In a bizzaro world where the Brewers actually decide to "protect" their #1 pitching prospect, Yovanni Gallardo, by moving him to the bullpen where he can overstress his arm in unpredictable, high-stress situations, we have the equally bizzare rotisserie league standings for the WULAW International Shoe Fantasy Baseball league.
Currently, our league features teams in this general tier (with current league standings):
Tier 1: McKeon (1)
Tier 2: Brian (3)
Tier 3: Brady (2), Ginsburg (4), Stav (5), Varadro (6), Lee (7)
Tier 4: Martin (8)
Tier 5: Ricky (9), Anthony (10)
Tier 6: Kyle (11), Gary (12)
Given the vagaries of head-to-head play, here are the standings for the bizzaro "rotisserie" league, taking into account Ricky's objections to the scoring:
R HR RBI SB OPS Total Hitting Points
McKeon 9 12 11 12 11.5 55.5
Brian 12 11 10 8 11.5 52.5
Brady 7 5 3 7 7 29
Ginsburg 10 8 6 10 6 40
Stav 4 7 4 2 5 22
Vardaro 8 6 12 9 9 44
C 11 10 9 6 10 46
Martin 3 1 1 11 2 18
Ricky 6 9 8 3 4 30
Anthony 2 4 2 4 1 13
Kyle 5 3 5 1 8 22
Gary 1 2 7 5 3 18
W SV K ERA WHIP Total Pitching Points
McKeon 12 8 8 9 11 48
Brian 4 3 10 10 7 34
Brady 1 12 1 4 4 22
Ginsburg 2 10.5 7 2 2 23.5
Stav 10 4 12 12 12 50
Vardaro 3 5 2 5 6 21
C 11 9 11 6 3 40
Martin 8 10.5 5 8 10 41.5
Ricky 5 7 6 3 5 27
Anthony 7 6 9 7 9 38
Kyle 6 1 3 1 1 12
Gary 9 2 4 11 8 34
Total Standings
1) McKeon - 103.5
2) Brian - 86.5
3) C - 86
4) Stav - 72
5) Ginsburg - 63.5
6) Vardaro - 63
7) Martin - 59.5
8) Ricky - 57
9) Gary - 52
10) AK - 51
10) Brady - 51
12) Kyle - 44
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Monday, July 2, 2007
2007 NBA Draft Grades
For those who know me, this has long been an exercise of mine. I only wish I could go back and view the previous ones to see how badly I missed on previous predictions. I can only remember a few snippets:
1) the Sonics would regret drafting Corey Maggette and immediately trading him (tough call there).
2) Carlos Rogers (the Tennessee basketball player) would be awesome (oops).
3) Richard Jefferson was going to be a star (good call).
4) Andre Iguodala was going to be a star (another good call).
5) Curtis Borchardt would be a serviceable NBA center (uh, no).
You can compare me to NBA-Draft expert Chad Ford.
As you know (Mike, X) I grade each team on its choices and rate the picks on a 1-5 scale:
5 - future All-NBA (Kobe Bryant)
4 - Very good player, All-Star caliber, maybe multiple All-Star appearances (Rashard Lewis)
3 - solid NBA starter/6th man candidate (Leandro Barbosa)
2 - borderline starter/solid bench player (DeShawn Stevenson)
1 - end of the bench/total bust (Nikoloz Tskitisvilii (sp))
Okay, without further ado:
Atlanta (C-): Al Horford (4); Acie Law IV (2). Tough to argue with drafting Horford, who is a better forward than any of the myriad of players on the Hawks (Marvin Williams, Shelden Williams, Josh Smith, Josh Childress) but Mike Conley could have run this team into an 8th playoff spot in the East. Law had a great college career but strikes me as a Juan-Dixonesque shooter/clutch performer who won't run an NBA team like a college one. Great to have on the team, but at 11? As noted, they needed to turn this pick into All-NBA center Amare Stoudemire. Failure to do so will haunt them for years.
