2015 NBA Draft

[Rob]

Teams I liked:
Lakers - Made the right pick with Russell. Think he's going to be a stud, and if they can trade him for Cousins, I'd do it.

Knicks - I hate the Knicks with an extreme passion, but I loved what they did last night. Porzingis has awesome potential and was the best pick there. The trade for Jerian Grant was terrific and the guy they're stashing in europe has first round talent.

Bulls - Bobby Portis is going to be a stud. Absolute steal

Heat - Winslow to the Heat is perfect. Couldn't ask for a better fit imo.

Nets - Of course as a Nets fan I loved what they did. I think Rondae Hollis-Jefferson was a terrific pick, will be an elite defensive player, and if he can ever develop a jumpshot, will be an absolute stud. Also like the McCullough pick, Nets needed young athletes with upside and got two of 'em.

Didn't like:
Pistons - Stanley Johnson over Justise Winslow is stupid. I think Hollis-Jefferson will be a better pro than Stanley Johnson, and considering he was picked 15 picks later, while Winslow, Devin Booker, etc. were still on the board, I really didn't like the pick.

Kings - Willie Cauley-Stein is definitely not worth the 6th pick. He'll be very good defensively, but is virtually useless offensively outside of the pick and roll. Mudiay would have been a much better pick for them.

Sixers - I like the Okafor pick, but what the hell did they do in the second round? They picked like, 5 centers total.

I agree with you on the WCS pick. I think mundiay wouldve gave them not only a solid player but he has the potential to be a superstar. WCS will be a solid starter but idk bout star

[Marcos_Beck]

Teams I liked:
Lakers - Made the right pick with Russell. Think he's going to be a stud, and if they can trade him for Cousins, I'd do it.

Knicks - I hate the Knicks with an extreme passion, but I loved what they did last night. Porzingis has awesome potential and was the best pick there. The trade for Jerian Grant was terrific and the guy they're stashing in europe has first round talent.

Bulls - Bobby Portis is going to be a stud. Absolute steal

Heat - Winslow to the Heat is perfect. Couldn't ask for a better fit imo.

Nets - Of course as a Nets fan I loved what they did. I think Rondae Hollis-Jefferson was a terrific pick, will be an elite defensive player, and if he can ever develop a jumpshot, will be an absolute stud. Also like the McCullough pick, Nets needed young athletes with upside and got two of 'em.

Didn't like:
Pistons - Stanley Johnson over Justise Winslow is stupid. I think Hollis-Jefferson will be a better pro than Stanley Johnson, and considering he was picked 15 picks later, while Winslow, Devin Booker, etc. were still on the board, I really didn't like the pick.

Kings - Willie Cauley-Stein is definitely not worth the 6th pick. He'll be very good defensively, but is virtually useless offensively outside of the pick and roll. Mudiay would have been a much better pick for them.

Sixers - I like the Okafor pick, but what the hell did they do in the second round? They picked like, 5 centers total.

If I were the Lakers I'd try to acquire Cousins to pair him with Russel any way possible.. I mean, really any way, with Future 1sts and everything.. Forget about Randle (who might be a stud) and Clarkson (who was a good player on a mediocre team, will never be a starter in a PO team IMO).. Russel and Cousins has potential to be a Kobe-Shaq lite duo.
Knicks made a great deal for Grant. I wished Bulls traded Snell for him but I don't know if it was ever possible. Love Grant's game.
Bulls with an amazing pick. Now they just need to trade Pau while his value is All-Time high for help at perimeter, but of course that won't help. Fuck the "loyalty" thing, they are not going to sign any FAs in the next few years besides re-signing their players, so trade Gasol for a contender and grab some pieces who fit, primary a starting SF. Noah-Mirotic with Gibson and Portis off the bench (Bobby with his huge frame can eailsy play C) is an amazing interior rotation which has D, rebounding and spacing, perfect for Hoilberg's offense.
Heat is now scary good. Highlight the word scary.
Washington got a great player who they can develop. I don't know, I feel like he's Porter 2.0 but well, Porter can play PF in small ball lineups and they have a very versatile Forward combo now.
Mudiay at 7 was a real steal. I like his game, and if the Nuggs can captalize on Lawson, this could be a great team again. Why not trading for Cousins?
And to end all this. I hate the Sixers. Seems like Hingie is lost.

