(NOTE: This post was published a full week after the draft. It was written in real-time, however. Hey it takes a while to post photos and links!)
(AP Photo/Seth Wenig)Yay! I LOVE THE NBA DRAFT!
The suspense, the trades, the anticipation for next year. It’s all great. I’m watching it with my buddy Jeremy, with his lovely wife looking on while slaving over a hot stove. Atta boy Jeremy! Let’s document the occasion with a little running diary.
There’s already been a little shakeup in the last couple days that could affect the lottery. The Raptors shipped TJ Ford, Toronto’s first pick (No. 17) and Rasho Nesterovic to Indiana for Jermaine O’Neal. Now, the Pacers likely won’t draft a point guard now with its pick, No. 11.
Today, the Nets shipped Richard Jefferson to Milwaukee for Bobby Simmons and last year’s No. 6 pick, Yi Jianlian. This move was primarily done to set up salary cap space for the summer of 2010, when a Mr. LeBron James becomes a free agent. After all, as Jay-Z said in Do U Wanna Ride, “My Young’n is LeBron.”
Rose or Beasley? Beasley or Rose? Who’s it gonna be for the Chicago Bulls?
4:00 – The coverage has begun. ESPN is pulling out all the stops. The panel of commentators is Stu Scott, Jay Bilas, Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson. By the way, in HD Stu Scott’s glass eye is just creepy. It’s all you can look at. From here on out, he will be referred to as Stu Scott’s Eye.
4:05 – Andy Katz is on the scene reporting from Chicago. He tells us that the Bulls have made a decision and that the pick is going to be Derrick Rose. Good choice. There would have been rioting in the streets had they passed over the hometown boy.
4:06 – We see a shot of the Bulls war room. It’s good to see that new coach Vinny Del Torcho dressed up for the occasion, sporting an all white polo golf shirt.
4:12 – OJ Mayo is interviewed. He looks sharp although the beard is kinda painted on. By the way, did we all know that OJ is 21? He’s a college freshman. What happened to those other two years?
4:15 – There’s lots of talking going on right now. The draft won’t start for another 15 minutes. Coleen Dominguez is reporting from Seattle saying that owner Clay Bennett is on his way to the war room. Ummm…why exactly? We’ve seen all the evidence we need to know that that soulless liar, whose pants are continually on fire, doesn’t care about the Sonics. Why show up?
4:30 – David Stern announces that the Bulls are on the clock. He also says welcome to Madison Square Garden, home of the New York Knicks and the New York Liberty. Isn’t that a waste of electricity? Can’t the Liberty play in a high school gym somewhere? C’mon New York! It’s a little something called Global Warming.
4:36 – Bulls take Derrick Rose. He’s the total package. Speed, strength, athleticism, freckles.
4:41 – Rose is interviewed by Stephen A. Smith, who says that he gets to play in the “house that Jordan built.” Rose replies that “it will be nice to be in his presence.” Funny, I didn’t know the Bulls moved to Vegas. That seems to be the only place that Michael hangs out now. Well, that and on the Hanes set with Cuba Gooding Jr.
4:43 – Heat on the clock. Will it be Beasley? You can’t possibly pass him up, can you? They don’t. Despite reports that Pat Riley didn’t want him, he’s got him now.
4:45 – T’Wolves up next. They’re stacked at the guard positions with Randy Foye, Rashad McCants, Corey Brewer, Sebastian Telfair, Marko Jaric’s contract. Do they really take Mayo? I say yes. It’s way too early for Lopez or Randolph or any of the other stiffs up front.
4:49 – Mayo is the pick. He’s probably going to be the best pro of all these boys. We’ll look back 10 years from now and I’ll be proven right. I’m serious. Bookmark this page and in 2018 on draft night, go back to it. Can we agree to that?
4:50 – Seattle is up next. There were rumors that this pick was going to be swapped for the Clippers’ No. 7 and other considerations. Looks like the Oklahoma City Oil Wells are on the clock though. They need help in the backcourt. My guess is its Russell Westbrook from UCLA.
4:55 – It’s Westbrook. He should start immediately at point guard for Seattle, and won’t have to work too hard to beat out Earl Watson’s corpse and the artist formerly known as Luke Ridnour. He’s not a natural 1, a playmaker type. But he’ll be able to run Seattle’s offense, which is basically give the ball to 35, get the heck out of the way.
