- 10 hours ago
Tyler Metcalf joins The Sports Junkies to break down the top NBA prospects.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00Good morning, guys. Good to be with you.
00:02Busy time, week out from the NBA draft.
00:05Darren Peterson making huge headlines yesterday by basically saying,
00:10I will work out for the Washington Wizards.
00:12I've done it in D.C. I've done it in L.A., but I'm not working out for anybody else.
00:17I feel like I'm the number one pick.
00:18Do you like this move by Darren Peterson and his camp?
00:24It's kind of something I feel like we see every year,
00:27where especially the top guys, they kind of try and just limit who they give access to.
00:33And if you're dead set on, hey, no, I'm the number one pick, then act like it, I guess.
00:39I don't have any major issues with it.
00:41I mean, we saw similar things with your guys' young center and Alex Saar,
00:46where he refused to work out for Atlanta.
00:49It's kind of a little reverse situation because Atlanta had the number one pick that year.
00:53And Saar was like, nope, I'm only working out for the Wizards.
00:56And, you know, Ace Bailey didn't work out for the Jazz.
00:59So we see this happen all the time.
01:01And sometimes it influences teams' decisions.
01:03And other times they're like, we don't care.
01:05Ace Bailey, welcome to Utah.
01:07So there seems to be a real disconnect.
01:09And I think with the media, but especially with the fans here,
01:14you know, initially when the card's drawn,
01:16everybody's assuming it's going to be DeBansa.
01:18I know here locally, 85%, we polled, we've done it multiple,
01:2385% are all, they're like, it's AJ.
01:25What are we talking about?
01:25It's AJ.
01:26We don't, it's not AJ.
01:27And I kind of was in that camp too.
01:29I mean, AJ's amazing.
01:30There's nothing not to really like there, right?
01:32The guy's going to be a stud.
01:33I don't really have any doubts about it.
01:35And then I know about the,
01:36everybody knows about what happened in Kansas.
01:37And some people, you know, whatever.
01:39I watched the highlights and go, I don't know.
01:41But then, this is going to sound embarrassing, Darren.
01:44But then I watched the high school highlights.
01:46Not really, it wasn't that long ago.
01:47And it was against elite competition.
01:49And when he had the ball in his hands, that just made Peterson go to another level for me.
01:53And I said, you know what?
01:54Especially with the playoffs are and everything, I think I want a guard like that.
01:58A two-way guy could give you 35 in a playoff game.
02:02And I kind of flipped.
02:04But the fan base here is not flipping.
02:07They're hardcore.
02:08You're getting these rumblings that it's kind of down to these two.
02:13You're getting every sense that the Wizards are serious.
02:16Like, they made a point.
02:17This is what I don't understand.
02:18They made a point from day one saying, this is not a clear-cut one guy.
02:21Why is everybody so all-in on it's AJ or bust?
02:25I don't think NBA people think that way at all.
02:30They absolutely do not.
02:32I don't have any specific intel from the Wizards.
02:37But kind of whoever you talk to across the league,
02:41they're pretty much all going to have someone different at one.
02:44Whether it's AJ, whether it's Darren, whether it's Cam.
02:47And even when you push back, like, oh, you have Cam at one.
02:50That's interesting why.
02:51Man, it's so fluid between those three.
02:53You can't go wrong.
02:54And I really do think that that's the case.
02:56Personally, I have Darren at one, AJ at two, Cam at three, all in the same tier,
03:01all super close.
03:02But Darren is a really special player.
03:05And I love that you brought up the high school stuff.
03:06Because when you watch that compared to the Kansas stuff, you know, ignoring the off-court messaging issues all year,
03:14there was a total disaster.
03:15But just watching the on-court stuff and watching how he moves, it's like, oh, yeah, no,
03:20he was not 100% this year.
03:22And despite that, he still put up some of the most impressive numbers, both box score, shooting,
03:29and advanced stats that we've seen from a freshman guard in a very, very, very long time.
03:35So I think there's way more playmaking to his game than he got to show at Kansas because he was
03:41the only guy out there
03:42who could make a perimeter jumper, who could create his own shot, who could hit movement stuff off the ball.
03:48And when we look at him and AJ just defensively, I think AJ has a higher ceiling as a defender.
03:54But the consistency by far is on Darren's side.