[GreenBear]

I know the Sixers already have plenty of big men, but I'm not sure what else they could have done at 3. Pass on Okafor? That would just be dumb. When you're as bad as the Sixers are, you draft the best player left on the board, and that was Okafor by a good margin. Worst case scenario is Embiid never really gets over his injuries and doesn't amount to much (which is very possible given some reports). In that case, they still have a front court with Okafor's polished offense and Noel's elite defense. Not bad at all. Best case scenario is that Embiid gets over his injuries and then they have 3 really good front court players. In this case, Embiid and Okafor can't really coexist long-term, but they can make it work short-term until they can find a trade they like for one of those 2. It wouldn't take long.

As for the second round: they only drafted 3 big men (and 2 wingers), but who cares how many big men they took? Second rounders are like buying lottery tickets. You draft projects that you think might turn into something of value down the road. You certainly don't draft based on need in the second round. If you're looking to fill a major hole on your roster in the second round, you're going to be mighty disappointed. Hernangomez was immediately traded to the Knicks, and the others are going to be stashed in the D-League/Europe for several years, at which point the Sixers' roster will probably look very different than it does today. The Sixers did exactly what they had to during this draft, and the Lakers will regret passing on Okafor in my opinion.

I certainly loathe the 76ers' tank method though. It's a slap in the face to the entire NBA, it's a manipulation of the system, and there's no honor in what they are doing. Even if they turn their fortunes around, it's going to be somewhat tainted.

[Marcos_Beck]

I know the Sixers already have plenty of big men, but I'm not sure what else they could have done at 3. Pass on Okafor? That would just be dumb. When you're as bad as the Sixers are, you draft the best player left on the board, and that was Okafor by a good margin. Worst case scenario is Embiid never really gets over his injuries and doesn't amount to much (which is very possible given some reports). In that case, they still have a front court with Okafor's polished offense and Noel's elite defense. Not bad at all. Best case scenario is that Embiid gets over his injuries and then they have 3 really good front court players. In this case, Embiid and Okafor can't really coexist long-term, but they can make it work short-term until they can find a trade they like for one of those 2. It wouldn't take long.

As for the second round: they only drafted 3 big men (and 2 wingers), but who cares how many big men they took? Second rounders are like buying lottery tickets. You draft projects that you think might turn into something of value down the road. You certainly don't draft based on need in the second round. If you're looking to fill a major hole on your roster in the second round, you're going to be mighty disappointed. Hernangomez was immediately traded to the Knicks, and the others are going to be stashed in the D-League/Europe for several years, at which point the Sixers' roster will probably look very different than it does today. The Sixers did exactly what they had to during this draft, and the Lakers will regret passing on Okafor in my opinion.

I certainly loathe the 76ers' tank method though. It's a slap in the face to the entire NBA, it's a manipulation of the system, and there's no honor in what they are doing. Even if they turn their fortunes around, it's going to be somewhat tainted.

It's all true, Doug, except for the fact that, IMO, Lakers picking Russel was the right thing, and also for the fact that in Modern NBA, you can't succeed with two bigs who can't shoot in your lineup, and the Sixers have 3 of them. But Hinkie's methods are ridiculous. He should be banned for what he's doing. Even if it works, it's completely ridiculous.

[GreenBear]

It's all true, Doug, except for the fact that, IMO, Lakers picking Russel was the right thing, and also for the fact that in Modern NBA, you can't succeed with two bigs who can't shoot in your lineup, and the Sixers have 3 of them. But Hinkie's methods are ridiculous. He should be banned for what he's doing. Even if it works, it's completely ridiculous.

I agree with the part about Hinkie being ridiculous. I hate his method as well.