Boston (F): Gabe Pruitt (3); Glen Davis (2). A team that has no idea what they want to do. Last year they shipped what could've been ROY Brandon Roy out for Bass Telfair - and everyone knew Telfair SUCKED. Okay, so they're going for young vets, I get it. Then they refuse to part with young Al Jefferson to get KG. Okay, youth movement, yah! Then they trade the #5 pick, plus very underrated Delonte West and servicable Wally Sczerviak for - Ray Allen?? Ray Allen's a great, All-Star player, but how is Ray Allen going to get them to the title? Just bizzare.
Charlotte (B-): Jared Dudley (2); Jamareo Davidson (1). Traded UNC all-overrated all-athletics forward Brandan Wright to Golden State for Jason Richardson. I actually really liked this move. Charlotte has a bevy of young players (May, Morrison, Felton, Okafor, Hermann, etc.) and getting a fairly young veteran was a good move. High-risk with Davidson - could be boom or busy. I think Dudley's stock rose a ton at the end, he produced well in the Big East but might be overmatched by more athletic 3's in the NBA.
Chicago (C): Joachim Noah (3); Aaron Gray (2); JamesOn Curry (1). 3 picks - MORE youth. This is a team that was 1 low-post scorer from representing the East in the NBA finals. Could they get KG? Jermaine O'Neal? Maybe - instead they end up getting two centers who will compete with recent big-money acquisition Ben Wallace and FA P.J. Brown to figure out someway to keep scores in the 60's - which is where the team needs to be after adding zero scoring in the draft.
Cleveland (INC): no picks. Wow. Shannon Brown needs to get off the bench for the Cavs and start at the 2.
Dallas (C+): Nick Fazekas (3); Rayshawn Terry (1); Renaldus Seibutis (1). Fazekas could be a rotation player immediately - he's got a great shot and will kind of be Dirk-lite off the bench. Better rebounder than people credit him for. Not a bad 2nd round choice at all. Terry is another one of those all-athletic but no-basketball skill players. Can't do much with them. Seibutis? Who?
Denver (INC): Another team with no picks. Who are these guys, the Redskins?
Detroit (B): Rodney Stuckey (3); Aaron Afflalo (2); Sammy Meija (1). Big need is resigning Chauncey Billups. But this team should've rolled the LeBrons in the East finals. Stuckey is a big upgrade over Flip Murray as the backup combo guard. Afflalo is a very solid defender but will have to expand his range to the NBA 3-point line to stick in the league. He was exposed in big games by big-time athletes. He knows how to play, but it's a big athletic disadvantage.
Golden State (B-): Brandan Wright (3); Marco Bellinelli (3); Stephen Lasme (2). Okay, this is a tough call. If Wright is going to be useful anywhere, it's in Golden State, where he can run all day. Again, I get the sense that Wright looks great in workouts - but can't actually play. So that's the negative. On the positive side, scouts have salivated over his potential so it's a good value for Golden State. Bellinelli is a great addition - veteran savvy in the backcourt and Lasme is a good risk as a amazing college shot-blocker. One gets the sense that the Warriors should've traded to get a veteran, not younger, on a team that destroyed the #1 seed Mavericks.
Houston (D): Aaron Brooks (2); Carl Landry (2); Brad Newsley (1). Very wierd. This team can't get out of the 1st round and they choose Brooks in the 1st round. Could make me look bad, but Brooks was a great college player who doesn't seem to have the adaptable game to be an NBA starter. Could be a great firestarter off the bench though. Landry ran his mouth against Oden and then ended up with 0 points and 0 rebounds. Nice dude. Newsley will probably never play in the U.S.
Indiana (F): Stanko Barac (1). They lose this spot for trading the 11th choice for Al Harrington. Barac is total 2nd round European speculation. But they could've used Taurean Green or Jared Jordan.
L.A. Clippers (C+) : Al Thorton (2); Jared Jordan (3). Thorton never impressed me as a high-level all-around player. Maybe as a 6th man he'll be good. Jordan, though, could be a good stop-gap for the loss of Shaun Livingston.
