Spontaneous Ruminations on the NBA Draft
Andrew Wiggins (Kathy Willens/AP)
After months and months of deliberation, we ended up right where we started a year ago with Andrew Wiggins going number 1 overall. Joel Embiid would have gone first had he been fit, and Jabari Parker must have been close. Wiggins is a great option though, and a worthy first pick. He’s got the potential to be a great defender, and despite the criticism over his perimeter shooting, he actually put up freshman numbers pretty identical to Carmelo Anthony. Playing with Kyrie Irving, he has a scorer there already so there’s room to hone his offensive game.
Oh, and, uh, nice suit, bro.
Interestingly, Cleveland seriously considered trading down, but with the draft as stacked as it is, I doubt they’d have gotten fair value.
Wiggins is the second consecutive Canadian picked first overall by the Cavs, after Anthony Bennett last year.
Jabari Parker was hardly a surprise at 2. Milwaukee now has an NBA ready forward to work with, though it remains to be seen how quickly this franchise can turn things around. They denied all tanking rumours last season, then went on to still have the worst record in the league. The Bucks do have the Greek Freak, Giannis Antetokounmpo, so the future core of the team is slowly developing. They also added Damien Inglis, a 19 year old French forward and big man Johnny O’Bryant in the second round.
Philadelphia 76ers. They had a good day. It started with a predictable gamble on Joel Embiid (he’ll be fine) and ended with 7 total picks. Embiid is almost certain to miss the start of the season with his foot injury but the 76ers aren’t too worried about any long term effects. They may even shut him down for the whole year for fear that he’s good enough to win them games. Nerlens Noel is due to return as well.
There was an awkward moment in the coverage when reigning Rookie of the Year Michael Carter-Williams was asked about his role on the 76ers team after they drafted point guard Elfrid Payton. MCW looked pretty stern and stroppy, only for Payton to be traded to Orlando for the rights to 12th pick Dario Saric, a highly rated Croatian prospect who’ll probably stay in Turkey for a year or two until the 76ers are ready to cash in all of their many assets and start playing basketball to win again.
Seeing Aaron Gordon go ahead of Dante Exum was a little surprising, but Exum didn’t play college ball last year. He barely played competitively at all and in dodging the hype, his reputation actually improved. But GMs want to know a little more about a guy before they draft him. Orlando will be happy with Gordon (though they could have used a franchise PG), while Utah will be a great fit for Exum, playing alongside Trey Burke (who’ll cover him defensively against the elite PGs).
Bawston. Los Celticos. They had two first round picks (thanks to Brooklyn), 6th and 17th, and they used them well. Marcus Smart is one of the best and most ready guards in the last few years, and James Young brings a quality shooting touch into that backcourt. Bill Simmons was stoked.
You’ve got to wonder what this means for Rajon Rondo in Boston though. Is he on the block? Or will he stick around and help Smart transition into that role. Is Smart ready? Will Rondo be upset? Hmmm.
And then the other storied franchise in the lottery: The LA Lakers. They got a great guy in Julius Randle, a player Lakers fans will be glad to see. He’s young and with a big upside. He scores and he rebounds. Mitch Kupchak said he was the best player on the board at the time and they have no worries over his foot issues. Great value at 7, he even comes with the rare Kobe Bryant seal of approval!
The Nuggets made probably the best trade of the day with the Bulls, a real mutual back-scratcher. Having taken Doug McDermott at 11, it looked like they had a powerful scorer to cover Dan Gallinari (who’s been injured for ages), except how much would McD be stepping on Gallinari’s toes? Turns out they had a plan, trading him to Chicago for the 16th & 19th picks. Chicago get a scorer to help transition Derrick Rose back into things, plus they save some cap room for their run at Carmelo Anthony. Chicago also added a young Aussie forward, Cam Bairstow, in the second. A trade chip in the least.
Denver used those picks on Jusuf Nurkic, a raw Bosnian big man (probably not NBA ready yet) and Gary Harris, a 2-guard who slid way down given the strength of this draft class. Nurkic wants to come straight to the NBA so we’ll wait and see there, while Harris is a super versatile guy inexplicably drafted outside the lottery. With Arron Afflalo returning to the Nuggets, they’ve got quite a backcourt emerging.
Let’s talk about LeBron James, shall we? I fully expect him to stay with the Heat (unless Wade & Bosh get greedy), and there was a strong hint to that happening today. James tweeted out his appreciation for PG Shabazz Napier, and hey whaddayaknow, Miami trade up to get him. Some much needed youth on a stale and aging roster. LBJ getting his way. Good to see.