Maybe I'm just skeptical of Russell because the last time an ohio state guard went #2 overall was Evan Turner, who turned into a colossal bust haha. But I just don't think he's going to be that good. I actually like Mudiay a lot more. But maybe I'm wrong.

As for the shooting thing, you make a solid point. I think Okafor could develop a hook or baby-hook type of thing though, and maybe even an average jumper for a big man. He's so gifted offensively. I don't see the other two developing anything resembling a decent stroke though, so we'll see what happens.

[NanashiWake]

It's all true, Doug, except for the fact that, IMO, Lakers picking Russel was the right thing, and also for the fact that in Modern NBA, you can't succeed with two bigs who can't shoot in your lineup, and the Sixers have 3 of them. But Hinkie's methods are ridiculous. He should be banned for what he's doing. Even if it works, it's completely ridiculous.

I agree with the part about Hinkie being ridiculous. I hate his method as well.

Maybe I'm just skeptical of Russell because the last time an ohio state guard went #2 overall was Evan Turner, who turned into a colossal bust haha. But I just don't think he's going to be that good. I actually like Mudiay a lot more. But maybe I'm wrong.

As for the shooting thing, you make a solid point. I think Okafor could develop a hook or baby-hook type of thing though, and maybe even an average jumper for a big man. He's so gifted offensively. I don't see the other two developing anything resembling a decent stroke though, so we'll see what happens.

I can almost guarantee that Okafor will have that 15ft shot down by his 3rd season.

[Dylan]

I know the Sixers already have plenty of big men, but I'm not sure what else they could have done at 3. Pass on Okafor? That would just be dumb. When you're as bad as the Sixers are, you draft the best player left on the board, and that was Okafor by a good margin. Worst case scenario is Embiid never really gets over his injuries and doesn't amount to much (which is very possible given some reports). In that case, they still have a front court with Okafor's polished offense and Noel's elite defense. Not bad at all. Best case scenario is that Embiid gets over his injuries and then they have 3 really good front court players. In this case, Embiid and Okafor can't really coexist long-term, but they can make it work short-term until they can find a trade they like for one of those 2. It wouldn't take long.

As for the second round: they only drafted 3 big men (and 2 wingers), but who cares how many big men they took? Second rounders are like buying lottery tickets. You draft projects that you think might turn into something of value down the road. You certainly don't draft based on need in the second round. If you're looking to fill a major hole on your roster in the second round, you're going to be mighty disappointed. Hernangomez was immediately traded to the Knicks, and the others are going to be stashed in the D-League/Europe for several years, at which point the Sixers' roster will probably look very different than it does today. The Sixers did exactly what they had to during this draft, and the Lakers will regret passing on Okafor in my opinion.

I certainly loathe the 76ers' tank method though. It's a slap in the face to the entire NBA, it's a manipulation of the system, and there's no honor in what they are doing. Even if they turn their fortunes around, it's going to be somewhat tainted.

Oh I agree, I think Okafor was 100% the right pick there. He was no doubt the best player on the board there and unquestionably was the right pick. But it more sums up how the Sixers have been run.

It really seems like there is no real direction in Philly. What's the point in tanking if you don't really get anything out of it? They have all these assets but don't see to be doing much of anything with them. MCW won rookie of the year then was traded (I know he's not as good as he was that year with Philly, but still) and now they're going to trade either Embiid or Noel. It just seems like whenever they get an asset and he plays well, they get rid of him.

They've gathered all of these assets for what? To get a star and win, no? Why not trade a lot of these assets for DeMarcus Cousins if he's available? Isn't that the point, to get a star?

[Marcos_Beck]

Good point. Pack some assets for any available star with long contract and then you set your window to acquire more good players based on how many years that star contract has.

[andrei]

Why did the Knicks draft a long term prospect? Do they care about 30+ year old Carmelo? Thought they will definitly take somebody more polished

[Rizzo]

I'm as big of a Melo fan as anyone else but I think he's got to be one of the hardest players to build a team around. His deficiencies are so glaring that it's almost impossible to make it work.