.

[Tim Bontemps]

I don't know.

[Brian Windhorst]

Yeah, I wrote that. Hold on, I'm gonna look it up. I wrote the news story.

[Tim MacMahon]

Look, he. He had a. He had. He had a tremendous playoffs. We spent all year talking about whether he could be good enough as the second perimeter scorer behind Shea to get them over the line. He's a tremendous two way Player made it all the A team this year. I could certainly understand why someone would pick Paolo as a 610 guy with the package he's got offensively. But when you look at the modern NBA, the thing you need more than anything else is two way wing play. And Jalen Williams is a guy who could be considered an all defense candidate on the wing who put up huge scoring games in the finals, did it on the biggest stage. So I'm gonna, I'm gonna take him first overall.

[Tim Bontemps]

Well, it's not just that he can be considered an all defensive candidate. He is an all defensive selection. He's also an all NBA player. The only player in this draft who already has an all NBA honor on his resume. And you know, he's proven that he can be the number two guy on a championship team. He is getting better. Like he's gone from probably a second round pick pretty late in the draft process. So whoosh, right on up to the lottery to rookie of the year runner up. Took a leap, took another leap. And I don't think he's done getting drastically better. So I was kind of hoping he'd be there for me at number three so I could feel like I'm smarter than you guys. But I would have taken him number one overall as well.

[Brian Windhorst]

Well, that is interesting because on actual the draft night in 22, the thought was that he might actually go number three. There was a belief that was existing that the Magic who had the number one pick were going to go with Jabari Smith Jr there. The Thunder long had it been telegraphed they were going to take Chet Holmgren number two and Paolo Bancaro. You know, I know it's somewhat common to whenever you think a player is or a coach is going somewhere, you hear stories of them looking for houses or whatever. But I think it was true. I think, you know, know knowing Paulo's agent, Mike Miller, former NBA champion three point specialist, I think they were like, you know, maybe not actually looking at real estate, but like planning on him going to be in Houston. And then I did a story about this where I talked to people inside the Rockets, inside the Magic, inside the Thunder about how this went down. And I, you know, maybe the Magic were selling me a bill of goods. But talking to multiple people in the organization, they said that Jeff Weltman really, truly didn't know until 24 hours before the draft. And then they kind of had leaned towards Bancaro and didn't actually make up their mind until draft day. So they say I have a hard Time believing it. At the time, I thought that was just a smokescreen to try to elicit trade offers or whatever because I think the Rockets really were interested in Paolo and then when, when it was, when all of a sudden they were like, oh, we're going to take Paolo, they were trying to draw out maybe a Rockets offer. But long story short, Paulo's selection wasn't known. He wasn't known as the number one pick and it was sort of a risk. So let me just say that with the number two pick we move on to that. Or do you have something else you want to say, McMahon?

[Tim Bontemps]

No, go for it. Number two pick.

[Brian Windhorst]

I would take Paolo Banchero. And I'm going to tell you the reason that I, you know, in talking to the Magic, the reason that when they made the draft that, that they took, I think Paolo, one of the big reasons was between the two players they were deciding on Jabari or Paolo, they thought that Paolo had the better chance to be a number one cornerstone franchise player. They felt that Jabari Smith, especially defensively, could be a very good player, potentially multi time all star for a long time, but they felt Paolo's ceiling was high. And the points that you made, Bon temps, like, there's no question Jalen Williams is more decorated, but I still think Paolo Banchero is an absolute guy who can be a franchise player on a real contender.

[Tim Bontemps]

I mean, he is the, he's definitely the, the best offensive player or the highest upside offensive player in this draft, without question. I mean, he hadn't had, you know, his efficiency has been relatively middling. Part of that's just being the number one option on a young team as a young player. Part of that's, you know, they've had obviously spacing and shooting issues, but he's, you know, he's going to, he's the leading scorer in this class by over 500 points despite missing a fair amount of games, especially last year. Yeah, last year with the oblique and you know, he's, he's the guy who has like scoring leader potential.

[Tim MacMahon]

Look, this is a huge year for Paolo in the Magic. They obviously make the Desmond Bain trade. Paolo's three years in the NBA, he shot 29.8%, 33.9% and 32% flat from.

[Brian Windhorst]

Three while taking more each year.

[Tim MacMahon]

I'll take it more each year. Yeah, he shot decently from three in the playoffs the last couple years. He's obviously a tremendous offensive player. But they, you know, by going in and getting this Desmond Bain deal done, like the Magic clearly believe they've got a window now with the way the east has fallen to potentially be a conference final scene, to be an NBA Finals team. This as soon as this year. Desmond Bain with his three point shooting will help a ton, but Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero, they're two cornerstone guys, just have to take steps forward, particularly, like McMahon said, from an efficiency standpoint, like if those guys start shooting the ball well from three, Orlando could come out of the East. But that's a big if based off the way the last couple years have gone and the, the track record those guys have put together.

[Brian Windhorst]

Okay, McMahon, you got the number three pick. This is interesting.

[Tim Bontemps]

One, I don't think it's that. I don't think it's hard. I think four is interesting. But threes, to me is clearly Chet Holmgren. Unfortunately, he has missed over half of the available regular season games. Obviously Andrew Red Shirt his rookie year, and then last year had the fractured hip where he missed over half the season, but he has been exactly what the Thunder thought he would be when he's been on the floor. And that is a dominant defensive presence, one of the best rim protectors in the league who has defensive versatility and a, you know, an offensive player who isn't a go to guy necessarily, but can space the floor. You know, has proven that, you know, despite his slim frame, can be an effective finisher. You know, he was the number three option on a championship team. And, you know, while Paulo is clearly the, the highest ceiling offensive player in this draft, Chet's clearly the highest ceiling defense player. I mean, he's got defense player of the year potential. I mean, it's very early before he went down last year, but was arguably the front runner when he fractured his hip last year with a start that he got off to and just played a huge part on a championship team. So to me, Chet's the easy call for number three.

