Rafa Stone has been pretty good in retrospect. The only big miss is Jalen...Mobley was definitely the right pick. Reed at 3 might be a miss, but he still needs time before we can make any conclusions. That said, most people (including myself) would have made the same move, so I can't blame him much here.

The rest of his work is really good...Got Steven Adams for a bag full of trash. Drafted Sengun (16), Tari (17), Bari (3), Amen (4).

Based on his track record, he excels in the mid round picks so 10 might be the perfect spot for him.

The Rockets' young talent, draft capital and team success (winning 41 and 52 games over the past two seasons) make them a natural fit for star players who may become available. As mentioned last month, longterm interest in Suns star guard Devin Booker has cooled, team and league sources said.

13 hours ago via New York Times

This is not to say the Rockets and Suns are not in communication. On the contrary, Phoenix is aggressive in pursuit of a) trading Kevin Durant and b) regaining full control of their draft capital starting with the No. 10 pick in next month's draft, team sources said. Since the conclusion of the season, Houston has fielded several calls from Phoenix, who have since gradually lowered their asking price for Durant, those sources said. There is a price where the Rockets would be interested, but with a fear of breaking up their roster for a 36-year-old coming off injury, doubt remains over a deal materializing.

13 hours ago via New York Times

This is a bit of an interesting draft. It feels like there are 2 tiers in the top 30ish prospects: Cooper and everyone else. That's not to say that this draft is crap. Clearly there is talent in that 2nd tier. You can find players with shooting, passing, size, speed, wingspan, defense, BBIQ....but they all have something that might limit their game and relegate them to the bench. In 5 years, I wouldn't be surprised if the 2nd best player from the draft was available at our pick at 10.

My favorite prospect is Coward, and I'm hoping he will be there. If he isn't, I would be looking to trade down and pick up future draft assets or a useful role player. We could drop to the 20s and still have a shot at a good prospect.

Agree that after Cooper, the obviousness of the next 7-10 picks is a lot less clear than most years. This is where a front office should earn their keep.

#2 is absolutely clear. No one else is close.

The Athletic did their annual draft report. It is 198 pages long.

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6414203/2025/06/10/nba-draft-guide-2025-top-100-prospects-cooper-flagg/

He did a Tier for Flagg. Tier for Harper. Tier for 3-6. Tier for 7-12. Then a tier for 13-26.

Some of his were kind of wild, like Jeremiah Fears at 18.

LMK if there is someone you want me to post.

I do see Harper rated high, but I just don't get it.

4 assist per game doesn't scream Point Guard. Going 33.3% from three doesn't scream SG either. He's an average defender at best.

I think it's highly likely a lower rated dude taken outside the top 7-8 will end up having a far better career.

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4 assist per game doesn't scream Point Guard.

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Cade averaged 3.5 at Okie State. Harden averaged 3.2 and 4.2 at ASU. Haliburton averaged 3.6 as a freshman at ISU. Brunson was 2.5, 4.1, 4.6 in his three years at Nova.

He's been super elite at rim pressure and FG% at the rim. Vecenie said he was the best rim finisher in the NCAA last year.

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Going 33.3% from three doesn't scream SG either.

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He hit in the 40s on catch an shoot threes. I've seen 43 and 45 listed. He hurt his ankle and continued playing on it. Harper was sick in early January then had a high ankle sprain vs Penn State. He was shooting 53/37 prior to that. His pull up shooting absolutely needs work, as does his shot diet. Because everyone on Rutgers was so awful, teams basically dared them to pass to anyone else, and so it was like 2 on 5 constantly. He will probably start off primarily being an SG, so that should help the reliance on tough shots and pullups.

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He's an average defender at best.

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Completely wrong and he has excellent positional size of a PG - measurements of height, weight, wingspan are identical to Kobe.
Athletic:


Overall summary:

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I think it's highly likely a lower rated dude taken outside the top 7-8 will end up having a far better career.

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Highly likely? IDK. Possible? Absolutely. Just like we saw with Joker and Giannis. A lot of a player's growth depends on where they land. Do you get a coach like Udoka and teammate like FVV or do you land in Charlotte where they DGAF if you launch 25 bad shots a game will weigh in heavily on the development of a player.

