GustavBahler wrote:Thanks.

Best quote on why the Knicks should pick him. "Im built for this". Interesting that Barrett is right handed but favors his left. Said he is working on being a threat with either hand as we speak. Sounds confident, ready for the challenge.

I reeeeeeally hope we keep him.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/adamzagoria/2019/06/19/r-j-barrett-says-hes-excited-about-the-knicks-even-if-kevin-durant-kyrie-irving-dont-come/amp/

Only three college freshmen ever have scored more points than Barrett — Durant, Trae Young and one-time Knick Michael Beasley.

“R.J. will flourish here in New York,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “He wants to be here.  He is so mature.  He just turned 19 last Friday, but he’s been a part of the Canadian basketball program since [he was] a little guy, always played up.”

Coach K also praised Barrett for not becoming jealous of the attention given to teammate Zion Williamson, who is about to become the face of the New Orleans Pelicans after he’s chosen at No. 1 on Thursday.

“And what says a lot about him is his relationship with Zion,” Coach K said. “You know, the two of them could [have been] very jealous of one another, envious.  [Instead] they became brothers.  Literally.  They love one another.  And this kid is a multi-dimensional player.  He would start right away.  He has the potential to be a double-double guy.  He’s a great defensive rebounder, and if he gets the defensive rebound he can push, and he can play one through four.  Because he can pass too.  As he grows, there’ll be times in this kid’s career where the triple-double will happen more than once.  He’s a star.  There’s no question.  Beautiful, beautiful kid.”

That's unless craziness happens (ie the Pelicans trade up with the Grizzlies or Knicks to snatch him). But I'll save that post for the Garland thread.

Barrett will likely be the closest to a sure-thing at the 3rd pick. There may be better players picked after him, but I'm figuring that he'd have a more promising and productive year than Kevin Knox last year. Physically he's a more finished product - he was basically done growing a year or two ago and his body is notably more physically mature.

As a rookie I'm picturing 15ppg/6rpg/4apg on 42%fg/33%3pt/70%ft and potential ROY honors as he basically shares PG responsibilities on the team from the wing position.

I think he'll have an easier time in the NBA, at least enough to put up strong numbers, if not win. While Duke may have had the most talented roster in the NCAA, their skill sets didn't mesh well (no shooters - esp with Cam Reddish underperforming greatly alongside Zion/RJ) so while you saw a lot of highlight ball from them, you didn't see a lot of beautiful basketball. While the Knicks don't have a lot of shooters, they have guys that run the floor well and can get buckets in half-court sets. Mitchell Robinson along with Knox are very capable finishing targets.

Judging by some of the improvements year-to-year from many freshmen into soph players, at the very least we'd expect his FT% improve and his handle to tighten a bit.

fishmike wrote:

martin wrote:

Tweet was deleted or there was problem with the URL:

https://twitter.com/StevePopper/status/1141714842182651904

I feel lucky we are here to draft him. Everyone kills the Knicks luck, we were the only team that was at the bottom of the lottery and didnt get hosed.

Exactly. In a more likely Knicks world we would be arguing over the 5th best prospect in this draft (as Garland is becoming the consensus 4th.) We would likely be drafting a player like Reddish or Culver and convincing ourselves that player can becoming the foundation of our rebuild. That is typical Knicks. Barrett is not. He is a player everyone is trying to trade up to 2 to get. He is a perfect wing playmaker for the new NBA. He would likely have gone #1 over Ayton last year, given the year he had. No real red flags, other than a not so great jumper that will improve. I'm excited about this one. It was so important for this franchise to land a top 3 pick, and for once we had luck on our side.

fishmike wrote:

Knixkik wrote:

fishmike wrote:

martin wrote:

Tweet was deleted or there was problem with the URL:

https://twitter.com/StevePopper/status/1141714842182651904

I feel lucky we are here to draft him. Everyone kills the Knicks luck, we were the only team that was at the bottom of the lottery and didnt get hosed.

Exactly. In a more likely Knicks world we would be arguing over the 5th best prospect in this draft (as Garland is becoming the consensus 4th.) We would likely be drafting a player like Reddish or Culver and convincing ourselves that player can becoming the foundation of our rebuild. That is typical Knicks. Barrett is not. He is a player everyone is trying to trade up to 2 to get. He is a perfect wing playmaker for the new NBA. He would likely have gone #1 over Ayton last year, given the year he had. No real red flags, other than a not so great jumper that will improve. I'm excited about this one. It was so important for this franchise to land a top 3 pick, and for once we had luck on our side.

**** an A man! HELLS YEA. RJ was consensus #1 pick coming into the year. He didnt drop to 3 so much as Zion and Ja showed some other worldly skills. I am so excited about the type of player we are getting both on the court and between the ears.

Yeah i remember this was viewed last year as a very weak draft with only Barrett being considered a franchise caliber player. Reddish and Zion both had upside but Reddish had motor issues and Zion had concerns about how his body and game would translate. Obviously Zion's stock skyrocketed, and like most years, there was a player that came out of nowhere in Ja. But Barrett averaged 23, 8, and 4 as an 18 year old at Duke and showed why he was exactly what he was expected to be, only difference is those other 2 guys boosted this draft and leapfrogged him.