Seriously?

I like LT as a player, and I'll also state the obvious that I wish him all the best to go as far as possible in his career just as I wish every aussie - and especially anyone from WA.

I think he's an asset to the Wildcats, and assume that if drafted he would be stashed away for at least one season - and that would likely mean staying in the NBL. So I'd love to have him back in red again, but only if it is under a coach who shows some consideration of his strengths and doesn't try to instantly transform him into something he is not. If that can't happen then for his own sake I hope he ends up elsewhere.

Last season he gave us 11 points @ 48%, 7 boards & 3 assists per game through the semi finals, he was playing on baller instinct, and there was the anticipation of something good about to happen whenever he was on the court.
This season he seemed hesitant at best, and mentally broken at worst.
I hope he can bounce back from it.

I just hope like hell his agent has an assurance from an NBA team that they will take him in the second round or something because you only get one crack at this.

If he doesn't get drafted he would have every right to be shitty with the NBL for blowing smoke up his backside with how much the commentators have banged on about him being NBA bound the past couple of seasons. It's clearly been a league directive rather than based on anything he's been producing on the court.

I just hope like hell his agent has an assurance from an NBA team that they will take him in the second round or something because you only get one crack at this.

I'm fan of Luke, if he get drafted it’s not on what he has done this season, maybe potential but I don’t see nba in him.

You do realise you can play in the NBA without being drafted, right?

Let's be honest, he's taken a major step back this year. Last year and especially in the finals, he seemed to be coming into his own and looked every part of a potential NBA player.

This year, he has regressed in every part of the game. His shooting has been woeful, his ball handling terrible and his playmaking non existent.

I wonder how much of this is due to coaching as Gleeson was great in his development. His confidence seems to be shot.

I also assume a team has agreed to take him as a draft and stash. Reckon he'll be back in Perth next year. Hopefully he'll forget about this year and start improving again.

Just don't see him getting picked up, but best of luck to him.

He's been an enigma forever and a day and long stories history with HP coaches trying to push him and him running home for comfort.
What we are seeing is mostly natural talent, how long do you think he’s been told to work on his shooting, mindset, aggressiveness etc?
Really hope with the tools he has he comes along, but I feel like he’s going to be what he is now and always will be

Based on not taking no part in the last 2 games .
I'm going to nominate as well .

My guess he's sniffing around interest, and if there’s not enough, will withdraw...

Theres not really a downside to him nominating it can go one of three ways:
- If he gets drafted great he will probably be stashed to develop most likely with Perth
- If he doesn't have enough interest he can withdraw and enter again next year with hopefully more interest in him
- If he stays in the draft and goes undrafted he can try to make a team through summer league like many undrafted players do and he will be in control of where he plays and if he wants to make another run at the league in the future like Joe Ingles he can

I don't see the hype or NBA upside. If he can make the NBA there should be 30 or so NBL players disappointed they're not also there.

Agree with comments above he certainly has regressed this season but kids always look better when the team is playing well. His potential lies in his length and athleticism but he's not mentally strong enough to make NBA. He lacks confidence and aggression in his game. Perhaps that will come when he's more consistent with his shooting. In saying that he wasn't the only one that lacked confidence under Morrison this season. Even his veteran team mates looked shakey shooting the ball towards the end of the season.

the question is: will he get drafted?

Classified, No - he won't but hopefully he will be better educated after the experience of even just nominating

the real question will he return to the nbl and the perth wildcats?

I don't see the hype or NBA upside. If he can make the NBA there should be 30 or so NBL players disappointed they're not also there.

@zodiac, well to be fair the vast majority of the australians playing in the nba right now aren't exactly nba talents either..green, thybulle, simmons are all scrubs in their own right, nothing spl about dyson daniels either, and exum is already out, heck even patty mills is basically nba's equivalent of dusty hannahs..

@zodiac, not sure why nba teams even bother drafting australian players anymore, they all come in with stupid amounts of hype only to get a harsh reality check and be out of the league within a couple of years..

Yeah, I mean one needs to look no further than the most recent NBA draft to see how useless aussies are at basketball

@luuc,yea sure , let me use a sample size of 1 to prove my point... simmons literally won roty in his rookie season, and look where he's now, so what makes you so confident that giddey won't fade away into obscurity 2 years from now? The odds are stacked against him. It's not about how you begin, it's about how you finish. This honeymoon period won't last forever, they'll eventually figure him out ,if they haven't already. Moreover he's was just statpadding and posting some meaningless mickeymouse records anyway, not exactly contributing to wins.

Yeah meaningless records like Giddey becoming the youngest player in NBA history to have a triple-double, LeBron James eat your heart out. Thybulle is held in such high regard by the 76ers they refused to include him in the trade for Harden despite the Nets insistence.