Russillo said he thought Harper is a much better shooter than his percentages show. Said he has awful shot selection that will get cleaned up and his shooting numbers will improve bc of it.

Absolutely No doubt that Harper goes at #2. If the Rockets had that pick, there is a 100% chance I would want him there. I still don't think he is a can't miss prospect, though. His shooting ability (33% from deep, 75% FT) will be the deciding factor in his potential ceiling. For reference, Jalen Green shot 36% in the G-league (actual NBA distance) and he hasn't really improved from that mark, which has severely limited him. If he doesn't make a big leap there its not unthinkable that a guy like Edgecombe, Bailey, Knueppel, Maluach or even Coward could be a better player.

Woods Ag said:

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Russillo said he thought Harper is a much better shooter than his percentages show. Said he has awful shot selection that will get cleaned up and his shooting numbers will improve bc of it.

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I think he will probably end up playing a lot of SG initially next to Fox and will get a chance to develop that and get more catch and shoot touches, which he was great at in college.

A lot of shot selection is coaching and Rutgers didn't have that.

AG@RICE said:

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Absolutely No doubt that Harper goes at #2. If the Rockets had that pick, there is a 100% chance I would want him there. I still don't think he is a can't miss prospect, though. His shooting ability (33% from deep, 75% FT) will be the deciding factor in his potential ceiling. For reference, Jalen Green shot 36% in the G-league (actual NBA distance) and he hasn't really improved from that mark, which has severely limited him. If he doesn't make a big leap there its not unthinkable that a guy like Edgecombe, Bailey, Knueppel, Maluach or even Coward could be a better player.

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Coward is an interesting one. Almost identical measurements to Kawhi Leonard, but only played one game against a big conference program and sucked in that game - Iowa Hawkeyes. His (and Carter Bryant's) measurements are pretty elite.

I think Malauch will be Dereck Lively. Bigger, but worse athleticism. No real offensive abilities besides put backs and dunks. Probably won't have the athleticism that Lively has when pulled out on the perimeter. I think he goes 9th to Toronto.

I don't believe in Bailey's BBIQ. Did you see his interview at the combine? He was asked about taking tough shots and his response was "They are tough shots for you because you dont practice them like I do." Bro deserves to be on the Hornets where he can jack up whatever he wants. Plus he is 6'7, not 6'10.

I'm super high on Edgecomb. Really great athlete. Decent measurements. Plays like a dog. I think with the right situation and coaching, he could be a star. But picks 3,4,5 are Philly, Charlotte, and Utah. He would be my #3 guy on the big board by a wide margin.

I also like Knueppel. I think his BBIQ is there. The question will be if his athleticism will be limited against NBA competition because he is white. I think is floor outcome is Luke Kennard, but he could be a 20p 5 assist guy pretty easily. I think he will have the right BBIQ to make rotations and switches correctly, but I am doubtful he will be a stopper. He's a guy that easily fits on any team. He's my 4th guy on the big board.

I don't like Tre Johnson, and not because he is a dirty sip, but because he has absolutely no awareness or presence on defense. I think he is going to be Cam Thomas. Great scorer, bad everything else. Perfect for a tanking team that wants an overpaid scorer that fans like.

Carter Bryant is a guy I am also really high on. Elite athleticism, looks to have a good shot. I think he will develop into a Trey Murphy with better defense. If Rockets get Bryant or Coward, I think that Dillon can be included in a trade out pretty easily.

Noa Essengue is the guy I like for later picks that could turn into one of the best players in the draft. Has nice positional size, moves well, and seems to have a really great feel for the game. Shooting is still iffy and he is somewhat inconsistent, but he also should just be a HS senior right now and is playing really well in pro ball in Germany.

I don't have a problem with Harper going #2 in this draft, but I disagree with the writers who have him a tier ahead of the next 5 in terms of ceiling or floor.

I feel like the big gap exists between 1 and 2, then again maybe after #7

I'm not big on Bailey either. His numbers are not impressive, he measured smaller than expected and he seems immature. That said, every mock draft in the past year has had him in the top 5, which is why I put him in that list. I'm just assuming that other people see something in him that I am totally missing. If he gets Cam Whitmored, starts to drop and is still there at 10 along with Coward....I'd still prefer Coward.

