Well, the NBA draft has changed over time, once a #1 or #2 pick would have a chance to play, not anymore, if a draftee is not a top 8 pick, they will toil in relative obscurity if they play at all. Without further ado, some NBA mock drafts http://hoopshype.com/draft.htm 1. Blake Griffin Clippers 2. James Hardin Memphis Griz 3. Hasheem Thabet OKC 4. Ricky Rubio Sac Kings 5. S Curry The Wiz 6. Tyreke Evans Timberwolves 7. Jordan Hill Golden State 8. Jrue holiday NY Knicks 9. Demar Rozen Raptors IMO, Rubio will make it clear that he wants to play for a top echelon team in the NBA, he has a 5.5 million dollar buyout on his contract, and per NBa rules, whomever drafts him can only pay 500k towards the buyout which means he will have to pay the 5.5 million himself or simply not play in the NBA, he's 18, with 3 years of Euro pro ball under his belt and he played in the Olympics. If the Knicks take Holiday, they really are a poorly managed team, it was not all I Thomas's fault. http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ys-mockdraft052009&prov=yhoo&type=lgns Later notables: Jeff Teague #19 to Atlanta, he tore up the ACC. Tyler Hansbrough #25 to Oklahoma City, sad but true. I like Lawson at #7, he is tougher then given credit for as his ankle was supposed to keep him out of the NCCA tourney, he reminds me a bit of Baron Davis. The FSN Mock also has video previews of the prospects: http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/9689114/2009-NBA-mock-draft:-Version-2.0 Thoughts?
Curry is one of those point/forward types who can create shots, his downside is Davidson is not exactly a powerhouse. The way the NBA does things is beyond me, picks say 7-20 are basically the same players according to analysts. For me, I'd like the Bobcats to end up with Harden, especially after the Morrison fiasco.
What's interesting is, the top 3 teams have so much talent on their squad. And now they have a chance to add much more talent. These could be the very, very good teams 2-3 years from now. Sucks though. Magics don't have a draft pick. I guess I'll just watch to see who goes where.
This is one crap draft. Curry is the only skill guy I like in the top 10. Griffin is a project and a 10/10 PF..... Udonis Haslem is a 10/10 PF..and the heat pays him little above a MLE. SO Griffin is a weak #1. Lawson is too short and can't finish and lacks range. Other than that...he's great. LOL I am on the Jack McClinton watch. he could be a poor man's Ben Gordon...a guy that can average 10 ppg off the bench and help a team offensively. RUBIO is the clear cut LOCk in this draft to be a real contributor...and I still think he will have a Jose Calderon type of learning curve in the pros.
IMO Griffin is more advanced a scorer then Haslem, whose simply a banger. Lawson can finish, is fast, and is a leader, and is tough, something your Heat should look into acquiring Sect... The current NBA is pathetic when it comes to developing talent, it's almost inexcusable really. Rubio is interesting because he is so experienced and still so young, my gut tells me he will only go the team he wants to go to, if Memphis drafts him he will keep his game in Euroland. This draft is on the surface weak, but what that really means is there are several players with similar skill sets, it is up to the coaches and scouts to pick the gem and leave the zirconia. My sleeper is Teague, he simply dominated the Tarheels during the regular season, he fell off later "but" his team was not very good outside of him. To me, the deal with Hansbrough is he is a 6th man, rotational type, I think he ends up in Minnesota. To me, what is really funny is how the NBA ignores players who play 4 seasons and graduate College, small wonder they have such poor success at acquiring talent, they look for measurables...only.
A good prospect, what I like about him is once UConn's leading scorer was injured, he picked his game up and really went on a roll, and he one of the few big men in this draft.