L.A. Lakers (D+): Javaris Crittendon (3); Sun Yue (1); Marc Gasol (1). Crittendon should've stayed in school, 100%. He's going to struggle immediately. Also, didn't they draft Jordan Farmer in the 1st round last year? And does having a point guard matter when Kobe dominates the ball anyway? When trying to keep Kobe happy, they should've looked to more NBA-ready players like Jared Dudley.
Memphis (B+): Mike Conley (4). I'm high on Conley - I think he'll be near the level of Chris Paul in 3 years. Just a natural, fluid PG with a knack for changing speeds and making the right decision. Lacks the physical nature of Deron Williams (still a better choice than Paul) but is the type of player that others (like Oden - soon to be Gasol, Gay, Miller, etc.) will love to play with. Should've gone #3 to Atlanta. Lack of picks drops Memphis to a B+.
Miami (F+): Daequan Cook (1). I'm assigning the total bust label to Cook, who was selfish and not all that great in 1 year at the Ohio State University. I'm not even sure they're upset he left. Lots of talent, but so was "baby-Jordan" Harold Miner.
Milwaukee (B): Yi Jianlian (3); Ronnie Sessions (3). I like Sessions - I think he'll be a decent starting PG or 25 minute backup. Yi - total mystery. Good for Milwaukee in not caving into his ridiculous demands to go to a team with an Asian-American population. They didn't even get to see his workout. Shrouded in mystery! I like drafting a player I've never seen in person. Isn't that going to be awkward? "Hi, I'm Yi. I hate Milawaukee, but I know you want me to be your franchise cornerstone." Awesome.
Minnesota (B-): Corey Brewer (3); Chris Richard (3). Is it just be or does Brewer seem overrated? Everyone thinks he's the next Jefferson, or Pierce. I don't trust his jump-shot and I think he's a bit overrated on defense (but still decent). Richard looked great whenver Florida put him in, and he might instantly become the T-Wolves 2nd best low-post scorer. KG needs to be traded - it's over with him - and young talent is a good way to go.
New Jersey (C-): Sean Williams (3). Great gamble at this point in the 1st round. Sure he smoked weed; which NBA player didn't? Even the great Calvin Johnson (G-Tech, NFL #2) admitted to doing so. But Williams got caught, which makes me think his top-10 skills will never match his ability to adapt in the league.
New Orleans (D+): Julian Wright (2); Adam Haluska (1). Seriously. This is wierd. Wright was a good value, but he looked lost at Kansas at times and tended to defer to big-man Darrell Arthur and little guards Brandon Rush and Mario Chalmers. All 3 are better prospects. Haluska was the best player on a bad Iowa team. I doubt another club would've drafted him. STrange.
New York (C): Wilson Chandler (2); Demetris Nichols (3). Actually like Nichols better as a Knicks prospect. Chandler seems like Bobby Simmons - another DePaul product - who was a good glue guy but couldn't really do anything really well (until Michael Jordan taught Simmons how to shoot mid-range jump shots). Is Chandler a 4? a 3? A tweener? Nichols will light it up from the 3-point line. Also added Zach Randolph, who will destroy Eastern conference teams down low. But the cost - Channing Frye is very good - plus the pairing of Randolph and Eddy Curry seems very strange.
Orlando (F): Milovan Rakovic (1). Who? Traded their 1st rounder (Rodney Stuckey) to Detroit for FA Darko Milicic.
Philadelphia (A-): Thaddeus Young (3); Jason Smith (3); Derrick Byars (3); Herbert Hill (1). Really liked the 1st 3 picks for the Sixers. Going young was the way to go. Young needs at least 2 years to get going, but has huge upside. Jason Smith is ready to play right away and is talented in the low-post to get maybe 10 and 6 his first year. Byars I think will be a very solid 2-guard. Doesn't have the hops of a typical guard but can definitely get to the rim and shoot. Hill? Nope.
