Post by Madrid on Dec 22, 2016 22:41:36 GMT
We're about to head into a very exciting 2009 draft. For many teams, this will be the turning point for their franchise. For others, they might add that one supporting piece to take the next step. And for some, they will rue the day they passed on a certain gem who was taken just one pick after them. Here is what the Madrid Real GM thinks will happen this year.
1. Chicago Bulls: Yao Ming
Chicago's starting all over. Myles Turner, Joel Embiid, Al Horford, and Emmanuel Mudiay aren't walking through that door. The Bulls really have nothing left on their roster, just the remains of Victor Oladipo and Zach LaVine. For a team making a fresh start, it's hard to think of a better option moving forward than the 7'6" Yao Ming. Pete Maravich is certainly tempting here, and has better ratings, but Yao's skill set, potential, and height will make him a unique force for years to come.
2. Maccabi Tel Aviv: Pete Maravich
Tel Aviv has the easy pick here, taking whoever falls to them. Pete Maravich is an incredibly skilled and adequately athletic player who looks like a superstar in the making. Maravich will make an impact on day one with his ability to play either guard spot. Once he develops his defense, Tel Aviv will have a legitimate superstar. They can afford to wait a few years to properly develop him as he grows with Thunder Dan and Nick Van Exel, and whatever other sneaky pieces Tel Aviv picks up along the way.
3. Perth Wildcats: Bob Lanier
Perth is tempted here by Walt Bellamy, but ultimately goes with the more well-rounded Lanier. I see this as a two-man draft, with picks 3-7 roughly interchangeable. Perth, unfortunately, falls out of the top two, but Lanier is a good consolation prize for another team starting all over. He'll be an interesting fit with Brad Daugherty in that they're both somewhat lumbering, good-passing bigs. Lanier wins out because he is the most well-rounded big in the draft.
4. Madrid Real: Walt Bellamy
Madrid loves him some Walt Bellamy. Real has a roster pretty much made of just Forwards, so it is likely they target either a Center or a Guard here. Bellamy has the IU heritage, much like the Madrid GM, and plays no defense, just like the rest of the Real roster. In that sense, Bellamy will be a perfect fit. Still, Bellamy scores, and Real will be looking to lead the league in PPG and finish last in opponent's PPG.
5. Brazil Franca BC: Tiny Archibald
The draft continues on here with Brazil, a team that has been at the bottom of the league for quite a while now and should start to make some progress next season. Ron Harper and Chuck Person are promising swingmen but are also flexible in positions, so Brazil could really go BPA here. Tiny Archibald, for some reason, hasn't been getting much hype, but could end up being the best player in the draft class. He's very athletic, is the best ball handler and passer in the draft, and has a knack for scoring. His defense is also coming along. Archibald should give Brazil that next piece to really start moving forward.
6. New York Knicks: Charlie Scott
Of course it would be New York to trade into the draft to nab the guy that many here have never heard of. Charlie Scott's name goes unmentioned among best scorers in professional basketball history, but Scott has the potential to be a potent scorer here. He can slide in to a relatively small Knicks future team that features Jeff Hornacek, Brian Winters, and pick #7. Scott has a unique game with his good guard skills and killer jumping ability to complement his scoring potential. He's still raw, but could be formidable in a few years.
7. New York Knicks: Amar'e Stoudemire
New York's back on the clock again after just dealing Greg Oden for this pick. NY could go BPA and select another guard like Calvin Murphy, but we think they'll pick Amar'e Stoudemire with his Knicks history. Stoudemire has defensive question marks, but is ridiculously athletic and could be a great scorer in a few years. He's still fairly young, and if NY invests PP into his defense, Stoudemire could turn into yet another Knicks legend on a title team.