[Brian Windhorst]

All right, you've got the number four pick too, I think.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah. Any, any, any debates there on Chad.

[Brian Windhorst]

All right, well, hold on.

[Tim Bontemps]

Oh, okay.

[Tim MacMahon]

No, I, I don't have any. I mean, he is the clear third pick. I mean, from a.

[Brian Windhorst]

Those first three guys, by the way, all have gotten max contracts this summer.

[Tim MacMahon]

Yeah. And from an advanced stat standpoint, like, Chad's got more win shares already than Paolo. Like, I know he's obviously playing on the Thunder, but that hit. All of his advanced numbers have been off the charts, and when he's been on the court, the Thunder have been great. McMahon repeatedly brought up last year the Numbers when the Thunder had either he or Isaiah Hardenstock on the floor, they were an insane team, even more than they were normally. And yeah, like, the only question is, can he avoid some of these, you know, freak injuries he's had and stay on the court? Because if he can, he's, you know, we spent a lot of time this summer talking about Miles Turner. Chad Holmgren is another one of these guys that's a seven footer who could score particularly, can hit threes and then is a tremendous defensive player. Those, those players are extraordinarily valuable for obvious reasons. And if you have one of them and can build around them, it makes a massive difference in terms of putting together the kind of team the Thunder are likely to have for a while.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, the, the floor spacing rim protector, which Brook Lopez kind of began, that trend is tremendously valuable. And Chet is a force base and rim protector.

[Brian Windhorst]

I would say Chris Bosch might have been. Okay, played a bigger.

[Tim MacMahon]

Sure.

[Tim Bontemps]

But my point. And, and so Bosch is a great example because Bosch was a floor space rim protector who could put it on the floor. Who's good Pastor could do a lot of different things, I would argue. So is Chet. Chet has that, you know, he has like you don't want him to be your primary creator, but he can attack closeouts. He's a good passer. You know, he can do a lot of different things offensively other than just knock down threes and, and catch the occasional lob.

[Brian Windhorst]

All right. With the number four pick in 2022, a lot of. Just to go back to that night, quite a few mock drafts predicted Jaden Ivy out of Purdue would go number four. And the king surprised going with Keegan Murray out of Iowa. He was the number four pick that night. Now that's your chance to redraft.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, and those two guys are definitely in consideration here, as is Jabari Smith who is third overall. I think my decision is going to come down though to two guys who weren't lottery picks and I'm going to take Christian Brown who just got done with his first season as a starter and you know, you talk about the value of two way wing players. Christian Brown is without question a two way wing player. First season as a full time starter this year, just to read his numbers. Average 15.4 points per game, 5.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists over a steal and a half a block. Shooting 58% from the floor and low volume here, but 39.7 from 3 point range is one of the most dynamic athletes in this draft at Six foot. He's bigger than you think at six, six. You, you, you can say his athleticism is deceptive, but he is a high level athlete and is a. Was a huge part of a Nuggets team last year that pushed the Thunder to seven games and is going to be a huge part of the Nuggets going forward. So I'm going to take Christian Brown, who went 21st overall here at number four.

[Brian Windhorst]

That is a big jump. Obviously he plays a desirable position, has proven to be able to deliver on the big stage. Hasn't signed a contract extension yet.

[Tim MacMahon]

Going to be an interesting negotiation this summer with Denver for sure.

[Brian Windhorst]

There's a number of guys we're going to talk about in this short term here who are going to have, we're going to see where, if, if or, or how much they get extended for. Go ahead.

[Tim Bontemps]

Any beef for that pick?

[Brian Windhorst]

It's a little farther up than. I mean he obviously was going to rise in our rankings. There's a number of guys in this who, there's some guys who are not even in the NBA anymore. And you know, there's certainly guys who, you know, there's guys who didn't get their fourth year option picked up, who've already changed teams in free agency who were taken in this first round. So obviously he was gonna. A number of guys who's already been traded. So obviously I think he was going to rise from 21st where he was taken, but to number three or number four was a little higher than I would have put him.

[Tim Bontemps]

All right, so who did you have that you now get at five?

[Tim MacMahon]

Yeah, I think there was a, I think there was a pretty clear consensus on the top three. And then I think there's a, a group of guys in a tier here that you could choose from. I would probably have also gone with Christian. Fourth though.

[Brian Windhorst]

Look at you.

[Tim MacMahon]

All right, well, in a two way, two way wing player who's in. Who's had the impact he's had on high level play in the playoffs. That is the most valuable thing you can do and he has shown he can do it.

[Brian Windhorst]

All right, well, I'm going to draft a two way player at five. I'll take Jabari Smith Jr. Since he's, you know, still there. Just signed $130 million extension with the Rockets.

[Tim Bontemps]

He, you gave him a few extra million, but it was 120.

[Brian Windhorst]

125.

[Tim Bontemps]

What was it? 122, I believe, but something that range.

