M2N

[1SE]

I don't think we have a dedicated M2N thread this year? Could have boosted last year's but let's start fresh with a poll.

Where do you think Markus will go in the draft? How much do you think MU's team success this year determines if/where he gets drafted? Is there a definitive composite board somewhere? The ones I've seen have him ~40 right now, which seems pretty reasonable to me at this stage.

[MU82]

Team success will have very little meaning to NBA scouts and, ultimately, GMs. With one exception ...

Can our All-American pull off a Kemba (or at least something close to it) in the NCAA tourney?

Scouts and GMs already know exactly who Markus is and what he does. A good finish to the regular season could lift him a notch or 4, but it would take an NCAA stretch for the ages to really boost his status IMHO.

[Galway Eagle]

DJO went 52 and had more size and hops so I'm saying low 2nd

[The Sultan]

DJO went 52 and had more size and hops so I'm saying low 2nd

Nowhere near the scorer and ball handler.

[StillWarriors]

DJO went 52 and had more size and hops so I'm saying low 2nd

Nowhere near the scorer and ball handler.

DJO was drafted for his athleticism; Markus will be drafted because he is elite at a highly valued skill.

[tower912]

If you hadn't added the snark about a late season collapse that hasn't happened yet, I would have voted undrafted.   Great player.  All time scorer.  5'11 is the tiny elephant in the room.    If he was 6'3, he would be the next Curry and already in the league.

[The Sultan]

Someone will take him in the second round.

[tower912]

I hope you are right.

[MUfan12]

No doubt in my mind he gets drafted. He'll bounce between the G-League and the end of an NBA bench, but he'll get drafted.

[1SE]

If you hadn't added the snark about a late season collapse that hasn't happened yet, I would have voted undrafted.   Great player.  All time scorer.  5'11 is the tiny elephant in the room.    If he was 6'3, he would be the next Curry and already in the league.

I have a very hard time seeing him going undrafted as the NCAA leading scorer on a high-major team in a very competitive big east, a Wooden finalist and 1st team all-american. If he isn't those things it's likely that he (and by extension the team) will have done very poorly the rest of the season.

[Skip Intro]

I'm 50/50 on him going in the last half of the 2nd round or latching on with someone as an undrafted free agent.  Obviously, height/size is the issue. 

Whether he's drafted or not, I think he'll start out in the G-League.  Teams are going to want to see how he performs against NBA length.  There's a chance he makes it work (like Fred VanVleet), but if it doesn't after a season in the G-League, I think he'll happily move on to Europe. 

[Galway Eagle]

I have a very hard time seeing him going undrafted as the NCAA leading scorer on a high-major team in a very competitive big east, a Wooden finalist and 1st team all-american. If he isn't those things it's likely that he (and by extension the team) will have done very poorly the rest of the season.

Scottie Reynolds

[Its DJOver]

Scottie Reynolds

18.2 ppg Senior Year vs 28.4 ppg (so far) Senior Year.
21.8% Assist % Senior Year vs 25.1 Assist % (so far) Senior Year.
15% TO % Senior Year vs 12.3 TO % (so far) Senior Year.

[Galway Eagle]

18.2 ppg Senior Year vs 28.4 ppg (so far) Senior Year.
21.8% Assist % Senior Year vs 25.1 Assist % (so far) Senior Year.
15% TO % Senior Year vs 12.3 TO % (so far) Senior Year.

I voted Markus gets drafted late 2nd round but I'm just playing devils advocate here. There is a precedent for a First team all Americans on an outstanding team to not get drafted.

[cheebs09]

I feel like he would be a good player for a playoff team to pick later in the second round. If he's able to play at an NBA level, you've just picked up a heck of a shooter off the bench.

He's proven that he can make tough shots and create looks for himself. Maybe an NBA training program helps him overcome his size issue. The difference between Wes Matthews now than in his MU videos was staggering.

[1SE]

I voted Markus gets drafted late 2nd round but I'm just playing devils advocate here. There is a precedent for a First team all Americans on an outstanding team to not get drafted.

Sure - but not when that All American is also the NCAA leading scorer (currently by 5 points over the next high-major player). If Markus finishes the season in that position (and as a first-team all american), and isn't drafted I would be majorly surprised.

[Elonsmusk]

Think he's definitely drafted and definitely sticks on NBA roster (No G-League).  I think he'd be a great pick for the Bucks. 