8. Newcastle Eagles: Dave Cowens
We're not really sure what Newcastle has going on, but they're relatively young and skilled at most positions. The future of Anthony Davis is unknown after his last training camp, and none of Newcastle's other pieces are locks to stick around. Still, their glaring weakness right now is a big man to complement Davis, and Cowens is the definition of complement. Cowens is limited offensively, although he shows some promise, but is stellar on defense. His limited athleticism is the only reason he doesn't go higher than this.
9. Aalborg Vikings: Calvin Murphy
Aalborg is shocked to see Calvin Murphy fall this far. At the end of the day, though, many GMs are afraid of Murphy's short stature. While Murphy has as much potential with skill as anyone in this draft, and combines that with great athleticism, 5'9" players usually do not become superstars in this game. Still, Aalborg is happy to see Murphy at this spot and quickly adds him to a young core that might be playoff-bound next year. The Vikings could use a PG to move Larry Costello to a backup, and Murphy should be ready to start as a rookie.
10. Portland Trailblazers: Randy Smith
Portland was hoping Murphy would fall one more spot, but his floor is probably with the Vikings. Portland, though, has caught PG fever, and goes for Randy Smith here to play an up-tempo offense alongside Rudy Gay, Paul Pierce, and Al Horford. Smith is an intriguing prospect who I'm also surprised has not received much hype. He's similar to Richie Guerin from last year's draft in that he's a guard with good rebounding potential who likes to mix it up inside. Smith's an interesting player who will be able to contribute form day one.
11. San Francisco Warriors: Caron Butler
San Francisco's future is up in the air, with the only pieces they have that are probably locks to stay put being Goodrich and Gervin. They go for Caron Butler here, a somewhat raw player who many scouts have going #1 in the draft. Butler has gobs of potential, and while he might take a while to get there, the Warriors can wait for a while or try to trade him for a piece to complement Goodrich.
12. Madrid Real: Geoff Petrie
Madrid addressed one weakness with Bellamy, and targets another one here with Geoff Petrie. Petrie might not have star potential, but he's good on both ends of the floor already, and should get better steadily over the next few years. He can step in and start immediately for Madrid.
13. Seattle Supersonics: Doug Moe
Seattle has a pretty talented, well-rounded roster, and will be looking for a player here who can step in to what they already have set up. Moe is a well-rounded SF who can score inside and in the mid-range, grab rebounds, and play decent defense. He's not the most athletic player, but has a skill level that will probably probably complement Larry Johnson and Dario Saric.
14. New York Knicks: Ralph Simpson
New York is back on the clock again and rolls the dice with Ralph Simpson. Simpson's not a big man and does add to a large guard rotation for the Knicks, but NY cannot pass up Simpson's talent. He can score inside and out, play defense, and is among the best athletes in the draft. Simpson could end up being one of those big steal picks down the road.
15. N'awlins Jazz: Tayshaun Prince
N'awlins made a big move in trading for Marc Gasol, who forms a scary combo with Maurice Stokes. The Jazz also have a good guard rotation with Ellis, Price, and Calvin, although this team is not afraid to shake up the roster at a moment's notice. Mario Hezonja is the only real weakspot in the lineup for the Jazz, so they pick a player here that could be a high-level role player to replace him. Prince plays excellent defense and has some scoring potential. He has the makings of a 5th starter that could drive a team to a championship.
16. Piraeus Olimpiacos BC: Dan Issel
Issel's fallen pretty far here for three reasons. First, New York has three picks and will not select Issel because they're dramatic past. Second, Issel is a limited athlete. And third, Issel does not play defense. Usually, teams will go after a play who doesn't play D if they are athletic (Amar'e Stoudemire), or a player who isn't athletic but does play defense (Dave Cowens). However, Issel's combination of the two causes him to drop all the way down to Pireaus, who will find a way to fit him into his frontcourt.
