A number of teams improved on Thursday, but few players were drafted into ideal situations, and hence there are fairly average grades across the board.
Clippers: Blake Griffin will be a nice NBA player, but I don't see someone who will be on the All-Star team on an annual basis at the power forward position the way we've seen from Tim Duncan, Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Garnett. He will bring a tremendous amount of stability and athleticism in the frontcourt, but the Clippers should have at least explored their options of trading down to acquire a legitimate wing and Ricky Rubio while shedding Baron Davis or Chris Kaman.
Grade: B+
Alternative pick: Trade down for Ricky Rubio
Grizzlies: I'm a bigger fan of what Memphis did at 27 and 36 than I could be with the 2nd overall pick. DeMarre Carroll and Sam Young are the kind of role players on the wing that complement a scorer like Rudy Gay really well.
As far as the Thabeet pick, he is a rare talent even if he will clearly be one of the least talented 2nd overall picks in history. There weren't trade offers that made sense for Memphis, as the teams that wanted Rubio the most did not have assets that matched up for them.
The grade reflects the value they mined from that 2nd pick.
Grade: C+
Alternative pick: Ricky Rubio
Thunder: James Harden makes excellent sense for Oklahoma City; he is a classic off guard, who can score on the perimeter and off the dribble. Giving Kevin Durant a secondary scorer who can create his own shot will be hugely valuable in playoff basketball.
But the pick was clearly on the safe side and Harden has limitations in term of his ceiling.
Drafting either Ricky Rubio or Stephen Curry would have been Sam Presti going for the jugular and there is a sense of blown opportunities.
Rubio would create an unending number of scoring opportunities for Durant, Green, Westbrook and eventually B.J. Mullens, who they grabbed with the 24th overall pick (via Dallas swap).
Minnesota supposedly wants to do an Isiah/Dumars thing with Rubio and Flynn, which won't work, but it is because of the personnel. Rubio and Westbrook could have easily pulled off the double point guard backcourt without any hitches whatsoever. Westbrook can guard wings and neither player needs the ball in their hands offensively at all times.
Curry would also have given the Thunder double point guards, but he would have played more of a traditional shooting guard role offensively and guard point guards on defense. He would extend the defense and reach his full potential playing next to a superstar wing in Durant.
Grade: B-
Alternative pick: Ricky Rubio or Stephen Curry
Kings: I was one of Tyreke Evans' biggest fans throughout this process, but saw him as the kind of player with a limited set of teams where he would excel. Evans would have been an excellent pick for Golden State, Toronto and New Jersey, but he is a bad fit for the Kings' current roster. He is a shooting guard with some point guard abilities, which will mean he dominates the ball unlike any player we've seen since Allen Iverson. He is Steve Francis and Stephon Marbury with a little more size, a little less athleticism and a less talented playmaker in setting up teammates.
Rubio should have been an easy selection for Sacramento.
I saw Omri Casspi as a perfect fit for the Kings at 23 for several weeks, giving them a big wing scorer who moves well without the ball and can score inside. Moving without the ball will come in handy for Casspi considering how seldom he'll have it with Evans running the point.
Jon Brockman doesn't do it for me at all as an NBA player, even though he could stick for a few years as an agitator. All nine picks after Brockman would have been better.
Grade: D+
Alternative pick: Ricky Rubio
Wizards: The Wizards want to win immediately, but trading Rubio for Randy Foye and Mike Miller is a heavy price to pay. The odds of Rubio slipping to five looked like a longshot earlier in the week when they pulled the trigger on the trade, but that's why teams wait on seeing who falls. The Cavs and Magic also made big maneuvers this week, so the Eastern Conference playoff picture is crowded and I still see this Wizards team as being a notch below BOS/CLE/ORL.
Grade: D+
Alternative pick: Keep the pick
Wolves: Minnesota pulled off an excellent trade for the fifth pick, lucked into Rubio and then drafted Jonny Flynn, which confuses the situation to no end. I had Harden and Flynn going to Minnesota at five and six, which would have been logical and probably would have put the Wolves into the playoffs in 2012. Now, David Kahn has some serious maneuvering to do with his roster.
By the looks of it, Rubio will never put on a Minnesota uniform, so they will need to work with Portland on a bailout. New York will do everything within their power to get Rubio, but I don't see any assets that they could legitimately use in order to get it done.
The Wolves got excellent value out of the Ty Lawson trade getting Charlotte's pick from Denver and Wayne Ellington is a nice wing to pick up as late as 28.
Off the top of my head, I can't think of another team with less talent on the wings than Minnesota.
I don't think Henk Norel has enough ability to be an NBA player; he has really good skill and length, but is soft and very average athletically.