4:58 – Memphis is up. This could be interesting as rumors have had lots of teams moving up into this spot. One thing we do know is that the pick will NOT be point guards Jerryd Bayless or DJ Augustine. Of course, with Conley, Lowry and Crittendon all in the fold, they might be trying to round out the whole roster with little guys. My guess is Brook Lopez, filling the Darko Milicic-shaped hole in the middle of their lineup.
5:01 – It’s Kevin Love, making it two straight Bruins. He should help Memphis because he knows how to play. Not the most athletic player in the world, but he won’t have to be to do what will make him successful. Rebound, get easy buckets, start the fast break.
5:04 – Love tells Stephen A that he has a winning attitude and he “feels like a winner.” That won’t last long in Memphis.
5:06 – Knicks are up. I have no idea what they’re gonna do. Can they just forfeit their pick in exchange for the league swallowing Stephon Marbury’s contract?
5:07 – Stern: “With the sixth pick (Knicks fans cheering), in the 2008 NBA Draft (Knicks fans cheering), the New York Knicks (Knicks fans cheering), select (pause for effect), Danilo Gallinari (Knicks fans booing and hurling insults.) This is Frederic Weis all over again. For those of you who don't know who Weis is, he was selected by the Knicks in the first round in 1999, but never signed with them or played one game in the NBA. He's also the one in this clip who isn't doing the dunking!
5:09 – Fran Frachilla, who knows Gallinari’s game well said that one day he will be seen as the next Derek Jeter in this town. Jeremy just said, “Really, he’s gonna be the next great supermodel-dating shortstop?”
5:12 – Clips are up next. It’s gotta be Bayless here. Eric Gordon can’t play point guard, and I don’t know how they can trust Shaun Livingston’s glass knee. And of course, because they’re the Clippers, they take Gordon. Shocking. Brevin Knight better strap it up for one more year. Somewhere Clippers fans are, well, feeling like Clippers fans.
5:16 – Hey, did you guys know that new Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni knows Gallinari’s father? Stu Scott’s Eye just told us for the 117th time.
5:17 – Milwaukee is up. Who cares? Joe Alexander. So much for them taking him so he could communicate with Yi, after growing up in Asia. Joe looks like a good ole boy who loves an ice cold beer. He’ll fit in nicely in Milwaukee.
5:20 – Stu Scott’s Eye just asked Stephen A how his English was, to which he stammered all over his words and sounded like Danilo Gallinari. Well played by one of ESPN’s top basketball analysts.
5:22 – Michael Jordan’s cute little pet project, The Charlotte Bobcats, are up next. They have a tendency to take the most overhyped, sure-to-be-a-bust pick, so it’s gotta be Brook Lopez, right?
5:24 – Stu Scott’s Eye points out that both Larry Brown and Michael Jordan are Tar Heels. Thanks for the news flash, Stu Scott’s Eye. The Bobcats take DJ Augustin. Ridiculously stupid decision. Why do they even let Michael Jordan do anything front office related?
5:25 – Van Gundy just said that they needed someone to back up Raymond Felton. That sounds like a good roster spot to send the No. 9 pick in a loaded draft on.
5:29 – Jeremy, a die-hard Portland fan, just said “Dammit! Michael Jordan hates the Blazers. He screwed us again!” He was hoping that Augustin would fall to the them at No. 13, giving his beloved Blazers the point guard they need.
5:30 – The Nets take Brook Lopez, who looked like he was crying after getting passed over by the BETCats. Wipe your tears, even though you still got a broad’s name!
5:32 – His sister Robin Lopez just said he got a good idea what it would be like being drafted by seeing Brook go and shake the commissioner’s hand. “I can’t wait till I can go up there,” he added. Well, I can’t wait till you don't make a team and have to spend a year in Fort Worth or Bakersfield.
5:35 – Bayless is the pick for the Pacers. They just got TJ Ford yesterday to play point, so they will use him to give some scoring punch off the bench. I think Darrell Arthur would have been a better pick to give some front court depth, but you can’t argue with this pick. Bayless is a great value at 11.
5:38 – The Kings are up next. They have to be stewing that both Augustin and Bayless are gone, when it looked like they were going to be able to have their point guard of the future. They have to take a look at Arthur now, to give them a scoring threat to complement the Kevin Martin/John Salmons/Francisco Garcia exactly-the-same-kind-of-player troika.
