1. Toronto Raptors - Andrea Bargnani He will be a good offensive player, ok. But he is a PF, no center at all with no rebounding skills or low post defensive skills. They should have went with Aldridge. Therefore, I don't think this was a good pick. Hopefully Bargnani proves me wrong. 2. Chicago Bulls - LaMarcus Aldridge (to Portland) Great for Portland, they get a big man that can play the 4 and the 5 and can score for them right away. He may be somewhat soft, but I think if he works hard he could shape out into a good player in this league. But, they could have taken him at 4, this trade was pointless. 3. Charlotte Bobcats - Adam Morrison Great job MJ. I really only had Gay on my mock because I heard too many things about Jordan and Bickerstaff loving his game. But Morrison is NBA-ready and has star potential, will come in and score for this team right away. With Felton at the point, Wallace defending, Morrison scoring, Okafor in the post along with Sean May - great future for Charlotte. I say Jordan got an A in this draft. 4. Portland Trail Blazers - Tyrus Thomas (to Chicago) Nice job by Chicago. Thomas is a combo forward, very athletic, a very good defender, and has potential to be a very good player in this league. Chicago is looking unbelievably great for the future. Unbelievable. 5. Atlanta Hawks - Shelden Williams So, the promise was true. Williams will definitely help them in the interior with toughness, rebounding, and defense. He will be a very solid player in this league for a while. But, could they have passed on the next good guard (Foye) once again? Either way, they need to adress this PG issue immediately. But good pick. 6. Minnesota Timberwolves - Brandon Roy (to Portland) Nice job again by Portland. Roy is NBA ready and does everything well, no real holes in his game at all. He can play the 2 and the 1, and he is going to be great for Portland. 7. Boston Celtics - Randy Foye (to Portland...to Minnesota) I liked the trade for Minnesota because they get a good guard to replace Marcus Banks, and he has star potential as well. He can be a real good player in this league, and I agree with Bilas, could win Rookie of the Year. He will take a while to become a better true PG, but this combo guard will do great in Minny, and his PG job will be that much easier feeding the ball to guys like Kevin Garnett and Ricky Davis. 8. Houston Rockets - Rudy Gay (to Memphis) Great pick, great pick. But what the hell are you thinking trading him to Memphis for Shane Battier? WTF? Gay was the slipper in this draft and he has potential to be a star. So, you trade him to Memphis for Battier (for what? his defense and toughness?). Well, Gay defends well and can come in and score for you, and again - his potential is off the charts. Terrible trade by Houston, INCREDIBLE for Memphis. 9. Golden State Warriors - Patrick O'Bryant Did I call it or did I call it? O'Bryant fits perfectly with Golden State. Adonal Foyle is the worst starting center I have seen in a while and O'Bryant will fill that role (maybe not this year, but in time he will). He is a legit 7'0'', he's strong, and he has a soft touch. I think he and Diogue will be a very tough duo in the future. 10. Seattle Sonics - Saer Sene Ehh. I don't think this was a great pick. But at the same time, the Sonics didn't need this pick. Well, apparently they couldn't work a deal to trade down or out, but Sene at 10? Hmm.. I mean you already have Robert Swift (who improved greatly and had a good year) and Johan Petro (who started a lot for the team in his rookie year), and not to mention Chris Wilcox. I don't think Sene really fits with this team. I think they should have taken Brewer or Carney and maybe worked a trade for one of them. 11. Orlando Magic - JJ Redick Well, he didn't go to Utah like I said, but I think Orlando is a good fit as well, no doubt. Orlando needed a SG really bad, and Redick will have a chance to start here and shine. Nelson off the dribble-dish to Redick for 3 - I can see it now, almost lethal. And just wait until Dwight Howard starts to attract defensive attention on the box. Redick will do damage in Orlando. 12. New Orleans Hornets - Hilton Armstrong Not a bad pick at all. New Orleans needed a center, and Armstrong is tall, long, athletic, and very strong. He will be a defensive force in New Orleans, grab some boards, and his offensive game will look better and improve feeding off Chris Paul. Also, PJ Brown is a great veteran mentor for him. Nice pick. 13. Philadelphia 76ers - Thabo Sefolosha (to Chicago) I'm 100% with Stephen A. Smith on this one - why didn't Philly keep Sefolosha? He is a good defender, athletic, big, and can score in bunches. Oh well, I think it's great for Chicago just for the reason Greg Anthony said - It provides size (as well as athleticism) in the backcourt that they didn't have with Hinrich, Duhon, and Gordon. I like this pick by Chicago, they had a good draft. 