The NBA Draft is the best way for low-budget franchises to rebuild as oppose to the big budget super powers who just wait for July 1st (Start of Free Agency.). A prime example being the Oklahoma City Thunder and GM Sam Presti which we all know made it to the NBA Finals this past season. They acquired four of their starting five via the draft and the other starter (Kendrick Perkins) was dealt to the team for Jeff Green (who OKC was given in a draft day trade in 2007). All teams with top 5 picks will look to reload and gain superstars while hoping to spend not as much money like OKC did. For some teams that is MUCH easier said than done. Teams like the Charolette Bobcats and Portland Trail Blazers haven’t had much success with top picks in recent memories. Especially Bobcats owner Michael Jordon. But I will save that for another time…
New Orleans Hornets
Drafted Players: Anthony Davis (1), Austin Rivers (10), Darius Miller (46)
Projected Starting Five:
PG: Jarret Jack
SG: Eric Gordon
SF: Al-Farouq Aminu
PF: Anthony Davis
C: Chris Kaman
Key Bench Players: Rashard Lewis, Austin Rivers
Why: For starters. The team only allowed 93 ppg last season. That was 8th lowest in the NBA. Subtract Trevor Ariza and Emeka Okafor and that will hurt. Add Anthony Davis… It makes up for both and more! As we all know Davis is best known for two things. His unibrow and his knack for swatting virtually everything put up in the lane. The man led the NCAA in blocks last season at 4.7 per contest. Thats not too bad when your going up against SEC teams. Davis surely has super-star potential and passes everyone’s eye test. As Skip Bayless has pointed out is that Austin Rivers is the most skilled guard in the draft class. He didn’t directly say it but he mentioned that Davis and Rivers were the two most talented so that would make Rivers the top guard offensively. Many people knock his shoot-first mentality however, he was at Duke. The Plumlee’s couldn’t do anything except dunk and his next best option was Ryan Kelly (sometimes). If Rivers learns to distribute a bit more and work on his handles he could find himself starting with Eric Gordon in the back court for years to come.
Washington Wizards
Drafted Players: Bradley Beal (3), Tomas Satoransky (32)
Projected Starting Five:
PG: John Wall
SG: Bradley Beal
SF: Trevor Ariza
PF: Nene
C: Emeka Okafor
Key Bench Players: Trevor Booker, Jordan Crawford, Chris Singleton, Andray Blatche, Tomas Satoransky, Jan Vesely
Why: As soon as the team dumped Nick Young and JaVale McGee I began to believe. I thought that even though the two were talented- they were awful in the locker room. The Wizards would not make the playoffs in the West, I must say that. In the East however I consider the 7 and 8 seeds a toss up on year in, year out basis. The Wizards have added Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza who will contribute mightly in their own ways. Okafor will give the team a true leader who will step in and demand respect from the youthful Wizards. Ariza will give the team a defensive stopper on the wing who is capable of 10 ppg. The backcourt will be youthful and explosive. With John Wall running the show with a sharp shooting wing man in Beal, the tandem will be tough to stop in the open court. The front court of Okafor and Nene will provide two big 6’10, 6’11 monsters who will pound the glass. My favorite part is the bench. Jan Vesley was a great option last year along. Andray Blatche is just a year removed from a 16-8 season and Trevor Booker and Chris Singleton are very viable options. My only wish is that they get rid of Jordan Crawford. He filled in for Nick Young when he left and continued the tradition of chucking up shots.
Sacramento Kings
Drafted Players: Thomas Robinson (5), Orlando Johnson (traded to Indiana for cash)
Projected Starting Five:
PG: Isaiah Thomas
SG: Marcus Thorton
SF: Tyreke Evans
PF: Thomas Robinson
C: DeMarcus Cousins
Key Bench Players: John Salmons, Jason Thompson, Jimmer Fredette
Why: Number never lie right? 104.4. The Kings allowed an average of 104.4 ppg. That is pitiful. They scored 98.8 on the somewhat bright side. Thomas Robinson won’t add much to that number of 98.8 because he isn’t a very well rounded low-post scorer. He has a perfect build and an NBA ready body. At Kansas he averaged over 10 boards per game and was an All-American. Next year I believe he will average around 8 rebounds and be an All-Rookie selection. The 104.4 will drop down due to his strong presence in the paint. T-Rob is the perfect complement to DeMarcus Cousins down low. Cousins can grab rebounds which he did very effectively last season but T-Rob is a banger. He will fight down low and ease the stress for Cousins. The Pacific division already has Bynum and Gasol. With T-Rob and DeMarcus the Kings can now truly compete with the Lakers in my opinion. The backcourt of Thomas, Thorton and Evans will be average but the interior physicality of the Kings is where the games will be won.
Houston Rockets:
Players Drafted: Jeremy Lamb (12), Royce White (16), Terrence Jones (18)
Projected Starting Five:
PG: Kyle Lowry
SG: Kevin Martin
SF: Chandler Parsons
PF: Terrence Jones
C: Luis Scola
Key Bench Players: Royce White, Jeremy Lamb, Goran Dragic, Marcus Morris
Why: The Rockets barely missed the playoffs last season. With trade talks swirling about the Rockets making a move for Dwight Howard the team went ahead and drafted 3 players in the first 20 picks. At twelve it was Jeremy Lamb. Quite frankly I didn’t understand why he fell so low. At Connecticut he was an elite scorer and had probably the game that translated in the NBA after Davis and Waiters. Lamb should be a fantastic scorer off the bench and I see him being in the league for the next 10 years due to his ability to make his own shot. Next was Royce White who has a position yet to be determined. The guy can do it all pretty well. His problem is that he is a tweener with no true position therefore he doesn’t really excel in any particular area. Finally was Terrence Jones. Jones was one of the best big men in the country last season paired with Anthony Davis. Jones has a great skill set for a 3-4 kind of player. The Rockets will be next years Denver Nuggets or Philadelphia 76ers. They will have a variety of options with one man who scores a bit more than the rest (Kevin Martin). The problem with the Rockets is their lack of size after giving away Marcus Camby and trading away Samuel Dalembert they only have Greg Smith as a true center. Yikes.
Charlotte Bobcats:
Just kidding.
