Golden State Warriors 2015 NBA Draft Preview
Honorable Mentions
Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Robert Upshaw: A 7-footer with a great physical profile, Upshaw has been on his way up draft boards for a while now. His numbers show that he has the potential to ball with the best of them, but two college dismissals — the first from Fresno State, the other being Washington — has many first-round teams shying away from him.
Pat Connaughton: This athletic wingman opened a lot of eyes at the Combine, posting great overall numbers in many categories. His scoring ability isn’t at all in question, but does he have any upside defensively? And will his blooming career as a professional baseball player get in the way of his basketball commitments?
Joseph Young: He’s one of the best scoring talents in the draft class, but he’ll be 23 after the draft and his 6-foot-2-inch, 182 pound doesn’t help his draft stock. Nevertheless, his athleticism and feel for the game offensively project him as being a solid bench scorer. Whether he puts the same effort in defensively as he does offensively remains to be seen.
Tyler Harvey: One of the country’s best shot-creators last season, there’s no question about Harvey being a proven all-around scorer. However, some scouts see him as one-dimensional, and he didn’t really display a willingness to get his teammates involved or make plays defensively.
Michael Frazier: The Dubs need shooting off the bench, and this guy fits the bill. While some may feel like he’s a bit small at the shooting guard position standing at about 6-feet-4-inches, he’s still proven to be a capable defender at his position, using his 6-foot-8-inch wingspan and strong athletic ability. Plays like a prototypical shooting guard.
Richaun Holmes: Not much data on the power forward out of Bowling Green, but his showing at the Draft Combine reportedly went well. His name fell alongside Golden State’s recently in a mock draft and has since been relocated, but he could possibly fit into that stretch-four role off the bench with a little more polish.
Guillermo Hernangomez: He’d likely be a draft-and-stash pick, but this physical, 7-foot center out of Spain has a great deal of upside. He’s an all-around offensive talent that has solid fundamentals on that side of the ball, using his size and strength to get the jump on his defender early. However, he has yet to make any improvements defensively and needs to put in some serious work.
Nikola Milutinov: Much like Hernangomez, the 7-foot Milutinov is solid offensively, a bit lacking defensively. He’s much more polished on that end than the aforementioned though, but his skills protecting the rim just aren’t quite there yet. A rather fluid athlete as well, able to play above the rim and run the floor with his team.
Next: T. Rozier