14. Utah Jazz - Ronnie Brewer Excellent! I love Ronnie Brewer, and he will be a good player in this league. He is a good defender, very athletic, can play and guard PG's, SG's, and SF's. He's very versatile and can score on athletic plays, an open jumper (even though his shot looks funny), and he can defintely create for his teammates. He will be great at SG for Utah, and a major upgrade over Giricek in my opinion. I loved this pick. 15. New Orleans - Cedric Simmons Well I had New Orleans taking Simmons at 12 on my mock, but 15 is ok too right? lol. I like the pick, and he will be good off the bench behind David West, but I think they should have taken a wing on this one (Rodney Carney). I mean besides Desmond Mason what do you have? A J.R. Smith that is getting traded and has a bad rep with coach Scott, then what - Kirk Snyder and Rasual Butler. I think Carney would have been the better pick here, but Simmons was a solid one. 16. Chicago Bulls - Rodney Carney (to Philadelphia) Perfect for Philly. I think Carney slid further than he should have, and he provides athleticism, defense, and quickness for Philly. Iverson is as good as gone (Boston or not) and having Iguodala and Carney on the wings is a very good, defensive minded move for rebuilding. Great pick by Philly. 17. Indiana Pacers - Shawne Williams Very talented player, very versatile, and has a good future. But why? I think a PG would have been best for Indiana at this stage, seeing as they have Granger/Jones/JO/Jackson - with Tinsley on his way out. I think Marcus Williams should have been the pick here. But if they have plans to deal Jackson then this could be an ok pick. 18. Washington Wizards - Oleskiy Pecherov I don't know much about him, but he sounds like he has good upside, and if Jeffries doesn't return then I think he could be an upgrade at the backup 4 spot over Ruffin. But again, I don't know much about him, but I think Washington could have went with a backup PG here like Williams, Rondo, Lowry, or Farmar. 19. Sacramento Kings - Quincy Douby Mark my words - Bobby Jackson 2.0 in Sac-Town. He is a combo guard that scored 25 a game in college, he can create at time, but he will ignite the second unit and knock down shots for this team. I like this pick. 20. New York Knicks - Renaldo Balkman LMAO. He would have been there at 29, probably 2nd round. Isiah - do you really want to keep your job? Damn... 21. Phoenix Suns - Rajon Rondo (to Boston) I knew Ainge liked him a lot, but I wasn't expecting him to trade back into the draft for him. I like it though, I think Rajon will be somewhat of a project, but he will be a good/solid player in this league down the road. Give him time. But I'm not sure what Rondo's future is with the Celtics, especially after we got Telfair (plus Delonte West didn't go anywhere). So this could possibly be a nice sweatener in a potential deal for Iverson (plus Philly needs a PG). But if it isn't to sweaten the deal for AI, then I LOVE Rondo as our 3rd PG. 22. New Jersey Nets - Marcus Williams Wow, I can't believe he slipped this far. Williams is perfect for New Jersey and a great backup for Jason Kidd. He plays somewhat similar, is great in a halfcourt set like NJ's style, and what better mentor for him than Jason Kidd? Great pick, perfect fit. What a steal! 23. New Jersey Nets - Josh Boone Yeah, he was probably the bets big man available here and he will be a nice intangibles guy for New Jersey next year (starting or off the bench.. depending on if they bring in another big man). Nice pick. 24. Memphis Grizzlies - Kyle Lowry Another great move by Jerry West. First he lands Rudy Gay, then he picks up Lowry at 24? Perfect. Memphis is really moving in the right direction, and Lowry is going to be a very solid player in this league. 25. Cleveland Cavaliers - Shannon Brown He was my sleeper of the draft, and he fits very well with Cleveland. He is a combo guard, is very strong, very athletic, runs, defends (I think he got an All-Defense award in college), and he has a lot of heart. Watch out for Shannon Brown ladies and gentleman. With Flip Murray likely not going to get re-signed, Brown is the perfect fit for Cleveland. 