[Brian Windhorst]

Sorry. So he plays both ends of the court. One of the things I like about him is that he's not afraid to play center. Sometimes you see, you know, guys who, you know, he's certainly 6 11, so he's not undersized, but he's not bulky. And you see guys like this sort of not wanting to play center. And I'm not saying he's signing up for 38 minutes a night there, but from the moment he got there, he said, I'm willing to play center. And while the Rockets have a number of bigs that he doesn't have to play that much, I just liked his mentality and early in his career he was asked to play more. He doesn't get that many shots. In fact, he shot more in his rookie year than he shot in his third year. He's taken fewer shots each season. So the fact that he hasn't become a big scorer. He only averaged 12 points a game last year and he doesn't get to the free throw line. But if you need him to score, he can. And he's a proficient three point shooter. He can stretch the floor. And I don't think we're looking at a guy here who's headed for all NBA status maybe, but this is a guy who's going to be really good on a really good team for a long time. And there's a reason the Rockets gave him that money, because they believe in him. And so I would believe in him. In terms of some of these guys that are coming after this, you're still, you're still betting on them getting more improvement. I think with Jabari, even if he is this exact player going forward, he'll be a very big asset to the Rockets.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, you pick a guy third overall, you know, you're thinking star potential there. I agree with you. I don't think he's a guy who's going to be a multi time all star or anything like that, but he's going to be a high quality role player, a guy who I think can, can make a good team better. And I also think that the KD trade, while it brings in another forward, I think it Benefits Jabari Smith Jr. He is going to be a starter, you know, KD while he, you know, whatever. He probably defends threes, four, what he, he, he's going to take the easiest defensive assignment. Jabari Smith Jr. Katie's really a two still offensively. And Jabari Smith Jr. Is a guy who's very versatile defensively. As you said, he can play big, he can guard on the perimeter, very switchable and you know, he he he wasn't starting for a while last year. He got hurt in Thompson, took the starting job and is not giving that up anytime soon. Now there is a starting role for Jabari Smith Jr. Again with Houston. So I would anticipate that he's probably going to his numbers will probably take a nice little bump up this year.

[Brian Windhorst]

By the way because I forgot to mention it the the Pistons took Jaden Ivy at number five on draft night. Sorry, go ahead Bon Thomps no, I.

[Tim MacMahon]

Was just going to say he might not be a star but he's going to be a star role player. I love that extension. I think he's a terrific player. Like you guys both said he does a ton of things that that impact winning and he's on a deal that will allow him to be there as part of that core going forward. I thought that was a really smart business to get that done. If he had been there I would have taken him probably one of these next two picks. But since he is not I'm going.

[Brian Windhorst]

To take I'm sorry on draft night was with the Pacers or highest draft pick since the I think the 80s at the time they took Benedict Matheran that night out of Arizona. Sorry, go ahead.

[Tim MacMahon]

I'm not taking Benedict Matheran out of Arizona. I'm taking Keegan Murray who went fourth. Keegan Murray plug and play three and D wing 37% three point shooter could maybe do more offensively if he's on a different team than he's been with with the Kings where they've had a bunch of high usage guys around him early in his career but guy his size true wing size player who can guard and hit threes do a little bit of everything. That's obviously again there's a trend and what we're looking at basically all these guys outside of Paolo are guys who make some level of impact at both ends. Keegan Murray is that and I will.

[Tim Bontemps]

Take him sixth overall also durable, dependable.

[Brian Windhorst]

Yeah he's only missed like 12 games his whole career.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah he's played 233 games out of I'm not good at math 246 and he leads this class in minutes played by a lot. He's played almost 7,600 minutes. Nobody else has played 7,000.

[Brian Windhorst]

I will say rookie year and you know I'd have to there's been some coaching changes and so I'd have to I would need to study this and talk to people who know. I don't I can't offer more than just the raw data he shot 41% on threes as a rookie on six a game, which is tremendous. And one of the reasons why he, you know, the draft pick was seen as a moderate mayor, mild risk, and the Kings were praised heavily for it. I believe that was the year Monty McNair won executive of the Year, at least in part because of that draft pick. This last year he also shot six a game and was down to 34. His three point has gone down each year, which is not what you're looking for. Again, I'd have to know more about the type of threes he's getting. Maybe there's a reason for that, but you know, you don't want your guy getting worse on threes over on the same volume. So just to point that out, more.

[Tim Bontemps]

Hoop Collective podcast after this. Today in McDonaldland news, Mount McDonald is.

[Tim MacMahon]

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[Tim Bontemps]

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[Brian Windhorst]

Wayfair Every style, Every home. Is it my. Is it my turn again on temps?

[Tim MacMahon]

Oh, I am Gandhi overall.

[Brian Windhorst]

Yeah, I told you I would screw this up. My God.

[Tim Bontemps]

Seventh overall, which was Shaden Sharp the Blazers in the original draft.

[Tim MacMahon]

Yeah, and I'm going to take a guy who has been off the radar a little bit the past couple years because his team has not been very good. To be charitable, I believe it's the other player McMahon was debating with his earlier pick, though I could be wrong. I'm going to take Walker Kessler with the seventh pick guy who has shown in his brief time in the league he can be a really impactful defensive player at center. And I think that if he was in a different situation where there was more of an aggressive effort to be winning in the immediate, he'd be seen in a little bit different light. I shouldn't say in a different light. I think he'd be more recognized for what he's able to do because in the brief time he's been on the court the last couple of years, he's been impactful. That's. There's just not been a lot of emphasis in Utah on racking up W's.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah. And he had a great rookie year.