5:41 – Here’s the pick: Jason Thompson from Rider. After the pick, Stern tells us, “Jason is not here.” Gee, ya think? I don’t even know where Rider is. He’s big apparently. Athletic too. OK.
5:44 – Jeremy’s Blazers are on the clock and needless to say, he’s nervous. He’s hoping for Brandon Rush, a defensive guy who is unselfish and can knock down shots. Think of him as the anti-Martell Webster. Kevin Pritchard could start to wheel and deal at this point too, as he’s known for shaking things up if he can’t get his guy.
5:46 – Pick’s in. Let’s see who it is. It’s Rush. Jeremy’s happy. He’ll be able to come in and contribute right away and could replace James Jones, who opted for free agency today.
5:48 – Stephen A just called Brandon Rush “Greg Oden.” I know he knows the difference, but jeez, he’s getting paid a lot of money to do it right. He’s awful.
5:50 – Golden State is up. There were rumors that they were shopping Baron Davis to Detroit for Chauncey Billups and Rasheed Wallace. If you’re Chris Mullin, how do you not do that in a second? Must have been all smoke, which most trade rumors are.
5:51 – Bilas predicts Anthony Randolph. I disagree since he seems to be the exact same player as Brandan Wright. Let’s see….And Bilas gets it! He’s the only Duke guy who I wouldn’t hit in the head with a ball-peen hammer if given the chance. So, I guess that counts for something.
5:54 – Vitale gets on TV in a too-red shirt and shows off his boner for Kevin Love, saying that Seattle will regret not taking Love at No. 4 when they already have Collison, Wilcox and 7 or 8 French centers on their roster. Stick with yelling into a microphone Dick. By the way, I’m glad your throat feels better. I love you.
5:57 – The Suns take Robin Lopez leading to an awkward moment when he tries to slip a baseball cap on over his Sideshow Bob melon. What is Steve Kerr doing to this franchise? There was a graphic that said that Robin is a collector of Disney memorabilia. He’ll be able to put his Suns hat on the mantle next to his authentic Lion King lithograph, and his ceramic “Princess Memories” doll collection, featuring Ariel, Mulan, and Jasmine.
6:03 – Philadelphia takes Maurice Speights from Florida. At this point, I’m kind of disinterested. There are no real great guys left and the rest of the teams are playoff teams. He’s big and I guess he can spell Sam Dalembert. Can’t argue.
6:09 – Toronto takes Roy Hibbert, who will be sent to Indiana as part of the O’Neal/Ford deal. He’ll help bring some beef to the Pacers. Not figuratively, either. He will literally be the one making late night burger runs for Marquis Daniels and Jamaal Tinsley after a night of partying.
6:16 – Washington is on the clock. The pick is in and they take JaVelle McGhee from Nevada, which essentially ends the Etan Thomas era.
6:17 – There’s been a trade: Kevin Pritchard do what he do on draft night once again. He’s the best. Portland gets the rights to Jerryd Bayless and forward Ike Diogu from Indiana, in exchange for the rights to Brandon Rush and point guard Jarret Jack. So now, the Blazers can trot out a lineup of Bayless, Roy, Outlaw, Aldridge, and Oden, which will be unbeatable in four years. It’s Rush Hour in Indianapolis, as Brandon joins brother Kareem.
6:22 – Cleveland takes JJ Hickson to join the fighting LeBrons. He’s a former NC State Wolfpack power forward. Which would be fine except that they cut Cedric Simmons, a former NC State Wolfpack power forward. Does this pick really make them better? Possibly. Hickson can take some of Joe Smith’s minutes and give them a little more youth. But LeBron is just biding his time anyway until he can peace out of Cleveland in a couple years.
6:27 – The Bobcats are up next. This pick was supposed to go to my beloved Denver Nuggets, but they traded it for a future 1st round pick.
(Since I don’t care who gets picked right here (Alexis Anjica, BFD), I’m gonna use the rest of this blog to discuss some of the recent Nuggets draft day blunders.
I’m convinced that Denver has the worst front office in the NBA. The only reason they are a 50-win team is because they happened to be terrible enough in 2002-03 to luck into a top 5 pick in the 2003 LeBron-Carmelo-Dwyane Wade – Chris Bosh sweepstakes.)
Now, I know that hindsight is 20-20, but if you don’t see a pattern of incompetence here, you’re just not trying. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me 10 friggin’ years in a row, just kick me in the groin and take my wallet.
