Draft Dummies

We wanted to put out a short announcement episode because we have been inactive for the past 6 weeks, and because we are very excited to be joining the Locked On Network! We will be releasing an episode every Wednesday on the 'Locked On NBA Draft' channel.See below for the Spotify link to the channel, but you can search 'Locked on NBA Draft' wherever you get your podcast.Spotify Link

In this episode, Sam & Cody dive into a couple college prospects: Corey Kispert & Kai Jones, and go over an NBA case study - Christian Wood. These prospects led to a variety of fun conversations including For Kispert: how he stacks up against other wings over the past 15 years in a couple statistical indicators, how to analyze those indicators, and how/where Kispert has improved his game since last year. For Kai Jones, we discussed how to evaluate prospects that began playing basketball at a later edge and discuss the related pros/cons, also discussed his potential development trajectory, and what his role/archetype might end up looking like.We also did a case study on Christian Wood. We talked through his journey and discussed what stood out then and now about his game, and what we learned looking back at his film & statistical profile and will implement as evaluators from his case study moving forward.

Sam and Cody discuss what they saw in the NBA preseason. We discuss what can and should be taken from the preseason. We give an early check in on many NBA rookies. Lots of interesting debate ensued including whether this class looks better than we expected, and the value of individual training and workouts vs team training camp work.

Sam and Cody give their first thoughts on the 2021 NBA draft after months of preparation. Also, we discuss our initial thoughts and takeaways from the first week of CBB and talk about prospects we will he keeping an eye on.We each came in with a list of 2 returners and 2 incoming freshman that we have studied and will continue to monitor.We will be continuing our 2021 preview and CBB coverage, plus NBA discussion on a weekly basis.

Sam and Cody finish sharing their thoughts on the draft including best fits, EARLY all-rookie team predictions and much more!

CT (@CTFazio24) joined the show to talk about winners and losers, biggest surprises, and overarching story lines looking at the draft. We also looked at early values for ROY betting. Lots of fun discussion as always!

In this episode we discuss our final pre-draft thoughts and predictions. We discuss draft night superlatives such as our pick for biggest surprise on draft night, biggest riser/faller, worst player comparison mentioned on draft night, etc (2:25).We start with some superlative awards for draft night: Georgios Papagiannis award (shockingly high selection), Bol Bol award (biggest faller), Jalen Rose award (worst draft night player comparison), Jacob Evans award (prospect who you see once in the NBA and realize they don't belong).We then get to final pre-draft predictions that we haven't had the chance to make. These include predictions for draft night, predictions for specific prospects and teams.

In this episode we finish our series of counting down the players we are highest on compared to the consensus. We list our top 4 guys in this episode that we liked more than the consensus (3:00).We also discuss Patrick Williams, including his mercurial rise up draft boards, where we are on him, and how we project him to the next level (46:23).

In this episode we continue the countdown of our list of favorite players. We are joined by Will Morris (@w_a_morris). Prospects discussed in this episode include: Kira Lewis, Xavier Tillman, Grant Riller, Nate Hinton and more.We finish with a classic round of prospect pick 'em/

During this episode we are starting a countdown of our favorite prospects in this class. That can mean many different things, but generally means the 10 guys we're highest on compared to the consensus.

We finish up the mock draft with picks 15-30. Again, these are the picks we predict the teams will make, not what we would advise doing. Lots of fun discussion along the way, as always!Thanks listeners, be sure to follow us on Twitter @Draftdummies, and leave us a review on whatever platform you're listening on!Here's the link to the sponsor of this episode, Podcorn: podcorn.com.The other 2 sponsors of this episode are the 'Crummy Marathoners' podcast and the 'If I Was President' card game.

We did a mock draft around 6 weeks ago where we acted as the GM's and made the picks based on what we would have done if we were in charge. This time, we are predicting what teams will actually do on draft night.We discuss recent news, rumors, prior draft history and information on the executives in place making the picks.

The Draft Dummies were joined by Robel Tussin (@robeltussin) to discuss the news regarding Tyrell Terry's recent weight/athletic gains and what that means for our evaluation. We also discussed the 'Kentucky Bump' and how that affects our projection of both Tyrese Maxey and Immanuel Quickley. The biggest segment was the 'Favorite Prospect Skills' segment where we each gave and discussed our favorite prospect skills from this class. We took turns guessing each others, broke each down and explained how it impacts our view of the prospect and why each is our favorite. We finished the episode by doing our prospect rapid fire comparison.As always, please leave us a review and follow us @draftdummies!Here's the link to the sponsor of this episode, Podcorn: podcorn.com.

Co-host Cody is back and the Draft Dummies are reunited! We discussed NBA Draft value plays which took us down some interesting paths. We also answered a listener question about best and worst draft scenarios for the New York Knicks. We finished with prospect rapid fire. As always, please leave us a review and follow us @draftdummies!Here's the link to the sponsor of this episode, Podcorn: podcorn.com.

Co-host Sam was joined by Jam (@jamontheboards), fellow draft analyst and contributor at Draft Lead and BPA Hoops, to talk the 2020 NBA Draft. We discussed our biggest big board movers, how we evaluate & analyze the jump shot in draft prospects, and underrated prospect skills in the 2020 NBA Draft. We finished by doing our prospect rapid fire segment where we compared similar prospects.