Grade: C
Alternative pick: Rubio and Curry or DeRozan
Warriors: Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry are the softest defensive backcourt in NBA history. These two are the epitome of flyweights.
They also have Anthony Morrow, who is a proven 3-point specialist, amongst more shooting guards than even Don Nelson can find a way to give minutes to.
Golden State has been in the process of working on the Amare trade, so there are some moving pieces Don Nelson and Larry Riley are in the midst of juggling and shifting around. But it is difficult to say the Warriors know what they're doing right now and would be better off dealing Monta than Andris Biedrins.
Trading Curry seems like it is out the window right now and they say they would have picked him with the 2nd overall pick, but it should be considered. Curry's trade value will never be higher than it is right now and it is similar to driving a new car off the lot once he steps on an NBA floor.
Grade: B+
Alternative pick: Jordan Hill if Amare doesn't happen
Knicks: It really looks like Amare stepped in the way of New York landing Curry with the eighth pick. Jordan Hill is not a sexy pick and won't be an All-Star, but he will be a good utility kind of big that will run the floor, rebound, post-up a little bit and stay out of the way when need be. In a SSOL system, he will do well and he was the best player available for the Knicks.
I think both Jrue Holiday and Jeff Teague could have become All-Stars in New York with what could happen there, but the Knicks needed something immediately and Hill gives them that.
Toney Douglas cost the Knicks $3 million and that was a steep price to pay for him. He doesn't have that impressive of a skill set or jumper, but he can create his own mid-range jumper, which is where he is at his best. With wider lanes and Mike D'Antoni's system, he could end up a more effective NBA player than he was in college. He also is a good spot-up shooter. The Knicks wanted a point guard with that 29th pick and there wasn't one taken after him that you can legitimately say is better.
Excellent move turning Quentin Richardson into Darko Milicic. He is only 24 and as much as he's synonymous with one-liners and websites, he actually can play and now he's in a system that suits him under a coach who will fully believe in him.
Grade: A-
Alternative pick: Jrue Holiday
Raptors: The Raptors are playing the long con by acquiring Demar DeRozan. Toronto needs a quick fix in order to keep Chris Bosh and DeRozan won't provide that. The Raptors need to get in between the Warriors and Suns with the steep price about to paid for Amare, because they then could turn it around fairly quickly.
DeRozan has the best upside of any wing in this draft by a wide margin, but he also has the best bust potential. He isn't Vince Carter and we'll have to see how quickly his development as a pure ballplayer comes along.
Grade: B
Alternative pick: Terrence Williams
Bucks: Jennings seems like a bad fit for Milwaukee, while at the same time I don't see a better Scott Skiles fit at point guard than Jrue Holiday. He's got great size at the point guard position and will become a great facilitator while Jennings is cut from the Iverson/Francis cloth.
Jodie Meeks is a skilled perimeter scorer, but his lack of athleticism will hurt him more than it did in the SEC. It's very good value at 41, however.
Grade: C+
Alternative pick: Jrue Holiday
Nets: The Nets added Courtney Lee and Terrence Williams to their perimeter on Thursday. I like both players a lot, but those are two role players on the wings and there's no getting around it. Either would be excellent beside a superstar, something the Nets clearly do not have. But they have a very good nucleus, especially at point guard and center and a ton of cap space if they could convince a true superstar to come on board.
Grade: B
Alternative pick: Earl Clark
Bobcats: Charlotte keeps drafting solid role players with no tangible star upside. Gerald Henderson lacks any special skills or athleticism and would have been better served in Chicago.
Derrick Brown should make the team and be a contributor in a similar vein as when Jared Dudley was on the team.
Grade: B-
Alternative pick: Earl Clark
Pacers: The further and further DeJuan Blair slid down the first round and out to 37, the more vindicated Indiana appeared for selecting Tyler Hansbrough in his place. Blair is now expected to become a brilliant low post threat since he ended up in an ideal situation with the Spurs, but there will be no heat on this pick for that reason.
A.J. Price could become the last option at point guard if T.J. Ford is dealt. Indiana needs to start praying for the first overall pick next year, so John Wall could move one state over from Kentucky.
Grade: C
Alternative pick: Jrue Holiday
Suns: The Suns left multiple point guards on the board and unlike other teams, I like that decision. Earl Clark has great skill at 6'10" and Phoenix is a place where he will succeed.
I didn't expect Taylor Griffin to be drafted and didn't even put him in our Draft Sim and I don't think he'll stick.
Grade: A
Alternative pick: Austin Daye
Pistons: In one fell swoop this offseason, it looks like the Pistons will add three very talented pieces in the draft (Austin Daye, DaJuan Summers and Jonas Jerebko) and then Carlos Boozer and Ben Gordon.
