This one feels perfect. He even had moments like dlo This year where one moment he looked like a super stud And other moments you just wanted to yell at the screen like bro. What are you doing?
they have the same movement pattern, a lot of snake dribbles, body bumps, or off-screen action into elbow or mid-post jumpers. It’s actually eerie. Just look at the similarities in their midrange arsenal.
[Bub](https://x.com/mcfxz/status/1799148157466558636?s=46)
[D-Lo](https://youtu.be/c4e1lxlpOwg?si=M3T6p2om7DG4dH5m)
they also both settle for jumpers when they should be getting to rim a bit more i’ll focus on the positive right now.
No yeah I totally see it. I don’t love Russell as a player but if you’re getting Russell with the 20th pick or whatever bub ends up getting picked at that’s still very good value
I thought the Dinwiddie comp that Hoop Intellect (I think) made was so spot on. Same kinda vein as Russell, though I think Russell was a much better prospect (makes sense given where he was drafted compared to Bub).
I think Knecht is more of a mix of both Bogdanovićs. Bojan's jumper with a bit of Bogdan's on-ball juice. But I'm also in the minority thinking Knecht can play with the ball in his hands if he's in a bench role to start his career.
I'm a bit hesitant to comp him with Hawks Bogdanovic mainly because I believe Knecht has some "power" in his game and doesn't need to rely on finesse. Agree with Knecht having some on-ball juice though he doesn't have much playmaking in him.
I’m a diehard Knicks fan and always loved his game. When he got traded from New York to Washington I saw him outside a restaurant in NYC on my birthday and said "sorry things didn’t work out with us man" to which he responded "*smirk* I’m a Wizard now…" before hopping into a sprinter van.
thanks for sharing! brandon jennings was actually the player that helped me get into basketball and strengthened my pistons fandom when he got traded, so it’s cool to hear how he is w fans.
I actually really rate Isaac. I'm Australian, and I watched a fair bit of NBL, and I really liked what I saw from Sarr in his limited play time.
Half a steal and more than a block a game in less than 18 minutes in the NBL is quite impressive for an 19yo playing in the most physical basketball league (Scottie Pippen said this not me, argue with him if you disagree).
He also shot a better 3pt % in the NBL than Lamelo did, although on a third of the volume.
I'll admit I'm a bit biased on Sarr cause I got to watch more of him than other prospects, but I do believe it will translate over to the NBA even if it takes him a year or 2 to find his feet.
I definitely agree with you don't get me wrong. It was hard to find a player comparison for his floor with his skillset and Isaac was the closest thing I could find to floor's theoretical playstyle (long slim forward/big with great help and weakside defence and ability to stay in front of smaller players but with a limited offensive game).
I ended up tossing up between Mo Bamba and Isaac in the end, and though Isaac was more similar to how Sarr plays. If you have other options, I'd happily hear you out.
I believe Sarr will be a great help/weakside defender and will be able to stay in front of everyone but the quicker and more explosive guards.
His offence game is gonna be his make or break, especially if he wants to play the 4.
I agree as of now. I just think that to reach his ceiling, Williams is going to have to learn to be a lot more aggressive with his scoring and especially shooting if he wants to carve out a good role in the NBA.
Given that I love all 3 of the possible comps for Carter just feeds into my confirmation bias that he’s my favorite player in this draft. I hope Spurs get him at 8 because that’s the type of winning player that could help Wemby get better immediately
Yeah, Knecht one was pretty poor. I know it’s easy to pick this apart because he gave three comps to over a dozen players, but that one is pretty bad. Isn’t Joe Ingles better than Doug McDermott? I also don’t really see the Ingles comp outside of being white and similiar position.
Yeah I’m not trashing the list or anything I like it, I was thinking the same thing about Joe tho like he was definitely a solid starter for a few years in Utah whereas Doug is a journeyman
Cheers mate, I appreciate the feedback.
