Player The Burgeoning 3&D American Sign Language Consulate of Carter Bryant

[scott]

Seems to me that there was a pretty significant drop off right after pick #13, transitioning from blue-chip ready-to-contribute guys to development guys or older players.

Sorber is the only guy on the board at #14 I had rated ahead of Bryant, but the Spurs may have had Korndog plans already, or maybe they didn't love the medicals.

Guard was out of the question so realistically the only guys on the board that I think would have fit that I personally liked (and my opinion means nothing) were Drake Powell, Asa Newell, Hugo Gonzalez, McNeeley, Niederhauser, Fleming, Penda, Kalkbrenner, Raynaud... and IMO all of them would have been reaches (Powell was the next one taken, 8 picks later at 22).

All that is to say that the "Spurs can't draft outside of the Top 4" based on THIS pick, seems a very premature take.

 

[dn0774]

Carter's rookie stats are eerily similar to Tidjane Salaun's rookie stats when playing time is normalized (10/8 for both per 36) on almost identical shooting splits (both horrid). I can only hope that Carter can show the kind of offensive progress in his sophomore season that Salaun has so far. Tidjane has more size/length but Carter is way more athletic. Sucks that this is the comparison cope I am reduced to, though.

Just saying, there is precedent for guys being completely lost in their first season or two and still putting it together.

 

[CGD]

I’m hitting snooze on this assessment until a year from now. I think (hope) he’s quite talented and just getting used to the NBA game. Typical for 90% of rookies outside the top 5.

If anything, all this makes me appreciate how damn special Harper is.

 

[CGD]

Carter's rookie stats are eerily similar to Tidjane Salaun's rookie stats when playing time is normalized (10/8 for both per 36) on almost identical shooting splits (both horrid). I can only hope that Carter can show the kind of offensive progress in his sophomore season that Salaun has so far. Tidjane has more size/length but Carter is way more athletic. Sucks that this is the comparison cope I am reduced to, though.

Just saying, there is precedent for guys being completely lost in their first season or two and still putting it together.

TJ has been playing well of late btw.

 

[Itzsoweezee]

Carter's rookie stats are eerily similar to Tidjane Salaun's rookie stats when playing time is normalized (10/8 for both per 36) on almost identical shooting splits (both horrid). I can only hope that Carter can show the kind of offensive progress in his sophomore season that Salaun has so far. Tidjane has more size/length but Carter is way more athletic. Sucks that this is the comparison cope I am reduced to, though.

Just saying, there is precedent for guys being completely lost in their first season or two and still putting it together.

And tidjane was playing on a terrible team and getting a ton of opportunities to play a lot of minutes and make a lot of mistakes. CB does not have that luxury on the Spurs

 

[scott]

TJ has been playing well of late btw.

A great reminder not to count the chickens before they hatch.

Lots of people patting themselves on the back for "being right about Sochan" - but people also wrote off Reed Sheppard, Salaun, Cody Williams, etc... and all those guys are showing something to various degrees this year.

Just a reminder that the draft can truly be a crap shoot. I post this chart all the time, because it's one of my favorites. Once you get outside of the top 10, the median expected value for these picks is somewhere between bust and rotation level player... yet everyone wants to proclaim we suck at drafting if we don't pick a hall-of-famer with every pick.

 

[spurraider21]

Seems to me that there was a pretty significant drop off right after pick #13, transitioning from blue-chip ready-to-contribute guys to development guys or older players.

Sorber is the only guy on the board at #14 I had rated ahead of Bryant, but the Spurs may have had Korndog plans already, or maybe they didn't love the medicals.

Guard was out of the question so realistically the only guys on the board that I think would have fit that I personally liked (and my opinion means nothing) were Drake Powell, Asa Newell, Hugo Gonzalez, McNeeley, Niederhauser, Fleming, Penda, Kalkbrenner, Raynaud... and IMO all of them would have been reaches (Powell was the next one taken, 8 picks later at 22).

All that is to say that the "Spurs can't draft outside of the Top 4" based on THIS pick, seems a very premature take.

i had bryant/coward as pretty neck and neck, with the understanding that the more experienced coward was more pro-ready but Bryant having more size and potentially filling in the 4 spot long term.

but bryant's inexperience is really showing, and its not surprising. not only was he a freshman but he wasnt a heavy minutes/usage player at arizona either. i loved the pick, but ive been very confused why he hasnt been in gleague. i always thought that made the most sense for him to get more run and experience.

 

[Raven_]

he was drafted to be a career role player and he showed excellent potential to be just that. I'm satisfied with that, even though i think he is a massive net negative on the floor, i don't fault the pick, i just don't think we should be playing him this year. With that said, if anybody thinks he's ever going to be doing what keldon or devin do while also being a long defender, well you have to get examined.