I love Daye's potential as a mismatch nightmare with how he can bring out big defenders with his shot. Summers is a gritty combo forward with enough skill on the perimeter and size down low. Jerebko has some Dirk Nowitzki in him and could be one of the better European players in the NBA if he moves up his skills and physical abilities another notch.
Grade: A
Alternative pick: Jrue Holiday
Bulls: The Bulls must think that they will be able to re-sign Ben Gordon or trade Luol Deng/Tyrus Thomas for a wing, because they drafted two low ceiling power forwards. I also don't see how they fit into potentially getting Chris Bosh.
James Johnson is similar to Tyrus Thomas in the sense that he has nice versatility but doesn't have a true position and has now low post game.
I liked Taj Gibson late in the first round for a few teams, but not Chicago. He is a good shotblocker and has a solid yet underwhelming offensive game.
This is a team that obviously will make many more moves this summer, probably beginning with a Kirk Hinrich trade.
There wasn't a shooting guard available that would have made sense for them at 16, but I think pairing Holiday with Derrick Rose would have been brilliant. Mullens also would have been a potentially more rewarding seelction.
Grade: C-
Alternative pick: B.J. Mullens
76ers: The first A is to their marketing department for bringing back the classic 76ers logo. That is one of the classic logos in sports, associated with Dr. J, Moses, Mo Cheeks and the early Sir Charles. Though not on quite the same level, it is similar to the Celtics' leprechaun and the famous Lakers' logo, something you don't want to touch or have disappear.
Jrue Holiday's drop shocked me and Ed Stefanski capitalized on it in spades. Holiday has a lot of similar intangibles as Chris Paul and could essentially become a taller version of him. He played out of position at UCLA, so we will see a completely different Holiday in the NBA.
If Holiday has an extremely quick learning NBA curve, the Sixers could end up in the Eastern Conference Finals this year.
Grade: A
Alternative pick: Teague
Heat: Miami's first round pick went to Minnesota and they selected Lawson in order to deal him to Denver.
They left the draft with Patrick Beverley and Robert Dozier, two second rounders that have a chance of making the NBA and becoming role players, albeit a slim chance.
Grade: B
Alternative pick: Josh Heytvelt
Hawks: I thought Jeff Teague would have made a lot of sense for several teams ahead of Atlanta beginning with the Knicks at number eight. Teague is an elite playmaker off the dribble with an excellent perimeter shot to boot and has virtually no bust potential at the point guard position. Leading up to the draft, he had unquestionably been the most overlooked player of this class.
Sergly Gladyr was one player I never had the opportunity to watch, so I can't really comment on the selection.
Grade: A
Alternative pick: B.J. Mullens
Jazz: Utah had been linked to Hansbrough, but with him off the board and no interest in taking on Blair, they selected Eric Maynor at 20. I really like the selection because it gives them instant insurance on Deron Williams and they can also share the floor for a few minutes per night. I didn't see Maynor as a lottery pick, but think he is a nice value at 20.
Goran Suton is a less talented Kosta Koufos, so I don't see him being around this season and perhaps he'll allow them to be stashed back abroad.
Grade: A-
Alternative pick: Omri Casspi
Hornets: The Hornets could have taken on a project in B.J. Mullens or a big wing scorer in Omri Casspi, but instead went with Darren Collison, who will be one of the best backups in the NBA. Speedy Claxton and Jannero Pargo were excellent point guard partners with Chris Paul and Collison will similarly excel.
By the time Mullens is legitimately ready, CP3 will likely be in a similar place of frustration as we saw from KG in Minnesota in 2006.
Grade: B
Alternative pick: B.J. Mullens
Blazers: The Blazers drafted the kind of player they were long expected to take, big athletic, European wing, but it was Victor Claver instead of Omri Casspi. It also was interesting to see them join the group of passing on DeJuan Blair since they have so famously have touted their need for a physical low post threat.
Claver has really good agility and athleticism to match his length and skill level; I think he will be a good pro but he doesn't do much to add anything new that they don't already have in Nicolas Batum and Travis Outlaw.
In the second round, Portland got progressively better with each pick. Jeff Pendergraph could give them lunchpale minutes right away, while Dante Cunningham has impressive athleticism and enough room for potential offensively to become a poor man's Joe Smith. Patrick Mills at 55 overall might have been the most surprising drop of the night and he can became a Nate Robinson type of gadget player, who lucked into a situation where he will play with shooting guards who can take on some of the point guard duties.
Grade: A-
Alternative pick: Rodrigue Beaubois
Rockets: I think Daryl Morey's advanced statistical measurements works much better for players that have logged NBA minutes than collegiate or foreign players, but I have a lot of faith in the way they evaluate talent across the board.