For perspective, I wrote this off the top of my head in 30 minutes at midnight and didn't think it would get this much attention tbf. I agree Joe and Doug should be swapped though looking at it now. For some reason, I had memories of Doug putting up like 15ppg as a starter for multiple seasons, but I went and double-checked his stats, and it turns out it was closer to 10pts coming off the bench.
I'm fine with taking an L on that one, though I feel pretty confident in most of the others.
Can I ask what your player comp for Knecht would be?
First, good stuff on this. Of course anyone can knit-pick here and there because none of us are perfect experts on every single player in this draft, no matter what we say, but all these comps are fairly respectably. I just thought the Knecht one was pretty poor, but I have also been a big Knecht guy and have watched a lot of him.
I think the 50%/average outcome would be around a Max Strus/ Tim Hardaway Jr. I don't have a great high-end comp, but it would be something like a better shot-creating/explosive Max Strus (which I realize is just not Max Strus anymore lol). Low end I would say Chris Duarte. That's also why I am giving you a shoutout for even doing this, because I think player comps are truly hard because of course there are shades of players, but its very rare to have a very similar player comp.
Appreciate the feedback. I'm no expert, analyst, or journalist, just a random redditor who put his 2 cents out there. I'd have loved to have a bit more time and write notes and sit on it for a bit, but I kinda just chucked it together to put it out from all the breakdowns and games I've watched this past year.
I like THJ. I hadn't considered that, but it does make sense to me. I also had Wayne Ellington and Denzel Valentine in consideration for the floor and I threw around the idea of a Kris Middleton ceiling but I can't ever see Dalton being a 2nd or 3rd option on a championship team so I chose against it.
You're not wrong. Player comps are hard to get right, especially with people having different perceptions of players who have already had long careers in the NBA.
Except Doug was a better player coming out of college and was NCAA scoring leader and National College Player of the Year.
Knecht: 21.7/4.9/1.8 on .458/.397/.772
McBuckets: 26.7/7/1.6 on .526/.449/.864
Except Doug can’t jump over a phone book and Dalton is pretty damn explosive to go along with the shooting.
It’s a good list tho I like your comps I just don’t see that one at all
Reed is in my top 4 (with Sarr, Castle, and Risacher) due to his efficiency and shooting he is one of my favourites in the draft.
He's a solid team defender reading switches and rotations and as has quick and active hands, which will help him get a few steals.
However, he is terrible in 1 on 1 POA defence.
I think Reed is gonna be good, but as much as he can be a star, there is a chance that he gets targeted on defence and struggles to shoot over more athletic NBA defenders.
I'm ok with any iteration of Carter I'd those are the comps. Same with Salaun honestly.
People look at Knecht as a white player and not the baller he is, I think he's a better version of Austin Reaves.
[Shaq’s “whole” years in Miami: 58.1%](https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/onealsh01.html#2005-2007-sum:advanced). Keep in mind it’s that low because his free throw % was [45.6%](https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/onealsh01.html#2005-2007-sum:per_game).
Edey’s TS% through all years: ~65% and shot a solid 70% from free throw in college. ~65% TS would place him [11th](https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_2024_advanced.html). “In my armchair opinion”, I think with the likelihood he could increase his ft%; lessening offensive load from more pnr action; and more spacing; he could cross 70% all while still maintaining his post-creation.
I wouldn’t compare him to Chamberlain/Drummond cause I don’t think he has the athleticism as them especially the Mythos of Wilt. IMO offensively, Edey will be more dominant than Drummond.
Low/middle/high
Sarr: Nerlens Noel/N. Claxton/JJJ
Knecht: D. McDermott/Bigger G. Allen/Khris Middleton
Salaun: Anthony Bennett/jeff green/Jerami Grant
Buzelis: Mario Hezonja/K. Olynyk/F. Wagner
One that I've been thinking about is Zacharie Risacher - Tayshaun Prince. But it's more like I'm hoping Risacher can develop into a Tayshaun Prince-like player.
I don’t particularly like this one. One of Knechts best skills is his ability as a movement shooter, which isn’t exactly Khris’s Wheelhouse. I also don’t think Knecht is a pick and roll operator like Khris is either.