Phoenix (F-): Alando Tucker (2); D.J. Strawberry (3). Let's get the picks out of the way first. Tucker was overmatched against athletic players in college; even though he found ways to score it's going to be a struggle for him on this run and gun team. Strawberry has zero offense, but is a good ball-handler and could turn into their Bruce Bowen with lock-down D. Nice 2nd round choice. Okay - for the 4th year in a row, the Suns SOLD their 1st round pick. To me, this is completely despicable and a breach of contract with their fans. The people of Phoenix pay tons of money to see their team (which, don't get me wrong, is very good AND entertaining) with the expectation that the team will use its assets to bring a title to Phoenix. Through shrewd drafting and trading, the team has acquired 1st round picks higher than its natural finish. Instead of using these assets to improve the team, they have simply SOLD THE PICKS FOR CASH. To me, the ultimate wrong of a team is trading a basketball asset - such as a first round pick in a loaded draft - for money. It just looks terrible. Moreover, the player they could've had, Rudy Fernandez, could've really helped them. This pattern has to stop.
Portland (A): Greg Oden (5); Rudy Fernandez (3); Petteri Koponen (2); Josh McRoberts (3); Taureen Green (3). Ah, so this is where all the good players went. Oden was the obvious #1 (although I would've chosen Durant). He can anchor the middle for the next 12 years. Has more of an offensive game than he gets credit for. Really like Fernandez, who unlike other Euros, is already a star overseas. Koponen is a total spec player, but with so much young talent on the roster it's not bad. I actually like McRoberts as a solid high-post passer. Could be Brad Miller. Green is a good floor leader but with SO MUCH competition at PG (Jarrett Jack, Sergio Rodriguez, Fernandez, Koponen) it might not work out for him.
Sacramento (B): Spencer Hawes (3). I'm not as high on Hawes as others. I agree he's a skilled big guy, but is he someone you can build around?
San Antonio (A): Tiago Splitter (3); Marcus Williams (2). I had the Spurs pegged on Splitter. A top-10 talent the last 2 years, he's finally unable to withdraw this year and has a ton of experience overseas. What do you get the team that has everything? Another talented foreigner. Nice choice. Marcus Williams surprised me, since he's very athletic but doesn't seem to have a good basketball IQ. We'll see how he develops.
Seattle (A+): Kevin Durant (5); Jeff Green (4). Both are NBA-ready now. It's not often a team lands two of the top 5 prospects in a draft. Kevin Durant is going to be a superstar and ROY. He's an amazing scorer who people forget is very good at rebounding and shot blocking. Definitely needs more strength (apparently I can bench more than Durant) but he's a great talent that will make this team into his own. Green is an exceptional passer and has a great feel for the game. Pairing Green/Durant in the front court will be a bit odd, as they play essentially the same position, but Durant is almost a 6-10 2-guard, so it could work. Also, getting Delonte West is a nice steal in trading Allen for about the highest value possible.
Toronto (F): Giorgis Printezis (1). Will never hear of him again.
Utah (A-): Morris Almond (3); Kyrylo Fesenko (2). Nice choice in Almond. They needed a two-guard who could shoot, and there he was. Fesenko could be a nice flyer.
Washington (B): Nick Young (3); Dominic McGuire (1). Great value with top-10 prospect Young, but are there enough shots for him and Arenas? They needed a big guy, and didn't get one. Young is another scorer that plays no defense - what are they doing here?
1) the Sonics would regret drafting Corey Maggette and immediately trading him (tough call there).
2) Carlos Rogers (the Tennessee basketball player) would be awesome (oops).
3) Richard Jefferson was going to be a star (good call).
4) Andre Iguodala was going to be a star (another good call).
5) Curtis Borchardt would be a serviceable NBA center (uh, no).
You can compare me to NBA-Draft expert Chad Ford.