17. Vancouver Grizzlies: Manuel Raga
A team who struggled last year to find cheap depth picks up one of the most ready players in the draft this year, Manuel Raga. Raga can jump out of the gym and has a sweet mid-range jump shot. Vancouver needs some guard help and Raga will be able to give them that at a good cost. Beyond the cheap contract for a productive player, Raga is already 26, which some teams might see as a negative. However, for Vancouver just outside the lottery, that's a positive. Raga cannot leave the Grizzlies for four years, and only has to survive one training camp to be safe.
18. Istanbul Anadolu Efes: Jay Williams
Istanbul had a remarkable season last year without a GM and with a pretty shaky roster outside of LeBron James. With the CPU picking here, I expect Istanbul will add a good player to their roster, since automatic picks are usually pretty good. Jay Williams is pretty raw, but has a lot of potential to help Istanbul out long-term.
19. Piraeus Olimpiacos BC: Rudy Tomjanovich
Piraeus is back on the clock here after stealing Dan Issel. While they might need a guard, I think the smart play here is to pick a big and then try to ship him or Issel later. Rudy Tomjanovich might need some time to develop, but could turn into a well-rounded, scoring big man. Piraeus will just have worry about Rudy T taking a Mutombo elbow in practice.
20. Chicago Bulls: Don Kojis
Chicago's adding another pick to help out with Yao Ming, and ends up taking Don Kojis. Kojis is raw and sort of an undersized Power Forward like Calvin Natt, but has great scoring potential, and should be good on defense and the glass. Even more, he's a great leaper. Chicago can take a gamble on an odd player knowing that they'll have time to figure it out.
I ran out of time to analyze the rest of the first round, but here are the picks:
21. Seattle Supersonics: Sam Lacey
22. Minnesota Timberwolves: Billy Paultz
23. Taipei Fubon Braves: Jim McMillian
24. Shanghai Sharks: Matt Barnes
25. Buenos Aires Boca Juniors: Ray Scott
26. Madrid Real: Nene
27. Cleveland Cavaliers: George Irvine
28. Real: Garfield Heard
29. Brooklyn Nets: Nenad Krstic
30. Bamberg Brose Baskets: Larry Siegfied
31. Boston Celtics: John Salmons
32. Perth Wildcats: Mike Dunleavy, Jr.
1. Chicago Bulls: Yao Ming
Chicago's starting all over. Myles Turner, Joel Embiid, Al Horford, and Emmanuel Mudiay aren't walking through that door. The Bulls really have nothing left on their roster, just the remains of Victor Oladipo and Zach LaVine. For a team making a fresh start, it's hard to think of a better option moving forward than the 7'6" Yao Ming. Pete Maravich is certainly tempting here, and has better ratings, but Yao's skill set, potential, and height will make him a unique force for years to come.
2. Maccabi Tel Aviv: Pete Maravich
Tel Aviv has the easy pick here, taking whoever falls to them. Pete Maravich is an incredibly skilled and adequately athletic player who looks like a superstar in the making. Maravich will make an impact on day one with his ability to play either guard spot. Once he develops his defense, Tel Aviv will have a legitimate superstar. They can afford to wait a few years to properly develop him as he grows with Thunder Dan and Nick Van Exel, and whatever other sneaky pieces Tel Aviv picks up along the way.
3. Perth Wildcats: Bob Lanier
Perth is tempted here by Walt Bellamy, but ultimately goes with the more well-rounded Lanier. I see this as a two-man draft, with picks 3-7 roughly interchangeable. Perth, unfortunately, falls out of the top two, but Lanier is a good consolation prize for another team starting all over. He'll be an interesting fit with Brad Daugherty in that they're both somewhat lumbering, good-passing bigs. Lanier wins out because he is the most well-rounded big in the draft.
4. Madrid Real: Walt Bellamy
Madrid loves him some Walt Bellamy. Real has a roster pretty much made of just Forwards, so it is likely they target either a Center or a Guard here. Bellamy has the IU heritage, much like the Madrid GM, and plays no defense, just like the rest of the Real roster. In that sense, Bellamy will be a perfect fit. Still, Bellamy scores, and Real will be looking to lead the league in PPG and finish last in opponent's PPG.
