When we talk about the NBA Draft, we tend to talk about it through the prism of the short or long term. Is this a player who can help a rotation today? Is he going to take a few years? Does he fit alongside the team that is already in place? Can he eventually be a star?
Good conversations are born out of those questions, but it’s easy to get too specific, thus limiting, with regards to timelines. Even the most polished player out of college is far from a finished product, and even the rawest talent can make an impact out of the gate.