As you know (Mike, X) I grade each team on its choices and rate the picks on a 1-5 scale:
5 - future All-NBA (Kobe Bryant)
4 - Very good player, All-Star caliber, maybe multiple All-Star appearances (Rashard Lewis)
3 - solid NBA starter/6th man candidate (Leandro Barbosa)
2 - borderline starter/solid bench player (DeShawn Stevenson)
1 - end of the bench/total bust (Nikoloz Tskitisvilii (sp))
Okay, without further ado:
Atlanta (C-): Al Horford (4); Acie Law IV (2). Tough to argue with drafting Horford, who is a better forward than any of the myriad of players on the Hawks (Marvin Williams, Shelden Williams, Josh Smith, Josh Childress) but Mike Conley could have run this team into an 8th playoff spot in the East. Law had a great college career but strikes me as a Juan-Dixonesque shooter/clutch performer who won't run an NBA team like a college one. Great to have on the team, but at 11? As noted, they needed to turn this pick into All-NBA center Amare Stoudemire. Failure to do so will haunt them for years.
Boston (F): Gabe Pruitt (3); Glen Davis (2). A team that has no idea what they want to do. Last year they shipped what could've been ROY Brandon Roy out for Bass Telfair - and everyone knew Telfair SUCKED. Okay, so they're going for young vets, I get it. Then they refuse to part with young Al Jefferson to get KG. Okay, youth movement, yah! Then they trade the #5 pick, plus very underrated Delonte West and servicable Wally Sczerviak for - Ray Allen?? Ray Allen's a great, All-Star player, but how is Ray Allen going to get them to the title? Just bizzare.
Charlotte (B-): Jared Dudley (2); Jamareo Davidson (1). Traded UNC all-overrated all-athletics forward Brandan Wright to Golden State for Jason Richardson. I actually really liked this move. Charlotte has a bevy of young players (May, Morrison, Felton, Okafor, Hermann, etc.) and getting a fairly young veteran was a good move. High-risk with Davidson - could be boom or busy. I think Dudley's stock rose a ton at the end, he produced well in the Big East but might be overmatched by more athletic 3's in the NBA.
Chicago (C): Joachim Noah (3); Aaron Gray (2); JamesOn Curry (1). 3 picks - MORE youth. This is a team that was 1 low-post scorer from representing the East in the NBA finals. Could they get KG? Jermaine O'Neal? Maybe - instead they end up getting two centers who will compete with recent big-money acquisition Ben Wallace and FA P.J. Brown to figure out someway to keep scores in the 60's - which is where the team needs to be after adding zero scoring in the draft.
Cleveland (INC): no picks. Wow. Shannon Brown needs to get off the bench for the Cavs and start at the 2.
Dallas (C+): Nick Fazekas (3); Rayshawn Terry (1); Renaldus Seibutis (1). Fazekas could be a rotation player immediately - he's got a great shot and will kind of be Dirk-lite off the bench. Better rebounder than people credit him for. Not a bad 2nd round choice at all. Terry is another one of those all-athletic but no-basketball skill players. Can't do much with them. Seibutis? Who?
Denver (INC): Another team with no picks. Who are these guys, the Redskins?
Detroit (B): Rodney Stuckey (3); Aaron Afflalo (2); Sammy Meija (1). Big need is resigning Chauncey Billups. But this team should've rolled the LeBrons in the East finals. Stuckey is a big upgrade over Flip Murray as the backup combo guard. Afflalo is a very solid defender but will have to expand his range to the NBA 3-point line to stick in the league. He was exposed in big games by big-time athletes. He knows how to play, but it's a big athletic disadvantage.
Golden State (B-): Brandan Wright (3); Marco Bellinelli (3); Stephen Lasme (2). Okay, this is a tough call. If Wright is going to be useful anywhere, it's in Golden State, where he can run all day. Again, I get the sense that Wright looks great in workouts - but can't actually play. So that's the negative. On the positive side, scouts have salivated over his potential so it's a good value for Golden State. Bellinelli is a great addition - veteran savvy in the backcourt and Lasme is a good risk as a amazing college shot-blocker. One gets the sense that the Warriors should've traded to get a veteran, not younger, on a team that destroyed the #1 seed Mavericks.