5. Brazil Franca BC: Tiny Archibald
The draft continues on here with Brazil, a team that has been at the bottom of the league for quite a while now and should start to make some progress next season. Ron Harper and Chuck Person are promising swingmen but are also flexible in positions, so Brazil could really go BPA here. Tiny Archibald, for some reason, hasn't been getting much hype, but could end up being the best player in the draft class. He's very athletic, is the best ball handler and passer in the draft, and has a knack for scoring. His defense is also coming along. Archibald should give Brazil that next piece to really start moving forward.
6. New York Knicks: Charlie Scott
Of course it would be New York to trade into the draft to nab the guy that many here have never heard of. Charlie Scott's name goes unmentioned among best scorers in professional basketball history, but Scott has the potential to be a potent scorer here. He can slide in to a relatively small Knicks future team that features Jeff Hornacek, Brian Winters, and pick #7. Scott has a unique game with his good guard skills and killer jumping ability to complement his scoring potential. He's still raw, but could be formidable in a few years.
7. New York Knicks: Amar'e Stoudemire
New York's back on the clock again after just dealing Greg Oden for this pick. NY could go BPA and select another guard like Calvin Murphy, but we think they'll pick Amar'e Stoudemire with his Knicks history. Stoudemire has defensive question marks, but is ridiculously athletic and could be a great scorer in a few years. He's still fairly young, and if NY invests PP into his defense, Stoudemire could turn into yet another Knicks legend on a title team.
8. Newcastle Eagles: Dave Cowens
We're not really sure what Newcastle has going on, but they're relatively young and skilled at most positions. The future of Anthony Davis is unknown after his last training camp, and none of Newcastle's other pieces are locks to stick around. Still, their glaring weakness right now is a big man to complement Davis, and Cowens is the definition of complement. Cowens is limited offensively, although he shows some promise, but is stellar on defense. His limited athleticism is the only reason he doesn't go higher than this.
9. Aalborg Vikings: Calvin Murphy
Aalborg is shocked to see Calvin Murphy fall this far. At the end of the day, though, many GMs are afraid of Murphy's short stature. While Murphy has as much potential with skill as anyone in this draft, and combines that with great athleticism, 5'9" players usually do not become superstars in this game. Still, Aalborg is happy to see Murphy at this spot and quickly adds him to a young core that might be playoff-bound next year. The Vikings could use a PG to move Larry Costello to a backup, and Murphy should be ready to start as a rookie.
10. Portland Trailblazers: Randy Smith
Portland was hoping Murphy would fall one more spot, but his floor is probably with the Vikings. Portland, though, has caught PG fever, and goes for Randy Smith here to play an up-tempo offense alongside Rudy Gay, Paul Pierce, and Al Horford. Smith is an intriguing prospect who I'm also surprised has not received much hype. He's similar to Richie Guerin from last year's draft in that he's a guard with good rebounding potential who likes to mix it up inside. Smith's an interesting player who will be able to contribute form day one.
11. San Francisco Warriors: Caron Butler
San Francisco's future is up in the air, with the only pieces they have that are probably locks to stay put being Goodrich and Gervin. They go for Caron Butler here, a somewhat raw player who many scouts have going #1 in the draft. Butler has gobs of potential, and while he might take a while to get there, the Warriors can wait for a while or try to trade him for a piece to complement Goodrich.
12. Madrid Real: Geoff Petrie
Madrid addressed one weakness with Bellamy, and targets another one here with Geoff Petrie. Petrie might not have star potential, but he's good on both ends of the floor already, and should get better steadily over the next few years. He can step in and start immediately for Madrid.