We had Shamit Dua (@fearthebrown), Lead Pelicans Writer for Bourbon Street Shots, on the show to discuss his article called 'What is the Best Way to Draft.' Our conversation covers a lot of fun draft strategy and philosophy including the value of rookie scale contracts, how teams should be more aggressive in the draft, and drafting for fit/best player available.We then discussed Shamit's 'guys' in this draft including a couple prospects he's higher on than the consensus. Lastly we did some 2020 NBA Draft Prospect rapid fire, where I gave Shamit 2 prospects and asked him which he preferred and why.

In this episode, Sam ranks his top 10 players, but this time ranks his top 10 realistic ceilings. Looking at how valuable each player's high end outcome is.To finish the episode, Sam talks some draft and team building strategy, including what he calls the "Matt Stafford theory," which addresses the importance of not only finding a creator in the draft, but finding the right creator.

We had CT (@ctfazio24) on the show for some NBA Draft prospect discussion! We discussed two prospects who we have ranked very differently on our boards: James Wiseman and Patrick Williams, as well as one prospect we have had a tough time evaluating: Tyrese Maxey. Within each of these prospect discussions are lessons we’ve learned from the playoffs and basketball philosophical debates. We finished by discussing which prospect we rank higher: Isaiah Joe or Mason Jones.

Sam and Cody finish the 2020 NBA mock draft and discuss what stood out at the conclusion of the exercise, with the help of our guest, Derek Murray.

Sam and Cody are joined by Derek Murray, Director of Scouting at Babcock Hoops, to go through and do a 1st round mock draft for the 2020 NBA Draft! This episode comprises part 1.

In this episode, the Dummies do a sleepers draft, where they take turns picking players projected to be in the second round or later. We conclude by giving our picks for the first round playoff series.

We start with our winners & losers from the week in basketball. Then we discuss, break down, and rank Precious Achiuwa and Jay Scrubb as prospects for the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft.We then talk about thoughts from the NBA bubble including the importance of wings. We discuss some young wings including the Spurs' wings Lonnie Walker & Keldon Johnson, Mikal Bridges and Romeo Langford. We discuss their importance and some misconceptions about them. We talk about wings in past drafts who have been taken late and been successful, and finish by going over some guys we like in the late 1st rd and 2nd rd as wing prospects in this 2020 NBA draft.

Sam and Cody break down their lottery big boards! Warning: these big boards don’t look a lot like the consensus. They’re based off the study & film we’ve gone through. Follow us on Twitter @Draftdummies and leave us a review!

We had planned to cover a 3rd prospect, but we went long on Pokusevski and some NBA talk! We began with our winners from film study, then moved into Poku. We also started a new segment called ‘How surprised would you be’? Where we discussed Saben Lee, Payton Pritchard, Cassius Winston and Chris Smith. We finished with Cassius Stanley add NBA discussion!

Co-hosts Sam and Cody answer the remainder of the listener-submitted questions! A couple questions were more International focused, specifically on Aleksej Pokusevski, Killian Hayes, and Leandro Bolmaro, as well as some more under-the-radar international prospects.We also discuss who the best scorer in the draft is now, and who we predict it will be in 5 years. A lengthy discussion is had on the multitude of combo guards in this draft class, including some interesting draft philosophy questions, and our rankings of these prospects.The episode concludes with some Tyrese Haliburton & Killian Hayes discussion, including whether either is worth moving up for in the draft.

Cody and Sam answer listener submitted mailbag questions, mainly focusing on the 2020 NBA draft. The questions range from which prospect we’d pick to win a race, to our biggest evaluation errors, to which prospect is the best shooter in the draft. Thank you for submitting questions. If yours wasn’t answered on this episode, we will be answering it on an upcoming episode. We’re a voice of the people, all will be answered!

The Draft Dummies were joined by Matt Shantz from Raptors Republic to discuss late 1st round 2020 NBA Draft prospects. First, we discuss a few general Raptors roster questions and what their chances look like in this restart. Then, we discuss 5 late 1st round draft prosepcts: Jahmi'us Ramsey, Grant Riller, Jaden McDaniels, Paul Reed, and Xavier Tillman. Co-host Sam had to leave with 5 minutes left to prepare for his wedding reception the next day. We finished by discussing 2 late 2nd rd sleepers to keep an eye on: Immanuel Quickley and Trevelin Queen.

Sam and Cody discuss 2 new prospects in-depth — RJ Hampton and Xavier Tillman! 2 interesting prospects that both lead into some fun philosophical discussions. Plus NBA playoff talk! We discuss the Raptors and Celtics, who finished 4th and 5th in net rating this year. How will they do in the playoffs? How would they matchup in a series? Who would be the best player in the series? Which coach do we hold in higher esteem? Which team has the better depth? Sam and Cody answer these questions and more!

