Unofficial Preview 2020 Draft Discussion

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It seems Phillips may be the least risky option likely to be available at our first pick, assuming McDonald is gone. It will be interesting to see if we decide to punt on the higher risk Hollands or Bruhns.
My preference would be McDonald but Wright has indicated the top 5 or 6 look exciting prospects so whoever we pick will improve the list.
There are two players in the league around his height or lower that managed 100 clearances last year. That is the risk on Phillips. If he were 185 there would be little ambiguity as to him being a top 5 pick.
 

TylerDurden

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There are two players in the league around his height or lower that managed 100 clearances last year. That is the risk on Phillips. If he were 185 there would be little ambiguity as to him being a top 5 pick.
KM has him clear top 3 and the best mid in it.

But yeah, I get the reservations. His highlights just showed me he could accumulate.
 

Billyc

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Yeah I reckon Hollands has the higher ceiling, but after JOM, Patton, Impey etc I think we should play it safe with Phillips. JOM is proof that some are never the same after knee injuries.
This is why I think Hollands might slide. He may be the most talented guy in the draft pool but we have two guys who were considered the most talented guys in their draft pools - O'Meara and Patton - who are just not those players, due to knee injuries. It is a big risk for an early pick and while Selwood is often cited as being a reason to take that risk, there are plenty of others who amounted to nothing due to constant ACL injuries (Morabito etc).
 
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There are two players in the league around his height or lower that managed 100 clearances last year. That is the risk on Phillips. If he were 185 there would be little ambiguity as to him being a top 5 pick.

We are talking about 6cm for god sake. We all know the averages but if he can play and he is best available take him. I'll say it again, this nonsense about him being too similiar to Worpel and Mitchell is laughable - he is lighting quick which neither player is. If he had average speed fair enough but he doesn't - he is a contested beast who is quick, no brainer IMO and looks like a Joel Selwood with leg speed

Caleb Daniel was passed over early on despite all his athletic and footy metrics being through the roof in his TAC year. He will play 200+ games for the Bulldogs and is sub 170cm!
 
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And then take McDonald in front of us. No thanks. No deal. And we'll bid on Campbell to boot.

Buddy karma bus. Incoming.
When pick 3 comes around we get on the phone to the swans and say, we are gonna bit on Campbell but if you give us your 2nd rounder plus 4 we will give you 3. If they Say no they miss out on another kid inside the top 10.
 
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KM has him clear top 3 and the best mid in it.

But yeah, I get the reservations. His highlights just showed me he could accumulate.
Cal had him at 9. And he has a great record at predicting the draft order. I'm more inclined to think he has the inside word on opinions of players of recruiters. Knightmare doesn't expect Phillips to go at 3 btw.
 
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We are talking about 6cm for god sake. We all know the averages but if he can play and he is best available take him. I'll say it again, this nonsense about him being too similiar to Worpel and Mitchell is laughable - he is lighting quick which neither player is. If he had average speed fair enough but he doesn't - he is a contested beast who is quick, no brainer IMO and looks like a Joel Selwood with leg speed

Caleb Daniel was passed over early on despite all his athletic and footy metrics being through the roof in his TAC year. He will play 200+ games for the Bulldogs and is sub 170cm!
Daniels doesn't play inside midfield and if you had read anything I have stated on this topic you will note I don't see height an issue to play AFL but the hard facts are that sub 180cm mids have a low rate as success as pure inside mids and more frequently find a home on the HFF. Can Phillips play that role at afl level? We don't know. Also, Phillips hasn't performed at the same level as Lachie Neale and Neale went at pick 58. He has some good attributes no doubt but people seem to gravitate to him mostly because of his highlights without taking the time to watch him play and examine his weaknesses. Cal doesn't have him top 5 and I'd bet he has a fair idea of what recruiters think of him.
 

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It is hard to know how injuries will impact on a draftees future. Muston and Dowler were adversely affected, Selwood was not. Unfortunately we drafted the wrong ones then.
 
All this talk of a dodgy knee on Holland's seems a tad alarmist to me. One ACL does not make a dodgy knee. As long as he rehabs properly, he'll be fine.
Yep, and for all the examples of early picks with knee issues that haven't reached their potential there are just as many who have reached theirs.
 
It is hard to know how injuries will impact on a draftees future. Muston and Dowler were adversely affected, Selwood was not. Unfortunately we drafted the wrong ones then.
In Muston's defence, he did have 3 significant knee operations.
 
If Day can play straight away despite being a lightly built 18 year old, then I fail to see why Downie who’s solidly built can’t play games early next year.
 
If Day can play straight away despite being a lightly built 18 year old, then I fail to see why Downie who’s solidly built can’t play games early next year.
It's not just the build, it's knowing the game plan. Finn being the latest example.
 
Nobody knew the game plan
As poor as we have been in the Adelaide hub, it's really evident that the players do.

Whether it's effective or not is a totally different matter.
 
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