[Tim MacMahon]

Correct. About him being the other guy you were thinking about with the other pick or what do you think?

[Tim Bontemps]

You're. You're incorrect as usual. But, you know, he's definitely a guy who would. You know, I think he belongs in this. In the. This conversation. The number three guy in the Rookie of the Year voting. He didn't have nearly as good a year as sophomore year. I think playing for Team USA in the World cup wasn't good for him for a variety of reasons. One of which he wasn't able to do the work on his body that summer that he needed to do. Did that work the next summer. And then last year, look, the Jazz tanked. That's why he only played 58 games. But he averaged 11 points, 12 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game and led.

[Tim MacMahon]

The league in offensive rebounding to 4.6 offensive rebounds per game, which is a lot.

[Tim Bontemps]

While I said Chet is the highest ceiling defensive player in this draft, I do think Walker Kessler is probably second there. And honestly, the big question with Kessler is like, what can he be offensively? What he really needs to be is an awesome screener, an awesome finisher, and he already is an awesome offensive rebounder. And honestly, it's hard to evaluate the guys as that type of pick and roll big when you don't have anything close to decent guard play.

[Brian Windhorst]

All right, so I think I've got the eighth pick here. Pelicans that night drafted Dyson Daniels. I think I'm going to take Dyson Daniels.

[Tim Bontemps]

Okay.

[Brian Windhorst]

You could go a different couple of spots.

[Tim Bontemps]

Don't trade them. Don't trade them. You'll look bad if you do.

[Brian Windhorst]

Yeah, he did not have an impact for rookie year. If we had done the redraft after his rookie year, it would not have looked the same. This last year, given a big role in Atlanta, one most improved player was first team all defense and second team defensive player of the year. Also, in the midst of contract Negotiation extension negotiations. Just an absolute elite perimeter defender. Put up insane deflection numbers this year, like the highest deflection numbers basically on record. Led the league with three steals a game and you know, just really long guy. And while he is not a good shooter, which ultimately is going to be the big asterisk on especially I think with when they try to figure out what to pay him, the fact that that skill is not there. He has improved mildly. He did shoot 34% this year. He doesn't shoot many of them because he's not that good at them. His overall efficiency has improved and he, he, you know, he got more playing time this year and he averaged 14 a game. But you're drafting this guy because he's the type of guy that if you ever got into a playoff run you could put him on the elite wings. You could put him on Jayson Tatum, you could put him on Jalen Brown, you could put him on Tyrese Halliburton, you could put him on Donovan Mitchell, you know, just in the east and know that you were going to be deploying and a stud at that position. And so we are getting into this spot where you could in the draft where you could go a lot of different directions. But I'm going to stick with Dyson Daniels right there.

[Tim MacMahon]

I thought about him with the last pick too. The shooting, the shooting component is what held me back on it. Like obviously he's a very good defensive player. He showed he could make an impact there this year. But it is what's going to make his extension negotiations really interesting because he's, he can do a little bit with the ball but he's kind of an off ball player and he's not a great shooter. And you know that that kind of player, while valuable, has never really gotten a huge number. I mean I, the guy I sort of have thought about him in comparison to is Marcus Smart who is another guy who could make a three but oftentimes didn't and was a versatile impactful defender but wasn't really an on ball player as more of a two guard who could do some ball handling. And Marcus, you know, he never got, he got solid contracts but he Never got like 30, you know, up anywhere near a max. So it will be interesting to see what the negotiations where the negotiations with Dice and land with the Hawks and if they get a deal done what.

[Brian Windhorst]

It looks like the Hawks last year went all the way down to the buzzer with Jalen Johnson who was a high upside player and, and I think on the day that they did the deal, I think Jalen was pretty happy. He got, I think they got them to move right at the end. I think Trey Murphy had gotten a pretty good number early on that deadline day and he ended up getting five years and 150. But it's a flat contract, I believe 30 straight across the board. And I think the Hawks felt really good about what, where they got him at. And he obviously was having a pretty big breakout season last year before an injury. But I think it's instructive of how the Hawks might handle this one, which is they're going to have a number and they may be willing to move, but they're not going to go over a certain number. And it may come all the way down to the deadline day in October.

[Tim Bontemps]

You know, Marcus Smart is an interesting comp here. Dyson Daniels is 6 foot 8. Yeah, he is a long, long version of a Marcus Smart type of player. He's also, I don't believe he's turned 20. Yeah, he's 22 years old now. The shooting got it up to 34% last year after being 31. His two years in New Orleans, only three attempts per game. And it's not just the issue. There is teams don't guard him as a spot up shooter. Teams he, you know, they're inviting him. But I think that we've seen plenty of proof that the one skill that is developed the most often at the NBA level is that spot up three point shooting. So if he develops that, then look out. All right, we ready for me at number nine here?

[Tim MacMahon]

Is it your turn?

[Brian Windhorst]

So number nine was the spurs in 2022. They took Jeremy Sohan out of Baylor.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, and actually the guy I was thinking about earlier, a non lottery pick, not even a first round pick, but a guy that we saw a whole lot of last spring into the early summer. A guy who's proven that he can take the toughest backcourt assignment. A guy who's proven that he can hit big time shots. Talking about Andrew Nimard in Indiana, they.

[Tim MacMahon]

Got him in 7:2. That's a good one.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, and you know he's going to have a chance to prove that he can be a primary facilitator this year through unfortunate circumstances. Obviously the Pacers would much prefer to have Tyrese Halliburton in the back court with Nemhar, but he's going to be running the show for him this year. And look, his, his regular season numbers aren't going to like blow your socks off, but man, I love a 6 foot 5 guy who's as competitive as he is and who is a better playoff performer than he is a regular season performer.

