Another GU player in NBA picked high too. Will KC get picked?
Jacob Poeltl goes to the Raptors at #9. I think I would have taken Sabonis before Poeltl.
No KC in draft either
When you consider that only 60 players get drafted, you realize its a pretty exclusive and small group of elite players that get selected.
But BYU has way more talent than Gonzaga…NOT! Gonzaga has had much more NBA talent than BYU. So it’s not just superior Gonzaga coaching that regularly beats our Cougs, it’s much more talent. Although that may be different in 2044 when the current Lone Peak Boys’ children are playing at the Y.
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Yes, Gonzaga is pretty impressive when it comes to talent. However, these stats may surprise you. They have a list of 19 players drafted into the NBA. http://www.basketball-reference.com/friv/draft.cgi?college=gonzaga. (Sabonis is #19). Gonzaga had 7 payers that actually played in NBA games. Gonzaga has had three players get drafted since BYU joined the WCC. Sabonis, Olynyk, and Sacre.
Surprisingly, BYU has had 42 players drafted by the NBA. http://www.basketball-reference.com/friv/draft.cgi?college=byu. It looks like 18 of those actually played in NBA games. But, to your point, BYU only has had one player make in to the NBA since joining the WCC (Jimmer). Hopefully, we can turn that trend around with the influx of new talent this year.
Sometimes I get the feeling that there are quite a few of you who, while you have an opinion, really have no clue when it comes to analyzing the game of basketball. I’m going to say something here that will probably shock most of you and cause many of you to get all up in arms and disagree. Why? Because most of you, grasshopper leads the way, don’t take the time to think and aren’t really able to perceive what is going on. So what is going on? I will say this -
Being drafted to the NBA is not the indicator of whether a particular player or team is talented or not. I don’t care if Domantas Sabonis got drafted… his Dad was a hall of fame player. That doesn’t mean squat as it relates to the talent level at Gonzaga. Somebody tell me how many players from national champion Villanova were drafted… I guess they weren’t “talented”… LOL! I usually agree with Craig, but on this one I think he must have jumped into the grasshopper wagon. Gonzaga is no more “talented” than BYU is. Not this year and not any year. Not sure how that can be said with any legitimacy… how do you explain the Jimmerization of the Zags only a few short years ago? Was BYU more talented then? Was their coaching better? So is KC as talented as Sabonis? Of course he is. Like I said, I don’t care where Sabonis was picked, mainly because I don’t care for the nba brand of basketball.
Sorry, but the NBA is not the barometer for talent. The league is looking for a particular type of player and that doesn’t necessarily mean more talented. It only means they have a particular brand of basketball they want to play and they look for players to fill those roles. Please don’t forget it is entertainment and Vegas style show that is taking place out there… and not a lot more.
You say this as if you are shocked or surprised… just another indicator.
UNLV had 2 players drafted and they absolutely sucked last season. TWO Players! does that indicate talent? SO what was their problem? Dave Rice a bad coach?
Yes, Rice isn’t much of a head coach if he had two NBA talent players.
You find many don’t agree with you because your analysis is mostly wrong 
Ummm…when NBA players play international games, our teams usually win and win big. We won’t have our most talented players at the Olympics this year because of injuries and Zika virus, but we will still win. NBA talent is better than other countries and leagues.
I think I get your point. Maybe we need to make a distinction between athleticism and talent. A guy who is less athletic may compensate by having a very good skill level (ie. Jimmer). Sometimes, skill trumps raw talent. For instance, Jimmer and BYU beat San Diego State but Lennard has gone on to thrive in the NBA because with his raw talent, he could be a great defender and still get more skilled with practice…he had a higher ceiling. That’s what talent does for you. The NBA will draft a guy who is athletic if they think they can help him become more skilled. You can’t teach height or athleticism. The other factor is team chemistry. You may be athletic and skilled but you need to play as a team to win. Anyway, Sabonis is skilled, plays hard, and is big. BYU would have won more games last year if he had been on our team. Call it talent or skill or whatever you want.
I agreed with much of what you said in your earlier posts and it is nice to know that there is somebody that understands my comments and “gets the point”.
Part of my assertion is a result of what I heard Mike Smith talk about on BYU sports nation today. It explains a lot of what we see in the nba. He doesn’t really agree with what grasshopper says with relation to what I am talking about, but we all know the grasshopper knows more than a guy who played collegiately, professionally and now announces the game for the Clippers… 
The point is that the nba is looking for a particular type of player, not necessarily the most talented or skilled but perhaps the most athletic or quick. Those attributes don’t necessarily correlate either. My point is, and it is one that the grasshopper failed to address (when he thinks he can disagree, he will but when someone makes a point that he can’t argue with, he just ignores it) is found in the fact that Villanova was the best team in college basketball this past season and NOBODY from their team was drafted into the nba. They had lots of very skilled and talented players that will not get an opportunity…
That’s why Jerry West recruited Kobe Bryant out of high school. Talent and huge upswing potential.
Skilled players with little upswing in talent. That is BYU too.
I’ll take it to the next step now…
All I am saying is that it (this unproven theory that Gonzaga has way more talent) is a sorry excuse for Gonzaga winning every year. It isn’t because their players are more skilled or talented or whatever. It isn’t because their coach is so great. He’s a good coach, just like a lot of other coaches. I’ve stated the reasons why Gonzaga wins the west coast conference, particularly important games where there is something on the line, etc. Few knows he stole a title last season and he took it and ran just like so many other times the Zags have been helped along the way.
Clueless BYU fans continue to hold on to the belief that next year things will change… let’s see what everyone says when it happens again.
The difference being that Villanova wins a national championship and BYU can’t even win the west coast conference championship.
Your arguments and perspective are losing steam… fast.
You’re assuming the skills are equal. They are not.
Utah killed BYU last year largely because of Poeltl. He was a big mismatch. Kaufusi had the size, strength, and athleticism to shut down Poeltl but not the skill. Gonzaga killed Utah in the NCAAs largely because of Sabonis. As with Kaufusi, Sabonis had the size and strength to match-up with Poeltl but he also had the defensive skills and toughness to completely neutralize Poeltl. Sabonis also had more offensive skill than Kaufusi. So, when I say Gonzaga was more talented than BYU, it was mostly because of Sabonis although Wlitjer was also a mismatch.
I get your point about the WCC officiating. How does Sabonis get into foul trouble and only play about half of his normal minutes against BYU in the first match-up and then in the WCC tourney, he plays the whole game and only gets two fouls while our bigs all are in foul trouble. The WCC officiating is just inconsistent so its tough for the players to figure out how the refs will call the game. All you can hope for is that the refs call the game the same way on both ends of the court. I agree that in the last game we played against Gonzaga, the refs let the Gonzaga bigs play much more physical which kept them on the court. I love to watch college basketball but the game is too easy to sway by the refs and that’s frustrating. That said, I do think BYU can win the WCC in spite of the inconsistent refs.
I agree with your assessment about the different talent levels. As for the officiating, that complaint is consistent with all levels and leagues throughout the world. Refs have different levels of experience, skills, talent and objectives. Pretty much like the teams themselves. So, it’s up to the players to learn how to play based on the referees for eacngame and play accordingly. As a coach, we always would point out to the players who the refs were and how they called the games. In high school, home teams usually got the home cookin. Except when Jim refereed. We would just tell the players he rarely sees anything and never blows his whistle 
It was a game that mattered. It was the difference between ncaa tourney and no ncaa tourney, wcc tournament title and no wcc tournament title. Need I say more?
The only way to do that is to completely outplay the other team and negate the biased officiating, when it matters or something is on the line. So far that hasn’t happened.