Well this draft was definitely full of surprises. We saw a lot of players go higher then what we thought they would, and we saw a lot of players who went lower then what we thought they would. When it comes down to it, what team do you think got a steal in the draft? I think a potential steal was Granger going to the Pacers with the 17th pick when he probably should have been their seventh pick. I also think Gerald Green at #18 was a steal as well, and Boston had another killer draft. EDIT: I get Granger and Graham mixed up a lot, I meant Granger was the steal.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting B-22:</div><div class="quote_post">Well this draft was definitely full of surprises. We saw a lot of players go higher then what we thought they would, and we saw a lot of players who went lower then what we thought they would. When it comes down to it, what team do you think got a steal in the draft? I think a potential steal was Graham going to the Raptors with the 16th pick when he probably should have been their seventh pick. I also think Gerald Green at #18 was a steal as well, and Boston had another killer draft.</div> Im being biased but I thought that Celtics should go to jail for pulling off several heists. Gerald Green and Ryan Gomes. I love the Gomes pick mor than anything. You never know what you are going to get with a hs. Gomes was an absolute steal. He is a proven workhorse. I dont know woo much about the other Greene even though I saw some highlights on him. We'll see about that one. I dont think that Joey Graham was a steal though. I thought that Danny Granger was a better pick at that spot. If Graham went in the 20s then I would say he was a steal. Graham doesnt fill a need for the Raptors. Hes really not a scorer like Granger. I like Graham. Who knows if Graham ends up a better player than Granger and Green then it will be a steal.
Hakim Warrick. His talent says he should have gone at least top ten but no. You saw a lot of players with potential picked over this kid and he sees this. He sees a guy named Andrew Bynum, who never stepped foot in a college class room picked in front of him, he sees Fran Vazquez a guy who needs a translator to complete an interview. What I see is I see seven proven college players in the final 11 spots of the draft (Warrick, Head, Hodge, Simien, Garcia, Jack, and Lee). For all I know the better teams are getting the better playlers in the draft. Warrick worked his tail off for four years at Syracuse and with all the National Champions being picked high (Marvin, May, Felton, Mccants) well Warrick was a National Champ as well. Warrick will get his chance in Memphis, and it will turn out well for Hakim and for the Grizzles. Same goes for Granger as a senior who had three consistant years at New Mexico is watching all these players with potential fall and will have a chip on his shoulder.
1st round - Granger, Green, and Simien 2nd round - Ukic and Gomes Babcock and Ainge both made excellent 2nd round choices in Ukic and Gomes.
In the first round and the whole draft the steal is Danny Granger he went 17th that is way to low for a player with skills like him he should have gone in the top ten and never should have been picked ou t of the lottery, also Antoine Wright should have been picked higher than 15th. In the second round the steal is Roko Ukic I like him as a player but I dont like him in the Raptors uin, the all of the players who did not get drafted ther were so many great players who did not.
There were so many players left undrafted, because this draft was so deep. When we look back I think a lot of the steals in this draft will be undrafted players that got invites to training camps.
1st Round: Pacers by far got a steal in Danny Granger. Granger was projected to be picked as high as #3 to the Blazers before they traded their pick. But the Pacers got themselves the most complete player in the draft IMO. Wayne Simien to the Heat was a steal as well, considering Simien was one of the best college players last year, but injuries ruined his chances of being a lotto guy. 2nd Round: Celtics getting Gomes was a huge steal as well. Very underrated player that should have went in the 1st round IMO. He should come right in and be an instant impact off the bench for the C's.(when the C's picked him, the first person I thought of was 44Thrilla- everyone knows his love of Gomes. )
1st round: Pacers getting Granger was a huge steal. The combo of Granger and Artest will frustrate many in the league next season. Wright to the Nets was also another steal he was suppost to go to the Magic at 11, but since he didn't he just kept slipping. Like many said Green was a steal for the Celtics got to give it up for Danny Ainges. Simieon to the Heat was a good pick by them he has heart, and can play through some injuries at time. 2nd round: Hawks getting Salim Stoudamire they drafted two starters in this draft so that really improved there roster. They got good shooter who hopefully can improve his attitude if so he is a huge threat on the perimeter. Also Ryan Gomes to the Celtics was another steal for them he was a good player who just kept slipping. I liked Bass from LSU going to New Orleans he has a good attitude, and will bring heart to that team.
Granger was a fantastic steal for Indy. Maybe now they can get rid of Artest. I think that Hakim Warrick was also a great pick. With a pretty deep Memphis team (I know they have a lot of free agents...) he'll be able to come off the bench and not worry about having a true position, rather just go out and be his high energy self. Gomes was a great 2nd round pick, as was Ronny Turiaf and Roko Ukic. Too bad Babcock had his head up his ass with the 7th pick, because beyond that he had a pretty good draft.