A look back at the last 10 years of Nuggets getting owned – by themselves.
1998 – The Nuggets have the 3rd pick in a loaded draft and take…wait for it...wait for it...Raef LaFrentz. The 23 combined All-Star appearances that went after that pick belong to Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter, Dirk Nowitzki, and Paul Pierce respectively. But hey, at least now LaFrentz (last year of $12.7M contract) can clear a bunch of cap space for someone next season!
1999 – No pick. That always makes Draft night fun for the fans.
2000 – Picking 26th, the Nuggets take Mamadou N’Diaye out of Auburn. Who was picked in the second round that year? Michael Redd. Granted, a lot of teams missed the boat on Redd, but Denver followed up the N’Diaye pick with Dan McClintock at 53. McCrappy!
2001 – No first round pick, but they do a bang up job taking Ousmane Cisse at 47. Trying to get lucky on the high school player explosion, Cisse was a decent risk, but turned out to be a bust. Had they but known of his blogging prowess, it would have been nice to see Paul Shirley in that spot.
2002 – Maybe the benchmark of Nuggets draft-day poop storms. Armed with two picks in the top 7 thanks to a trade with New York that jettisoned Antonio McDyess to the Apple, Denver selected Nikoloz Tskitishvili at No. 5 and Nene Hilario at No. 7. Who went at 9 and 10, respectively? Only Amare Stoudamire and Caron Butler. They went on to take the venerable Vincent Yarborough with the 32nd pick, two spots ahead of Carlos Boozer.
Tskitishvili went on to become the poster boy for International workout wonders, who have no business lacing it up in the L. He has career averages of 3.0 points and 1.8 rebounds.
Nene has been productive in his time on the floor. The only problem is he is never healthy enough to be on the floor. His injury history is well-documented and a little sad actually. Hopefully, he recovers from ball cancer and starts dunking on people’s faces again.
2003 – OK, OK. So they get scoring sensation and Mug Shot Hall of Famer Carmelo Anthony with the 3rd pick. But consider this: If Joe Dumars doesn’t have a temporary moment of insanity and doesn’t select Darko Milicic at No. 2, do you think there’s any chance on God’s green Earth that the Nuggets don’t snatch up Darko to pair him with Tskitishvili and Hilario, forming the best “Broken English frontcourt” that the game has ever seen? I say no.
To add insult to further injury, at No. 46 the Nuggs take Sani Becirovic over serviceable NBA players Mo Williams, James Jones and Kyle Korver. AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH! Enough with the foreign guys already! It’s 5 years ago and it still makes me gnash my teeth!
2004 – Denver gets an absolute GIFT handed to them, when Naismith Player of the Year Jameer Nelson falls into their lap with the 20th pick. For once, they make a smart decision and take Nelson. I’m thinking, OK solid point guard to groom with Carmelo. They’ll be sick in four years. Meer minutes later, of course, Nelson is dealt to Orlando for their first round pick in 2005. Which leads to…
2005 – Still needing a point guard (with Orlando’s pick from 2004) the Nuggets select Julius Hodge, a 6-5 shooting guard (I use the word shooting loosely, as Hodge may have had the worst jumper in the history of game) and try to convert him into a point guard! Brilliant! Hodge would later be the victim of a late-night shooting along a Denver highway, seemingly ending his career before it could start. Not that someone who can’t shoot and can’t handle the ball would have had much chance to thrive.
But it gets worse. Denver didn’t have their own first-round pick that year, because they packaged it in the mind-blowingly stupid decision to acquire Kenyon Martin for $95 million in a sign-and-trade. One public spat with his coach and two microfracture surgeries later, Martin is just now starting to look the part of a productive NBA big man again.
2006 – Still no first-round pick thanks to the Martin deal. But in the second round, a ray of hope. Denver takes Pac 10 Player of the Year Leon Powe at 49. He is immediately traded to Boston for a future second-round pick. Which they either haven’t used yet, or traded to someone for a truck full of those NBA logo socks. The same ones that Charles needs for his footsies.
Powe was a key part of Boston’s bench in winning the title this year, and was the best player on the floor in Game 2. Yeah, the Nuggets couldn’t use a guy like that, could they?
2007 – Pick is forfeited to Philadelphia as part of the Allen Iverson deal. That I can live with. A.I. is one of my few man-crushes.
2008 – Pick traded to Charlotte. So they’ll have two No. 1s sometime in the near future, unless of course, they trade…
Now, can’t you see why I’m tortured?