Your opinion on an NBA all-star like Simmons is bizarre, you can not like the guy sure but to suggest he's not one of the best players in the NBA is laughable.

How is Thybulle 'not exactly an NBA talent'? he's one of the league's best defenders.

Simmons is an absolute moron but there is no question he's an NBA talent

What's your beef with Josh Green?

Dyson Daniels is clearly going to be a decent NBA player and any comparison to him with Luke Travers is eye rolling stuff right there.

"That's where Travers he's not an NBA talent clearly but with his size and athleticism he might one day turn into something and that's why there is at least some chance he might get drafted."

A lot of kids have what he has though. Probably 100 Americans of the same age right now with all the same skills and size. I just don't see it with him.

"@luuc,yea sure , let me use a sample size of 1 to prove my point... simmons literally won roty in his rookie season, and look where he's now, so what makes you so confident that giddey won't fade away into obscurity 2 years from now? "

Simmons hasn't 'faded away into obscurity' he's made a decision not to play due to his own mental illness. How that applies to Josh Giddey is anyone's guess.

"The odds are stacked against him."

.... what? So because another Australian has had some controversy around them, that means Josh Giddey's career is going to fade off... because they happened to be born in the same country. You're a fuckwit dude.

"It's not about how you begin, it's about how you finish. This honeymoon period won't last forever, they'll eventually figure him out ,if they haven't already. Moreover he's was just statpadding and posting some meaningless mickeymouse records anyway, not exactly contributing to wins."

Meaningless 'mickey mouse' records no one else could attain. And yes 'stat padding', despite clearly not thinking or caring about the stats. And yes, Thunder did win more than they were projected to win with Giddey.


Narenda is a moron. Just bare that in mind with anything he posts.

@zodiac, that record is being broken almost every year now, lamelo broke it last year and giddey this season, which is precisely what makes it meaningless, it has lost all its value. so yea i stand my ground on that one.

Can you name me a single thing which thybulle does at a high level outside of perimeter defense? Heck, he's rubbish even at rebounding, so much for his wingspan and atheticism. I bet the 76ers are deeply regretting that decision( to not trade him when they had the opportunity) now, given that he's not even eligible to play in the ongoing playiff series with the raptors..

As for simmons, the only thing that's laughable here is you thinking that he's one of the best players in the nba , when his performances have steadily regressed every season to the point where his ass was traded to the nets and has refused to make any attempts to improve himself in the last 6 years, remains to be seen what tantrums he has up his sleeve now.

@me i'm not even gonna bother arguing with a outback inbred idiot who believed that joke landale was doing "great" in the nba, and has gotten his ass handed to him by every single person in this forum including by me on several occasions in the past and ran away like a coward from the conversation every single time after making himself out to be a laughing stock. I also read you rant trying to prove mitchell creek's innocence with your mental gymnastics, on a different thread, the other day, safe to say it was hilarious..take a hint, and do yourself a favor and delete your account.

A lot of kids have what he has though. Probably 100 Americans of the same age right now with all the same skills and size. I just don't see it with him.

I'm not really interested in getting into it to defend Travers because IMO he's not an NBA talent but the very fact NBA teams are looking seriously at him disproves what you just said. Very few young 6'8" guys can put it on the floor like him, most can't do anything other than dunk, the G-League is full of them.

@zodiac, lmao literally no one is looking at travers seriously, stop being so deluded just for the sake of winning an argument. Pretty sure most nba teams can do without yet another overrated, overhyoed australian prospect who cant shoot the damn ball to save his life.

Narenda, I don't know what you're deal is but this trolling isn't funny.

"that record is being broken almost every year now, lamelo broke it last year and giddey this season, which is precisely what makes it meaningless, it has lost all its value. so yea i stand my ground on that one."

And out of all the rookies to do it, both came from the NBL and both had Australian influence on their game. Coincidence? Meaningful? At least a dozen rookie point guards come into the league each year, and both the ones who make that milestone are either Australian or have Australian league influence.

"Can you name me a single thing which thybulle does at a high level outside of perimeter defense?"

Well he's a role player. He's been brought in specifically to do that. And not just at a 'high level'. He's at a league leading, completely rare air level in that facet of the game. The fact you named something he does at a high level in the NBA defies your previous point that he wasn't NBA level.

"when his performances have steadily regressed every season to the point where his ass was traded to the nets and has refused to make any attempts to improve himself in the last 6 years, remains to be seen what tantrums he has up his sleeve now."

While I might agree that his game has regressed, that is not why he is being traded. I believe you missed the six straight months where the guy REFUSED TO PLAY FOR THE TEAM.

" has gotten his ass handed to him by every single person in this forum including by me on several occasions in the past and ran away like a coward from the conversation every single time after making himself out to be a laughing stock."

I don't recall a single time I have walked away after any debate, disagreement or any other type of communication, and certainly not before pushing my point. I've definitely never 'run away like a coward' so you've got a creative memory there champ.

