2011 Rookie Draft Projected Peak Grades

Name Pos INS OUT HAN DEF REB
Alec Burks SG C+ B C C+ C
Alex Stepheson PF C D+ F+ D+ C
Andrew Goudelock SG C- C+ D D+ D
Ben Hansbrough PG C- C C- D+ D+
Bismack Biyombo C C C- D- B- B
Bojan Bogdanovic SF B- B+ C- C C-
Brad Wanamaker PG C C+ C C+ D+
Chandler Parsons SF C+ B C B- C
Charles Jenkins PG C C D+ C D
Chris Singleton SF C C+ D C+ C
Chris Wright (Dayton) SF C C D- C C
Chris Wright (G'town) PG C- C C- D+ D
Cory Higgins SG C C C- D+ D
D.J. Kennedy SF C C D D+ D+
Dairis Bertans SG C- C+ D+ D D-
DeQuan Jones SF C C D- C- C-
Derrick Williams SF B- C+ D C C
Diante Garrett PG C C+ C C D
Donatas Motiejunas PF C+ C+ D+ C C
Drew Gordon PF C C- F+ D C+
Dwight Buycks PG C C+ C C C-
E'Twaun Moore SG C B C C+ D+
Evan Fournier SG C+ B+ C C D+
Fab Melo C C D+ F+ C- C
Festus Ezeli C C D+ D- C+ B
Iman Shumpert SG C+ B- C B C
Isaiah Canaan PG C B- C C D
Jacob Pullen PG C- C C- D D-
JaJuan Johnson PF C D+ D- C- C
Jan Vesely PF C D+ D- C C
Jared Cunningham SG C C C- C- D+
Jeremy Tyler C C D+ D- C C+
Jimmer Fredette PG C B C C- D
Jimmy Butler SF B+ C+ B- A- C
John Henson PF C+ C- D B- C+
John Holland SF C- C D D+ C-
Jon Leuer PF C+ C+ D+ C C+
Jonas Valanciunas C B- B- D+ C+ A-
Jordan Williams C C D+ F+ C- C
Josh Harrellson C C C+ D- C C
Josh Selby PG C C C C- D
Julyan Stone SG C C+ C- C- C-
Justin Harper PF C C D- D+ C-
Justin Holiday SG C B C- C+ C-
Kalin Lucas PG C- C C- D+ D
Keith Benson C C D+ F+ D+ C
Kelly Olynyk C C+ B C- C+ C+
Kenneth Faried PF B- C- D C+ B+
Kevin Jones PF C C- D- D+ C
Kim English SG C- C D+ D+ D
Kostas Papanikolaou SF C C+ C- C C-
Kyle Singler SF C B- D C C-
Lavoy Allen PF C C- D+ C+ B-
Malcolm Delaney PG C C+ C C D
Malcolm Thomas PF C D+ D- C- C+
Marcus Morris SF C+ B+ C- B- C
MarShon Brooks SG C+ C+ C- C C-
Matthew Dellavedova PG C B C+ C+ D+
Mindaugas Kuzminskas SF C C+ D+ C C-
Mychel Thompson SG C- C+ D D+ D-
Nolan Smith PG C C C C D+
Norris Cole PG C C+ C C+ D+
Omari Johnson PF C C+ F+ D+ C-
Reggie Bullock SF C B C- C+ C-
Scott Machado PG C- C C+ D+ D
Seth Curry SG C A- C C D+
Thomas Robinson PF C+ D+ D C B+
Tomas Satoransky PG C B- C+ C+ C-
Travis Leslie SG C C D+ C- C-
Tristan Thompson C C+ C- D C+ B+
Tyler Zeller C C+ C D C C+
Vernon Macklin C C D+ F+ C- C
Xavier Silas SG C- C- D D+ D+
Zoran Dragic SG C- C D+ D+ C-


Here's the 2011 Rookie Draft class, in full. Just as it was in the last league, these are the projected peak ratings for these prospects, not how they will come into the league. The ratings are here to be griped; not providing input won't make the league move on any faster. To encourage gripes, any successful rating gripe will earn you league cash. You are limited to five gripes per team, unless I specify otherwise. Please note that there is no specific amount of gripes that I'm looking for to move the league along, so just throwing feces at the wall hoping it'll convince me to advance is not advised.