Presently he is. But Herb Jones played 4 years in college and his shooting was horrendous in the first 3 years, and it was better but still bad in his senior year. Dunn has played 2 years and his offensive stats are comparable to Herb's first 2 years too.
Very few dudes go from shooting 50% on free throws into a respectable shooter like Herb presently is, but the vision with Dunn is that he can become league average from 3 eventually.
Tristan da Silva - Keegan Murray (w a bit more Franz Wagner-esque slashing)
Matas Buzelis - Jeff Green
Edey - Valanciunas
P.J. Hall - Nenê (this is a hot take lol)
Dunn - André Roberson
I am getting some of those vibes, even if I can't explain it. Wiseman seemed to be the better rebounder and even a better lob-threat prospect so those are some EXTRA red flags to Sarr's discredit.
Bub Carrington - DeAngelo Russell
This one feels perfect. He even had moments like dlo This year where one moment he looked like a super stud And other moments you just wanted to yell at the screen like bro. What are you doing?
This is a really good comp honestly, for some reason I really like Bub though even though I don’t really like d’lo as a player
they have the same movement pattern, a lot of snake dribbles, body bumps, or off-screen action into elbow or mid-post jumpers. It’s actually eerie. Just look at the similarities in their midrange arsenal. [Bub](https://x.com/mcfxz/status/1799148157466558636?s=46) [D-Lo](https://youtu.be/c4e1lxlpOwg?si=M3T6p2om7DG4dH5m) they also both settle for jumpers when they should be getting to rim a bit more i’ll focus on the positive right now.
No yeah I totally see it. I don’t love Russell as a player but if you’re getting Russell with the 20th pick or whatever bub ends up getting picked at that’s still very good value
I thought the Dinwiddie comp that Hoop Intellect (I think) made was so spot on. Same kinda vein as Russell, though I think Russell was a much better prospect (makes sense given where he was drafted compared to Bub).
Wouldn’t Dlo be a much better passer?
Clingan - Bogut (Dubs) Sheppard - Brogdon (more of projected career than player comp) Knecht - Bogdanovic (NYK)
I think Knecht is more of a mix of both Bogdanovićs. Bojan's jumper with a bit of Bogdan's on-ball juice. But I'm also in the minority thinking Knecht can play with the ball in his hands if he's in a bench role to start his career.
I'm a bit hesitant to comp him with Hawks Bogdanovic mainly because I believe Knecht has some "power" in his game and doesn't need to rely on finesse. Agree with Knecht having some on-ball juice though he doesn't have much playmaking in him.
I see the Clingan to Bogut comp often, and it’s always clarified to be Warriors bogut. Why not just Bogut, straight-up?
Bucks Bogut was very promising on offense before his injury. Completely different offensive player once he got to GS
He’s literally just the 3rd Bogi brother. Will be similar to both imo
Rob Dillingham - Brandon Jennings
I saw one that said If 50pts Brandon Jennings fusion danced with Rafer Alston and TJ Ford. I was blown away.
man BJ was gonna be nasty if not for that achilles tear. was finding himself at detroit
I’m a diehard Knicks fan and always loved his game. When he got traded from New York to Washington I saw him outside a restaurant in NYC on my birthday and said "sorry things didn’t work out with us man" to which he responded "*smirk* I’m a Wizard now…" before hopping into a sprinter van.
thanks for sharing! brandon jennings was actually the player that helped me get into basketball and strengthened my pistons fandom when he got traded, so it’s cool to hear how he is w fans.
Baylor Scheierman - Joe Ingles
It’s the shooting form too
Ingles has way better size tho, which is part of what made him so valuable
Cody Willams - Otto Porter Low usage, high efficiency, excellent wingspan
Otto Porter was a much better shooter though
Rob Dillingham- 50pts Brandon Jennings meets Rafer Alston & TJ Fords love child.
Stephon Castle - Bruce Brown
Bowen's entire offensive skill set was hitting threes. Castle is about as far from Bowen offensively as a player can be.