03:57So I love AJ Devansa.
03:59He's kind of like a prototype made in the lab for it to be a number one pick at his
04:04size with his scoring versatility,
04:06his athleticism.
04:08But Darren is really, really special.
04:10Yeah, and that's the thing.
04:12I mean, listen, I'm no expert.
04:14I'm just a fan.
04:15But I listen to all you guys, the NBA guys that follow this, you know, the media guys,
04:21people that they all to a man, they say, if it's about the best talent, it's Darren Peterson.
04:28Listen, well, then what are we looking?
04:29And I'm also reading by the same token, everybody's saying the NBA guys, they're okay on the medicals.
04:35Yeah, it was a disaster.
04:36Who knows what was going on there, messaging, whatever.
04:38I actually buy the creatine thing.
04:39I've taken creatine.
04:40I know how that cramps you up.
04:41And if you're overdosing on it, I can only imagine how awful that could be on your body.
04:47So I actually believe it.
04:50When the NBA guys say they don't have a problem with the medicals,
04:52why do the fans have a problem with the medicals?
04:55No idea.
04:56No idea.
04:57It was just a circus around that whole thing all year.
05:03And that's unfortunately one of the things that Darren is like,
05:07he just doesn't have any interest in being that public facing, doing that public facing stuff,
05:12being all he's about is basketball.
05:14And that's all he cares about.
05:16And 90% of the time, that's exactly what you want out of guys.
05:21But when you have a weird circumstance like he had all year, that's where that 10% comes into play.
05:27It's like, oh, man, we have to do better on the messaging here, whether it's from the Kansas side,
05:31whether it's from Darren Peterson's camp.
05:33Because he was kind of getting treated with kid gloves by his camp.
05:38And they were really concerned and being super, super, super cautious with it.
05:44But the messaging all year was just a disaster.
05:47And they allowed it to get to a place where they let media and people who have no connection or
05:54no knowledge of anything that's going on just run in whatever direction they wanted to.
05:59We saw it from, you know, debate shows on TV who had to do nothing with the NBA draft or
06:06college basketball.
06:07And they're running wild with random stories that they feel like they can run with because Peterson's camp in Kansas
06:13allowed it to get to that point.
06:15So I really do think it was just a messaging issue because everyone I've talked to, I've really tried to
06:21be like,
06:21hey, man, is Darren a head case?
06:23Is he kind of like a diva?
06:25Is there some real issues here?
06:26It's like, no, kid just cares about basketball.
06:28You know, some people in his camp, you know, maybe they're a little more high maintenance.
06:31But welcome to today's NBA where everyone's camp is like that.
06:35All right.
06:36So we're talking to Tyler Metcalf, founder of No Ceilings NBA.
06:41Tyler, we have Will Dawkins on the show a bunch throughout the season.
06:46Great guy.
06:47Super great guy.
06:48He likes us.
06:48But, you know, he's not going to give us anything.
06:50Certainly not going to give us anything on air.
06:51But we played this game with Dan Quinn a year or so ago.
06:55We asked him to describe the top draft picks when the Jaden was coming out.
06:58And I can't remember.
07:00What did he describe Jaden as at that time?
07:01Game changer.
07:02Yeah, game changer.
07:03It's kind of like a huge tell.
07:04So we did the same thing with the NBA guys.
07:07And we asked him about Boozer.
07:09And I believe the word he used was consistent.
07:10We asked him about Caleb Wilson.
07:13I believe the word he used was riser.
07:15We asked him about AJ.
07:17Then he said consistent.
07:19But then we said, no, you can't use that.
07:20You've already used that before.
07:22He said, okay, scorer.
07:24And then when we asked him about DP, you know what word he used to describe him?
07:28Fierce.
07:29That's all I needed to hear.
07:31It's a little different.
07:32It's a little different, right?
07:35Yeah.
07:35The other three are a little more tepid.
07:38A little like, oh, this is a little more vanilla.
07:41And he gave you a little more emotion.
07:44He gave you a little more excitement with Peterson there.
07:46Tyler, how big of a gap, in your opinion, do you have between Peterson and DeBonce?
07:52Is it small or is it pretty wide?
07:55Yeah, it's really small.
07:57I have them all in the same tier where I really do think any of Darren, AJ, Cam.