[Brian Windhorst]

Yeah, this is a classic case of 82 game evaluating a player as an 82 game player and evaluating him as a 16. You know, you need 16 wins to win the championship. This is a guy like, you know, the Draymond Green, you know, considers him, you know, they play very different positions obviously, but Draymond I think has said that he sees himself as the 16 game player more than the 82 game player. Although he's been great in the 82 games. I've had the opportunity to cover a number of Pacer series over the last couple of years and was there the night two years ago where he hit the big shot against the Knicks in the playoffs, which essentially was a defining moment in that series. There were injuries obviously as well in the seven games. But Nemhardt was got the Pacers sort of leverage in that series. And yeah, you know, interesting thing is they've extended him and they haven't extended Matheran Bond temps. I mean their, their time frames were different. Nemhardt was eligible because he was a second round pick. He was eligible last year and they extended him and you know, they got them both on the same night. They're both important players for their two playoff runs. But it's just, it's possible they had may, they may have to pick between the two of them just because of their financial realities. And like I said, they've already extended Nemhard.

[Tim MacMahon]

Nemhardt's been more important in the two runs and I think that's reflective in his role with the team and the fact that he had been extended already. And we will see what happens with Matheran. Ricardo has said past couple of weeks that he will be a starter this year. We'll see what happens for him this year. You mean Matheran Matheran? Yes, but I think, I think the actions over words have been pretty clear that the. It's much more likely that of the two of them, Andrew Nemhardt is a part of the Pacers for the long term.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah. And I think we'll touch on Matheran here in a little bit, but not right now. More Hoop Collective podcast after this.

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[Tim Bontemps]

With the 10th overall pick, I will not be taking Johnny Davis like the Wizards did. We're going through the lottery and I think that'll be the last time that you hear his name mentioned on this particular podcast, maybe ever. I am going to take a Piston, but not Jaden Ivy, who they took fifth overall. I'm going to take the big man that they traded back up to get Jalen Duran, who was a double double guy last year for a playoff team. You know, is doesn't turn 22 until early next season. 6 10, 250 I absolutely chiseled, dynamic athlete, has some, you know, big time toughness about him, has more skill than I, you know, I think maybe his reputation is like he's a much better passer than people would think. He's not gesture, pick and roll lob threat like you can give it to him in the short roll. He can, he can be a good decision maker out of that. And you know, I think this guy's already proven that he can, you know, be an impact player on a, on a winning team. And I think there's just a ton of potential left for him.

[Tim MacMahon]

Jalen Dern is very indicative of what happened with their queen.

[Brian Windhorst]

That's exactly right. I was going to say that. Go ahead.

[Tim MacMahon]

Weaver was running the Pistons at the time they drafted Jaden Ivey with the fifth overall pick and there was debate whether they would take Jalen Duran with that pick. They took Jaden Ivey, I think in part because he surprisingly fell to five instead of going four and the Pistons and Troy Weaver then feverishly tried to trade back into the draft to get Jalen Duran. Ultimately Did So you're with the Knicks.

[Brian Windhorst]

If I'm not mistaken.

[Tim MacMahon]

Deal with the Knicks at 13 and alt. And that is what happened this year with the difference being at the time the Pistons made sure their pick was somewhat protected going forward. It eventually conveyed this year. But if they, if it had been the same scenario that the Pelicans were in, this year would have been the number one pick. The next year would have been Kate Cunningham. So that is just a potential foreshadowing for what could happen this coming year for the Atlanta Hawks who made a swap with with the Pelicans obviously on draft night to allow them to move back up to 13. Same pick to get Dar Queen and Jalen Duran is a very slight difference.

[Tim Bontemps]

In the, in the potential for the pick there.

[Tim MacMahon]

Well, yes, there's the, the fact that it's unprotected. It, you know, it could, could end up being an extremely lucrative one for Atlanta. And Duran is a really interesting player. He is a crazy athlete like you said. You know, I am a little curious to see long term what his, his ceiling winds up being. But you know, certainly if it all clicks together and, and it's got a chance to be a pretty impactful player. And I do think J.B. bickerstaff landing in Detroit was a great thing for Jalen Duran in particular. When you look at the track record he had, you know, going back to what he did with Cleveland with Evan Mobley and Jared Allen and the defensive pedigree that JB has working with Jalen Duran, I think has a chance to be a very good long term thing for him. And he's another guy that this summer as an extension eligible guy. It. It'll be interesting to see if they get a deal done and what it.

[Tim Bontemps]

Looks like he's the only player in this class who's averaging a double double for his career.

[Brian Windhorst]

Just a Giant man. Now do you get to pick again?

[Tim Bontemps]

Bon Thames, your turn. No, this is your turn, buddy.

[Brian Windhorst]

You guys think I'm joking. I. All right.

[Tim Bontemps]

11Th overall.

[Tim MacMahon]

Or a sad commentary on a long running bit. And either way it's not a bit. That's. That's why it's all right.

[Brian Windhorst]

I need. I. What I need is I need. And when we do this going forward, Jackson, I need you in the chat.

[Tim MacMahon]

Just managing this for me really shouldn't be that.

[Tim Bontemps]

Wow, that's a very important job. Jackson, you've been on the.

