NBA Draft thread

Hell no. With Pierce the Cavaliers are no closer to actually contending than they are without him. Pierce is not a top 10 player anymore, and he only has a year or two left in his tank.

 

Are you insane?

Paul Pierce is about to turn 36 years old and in his 16th year in the league. Who would trade the No. 1 overall pick for some over the hill vet who could do no more than take you from awful to merely below average for a season or two before returning to awful?

Good thing some of you folks ain't GMs.

 

Have you seen Kyrie Irving's injury history? He's a great player, but to say the Cavs' backcourt situation is "fine" is pretty optimistic. Their backup point was Shaun Livingston...had a good year but hardly the depth I want to roll with if I am Mike Brown.
If they were to add an Oladipo who, at 6-4 is very athletic, they could go small at times and have a ton of athleticism on the floor. Backcourt depth is not a bad thing.

As for teams not trading down...are you saying there is not a team in the top 10 in the draft willing to move its top pick for three decent picks? Since this draft is so "weak" as you called it, what is the difference between the 5-10 picks and the #19? And you get 31 and 33. I find it hard to believe they could not find a trade partner there...a team not enamored with one of the top prospects in this draft that is looking to add organizational depth. And save money, by the way.

 

First of all, it's not "Top 10". If you want Oladipo you're gonna need at least a Top 5 pick according to the projections I've been seeing.

Second, it's not "3 decent picks", it's one decent pick and two early second round picks. This is considered to be one the shallowest drafts in many years. Do you know what generally becomes of second round picks in unusually shallow drafts? Usually nothing but dime a dozen scrubs.

So, yes, I'm saying that nobody's trading a Top 5 pick for your proposed poo poo platter of a 19 and a couple early second rounders. One quality Top 5 prospect like Oladipo is worth more than those three picks combined.

 

Well, if you say so.

 

Sign and trade with Lakers for Howard?

 

If you want a second opinion, yes, I also think no one would do that. Usually in the NBA draft, if you want an all-star level player, you have to have a lottery pick. Once you get out of the lottery, the odds get a lot, lot longer. Occasionally, there will be a Gilbert Arenas in the second round, but if you have a pick that isn't in the lottery the best-case scenario is usually getting a rotation player. Here is this year's first, second and third All-NBA team and where they were drafted:

Lebron – 1st
Kevin Durant – 2nd
Tim Duncan – 1st
Kobe Bryant – 13th
Chris Paul – 4th
Carmelo Anthony – 3rd
Blake Griffin – 1st
Marc Gasol – 48th
Tony Parker – 28th
Russell Westbrook – 4th
David Lee – 30th
Paul George – 10th
Dwight Howard – 1st
Wade – 5th
James Harden – 3rd

Gasol and Parker fall under the category of “probably not heavily scouted European player,” so David Lee is the lone non-lottery guy.

At least in my opinion, the issue with Noel is going to be this – He’s probably either close to an All-Star player, or he might be so injury-prone or ineffective that he’s Haseem Thabeet. I think he’s either going to be a really good player or a bust, so is that better than taking a player who might not have as much of a ceiling, but has a higher floor? I don’t think McLemore or Porter are going to be perennial All-Stars, but they’re probably going to be at least decent rotation cogs at the worst. (Although with the jump in competition from college to NBA, almost nothing is guaranteed, as even “sure things” like Emeka Okafor and Evan Turner have been underwhelming in the pros.)

 

If Nerlens Noel were to be drafted by the Trail Blazers, I'd instantly say bust.

 

One of the many trade rumors out there is the Cavaliers would trade the No. 1 pick and a player to the Kings for DeMarcus Cousins.

I think if the Kings think Cousins will walk after this season, I'm assuming he will, they have to make this trade even if most people don't think Noel will be the level of player that Cousins is. I'm not sure if they expect Evans to walk... That's the downside to these three-year contracts, if you can't lock a guy up, they're going to walk. Not all of them do, but for the franchises that desperately need to be able to at least hold on to the guys they draft, it doesn't make things easy.

It also tells you that people don't think too highly of this draft when a talented, but difficult player is being talked about being dealt for the No. 1 overall pick.

 

I think with Cousins, there is the assumption that he'll be OK if you put him in a good, stable situation. I'm not sure if Cleveland is this situation, but pretty much anywhere is better than Sacramento.

 

Don't forget Jennings' complete lack of defensive abilities.

 

Is Ricky Ledo this year's Guy That Came Out Too Soon? Didn't play anywhere last year while sitting as a non-qualifier - wish I had bet on my contention he'd never play a single game in a Providence uniform.