There's only a handful of players I really like in this draft. The obvious one is blake griffin....he reminds me a lot of karl malone. He can overpower you in the post and make an impact on defense The others are tyreke evans, jrue holiday, stephen curry, ty lawson, flynn, and tyler hansborough. I think I'm the only one who sees hansborough as a guy who will make an impact in this league. I could see him as a 12/10 guy who plays real tough defense and gives a team some grit.
mcclinton compares a lot to eddie house except bigger, IMO..oh ya and von wafer in the playoffs....not a bad bench guy but i doubt he ever starts...he'll be a good steal for some1
Im very excited to see where Jermaine Taylor UCF athletic 6'4 SG goes. He is going to be the first player from UCF to ever be drafted. A few websites and magazines have said he is one of the purest scorers in the draft. He is being projected anywhere from mid 20s to mid 40s
A skinner, more tanned version of Mark Eaton. I agree. I don't know that Griffin's going to be a mega-star, but he's going to be a very good NBA player. I would be very interested to track him and Michael Beasley, because I think there could be the potential for a real rivalry there, you know, if there were any reason for the Clippers and Heat to have a rivalry. I like Lawson a lot. He's undersized, sure, but I love his all around game. He'll be a mediocrity, I think. He's the same player today that he was as a sophomore at Carolina. He'll crash the boards and get some garbage points, but expecting him to start or be a good sixth man seems unlikely to me. Here's the thing, though, the track record for 4 year seniors isn't that great. Fairly or not, if you've got NBA game, you're going to the pros earlier than that. It would be nice if the NBA instituted a rule that demanded that everyone finish at least their sophomore or junior year of college (let's not bull**** ourselves, a lot of these guys aren't getting college degrees, or even putting in more than a token effort to do so), but they won't. These days, with few exceptions, if a guy plays 4 years, it's because he's not NBA material. Tyler Hansbrough seems like a good kid, gives a damn, got a degree from a real school, and I'm glad for that; he'll probably need to use his college degree at some point. He's not going to make his living long term playing hoops. Flynn will almost assuredly go top 9, and might go 4th. The Kings are rumored to love him at 4 if Rubio isn't there. There was a rumor that the Pistons promised BJ Mullens the 15th pick. It was written off, but the last time they were rumored to promise their pick to a guy and it was written off, that guy was Rodney Stuckey. So it might be a decent idea to pencil Mullens in at 15 in your mock drafts.
From what I've seen, his problem is he has not 10 to 15 foot game and he's a bit undersized to play inside, but hustle is a talent and he has been well coached so I think he'll do okay. Heck, if Bogut can go #1 overall, there is room in the NBA for Tyler H. Not a rule, but when the NBA reaches for players barely out of High School, and they don't pan out, or one and done players, it's hard to imagine what exactly they are making their NBA projections based upon. In college they could develop their games more, when a HS player, who barely played pro ball in Greece, has a chance at being a top 8 pick, something is wrong with their talent acquisition system. And small wonder there are so many busts in the NBA, no quality control.
I agree with most of your list. I think little of Hansbrough (as I said above, no progress in 3 years), but I'll sub Earl Clark and maybe Terrence Williams for him. Clark could be another Lamar Odom. Williams could be a homeless man's Scottie Pippen if everything breaks right. Seemed like he could do anything called upon at Louisville on some nights, and others he didn't show up. I like Rubio a lot, too. Love Lawson, I think he'll be a steal. Evans should be good; ESPN compared him to Jerry Stackhouse, and in this draft, that's high praise. Holiday should be good enough. Curry is the most intriguing player in the draft for me. If he can be paired with a big point who can handle more physical 2s, I think he could thrive. Unfortunately, the Knicks love him, and I think Nate Robinson might be the worst player in the NBA with whom to pair Curry in the backcourt. Jamal Crawford's not a hell of a lot better. Comments on a few others... Thabeet - his offensive game is so one-dimensional that he makes Dwight Howard look like Kevin McHale. But there's always a place for a shot-swatter. Hell, Ben Wallace had a fine career with less offensive skills. DeRozan - DerMarr Johnson, v.2.0. Harden - Seems like he doesn't show up enough. I can't shake the feeling that we've already seen the best of him.
Listing him as a point guard seems ridiculous to me. He's an undersized 2, but not one who can score so well that you can live with his small statute (i.e. Curry). I think he'll have value as a backup; the Eddie House comparison thrown at Jack McClinton (for whatever reason) is more appropriate to Teague.