Taylor looked like a late second round player to me, but he is a good scorer in transition with good athleticism, so he could quite easily fill that Von Wafter type of roll for them. He isn't the most confident player in the world, though he did average 26.2 points per game.
Sergio Llull has some potential at point guard and is agile and athletic, but I don't see anything special in his skills to warrant the 34th pick.
Chase Budinger was thought of by many as a lottery pick as a freshman and now he goes 44th in a supposedly weak draft; Thursday must have been a difficult night for a guy who was the third banana of the McDonald's All-America Game that featured Greg Oden and Kevin Durant. I think he's a victim of playing for three coaches in three years, and an unrealistic set of expectations. Joe Alexander went 8th overall last year and there is not 36 picks separating those two players. He is a very good athlete despite the short arms and is also a really good shooter. Budinger can also handle the ball a little bit, so Houston is a great fit for him and he should stick.
Grade: B-
Alternative pick: Didn't have a first rounder
Mavericks: The Mavericks bluffed their way into an additional asset from Oklahoma City while walking away with Rodrigue Beaubois, who could become the second best point guard in a draft loaded with them. He has shown the capacity to shoot the ball from the perimeter along with amazing quickness with the dribble. I like his game a lot and can't wait to see him on an NBA floor.
In the second round, Dallas took two of my favorite sleepers in Nick Calathes and Ahmad Nivins. I had Calathes in the late first round and Nivins in the early part of the second, so they got really good value in both at 45 and 56 respectively. Calathes has good size and skill at the point guard position and appears to be going to Greece for a year or two, which should allow his game and maturity to come along significantly. Nivins is one of the most active and athletic bigs in the draft and since the Mavericks have so many skilled players already, he gives them an element they need.
Grade: A
Alternative pick: DeMarre Carroll
Spurs: With no first round picks, the Spurs landed a guy projected to go as high as 11 in DeJuan Blair and two guards with legitimate NBA potential.
Blair's knees scared away Portland, who clearly need a player of his ability, three separate times. San Antonio needs a low-post forward and even if his career is extremely short, he is NBA ready and fits in with their quickly closing window.
Jack McClinton is an excellent perimeter shooter, who will succeed with the Spurs even though there are few teams he could be a contributor for.
I don't think we'll see Nando De Colo for a few years, but he is brilliant with the ball and a highly imaginative passer. He is also a pure shooter and he will be another European steal for the Spurs.
Grade: A
Alternative pick: No first round pick
Nuggets: Ty Lawson will help right away, allowing them to chance the pace from Chauncey Billups and possibly allow him to play some off guard beside him. I don't like Lawson as an eventual starter, but he will thrive in that system and in the altitude. His improved shot cannot be overstated either.
Grade: A
Alternative pick: Jeff Teague
Magic: Otis Smith was proactive on Thursday, but I think Hedo Turkoglu and Courtney Lee combined are more valuable than Vince Carter.
Grade: C
Alternative pick: Didn't have one
Celtics: I like Lester Hudson and he'll be able to play right away if he makes the team. They don't have a lot of backcourt depth and probably provides more than Stephon Marbury at this point.
Grade: B
Alternative pick: Josh Heytvelt
Lakers: If the money earned from selling Toney Douglas to the Knicks results in re-signing Lamar Odom, Trevor Ariza and Shannon Brown, then there can't be a legitimate complaint about this move. The Lakers need help at point guard and Douglas or Patrick Mills or Patrick Beverley (who was traded to Miami) wouldn't be an upgrade over Jordan Farmar either.
Grade: C
Alternative pick: Not selling it to Knicks
Cavaliers: I thought the 30th overall pick would be an interesting indicator for what Cleveland is thinking in the long term and drafting Christian Eyenga suggests there is in fact an incredibly long plan in place within their front office. Drafting Eyenga in the first round is akin to that Japanese CEO with a 500-year business plan.
The pick is similar to Presti's selection of Serge Ibaka in the 2008 edition; born in Africa, incredible athleticism, extremely raw. He has enough natural ability to develop into a special player with more floor experience. The success rate of players like this, however, is staggeringly small and there were several players available at 30 that could contribute immediately.
Danny Green is a nice pick and is just as good as Sam Young, who Cleveland had interested in with the 30th. He isn't as long and athletic as Young, but I think he's a better pure player and will be a better mid-range jump shooter. Green is too small to defend Rashard Lewis, but he should be able to defend Vince Carter and Kobe Bryant, at least better than what they currently have.
Emir Preldzic is a nice late draft find, with good size and can create off the dribble from the perimeter.
Grade: C+
Alternative pick: Derrick Brown