[Brian Windhorst]

On draft night. This was an interesting spot it was taken. The Oklahoma City Thunder traded up with this pick and took Osman Jang out Of he was with the New Zealand breakers at the time. He's French. The reason this was interesting is the Thunder had the 12th pick. This story's been told before. I'll just run through it real quick. The Thunder had the 12th pick in the draft. They knew the Knicks were auctioning off the 11th pick in front of them and they really, really wanted Jalen Williams. And so not that they didn't want Osman Jang, but the guy they wanted was Jalen Williams. And they were afraid with the Knicks pick being very available that somebody was going to trade into that spot and take J Dub in front of them. So they sent three first round picks. Now they were protected. It wasn't three unprotected picks and, you know, whatever, but they sent three first round picks to the Knicks to take to get number 11 pick and took Jang. And you might say, well, why didn't they take Williams instead of Jang if they were so worried about that? Because they were worried that something might happen in the trade or somebody might back out or whatever. They knew that they had the 12th pick, which was the Clippers pick. They knew for sure that they had it. And like I wrote a story about it a few months later and I said they had two goals that night. Chad Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Osmond Zhang was a, was a bonus, but they had to get Jalen Williams. So they got the number 11 pick.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah. And Osmond Jing was a bonus and was Jalen Williams. Insurance was an assurance that they were getting Jalen Williams.

[Brian Windhorst]

Right. Okay. Anyway, with the 11th pick, I'm going to take Jaden Ivy, who I was, you know, I am not, as you guys know, a college evaluator, but I do watch international basketball and I had seen Jade Nivey play some before his senior year in the U19 World Cup. I was basically watching it to watch Victor Wembanyama and Chad Holmgren and Jade Nivey. Even though Chet Holmgren won the MVP, Jaden Ivy, I felt, was TMUSA's best player. But anyway, he had a great last year at Purdue and he's turned out to be a solid player. But I feel like he was taking a really big step forward this last season when he had the injury that wiped him out and held him to 30 games. And Bernie Bickerstaff was sort of unlocking him.

[Tim Bontemps]

So Bernie's son, Bernie.

[Brian Windhorst]

I say Bernie jb, That's an old man mistake. God, I'm feeling it every day. For some reason, Monty Williams just didn't have faith in Jaden Ivy. And you know over the course of Monty's coaching career, there were individual players that he lost faith in and they manifested itself and sometimes it was hard to identify why and, and Jaden fell into that category.

[Tim MacMahon]

I mean he was trying to play Killian Hayes over him at the start of that.

[Tim Bontemps]

Oh, Bon, Tim's bringing up Killian Hayes. Look out. A US WB favorite.

[Tim MacMahon]

Just didn't make sense. It never made sense at the time and it still doesn't.

[Tim Bontemps]

Well, that's why Monty Williams is getting checks sent to his house now. Big fat decks.

[Tim MacMahon]

They Navy had two really rough years to start his career. And your point, Brian? He had a really good first 30 games last year before he got hurt. He took some meaningful strides forward. He shot the ball way better. The question going forward is going to be assuming he comes back in full health, which you certainly hope he does is, you know, which is the more real thing the first couple of years when the numbers are pretty rough and he's outside the top 30 in this draft and win shares or the way the improvements it looked like he was making last year in his third year because he's a big time athlete and you know, if he does look more like the player from last year, then he's going to be a very nice piece for Detroit going forward.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah, shot 34% for his first two years from 3, 41% last year on the highest volume. But it is a 30 game sample size. Certainly can't draw any conclusions from that. But if he's going to shoot it high 30s, low 40s, you know, then there's the concerns about the fit next to Cade go away.

[Tim MacMahon]

No question.

[Brian Windhorst]

All right, number 12.

[Tim MacMahon]

I have no idea who's picking real easy choice here. Tari Eason thought about him at 7, happy he's here. 12 really interesting live wire wing player, you know, is obviously coming off the bench in Houston, but is a guy they really like. Man mentioned Dylan Brooks. I don't know if you mentioned as part of the Jabari Smith thing earlier, but with Dylan Brooks leaving, I think it's going to be just fine for Houston having Jabari Smith, Tar Eason and Amen Thompson soaking up those extra minutes on the wing this year with Kevin Durant sliding into the Jalen Green minutes and another guy to this summer. You know I think we talked about it after the Jabari extension. It'll be very interesting to see what number if there is one that Houston comes to with Tar east and moving forward because if they could get him in a similar race to Jabari Smith and get the two of those guys locked in for somewhere between 10 and 15% of the cap going forward. You know, those are two guys that can have a real impact off the bench for them or you know, in swing starter spots with their ability to defend and make plays offensively, you know.

[Tim Bontemps]

The only thing that I would say, I don't know that Tar Eason's minutes are going to go up because there are. They've already been very carefully managing his minutes. You know, he sits back to back. You know, he's had the issues with his leg that cost him most of the 23, 24 season. You know, he only played 57 games last year, average about what was 24, 25 minutes per game. I'm not sure. They're trying to increase his, his workload, but he's awfully productive in that workload and you know, but I mean he is a big time athlete at 6 foot 8 and a defensive playmaker. Like he's one of the most impactful defensive playmakers on like a per minute basis or per possession basis in the entire league, in addition to being, you know, a great rebounder for a wing. And you know, he's a guy who scores without, like they don't run plays for him. He's kind of a garbage man offensively. You know, guy can get buckets in transition, off the glass, off cutting, that kind of thing. But now he's, he's a big part of. Was a big part of the rocket success last season is a big part of their plans moving forward and we'll see what that looks like in a contract extension.