Kneuppel is interesting because he is a white, non-center, that can shoot, but plays bully ball in the paint. Guys just seem to bounce off of him when drives towards the bucket. He feels like a slightly taller Desmond Bane.

Tre has good shooting numbers, so its hard to be too critical of him. At least he has a solid floor.

Malauch is interesting to me because of his 77% free throw average. If he gets stronger and improves his range, he would absolutely change his trajectory. He is a very raw talent that picked the game up a bit later. He is also an African center who played soccer as a younger kid....maybe my H-town bias is showing here.

I don't think Essengue is lasting long in this draft. He is putting up really good numbers in the playoffs overseas and his measurables will cause someone to draft him higher than consensus.

Carter Bryant definitely has tons of potential as a 3D player. He struggled for time in AZ so I don't think you can just pencil him into big rotation minutes immediately. I also really like DB on the Rockets right now. He is our best shooter and his contract, although widely mocked, is actually pretty good for his production. If we trade him, we better be getting something really good in return. I'm not sure if the rest of the league will value him as much as we do, so we might not get good value.

A couple of guys that I'm also intrigued by are Jakucionis (has traits where he could develop into a very good big point guard), Clifford (older but can do a bit of everything), Drake Powell (incredible athlete), CMB (great potential on D and draws tons of fouls).

Guys I'm a bit low on: Demin (can't shoot), Richardson (too small), Fears (misses too many layups), Queen (don't think he is athletic enough) and Sorber (big man + foot injuries = problems).

Gambodoro is probably the best Suns insider.

Source: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/burns-gambo-show/id730683847?l=en-GB&i=1000712655398 [17:48]
Key quotes:
"…Any deal with the Rockets is very likely to include Jabari Smith and Jalen Green. And you've got it, like, they're going to want to hold on to Eason, they're going to want to hold on to Sengun. They're going to want to hold on to their key core players and probably work out a deal around Green and Jabari Smith, which we've known for a long time that those would be the key players..."
"The question really is the redundancy with Devin Booker and Jalen Green. Like that, you know, again, I think the Suns are going to weigh a lot of offers and see what kind of offer collects.
But I think that Houston would kind of focus on, now I like Jabari Smith, I like him.
And I like Jalen Green, he's different from Book, but it is a little redundancy with two guys that play the same position at that guard spot."

Here, starts at about 47s

"I think a Kevin Durant trade could happen in the next few days..

In the last 24 hours the focus has been on the Rockets, the Heat, and the Minnesota Timberwolves" ~ @ShamsCharania #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/3vWd4QI8Sh

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) June 13, 2025

Seems I'm opposite compared to some of you. I think Ace might have the highest upside in entire draft. Wouldn't mind trading up, especially if Ace falls. Would be good with trading up a tad for Kon or Tre, we desperately need shooters. At 19, give me Kaspars or Egor, like the upside and playmaking ability. If we trade down and Noa is available, he would be my pick.

The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly “gaining steam” as a potential landing spot for Kevin Durant, per @ZachLowe_NBA

“Lowe said he would put the Timberwolves at No. 1 in the ‘buzz’ rankings in the Durant sweepstakes, with the Houston Rockets at No. 2.”

(Via @ringer / h/t… pic.twitter.com/CJMaE6YmHh

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 14, 2025

Bogey1996 said:

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Seems I'm opposite compared to some of you. I think Ace might have the highest upside in entire draft. Wouldn't mind trading up, especially if Ace falls. Would be good with trading up a tad for Kon or Tre, we desperately need shooters. At 19, give me Kaspars or Egor, like the upside and playmaking ability. If we trade down and Noa is available, he would be my pick.

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He's 6'7, so not great size. He has an awful shot diet and in his interviews, he doubled down that those tough shots are the ones he wants to take. His defense isn't good, his turnovers are high, and he only shot 46/34/69. I don't think he has good BBIQ on either end of the court. And I just don't see what his elite skill is going to be. Mid-Range shots?

superaggie73 said:

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Guitarsoup said:

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The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly “gaining steam” as a potential landing spot for Kevin Durant, per @ZachLowe_NBA

“Lowe said he would put the Timberwolves at No. 1 in the ‘buzz’ rankings in the Durant sweepstakes, with the Houston Rockets at No. 2.”

