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Pick 6, New Orleans Pelicans: AND HE IS FINALLY PICKED!
Nerlens Noel free fall has stopped and his landing spot is in New Orleans!
Nerlens Noel and Anthony Davis! The Thin Towers! Guys, we have a really fun
frontcourt…and he’s been traded to the Philadelphia 76ers. Does this mean Andrew Bynum will not suit up for the 76ers? ESPN is reporting that he is traded to
the 76ers along with a protected 2014 first round pick for Jrue Holiday and a
2013 second round pick. Great trade for both teams.
Pick 7, Sacramento Kings: Ben McLemore has been selected by
the Kings. A potential star with a high upside, McLemore is a great
shooter and elite athlete. The Kings needed shooting and athleticism and they
got it. Love this pick for this Kings. What this fan base needed, especially
after the shenanigans with Seattle.
Pick 8, Detroit Pistons: Rumored to be grabbing a point guard, the
Pistons have opted to pivot and grab Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. One of the best
shooters in the draft, this is a good injection of talent to a backcourt with
Brandon Knight running the point. Should be a fun backcourt to watch and keep
an eye on this season.
Pick 9, Minnesota Timberwolves: Wolves select Trey Burke and
he has been flipped to the Utah Jazz for their no. 14 and 21 picks. Jazz needed
a point guard and Burke fits the bill. Most NBA ready guard in this draft he
can start immediately for the Jazz.
Pick 10, Portland Trail Blazers: These guys have been eyeing
a PG this draft and get it in the form of CJ McCollum. He projects to be a very
similar PG to Damian Lillard making this a fantastically fun backcourt to watch.
*Immediately removes Pelicans from League Pass and replaces them with the
Trail Blazers*. This pairing has potential to score lots of points, create space
for LaMarcus Aldridge, and McCollum can shoot well, handle the ball well and
create his own shot. Good running mate for Lillard and this backcourt should
have opposing defenses in fits if they can click.
Hello everyone and welcome to my first DRAFT DIARY. That’s
right folks, I am ripping off Bill
Simmons’ shtick (and who cares? It’s
not like he’ll be doing a draft diary this year because he’ll be too busy on TV
to do one anyway, right?). This draft proves
to be an interesting one with NBA
pundits moaning that it is a “weak draft” and it’s a bit of a gamble outside of
the top 10 picks. So, without further ado, let’s start talking about David
Stern’s final draft.
But for good measure: BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
Pick 1, Cleveland
Cavaliers: Ok, frankly for pick 1, I am absolutely expecting that they pick
Nerlens Noel. I mean injury or no injury,
he is one of the top players in this draft and Cleveland can afford to gamble
on his ability to start giving them depth at the C/PF position. AND HOLY HELL THEY DON’T PICK HIM. They pick Anthony Bennett! SHOCKER. Bill Simmons
is genuinely perplexed. I am too. I suppose he would make a great pick and roll
partner for Kyrie Irving, and
projects to be a 20 and 10 player going forward, so I suppose it could have
been worse. They could’ve drafted me (absolutely not—Ed).
Pick 2, Orlando Magic:
The Magic are still undergoing a rebuilding project of sorts and have what they
want in explosive guard, Victor Oladipo.
There is absolutely no way they do not take him and I cannot fathom a scenario
where they don’t go with a player who projects to be a star, given his immense
upside. And that is what the Magic do in selecting Oladipo, which is fantastic.
Hopefully they can slot him into the starting rotation now that Arron
Afflalo is gone. Oladipo was one of my favorite players in the
college game last season and I’m hoping he’ll flourish in the NBA with Orlando.
Pick 3, Washington
Wizards: Washington Wizards are now on the clock. Based on conversations I’ve had with Felipe M, this is one of the teams we’re
hoping, with the right moves, can make the playoffs. And I can only see one payer over here which
addresses the need the Wizards have at SF. And as I type this out, Otto Porter was selected by the Washington
Wizards. This is a perfect fit for this team. Great wing player to pair with John Wall and Brad Beal and is able to play off the ball well. Good defender and
willing to defend, I hope he does help the Wizards make the playoffs.
Pick 4, Charlotte
Bobcats: Hey, look! Nerlens Noel is still on the board! Alex Len is still on the board! Ben McLemore still on the board! Picks
looking good for the Bobcats: three fairly safe picks up there. And the Bobcats
decide to pick CODY ZELLER!!??!! A
major downgrade from Noel or Len, Zeller is a bizarre pick for number 4. Once
again, the Bobcats are snakebitten by one Michael
Jordan. What are they thinking in Charlotte?
Pick 5, Phoenix Suns:
ALEX LEN HAS JUST BEEN DRAFTED AHEAD OF NERLENS NOEL. Hey, maybe we have a Geno Smith situation occurring here at
the NBA draft regarding Noel. Somebody cue Tom Petty. Anyway, this was a
fantastic pick for Phoenix. Rumors pegged the Cavs picking Len as well and I’m
not surprised. Suns love him and he can take over for Marcin Gortat eventually. Of course the Suns medical team had
hang-ups about Noel’s knee, but Len is the second best big man in this draft
and a good pick for Phoenix.