 

[scott]

i had bryant/coward as pretty neck and neck, with the understanding that the more experienced coward was more pro-ready but Bryant having more size and potentially filling in the 4 spot long term.

but bryant's inexperience is really showing, and its not surprising. not only was he a freshman but he wasnt a heavy minutes/usage player at arizona either. i loved the pick, but ive been very confused why he hasnt been in gleague. i always thought that made the most sense for him to get more run and experience.

I'll caveat this by saying I don't know much about G-League and don't really have an opinion on it. I do see that DJG is constantly having huge games, and Bassey just had a monster game against us (and is even shooting 46% from 3 on over 2.5 attempts/game)...

But I have seen conversation that the G-League of today isn't the G-League of old. That the quality had really gone downhill and NIL has just made it worse, so maybe the G-League isn't actually all that great of a place to develop young guys.

Whether or not that is accurate, again I don't have a strong opinion... but I found it a compelling enough of an argument that it was worth sharing (I, like you, have wondered why CB isn't getting run in Austin)

 

[spurraider21]

I'll caveat this by saying I don't know much about G-League and don't really have an opinion on it. I do see that DJG is constantly having huge games, and Bassey just had a monster game against us (and is even shooting 46% from 3 on over 2.5 attempts/game)...

But I have seen conversation that the G-League of today isn't the G-League of old. That the quality had really gone downhill and NIL has just made it worse, so maybe the G-League isn't actually all that great of a place to develop young guys.

Whether or not that is accurate, again I don't have a strong opinion... but I found it a compelling enough of an argument that it was worth sharing (I, like you, have wondered why CB isn't getting run in Austin)

i mean the guy just needs minutes on a basketball court, whether its at arizona, in austin, or in san antonio. if we were a lotto dwelling team again, sure give him minutes up here and we suffer the growing pains. but if not, let him get extended run somewhere. its not like hes currently an indispensable part of our forward rotation

 

[scott]

i mean the guy just needs minutes on a basketball court, whether its at arizona, in austin, or in san antonio. if we were a lotto dwelling team again, sure give him minutes up here and we suffer the growing pains. but if not, let him get extended run somewhere. its not like hes currently an indispensable part of our forward rotation

I'm not disagreeing with you... but I think there is some cut-off of competition where CB's 5 minutes of NBA basketball and daily practice/shootarounds with the team is more valuable than whatever he'd get elsewhere. For example... what he's doing now is certainly more useful than a bunch of pickup games at Planet Fitness.

Whether or not the G-League is above or below that cutoff... I have no idea. But it seems like the Spurs have decided it's below.

 

[Raven_]

I'll caveat this by saying I don't know much about G-League and don't really have an opinion on it. I do see that DJG is constantly having huge games, and Bassey just had a monster game against us (and is even shooting 46% from 3 on over 2.5 attempts/game)...

But I have seen conversation that the G-League of today isn't the G-League of old. That the quality had really gone downhill and NIL has just made it worse, so maybe the G-League isn't actually all that great of a place to develop young guys.

Whether or not that is accurate, again I don't have a strong opinion... but I found it a compelling enough of an argument that it was worth sharing (I, like you, have wondered why CB isn't getting run in Austin)

i think the idea is to just get him to handle the ball more and play in real nba sets so that he can be a better overall player when he comes up, but i think the front office is happy enough with him being strictly a catch and shooter from distance and long defender that never keeps the ball longer than for a second, hence no point in training the rest.

 

[dn0774]

TJ has been playing well of late btw.

Which is what I said lol.

 

[rogcl1]

I'm not disagreeing with you... but I think there is some cut-off of competition where CB's 5 minutes of NBA basketball and daily practice/shootarounds with the team is more valuable than whatever he'd get elsewhere. For example... what he's doing now is certainly more useful than a bunch of pickup games at Planet Fitness.

Whether or not the G-League is above or below that cutoff... I have no idea. But it seems like the Spurs have decided it's below.

I understand what you are saying as somewhere there is a cutoff point where real game NBA experience and actual playing time and reps come together. I do not think he should be banished to the Austin Spurs long term,but I just believe that reps and playing a lot of basket ball will benefit him. Especially on offense, Reps, Reps, Reps. I understand it is a balancing act . He can be closely supervised for a stint in Austin so as not to develop bad habits. It also seems the Spurs do not want Sochan to step on the court so I suppose that also might play into the decision. He is so young so we will see in a year or two.

 

[Teku]

Not sure where all this questioning is coming from. If he is seen as part of the future then surely building chemistry with the core team now, while soaking up HB's professionalism and experience in his eventual long term role, is greater than any extended burn with unfamiliar inferior players.

 

[rogcl1]

Not sure where all this questioning is coming from. If he is seen as part of the future then surely building chemistry with the core team now, while soaking up HB's professionalism and experience in his eventual long term role, is greater than any extended burn with unfamiliar inferior players.

I believe most everyone acknowledges that it is a two sided coin with possible benefits on both sides. A legitimate topic for discussion.

 

[The Truth #6]

Between a rock and a hard place with Sochan and Bryant. Seems like they don't want to trade Sochan yet, but can't afford to not have Bryant available with Vic coming and going.