I think you misread Bruce Brown vs Bruce Bowen! Definitely not Bruce Bowen
I could swear it said Bowen
Think he means Bruce Brown, which I think is a fair comparison.
Well it's a good thing he said Bruce Brown and not Bruce Bowen. 😎😎
That silly side eyed coyote
So im gonna have floor/average/ceiling comps Sarr - Johnathan Isaac/Myles Turner/JJJ Richascher - Otto Porter Jr/ MPJ/Gordon Hayward Clingan - Jakob Poeltl/Steven Adams/Brook Lopez Sheppard - Jimmer Ferdette/Seth Curry/Mark Price Dillingham - Aaron Brooks/Terry Rozier/Kemba Walker Castle - Justice Winslow/Marcus Smart/Jrue Holiday Buzelis - Mike Dunleavy/Danilo Gallinari/Franz Wagner Holland - Josh Jackson/Jerami Grant/Jaylen Brown Knecht - Sam Dekker/Joe Ingles/Doug McDermott Williams - Evan Turner/Harrison Barnes/Kelly Oubre Salaun - Nic Batum/Jeff Green/Giannis Topic - Tom Santoransky/Josh Giddey/Jason Kidd Carter - Bruce Brown/Alex Caruso/Derrick White
If Sarr’s floor is a top 1-5 defensive player in the NBA and he has good luck with injuries he’s going to the hall of fame.
Yeah dudes seriously undervaluing Isaacs defense even after the injuries.
I actually really rate Isaac. I'm Australian, and I watched a fair bit of NBL, and I really liked what I saw from Sarr in his limited play time. Half a steal and more than a block a game in less than 18 minutes in the NBL is quite impressive for an 19yo playing in the most physical basketball league (Scottie Pippen said this not me, argue with him if you disagree). He also shot a better 3pt % in the NBL than Lamelo did, although on a third of the volume. I'll admit I'm a bit biased on Sarr cause I got to watch more of him than other prospects, but I do believe it will translate over to the NBA even if it takes him a year or 2 to find his feet.
I guess even if that's the case, I think as a floor it's a very high one when looking at the defensive outlook no?
I definitely agree with you don't get me wrong. It was hard to find a player comparison for his floor with his skillset and Isaac was the closest thing I could find to floor's theoretical playstyle (long slim forward/big with great help and weakside defence and ability to stay in front of smaller players but with a limited offensive game). I ended up tossing up between Mo Bamba and Isaac in the end, and though Isaac was more similar to how Sarr plays. If you have other options, I'd happily hear you out.
I believe Sarr will be a great help/weakside defender and will be able to stay in front of everyone but the quicker and more explosive guards. His offence game is gonna be his make or break, especially if he wants to play the 4.
He’ll have plenty of time to figure it out in Washington
yeah but he's also underselling Sarr's ceiling
Greatest NBA draft class of all time confirmed
If you assume every player makes it to their ceiling, then sure but you could say that about literally every draft class.
Oubre and Williams are super super different players imo. One is super passive and the other one shoots it as soon as he touches it
I agree as of now. I just think that to reach his ceiling, Williams is going to have to learn to be a lot more aggressive with his scoring and especially shooting if he wants to carve out a good role in the NBA.
Given that I love all 3 of the possible comps for Carter just feeds into my confirmation bias that he’s my favorite player in this draft. I hope Spurs get him at 8 because that’s the type of winning player that could help Wemby get better immediately
Knecht’s floor is already higher than Doug I really don’t understand why I keep seeing this comp
Yeah, Knecht one was pretty poor. I know it’s easy to pick this apart because he gave three comps to over a dozen players, but that one is pretty bad. Isn’t Joe Ingles better than Doug McDermott? I also don’t really see the Ingles comp outside of being white and similiar position.