Change Log:

Alec Burks DEF: C to C+ (+1)
Dairis Bertans DEF: D- to D (+1)
Derrick Williams INS: C+ to B- (+1)
E'Twaun Moore INS: C+ to C (-1)
E'Twaun Moore DEF: C to C+ (+1)
Evan Fournier INS: C to C+ (+1) - dez +$10,000
Festus Ezeli DEF: B- to C+ (-1)
Iman Shumpert HAN: C- to C (+1) - Icarus +$10,000
Iman Shumpert DEF: B- to B (+1) - Icarus +$10,000
Jared Cunningham HAN: D+ to C- (+1)
Jimmy Butler OUT: B- to C+ (-1) - dez +$10,000
Jordan Williams DEF: C to C- (-1)
Norris Cole DEF: C to C+ (+1)
Tomas Satoransky DEF: C to C+ (+1)

I’m going to focus on the upper level of this draft class because, well, it’s a small group and everyone else is depressingly irrelevant. Of course this is self-serving with my draft projection but I don’t know that I’m going to dedicate an hour to Chris Wright and Chris Wright.



Iman Shumpert - I realize his athleticism leading to flashy steals and dunks led to his reputation as a lockdown defender might be overblown a bit, but B- defense at his absolute peak seems a little low for a guy who was a genuinely imposing presence defensively. I also feel he was a competent playmaker and ball handler as a SG, definitely better than a C-. I’d argue his peak defense should probably be in the mid to high B range, maybe not a B+ when comparing him to others in the league, but in the upper quarter of perimeter defenders for sure. Handles rating up to a C peak - was shifty but also produced some solid assist numbers when the game called for it. He even came into the league and ran the show for the Knicks. I realize his averages were pretty low but per minute he put up decent assist numbers for a non-ball dominant 2. Defensively I’d say either his steals need to be upped if they’re low, or maybe his athleticism isn’t matching the quickness he had, because B- is low to me.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/shumpim01.html

www.wsj.com/articles/the-most-important-knick-may-be-iman-shumpert-1413421191?KEYWORDS=CHRIS+HERRING

(Shows Iman’s defensive on/off was a 9 point swing in NY’s favor with him on the court next to Melo etc)

PLAYER | WITH SHUMPERT | WITHOUT SHUMPERT

| - | - Carmelo Anthony | 101.2 | 110.9 J.R. Smith | 100.9 | 111.6 Tim Hardaway, Jr. | 103.5 | 111.5 Andrea Bargnani | 104 | 112.9 Amar’e Stoudemire | 100.1 | 114.2 KNICKS' OVERALL | 101.8 | 111.1

Knicks’ 9.3-point drop-off without Shumpert was equivalent to the difference between the elite Noah/Butler Chicago Bulls’ defense and the Process Philadelphia 76ers’ defense.

Shumpert - vibes suggest he should be a b defender

Olynyk - feels like a b- inside b- outside guy to me - always felt like more of a mixed scorer than outside heavy


Bismack at his peak feels like a B defender

Just a quick first glance

BBogdonovic C handle
EFournier C+ Inside
IShumpert B+ Defense (B at the very least)
JButler C+ outside
JValancuinas C+ Outside

Matthew Dellavedova should at least be a B- peak grade for defense, his 2015 finals performance alone and the way he was hunting down Curry in that series warrants a higher grade!

Kenneth Faried - deserves an A- rebounding peak, I won’t argue an A but he’s closer to an A than B+ in my mind. He may not do a lot super well including defend or score, but the mix of athletic relentlessness and reading the glass made him elite elite in an era where he fell between the peaks of Reggie Evans and Andre Drummond. He averaged 12 rebounds per 36 over the course of his career. His rebound rates rank among the best of the modern era outside of Dennis Rodman. I also hope his free throw percentage isn’t horrible - the dude was around 65-70% for most of his career. Very efficient stat accumulator. 17 rebounds per 100 possessions! Make the Manimal great again.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farieke01.html

I'd argue for Evan Fournier's INS to be higher... guy was a consistent 17-19 ppg scorer at his peak, and a high OUT grade alone is not going to reflect his IRL numbers in this game. Also, he was simply better than a C INS in his career- his FG% around the basket for his peak years was consistently in the high 60s, not what you'd get from a simple C. Maybe his athleticism ratings are bringing him down, but I'd still argue for a C+ INS for Fournier. 