Houston (D): Aaron Brooks (2); Carl Landry (2); Brad Newsley (1). Very wierd. This team can't get out of the 1st round and they choose Brooks in the 1st round. Could make me look bad, but Brooks was a great college player who doesn't seem to have the adaptable game to be an NBA starter. Could be a great firestarter off the bench though. Landry ran his mouth against Oden and then ended up with 0 points and 0 rebounds. Nice dude. Newsley will probably never play in the U.S.
Indiana (F): Stanko Barac (1). They lose this spot for trading the 11th choice for Al Harrington. Barac is total 2nd round European speculation. But they could've used Taurean Green or Jared Jordan.
L.A. Clippers (C+) : Al Thorton (2); Jared Jordan (3). Thorton never impressed me as a high-level all-around player. Maybe as a 6th man he'll be good. Jordan, though, could be a good stop-gap for the loss of Shaun Livingston.
L.A. Lakers (D+): Javaris Crittendon (3); Sun Yue (1); Marc Gasol (1). Crittendon should've stayed in school, 100%. He's going to struggle immediately. Also, didn't they draft Jordan Farmer in the 1st round last year? And does having a point guard matter when Kobe dominates the ball anyway? When trying to keep Kobe happy, they should've looked to more NBA-ready players like Jared Dudley.
Memphis (B+): Mike Conley (4). I'm high on Conley - I think he'll be near the level of Chris Paul in 3 years. Just a natural, fluid PG with a knack for changing speeds and making the right decision. Lacks the physical nature of Deron Williams (still a better choice than Paul) but is the type of player that others (like Oden - soon to be Gasol, Gay, Miller, etc.) will love to play with. Should've gone #3 to Atlanta. Lack of picks drops Memphis to a B+.
Miami (F+): Daequan Cook (1). I'm assigning the total bust label to Cook, who was selfish and not all that great in 1 year at the Ohio State University. I'm not even sure they're upset he left. Lots of talent, but so was "baby-Jordan" Harold Miner.
Milwaukee (B): Yi Jianlian (3); Ronnie Sessions (3). I like Sessions - I think he'll be a decent starting PG or 25 minute backup. Yi - total mystery. Good for Milwaukee in not caving into his ridiculous demands to go to a team with an Asian-American population. They didn't even get to see his workout. Shrouded in mystery! I like drafting a player I've never seen in person. Isn't that going to be awkward? "Hi, I'm Yi. I hate Milawaukee, but I know you want me to be your franchise cornerstone." Awesome.
Minnesota (B-): Corey Brewer (3); Chris Richard (3). Is it just be or does Brewer seem overrated? Everyone thinks he's the next Jefferson, or Pierce. I don't trust his jump-shot and I think he's a bit overrated on defense (but still decent). Richard looked great whenver Florida put him in, and he might instantly become the T-Wolves 2nd best low-post scorer. KG needs to be traded - it's over with him - and young talent is a good way to go.
New Jersey (C-): Sean Williams (3). Great gamble at this point in the 1st round. Sure he smoked weed; which NBA player didn't? Even the great Calvin Johnson (G-Tech, NFL #2) admitted to doing so. But Williams got caught, which makes me think his top-10 skills will never match his ability to adapt in the league.
New Orleans (D+): Julian Wright (2); Adam Haluska (1). Seriously. This is wierd. Wright was a good value, but he looked lost at Kansas at times and tended to defer to big-man Darrell Arthur and little guards Brandon Rush and Mario Chalmers. All 3 are better prospects. Haluska was the best player on a bad Iowa team. I doubt another club would've drafted him. STrange.
New York (C): Wilson Chandler (2); Demetris Nichols (3). Actually like Nichols better as a Knicks prospect. Chandler seems like Bobby Simmons - another DePaul product - who was a good glue guy but couldn't really do anything really well (until Michael Jordan taught Simmons how to shoot mid-range jump shots). Is Chandler a 4? a 3? A tweener? Nichols will light it up from the 3-point line. Also added Zach Randolph, who will destroy Eastern conference teams down low. But the cost - Channing Frye is very good - plus the pairing of Randolph and Eddy Curry seems very strange.