Johnny J (Johnny is a die-hard UNC fan, but he's not liking the new landscape that some schools have manicured in today's NCAA and he explains his reasoning in this article).
North Carolina basketball has been known to win championships because of good recruiting and players willing to stay in school and willing to be developed in college. So when a prestigious school like the Tar Heels have a reputation to protect as a great basketball school, what happens when other schools seem more desirable for top recruits to attend?
Kids coming out of high school are looking at how to get into the pro game as quickly as possible and one coach is bringing in these kids with the idea of "One and Done," (For those that don't know, it's the idea of a basketball player attending the required one year of college before bolting to start his/her professional career--Ed) is ok at Kentucky. Schools like North Carolina who mark their reputation on developing kids may soon be scratched off their list.
"If you're a player that wants to win and that's looking to get on to the next level, Kentucky is the place." explained Derrick Rose, "Getting guys to the next level; [Calipari's] resume speaks for itself." Rose is just one of many players who was coached by John Calipari and later went on to become the number 1 pick overall in the 2008 draft.
Other players that Calipari has coached only to see them leave after one year of college ball are:
Derrick Rose,# 1 pick overall & rookie of the year in 2009. ( 1 year at Memphis under Calipari)
Tyreke Evans. 5th pick overall & rookie of the year in 2010. (1 year at Memphis under Calipari)
John Wall, # 1 pick overall & rookie of the year in 2011. (1 year at Kentucky)
DeMarcus Cousins, 5th overall pick in 2010. ( 1 year at Kentucky)
Enes Kanter, 3rd overall pick in 2011. ( 1 year at Kentucky)
Brandon Knight, 8th overall pick in 2011. ( 1 year at Kentucky)
Anthony Davis # 1 overall pick in 2012) ( 1 year at Kentucky)
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist 2nd pick overall in 2012. ( 1 year at Kentucky)
With a reputation of getting college players drafted in the top 10 of the NBA Draft, how can a school like North Carolina compete? I mean their record this year speaks for itself. The Tar Heels started the season ranked 11th in the nation, but with 3 losses in 7 games, (two to non-ranked opponents) the Heels dropped out of the top-25 and are currently sitting at 13-5. With a win last night over Georgia Tech, the Heels are 3-2 in there Atlantic Coast Conference.
There is a reason for the recent down-fall for the way North Carolina is playing. They lost four good key players to the draft last year, all of them being 1st round picks:
Kendall Marshall (Soph)
Harrison Barnes (Soph)
Ty Zeller (Sr)
John Henson (Jr.)
The last time North Carolina Won the NCAA Championship was back in the 2009-10 season when they had a team that played with each other for 3-4 years. Players such as:
Ty Lawson (Jr.)
Tyler Hansbrough ( Sr.)
Wayne Ellington (Jr.)
Danny Green (Sr.)
All of them are still playing in the NBA today, but schools like North Carolina need students to stay more than one year to help build a high-caliber team. A school like Kentucky is thriving off of "One and Done" and even won the NCAA Championship as recently as last year using this paradigm. They're getting the best recruits for that same reason. Freshman center Nerlens Noel from Kentucky is already projected to go # 4 overall in the upcoming NBA Draft and his draft stock can go up or down depending on how he plays this season. Schools that need kids to develop, need to jump on board if they want to continue having some dominance in the NCAA, or they won't last long as a top-ranked, basketball school.
Personally, as much as "One and Done" sounds good for a program and player, I still prefer to be a fan of a program that wants to recruit players that want to be developed and leave a legacy behind in college. I want my program to win as much as possible and get better in the process. Recruits need to learn that they are able to do that at a good school and with a good coach. I also want to see players who want to graduate with their classmates. People sometimes leave and come back to finish school, but I don't understand why these players wouldn't want to get it out the way early on in their life! What happens if a particular player does get drafted, but ends up riding the pine in the NBA because his game is not fully developed? Or if said player does want to go back and finish his degree, but for whatever reason, the opportunity is no longer there for him to go back to school? If I were a player, my thought process would be, "the NBA will always be there and I will declare myself draft eligible when I'm good and ready!"
North Carolina is my favorite team and it hurts to see them not be considered as a top-25 ranked team so far this season. I'm hoping things will change-- for the long-run. I like schools that develop players, but these schools need to get the message out: " One and Done" is not always the best way!
Patience plays a big part in everything that we do as people. I appreciate schools who try to improve young ball players' lives and to become better men and not just solely develop their basketball skills and talents. Sometimes, choosing the long path is the better decision as opposed to the short one.
(As of today's publishing of this article, UNC holds a 13-5 overall record, 3-2 in the ACC and their next game is at #18th ranked NC State. UNC is the #13th best scoring team in the nation and #1 in rebounding. Plenty of basketball left for UNC to right the ship... ...Kentucky, on the other hand, holds a 12-6 overall record, 3-2 in the SEC with their next game coming up against unranked LSU. Kentucky is ranked #35 and #31 in points per game and rebounding in the country. Perhaps "One and Done" is finally catching up to Calipari--Ed) For more on basketball, click here.
