Draft Fallout: Western Conference
15. Seattle Supersonics: Jeff Green could be a good complement to Kevin Durant but there were better players avaiable at #5, and personally, I'm not sold on Green. The better move would have been to trade down for Philly's three picks because the prospects at #12 were as good as #5 and this team needs as many players as possible. Most troubling, though, is the fact that GM Sam Presti subscribes to the Billy Knight School of You Can't Get Enough 6'9 Players. The Sonics are looking at a long season next year and Sonics fans should fear that Presti will opt for Michael Beasley over Derrick Rose and O.J. Mayo if the Sonics get the first pick.
14. Sacramento Kings: Spencer Hawes will eventually replace Brad Miller and the Kings will be looking at replacing Ron Artest or Mike Bibby when they pick at the top of the lottery next year. The Kings should have tried to use Bibby or Artest to move up in the draft. They have to move one of them and the market for those two couldn't be any lower.
13. Minnesota Timberwolves: On the bright side, the teams that they could deal KG to all grabbed talented players in the draft so not getting the deal done before Draft Day might not be a disaster. That being said, having to trade is a disaster and the cause of that disaster is the disaster they call a roster. Corey Brewer is a solid pick but with Foye, McCants, and Brewer in the backcourt, I'm not sure who actually runs the offense. Making a run at Ron Artest is just delaying the inevitable. The Wolves need to trade KG. Until they do, you can't put them in last place.
12. Portland Trailblazers: Kevin Pritchard is quickly moving his name to the top of the GM rankings but the results won't come this year. The team now has so much talent that it will be tough to settle on a rotation. Josh McRoberts fell into the perfect situation as he was AAU teammates with Oden, who had nothing but praise for the fellow Dookie. Rudy Fernandez is a nice pick who will likely stay overseas for a couple of year while Petteri Koponen and Taurean Green are solid point prospects. The Blazers will likely be looking to move one of their PG's as they have Sergio Rodriguez and Jarrett Jack already on the roster and are supposedly looking to bring back Steve Blake. Add in another lotto pick and with two expiring contracts in Steve Francis and Raef Lafrentz next offseason and it could be another busy Draft Day for the Blazers. After that though, the team will likely be doing their best work in the playoffs.
11. Los Angeles Clippers: If Corey Maggette did steroids, he'd probably be Al Thornton. While that might seem like an intriguing player, the problem is that coach Mike Dunleavy Sr. already dislikes Maggette and Thornton's hoops IQ is even worse. Either he somehow learns to play the game over the summer or he'll probably be sitting next to Corey on the bench asking eachother why they are riding the pine behind Quinton Ross. The Clippers addressed their point guard situation by adding Jared Jordan, who can run a team but isn't a great shooter and is a worse defender. While there's nothing wrong with the players the Clippers took, they simply aren't the right for this coach and this team.
10. New Orleans Hornets: New Orleans needed a shooting guard and got Julian Wright, a tweener forward. Wright struggled in workouts and one has to wonder if he will be able to handle the NBA. The one strength he can rely on is his decision making, but the Hornets already have Chris Paul taking care of that. They added a shooter in the second round but it's unlikely Adam Haluska does much but ride the pine, if he even makes the team. The Hornets need to address their shooting guard spot or they will find themselves right back in the lottery.
9. Los Angeles Lakers: I love the Javaris Crittenton pick. He's a great point guard for the triangle and a top notch prospect. The Kobe Conundrum, however, remains unsolved and I don't think this team is going to fair well with a disinterested Kobe. Also not helping matter are Sun Yue and Marc Gasol, two players who I don't think will last in the NBA very long.
8. Memphis Grizzlies: No, this leap isn't based on the draft alone The Grizz should enter the season with a healthy center and a coach that actually wants to be there. Conley will be the motor that runs the impressive engine of Gasol, Mike Miller, and Rudy Gay. The Grizz could make a couple more trades but even if they don't, this team should be good enough to regain their spot in the playoffs.
7. Golden State Warriors: I love the addition of Brandan Wright to the up-tempo Warriors and alongside Andis Biedrins in the paint. Marco Belinelli should be a nice fit at the two spot as well but neither of these guys are going to be ready to contibute consistently in their first year so the Warriors should experience some growing pains but they still should be good enough to make the playoffs, as long as Baron stays healthy and Stephen Jackson stays relatively sane.
6. Denver Nuggets: Denver had no picks and weren't able to solve any of their contract issues. They are likely going to lose on of their key frontcourt players. In the end, the Iverson trade was fun but it isn't going to help the Nuggets to the promised land.
5. Houston Rockets: When do you say enough is enough? The team obviously isn't getting it done with T-Mac and Ming and adding Mike James and three second round talents isn't going to change that. Also, the team has a whole at the PF spot with Chuck Hayes or second round pick Carl Landry being the top two candidates for the job. Daryl Morey's first draft was a swing and a miss and he may be wondering if it's time to deal T-Mac during Draft Day 2008.
4. Utah Jazz: I don't care if Jerry Sloan hates rookies, Morris Almond should be the starting shooting guard next season. And seeing as his competition right now is Gordon Giricek and Ronnie Brewer, it shouldn't be too hard. Giricek is reportedly unpopular with his teammates while Brewer spent most of his rookie season in Jerry Sloan's doghouse. Almond is a smart player and a good shooter, the two things the Jazz need from the 2 spot. The key to the season, though, is Andrei Kirilenko or what they can get for him in a trade.
3. Dallas Mavericks: Glen Davis's low post scoring ability made more sense than Nick Fazekas, who is Dirk Nowitzki in cement shoes. They added to foreigners after that. They made a play for the #6 pick but if they were trying to go after Yi Jianlian, I think they were lucky that the Bucks wouldn't bite. The Mavs didn't improve much on draft day but they probably weren't expecting to anyway.
2. Phoenix Suns: The Suns draft day didn't make much sense. Rudy Fernandez is a great shooting guard who might not come over this season. Couldn't they have agree to take him and wait? The team also apparently shipped James Jones off in the Fernandez firesale so they could use a backup shooting guard. Derrick Byars, Marcus Williams, and Gabe Pruitt all seem to make more sense than Alando Tucker. Honestly, I would have taken a flyer on Josh McRoberts over Tucker. D.J. Strawberry is a guard who adds defense but he's hardly the answer since he's might not even make the team.
1. San Antonio Spurs: Leave it to the Spurs to somehow snag two guys who were considered lottery picks at this time last year. Tiago Splitter might not come over until next year but the Spurs can afford to wait. He could be a nice addition to the Spurs frontcourt. Marcus Williams has all the talent to be the heir apparent to Michael Finley's spot. If he can get his head on straight, he'll be an absolute steal. If not, he won't be any better than James White.
