Raptors Draft Dark Horses: MELEEK THOMAS & QUADIR COPELAND

From Brendan’s latest on Steinbach:

“For a team lacking a strong, interior rebounding presence, Hannes would fit like a dream as a core future piece of the Raptors.

Hannes’ motor, rebounding, and pick-and-roll feel would complement Scottie Barnes nicely as both are high-IQ forwards who play with physicality and can operate as short-roll connectors. The Raps’ player development (which turned CMB into a near-immediate contributor) could also help him max out his potential as a shooter. While the Raptors have struggled at actually developing shooting, they seem to have more success with players who join the team already possessing some established shooting skills, like Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby.

The Raptors would still need to address multiple concerns that Hannes simply can’t provide, such as advantage creation, guard play, and a more advanced shooting profile, but he would be a great brick to lay in the team’s growing foundation.

I would be surprised if Hannes falls to the 19th pick, but there are a lot of draft pundits out there who seem to think he may be falling from his mid-season consensus as a lottery lock. If he does fall to the 19th pick, the Raptors really shouldn’t think twice to add another versatile piece to their frontcourt.

Steinbach’s efficient offence, domineering physical profile, and elite rebounding project him to be quite impactful, even if there are some things he’ll need to work on.

Consensus NBA Draft Range: 12-20

Brendan’s Ranking: 15th

Floor Projection: Rebounding force who can shoot the occasional three in key backup minutes. Uncertain role projection could keep him from becoming a fully impactful starting player.

Median Projection: Possession generating, floor spacing, starting big in the style of Bobby Portis/Jalen Smith, with the physical rebounding juice of Steven Adams.

Ceiling Projection: Domantas Sabonis with an edge/Minnesota Kevin Love.”