Good afternoon party people. With the NBA Draft less than a month away, there will be so many stories and articles inundating your synapses. There will be in-depth scouting analysis out the wazoo. There will be hysteria and hyperbole left and right. So I am here to help you navigate the discourse.
I have chosen to briefly highlight six teams that will be or should be prominent in the melee. It makes it easier to disseminate the information and easier to mentally ingest what I’m putting across.
To refresh, the top ten picks go to (in order): Minnesota, Golden State, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Atlanta, Detroit, New York, Washington DC, Phoenix.
Teams with no picks in the first round: Pacers, Clippers, Rockets.
Teams with multiple picks in the first round: Minnesota; Boston; New York.
Let us begin…what where why or when.
Minnesota should trade down from the #1 pick. They have talent in Towns, and Russell. They have youth in Culver, Malik Beasley and Josh Okogie. I think they benefit better in packaging their picks for a strong trade (Westbrook, George etc). Their roster is a piece away from potentially making some playoff noise. This isn’t one built for further rebuilding or foundation-planning. They need to jettison Turners’ contract ($18,606,556) and perhaps James Johnson’s too. ($15,349,400) to get themselves there. But in my opinion, the draft, with no definitive #1s/must haves, would be the place for Minn to make their trade and push the needle towards winning.
Golden State should honestly trade down and grab assets if possible. If not stand pat and draft from the #2. The firepower of a Curry-Thompson-Wiggins back court could be explosive. They are a bit lean as far as size so Wiseman might be a wise choice, but if they aren’t sold, Montrez should be out there come free agency. AD opted out but the belief is he resigns with Los Angeles for a longer duration and of course more moolah. DeMarcus Cousins is out there, Serge Ibaka, Andre Drummond, so there are some options.
The Spurs need to attack this draft and trade down to get more than one pick this year. The eleven position could garner them a solid player but to look at their roster, if they want to start competing they need to bolster the talent. No direspect intended but Demar DeRozan was no Kawhi replacement. He has been pedestrian under Pop (which is amazing to me) and perhaps another change of scenery would do him good. Perhaps a move back to Toronto. If anything, the bubble showed they still need scoring. LeMarcus Aldridge is still a thing. A $26,000,000 thing. Between his salary and DeMar’s $27 mil they definitely carry the heaviest aspects of the payroll but they aren’t moving the needle in the west. Spurs need a serious retooling. I honestly think they need two-three seasons of drafts and deals to get back into play for the west. They are far away as of today.
The New York Knicks are in a very palpable place. They have two first round picks, #s 8 and 27. They also have a core of youth and undifined vet roles. With the cap space they have going into this season, there are a few ways they can go. Obviously, LaMelo Ball is the ‘sexy’ pick this year but odds are he will be gone by eight. There are still plenty of solid choices at 8. Perhaps they package the 26th and their second round pick to move up to 15-20. The Knicks are at least one season away from that top free agency pick or trade piece, and with the new coaching/developmental staff, time needs to be had with the youth to truly know the golden eggs from the bad ones.
The bubble taught Boston a few things. They need better bigs, for one. Gordon Hayward is coming up for free agency. Is he still the guy or can they find him in the draft? Would they trade Gordon to get assets for him or let him walk?
Regardless of the soon-to-be emergence of the Brooklyn Nets, the turnover at Philly, the disappointment of Milwaukee or the actual emergence of the Heat, Boston believes they are the team to come out of the East. This draft should be used to bolster their bench while they look for a finishing big for the playoff run.
The Indiana Pacers are in a quagmire. They are currently just good enough to get bounced out of the second round. Oladipo’s health is a question mark. So is his $21,000,000 salary. He and malcolm Brogdon carry the weight of the salaries. With Domantas Sabonis, Myles turner and TJ Warren they have a squad, but not an over the top one. I am not sure there is anyone in this draft that could turn the tide but having no chaices to choose from is not the greatest way to attack the process either. They should trade for the 76ers 21st pick at least. The Sixers don’t really need it. They need to figure out that roster as structured. No one in this draft moves their needle to uber-competetive mode . Perhaps a Gallanari sighting, or even a DeMar DeRozan on this Pacers team can help. Especially if they keep Oladipo. If they trade him, perhaps they should look to the draft. Either way, it’ll be a while before they are truly competetive.
In my next article, I will approach the Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets, Detroit Pistons, Sacramento Kings, Portland Trailblazers, and Phoenix Suns