With the 3rd pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, the Atlanta Hawks select…
The Atlanta Hawks will have the 3rd pick in the upcoming 2018 NBA Draft, June 21. With this pick, I believe they will select Slovenian guard Luka Doncic, who played for Real Madrid in Spain last year.
Pros:
Doncic has been playing for Real Madrid in the EuroLeague ever since he was 16 years old and this last season won the EuroLeague MVP. The EuroLeague is considered the second most competitive league in the world behind the NBA, so Doncic has been playing against high talent for a long time.
At 6′ 8″ in height, 19 year old Doncic has great court vision and ball handling and can play either point or shooting guard. Overall, he is the best playmaker in the draft. He also has one of the most complete games in the draft and shows no glaring weakness in skill. Doncic can create his shot in any situation with a variety of moves from floaters, to layups, to his jumper.
Owing to his experience, Doncic is easily the safest pick in the Draft and is the most NBA ready.
Cons:
Doncic’s weakest part of his game shows up in his athleticism. While he is very fundamentally sound, he lacks quickness and agility. These detriments affect his ability to defend an opposition one-on-one and also hinder his effectiveness in isolation situations on offense.
Doncic was also inconsistent with his shot, only making 31.6% of threes last season. But this concern should not be a major worry as he has good form and lots of confidence.
Conclusion:
As former MVP of the EuroLeague, Doncic already has years of playing professional basketball overseas under his belt. This experience will help his transition to the NBA. While not a super flashy or athletic player, he provides an NBA ready talent who will immediately bolster his team’s playmaking ability. My player comparison for Doncic is Manu Ginobili.
Trades:
With their current point guard Dennis Schroder available for trade, the Hawks could use this draft to find the point guard of their future. There have been reports that they are high on Trae Young and could move back in the draft to get him.
With the 19th and 30th picks in the 2018 NBA Draft, the Atlanta Hawks select…
The back end of this draft class is full of guards. Some options for #19 are French point guard Elie Okobo or UCLA guard Aaron Holiday. For #30 they could look at Duke guards Gary Trent Jr. or Grayson Allen.
I think Atlanta does trade pick to get Trae Young. By trading back i think they will pick up more picks that they could use to get a veteran. I like that Doncic kid, however i don’t think he is strong enough and like you said lacks the athleticism to stay in front of NBA defenders. If they won’t to turn it around they go after the enigma who is Trae Young !!!
Good thought! Thanks for the comment!