"I also read you rant trying to prove mitchell creek's innocence with your mental gymnastics, on a different thread, the other day, safe to say it was hilarious.."

Yeah everything is hilarious when you wilfully misunderstand and misrepresent the point being made. I'll give it a once over for you again so you might come to comprehend - I never said Mitch wasn't guilty (AND I CLEARLY STATED THAT). I just said that we actually don't know any of the details of the case, bar some photos that were never given the legal scrutiny that only a court room can provide. If we can take anything out of the Johnny Depp/Amanda Heard case going on right now, it is that photos that look like injuries may not be all they appear. Does that mean I am saying that the photos are definitely suss? NO! But the fact that they hypothetically could be, and are totally unverifiable, means that Mitch has the benefit of the doubt. I know that is hard to wrap your little head around but I write that more for the benefit of anyone else who might be reading this, as they might choose to slowly spoonfeed points to you.

"@zodiac, lmao literally no one is looking at travers seriously, stop being so deluded just for the sake of winning an argument. Pretty sure most nba teams can do without yet another overrated, overhyoed australian prospect who cant shoot the damn ball to save his life.

"

Yes, something I agree on. NBA scouts may be aware of Travers but to say they're 'seriously looking at him'? He's going to go undrafted. My issue with Narenda here is the chip he has on his shoulder about Australian players in general. It's one thing to call them role players but to say they're not NBA level is ridiculous and idiotic. Are only NBA superstars NBA level?

Is it really anyone's business but Travers and his family and management? What has he got to lose testing the waters? If a team takes a flyer in the second round on him, good luck. If he goes over to some training camps it'd be the dream of every baller. If he doesn't make it and comes back and plays NBL for the next decade he's done a lot better than I'd say virtually everyone on this forum. But some "experts" will knock someone for formally entering his name.
He hasn't been selected, isn't on any boards to be a first rounder, probably realises he'd be a shock selection in the end anyway.
Instead of bashing him (and for some weird reason, all Aussies in the NBA), just let it be a neutral topic and see what happens in the draft and summer league.

@me sorry but the nbl has no right to claim lamelo's success that guy grew up playing bball in america, not in australia, he only ever played a handful of games in the nbl to get paid

thybulle is gonna be be out of the league in very quick time if he doesnt make any improvements to his game, look at tyrese maxey for instance, his teammate at the 76ers who was drafted at 21 in the 2020 draft, 3 spots below green in the same year, and look at how far that kid has come along compared to thybulle who was drafted a year prior..him being a role player doesnt excuse the fact he hasnt honed his skills whatsover...heck nikola jokic was drafted as the 41st pick lmao, and he's one of the best players going around in the league right now...that's something which aussies seem to be lacking..the drive to constantly improve, they become too comfortable with being bench scrubs.

Yea you're, that's the only reason simmons was traded , it certainly had nothing to do with the fact that he was fast becoming a liability both on and off the court.

"@me sorry but the nbl has no right to claim lamelo's success that guy grew up playing bball in america, not in australia, he only ever played a handful of games in the nbl to get paid"

LOL. He wasn't taken seriously by NBA scouts until he played here. He was seen as a late pick/undrafted until he showed out in the NBL. Sorry, that's just a fact.

@me, absolute rubbish , he actually had a lot of hype around him even back in his high school days, it's just that he wasn't really keen on the education part of playing college ball and chose to go pro instead..

Ball was ranked 22nd overall when he signed with Illawarra.

I'm going to bet Narendra has a kid the same age group as Giddey and though his kid got shafted from a state team....

@billybob, except that i'm literally 26, so unless you're implying i somehow had a kid when i was 7....i wouldn't be having any kids, of giddey's age now would i?

Well clearly lost the bet then!

Yeah the whole "nobody wanted Ball" thing is overdone. Everyone knew he had talent, but the problem was he wasnt playing in any established system anywhere so nobody had a way of judging just how good he was. He would have had the same bump had he played G League or somehow gotten admitted to college. They just needed to see him against players they could compare him to.

In saying that, I think for Lamelo, specifically, the NBL was a good option.

"lmao literally no one is looking at travers seriously, stop being so deluded just for the sake of winning an argument. Pretty sure most nba teams can do without yet another overrated, overhyped australian prospect who cant shoot the damn ball to save his life."
^5. I checked the calendar to see there wasn't another April 1 hidden in there.

@bobafett? Are you high on crack? If you're gonna say something atleast make it make sense...

"@me, absolute rubbish , he actually had a lot of hype around him even back in his high school days, it's just that he wasn't really keen on the education part of playing college ball and chose to go pro instead.."


Twitter followers does not mean high levels of NBA interest. Sorry. Most scouts were sceptical that his skills would translate.