Ugh! I HATE THE NBA DRAFT!
The suspense, the trades, the anticipation for next year. It’s all great. I’m watching it with my buddy Jeremy, with his lovely wife looking on while slaving over a hot stove. Atta boy Jeremy! Let’s document the occasion with a little running diary.
There’s already been a little shakeup in the last couple days that could affect the lottery. The Raptors shipped TJ Ford, Toronto’s first pick (No. 17) and Rasho Nesterovic to Indiana for Jermaine O’Neal. Now, the Pacers likely won’t draft a point guard now with its pick, No. 11.
Today, the Nets shipped Richard Jefferson to Milwaukee for Bobby Simmons and last year’s No. 6 pick, Yi Jianlian. This move was primarily done to set up salary cap space for the summer of 2010, when a Mr. LeBron James becomes a free agent. After all, as Jay-Z said in Do U Wanna Ride, “My Young’n is LeBron.”
Rose or Beasley? Beasley or Rose? Who’s it gonna be for the Chicago Bulls?
4:00 – The coverage has begun. ESPN is pulling out all the stops. The panel of commentators is Stu Scott, Jay Bilas, Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson. By the way, in HD Stu Scott’s glass eye is just creepy. It’s all you can look at. From here on out, he will be referred to as Stu Scott’s Eye.
4:05 – Andy Katz is on the scene reporting from Chicago. He tells us that the Bulls have made a decision and that the pick is going to be Derrick Rose. Good choice. There would have been rioting in the streets had they passed over the hometown boy.
4:06 – We see a shot of the Bulls war room. It’s good to see that new coach Vinny Del Torcho dressed up for the occasion, sporting an all white polo golf shirt.
4:12 – OJ Mayo is interviewed. He looks sharp although the beard is kinda painted on. By the way, did we all know that OJ is 21? He’s a college freshman. What happened to those other two years?
4:15 – There’s lots of talking going on right now. The draft won’t start for another 15 minutes. Coleen Dominguez is reporting from Seattle saying that owner Clay Bennett is on his way to the war room. Ummm…why exactly? We’ve seen all the evidence we need to know that that soulless liar, whose pants are continually on fire, doesn’t care about the Sonics. Why show up?
4:30 – David Stern announces that the Bulls are on the clock. He also says welcome to Madison Square Garden, home of the New York Knicks and the New York Liberty. Isn’t that a waste of electricity? Can’t the Liberty play in a high school gym somewhere? C’mon New York! It’s a little something called Global Warming.
4:36 – Bulls take Derrick Rose. He’s the total package. Speed, strength, athleticism, freckles.
4:41 – Rose is interviewed by Stephen A. Smith, who says that he gets to play in the “house that Jordan built.” Rose replies that “it will be nice to be in his presence.” Funny, I didn’t know the Bulls moved to Vegas. That seems to be the only place that Michael hangs out now. Well, that and on the Hanes set with Cuba Gooding Jr.4:43 – Heat on the clock. Will it be Beasley? You can’t possibly pass him up, can you? They don’t. Despite reports that Pat Riley didn’t want him, he’s got him now.
4:45 – T’Wolves up next. They’re stacked at the guard positions with Randy Foye, Rashad McCants, Corey Brewer, Sebastian Telfair, Marko Jaric’s contract. Do they really take Mayo? I say yes. It’s way too early for Lopez or Randolph or any of the other stiffs up front.
4:49 – Mayo is the pick. He’s probably going to be the best pro of all these boys. We’ll look back 10 years from now and I’ll be proven right. I’m serious. Bookmark this page and in 2018 on draft night, go back to it. Can we agree to that?
4:50 – Seattle is up next. There were rumors that this pick was going to be swapped for the Clippers’ No. 7 and other considerations. Looks like the Oklahoma City Oil Wells are on the clock though. They need help in the backcourt. My guess is its Russell Westbrook from UCLA.
4:55 – It’s Westbrook. He should start immediately at point guard for Seattle, and won’t have to work too hard to beat out Earl Watson’s corpse and the artist formerly known as Luke Ridnour. He’s not a natural 1, a playmaker type. But he’ll be able to run Seattle’s offense, which is basically give the ball to 35, get the heck out of the way.