Orlando (F): Milovan Rakovic (1). Who? Traded their 1st rounder (Rodney Stuckey) to Detroit for FA Darko Milicic.
Philadelphia (A-): Thaddeus Young (3); Jason Smith (3); Derrick Byars (3); Herbert Hill (1). Really liked the 1st 3 picks for the Sixers. Going young was the way to go. Young needs at least 2 years to get going, but has huge upside. Jason Smith is ready to play right away and is talented in the low-post to get maybe 10 and 6 his first year. Byars I think will be a very solid 2-guard. Doesn't have the hops of a typical guard but can definitely get to the rim and shoot. Hill? Nope.
Phoenix (F-): Alando Tucker (2); D.J. Strawberry (3). Let's get the picks out of the way first. Tucker was overmatched against athletic players in college; even though he found ways to score it's going to be a struggle for him on this run and gun team. Strawberry has zero offense, but is a good ball-handler and could turn into their Bruce Bowen with lock-down D. Nice 2nd round choice. Okay - for the 4th year in a row, the Suns SOLD their 1st round pick. To me, this is completely despicable and a breach of contract with their fans. The people of Phoenix pay tons of money to see their team (which, don't get me wrong, is very good AND entertaining) with the expectation that the team will use its assets to bring a title to Phoenix. Through shrewd drafting and trading, the team has acquired 1st round picks higher than its natural finish. Instead of using these assets to improve the team, they have simply SOLD THE PICKS FOR CASH. To me, the ultimate wrong of a team is trading a basketball asset - such as a first round pick in a loaded draft - for money. It just looks terrible. Moreover, the player they could've had, Rudy Fernandez, could've really helped them. This pattern has to stop.
Portland (A): Greg Oden (5); Rudy Fernandez (3); Petteri Koponen (2); Josh McRoberts (3); Taureen Green (3). Ah, so this is where all the good players went. Oden was the obvious #1 (although I would've chosen Durant). He can anchor the middle for the next 12 years. Has more of an offensive game than he gets credit for. Really like Fernandez, who unlike other Euros, is already a star overseas. Koponen is a total spec player, but with so much young talent on the roster it's not bad. I actually like McRoberts as a solid high-post passer. Could be Brad Miller. Green is a good floor leader but with SO MUCH competition at PG (Jarrett Jack, Sergio Rodriguez, Fernandez, Koponen) it might not work out for him.
Sacramento (B): Spencer Hawes (3). I'm not as high on Hawes as others. I agree he's a skilled big guy, but is he someone you can build around?
San Antonio (A): Tiago Splitter (3); Marcus Williams (2). I had the Spurs pegged on Splitter. A top-10 talent the last 2 years, he's finally unable to withdraw this year and has a ton of experience overseas. What do you get the team that has everything? Another talented foreigner. Nice choice. Marcus Williams surprised me, since he's very athletic but doesn't seem to have a good basketball IQ. We'll see how he develops.
Seattle (A+): Kevin Durant (5); Jeff Green (4). Both are NBA-ready now. It's not often a team lands two of the top 5 prospects in a draft. Kevin Durant is going to be a superstar and ROY. He's an amazing scorer who people forget is very good at rebounding and shot blocking. Definitely needs more strength (apparently I can bench more than Durant) but he's a great talent that will make this team into his own. Green is an exceptional passer and has a great feel for the game. Pairing Green/Durant in the front court will be a bit odd, as they play essentially the same position, but Durant is almost a 6-10 2-guard, so it could work. Also, getting Delonte West is a nice steal in trading Allen for about the highest value possible.
Toronto (F): Giorgis Printezis (1). Will never hear of him again.
Utah (A-): Morris Almond (3); Kyrylo Fesenko (2). Nice choice in Almond. They needed a two-guard who could shoot, and there he was. Fesenko could be a nice flyer.
Washington (B): Nick Young (3); Dominic McGuire (1). Great value with top-10 prospect Young, but are there enough shots for him and Arenas? They needed a big guy, and didn't get one. Young is another scorer that plays no defense - what are they doing here?
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