08:04Like, if you have them at one, if any of them go one, I think there is a very, very,
08:09very
08:09valid argument, reason behind it.
08:12Personally, I would go Darren.
08:14But I think any of those three make a lot of sense.
08:17Because, like, when you look at AJ and what he can do with the ball in his hands, it's special.
08:23Like, with those athletic tools, the way that he can get to the rim, get to his spots in the
08:27midrange,
08:28we're rapidly seeing the jumper improve where he's consistently putting more arc on it.
08:32And then at 6'9", 6'10", and choose with that athleticism, he's the prototype of a number one pick.
08:39When he wants to be an awesome defender, he can be.
08:41Just go back to the FIBA stuff from last summer.
08:44Even just a lot of his senior year high school stuff, he was a menace on ball, constantly taking the
08:49toughest defensive assignments.
08:50There's just no consistency on that end of the floor and the off-ball stuff struggles.
08:54So, if we're looking at just pure 100th percentile ceiling, AJ might have the highest ceiling out of anyone in
09:02this draft.
09:03But I think Darren's, like, 95th might be higher.
09:07And the feasibility of him getting to that on both ends of the floor, and that's a big thing for
09:11me.
09:11Doing it on both ends of the floor is a little more likely.
09:14Tyler, what makes Darren Peterson the best guard you've ever scouted?
09:18What is it that jumps out of him?
09:20What makes him different?
09:22Just his ability to effortlessly flow between on-ball reps, off-ball reps, find open teammates, knock down movement threes,
09:30quick decision-making.
09:32There's never any catch survey, now go with him.
09:35It's catch, shoot, catch, dribble, catch, attack downhill, catch, get off of it.
09:38He's playing, you know, one, two, three passes ahead a lot of the time.
09:43And there isn't that tendency that we constantly see from young players of, hey, let me catch, now figure out
09:51where everyone is and what I need to do.
09:53He already knows what he wants to do.
09:55And he's constantly in and out of that from an on-ball roll to an off-ball roll.
10:00And then he shows up on the defensive end, too.
10:03Like, some of the fundamental stuff and consistency needs to improve like it does with all players.
10:07But he's active in passing lanes.
10:09He's got good hand-eye coordination.
10:11He has really good footwork.
10:13And he's competitive on that end of the floor.
10:15So, yeah, just from a well-rounded two-way standpoint and being able to blend the physical with the technical
10:21and the fundamentals,
10:22there really haven't been many guards like him that I've scouted since I've been doing this.
10:27So there was some reporting a couple weeks ago that Boozer was still in the mix there,
10:33that some of the analytical guys could come up with a plausible case.
10:37As you say, Boozer, if anybody takes him, I mean, you're going to be happy, right?
10:40He's going to have a great career, I assume.
10:43But can you rule him out at the very, very top, at the one?
10:48I never want to say never, but based on all the messaging and stuff,
10:52they would have done an incredible job of throwing out smokescreens.
10:57Because no one is talking about Boozer going one.
11:00And even though, you know, some people have him at one, no one is talking about him going at one.
11:06So it would really surprise me.
11:08But he has a really strong case for it.
11:10The guy is an absolute basketball savant, awesome rebounder.
11:15He basically profiled as a point guard this year at Duke, despite being almost 6'10 in shoes and 250
11:22pounds.
11:22So he's an awesome passer, versatile scorer, elite rebounder.
11:27In 90% of drafts, he would be the clear-cut number one pick.
11:32But this isn't those drafts.
11:34Yeah.
11:35How do you compare Peterson to SGA when you scouted SGA coming out of college?
11:41I think Peterson's way more of that actual true shooting guard.
11:46Coming into the year, a lot of people were trying to make him be like,
11:49Oh, no, he's a point guard.
11:50It's like, no, he's not a point guard.
11:51He's never been a point guard.
11:52He improved a ton as a passer and a playmaker in his senior year,
11:55but never to the point of like, oh, I want him initiating and running the offense.
12:00But like as a secondary creator, as that awful scorer, as that true shooting guard,
12:05he reminds me a lot of Anthony Edwards, Devin Booker, Ray Allen in his prime,
12:10Dwayne Wade with a better jumper.
12:12Those kind of guys where, yeah, they can initiate the offense a lot of the time.