John Henson - Kind of taking two different arguments here that apply to two different sets of seasons, but I think John deserves either a bump to his rebounding (two seasons of 13 rebounds per 36 or better, very strong rebound rate for a guy who likely has very low strength lowering his values) or a bump to his defense (not only did he have two seasons at 4+ blocks per 36, but he also contributed with steals and some sound defense when not in help situations). This wasn't a Whiteside-esque gambler, Henson did play some sound defense.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hensojo01.html

Norris Cole - Absolutely realize he was not NBA starting PG caliber despite having to fill that role at times on the Heat, but he was a sound player capable of occasional hot shooting, solid playmaking without many errors, and some really solid defense at the position. I'd argue he deserves a fringe bump to his handles (more on not turning it over than on creating assists), maybe outside as well, but definitely defense. He created steals at a solid rate but his fundamentals and exceptional quickness were his strength. He even rebounded well for his size! I would say even if they don't reflect on his peak ratings, if he is on the lower side of Cs across the board he would be a good candidate to upgrade a bit.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/coleno01.html

Chandler Parsons - My primary gripe here is that Chandler peaks at handles that likely won't allow him to match his playmaking abilities even close to accurately. He averaged 16/5/4 over his 3 year peak with good efficiency on a solid team, but never averaged even 2.0 turnovers during his career! Outside of PGs that's one of the better assist to turnover ratios around. His scoring would likely benefit from a slight bump in ball handling by nature of him becoming a larger priority on the wing (I think?) but regardless, idk if his peak is that of a second or third option.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/p/parsoch01.html

Aug 6, 2024 12:43:43 GMT -5 Icarus said:

I’m going to focus on the upper level of this draft class because, well, it’s a small group and everyone else is depressingly irrelevant. Of course this is self-serving with my draft projection but I don’t know that I’m going to dedicate an hour to Chris Wright and Chris Wright.



Iman Shumpert - I realize his athleticism leading to flashy steals and dunks led to his reputation as a lockdown defender might be overblown a bit, but B- defense at his absolute peak seems a little low for a guy who was a genuinely imposing presence defensively. I also feel he was a competent playmaker and ball handler as a SG, definitely better than a C-. I’d argue his peak defense should probably be in the mid to high B range, maybe not a B+ when comparing him to others in the league, but in the upper quarter of perimeter defenders for sure. Handles rating up to a C peak - was shifty but also produced some solid assist numbers when the game called for it. He even came into the league and ran the show for the Knicks. I realize his averages were pretty low but per minute he put up decent assist numbers for a non-ball dominant 2. Defensively I’d say either his steals need to be upped if they’re low, or maybe his athleticism isn’t matching the quickness he had, because B- is low to me.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/shumpim01.html

www.wsj.com/articles/the-most-important-knick-may-be-iman-shumpert-1413421191?KEYWORDS=CHRIS+HERRING

(Shows Iman’s defensive on/off was a 9 point swing in NY’s favor with him on the court next to Melo etc)

PLAYER | WITH SHUMPERT | WITHOUT SHUMPERT

| - | - Carmelo Anthony | 101.2 | 110.9 J.R. Smith | 100.9 | 111.6 Tim Hardaway, Jr. | 103.5 | 111.5 Andrea Bargnani | 104 | 112.9 Amar’e Stoudemire | 100.1 | 114.2 KNICKS' OVERALL | 101.8 | 111.1

Knicks’ 9.3-point drop-off without Shumpert was equivalent to the difference between the elite Noah/Butler Chicago Bulls’ defense and the Process Philadelphia 76ers’ defense.

Fine with both of these, he was already on the fringe in both categories so a modest update to his Quickness, as you suggested, will do the trick.

I will note that all of us are scholarly enough to have a Wall Street Journal subscription.