13. Seattle Supersonics: Doug Moe
Seattle has a pretty talented, well-rounded roster, and will be looking for a player here who can step in to what they already have set up. Moe is a well-rounded SF who can score inside and in the mid-range, grab rebounds, and play decent defense. He's not the most athletic player, but has a skill level that will probably probably complement Larry Johnson and Dario Saric.
14. New York Knicks: Ralph Simpson
New York is back on the clock again and rolls the dice with Ralph Simpson. Simpson's not a big man and does add to a large guard rotation for the Knicks, but NY cannot pass up Simpson's talent. He can score inside and out, play defense, and is among the best athletes in the draft. Simpson could end up being one of those big steal picks down the road.
15. N'awlins Jazz: Tayshaun Prince
N'awlins made a big move in trading for Marc Gasol, who forms a scary combo with Maurice Stokes. The Jazz also have a good guard rotation with Ellis, Price, and Calvin, although this team is not afraid to shake up the roster at a moment's notice. Mario Hezonja is the only real weakspot in the lineup for the Jazz, so they pick a player here that could be a high-level role player to replace him. Prince plays excellent defense and has some scoring potential. He has the makings of a 5th starter that could drive a team to a championship.
16. Piraeus Olimpiacos BC: Dan Issel
Issel's fallen pretty far here for three reasons. First, New York has three picks and will not select Issel because they're dramatic past. Second, Issel is a limited athlete. And third, Issel does not play defense. Usually, teams will go after a play who doesn't play D if they are athletic (Amar'e Stoudemire), or a player who isn't athletic but does play defense (Dave Cowens). However, Issel's combination of the two causes him to drop all the way down to Pireaus, who will find a way to fit him into his frontcourt.
17. Vancouver Grizzlies: Manuel Raga
A team who struggled last year to find cheap depth picks up one of the most ready players in the draft this year, Manuel Raga. Raga can jump out of the gym and has a sweet mid-range jump shot. Vancouver needs some guard help and Raga will be able to give them that at a good cost. Beyond the cheap contract for a productive player, Raga is already 26, which some teams might see as a negative. However, for Vancouver just outside the lottery, that's a positive. Raga cannot leave the Grizzlies for four years, and only has to survive one training camp to be safe.
18. Istanbul Anadolu Efes: Jay Williams
Istanbul had a remarkable season last year without a GM and with a pretty shaky roster outside of LeBron James. With the CPU picking here, I expect Istanbul will add a good player to their roster, since automatic picks are usually pretty good. Jay Williams is pretty raw, but has a lot of potential to help Istanbul out long-term.
19. Piraeus Olimpiacos BC: Rudy Tomjanovich
Piraeus is back on the clock here after stealing Dan Issel. While they might need a guard, I think the smart play here is to pick a big and then try to ship him or Issel later. Rudy Tomjanovich might need some time to develop, but could turn into a well-rounded, scoring big man. Piraeus will just have worry about Rudy T taking a Mutombo elbow in practice.
20. Chicago Bulls: Don Kojis
Chicago's adding another pick to help out with Yao Ming, and ends up taking Don Kojis. Kojis is raw and sort of an undersized Power Forward like Calvin Natt, but has great scoring potential, and should be good on defense and the glass. Even more, he's a great leaper. Chicago can take a gamble on an odd player knowing that they'll have time to figure it out.
I ran out of time to analyze the rest of the first round, but here are the picks:
21. Seattle Supersonics: Sam Lacey
22. Minnesota Timberwolves: Billy Paultz
23. Taipei Fubon Braves: Jim McMillian
24. Shanghai Sharks: Matt Barnes
25. Buenos Aires Boca Juniors: Ray Scott
26. Madrid Real: Nene
27. Cleveland Cavaliers: George Irvine
28. Real: Garfield Heard
29. Brooklyn Nets: Nenad Krstic
30. Bamberg Brose Baskets: Larry Siegfied
31. Boston Celtics: John Salmons
32. Perth Wildcats: Mike Dunleavy, Jr.
. Wait, you did say the baby has arrived, no?
). 