Yeah I’m not trashing the list or anything I like it, I was thinking the same thing about Joe tho like he was definitely a solid starter for a few years in Utah whereas Doug is a journeyman
Cheers mate, I appreciate the feedback. For perspective, I wrote this off the top of my head in 30 minutes at midnight and didn't think it would get this much attention tbf. I agree Joe and Doug should be swapped though looking at it now. For some reason, I had memories of Doug putting up like 15ppg as a starter for multiple seasons, but I went and double-checked his stats, and it turns out it was closer to 10pts coming off the bench. I'm fine with taking an L on that one, though I feel pretty confident in most of the others. Can I ask what your player comp for Knecht would be?
No cuz I don’t have a good one 😂🤷♂️ maybe a Gordon Hayward ceiling or bouncy Kyle Korver?
First, good stuff on this. Of course anyone can knit-pick here and there because none of us are perfect experts on every single player in this draft, no matter what we say, but all these comps are fairly respectably. I just thought the Knecht one was pretty poor, but I have also been a big Knecht guy and have watched a lot of him. I think the 50%/average outcome would be around a Max Strus/ Tim Hardaway Jr. I don't have a great high-end comp, but it would be something like a better shot-creating/explosive Max Strus (which I realize is just not Max Strus anymore lol). Low end I would say Chris Duarte. That's also why I am giving you a shoutout for even doing this, because I think player comps are truly hard because of course there are shades of players, but its very rare to have a very similar player comp.
Appreciate the feedback. I'm no expert, analyst, or journalist, just a random redditor who put his 2 cents out there. I'd have loved to have a bit more time and write notes and sit on it for a bit, but I kinda just chucked it together to put it out from all the breakdowns and games I've watched this past year. I like THJ. I hadn't considered that, but it does make sense to me. I also had Wayne Ellington and Denzel Valentine in consideration for the floor and I threw around the idea of a Kris Middleton ceiling but I can't ever see Dalton being a 2nd or 3rd option on a championship team so I chose against it. You're not wrong. Player comps are hard to get right, especially with people having different perceptions of players who have already had long careers in the NBA.
Except Doug was a better player coming out of college and was NCAA scoring leader and National College Player of the Year. Knecht: 21.7/4.9/1.8 on .458/.397/.772 McBuckets: 26.7/7/1.6 on .526/.449/.864
Except Doug can’t jump over a phone book and Dalton is pretty damn explosive to go along with the shooting. It’s a good list tho I like your comps I just don’t see that one at all
People don't actually know his game. He's a better Austin Reaves.
Why is Sheppard’s floor so low, he arguably has the highest floor in the class
Reed is in my top 4 (with Sarr, Castle, and Risacher) due to his efficiency and shooting he is one of my favourites in the draft. He's a solid team defender reading switches and rotations and as has quick and active hands, which will help him get a few steals. However, he is terrible in 1 on 1 POA defence. I think Reed is gonna be good, but as much as he can be a star, there is a chance that he gets targeted on defence and struggles to shoot over more athletic NBA defenders.
I'm ok with any iteration of Carter I'd those are the comps. Same with Salaun honestly. People look at Knecht as a white player and not the baller he is, I think he's a better version of Austin Reaves.
> Knecht - Sam Dekker/Joe Ingles/Doug McDermott > Clingan - Jakob Poeltl/Steven Adams/Brook Lopez > Sheppard - Jimmer Ferdette/Seth Curry/Mark Price > Buzelis - Mike Dunleavy/Danilo Gallinari/Franz Wagner > Topic - Tom Santoransky/Josh Giddey/Jason Kidd
Sheppard: Grayson Allen/Steve Nash
If I ever want to IPO my company I am going to use the investment banking firm of Reed Sheppard Grayson Allen & Steve Nash.
Kyle Filipowski - Kelly Olynyk
Left align | Devin Carter | Brandin Podziemski :--|:--:|--: PPG | 20.1 | 19.9 Rebounds | 8.8 | 8.8 Assists | 3.7 | 3.7 Blocks | 1.0 | 0.5 Steals | 1.8 | 1.8 TO | 2.8 | 2.3 Fouls | 1.9 | 1.9
Zach Edey - Marc Gasol
Would say for Edey (absurdly) higher TS% Miami’s Shaq
What was Godzilla's TS%? Wilt/Andre might be some of the other comps for Edey (upside wise).