4:58 – Memphis is up. This could be interesting as rumors have had lots of teams moving up into this spot. One thing we do know is that the pick will NOT be point guards Jerryd Bayless or DJ Augustine. Of course, with Conley, Lowry and Crittendon all in the fold, they might be trying to round out the whole roster with little guys. My guess is Brook Lopez, filling the Darko Milicic-shaped hole in the middle of their lineup.
5:01 – It’s Kevin Love, making it two straight Bruins. He should help Memphis because he knows how to play. Not the most athletic player in the world, but he won’t have to be to do what will make him successful. Rebound, get easy buckets, start the fast break.
5:04 – Love tells Stephen A that he has a winning attitude and he “feels like a winner.” That won’t last long in Memphis.
5:06 – Knicks are up. I have no idea what they’re gonna do. Can they just forfeit their pick in exchange for the league swallowing Stephon Marbury’s contract?
5:07 – Stern: “With the sixth pick (Knicks fans cheering), in the 2008 NBA Draft (Knicks fans cheering), the New York Knicks (Knicks fans cheering), select (pause for effect), Danilo Gallinari (Knicks fans booing and hurling insults.) This is Frederic Weis all over again. For those of you who don't know who Weis is, he was selected by the Knicks in the first round in 1999, but never signed with them or played one game in the NBA. He's also the one in this clip who isn't doing the dunking!
5:09 – Fran Frachilla, who knows Gallinari’s game well said that one day he will be seen as the next Derek Jeter in this town. Jeremy just said, “Really, he’s gonna be the next great supermodel-dating shortstop?”
5:12 – Clips are up next. It’s gotta be Bayless here. Eric Gordon can’t play point guard, and I don’t know how they can trust Shaun Livingston’s glass knee. And of course, because they’re the Clippers, they take Gordon. Shocking. Brevin Knight better strap it up for one more year. Somewhere Clippers fans are, well, feeling like Clippers fans.
5:16 – Hey, did you guys know that new Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni knows Gallinari’s father? Stu Scott’s Eye just told us for the 117th time.
5:17 – Milwaukee is up. Who cares? Joe Alexander. So much for them taking him so he could communicate with Yi, after growing up in Asia. Joe looks like a good ole boy who loves an ice cold beer. He’ll fit in nicely in Milwaukee.
5:20 – Stu Scott’s Eye just asked Stephen A how his English was, to which he stammered all over his words and sounded like Danilo Gallinari. Well played by one of ESPN’s top basketball analysts.
5:22 – Michael Jordan’s cute little pet project, The Charlotte Bobcats, are up next. They have a tendency to take the most overhyped, sure-to-be-a-bust pick, so it’s gotta be Brook Lopez, right?
5:24 – Stu Scott’s Eye points out that both Larry Brown and Michael Jordan are Tar Heels. Thanks for the news flash, Stu Scott’s Eye. The Bobcats take DJ Augustin. Ridiculously stupid decision. Why do they even let Michael Jordan do anything front office related?
5:25 – Van Gundy just said that they needed someone to back up Raymond Felton. That sounds like a good roster spot to send the No. 9 pick in a loaded draft on.
5:29 – Jeremy, a die-hard Portland fan, just said “Dammit! Michael Jordan hates the Blazers. He screwed us again!” He was hoping that Augustin would fall to the them at No. 13, giving his beloved Blazers the point guard they need.
5:30 – The Nets take Brook Lopez, who looked like he was crying after getting passed over by the BETCats. Wipe your tears, even though you still got a broad’s name!
5:32 – His sister Robin Lopez just said he got a good idea what it would be like being drafted by seeing Brook go and shake the commissioner’s hand. “I can’t wait till I can go up there,” he added. Well, I can’t wait till you don't make a team and have to spend a year in Fort Worth or Bakersfield.
5:35 – Bayless is the pick for the Pacers. They just got TJ Ford yesterday to play point, so they will use him to give some scoring punch off the bench. I think Darrell Arthur would have been a better pick to give some front court depth, but you can’t argue with this pick. Bayless is a great value at 11.
5:38 – The Kings are up next. They have to be stewing that both Augustin and Bayless are gone, when it looked like they were going to be able to have their point guard of the future. They have to take a look at Arthur now, to give them a scoring threat to complement the Kevin Martin/John Salmons/Francisco Garcia exactly-the-same-kind-of-player troika.
5:41 – Here’s the pick: Jason Thompson from Rider. After the pick, Stern tells us, “Jason is not here.” Gee, ya think? I don’t even know where Rider is. He’s big apparently. Athletic too. OK.