@me, thats because he bypassed the collegiate system ( something which nba scouts are familiar with due to its longstanding tradition of churning out nba level players) and went on to play in a glorified bush league that no really gives a flying fuck about apart from chest thumping, blind jingoist aussies like you, heck if anything it was lamelo who literally put the nbl on the radar of nba scouts, not the other way around..and before you start about giddey, no , the nbl had absolutely fuck all to do with giddey's success, he honed his craft and developed his game by playing at the age group levels and the nba global academy. If not for lamelo, both giddey and dieng would've prolly gone on to play in the college ball in america or joined the g league ignite program, like dyson.

@me, btw me, how did you enjoy thy bullshit's performance tonight?? Do you still think his arse belongs in the nba ?

Narendra, can I ask what nationality are you because you clearly don't identify as Australian?
Also can you explain why top young players continue to come play in the NBL as opposed to other routes.

What does it matter to you, someone who identifies themselves as a "frisbee"?
that's an absolute load of garbage lmao, NCAA remains the most preferred destination for aspiring athletes across sporting disciplines by far...even the vast majority of the aspiring australian nba prospects themselves dont really seem to care about the nbl..

Narendra, can I ask what nationality are you because you clearly don't identify as Australian?

@perthworld, no i'm from perthworld...

Ah, I see. Narenda is here to tell us how bad our basketball is over here. If he really is Philipino then the irony is truly delicious, given their 32nd (out of 32 teams no less!) placing at the last World Cup. Little pro tip for Narenda - if you come to an Australian basketball forum, the topic of interest will be Australian basketball. Many of them will have a vested in the sport or will think the sport in the country is of a decent enough standard to warrant ongoing conversation. If that upsets you in some way then you are free to move on.

Based on not taking no part in the last 2 games .
I'm going to nominate as well .

Narenda is an idiot

@me, haha , except that i'm sure as hell not the one getting upset here...heck you yourself stated that the "majority of the australians would be no better than role players in amy league that takes itself seriously", those are your words , not mine. so i just find it hilarious that you get so triggered and defensive when others point out essentially the same thing. Besides philipines are a not a filthy rich, first world country like australia, if filiponos had access to kind of the facilities that australians enjoy, then philipines would be running circles around australia, but nice try trying to deflect attention from the subject matter to desperately save face.

@puff, and puff is a soft, sensitive, self entitled snowflake who runs and hides behind mommy's skirt whenever peope don't tell him exactly what he what he wants to hear.

"majority of the australians would be no better than role players in amy league that takes itself seriously"

And I stand by that. I never said any different. You're the one going around saying Australian NBA players are somehow not of NBA standard. That's a completely different argument. I am talking about the Kevin Whites of the world. You're taking it out on the Mills and Greens for some weird reason.

"Besides philipines are a not a filthy rich, first world country like australia, if filiponos had access to kind of the facilities that australians enjoy, then philipines would be running circles around australia, but nice try trying to deflect attention from the subject matter to desperately save face."

That's a load of bullshit. Lithuania was one of the poorest countries in Europe and they were consistent medalists for decades. And on the other end of the spectrum, China has all the facilities and money on the planet and still cant put together a top 8 team. Fact of the matter is Philippines are just not good at basketball. They're short, unathletic and shit. Their best ever player cant even get himself on an NBA mock draft. And when they rightly get SMASHED in a game against NBL players they turn it into a boxing match and bash on the smallest and weakest players they can because they're gutless flogs.

That's because not a single australian player has achieved anything remotely significant in all these years of plying in the nba, they all come into the league with ridiculous amount of media hype when their overall trackrecord says otherwise, just because they get drafted in the nba doesn't neccessarily mean then actually belong there. Big difference. Patty is extremely lucky that he was given such a long rope with the spurs all these years, any other team and he would've out ages ago, and thats an indisputable fact.and green is basically a more atheltic dyson daniels, that's about it. Australian players are easily the one of , if not the worst among all overseas nba players. Again trying to draw comparisions with the philipines is ludicrous on so many levels, asian countries simpy aren't into basketball as much as their european counterparts are, and hence there's isnt the same level of investment in the , barring china, heck china has produced yao ming who held his own against the legendary shaq at his peak. Not a single aussie comes close to what he's achieved in his career. I'm done. Your inflated ego refuses to accept facts.

@me, yea and australians are tall, athletic but equally horseshit (compared to the americans and the europeans), your point being?

@mek and countries like lithunia are outliers, not the norm, so ypu can't formulate arguments based on them. Moreove lithuania are absolutely fanatical abt basketball and have the physical gifts for it, so there's that too. china blows australia outside the water in the olympics, take away swimmming and canoeing are australia would struggle to win a single medal.

Australia won a medal in basketball.

Narendra are you ok?
Where does this hate for Australian basketball come from?

Billy Bob, the hate comes from the Philippines most likely