New York Post - USA (2020-10-25)

New York Post, Sunday, October 25, 2020

nypost.com

for a team that lost Jonathan Isaac for the

upcoming season witha knee injury.

16

TRAIL BLAZERS

Jalen Smith,

PF /C, Maryland

He still has more work to do

on a lower body that got his nicknamed

“Stix.” Buta 6-10 big man who can hit

36.8 percent from deep will fit right intoa

Blazers team featuring Damian Lillard and

CJ McCollum.

17

TIMBERWOLVES

Cole Anthony, PG,

North Carolina

Even his ex-Knick father Greg

admits his last season with theTar Heels

was inconsistent (18.5 ppg, 5.7 apg). But

after the T’wolves grab Ball, they double

down and shore up their shaky lead guard

spot.

18

MAVERICKS

RJ Hampton, SG, USA

He’ s not the wing

defender Dallas needs,

but the high-upside guard has

tweaked his jumper with help

from Mike Miller and is rising

up draft boards.

19

NETS

Desmond

Bane, SF, TCU

The Nets could

take Hampton ifavailable,

or gamble on Aleksej

Pokusevski. But with the Nets

in win-now mode, the 22-year-old

Bane is plug-and-play. He shot43.3

percent from deep in college and provides

a mature, 3-and-D guy for therotation.

20

HEAT

Tre Jones, PG, Duke

Goran Dragic’s injury in the

Finals underscored how badly

Miami needs an insurance policy. Jones

is just that, and comes with ferocious

defense thatwould make Pa t Riley proud.

21

76ERS

Tyrell Te rry,

G, Stanford

The Sixers need all

the shooting they

can get with Joel Embiid

and Ben Simmons.Terry

provides that, despitea

6-2, 174-poundframe that

could see his draft stock

drop.

22

NUGGETS

Aleksej Pokusevski,

C, Serbia

If the skilled 7-footer doesn’t go

to the Nets,Pokusevski is exactly the sort

of high-upside, long-range player who

would be on-brand for Denver, anda nice

fit alongside Nikola Jokic. Just lock the

skinny Serb ina weight room first.

23

JAZZ

Josh Green, G, Arizona

If Green slipspa st Dallas, he

could wind up here. He can hit

the open spot-ups, and adda

6-10 wingspan on defense.

24

BUCKS

Tyrese Maxey,

SG,Kentucky

Shot poorly atKentucky (32

percent on jumpers), but as

defensive depth with talent,a winning

pedigree anda stroke that belies his

numbers, Maxeywould bea decent pick

for the Bucks.

25

THUNDER

Jaden McDaniels,

PF, Washington

Just the kind of long,raw rangy

athlete that SamPresti and

company have thrived on inpast drafts.

The rebuilding Thunder can bepa tient

with him.

26

BOSTON CELTICS

Leandro Bolmaro,

SF, Argentina

It’s unclear if Boston will

make all three first-round

selections. But the 6-7, 178-poundwa if

from BarcelonaB is a sold stash pick

who could develop and not get lost in the

Celtics’ deepro tation.

27

KNICKS

RobertWoodard II,

SF, Mississippi State

Another team that needs

shooting.To get it, this wing who can hit

42.9 percent from deep and also hasa

7-foot wingspan and 235-pound frame,

might be too good topass up.

28

LAKERS

Cassius Winston,

PG, Michigan State

The Lakers have few flaws, but adding

a guard who can space the floor and hit

the open looks providedby LeBron James

and Anthony Daviswould remedy one.

Winston has hit43.2 percent from deep.

29

RAPTORS

Theo Maledon, PG,France

Fred VanVleet isa free agent

bound fora big deal, andKyle

Lowry will turn 35 this coming season.A

young guard who can play on or off theba ll

would be useful.

30

CELTICS

Isaiah Stewart, C,

Washington

A 6-9, 250-pound shot-

blockingrebounder, he’s

alreadya brute at just 19.

[email protected]

22

DESMONDBANE

FF, TCU

Getty Images; AP (2)

27

ROBERT

WOODWARD II

SF, MIss. State

By Paul Schwartz

A video of Giants quarterback Daniel

Jones and injured running back Saquon

Barkley at a bar without masks on Friday

night is legitimate but it’s unclear if they

are in violation of the NFL’s COVID-19

protocols.

Jones and Barkley, along with a few

teammates and friends, went to dinner in

Manhattan in a private room of a restau-

rant, according to a person familiar with

the situation. After dinner, the group was

invited by a bar owner known by the

group to have a drink at a private bar,

which is closed to the public. It was at that

bar where the video, posted and shared to

Instagram by someone who goes by the

name of DJ Lugghead, was recorded. DJ

Lugghead served as a driver for the Giants

group that night.

The picture was captioned, “Rockin wit

Danny dimes and Saquon.” The DJ also

posted a video of Jones taking a sip of a

drink handed to him by an unidentified

woman and another that appeared to

show a man resembling Barkley riding a

bike in the street. Barkley is set to undergo

surgery next week after tearing his ACL

on Sept. 20. He has been strengthening his

knee ever since in preparation for surgery.

In a statement, the Giants said: “We are

aware of the video that was posted. We

are looking into the nature and context of

what is on the video.’’ An NFL spokesman

said, “The Giants are looking into the mat-

ter, as will the league.”

If there is any need for discipline by the

Giants, it will come in the form of a fine.

Under the league’s COVID-19 protocols,

players can be fined for conduct detri-

mental if they are found to have engaged

in “reckless” behavior, according to ESPN,

including attending a gathering at an in-

door bar with more than 10 people with-

out wearing a mask.

Jones, Barkley and the Giants group may

not have violated these protocols, since

they are tested regularly for COVID-19,

and they might not have mixed with any-

one from outside their bubble.

The picture of Jones and Barkley, both

23 years old, made its way around social

media Saturday. DJ Lugghead, the original

poster, told The Post the video was from

last October and not Friday night. That

turns out to be untrue.

“It was all posts from last year,” the DJ

said. “It’s a memory that popped up from a

year ago. That’s why I posted it.”

DJ Lugghead — whose name is Brian

Castelli, according to the JBProLive book-

ing website — declined to comment fur-

ther when contacted again and informed

of The Post’s reporting.

DJ Lugghead said he played at Common

Ground in the Meatpacking District on

Friday night — the bar’s website says it is

open for 25 percent capacity indoor din-

ing. The Giants group was not at Com-

mon Ground on Friday night.

The Giants, following their 22-21 loss to

the Eagles, were given Friday, Saturday

and Sunday off by head coach Joe Judge.

— with Greg Joyce

[email protected]

Giants seen

maskless in

bar video