[Brian Windhorst]

So Rafael Stone, their general manager, is very, very proud of, of the Tar Eason draft Pick which was 17th in that draft in 2022.

[Tim Bontemps]

He has the Harden deal, by the way.

[Brian Windhorst]

Oh, is that right? Okay, so he was red flagged by some teams for various reasons. He went to Cincinnati and sort of washed out there, then ended up at lsu. Was he even a starter at lsu? I don't know. Anyway, but there was some red flags on him and some teams had sort of, you know, he slid on some draft boards because of it. And Rafael Stone is from Seattle as Tari Eason is. And Rafael dug into his contacts in their shared hometown and really went into the nitty gritty finding out about him a lot. And their evaluation was that he was miscast, that there was that that wasn't accurate. And so some people felt taking him was a bit of a risk. And Rafael, and at the time, now Rafael is like a candidate to win Executive of the year. At the time, he was just trying to establish himself, and the Rockets were on a downward trend. And so he represents sort of a pivotal moment. So there's a lot of organizational equity in Tar Eason, but either way, you're taking him at this spot. It's, you know, you need wing players, and taking him in the late lottery makes sense. Okay, number 13 pick, which on draft night was the Jalen Durant pick that was traded two pistons. I think it's your pick, McMahon.

[Tim MacMahon]

No, I'm, I'm. I'm going back and forth there. I think there's a real drop off after 12, and I'm going back and forth on a couple of guys. I think I'm ultimately going to take Shaden Sharp. I was going back and forth on him and Benedict Matheran. They're two very similar players. I'm going to take a swing on sharp at 13 because of the potential upside. He just turned 22 or 18 points a game last year. It's been a weird situation, I think overall in Portland since he got there. He's never really had, you know, he's played a lot of minutes, but the, the, the whole. The fit there has been kind of odd. It's. They've had a lot of different mouths to feed offensively. You know, I think there's some chance still. I mean, he's an incredible athlete. Anybody who's ever seen high, let's say Duncan, like, he can. He can do some wild stuff from an athletic standpoint, and he's still so young that there's, I think, some potential untapped upside there. So at this point, I, I don't feel super strongly either way about those guys. I'm guessing Brian will take bathroom at 14, but I, I'll take Sharp there and take a swing on the ceiling.

[Brian Windhorst]

Yeah.

[Tim Bontemps]

And how he fits going forward after they trade for Jrue Holiday, I'm not sure Ike. Is. Is he. Is he coming off the bench? You know, is they going to play kind of a. A smaller lineup and play him at three? I don't. Is Holly going to play the. The one and scoot come off the pitch? I don't know. I don't know what that looks like. I do know this guy, as you said, is, I mean, an elite athlete who can put the ball in the hole despite not being a great shooter?

[Brian Windhorst]

Yeah, I'm okay with that. I'm okay with it. And I will. With the 14th pick, the last pick in the lottery in this, I will take Benedict Matheran as A starter last year he did start 49 games because of they, you know, they had a bunch of injuries to their wing players, including Nemhard early in the season. So this was more earlier in the season than later when they got healthier. But as a starter last season then he averaged 32 minutes a game. Mather and averaged 17 points, six, six rebounds, shot 35% on three. And you know, Matheran is a guy who, yes, he needs to control his emotions.

[Tim Bontemps]

He has cockiness if you're being polite about him. For sure.

[Tim MacMahon]

Some Lance Stevenson in him to use another.

[Tim Bontemps]

He ain't scared, that's for sure.

[Brian Windhorst]

Yeah, you know, he's got one of the most complex backgrounds in the league. You know, he's of Haitian descent, speaks Creole, grew up in Montreal, played in the NBA academy in Mexico City before then going to Arizona. I think he speaks four or five languages. You know, French obviously French from Montreal, Creole, learned some Spanish when he was in Mexico City and then English plays both ends of the court. Guys, this is what you're, you're talking about when you're talking about players. You want good size.

[Tim Bontemps]

I mean 6, 6, 2, 10, like exactly what you want a wing to look like.

[Brian Windhorst]

Yeah.

[Tim Bontemps]

Extremely athletic, tough. And look when I say ain't scared. The guy had 27 points in 22 minutes in a finals win. And in game seven he had 24 points and 13 rebounds. But has not earned Rick Carlisle's trust. You know, right. Right after he had 27 points, 23 minutes, he played 14 minutes. The next game he had some single digit minutes in game.

[Brian Windhorst]

He was all over the place in their playoff run. All over the place.

[Tim Bontemps]

You know, as Bond Tims mentioned earlier, Rick Carlisle recently went on Caitlin Cooper's podcast and declared, hey, Benedict Matheran will be starting this year. And by the way, earning Rick Carlisle trust as young player ain't easy. That's one thing. That's another thing that's awfully impressive about Andrew Nemhard. But you know, Matheran is going to be starting and I would assume he's going to be their number two offensive option behind Pascal Siakam. We'll see if there's an extension done before the season. But man, if you're Mather, maybe it makes sense just to bet on yourself this season and bet that with that role you're going to put up big time numbers and put yourself in a better situation next summer in terms of contract negotiations.

[Brian Windhorst]

Well, that's true. That could be one thing you could think about. All right, so of the guys that Were taken sort of high that didn't. You know. Yeah. We had Ochai Abaji who's been traded twice. The Cavs took him and he's now with the Raptors. Sohan slipped out.

[Tim Bontemps]

I still. I don't know exactly what to make of him. Like the. The pie in the sky comp you'd hear from the spurs has been Draymond Green.