He's one of those special kids that you don't bet against, and if I'm a GM with a late first round pick, I consider using it on Markus.

However, he's probably going to be a second rounder, but can see many teams kicking themselves for not taking him as the numbers/production/shooting ability/character, don't lie.  He's a Malcolm Brogdon 2.0 - and yes, I know he's much shorter.

[Goose]

My thoughts on Howard have shifted over the past month or so and I think he gets drafted and sticks on a NBA team.

[MU82]

Sure - but not when that All American is also the NCAA leading scorer (currently by 5 points over the next high-major player). If Markus finishes the season in that position (and as a first-team all american), and isn't drafted I would be majorly surprised.

Scouts/GMs don't care about college awards or stats. All they care about is how this question is answered: What is this player's chance of successfully filling a role at the game's highest level?

I would think Markus might be attractive to a team that has a few very good drive-and-dish players who could create wide-open looks for a guy of Markus' shooting ability. Whether he could carve out a role as something more than a few-minute-per-game guy to spread the court would be up to how well a team could hide him on defense.

I'm not even saying Markus is a "bad" defender. He's just extremely small ... and he isn't one of those "tiny pest" kind of small defenders who can hound an offensive player and force turnovers -- at least he hasn't shown he has that in his game. Just about every NBA team would be able to easily exploit a matchup against Markus, and that is a major deal.

But yes, Markus is an elite shooter and a fierce competitor. I would think that would appeal to at least a few teams.

[Jockey]

If you hadn't added the snark about a late season collapse that hasn't happened yet, I would have voted undrafted.   Great player.  All time scorer.  5'11 is the tiny elephant in the room.    If he was 6'3, he would be the next Curry and already in the league.

Five years ago, I would have agreed with this. But with so many teams using spot up 3-point shooters, I think he will be drafted and make a roster. Depending on what is available to teams late in the 1st round, he could go then, but I am expecting mid-to-late 2nd round.

His height will certainly limit his minutes, though, because you gotta play defense 50% of the time on the floor. He will also need to learn to play more without the ball. He has become outstanding running corner to corner off of screens, but he is obviously used to having the ball in his hands a lot at MU.

[tower912]

Five years ago, I would have agreed with this. But with so many teams using spot up 3-point shooters, I think he will be drafted and make a roster. Depending on what is available to teams late in the 1st round, he could go then, but I am expecting mid-to-late 2nd round.

His height will certainly limit his minutes, though, because you gotta play defense 50% of the time on the floor. He will also need to learn to play more without the ball. He has become outstanding running corner to corner off of screens, but he is obviously used to having the ball in his hands a lot at MU.

The other thing is this.   What type of defender gives Markus the most trouble?    Long armed defenders who are as quick as he is.    What is nearly every single guard in the NBA?    A long armed defender who is as quick as he is.    I hope I am wrong.     He is an amazing player and an amazing representative of our university.   I just keep doing a mental check of sub 6' players in the NBA and compare them to Markus.      I hope his truly elite shooting skills are enough. 

[Pakuni]

I'm thinking early second, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if a good team drafting late in the first takes a flier on him.
Markus this year has really improved his ability to create his shot, and that will ease a lot of size concerns. Teams will still be nervous about his ability to guard players 4-5 inches taller and more athletic than him, but a late first isn't a huge risk.

[The Sultan]

My hope for him is a poor man's DJ Augustin, but a better shooter. 

[PGsHeroes32]

He's gonna get drafted

That much I'll guarantee

[MU82]

The other thing is this.   What type of defender gives Markus the most trouble?    Long armed defenders who are as quick as he is.    What is nearly every single guard in the NBA?    A long armed defender who is as quick as he is.    I hope I am wrong.     He is an amazing player and an amazing representative of our university.   I just keep doing a mental check of sub 6' players in the NBA and compare them to Markus.      I hope his truly elite shooting skills are enough.

IMHO the team that is thinking seriously about drafting Markus will not be planning to use him in situations in which he would be closely guarded by long-armed defenders. Markus has to have the ball in his hands for us -- a lot. At the next level, I think he would primarily be used as a spot-up shooter -- the guy who stands outside the arc, with his hands in a ready-to-catch position, spreading the court for his team. If his defender leaves him to help on a driver, Markus could simply catch and shoot before the defender recovers to challenge him. I think that would be the plan, anyway.