The biggest first round steal had to be Danny Granger or Gerald Green, Taking Ike Diogu at #9 and Villanueva at #7 threw everything off course and they slipped. Indiana and Boston have got some good players in their hands, but only if they can utilize their potential. If Artest is back the player he was before the suspension and Granger is half the player we expect him to be, I can see Indiana as a contender to win it all. The second round steals were Salim Stoudemire, by Atlanta and Ryan Gomes by Boston. Salim is picture perfect for the Hawks at the moment, he can hit it from the outside and is a good point gaurd his decision making may need work but he's definitely an upgrade of the injury-proned Delk and Lue. Gomes is just one of the most underrated players in the draft.
1st round - Granger, Green, & Warrick 2nd round - Ukic, Gomes, & Taft The Celtics had the best draft IMO, because of the talent that fell into their laps. I'm not a big fan of Gerald Green, but at 18, he's a steal for the Celtics and makes trading Paul Pierce even easier to do. The Celtics struck gold again in RND 2 landing Ryan Gomes, he's instant offense and can score anywhere on the court. Minnesota, Philly, and Indiana are going to regret passing on him. Especially Minnesota, why draft Bracey Wright when you drafted McCants in round one, both are shooting guards? The Raptors best pick might end up being Roko Ukic, and I'm pissed the Lakers let him slide past them when they need a PG, especially one with his talent. Danny Granger is perfect for the Pacers and they have to be estatic about landing him at #17, after the Raptors passed on him not once, but twice. He will come in with a chip on his shoulder ala Paul Pierce. Hakim Warrick goes to the perfect system in Memphis and won't have to worry about his 'tweener' status. He replaces the athleticism upfront that the Grizzlies will lose with Stromile Swift not coming back. The Warriors got a potential steal with Chris Taft, especially if he is motivated to prove he was worthy of being a lottery pick. Falling out of the top 40 has to be a wake up call for him, if not his contract isn't guaranteed and the Warriors won't have any regrets cutting him.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting shapecity:</div><div class="quote_post">1st round - Granger, Green, & Warrick 2nd round - Ukic, Gomes, & Taft </div> Agree 100%, if Taft can get working on his game some teams would regret passing on him in the first round.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">1st round - Granger, Green, & Warrick 2nd round - Ukic, Gomes, & Taft</div> Jesus, I couldnt have nailed it more on. Absolutly. And as UKOwnstheSEC said, as this draft was winding down, I was thinking, damn Thrilla is poppin' the cork and picking which street he wants to change in honor of Ainge. This draft, as of right now, was pure grand theft player. Even Orien Greene, I think, defensivly, can fit in on this roster as a specialist. A future Bruce Bowen kind of guy, but with a better attack of the rim.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Hakim Warrick goes to the perfect system in Memphis and won't have to worry about his 'tweener' status. He replaces the athleticism upfront that the Grizzlies will lose with Stromile Swift not coming back.</div> I completely disagree. The Grizzlies do not need an athletic player with no position; they need a big man who can give them rebounding, physicality, and size downlow. Hakim Warrick just creates a logjam at Small Forward behind Battier, Posey, and Jones. I'd like to think that we'd play him at Power Forward, but he's not the type of Power Forward we need. Besides, what would we do with Pau Gasol and Brian Cardinal? The main thing that people need to realize when comparing Warrick's role to Swift's is that Stromile Swift was a legit Center last year. Warrick won't be able to replace that; not in the least. I think that the much better selections would have been Johan Petro, Chris Taft, or Wayne Simien. Sidenote: Jerry West sucks. As everyone else has already said, Granger and Green were steals, but I think that Wayne Simien was just as much of a steal at #29. I'm one of those people who thinks that size doesn't matter as much as skills, and Wayne Simien is one of the most skilled players in the draft. In fact, I could see him stepping right into the starting spot in Miami if Haslem isn't resigned. Great pick by Miami; they got their man.
Yes boys, last night was an enjoyable one for myself and the rest of Celtic Nation. I was amazed that Green dropped so low, and I was ecstatic when Ainge drafted him. The worst part of the night was watching so many teams pass over Ryan Gomes, but the best part was seeing him available at 50. I knew we had worked him out 3 times, and I now see why that was the case. It's a great feeling to be excited about your team's draft pick, but when your favorite team picks your favorite player, it's beyond words. My brain couldn't function properly for at least 10 minutes. Certain JBB members who happened to be on AIM can attest to that. As for the steals... 1st round - Granger, Green, Petro, & Simien 2nd round - Ukic, Gomes, Martynas, & Taft
How about Ian Mahinmi? Suprs have hunch on underrated talent. The only downside, is that we will know that only after some 3 years...