(Via @ringer / h/t… pic.twitter.com/CJMaE6YmHh

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 14, 2025

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I can't for the life of me fathom what Minnesota has to give up that Phoenix would want. Although this would be the best thing for the Rockets and would help out with those future Phoenix picks.

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Gotta be around Gobert or Julius Randle, but Randle would have to opt in and work out an extension with Phoenix. I think a third team will need to be involved because both those teams have pretty serious cap issues and the apron trading rules makes it way more difficult. Gobert loss would destroy their defense.

Ant+Durant would be a scary offensive duo, but I see a Minn deal as ending up with the Wolves breaking up.

Very solid deal to lock up probably the best real center on the market before free agency opens.

Speaks well of the current organizational culture that Adams chose to stay at a bit of a discount without testing free agency. He could have made more than that on the open market, he is only 31 years old. He showed in the playoffs he can still be a real force on the glass in the biggest moments. He is in great shape and if he plays 20 mins every 3rd game we can probably keep him going for the length of the contract. Great deal by Stone. I'm really happy to keep Steve-o, good guy off the court, tough SOB on it, really fun to root for.

Some highlights

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6426397/2025/06/14/kevin-durant-suns-trade-nba-rumors-wolves-rockets-spurs/

- known desire to secure a two-year extension that would be worth more than $100 million combined.
- The Wolves are not including Jaden McDaniels in any KD trade talks, per team sources, which means that one of Randle or Rudy Gobert would have to be the primary salary eater in the deal.
- It does not appear that Phoenix wants to tear down and rebuild as part of this trade.
- A Durant acquisition, at least on paper, would solve myriad offensive issues that were further exposed in their first-round playoff loss to the Warriors half-court efficiency, spacing concerns and a bona fide go-to scorer. You could make the argument that Durant's presence, combined with Ime Udoka's defense, is a recipe for a Western Conference finals run if not more.
- At one point, team sources say, Phoenix was determined to regain control of its draft capital (first-round picks in 2025, 2027 and swap rights in 2029) and at another, was seeking multiple young talents like Alperen engn and Jalen Green. Recently, forward Jabari Smith Jr.'s name has come up pertaining to the Suns' interest, team and league sources say
- Rockets have largely been uninterested in breaking up their depth, even for a future Hall of Famer.
- they only want Durant if it doesn't cost them pivotal parts of their young core. I'd be pretty surprised if that's where he winds up [Rockets]
- players like Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson and Harrison Barnes don't truly move the needle, but Durant's sheer interest in San Antonio is pertinent.

I never thought the Magic could top the worst deal ever of T-Mac for Steve, Cuttino, and Kelvin Cato's rotting corpse, but they might have done it.


The Memphis Grizzlies are trading Desmond Bane to the Orlando Magic for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Cole Anthony, four unprotected first-round picks and one first-round pick swap, sources told ESPN on Sunday.

Two quality vets and four unprotected 1sts. Holy overpay.

Kentavious is a salary dump that they'd give away. So it's really a few 1sts plus take these bad contracts for a guy that is going to play defense and help them space the floor something they really need.

Yeah I don't mind that trade for the Magic. Bane is pretty darn good on both ends. The obvious question is where those picks wind up being but the Magic could be a consistent playoff team for the next 4 or 5 years, especially in a top heavy Eastern conference.

Ryan34 said:

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5 first round picks for Bane is insane imo.

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That's what blows my mind. They assume they're going to be so much better that those will all be picks in the 20s or even lower, but isn't that what the Nets did when they traded for Harden? The last time the Magic won 50 games in a season, I will still in my 30s and now I'm 51. If it doesn't happen, feels like they are burying themselves for a long time.

Huge overpay by the Magic. Bane isn't going to win you a title unless he is your 3rd or 4th best player. The Magic are a bit delusional if they think 1) Bane was worth that much and 2) Banchero and Wagner are good enough to be the top two players on a championship team.

All of this points to the Magic GM trying to save his job by mortgaging their future. He came under some pressure this last year because of his lack of desire to trade for reinforcements after a ton of injuries. He knows this might be his last season in that position, so he took a big (stupid) swing. Very similar to the Westbrook deal when Darryl knew he was at the end of his line. They don't care about those draft picks, because they know they aren't going to make them. Stupid move by the owner to allow this. That said, the magic have a history of doing stupid things so their owners are probably not very bright.