[NoahTraeger1Participant]

Here he is listed as a 2021 entry, but elsewhere is listed as a 2020. I think Pokusevski, if he does enter the draft this year, could even draw interest towards the end of the lottery. Has a lot of development ahead of him, but he could be a special player. Does anyone know the details on this story? Assuming Hayes, Edwards, Toppin, Wiseman, Okoro, Ball, are off the board, I would not mind seeing my Blazers grab him at 14.

[armchairgmParticipant]

I have Pokusevski in the late lottery to late 1st round range. I think his best NBA comparison is Dragan Bender.

[RUDEBOY-Participant]

Bender is a good comparison. They both have similar body types. Reports say he o ly weighs 205 lbs .Poku seems to be much more aggressive than Bender. And more perimeter oriented. It’s rare to see a 7footer that can take guys off the dribble . His coach told the media that Poku intends to enter the draft and come over this summer. Some teams r skeptical of how Euro players will adjust to the nba. For every Donci there’s a Bender. I agree with u guys on his landing spot late lottery to late 1st round is about right.

[armchairgmParticipant]

The other comparisons I have seen analysts throw out for him that I don’t like as much are Raef Lafrentz, Detlef Schremf, and Lamar Odom.

[armchairgmParticipant]

Three more I saw and forgot about were: Lauri Markannen, Mo Wagner, Jaren Jackson Jr. So yes many think his ceiling is much higher than I do with my Bender comparison.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I think you missed a few European 7’footers that can shoot for your comparisons.

[armchairgmParticipant]

Not my comparisons those are the comparisons he is getting on different draft websites.

[NoahTraeger1Participant]

Thanks for the information, that makes things interesting! I have seen the Raef Lafrentz comp a lot, and it is not a very good one in my opinion. Sure I just watched highlights, and sure my Blazers had Lafrentz when he was washed up and riding the pine for buckets of money (even worse his expiring contract was touted as a highly valuable asset and we never made it into anything). But I saw a player more mobile than Raef ever was, with lots of slashing to go with the stretch ability and with some potential for a high level passing game. Doncic was really pretty accomplished and complete before he entered the draft, it was really a question of if he could replicate his success. Pokusevski seems like a project with a high ceiling. Thanks for the responses.

[bt102Participant]

Yeah, staging.nbadraft.net needs to fix that. He needs to be in it this year. I think if he goes, because of the lack of talent, I think he could go late lottery as well. I think SA not just because SA loves foreign guys, but also because LA isn’t going to be there long term and Lyles isn’t that good. They also have Poeltl and he isn’t an attractive option.

[bt102Participant]

His statistical translations are amazing though. Probably best in the draft, he could be special but he looks like the a 7 foot stick. I don’t know how he is going to fair against the Embiid, Gobert, Jokic, Towns, Vucevic’s of the game.

[NoahTraeger1Participant]

Good point I could totally see the Spurs targeting him. I think he could start out as a stretch 4 while they get some weight on him.

[Dazzling Dunks and Basketball BloopersParticipant]

Based on what I’ve seen of him (which is admittedly only a few highlight tapes against what appeared to be pretty low level competition) his skill set is definitely intriguing. It is not uncommon to see seven footers who can shoot the ball nowadays, but it is rare to see a player with his size and length be able to handle the ball in the open floor, read the defense and be able to make plays off the dribble. His passing ability really stands out to me. You don’t see many seven footers who can make reads like that. He sort of reminds me of a young Toni Kukoc in that regard.
I think he could be drafted anywhere in the 10-25 range, but any team that takes him is going to have to be patient. He is a long way from being physically ready to play in the NBA right now. He is strictly a perimeter player at this point and doesn’t have the strength or the low-post skill-set to take advantage of his size. Defensively, he is clearly going to struggle from a physicality standpoint and its unlikely he is going to have the strength to guard low-post players or the speed to guard perimeter players. He is probably going to need at least a year or two of intense weight training before you can rely on him to contribute much. The question I have is how much mass his frame will be able to add.

[NoahTraeger1Participant]

I agree with every single thing you said here, but would add he seems to be able to contest pretty well despite his obvious size shortcomings just due to his length , and is impressively apt at staying vertical. Hes going to be a project for sure, but he could really end up being a great 2 way player.

[bt102Participant]

And now he just declared for the 2020 NBA Draft. He will go higher this year than if he went next year. 2021 looks stronger.

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