5:44 – Jeremy’s Blazers are on the clock and needless to say, he’s nervous. He’s hoping for Brandon Rush, a defensive guy who is unselfish and can knock down shots. Think of him as the anti-Martell Webster. Kevin Pritchard could start to wheel and deal at this point too, as he’s known for shaking things up if he can’t get his guy.
5:46 – Pick’s in. Let’s see who it is. It’s Rush. Jeremy’s happy. He’ll be able to come in and contribute right away and could replace James Jones, who opted for free agency today.
5:48 – Stephen A just called Brandon Rush “Greg Oden.” I know he knows the difference, but jeez, he’s getting paid a lot of money to do it right. He’s awful.
5:50 – Golden State is up. There were rumors that they were shopping Baron Davis to Detroit for Chauncey Billups and Rasheed Wallace. If you’re Chris Mullin, how do you not do that in a second? Must have been all smoke, which most trade rumors are.
5:51 – Bilas predicts Anthony Randolph. I disagree since he seems to be the exact same player as Brandan Wright. Let’s see….And Bilas gets it! He’s the only Duke guy who I wouldn’t hit in the head with a ball-peen hammer if given the chance. So, I guess that counts for something.
5:54 – Vitale gets on TV in a too-red shirt and shows off his boner for Kevin Love, saying that Seattle will regret not taking Love at No. 4 when they already have Collison, Wilcox and 7 or 8 French centers on their roster. Stick with yelling into a microphone Dick. By the way, I’m glad your throat feels better. I love you.
5:57 – The Suns take Robin Lopez leading to an awkward moment when he tries to slip a baseball cap on over his Sideshow Bob melon. What is Steve Kerr doing to this franchise? There was a graphic that said that Robin is a collector of Disney memorabilia. He’ll be able to put his Suns hat on the mantle next to his authentic Lion King lithograph, and his ceramic “Princess Memories” doll collection, featuring Ariel, Mulan, and Jasmine.6:03 – Philadelphia takes Maurice Speights from Florida. At this point, I’m kind of disinterested. There are no real great guys left and the rest of the teams are playoff teams. He’s big and I guess he can spell Sam Dalembert. Can’t argue.
6:09 – Toronto takes Roy Hibbert, who will be sent to Indiana as part of the O’Neal/Ford deal. He’ll help bring some beef to the Pacers. Not figuratively, either. He will literally be the one making late night burger runs for Marquis Daniels and Jamaal Tinsley after a night of partying.
6:16 – Washington is on the clock. The pick is in and they take JaVelle McGhee from Nevada, which essentially ends the Etan Thomas era.
6:17 – There’s been a trade: Kevin Pritchard do what he do on draft night once again. He’s the best. Portland gets the rights to Jerryd Bayless and forward Ike Diogu from Indiana, in exchange for the rights to Brandon Rush and point guard Jarret Jack. So now, the Blazers can trot out a lineup of Bayless, Roy, Outlaw, Aldridge, and Oden, which will be unbeatable in four years. It’s Rush Hour in Indianapolis, as Brandon joins brother Kareem.
6:22 – Cleveland takes JJ Hickson to join the fighting LeBrons. He’s a former NC State Wolfpack power forward. Which would be fine except that they cut Cedric Simmons, a former NC State Wolfpack power forward. Does this pick really make them better? Possibly. Hickson can take some of Joe Smith’s minutes and give them a little more youth. But LeBron is just biding his time anyway until he can peace out of Cleveland in a couple years.
6:27 – The Bobcats are up next. This pick was supposed to go to my beloved Denver Nuggets, but they traded it for a future 1st round pick.
(Since I don’t care who gets picked right here (Alexis Anjica, BFD), I’m gonna use the rest of this blog to discuss some of the recent Nuggets draft day blunders.
I’m convinced that Denver has the worst front office in the NBA. The only reason they are a 50-win team is because they happened to be terrible enough in 2002-03 to luck into a top 5 pick in the 2003 LeBron-Carmelo-Dwyane Wade – Chris Bosh sweepstakes.)
Now, I know that hindsight is 20-20, but if you don’t see a pattern of incompetence here, you’re just not trying. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me 10 friggin’ years in a row, just kick me in the groin and take my wallet.
A look back at the last 10 years of Nuggets getting owned – by themselves.