We were excited to have Noah Magaro-George from Pounding the Rock as a guest to discuss the Spurs future outlook (1:48), as well as 5 mid lottery prospects that Spurs fans should keep an eye on. Those include: Onyeka Okongwu (11:41), Devin Vassell (20:13), Isaac Okoro (30:16), Deni Avdija (38:02), and Pat Williams (49:07). We also discussed 2 2nd rd sleepers we like for the Spurs in Chris Smith (56:23) and Naji Marshall (60:29).

Cody and Sam get back to analyzing draft prospects, covering a trio of SEC wings. We started with UGA's Anthony Edwards (7:25), then did our role playing, mock draft scenarios (24:48). We then moved on to dive into Mason Jones (32:37), and finally Yves Pons (52:00). We concluded by ranking these 3 prospects (64:25).

We were joined by BYU ast. coach and former #1 HS recruit & McDonald's All American Chris Burgess! Very few people have his combination of playing and coaching insights and stories.We discussed both his playing and coaching career: what it was like to be the #1 recruit in the country; recruiting stories, comparing the late 90's to today's social media era; who was in his H.S. class/ what it was like playing against Lamar Odom, Ron Artest, Elton Brand, Tracy McGrady, Baron Davis, etc; What Coach K was like, and the similarities he sees between Coach K and BYU Head Coach Mark Pope; Stories from NBA Summer Leagues including Dwight Howard and LeBron James; The best players he's ever played against. We then discussed coaching including how he and his staff use analytics; How players take and absorb so much analytics and info; how analytics are used in an in-game and game preparation setting; How the transfer portal works and how his staff at BYU used it to bring in Matt Haarms; the evolution of the big man in college and the NBA; and finally his thoughts on a couple 2020 NBA draft prospects!

Cody and Sam are joined by Eric Spyropoulos, Digital Media Coordinator for the Denver Nuggets, and writer for Nuggets.com. This podcast represents the first of many guests that we will be having on the show. We really appreciated Eric's insight, deep knowledge of the roster, and feel for the decisions to be made moving forward. We discuss the overall roster outlook (2:00), the PF position moving forward (7:10) - Millsap (10:53) vs Grant (13:15) vs MPJ (7:56), whether Jamal Murray can be the 2nd or 3rd banana on a real contender and the steps he will need to take to get there (21:57), and what has happened with Gary Harris (28:35). We then discussed the draft. First, we discuss Denver's recent draft trends and monitor Bol Bol's progression (34:17). We present and debate 4 prospects for Nuggets fans to keep an eye on in this year's draft (41:57), and finish the podcast by ranking the prospects in terms of our preference for Denver (1:00:40).

The Draft Dummies break down 3 more interesting prospects: Chris Smith (3:59), Daniel Oturu (38:01), Elijah Hughes (53:00). Plus, some burning hot takes and more role playing scenarios (25:52) including potential lottery decisions for the Warriors and Wizards.

The Draft Dummies break down a fascinating group of prospects: Malachi Flynn (4:54), Skylar Mays (36:22), Paul Reed (53:19)! Plus, some role playing (30:32), draft theory discussion, and finally, some actual disagreement and debate between your favorite co-hosts Sam and Cody. And, of course, lots of in-depth analysis!

In this episode, the Draft Dummies cover three listener recommended prospects that they believe have an uphill climb to procure and maintain a prominent role in the Association: Tyler Bey (9:27), Isaiah Stewart (45:45), Trent Forrest (61:14). Plus, some takeaways from the 2013 NBA draft after a rewatch (31:40)!

Your favorite hosts are back to discuss and analyze Lamelo Ball (5:00), Grant Riller (41:44) and Jalen Smith (61:29) in detail as NBA prospects. Plus, a brief revisit of the 2008 NBA Finals (27:50)!

Sam and Cody break down Desmond Bane (1:29), Tyrell Terry (23:59) and Josh Green (45:57) in-depth as prospects on this latest episode. Plus, some NBA talk and a bonus basketball history lesson: Jerry Sloan (18:23)!

In this episode we discuss Kira Lewis Jr (1:45) and how his skills might translate to the NBA. Additionally, we cover Aaron Nesmith (36:55) and his absurd rate from distance and dive into the potential of Jaden McDaniels (62:12). As always, we include a little NBA banter, including how the Suns passed on Kawhi due to him sweating in his interview (26:55).

In the 3rd installment, the Draft Dummies go in-depth on NBA draft prospects Killian Hayes (1:04), Cole Anthony (38:20), and Saddiq Bey (61:10).

In Draft Dummies' second outing, 4 likely lottery bound prospects are discussed in depth -- Isaac Okoro (1:19), Deni Avdija (23:15), Tyrese Haliburton (36:40) and Tyrese Maxey (48:48).Twitter:@DraftDummiesEmail:draftdummies11@gmail.com

Perhaps with too much of a negative slant, Cody and Sam discuss the talent level at the top of the 2020 NBA draft. They also highlight a number of prospects, including James Wiseman, Anthony Edwards, and a pair of Leonard Hamilton wings. *error - when Cody mentions Devin Vassell's "defensive rating being over 4", he really means "Defensive Box+- being over 3". Credit for Patrick Williams statistic to Sam Vecenie, the Athletic.