This past Thursday's draft was one of the deepest in recent years with good players being passed on, and falling lower than expected, big trades galore, and drama. It also saw many difference making moves, and next years NBA season will be better for it. When I look at this draft, I am only going to look at it from a 1st Round perspective, and general moves, and utilization of their draft opportunities.
The top 3 picks went as many expected with Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley, and O.J. Mayo going in order, and then there were surprises to follow. This draft was filled with more trades than you would usually see, and especially involving the first round players. I am excited as the highly competitive Western Conference got stronger, and the Eastern Conference added some potential stars.
The following is a list of the players selected or obtained by each team:
- Atlanta Hawks: None
- Boston Celtics: J.R. Giddens, Bill Walker (via Washington), Semih Erden
- Charlotte Bobcats: D.J. Augustin, Alexis Ajinça, Kyle Weaver
- Chicago Bulls: Derrick Rose, Ömer Aşık (via Portland)
- Cleveland Cavaliers: J.J. Hickson, Darnell Jackson (via Miami), Sasha Kaun (via Seattle)
- Dallas Mavericks: Shan Foster
- Denver Nuggets: Sonny Weems (via Chicago)
- Detroit Pistons: Walter Sharpe (via Seattle), Trent Plaisted (via Seattle), Deron Washington
- Golden State Warriors: Anthony Randolph, Richard Hendrix
- Houston Rockets: Donte Greene (via Memphis), Joey Dorsey (via Portland), Maarty Leunen
- Indiana Pacers: Brandon Rush (via Portland), Roy Hibbert (via Toronto)
- Los Angeles Clippers: Eric Gordon, DeAndre Jordan, Mike Taylor (via Portland)
- Los Angeles Lakers: Joe Crawford
- Memphis Grizzlies: O.J. Mayo (via Minnesota), Darrell Arthur (via New Orleans, Portland, and Houston)
- Miami Heat: Michael Beasley, Mario Chalmers (via Minnesota)
- Milwaukee Bucks: Joe Alexander, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute
- Minnesota Timberwolves: Kevin Love (via Memphis), Nikola Peković
- New Jersey Nets: Brook Lopez, Ryan Anderson, Chris Douglas-Roberts
- New Orleans Hornets: None
- New York Knicks: Danilo Gallinari
- Orlando Magic: Courtney Lee
- Philadelphia 76ers: Marreese Speights
- Phoenix Suns: Robin Lopez, Goran Dragić (via San Antonio)
- Portland Trail Blazers: Jerryd Bayless (via Indiana), Nicolas Batum (via Houston)
- Sacramento Kings: Jason Thompson, Sean Singletary, Patrick Ewing Jr.
- San Antonio Spurs: George Hill, Malik Hairston (via Phoenix), James Gist
- Seattle SuperSonics: Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka, D. J. White (via Detroit), DeVon Hardin
- Toronto Raptors: Nathan Jawai (via Indiana)
- Utah Jazz: Kosta Koufos, Ante Tomic, Tadija Dragicević
- Washington Wizards: JaVale McGee
The Atlanta Hawks, and the New Orleans Hornets ended the draft with no players acquired. The Hornets had the 27th pick which they traded for cash considerations, and Atlanta did not pick at all. In both of these cases I totally agree that they did not pick up any players in the draft. Both teams are generally young, and do not have major glaring needs. Both teams should look to pick up an experienced playoff veteran in free agency, and extend their playoff success of last year
The Dallas Mavericks had the 51st pick in the draft, and picked senior Shan Foster from Vanderbilt. Unfortunately, this pick does not fill any of their needs that have been caused by the mis-trade that brought Jason Kidd to the Big D, and ruined their season, and got Avery Johnson fired. Because the Mavericks have a logjam at the small forward position, Foster will almost certainly be a non-factor. I almost placed the Mavs into the "Losers" blog, but they are so much more than that, they are disappointments.
The Denver Nuggets and LA Lakers picked up Sonny Weems, and Joe Crawford respectively. These teams are in opposite positions as the Lakers swept the Nuggets in the first-round of the playoffs on their way to the NBA Finals. Neither one of these players will play for their respective squads, they will either end up in the D-League, or cut during training camp. The Lakers are set for years to come as far as their roster is concerned as they have no upcoming free agents. The Nuggets core is set as well, and if they needed anything it was dead-eye shooter, and Weems is more of an athletic slasher. Crawford was an under preforming college player, and will not stand out with the Lakers. Both of these teams will look like themselves next season, and probably perform the same way.
The Philadelphia 76ers drafted forward Marreese Speights from the University of Florida. He was drafted strictly based on potential. Offensively they could not expect more than they do from Samuel Dalembert who is also an offensive project. During ESPN's draft coverage, Jay Bilas remarked that Speights never pushed himself to his physical limits. I took this to mean that he was not a natural hustler, and relied upon his athleticism. If you watched the 76ers compete against the Detroit Pistons in the playoffs, then you saw a team that plays hard and competes every possession, so this will be an adjustment for him.
The Orlando Magic picked up Courtney Lee from Western Kentucky University out of the Sun Belt Conference. Lee was a scorer, and the Magic have no need for additional scoring, they need more players that will commit to defense. Unless Courtney Lee will change his game to maintain a spot in this league, he will have a hard time making this team or any other for that matter. He will most likely be found on the bench in street clothes, or in the D-League next season.
Time Will Tell Teams- These are teams that it is hard to evaluate what the moves they made will do for them. They have either drafted well in the past and you would like to trust their instincts, and believe in what they are doing. The others picked up talent, and it is just hard to visualize how they will fit in with their new teams.
The team that falls into this list as #1 for me is the Detroit Pistons. I have seen the moves that general manager Joe Dumars has made over the years, and the draft picks he has made. He made a mistake with Darko Miličić he has made solid decisions otherwise. The Pistons drafted Walter Sharpe, Trent Plaisted, and Deron Washington. These are players that I rarely saw play or, not all, so all I can do is trust that Detroit's scouts know what they are doing. I will be watching the Pistons closely over the next few years to see if the moves pan out.
The Los Angeles Clippers drafted Eric Gordon, DeAndre Jordan, and obtained Mike Taylor of the D-League via trade. While watching Eric Gordon's college season, it was a tale of two seasons. The first part was very good, bordering on great. But after losing his coach and injuring his wrist, his game steadily declined. It is hard to see what impact he will have as either a point/shooting guard. DeAndre Jordan is a project player whose athleticism is out of this world, the question can his basketball skill catch up to that. So these picks may not help the Clippers this year, and actually they may never, but it will be nice to see what happens, as the picks are not without merit.
The last team that will be on the watch for the years to come is the Phoenix Suns. Can the shift in philosophy get the Suns past the wall that is the Western Conference. For 5 years they have been knocking, but has their window closed? They picked up Robin Lopez, and an international player. Lopez is known to be a defensive player which is the shift that general manager Steve Kerr is trying to change the team to. It will be interesting to see how Lopez teamed with Amare Stoudemire, and Shaquille O'Neal will turn out over the next 2 years. As Steve Nash, Shaquille O'Neal, and Grant Hill get older it will be harder for the Suns to get the elusive championship that they seek.
2008 NBA Draft "Losers" coming Monday!!!
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