12:17They have like really special on-ball creation tools.
12:20They have positive playmaking aspects to their game,
12:23but they're at their best when they're also playing alongside another point guard
12:27and someone who is a little more experienced and comfortable running the offense
12:31and consistently making those decisions and setting up teammates.
12:35The one thing that we've kind of talked about back and forth,
12:37because some guys in this room are for AJ, some are for Darren Peterson, like Eric.
12:44You just talked about him for 10 minutes.
12:46I mean, they're both going to be very good.
12:48Yeah, but you wouldn't be surprised either way, right?
12:51I mean, if Will Dawkins came or the Wizards came out and said,
12:54yeah, we're taking DeBonsa, one, you're not surprised or disappointed.
12:57If they took Peterson, one, you're not surprised or disappointed.
13:01No, not at all.
13:04And, you know, I feel like typically most years,
13:07if there are like multiple names in conversation at one,
13:10it's like, oh man, I can't believe they actually went with that.
13:14But this year it's like, oh, yeah, no, that makes sense.
13:19I expect them to go with AJ, just kind of like everyone else does.
13:22Oh, you do?
13:23You actually do?
13:23If you would bet on AJ?
13:26If I was a betting man, which I'm not,
13:28if I was a betting man, I would probably bet on AJ.
13:31Why?
13:31He makes so much sense.
13:33And the Wizards still have a lot to figure out.
13:36And I think AJ helps expedite that because he's just something that every NBA team dreams about
13:44in terms of building around that type of wing.
13:476'9", 6'10", awesome ball skills, improving, like really rapidly improving as a passer.
13:53Incredible defensive upside.
13:55And he's just almost like made in the lab to be the number one pick.
13:58It's not to say he's the best player, but if you're projecting out of like,
14:02hey, we're going to get the absolute very best out of this guy.
14:06If everything hits, if everything hits that hundredth percentile outcome,
14:09he's probably going to be the best player in this class.
14:12A lot to figure out still.
14:14But, and then just especially like looking at plug and play in terms of who's already on the roster,
14:19where's the biggest hole, I love Keyshawn George, I really like Bilal Koulibaly's defense,
14:26but they don't have that dynamic wing creator offensive engine, and that's exactly what AJ is.
14:33Hey, real quick, before we let you go, just kind of slipping down the draft,
14:37which one of the point guards are you, you know, scoring point guards anyway,
14:43are you most impressed with?
14:44Is it Fleming's?
14:45Is it Brown?
14:46Is it, I'm a big A-cuff junior guy.
14:48I just think if he was 6'6", 6'7", I think he'd be the number one pick in the
14:54draft.
14:55I think he's special, but which ones out of those guys are you most impressed with?
15:00I'm a Michael Brown Jr. guy.
15:03I love the athleticism, like four, five, six-inch growth spurt since his junior year in high school.
15:11Serious vertical bounce, improved a ton as an interior scorer this year.
15:17Lethal shooter, just needs to clean up some of the decision-making stuff with ball security and shot selection,
15:22but much better defender than he gets credit for, and really creative playmaker.
15:27So for me, I love that all five of those kind of top point guards,
15:31and I've kind of resigned myself to the fact that whatever order I have them in,
15:35I'm going to end up just naturally being wrong,
15:38because they're that special, and they're that much fun,
15:41and landing spot for all of them is going to play a huge factor.
15:44But in a vacuum, I have Michael Brown as my point guard one.
15:47Gotcha.
15:48Tyler, thanks so much for the time, man.
15:49We know you're super busy with the NBA draft just a week out.
15:52We appreciate you coming on.
15:54Yeah, thanks, guys.
15:55Thanks, bud.
15:55Of course, it's Tyler Metcalf, founder of No Ceilings NBA.
15:59When we come back, we want to target the A.J. DeBonsa fans out there.
16:04Are you warming up to the possibility that DeBonsa might not be the number one pick here for the Wizards,
16:09that it could be Darren Peterson?
16:11So all of you A.J. DeBonsa marks out there, 800-636-1067, give us a call.
16:18Let us know how you're feeling about the tide turning a bit,
16:22potentially to Darren Peterson being the number one overall pick by the Wizards, 800-636-1067.
16:28We'll take your calls next.
Comments