Fraschilla: Mirotic 'top 4' pick in '14 draft

[Roundball_Rock]

What do you guys think about this? A top 5 pick usually projects to be a perennial all-star, although obviously often players fall short of projections. Is Fraschilla right or is he overrating Mirotic?

CHICAGO -- Nikola Mirotic isn't ready to become the next Dirk Nowitzki, according to ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla, but he is still a solid player who would have been a top-four selection in this year's draft had he been available.

"I think he would have been the guy like we said with Jabari Parker, he's the most ready to play in an NBA game right now," Fraschilla said on ESPN 1000's "Waddle and Silvy Show" on Monday. "And we might have even made the statement Andrew Wiggins may have the most upside, but I honestly think he would have been in the top [few picks]. Let's assume a healthy [Joel] Embiid, you're definitely talking about [Mirotic being] a top-four pick."

"Playing at the level he has for the last four years, he's hitting .330 in Triple-A," Fraschilla said. "And now you're bringing him up to the big leagues. If you're the Chicago Bulls, for example, you're hoping he's going to be a .290 hitter right off the bat."

"Given the way the flow of the league is going with spacing, really a lack of quality inside scorers, the game has become a driving game," Fraschilla said. "And where it fits for the Bulls, especially and particularly if D. Rose is healthy and back to form, is he is a 6-[foot-]10, young floor spacer who can really shoot it. But also has enough skill to be able to drive it on occasion. Play around the basket some. He's got to get a little bit stronger; they're getting an above-average NBA starter at 24 who's not an All-Star quality [player] just yet. You're getting a very good, above-average NBA starter. Given his age it was worth the wait [for him to come over] and I think he'll have a nice impact on this Bulls team, particularly with all the pieces that will return."

http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/bull...ck-in-14-draft

[ljsbb27]

What do you guys think about this? A top 5 pick usually projects to be a perennial all-star, although obviously often players fall short of projections. Is Fraschilla right or is he overrating Mirotic?







http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/bull...ck-in-14-draft

I sure hope so. He projects to be a pretty solid stretch 4 in the NBA, but there are clear cut flaws in his game watching tape on him and reading reviews.

It's always hard for me to get a true read on these foreign prospects. Yes some of them pan out but the majority of them fall extremely short of expectations. For every Dirk Nowitzki there ends up being ten Darko Milicic's. I'll wait and see.

He has skills that should easily transition to the NBA. He is an elite shooter, is pretty fast and fluid for a big, can handle the ball pretty well for a power forward, is a good passer, has high basketball IQ and is experienced.

His main struggles come from physical limitations. He is not that strong and he is not very athletic. His lack of strength and athleticism leads to struggles both on defense guarding guys one on one and on offense being able to score against defenders who are bigger, stronger and more athletic.

Hopefully he can focus on his strengths and continue to work on his opportunities.

He should be able to stretch the floor for us and be a guy who fits in nicely with our team with his high basketball IQ and hard work.

[Rose]

I've watched a lot of him since he got drafted. His skills are easy to see: He's a great shooter, very good scorer. Fairly solid defender to an extent. An intelligent passer, not good really, but he makes the right passes at the right times. Doesn't overdo it in that regard, doesn't force it or anything, but he's not gonna make a play for someone else often, or make a brilliant pass either. Okay rebounder for a stretch 4 guy. He won't ever dominate the glass, but he's not gonna miss a lot of balls he should get either.

The problem is his size/athleticism. How FIBA games are played it doesn't matter much, but his height is ideal for a power forward, but his weight is pretty small, I think he can get stronger, but I don't think that would work for a few reasons.
1. He's an alright athlete at the 4, but if he puts on say 15 pounds of muscle that he needs for defense/to not get killed on the boards.
2. He has the handles to play the 3 if he can't work at the 4. But he's not nearly quick enough to play defense. Let alone create his own shot.

That's what worries me. I don't think he's a bust by any stretch, and I used to believe he could have tweener issues. But I think he'll figure it out and become a really good stretch 4 guy. Maybe a more efficient Ryan Anderson, who can create his own shot. I don't think he'll ever dominate his position like Dirk did, but he'll be a really good starter for a long time.

This video showcases a lot of what he can do.

[Roundball_Rock]

Good posts you two. In terms of impact what are the odds that he can at least match the impact Kukoc gave us? Is that is his ceiling or can he be a level better and become a borderline all-star who makes 1-2 all-star teams a la a Detlef Schrempf or Deng (in terms of impact, not style of play)?

[Rose]

Kukoc level of impact is probably where he gets. If he ever gets with an offensive minded coach, he could probably improve enough to be an all star. I think he's got a serious Ryan Anderson-like potential. And that in a big market, especially in the East right now could make him an all star in 2-3 years. Unless there's a dramatic power shift.

[Roundball_Rock]

I would be happy with either the Kukoc or Anderson scenario! Can he make an impact as a rookie or will he take time to contribute? Anderson did not hit his stride until his fourth year and Kukoc needed a year to learn the ropes, although he did post a solid 11/4/3 out the gate.

[Rose]

Depends. Thibs has a track record of not playing rookies until someone gets injured. I think he can be solid from the get go (he's a very natural scorer/shooter), but he'll take a while to get adjusted to the NBA game I think aside from that. Defense will take him a good amount of time alone, especially under Thibs.

[tamaraw08]

Depends. Thibs has a track record of not playing rookies until someone gets injured. I think he can be solid from the get go (he's a very natural scorer/shooter), but he'll take a while to get adjusted to the NBA game I think aside from that. Defense will take him a good amount of time alone, especially under Thibs.

Thibs should really re-think about his over emphasis on defense to the point of benching guys like Boozer and Dunleavy in crucial situations just bec they were not the best defenders etc esp when they were bleeding for points.
I've watched Doc Rivers and he too is concerned about making defensive stops but he found a way to play Jamaal Crawford, Granger etc, masked their inefficiencies and maximized their talent in the playoffs.
It's not like they were ok offensively vs the Wizards, they flat out sucked!! just like the WHOLE REGULAR SEASON.
You can get away when you play really bad teams like Orlando, Sixers etc but in the playoffs?

[Rose]

Thibs should really re-think about his over emphasis on defense to the point of benching guys like Boozer and Dunleavy in crucial situations just bec they were not the best defenders etc esp when they were bleeding for points.
I've watched Doc Rivers and he too is concerned about making defensive stops but he found a way to play Jamaal Crawford, Granger etc, masked their inefficiencies and maximized their talent in the playoffs.
It's not like they were ok offensively vs the Wizards, they flat out sucked!! just like the WHOLE REGULAR SEASON.
You can get away when you play really bad teams like Orlando, Sixers etc but in the playoffs?

scroll down to see series scoreboard

The Bulls didn't lose because of the lack of points. The team's PPG went up the first 3 games of the series. The Bulls lost because of defense. You can't go from giving up 92 to 98 points the first 4 games, when your teams struggles to hit 93. Thibs was right more often than not. The problem was Thibs defensive schemes went to shit because of Noah being injured (and also not having great perimeter defense) The Wizards averaged 3 corner 3s a game which the defense is geared to stop now. Unfortunately they averaged over 5 a game from just the corner. You can't do that to a team that only gets 7 total in the regular season per game. They absolutely destroyed us from the three point line. Mostly from the corner.


The reason Doc can get away with that is DJ (like Noah but not nearly as effectively) can alter shots. And most of the Clippers roster isn't good defensively anyway. They just play the lanes a lot and hope to god that DJ plays good defense.