Well, there's room in the NBA for him, to be sure. I just don't think it's as a starter. His 15 foot jumper is good enough, but I think he's going to be too slow to guard athletic 4s, and I don't think he's going to fill it up enough to make up for it. I will concede that I love his work ethic, and who knows, maybe you pick him as a guy who can give the second unit energy and keep the team's work ethic going. I should further add that while I think Hansbrough isn't going to be anything special, I don't think he should fall out of the top 16 or so. I would have no qualms about Detroit taking him at 15, for example, as long as they weren't passing on Earl Clark. That's more a commentary on the utter crapiness of this draft than anything else, though. I'd certainly take him over the possible BJ Mullens promised pick. The NBA is a completely different game than college, though. Look at my beloved Syracuse Orange; how many millenia has Jim Boeheim been playing that 2-3 zone now? It's 10x more physical than the college game. Movement without the ball is more common; jokes about Kobe and LeBron aside, 1 on 5 hoops is uncommon, whereas it's commonplace at the college level. Skills don't translate uniformly; look at JJ Redick. Redick was a 4 year college superstar who could make a 25 footer in his sleep. In the pros, he's an 8th man. Being able to create your own shot is far more important in the NBA. There are busts in the NBA, just like in every other major sport's draft. I would wager that the bust rate isn't appreciably higher for the NBA than the NFL or NHL. And surely FAR lower than MLB, though that's a whole different discussion.
Kwame Brown, the #1 overall handpicked by Jordan himself crying when Jordan yelled at him was a particular low light in NBA draft lore.. Depends, to me the game is much more compressed at the NBA level, a shooter has half the time to shoot, then they have to play Defense as well, but a player like Reddick is to me a good example of misallocation of resources, he should be a roll player ala Kerr or Hodges, instead he is chained to the bench and has not even become a Vinnie Johnson type of player. And it's not just the busts, it's the manner that they bust out, High School players going from Gym Class to the NBA and there will be roadkill along the way. For me, T Mac is a great example of a player who made the jump, but now his team is better when he is not playing, that is unheard of in every other sport.
To me, he is to inconsistent, he is a fine player, but a team really doesn't know what they are getting if they draft him. I'd take a later round flyer on him, he can score, he can handle the rock a bit.
As weird as it is to say.....Griffin...DOES NOT have a more complete offensive game than Haslem. haslem has a spot up jumper that he hits in the 50+ % range. Griffin doesn;t have that. he has much more athleticism than the average 10/10 PF in the NBA like Haslem...which makes him a better scorer...But he is a Project to become a "star" player. the comparisons with Beasley don;t hold water since they are vastly different players. Beasley is a volume Scorer with an insane skill set. Can finish with eather hand...3 pt. range...post moves...etc.... Griffin will eventually lead the league in rebounding. Beasley may lead the league in scoring one day. Griffin is a vastly better defender.
Thabeet BTW..IMO is a poor man's Theo ratliff. Not a bad thing to be if you have a set team and can afford to waste a 1st round pick on a rotation big. I do not share the enthusiasm some have here for lawson. I hate this draft.
I didn't say Griffin and Beasley were the same type of player; I said that I'd be interested to track both of them and see what kind of rivalry might develop. That's in part because they are different kinds of players; it's interesting to see the clash of styles. Griffin played a guy with a similar type of game in the NCAA tourney (Hansbrough) and absolutely destroyed him.