Aug 6, 2024 12:56:00 GMT -5 leflop said:

Shumpert - vibes suggest he should be a b defender

Olynyk - feels like a b- inside b- outside guy to me - always felt like more of a mixed scorer than outside heavy


Bismack at his peak feels like a B defender

- Iman Shumpert: Already done.
- Kelly Olynyk: I don't really agree with him being a B- INS scorer. For context, those would be the same peak scoring grades of Brook Lopez, who I think we could agree he is not on the level of as an inside scorer, even if you only look at later-career Brook Lopez. Regarding his OUT grade, his B is on the drop fringe, but I think there's enough combination of prowess and volume to warrant leaving it there.
- Bismack Biyombo: His B- DEF is right on the fringe as is. I'm very wary of turning him into a way better FBB player than he was in real life, so I'm going to leave him where he is for now.

Aug 6, 2024 17:23:45 GMT -5 dez said:

Just a quick first glance

BBogdonovic C handle
EFournier C+ Inside
IShumpert B+ Defense (B at the very least)
JButler C+ outside
JValancuinas C+ Outside

- Bojan Bogdanovic: I don't agree with this one, as he's never really shown much for playmaking abilities.
- Evan Fournier: Fine with this.
- Iman Shumpert: I already upped him to B DEF and I don't see the argument for going any higher than that.
- Jimmy Butler: I know he had a horrible stretch of three-point shooting from 2019-20 to 2021-22, but I also think you could argue that isn't peak Jimmy. His B- OUT grade is on the fringe, but I do think it's deserved. If anything, I think the INS grade is what's too high given he's never really been an elite volume scorer.
- Jonas Valanciunas: He's shown more than enough as a shooter since adding the three-point shot to his game to warrant a B- OUT grade, in my opinion.

Aug 6, 2024 17:36:51 GMT -5 licensedbullshark said:

Matthew Dellavedova should at least be a B- peak grade for defense, his 2015 finals performance alone and the way he was hunting down Curry in that series warrants a higher grade!

Defensive metrics absolutely hate Dellavedova. He was may more of a guy who just played as hard as he possibly could (see him going to the hospital after Game 3 of those Finals as an example) than he was a lockdown defender. Outside of Game 2, Curry still played great in that series.

Aug 6, 2024 18:51:34 GMT -5 redauerbachsghost said:

I'd argue for Evan Fournier's INS to be higher... guy was a consistent 17-19 ppg scorer at his peak, and a high OUT grade alone is not going to reflect his IRL numbers in this game. Also, he was simply better than a C INS in his career- his FG% around the basket for his peak years was consistently in the high 60s, not what you'd get from a simple C. Maybe his athleticism ratings are bringing him down, but I'd still argue for a C+ INS for Fournier. 

Already done.

Aug 6, 2024 23:25:00 GMT -5 Icarus said:

John Henson - Kind of taking two different arguments here that apply to two different sets of seasons, but I think John deserves either a bump to his rebounding (two seasons of 13 rebounds per 36 or better, very strong rebound rate for a guy who likely has very low strength lowering his values) or a bump to his defense (not only did he have two seasons at 4+ blocks per 36, but he also contributed with steals and some sound defense when not in help situations). This wasn't a Whiteside-esque gambler, Henson did play some sound defense.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hensojo01.html

Worth noting that one of those 13+ rebounds per 36 seasons you mentioned was in 188 minutes played before he got hurt and likely would have regressed to the mean with more of a sample size.

I think you hit the nail on the head regarding his low Strength rating. He's on the fringe in both of these grades, but that's definitely keeping him down.

Aug 6, 2024 23:29:33 GMT -5 Icarus said:

Norris Cole - Absolutely realize he was not NBA starting PG caliber despite having to fill that role at times on the Heat, but he was a sound player capable of occasional hot shooting, solid playmaking without many errors, and some really solid defense at the position. I'd argue he deserves a fringe bump to his handles (more on not turning it over than on creating assists), maybe outside as well, but definitely defense. He created steals at a solid rate but his fundamentals and exceptional quickness were his strength. He even rebounded well for his size! I would say even if they don't reflect on his peak ratings, if he is on the lower side of Cs across the board he would be a good candidate to upgrade a bit.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/coleno01.html

This is a bunch of gripes in one post and you're already at 4 (two for Shumpert and two for Henson). Given that your next post has only 1, I'll count that as the fifth gripe and not regard this one in terms of league cash.