[Brian Windhorst]

Well, he can't shoot.

[Tim Bontemps]

No.

[Brian Windhorst]

So it's, you know. You know in. In the modern era that it's. You got to be really special at some other areas if you.

[Tim Bontemps]

Well then they had that so on as point guard slash. We're tanking still experiment. That was a total disaster.

[Tim MacMahon]

Not a disaster in terms of its aimed a desired goal which was to help them tank. It definitely helped them do that.

[Tim Bontemps]

Well, I don't think it helped so on's development which is the lottery.

[Brian Windhorst]

The lottery picks that we didn't redraft in the lottery were Sohan Usman, Jang, Johnny Davis and Abaji. I think everybody else.

[Tim Bontemps]

No, those are. Those are the ones. Mark Williams who went 15th in that draft we didn't name. I think he would have been probably right in that similar type of range. I'm just looking like productive players.

[Tim MacMahon]

The other guy I thought of at 12 that I or the 13 that I ultimately didn't take who I. I may think long term is because it's a chance to be better than both of the guys we talked about is Max Christie who is now in Dallas, who I thought about picking. I mean, obviously the. The Mavs have a lot of wings, so I'm not sure where the minutes are going to come from there. But you saw last year with the Lakers before the trade and then with Dallas in the minutes he got after. Like he is a legit 3 and D guy. He's still super young. I think he. I think he's a guy. He just. He's only 22. I think he's a guy that long term is going to be a quality 3 and D wing and certainly a guy who's gonna have a long career.

[Brian Windhorst]

One guy that I would have loved to have picked but I just can't do it is Nikola Jovic from the Heat who was taken late in the first round. I have seen him play for Serbia.

[Tim Bontemps]

Yeah.

[Brian Windhorst]

And just have some huge moments. And again, this is a 6 foot 10 guy. He's kind of been all over the place. Talk about not earning trust. He has not earned Eric Bolster's trust. There have been times that they put him in the starting lineup and times when he's been tornado you out of the rotation in various trade discussions, played.

[Tim MacMahon]

107 games and he's had injuries.

[Brian Windhorst]

He's had injuries, absolutely.

[Tim MacMahon]

He's a 6 10, but he's a 22 year old guy who's 610 who has shot a career 37% from three. Like that's, that's a very interesting player. And you know there was, they, they still are pretty high on him I think long term and you know, it's easy to see why. Like you said, you watch him play at times for Serbia, you watch him at times for the Heat and he has moments where like man, this guy's got a chance to be really impactful player.

[Tim Bontemps]

Well, and he'll be playing for Serbia in Eurobasket that starts later this month, I assume playing a major role and we've seen examples of guys who play major roles for their national team over the summer and that kind of serves as a springboard for them. Other guys who I think are worth at least honorable mentions here. Peyton Watson, who has proven himself to be a quality rotation player for the Nuggets, he's on the list of guys who, you know, hey, if he develops a consistent three point shot, man, he's going to be really good big if, but heck of a defender at 6 foot 8. And then I'm surprised Bon Temps didn't mention this. As big a Lakers fan as he is old Jake Laravia.

[Brian Windhorst]

Well, the fact that Jake Laravia was a free agent as a first round.

[Tim Bontemps]

Pick, well that's, that's a tricky thing though because Memphis did not pick up his option.

[Tim MacMahon]

Right.

[Tim Bontemps]

They made the decision not to and then that put him in a. I'd have to tap Bobby Mark's brain to give you the, the exact specifics, but that put him in a position where they're going to be very limited on what they could offer him moving forward to the point where they, they knew like, well, we made that decision. Honestly, I think Zach Kleiman probably would take a mulligan on that decision at this point after the Ravia made a big leap last year. But that factored in their decision to trade him last year and then we'll see like he's going to have an opportunity to prove in LA that he can be a significant piece on a winning team. But again, I think he's at least worth mentioning is others who earn some consideration, as is the other Jalen Williams who, hey, every time the Thunder decided to sit everybody man has a triple double.

[Brian Windhorst]

I know hey, listen though, that you cannot argue this. When the Thunder had to do business this summer with their, with their contract extension players, J. Will, Jaylen Williams got the first contract.

[Tim Bontemps]

He was a priority.

[Brian Windhorst]

Excuse me. Excuse me. Sga, Chad Holmgren and J Dub, you'll wait. He must deal with the Arkansas Jalen Williams first. He got the first contract.

[Tim Bontemps]

You know, he's, he's a French rotation player. He doesn't play every night, but he had. So there were some critical minutes for him during the playoffs, you know, especially during that second round series against Nuggets.

[Brian Windhorst]

All right. This was fun. I'm glad it's over because I have no idea who had the next pick. Thank you to Jackson for managing this. Thank you to Bon Tempsley McMahon. Thank you for sticking with us through NBA August. We'll talk to you soon.

[Tim Bontemps]

Adios, amigos.

[Brian Windhorst]

You've seen the headlines, heard the debates. The three point ball has created a monotonous rhythm to the game. Has the three pointer ruined basketball? And how did we get here? The rise of the three point shot can be partially traced to an eccentric Kansas genius named Martin Manley, whose story didn't turn out quite the way he imagined.

[Tim Bontemps]

Outside, I decided I wanted to have one of the most organized goodbyes in history.

[Brian Windhorst]

30 for 30 podcast presents Chasing Basketball Heaven.

[Tim MacMahon]

Available now wherever you get your podcasts.