1998 – The Nuggets have the 3rd pick in a loaded draft and take…wait for it...wait for it...Raef LaFrentz. The 23 combined All-Star appearances that went after that pick belong to Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter, Dirk Nowitzki, and Paul Pierce respectively. But hey, at least now LaFrentz (last year of $12.7M contract) can clear a bunch of cap space for someone next season!
1999 – No pick. That always makes Draft night fun for the fans.
2000 – Picking 26th, the Nuggets take Mamadou N’Diaye out of Auburn. Who was picked in the second round that year? Michael Redd. Granted, a lot of teams missed the boat on Redd, but Denver followed up the N’Diaye pick with Dan McClintock at 53. McCrappy!
2001 – No first round pick, but they do a bang up job taking Ousmane Cisse at 47. Trying to get lucky on the high school player explosion, Cisse was a decent risk, but turned out to be a bust. Had they but known of his blogging prowess, it would have been nice to see Paul Shirley in that spot.
2002 – Maybe the benchmark of Nuggets draft-day poop storms. Armed with two picks in the top 7 thanks to a trade with New York that jettisoned Antonio McDyess to the Apple, Denver selected Nikoloz Tskitishvili at No. 5 and Nene Hilario at No. 7. Who went at 9 and 10, respectively? Only Amare Stoudamire and Caron Butler. They went on to take the venerable Vincent Yarborough with the 32nd pick, two spots ahead of Carlos Boozer.Tskitishvili went on to become the poster boy for International workout wonders, who have no business lacing it up in the L. He has career averages of 3.0 points and 1.8 rebounds.
Nene has been productive in his time on the floor. The only problem is he is never healthy enough to be on the floor. His injury history is well-documented and a little sad actually. Hopefully, he recovers from ball cancer and starts dunking on people’s faces again.
2003 – OK, OK. So they get scoring sensation and Mug Shot Hall of Famer Carmelo Anthony with the 3rd pick. But consider this: If Joe Dumars doesn’t have a temporary moment of insanity and doesn’t select Darko Milicic at No. 2, do you think there’s any chance on God’s green Earth that the Nuggets don’t snatch up Darko to pair him with Tskitishvili and Hilario, forming the best “Broken English frontcourt” that the game has ever seen? I say no.
To add insult to further injury, at No. 46 the Nuggs take Sani Becirovic over serviceable NBA players Mo Williams, James Jones and Kyle Korver. AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH! Enough with the foreign guys already! It’s 5 years ago and it still makes me gnash my teeth!
2004 – Denver gets an absolute GIFT handed to them, when Naismith Player of the Year Jameer Nelson falls into their lap with the 20th pick. For once, they make a smart decision and take Nelson. I’m thinking, OK solid point guard to groom with Carmelo. They’ll be sick in four years. Meer minutes later, of course, Nelson is dealt to Orlando for their first round pick in 2005. Which leads to…
2005 – Still needing a point guard (with Orlando’s pick from 2004) the Nuggets select Julius Hodge, a 6-5 shooting guard (I use the word shooting loosely, as Hodge may have had the worst jumper in the history of game) and try to convert him into a point guard! Brilliant! Hodge would later be the victim of a late-night shooting along a Denver highway, seemingly ending his career before it could start. Not that someone who can’t shoot and can’t handle the ball would have had much chance to thrive.But it gets worse. Denver didn’t have their own first-round pick that year, because they packaged it in the mind-blowingly stupid decision to acquire Kenyon Martin for $95 million in a sign-and-trade. One public spat with his coach and two microfracture surgeries later, Martin is just now starting to look the part of a productive NBA big man again.
2006 – Still no first-round pick thanks to the Martin deal. But in the second round, a ray of hope. Denver takes Pac 10 Player of the Year Leon Powe at 49. He is immediately traded to Boston for a future second-round pick. Which they either haven’t used yet, or traded to someone for a truck full of those NBA logo socks. The same ones that Charles needs for his footsies.
Powe was a key part of Boston’s bench in winning the title this year, and was the best player on the floor in Game 2. Yeah, the Nuggets couldn’t use a guy like that, could they?
2007 – Pick is forfeited to Philadelphia as part of the Allen Iverson deal. That I can live with. A.I. is one of my few man-crushes.
2008 – Pick traded to Charlotte. So they’ll have two No. 1s sometime in the near future, unless of course, they trade…
Now, can’t you see why I’m tortured?
Ugh! I HATE THE NBA DRAFT!