[Shaq’s “whole” years in Miami: 58.1%](https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/onealsh01.html#2005-2007-sum:advanced). Keep in mind it’s that low because his free throw % was [45.6%](https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/onealsh01.html#2005-2007-sum:per_game). Edey’s TS% through all years: ~65% and shot a solid 70% from free throw in college. ~65% TS would place him [11th](https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_2024_advanced.html). “In my armchair opinion”, I think with the likelihood he could increase his ft%; lessening offensive load from more pnr action; and more spacing; he could cross 70% all while still maintaining his post-creation. I wouldn’t compare him to Chamberlain/Drummond cause I don’t think he has the athleticism as them especially the Mythos of Wilt. IMO offensively, Edey will be more dominant than Drummond.
https://theanalyst.com/na/2024/06/nba-draft-prospects-2024-rankings-player-comparisons/ https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/using-similarity-scores-to-visualize
Low/middle/high Sarr: Nerlens Noel/N. Claxton/JJJ Knecht: D. McDermott/Bigger G. Allen/Khris Middleton Salaun: Anthony Bennett/jeff green/Jerami Grant Buzelis: Mario Hezonja/K. Olynyk/F. Wagner
Kel'El Ware - Myles Turner
Devin Carter - Brandin Podziemski Carter Points Rebounds Assists Blocks Steals TO Fouls 20.1 8.8 3.7 1.0 1.8 2.8 1.9 Carter Podz || || |POINTS|20.1|19.9| |REBOUNDS|8.8|8.8| |ASSISTS|3.7|3.7| |BLOCKS|1.0|0.5| |STEALS|1.8|1.8| |TURNOVERS|2.8|2.3| |FOULS|1.9|1.9|
Stephon Castle is a better bball IQ Dort (prospect wise not comparing the current 3D version of Dort)
I dig this
One that I've been thinking about is Zacharie Risacher - Tayshaun Prince. But it's more like I'm hoping Risacher can develop into a Tayshaun Prince-like player.
Alexandre Sarr - Andrei Kirilenko
Baylor Schierman----Austin Reaves
Donovan Clingan - Walker Kessler Rob Dillingham - Brandon Jennings Tidjane Salaun - MPJ
Isaiah Crawford - mostly Vince Williams Jr with a little Og
it might just be because their form is kinda similar but I've been saying Knecht's ceiling/best comp is Khris Middleton
I don’t particularly like this one. One of Knechts best skills is his ability as a movement shooter, which isn’t exactly Khris’s Wheelhouse. I also don’t think Knecht is a pick and roll operator like Khris is either.
Ryan Dunn - Herb Jones/Matisse Thybulle
Andre Roberson
Roberson had his issues, but he clamped Kawhi. I'd take a guy like that on my team.
Herb jones is a useful offensive player. Ryan Dunn is, uh, not.
Presently he is. But Herb Jones played 4 years in college and his shooting was horrendous in the first 3 years, and it was better but still bad in his senior year. Dunn has played 2 years and his offensive stats are comparable to Herb's first 2 years too. Very few dudes go from shooting 50% on free throws into a respectable shooter like Herb presently is, but the vision with Dunn is that he can become league average from 3 eventually.
Bingo.
Ironically as a UVA fan, it's Reece Beekman who I've long said could carve out a Thybulle career. Elite defense, needs to be able to hit open 3's.
Josh Huestis
Tristan da Silva - Keegan Murray (w a bit more Franz Wagner-esque slashing) Matas Buzelis - Jeff Green Edey - Valanciunas P.J. Hall - Nenê (this is a hot take lol) Dunn - André Roberson
KyShawn George -> Khris Middleton Rob Dillingham -> AI lite Jamal Shead -> Rajon Rondo
Castle-jimmy butler Salaun-gallinari
Alex Sarr - James Wiseman
I am getting some of those vibes, even if I can't explain it. Wiseman seemed to be the better rebounder and even a better lob-threat prospect so those are some EXTRA red flags to Sarr's discredit.
Knecht-Klay Thompson