26. Los Angeles Lakers - Jordan Farmar Another slider/sleeper. I did not think Farmar was going to slip to 26th, but this is a great pick for the Lakers. It gives them size, athletism at the 1 and also a good decision maker who has proven he can play. I think he can be nice off the bench to Marcus Banks next season (with a little Smush at the 2 as well) and he will be a solid pro. 27. Phoenix Suns - Sergio Rodriguez (to Portland) Nice for Portland. He's magic with the ball, reminiscent of Jason Williams in his early days with Sacramento. Very flashy, but has good court vision and a pull-up jumper. I don't know if he's planning on comming over to the US this season, but if he does he might not find many minutes in Portland behind Blake and Jack, plus Roy being able to play the 1. 28. Dallas Mavericks - Maurice Ager I like Ager's intensity and ability to show up when the game is on the line. I'm not sure how many minutes he will be able to get behind the likes of Jason Terry, Jerry Stackhouse, Devin Harris, and Marquis Daniels, but he might be able to be a decent role player in time. We'll see. 29. New York Knicks - Mardy Collins Slider and a steal - but he does NOT fit on a team with Stephon Marbury, Steve Francis, Jalen Rose, Jamal Crawford, Quentin Richardson, and Nate Robinson. I feel bad for Collins just for having to play for the Knicks, but if the can clear some wings out to create time for him I think he is going to be a good player. He's another sleeper in this draft, a very good defender, can play the 1 and 2, good court vision, and can hit some open shots. He is Aaron McKie. I hope New York deals Collins because he's NBA ready and deserves some minutes off the bench somewhere. 30. Portland Trail Blazers - Joel Freeland I've heard that he has impressed a few teams in workouts and provides size and toughness. But I don't know much about him, so I can't say much. What do you think?
The Sonics and Knicks are morons, let's just get that out of the way. No way that guy ever has a solid NBA career. He wasn't worth the #10 pick. The Knicks still don't have a real PG. Marbury, Francis, and Robinson are all undersized 2 guards that're forced to play the point. Golden State drafting a project always makes me chuckle because it's not exactly the best place to succeed. O'Bryant has bust written all over him. I hate the Celtics giving up the #7 pick for Telfair, but hopefully Telfair gets dealt to the 76ers. I'm not sold on Rondo because just like Telfair, the guy can't shoot. Of course he's a much better defensive player, lightening quick, and has solid PG skills. That sounds like a slightly better version of Marcus Banks to me.Great steals for the Nets at 22 and 23. Williams and Boone will give them some much needed depth. O another note, I'm getting really annoyed with all these teams drafting for someone else. If they're reporting it on ESPN, why can't it just be announced immediately? Why do the Celtics have to draft for the Blazers when the trade was announced hours before the draft started? It's just a confusing and rediculous situation. The 2 PM deadline is pointless.
He is undersized, and May's conditioning leaves a little to be desired, but he can be a very good player in this league. May won't be an all-star by any means in this league, but he will be a good player to have on your team. May's rebounding is good, he has outstanding footwork down low with the ball, and he is smart player that knows where he is supposed to be at all times.I understand the Ronaldo Balkman pick was not a very good pick, but seriously those who say they should have drafted Marcus Williams is crazy. They would never be able to find enough playing time for Williams with Marbury, Francis, Robinson, and Crawford also playing. He would have been on the bench alot, and really would not have gotten enough playing time to make Williams a good choice there. I love the Redick pick, he is an outstanding shooter, and that is what the Magic needed. You may see that being said by me alot today. I am just excited about that pick.Portland had an outstanding draft, Brandon Roy was my favorite player in this draft for some reason, i was high on him and actually thought Charlotte should have grabbed him. Aldridge is a good pick downlow or them, and i actually thought Chicago should have kept Aldridge because of his scoring downlow. Either which way, the Trailblazers came up good in this draft.
I disagree with the thought of Hawks should have took Foye. Because he's really in the same vain as Joe Johnson and doesn't compliment him. He's not a true pg and that's something Atlanta needs. The best true pg was Marcus Williams and he fell, so they picked up Shelden who does in fact fill a need. I think it was a good pick for them. They can address pg now through free agency.