Hansborough is on the rise. Seems the only people who like him are me, some carolina fans, and Rod Thorn who always seems to know the good players in every draft. I watch Hansborough and see a David Lee type rebounder and Charles Oakley type defender. "After measuring very impressively in Chicago and testing well in the athleticism workouts, Tyler Hansbrough has been on the rise lately and could go as high as 11 to New Jersey. In fact, New Jersey looks like the likely destination for Hansbrough at this point. The all time leading scorer in the ACC is considered a surefire contributor (safe pick), which in a weak draft is a valued commodity. Hansbrough may have leapfrogged DeJuan Blair who continues to impress in workouts himself." Evans and Curry are the 2nd and 3rd best players in this draft in my opinion. I love Evans aggressiveness and ability to get to the hoop. He's 19 and he is the best scorer in this draft. Curry is the guy the NYK are trying to move up for below...he's been a fan of D'Antoni's offense for years and has stated as such. He had cut off workouts for a while as well until he realized he may go in the top 4. "The Knicks are trying to make a deal with Washington to move up to the 5th pick offering Wilson Chandler. New York is after a number of players that they don't feel they can get at their #8 pick including Curry, Ricky Rubio and Jordan Hill. It's possible they will offer their pick in a deal or hold onto their pick and add the 5th pick along with their 8th pick." I get the feeling the 4th pick with Sacramento is also in play as they wanted Nate Robinson badly around the trade deadline. The Knicks would need to give up Nate + for the 4th pick but in a draft this shallow it may not take that much more. Idiots should offer Lee instead of Chandler to Washington; he has more value and aside from Lebron and Wade all the stud FA's next year are bigs (Amare, Yao, Bosh, Dirk, etc) just get 2...it may be easier and more realistic then getting Lebron. If all goes as planned you would have: PG: Curry SG: Evans SF: Gallinari PF: FA C: FA Bench: Chandler And before anyone rains on my parade...Im a knicks fan. This is the only time of the year I get to be optimistic. Quoted stuff from: http://www.nbadraft.net/node/7444 As for the rest of the draft: Thabeet: best case poor man's Dikembe Mutombo. More likely, Yinka Dare. Demar DeRozen: Next (not in an ESPN Magazine kind of way) Harden: I agree he's plateaued. He only has slightly more athleticism then Chris Dudley. Ty Lawson: I watch him and I think Tony Parker or Rondo Evans: Stud. Game is most similar to Latrell Sprewell...similar player to your stackhouse comparison but I think Evans has that killer instinct that Brickhouse never had. Jonny Flynn: More athletic Baron Davis. And this kid LOVES to play defense. Pressuring the ball to start the transition game is his strength. Jordan Hill: Last PF from Arizona was slightly softer, this one isnt anything great but should be good for 12/8 most nights.
DeMar DeRozan is a name that intigues me. Compared to Kobe Bryant and Vince Carter. Talk about a high ceiling. Jaw dropping athleticisim, and is only 20 years old. Watch out for him.
As I said above, I've no problem with the Pistons taking Hansbrough at 15 if Earl Clark isn't there. I agree, the chance of Hansbrough being an absolute and total bust are slim. I just don't think he's going to be a quality starter. A 7th man/1st big off the bench kind of guy seems about the right role for him. And I would absolutely take him over DeJuan Blair. The fact that Hansbrough is looking like a mid-first round pick is more testament to this being a lousy draft than Hansbrough being a good player. The Wizards have all but hung a "For Sale" sign on that #5 pick. They should get some offers. There was a rumor floating around (I don't know if it was serious) that they might send it to Detroit with some salary cap ballast for Rip Hamilton, which made absolutely no sense to me from the Wizards' POV, since I thought their goal was to reduce their salary obligations. The Pistons, however, would love to get out from under that bad extension they signed Hamilton to. I think the only thing you can bet on at #5 is that it won't be the Wizards calling the shots with that pick.
Honestly, if Thabeet ended up as the next Otis Thorpe, I'm pretty sure that whoever took him would be more than happy with that. The guy was pretty damn good for a LONG time. The 2009 NBA draft, where being thrilled about getting the next Otis Thorpe happens.
Oh sure, I liked O Thorpe, but he was a later pick (#9), Thabeet at #2-#6 (tops) sort of shows how far the draft has fallen off. I'm beginning to like D Derozan a bit more.
HOW he scores those points is important for a PF. if he doesn't develop any type of post moves or offensive game besides his putbacks and transition dunks...he will have a hard time making all-star games. Just sayin'..he has NO hope whatsoever in becoming a #1 on any team. Just saying that a "complimentary" player at #1 overall is rather weak.
Griffin will step in right away and become a reliable PF in that grunt mode. he will rebound. Beasley is being pushed toward a hybrid role, similar to Antwan jamison's....and if the rumors of Riley's wishlist starting and ending with Chris Bosh are true...I would say that Beasley is going to become a big 3 and rotation 4 in the mold of a James Worthy, Antwan Jamison, etc....
Depends, IMO Griffin has upside, he's not Karl Malone, he will be deadly around the rim though. I won some nice money placing the same bet on Elton Brand BTW, most people didn't like his game, "but" he was the only real offensive option and he was athletic enough to snatch some rebounds...
Really? That surprises me, given your criticism of the NBA looking too much at measurables and not enough at actual skill. Seems to me like DeRozan would be the poster child for that sort of thing. He's got two discernible skills that I can see: he can run fast and he can jump high.