Toronto made the playoffs for the first time in ages last season, though decided against strengthening their bench, instead using their first round pick on a wild swing for the fences prospect from Brazil. Bruno Caboclo is considered the ‘Brazilian Durant’. An incredible athlete but super raw. Not even close to NBA ready. Not a bad gamble for a franchise that struggles to get free agents (Canadian taxes and all that), though a big reach. They could easily have traded back and still got him.
We’re not hearing much over Kevin Love recently. The Warriors say they are still in talks, but Melo and LeBron are taking all interest away from K.Love. Once those two commit (as free agents, they’re better value than giving up assets for Love), then Love will be the talking point once more. His Minnesota side did well in getting Zach LaVine at 13, a potential 2-guard star who needs some work but could be great in a few years. The defence may be an issue partnered with Ricky Rubio, who is somehow both an underrated and overrated defender, but there are signs of life for the post Love era.
Houston are one of those sides in the running for Melo/Bron, and they did their bit in the draft buy getting Swiss baller Clint Capela, who they can stash overseas for a while and avoid any salary cap hit. They traded Omer Asik to New Orleans recently too.
Oklahoma City added a forward in Mitch McGary who isn’t outstanding, but he’s a big guy who can handle the ball and contribute on offence. He could form a great partnership with Steven Adams in the front court, or he could end up as Adams’ deputy. Either way, it seems the Perkins/Collison era is coming to an end. They also got Josh Huestis, a defensive role player who should help that bench out.
The Knicks didn’t even have a pick in this draft two days ago. But Phil Jackson’s puppetry saw them acquire a few nice pieces from Dallas, including two second rounders, for Tyson Chandler and Ray Felton. A pretty good deal from both sides, actually, though the Knicks seem to be on top after they were able to nab forward Cleanthony Early at 34, a stunning second round steal. They added the Greek Freak’s little brother too (who Milwaukee really wanted). The tides may be turning.
The Pistons traded out of the first round, but grabbed Spencer Dinwiddie in the second, a guard who can shoot. He can shoot! Nice, Detroit. You’re finally figuring it out. Meanwhile the Clippers wasted a first rounder on a three point shooting guard, and San Antonio predictably made a couple or very clever late picks. Like they always seem to do.
The Suns were underwhelming, spending the 14th on TJ Warren, a bit of a reach and not really a guy who makes them all that much better, and the 18th on Tyler Ennis, a very good guard but clearly picked as insurance in case Eric Bledsoe leaves.
And finally, a brilliant, heart-warming moment from the NBA, ceremoniously drafting Isaiah Austin, a man expected to go somewhere in the first round until it was discovered that he had a rare genetic disorder that forced him to immediately retire. He wasn’t to be robbed of the chance to get up on stage and shake the commissioner’s hand though, and it made for a really touching moment of humanity. Things can be taken away so quickly. Best of luck to Austin and his family.
BIG WINNERS
Utah Jazz – Getting Exum and Rodney Hood at 5 and 23, both were great value. Each time they must have been buzzing that the guy was even still on the board. Sometimes things just fall into place.
Denver Nuggets – A clever trade and some considered picks, plus Dan Gallinari potentially returning from injury and Arron Afflalo returning via trade, their starters are gonna look a whole lot better this next season.
LeBron James – The Miami Heat gave him the point guard he wanted, now he just needs his teammates to play his game too. $40m on Wade and Bosh is too much by a long way if you’re gonna assemble a competitive roster. That’s almost two thirds of the salary cap. James won’t have a better chance of winning next year than with Miami. He has a coach who knows him well, a winning culture and a front office seemingly determined to help him out. The only way I see him leaving is if Bosh and Wade take the money and leave him in the lurch.
Adam Silver – I don’t think he even got booed once!
BIG LOSERS
Rajon Rondo – I think he’s headed for the door. He can’t play with Marcus Smart, and he won’t play second fiddle or master/commander. Who wants a star PG? With teams that have some cap space focussed on Melo and LeBron, there’ll be suitors for sure left over. But not for a while. For now he's stuck in career limbo.
Zach LaVine – A really good potential player, but the look on his face when he was drafted by Minnesota? Pure misery. He’s been living and playing in sunny California, now he’s off to the Eternal Northern Winter. It’s like being drafted to go to Vietnam, or sent to The Wall on Game of Thrones.