As for Cole, I'm fine with upping his DEF grade, but nothing else.

Aug 6, 2024 23:35:10 GMT -5 Icarus said:

Chandler Parsons - My primary gripe here is that Chandler peaks at handles that likely won't allow him to match his playmaking abilities even close to accurately. He averaged 16/5/4 over his 3 year peak with good efficiency on a solid team, but never averaged even 2.0 turnovers during his career! Outside of PGs that's one of the better assist to turnover ratios around. His scoring would likely benefit from a slight bump in ball handling by nature of him becoming a larger priority on the wing (I think?) but regardless, idk if his peak is that of a second or third option.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/p/parsoch01.html

Just looking at the base file SF handle grades, I do not think you could argue Parsons belongs to be in that top tier of C+ HAN guys.

Aug 6, 2024 18:05:55 GMT -5 Icarus said:

Kenneth Faried - deserves an A- rebounding peak, I won’t argue an A but he’s closer to an A than B+ in my mind. He may not do a lot super well including defend or score, but the mix of athletic relentlessness and reading the glass made him elite elite in an era where he fell between the peaks of Reggie Evans and Andre Drummond. He averaged 12 rebounds per 36 over the course of his career. His rebound rates rank among the best of the modern era outside of Dennis Rodman. I also hope his free throw percentage isn’t horrible - the dude was around 65-70% for most of his career. Very efficient stat accumulator. 17 rebounds per 100 possessions! Make the Manimal great again.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farieke01.html

I think this got missed sorry for the multi-post.

Aug 7, 2024 11:04:11 GMT -5 Icarus said:

Aug 6, 2024 18:05:55 GMT -5 Icarus said:

Kenneth Faried - deserves an A- rebounding peak, I won’t argue an A but he’s closer to an A than B+ in my mind. He may not do a lot super well including defend or score, but the mix of athletic relentlessness and reading the glass made him elite elite in an era where he fell between the peaks of Reggie Evans and Andre Drummond. He averaged 12 rebounds per 36 over the course of his career. His rebound rates rank among the best of the modern era outside of Dennis Rodman. I also hope his free throw percentage isn’t horrible - the dude was around 65-70% for most of his career. Very efficient stat accumulator. 17 rebounds per 100 possessions! Make the Manimal great again.

www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farieke01.html

I think this got missed sorry for the multi-post.

Thanks for bumping.

I don't think Faried is a strong enough defensive rebounder to warrant an A- REB grade. If you look at guys like Evans and even Valanciunas in this class, they're both on the same level of Faried at offensive rebounding (or slightly below) but shoulders ahead as defensive rebounders.

Aug 7, 2024 9:13:30 GMT -5 CC06 said:

Aug 6, 2024 17:23:45 GMT -5 dez said:

Just a quick first glance

BBogdonovic C handle
EFournier C+ Inside
IShumpert B+ Defense (B at the very least)
JButler C+ outside
JValancuinas C+ Outside

- Bojan Bogdanovic: I don't agree with this one, as he's never really shown much for playmaking abilities.
- Evan Fournier: Fine with this.
- Iman Shumpert: I already upped him to B DEF and I don't see the argument for going any higher than that.
- Jimmy Butler: I know he had a horrible stretch of three-point shooting from 2019-20 to 2021-22, but I also think you could argue that isn't peak Jimmy. His B- OUT grade is on the fringe, but I do think it's deserved. If anything, I think the INS grade is what's too high given he's never really been an elite volume scorer.
- Jonas Valanciunas: He's shown more than enough as a shooter since adding the three-point shot to his game to warrant a B- OUT grade, in my opinion.

Changed my mind on Butler's OUT, and will lower to C+

decided against writing long arguments for each gripe i will be adopting the dez method
Olynyk B- REB
Burks B+ OUT
Butler A DEF
Parsons C+ REB