Mock Draft Review 7. Alperen Sengun and Usman Garuba. & Open Thread

The big multidimensional Euroleague prospects

This is a series of reviews of published mock drafts. Why do this?

1. It’s fun.

2. We are not looking for a precise prediction of draft order. This is a good chance to see the range of players that draft experts think GSW should be drafting outside of the Top 5. 

3. Some of the drafts come from before the lottery, but it’s okay because they were already predicting GSW would pick #6 and #14, so they are proposing players in the right range.

Now you might think the Warriors are going to trade the picks to get immediate help for next season. I kind of think this too. However, it’s impossible to evaluate a trade and its opportunity cost without looking at what the draft picks might net you.

So without further ado, these mock drafts are from Givony, ESPN and Vecenie, The Athletic

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#14 Alperen Sengun

Givony, ESPN: After adding a promising wing earlier in the draft [they took Keon Johnson #6], the Warriors could look to improve in the frontcourt, where the team is thin in terms of depth and has little in the way of scoring prowess. Sengun is one of the most productive players in the draft, and his old-school style of play could be a strong fit alongside the likes of Draymond Green and James Wiseman.

NBA Draft Room Comp: Tyler Hansbrough

Sam Vecenie, The Athletic: Sengun is putting up one of the most productive teenage seasons in recent European basketball history. As our John Hollinger outlined last week, the numbers Sengun is putting up in Turkey are dominant and preposterous at the same time. He is second in the league in scoring, rebounding and blocks. As John pointed out, Sengun’s PER would be the highest of the decade, and his 32.9 PER leads the Turkish league by a wide margin. From a scouting perspective, he can really finish inside, has a great nose for the basket and a great feel for getting separation. His hands are elite. The only problem comes on defense, where I’m pretty skeptical he’s going to be able to guard anyone because he’s a 6-9 center.

Kevin O’Connor, The Ringer: SHADES OF Nikola Vucevic, Domantas Sabonis, Enes Kanter

PLUSES

• He’s a dancer on the low post. He has unbelievable footwork, doesn’t predetermine his moves, and he can finish through tons of contact using either hand from difficult angles. He lives at the free throw line.

• Sets strong screens and finishes at a high level on rolls to the rim thanks to his good hands and feel. He’ll use spins, fakes, and pivots to create space off the bounce. He can also finish loudly if he has space to leap.

• Excellent passer with the upside to be an offensive hub. He facilitates from the post, the elbows, and even brings the ball up the court. 

• Untapped shooting potential: He shot nearly 80 percent from the line this past year and has good touch around the rim.

• Heat-seeking missile as an offensive rebounder.

• Good on-ball defensive potential if his athleticism improves in the pros. He has fluidity but needs to work on his technique.

• Active off-ball defender. His hustle and spirit are major positives when projecting forward as he continues to hone his fundamentals and discipline.

MINUSES

• He’s a nonshooter right now, but he has potential if he changes his mechanics—he has inconsistent footwork and it looks like his off-hand might be affecting his shot. 

• He’s undersized as a true center so it might be a challenge for him to battle on the post against larger bigs.

• What is his position defensively? His slow feet and lack of verticality and length hold him back, meaning he’ll need to learn to be a positional defender.

Givony, ESPN: After adding a promising wing earlier in the draft (they took Keon Johnson #6), the Warriors could look to improve in the frontcourt, where the team is thin in terms of depth and has little in the way of scoring prowess. Sengun is one of the most productive players in the draft, and his old-school style of play could be a strong fit alongside the likes of Draymond Green and James Wiseman.

#14 Usman Garuba

NBA Draft Room Comp: faster Tristan Thompson

Sam Vecenie, The Athletic: Defense, defense, defense. Garuba is already one of the best defenders in Europe as a teenager and profiles as a potential All-Defense Team guy in the NBA by the time he’s 25. He can really defend on the interior, with terrific fundamentals for verticality and weak-side shot blocking. His ability to slide his feet and drop his hips laterally is ridiculous, and his instincts as a pick-and-roll defender are terrific. The problems come on offense. He’s still not a particularly effective player on that end, but there have been signs of progress. He had two games last week against Anadolu Efes in EuroLeague play that were positive signs, including a ridiculous 24-point, 12-rebound performance. He also has been making more 3s recently, but it’s going to take some time.

Kevin O’Connor, The Ringer: SHADES OF OG Anunoby, Kenneth Faried

Hyper defender who always makes the extra effort but needs to define an offensive role.

• On-Ball Defense

• Hustle

PLUSES

• Plays with elite defensive effort and intelligence. He’s always locked in and flies around the floor for blocked shots, steals, and deflections.

• Switchable defender with the bulk to handle bigger players and the agility to match up against quicker wings and even guards. He’s aware and does a good job of using his hands to shut passing windows.

• Skilled passer who immediately finds the open man and delivers the ball with precision. If his scoring improves, he could facilitate in the half court using dribble handoffs and his solid handle.

• A strong rebounder and a threat to push the ball on the break if he’s not outleting it to a sprinting teammate.

MINUSES

• He doesn’t have a big vertical, which hurts him as a finisher around the rim.

• Struggles shooting the ball. He has a poor percentage from the line and hasn’t shown much touch away from the rim. Past opponents left him wide open behind the arc, just as they will in the NBA.

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Brief Thoughts

Sengun has sneaky post moves for miles and miles. The footwork is so dazzling. The passing looks okay. If he were drafted, I would imagine GSW throwing the ball to him in the post, Steph and Klay running a split cut and the defense having to respect his post moves if the play breaks down. But ultimately, I can’t get that excited about him.

Garuba is my kind of player. Thrilling blocks that are under control and to teammates; those swats into the stands look cool but are ultimately just shot clock resets for the other team. He looks like he can guard 1-4 (he’s only 6-8, 7-2 wingspan though). Not completely convinced he can guard a big bully. He already runs an offense well as the short roll and as the post passer to split cuts! He looks like he could be a small ball center for GSW tomorrow. The only caution is the height, as he has no wing skills. A reach at #7 but I’d be happy to grab him at #14.

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