To me, this is still a Sochan problem in that we don't have a normal sized 4 we can count on. This situation luckily is where Wright has been great in finding affordable vets that bad teams are moving on from - but we'll have to wait until the trade deadline to see if Wright can weasel his way into a three team trade type of thing to get said griseled power forward.

Bryant is not great it seems but he's learning on the fly. And he can eventually be solid in a limited but needed role in the future. He's had a few flashes. He works hard.

The team is still ahead of schedule. Personally, I'm happy where we are and don't care a huge amount about this right now.

 

[rogcl1]

Not sure where all this questioning is coming from. If he is seen as part of the future then surely building chemistry with the core team now, while soaking up HB's professionalism and experience in his eventual long term role, is greater than any extended burn with unfamiliar inferior players.

I do not think he should be banished to Austin as NBA experience is invaluable. However there may be a point in his development where extended reps and playing time might be beneficial.

 

[scott]

Between a rock and a hard place with Sochan and Bryant. Seems like they don't want to trade Sochan yet, but can't afford to not have Bryant available with Vic coming and going.

To me, this is still a Sochan problem in that we don't have a normal sized 4 we can count on. This situation luckily is where Wright has been great in finding affordable vets that bad teams are moving on from - but we'll have to wait until the trade deadline to see if Wright can weasel his way into a three team trade type of thing to get said griseled power forward.

Bryant is not great it seems but he's learning on the fly. And he can eventually be solid eventually in a limited but needed role in the future. He's had a few flashes. He works hard.

The team is still ahead of schedule. Personally, I'm happy where we are and don't care a huge amount about this right now.

I think we'll get our first indication within the next 48 hours. Lindy and Bismack deals get fully guaranteed on Jan 7. Whether or not they are still on the roster on the 8th might tell us something about Brian's plans.

 

[Sugus]

I guess I’m the only CB fan left. The guy is ridiculously athletic. Like top 5% in the league, maybe. If he gets to the point offensively that he can play heavy minutes, the Spurs’ defense will be unmatched.

He's a rookie still learning the speed of the game. There’s nothing I’ve seen from him that suggests he’s unskilled or lacks bbiq. He just needs some time and is, unfortunately for him, on a really good team with really high expectations.

Nah, I'm still sitting solid on the CB Island as well. Your points are all good and the context matters a lot in judging him.

Everyone's ragging on him for his recent missed dunks, but none of them looked particularly worrisome within the context of the games - either got fouled or was too out of control.

He's a sleeper hit for a playoff breakout, IMO. Sometimes they grow up at just the right time...

 

[rogcl1]

Nah, I'm still sitting solid on the CB Island as well. Your points are all good and the context matters a lot in judging him.

Everyone's ragging on him for his recent missed dunks, but none of them looked particularly worrisome within the context of the games - either got fouled or was too out of control.

He's a sleeper hit for a playoff breakout, IMO. Sometimes they grow up at just the right time...

I am a big fan of CB . I could care less about the dunks. Bottom line is it doesn't matter how he gets to the end result as long as he has the best opportunity to get there.

 

[KobesAchilles]

Did RC step off the team during the off-season and I didn't hear about it?! I don't think so, but holy shit if he did...

Otherwise, why does it matter? RC was also heavy on the Primo pick tbh so he's not some Nostradamus. I seem to recall some articles round draft time about how the Spurs are very democratic in the "war room", so it's not like RC was single-handedly scouting and picking Dejounte or DWhite anyways.

At the end of the day, it's simply incorrect and stupidly hyperbolic to say that the Spurs cannot draft outside the top 4, when their very own #29 pick is the current leader for the 6MOTY award. I don't think there's an argument there.

I think people meant more specifically Wright than the Spurs as he has had several misses. Also Wright drafted Primo not RC.

RC drafted KJ not Wright. Though to be fair he also drafted Sammich

Wright completely botched the 2022 draft with 3 FRPs. He chose Vassell over Haliburton and Sochan over Williams and Primo over Sengun. Criticism on Wright when he doesn’t pick top 4 is completely valid.

 

[The Truth #6]

If Wemby gets back on the court, our shooters get back to competency, and we somehow return to blowing teams out again, then yeah, Carter can get more time in the 4th quarter. I mean, it's not impossible.

 

[ambchang]

He’s a project so he’s supposed to be bad early. There are some good skills to have at this point, I’m not expecting him to be an mvp, superstar, all star or even a star. All he has to be is a starter good bench and I’m good.

 

[Chinook]

While I have nothing against Bryant going to Austin for a couple of games to get run, those should only come when the Spurs have a couple of days off. I'm very glad that he's not in Austin learning how to be a "star" like the numerous prospects of the team's past. Coming in for a few minutes to guard good NBA players and move around the court is good for him. As far as integrating with the system and fixing that shot, that will take time.

Maybe after a trade or a buyout signing, the team will have legit depth at forward and won't need Bryant to fill that role. I don't blame them for not wanting Sochan as the sole injury replacement at the moment.